Joshua Elsom: Blog

James White v. Dan Barker

2009-10-07T20:09:00.000-07:00

Copied from Last Words Radio.

Dr. James White debated Dan Barker on the “Jesus Myth” answering the question about Jesus being a mashup of pagan myths. Read their article here. Or, watch the full video here. Our own Josh Elsom had the privilege of interviewing James White before the debate and you can listen to it here.

Here are Josh’s thoughts after the interview and debate.

At the beginning of Dan Barker's opening statement I leaned over to Paul Kaiser and said,"Man this stuff just does not sound that convincing, I think I could argue against this." Then the knots he was tying progressively got more complicated. He gave a lot of quotes from historical texts that seem to present a pretty parallel story to Jesus. So at the surface it seemed rather convincing. At this point I leaned over to Paul and said that I was glad to be sitting down here and not in Dr. White's seat.

It was when Dr. White got to the cross examination that the claims of Dan came clear to me. Dan's position was this:

We have a lot of stories that are very similar to the Gospel account therefore the probability that the Jesus story was authentic,unique, and original goes way down. Dan admitted that this was not empirical proof that the Gospels were fabricated but the odds are really stacked against it being true.

This is what I gleaned from Dr. White's presentation:

That there are similarities in the story prove nothing and is not surprising. Every religion purposes to answer the BIG questions of Life. Where did I come from? What am I here for? and What will happen to me when I die? Therefore there is bound to be similarity in the stories. e.g. There is a creator that transcends what he/she created. There is some level of accountability/ethic that is owed to that creator. There is some version of Heaven, Nirvana, Valhalla, crossing the Styx or Hell, Hades, Tartaros, etc.

While some of the myths precede the time of Jesus, most often the close parallelism that Dan was suggesting did not happen until some time after the spread of Christianity.

The myths that seem to have parallel storylines are often not nearly as close as suggested upon deeper study. Unbelievers will find a theme, in the Bible, Jesus' resurrection for instance, then go to the myth and try and shoehorn that theme into it. Then they will clothe the myth with Christian terminology and say,"See, Mithra rose from the dead too."

The NT Gospels are not written in the same way as the alleged parallel myths. It is written as investigated historical fact, Luke and Acts in particular.

There is no way that Mark could have written and convinced a bunch of devout Jews that their Messiah was Jesus using a bunch of recycled pagan myths.

Here are some objections that I raised in my own head:

We have external confirmation that the Jesus story is true while the others do not. There were over 500 people that witnessed the resurrected Jesus. No one can provide any evidence to substantiate the life or existence of any of the other gods.

Jesus fulfilled hundreds of prophecies that were centuries older than the myths that have supposed parallels to Jesus' story. So Jesus' story was written far before He was born in Bethlehem.

This is a question that I wrote and which was selected and asked in the audience question segment of the debate:

We have thousands of Flood myths from all over the world from every conceivable people group; using your logic on probabilities wouldn't the parallelism of these myths increase the likelihood that a global flood actually occurred?

I found Dan Barker to be condescending, disrespectful and disingenuous. He made repeated insults against Jesus and the Faith, he violated the rules of the debate, and he made claims about Christianity that he absolutely must know are not true. Being that he grew up in church and studied the Bible there is no way he could honestly misrepresent what we believe in such a gross way. He did not seem interested in convincing any of us Christians that we were wrong, rather it appeared to me that he was far more interested in reaffirming the unbelief of the atheists that were present

Thanks, Josh, for a great contribution to the show!

Confronting the Wolves

2009-10-05T19:28:00.000-07:00

In recent days I have been speaking to some friends about how we might properly address aberrant or heretical teaching with in the Church. We've not exactly seen eye to eye on the issue but the dialogue has been good.

Below you will find three videos, one that demonstrates error and two which address how the Church should confront the wolves in her midst.

The Wolf:

YOU

The Shepherd:

But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of truth will be blasphemed. And in their greed they will exploit you with false words. Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep. - Peter

We Read the Bible . . . You Can Too!

2009-09-30T17:19:00.000-07:00

Copied from LifeAction.org

I've made many attempts to have a faithful devotional life, but they were always short-lived. I suppose I expected the discipline of Bible study to be easy for a Christian. When it was difficult and overwhelming for me, I felt discouraged and defeated.

In the process of a family struggle, I cried out to God for help, and He did something I wasn't expecting at all. He revived me. He placed in me a hunger to know Him more intimately, along with a deep desire to read His Word.

I was thrilled. I couldn't wait to delve into the Bible. However, there was something ironic about God's timing. I was the mother of three children under age four. God gave me this great hunger for His Word at the most hectic time of my life! Yet I was determined not to let the busyness of being a wife and mom—or my past discouragements—diminish this appetite.

So I launched into a routine of Bible reading and prayer. Unfortunately, I quickly faced those same struggles with inconsistency that had plagued me for years. But I kept trying.

I also felt an urgency to get more of God's Word into the hearts of my kids. We had just finished a children's devotional book, and I was looking for what to do next ... when an idea hit. I had two goals: I wanted to read the Bible, and I wanted my children to know God's Word. Why not do both at the same time? Why not read the entire Bible together?

My plan was simple: one chapter a day, five days a week. I shared this plan with my husband, Wes, and he provided much needed encouragement. However, after voicing the plan, I became curious to know how long it would take us to read the entire Bible. I put pencil to paper (factoring in "sick days"), and—Yikes!—my plan was going to take EIGHT YEARS!
I must admit, the idea of such a long-term commitment intimidated me, but I had a longing that would not go away. So, we began.

The first few days of reading were tricky. I was all jazzed at the prospect of reading the whole Bible. For some unknown reason, I thought my children would share my enthusiasm. Instead, while I was reading about the fall of man, they were jumping and spinning in their chairs. I felt like I was reading out loud to myself.

But God was gracious to not leave me feeling this way for long. On the fourth day, after our reading, my kids went off to play. Then I noticed what they were playing. They were acting out what we had just read—in great detail. They hadn't appeared to be listening, but they were hearing. They were hearing the Word of God. This was the boost I needed to keep going.
I soon realized that reading the Bible to children is not without some complications. Let's face it, the Bible (particularly the Old Testament) can be quite graphic. I almost panicked when my preschool kids asked, "Mom, what's a prostitute?"

Moments like that prompted me to start scanning ahead so I would know what was coming. I also came up with my own definitions for certain words—words my children needed to hear in order to understand the story but didn't necessarily need a complete definition for just yet. So, for example, a virgin is "a woman who has never been married." A prostitute is "a woman who goes from one man to another to another, instead of remaining faithful to a husband." You get the idea.

Before long, I could tell that they really were listening and getting drawn into each story. After reading about a long line of Israel's kings who did what was evil and provoked the Lord to anger, we came to the end of 1 Kings 16. Here we read about Ahab becoming king of Israel. The Bible says he did more to provoke the anger of the Lord than all the kings of Israel who were before him. When we finished reading chapter 16, I said, "Tomorrow, Elijah comes on the scene." My daughter yelled, "Yay, we need this guy!"

Not only were they following along closely with the stories, but God was increasing their capacity to understand. Once I was working hard to explain what it means to quench the Spirit. I likened it to throwing water on a fire. I was trying to come up with another illustration when I looked over at my son. He had his index finger pointing up, with the other hand covering his finger, while he was singing softly, "Hide it under a bushel, no! I'm gonna let it shine." He got it.
I shouldn't be surprised when they understand, just like I shouldn't be surprised when they want to respond to what we read. I saw this in an unusual and amusing way one morning as Wes was packing for a business trip. My son exclaimed, "While Dad's away, we should fast from sinning." Wes and I looked at each other. "Fast from what?" "From sinning," he said again, smiling. "And the reward for not sinning is donuts!"

That was the first of a series of requests he made to fast and pray. We had read accounts of people who fasted and prayed, and he was ready to participate. He wanted to obey, and that obedience was prompted by the Word of God. We did try to fast from sinning while Dad was away. (And Dad agreed to try not to sin while he was gone.) I'm not sure it was a total fast, but in the end we did enjoy the donuts.

How could I go from an inconsistent devotional life to a steady time of reading and meditating on Scripture? God used my children! He took a discipline that had been a struggle for me and made it an immeasurable joy. I am overflowing with gratitude to God for giving me this idea and for constantly fueling the desire to be in His Word.
After five years, we finished the Bible on March 19, 2007. We spent the day celebrating together as a family. The experience was more than simply maintaining a discipline; it was about getting to know God.

On March 20, 2007, we started over in Genesis. Together, we continue—one chapter and one day at a time.

Carrie Ward is a wife and mother of four. She and her husband, Wes, make their home in Niles, Michigan.

The Finest Food in Israel

2009-09-12T23:02:00.000-07:00

In John chapter 6, we read a very interesting exchange between Christ, the Jews, and his disciples. Within this exchange we read one of a few difficult teachings that Jesus delivered over the course of his ministry. This teaching found in the greater context of the Bread of Life discourse says:

"Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

This proved to be a very divisive saying by Jesus. In fact, it was because of this teaching that many of Jesus’ followers left him.

Clearly in the context of John chapter 6 we see that Jesus is revealing himself to be the archetype of the Manna “come down from Heaven”. However there may be more to consider in our Savior’s statements than what we see in the immediate context.

The Priest’s Provision

The tribe of Levi was distinct from the other 11 tribes. Unlike their brothers, God said that they would have no inheritance when they arrived in Canaan; that is, they would not receive any tribal land as their own. Rather, God said that He would be their inheritance. This meant that the Levites responsibilities within the nation of Israel were a little different than the other tribes. They attended local altars, supervised cities of refuge, served as judges and educators, and were charged with the daily duties in and around the Tabernacle. Since the Levites had no land of their own and because of their differing role within the nation they were not able to provide for themselves. Therefore, the Levites lived off of the tithes, offerings, and burnt sacrifices of the other tribes. This of course meant that the priesthood was supplied with and survived on the very best provisions that the Land of Israel had to offer.

Upon first consideration the idea that anyone would dare eat the burnt sacrifices off of the Altar of God sounds blasphemous. It is often assumed that these offerings were holy, set apart, unto God alone. This was not the case. In fact we read in the Torah that the diet of the priests was specifically outlined and commanded. Leviticus, chapters 6 and 7, gives us the specific instructions on what the sons of Aaron should eat and how they were to partake of these offerings.

“The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, This is the law of the sin offering. In the place where the burnt offering is killed shall the sin offering be killed before the LORD; it is most holy. The priest who offers it for sin shall eat it.’”

"These are the regulations for the guilt offering, which is most holy: The guilt offering is to be slaughtered in the place where the burnt offering is slaughtered, and its blood is to be sprinkled against the altar on all sides. All its fat shall be offered: the fat tail and the fat that covers the inner parts, both kidneys with the fat on them near the loins, and the covering of the liver, which is to be removed with the kidneys. The priest shall burn them on the altar as an offering made to the LORD by fire. It is a guilt offering. Any male in a priest's family may eat it, but it must be eaten in a holy place; it is most holy.”

"The same law applies to both the sin offering and the guilt offering: They belong to the priest who makes atonement with them. The priest who offers a burnt offering for anyone may keep its hide for himself. Every grain offering baked in an oven or cooked in a pan or on a griddle belongs to the priest who offers it, and every grain offering, whether mixed with oil or dry, belongs equally to all the sons of Aaron.”

Things are far different today than they were those thousands of years ago. The current age in which we find ourselves and the New Covenant that we are under has rendered the Levitical priesthood and the sacrificial system obsolete. Today we understand that it is Jesus who is our Great High Priest and the perfect satisfactory sacrifice. We also know that we, the Church, are a priesthood unto God. In fact, we are called a Holy Nation of royal priests unto the Lord (1 Peter 2:9, Revelation 5:10).

So where does that leave us with regard to Jesus’ declaration in John chapter 6, that unless we eat of his body and drink of his blood then we will not be raised to life? Again the context clearly shows that Jesus was revealing himself to be the better Manna; the Manna that sustains and yet does not perish. However, could have Jesus also been pointing forward toward the Communion Meal? We remember that Jesus would later break the bread of the Passover Seder and instruct his disciples to take and eat. “This is my body broken for you.”, and he would pass the cup of wine saying, “Take this cup, it is my blood poured out for you.”

It Is All About Him

Jesus tells the Pharisees in John chapter 5 that while they had diligently searched the Scriptures to find the way of eternal life they had failed miserably because they had not understood that the testimony of the Scriptures and the true way to eternal life was found in him. We see something similar in Revelation 19:10; John tells us in this passage that the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. That is, the central theme of the Old and New Testaments is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Finally we see Jesus making the definitive claim that all the Scriptures were about him in his Sermon on the Mount. Jesus said that he, “…did not come to destroy the Law and the Prophets but to fulfill.” I believe that Jesus is here declaring that he is both the fulfillment of prophecy and the embodiment of the Moral and Ceremonial Law. In other words, he was not only perfectly obedient to the Moral Law but Jesus was the realization of everything the Ceremonial Law’s types and symbols pointed to.

Therefore, this is what we see when looking for Jesus in the sacrificial system. - That Jesus is the total atoning provision for our sin in the Burnt Offering, he showed himself to be wholly consecrated to the will of the Father in the Grain Offering, he made reconciliation with God in the Peace Offering, he is the perfect propitiatory sacrifice in fulfillment of the Sin Offering, and he is the complete redemptive payment of the Guilt Offering.

What Now?

Next time you take communion meditate on this; think about how we, the royal priesthood of God, symbolically feast upon the eternal and perfect once-for-all sacrifice given for us. It is a meal that we did not work for but was provided for us by the labor of another. This meal is solely the result of a sacrifice given for the guilt of sin and without it we’d starve to death. Though it is marked by death it is absolutely satisfying and all that we need; in fact, we are being nourished by the finest food that the Land of Israel has to offer.

For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. – 1 Corinthians 11:26

3000

2009-09-11T22:22:00.000-07:00

I woke up this morning totally oblivious to the significance of the day. It was not until I opened my Facebook account to see the many status updates memorializing the event that I remembered. It was 8 years ago this morning that 3000 souls were lost in the terrorist attacks that came against our nation. As we memorialize those 3000 and reflect upon the tragedies that befell those in the toppling of the Twin Towers I want to remind you of another 3000 that perished, another tower that fell, and 3000 that were saved.

3000 Lost

It was only a few weeks into the Exodus of the Hebrew nation that their leader Moses ascended Mount Sinai to commune with God and receive the tablets of the Law that had bound them to their God. After forty days upon the mountain Moses descended to hear a great celebration. Unfortunately the celebration was not in exultation of God’s covenantal Law coming down to them but was in worship of the idolatrous golden calf that was built from the bounty of Egypt and fashioned by the High Priest's hands. Because of this great rebellion Moses' anger boiled and he called for all those who were on the side of God to come to him. The Levites rallied to the call of Moses and in accordance with his command they went through the camp slaughtering those who were worshiping the lifeless beast. Three thousand were killed that day.

The Tower That Fell

In Luke 13 Jesus is told about a certain group Galileans that were killed by Pontius Pilate. The inquiry was intended to find out whether these Galileans were worse sinners than their brothers to have died in such a tragic way. Jesus answered them, "Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish." He then uses another tragedy to highlight this point. "Or [how about] those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish."

3000 Saved

Seven weeks after Jesus' sacrifice on the cross and his resurrection from the grave his disciples were gathered together in the upper room celebrating the Feast of Weeks and waiting to receive unto themselves the promised gift of the Holy Spirit. As they were assembled together there came a sound from heaven like the blowing of a violent wind and the manifestation of the Holy Spirit in flames above each of the disciple's heads. They were each filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in different languages as the Spirit enabled them. This miracle caused a great stir in Jerusalem and many were drawn in by the disciple's miraculous declarations. However, some mocked the gathering and accused them of being drunk. Peter stood, with the other Apostles, in defense of Jesus' followers and addressed the crowd. He explained that they were not drunk as they had supposed but that it was the fulfillment of a prophecy given by Joel. He then declared to them that Jesus was the Promised One of God, that he was both the Messiah and Lord, andthat they had murdered him. When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, "Brothers, what shall we do?" Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call." Those who accepted Peter's message and were baptized that day were 3000. It is interesting to note that the Feast of Weeks, or Pentecost, is the the celebration of when the Law was given to the nation of Israel. So it was on the anniversary of the 3000 that were lost at Sinai that God called 3000 to life in Jerusalem.

God's Good Pleasure

So as we reflect on this day let us not forget that we are only alive today because of God's good pleasure. He has allowed us the grace of only memorializing September 11th and not falling victim to it. Like the Hebrew rebels we too have worshiped a creation of our hands or minds rather than the Creator and we warrant the wrath of a just God. Those 3000 that tragically died 8 years ago were not greater sinners than you or I, for there is none that does good and we have all fallen far short of God's glory. We are all deserving of their fate and unless we repent we will likewise perish. The wonderful news is that Jesus the Messiah is Lord and if we turn from our rebellion, turn to Jesus, and call upon his name we will be saved from death.

The Branch is Tender and Summer is Almost Here!

2008-11-20T17:14:00.000-08:00

In Matthew 24 Jesus tells his disciples that when they see specific events taking place that they should recognize that his appearing is at the door. He does this by likening those events to a fig tree getting ready to bear its fruit. I think even the skeptic must concede that we are witnessing these events taking place. I personally believe that we are living in the terminal generation. In fact, I believe that his return may be far closer than most people realize.

I am going to attempt to explain to you why I believe this, however it will require some tedious explanation and a cursory knowledge of Scripture. This post is but one of a number of entries that I plan on posting on this subject. So when you are finished reading please subscribe to the blog and I will get the others up as soon as I am able.

The following was written about 4 months and contains a portion of a topic that I posted on FulfilledProphecy.com.

I guess it has been about a month now; I was studying the pre-tribulational / post-tribulational debate and was up quite late in my studies. As could be expected my sleep was full of weird end-times inspired dreams. One stood out however. Very early in the morning, perhaps 3 or 4 a.m., I was awakened from a dead sleep by a voice. Whether this voice was audible I can not say, but I did hear it. What I heard was a paraphrase of Joel chapter 2. "There will be signs in the heavens before the great and terrible day of the Lord." I sat up immediately and wondered after the voice for a good hour. I tried to interpret what this might have meant but ultimately gave up and fell back asleep.

A few hours later I came down stairs to make breakfast and check my email. I opened my inbox to find that it was full of the typical spam and Facebook notifications but one email did catch my eye. It was titled Blood Moons. Contained in the email was a link to a video that appeared on a Television show called Prophecy in the News. The host of the program, J.R. Church, was interviewing a Messianic pastor named Mark Biltz. During the course of the interview Pastor Biltz spoke about some interesting discoveries that he had made surrounding an astronomical tetrad occurring over the years 2014 - 2015. An astronomical tetrad is when you have four consecutive total lunar eclipses. This does not happen very often, in fact centuries may pass without having one. Pastor Biltz had been studying the prophecies of Joel chapter 2 which speak of the sun being darkened and moon being turned to blood when he made the discovery. He surmised that these prophecies may simply be speaking of solar and lunar eclipses, since even to this day we call a lunar eclipse a “blood moon.” He then combined his eclipse theory with an older end times theory that was actually developed by Sir Isaac Newton.

Newton suggested, with regard to the 70 weeks prophecy of Daniel chapter 9, that the reason Gabriel divided the 69 weeks “until Messiah the Prince” (7 weeks and 62 weeks) was that the 62 weeks was the time that had transpired between the edict of Artaxerxes (Nehemiah 2) and Jesus’ first coming. He then surmised that the remaining 7 weeks must have to do with Jesus’ second coming.[1] Now there have been a few people that have suggested that the 6 Day War which occurred in 1967 between Israel and the Arab states of Egypt, Jordan, and Syria may have been the event that started the clock clicking toward the Second Advent. Why, because on June 7, 1967 Israel took control of their capitol city, Jerusalem, again for the first time in 1900 years. If this theory is correct, then 7 weeks or 49 years from the recapture of Jerusalem until “Messiah the Prince” is September 23, 2015. The interesting fact about this date is that it falls on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement for National Israel.[2]

Back to the eclipses:

Mark Biltz considered this date, because of its possible prophetic importance, to begin his search for solar and lunar eclipses. So he went to NASA’s website, which catalogues 5 millennia of solar and lunar eclipses, to see what happens around this September 2015 timeframe. It turns out that there are 6 eclipses around this date. When trying to come up with a way to interpret the data Mark had an epiphany. He thought, “Why am I looking at these dates on the Gregorian Calendar?” So he converted them to the Hebrew Calendar and when he did something amazing happened. All of the eclipses that he was looking at fell on Jewish Feast days.

Remember my dream? It was Joel 2:28

“And it shall come to pass afterward That I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your old men shall dream dreams, Your young men shall see visions. 29 And also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days. 30 “ And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth: Blood and fire and pillars of smoke. 31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD. 32 And it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the LORD Shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be deliverance, As the LORD has said, Among the remnant whom the LORD calls."

Notice not only does Joel’s prophecy speak of signs in the heavens before the great and awesome day of the LORD, he also says the young men will have visions and old men would dream dreams.

Fast forward about 3 months; I continued to be intrigued by what Mark Biltz had found so I started doing my own research on the topic. While the preceding work done by Pastor Biltz does show possible evidence for Christ's return in 2015, I think I may have found something that could clinch it. Let me explain; over the years as I have studied the prophecies of Daniel chapter 9, I have never understood nor heard a compelling explanation of why Gabriel would have divided the 69 weeks up. I even emailed Pastor Biltz to ask him what he thought. He suggested a guess, that there could have been a possible double fulfillment of the prophecy back then. Needless to say this has remained a monkey on my back. Especially regarding Pastor Biltz' suggestion that the 7 weeks are related to Jerusalem in 1967.

Tuesday, July 15th, I had my own epiphany; I thought if God is using the 7 weeks of Daniel, applied to June 7, 1967, to mark his second coming then there must be some relevant event occurring 62 weeks prior to 1967. So I did the quick math and came up with a date of 1538.[3] I then did a search on Google for "Jerusalem 1538". I could hardly believe my eyes. The very first hit that came up was a Wikipedia article that spoke of an Ottoman Sultan named Suleiman the Magnificent. Do you know what Suleiman did between the years 1535 and 1541?[4] He rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem! That means the very event that started the clock turning for Jesus' 1st coming may have started the clock for His 2nd! The Holy Spirit, I believe, may have led me to the discovery of why Gabriel split the 69 weeks. It may have been done to help us recognize these last days.

Here is what it looked like for Christ 1st Advent:

March 14th, 445 BC (Edict of Artaxerxes to rebuild the wall around Jerusalem) + 7 weeks = November 26th, 396 BC (Closing of the Old Testament Cannon?)
November 26th, 396 + 62 weeks = April 6th, 32 (Jesus' Triumphal entry into Jerusalem)
April 6th, 32 (Jesus declares himself King of the Jews by deliberately fulfilling Zecheriah 9:9)

Here is what it may look like for Christ's 2nd Advent:

August 25th, 1539 (Rebuilding of the wall) + 62 weeks = June 7, 1967 (Capture of Jerusalem)
June 7th, 1967 (Jerusalem becomes the capitol of Israel for the first time in 1900 years) + 7 weeks = September 23th, 2015 (Yom Kippur)
September 23th, 2015 (The return of King Jesus)

Eclipses:

I also considered that if there were eclipses marking the Feast days in 2014/15 then there may be something going on in 1539. There were 4 solar and 5 lunar eclipses occurring over the years 1539/40.[5] Four of these eclipses, I believe, are very significant. April 3rd, 1539 there was a lunar eclipse that fell on Passover; April 27th, 1539 there was a lunar eclipse that fell on the Feast of Tabernacles; March 22, 1540 there was a lunar eclipse that fell on Passover; September 16th, 1540 there was a lunar eclipse that fell on the Feast of Tabernacles. Now when you lay this information next to Mark Biltz' discoveries you see some striking similarities.[6]

1539 Apr 03 = (Passover) - 2014 Apr 15 = (Passover)
1539 Sep 27 = (Feast of Tabernacles) - 2014 Oct 8 = (Feast of Tabernacles)
1540 Mar 22 = (Passover) - 2015 Apr 4 = (Passover)
1540 Sep 16 = (Feast of Tabernacles) - 2015 Sep 28 = (Feast of Tabernacles)

I think this is fascinating and I also believe that it helps to support and possibly confirm what Pastor Biltz has discovered.

Other issues to consider:

Concerning Suleiman the Magnificent, it is curious that his name is a transliteration of Solomon. The reason I find this as a point of interest is that King Solomon was the first person who initiated the construction of a major wall around Jerusalem.[7] It was also under the reign of Suleiman that the East Gate into Jerusalem was sealed. Jewish religious tradition teaches that the coming Messiah will enter Jerusalem through this gate. The Muslims in an attempt to dash the hopes of Jews and Christians and to subvert an attempt by their Messiah enter the East Gate sealed it up.[8]

If you look at August 25th, 1539 on the Hebrew calendar you will find that it fell between Elul 11th and Elul 12th. To this point in my research I have yet to find any relevant historical events occurring on Elul 11th or 12th in Jewish history. However, I do have one suggestion that might make this period at least interesting. Nehemiah 6:15 says that the wall of Jerusalem was completed by Nehemiah on Elul 25th and we later see that it was completed just prior to the Feast of Tabernacles.[9] August 25th, 1539 falls 14 days from Elul 25th and 32 days before the Feast of Tabernacles. So it is at least in the range of possibility that August 25th, 1539 may mark some significant date that falls around the completion of the wall of Nehemiah. As of this point I do not have access to a Hebrew calendar that provides dates farther back then 2000 years. It is possible then that the 11th or 12th day of Elul in 445 BC might reveal something.

It should be stated that the lunar eclipses that occurred in 1539 and 1540 were not a tetrad. However consider this; there were no astronomical tetrads in the 1800s, the 1700s, or the 1600s. In the 1500s, there were six. Consider what was going on in the 16th century; not only was the wall in Jerusalem being rebuilt but other walls were being torn down. In Europe the Protestant Reformation had begun. William Tyndale translated the Bible from the Latin Vulgate into English. Martin Luther nailed his Ninety-Five Theses to the door of the Wittenberg Castle Church on October 31, 1517. The Diet of Worms was conducted from January 28 to May 25, 1521. Reformation began as Henry VIII made himself head of English Church after being excommunicated by the Pope in 1535.

Tetrad (Four Consecutive Total Eclipses): 1504 - 1505
Tetrad (Four Consecutive Total Eclipses): 1515 - 1516 - 95 Theses?
Tetrad (Four Consecutive Total Eclipses): 1522 - 1523 - Diet of Worms?
Tetrad (Four Consecutive Total Eclipses): 1533 - 1534 - Beginning construction of the Wall by Suleiman, King Henry VIII’s excommunication?
Tetrad (Four Consecutive Total Eclipses): 1562 - 1563
Tetrad (Four Consecutive Total Eclipses): 1580 - 1581

In conclusion:

If anyone is interested you can read an article that appeared on WorldNet Daily that explains, perhaps better than I have been able, the theory proposed by Mark Biltz.* It also contains links to the TV interview conducted by J.R. Church. You may also go directly to Pastor Biltz website and watch the message that he presented to his congregation regarding these discoveries. There may be an article to follow in which I will address the issues of “date setting”. Until then I would be happy to answer any questions that might arise.

"Go your way, Daniel, for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. Many shall be purified, made white, and refined, but the wicked shall do wickedly; and none of the wicked shall understand, but the wise shall understand.”

FOOTNOTES:

[1] Today we know that Isaac Newton was at least partially incorrect in his assumption. It was not until much later in history that we could accurately date the timing of the order by Artaxerxes Longimonus to rebuild and restore the walls of Jerusalem. Now we know that it was exactly 69 weeks (483 years), to the very day, from the order to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem until Jesus made his Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem. (The Coming Prince, Sir Robert Anderson)

[2] While some deny the possibility of a double fulfillment of Daniel 9, they do suggest that the date of September 23, 2015, Yom Kippur, is still significant. September 23, 2015 would mark a Jubilee Year and a Jubilee may only be proclaimed on Yom Kippur.

[3] The proper mathematical method delivers a date of August 20th, 1539. August 20th, 1539 + 62 weeks (156,235 days) = June 7, 1967 - June 7, 1967 + 7 weeks (17645 days) = September 23, 2015 - August 20th, 1539 + 69 weeks (173,880 days) = September 23, 2015 (Yom Kippur)

[4] I found a more broad range of build dates for the wall. I found dates ranging from 1535 - 1541 for reconstruction. The broadest range was from 1537-1541. However, this quote from the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs is perhaps the most authoritative I found, "The Jaffa Gate bears the inscription of the sultan Suleiman, who ordered its construction in 1538/9 (corresponding to the Muslim year 945). The Jaffa Gate is the best known and busiest of Jerusalem's gates. It was built facing west, in the direction of the port of Jaffa." Here is a recent article written about the rededication of the Mt. Zion Gate on its 468th birthday. Israel National News

[5] Solar Eclipses 1539-1540

1539 Apr 18 = Nissan 30 (Rosh Chodesh 1 / 15th day of the Omer) - Iyyar 1 ( Rosh Chodesh 2 / 16th day of the Omer)
1539 Oct 12 = Tishrei 30 (Rosh Chodesh 1) - Cheshvan 1 (Rosh Chodesh 2)
1540 Apr 07 = Nissan 30 (Rosh Chodesh 1) - Iyyar 1 (Rosh Chodesh 2)
1540 Sep 30 = Tishrei 29 (nothing showing) - Tishrei 30 (Rosh Chodeh 1)

Lunar Eclipses 1539-1540

1539 Apr 03 = Nissan 15 (Pesach) - Nissan 16 (Chol Hamoed 1 - 1st day of the Omer)
1539 Sep 27 = Tishrei 15 (Succot) - Tishrei 16 (Chol Homoed 1)
1539 Oct 27 = Cheshvan 8 (nothing showing) - Cheshvan 9 (nothing showing)
1540 Mar 22 = Nissan 14 (Erev Pesach / Fast of first born) - Nissan 15 (Pesach)
1540 Sep 16 = Tishrei 16 (Succot) - Tishrei 17 (Chol Hamoed 1)

[6] Solar Eclipses 2014-2015

2014 Apr 29 = Nissan 29 (Yom Kippur Katan/14th day of the Omer)- Nissan 30(Rosh Chodesh 1/15th day of the Omer)
2014 Oct 23 = Cheshvan 29 (nothing showing) - Cheshvan 30 (Rosh Chodesh 1)
2015 Mar 20 = Adar 29 (nothing showing) - Nissan 1 (New Year on the Hebrew calander)
2015 Sep 13= Elul29 (Erev Rosh Hashanah) – Tishrei 1 (Rosh Hashanah)

Lunar Eclipses 2014-2015

2014 Apr 15 = Nissan 14 (Pesach) - Nissan 15 (Chol Hamoed 1)
2014 Oct 08 = Tishrei 14 (Erev Succot) - Tishrei 15 (Succot)
2015 Apr 04 = Nissan 15 (Pesach) - Nissan 16 (Chol Hamoed1)
2015 Sep 28 = Tishrei 15 (Succot) - Tishrei 16 (Chol Hamoed1)

[7] 1 Kings 3:1, 1 Kings 9:15

[8] The Arabs in their attempt to stop Messiah from passing through the East Gate unwittingly fulfilled Ezekiel 44:1-3. The Arabs tried once in 1917, but were prevented by Gen. Allenby capturing Jerusalem on 24 Kislev, first day of Hanukkah. The second time was in June 1967-again prevented by the Six Day War.

[9] Nehemiah 8:13-18

PASTOR MARK BILTZ
Part 1 of 6 on Joel 2 / Eclipses of 2014/2015

PASTOR MARK BILTZ
Part 2 of 6 on Joel 2 / Eclipses of 2014/2015

PASTOR MARK BILTZ
Part 3 of 6 on Joel 2 / Eclipses of 2014/2015

PASTOR MARK BILTZ
Part 4 of 6 on Joel 2 / Eclipses of 2014/2015

PASTOR MARK BILTZ
Part 5 of 6 on Joel 2 / Eclipses of 2014/2015

PASTOR MARK BILTZ
Part 6 of 6 on Joel 2 / Eclipses of 2014/2015

Tisha B'Av

2009-07-30T06:20:00.000-07:00

Today is Tisha B’Av. That probably means absolutely nothing to most of you unless you either speak Hebrew or are already aware of this annual day of fasting in Judaism. Tisha B’Av, rendered in English as the 9th day of the Hebrew month of Av, is a day of mourning and fasting for the Jewish people and a day believed to be accursed because of the many tragedies that have befallen them on this day.

According to the Mishnah (Jewish oral tradition) Tish B'Av is the anniversary of the day that the Spies brought back the bad report. Numbers 13 & 14 tell the story of when Joshua, Moses’ successor, sent 12 men to scout out the Land that God had covenanted to their father Abraham. After 40 days spent in the Land, 10 of the 12 spies said that they were not capable of possessing that which God had promised them. Because of their unbelief the Hebrew people were prohibited from entering the Promised Land and were forced to wander in the desert forty more years until that adult generation had died out.

Since that day the 9th of Av has proven to be a day wrought with tragedy.

586 BC, Solomon's Temple was destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar, and the Babylonian captivity began;

AD 70, the Second Temple, which stood during Christ's ministry, was destroyed by the Romans precisely as Jesus predicted in Luke 19;

AD 135, the famous Bar Kokhba revolt was squelched when Bethar, the last Jewish stronghold, fell to the Romans;

AD 136, the Roman Emperor Hadrian established a heathen temple to Jupiter on the site of the Jewish Temple. Hadrian rebuilt Jerusalem as a pagan city, and renamed the land as Palestina, to distance its Jewish heritage. The date when the Temple area was plowed under by the Romans was the 9th of Av;

1290, The Jews were expelled from England;

1492, The Jews of Spain were expelled under the Alhambra Decree by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella;

1914, World War I erupted, setting the stage for World War II and the Holocaust;

1942, Mass deportation of Jews from the Warsaw Ghetto to the Treblinka death camp began on Tisha B'Av eve;

2005, The citizens of Gush Katif, in the Gaza Strip, spent their last legal day in their homes on Tisha B'Av, and were expelled three days later;

2008, Interestingly last year’s invasion by Russia into South Ossetia, a break-away region within the Republic of Georgia, began on Tisha B’Av. While this event appears to differ from the rest because the 5 day Russia-Georgia War was not directly against the Jewish people, it is noteworthy that South Ossetia is an ally of Israel and her troops were trained by Israel Defense Forces. Lasha Zhvania, head of the Georgian Parliament's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee declared, “Today isn't just the Jews' Tisha B'Av, it’s a Tisha B'Av for Georgia as well." Also Tskhinvali, the capitol of South Ossetia, was once known for its sizable Jewish community and Jewish quarter.

2009, Guess we will see?

Becoming a Slave

2009-06-19T10:05:00.000-07:00

Today, June 19th, is a day that is celebrated by many in the United States. Today is Juneteenth. June 19th, in the year 1865, is the day that the last state in the union received the news that slavery had been abolished. I thank God that slavery has been abolished in the United States.

Not all slavery is bad however. I thank God that there is one slave owner who will never release His slaves. I want to thank my Master for the day He purchased me. July 15th, 1987 I became a slave of Jesus Christ.

Happy National Athiest's Day

2009-04-01T06:16:00.000-07:00

The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that does good. -Psalm 14:1

Professing to be wise they became fools. -Romans 1:22

I have learned, through years of experience in dealing with drug addicts, that the way to reach them is not to argue with them about what they are doing, but to show them how stupid they are. They are not abusing drugs; they are using drugs to abuse themselves. The same applies with the stupidity of denying a Creator, with creation staring at you in the face. The atheist will only harm himself. - Ray Comfort

Atheists Who Inspire

Doing My Job While I Work

2009-03-27T19:15:00.000-07:00

I had the wonderful blessing of sharing the faith while at work today. I have done this in the past but I distinctly felt like today's witnessing encounter was ordained by God. Granted, they are all ordained but this one was a bit different. Let me try and explain...

One or two days ago I was struck with the curious thought of why unbelievers in the past have often apologized for cussing around me. I sat and contemplated the possible reasons why that might happen. Is it merely a matter of respect? Are they just concerned that a Christian might be overly sensitive to vulgarities or is it something more? Maybe they feel convicted around us. Is it a visceral response to a person whom they perceive spiritually to be a representative of God? I thought it might be a little bit of both. While it had been some months since this last happened I thought I might considered how I should respond to an apology should it ever happen again.

Flip the calendar forward to today. This afternoon I stopped to speak with a coworker about some work related issues and during the course of the conversation he let a 4-letter word fly. Guess what he immediately did next? He apologized.

In a split second I determined that God was in this encounter. God had brought the very scenario that I was immediately involved in into my heart just days before. Realizing that the Holy Spirit had orchestrated this conversation gave me great boldness to witness.

So I immediately went into my line of questioning. It was a very short line as I only needed to ask one.

"Why did you just apologize?"

"Cause some religious people get offended by cussing."

"Funny it really doesn't offend me too much."

"None of it?"

"Well, yes actually. I do not like it when people blaspheme God?"

"What is blaspheming?"

"When you use God's name as a cuss-word. Have you ever done that? Said, 'Jesus Christ' or 'G. D.?'"

"Yeah but not too often. I sometimes say Jesus Christ when I hurt myself."

"Have you ever considered what you are doing when you do that?"

And that was the transitional point in the conversation.

We spoke for about 10 minutes from that point on about the Law and the Gospel. I could truly see the conviction of his sin and the fear of judgement upon him. He became fidgety and he tried to dodge the topic a few times but we were able to keep the conversation on point. It went very well and I am overjoyed that I was afforded the opportunity to share the Gospel with him while at work.

Witnessing on the job is almost as hard as witnessing to a family member.

Please pray for Scott.

Deborah 13: Servant of God

2009-03-26T20:36:00.000-07:00

Late last year I posted a video on YouTube called "How to Make Your Child a False Convert". What you will see if you watch this video is an evangelistic invitation in which a pastor invites a room full of children to become Christians without explaining sin, Christ's atoning work on the cross, His death, or His resurrection. She simply has the children repeat an impotent prayer after which she popishly pronounces them saved.

For the most part the majority of the responses to the video were positive. I did however receive my fair share of negative commentary. Most of the negative comments revolved around a singular complaint; namely, that the speaker was addressing the audience at a level of their understanding. Therefore, my criticisms were unwarranted.

well considering she is talking to children and its really up to the parents to teach about God and salvation , I don't see any thing wrong in the video.pretty tame actually and sounded ok.
This is for kids remember. She just talks to them in a language they understand!!Give it a rest whith those stupid comments!!!
Pharisees!

In response to the video I wrote an article which I entitled "How To Not Make Your Child a False Convert". In it I argued that children are much brighter and have a much greater capacity to understand than we give them credit. I contended that while we should use age appropriate language when proselytizing children we should not remove those essential elements that actually make the Gospel good news. The children can get it!

Consider Deborah Drapper. Deborah was saved at 6 years old and is now 13. Watch this short biography on Deborah and you decide if you think that this young girl has the mental capability to understand the doctrines of Salvation.

To view the full length video please hit the following link: Deborah13:Servant of God

Marriage and Men

2009-03-25T22:16:00.000-07:00

Jesus is the only perfect man to ever live. Because most men fail to look to Him as our example, there exists 2 extremes in men: chauvinism and cowardice. Pastor Mark Driscoll preaches to men about being real men who love God and serve their family well in this sermon from Trial.

NOTES:

1. Your father: Adam (Genesis 1–3)
Marriage is a covenant (Prov. 2:16; Mal. 2:14).
Men are the covenant head, responsible for their wife and family (Gen. 2:18; 5:2; 1 Cor. 11:2–16, 14:33–34; Eph. 5:21–33; Col. 3:18; Titus 2:3–5; 1 Pet. 3:1).
Adam and Eve both sinned, both are at fault, and both are cursed, but God held Adam responsible (Gen. 3:9).
Marriage is cursed (Gen. 3:16). Work is cursed (Gen. 3:17–19). Jesus is the only hope (Gen. 3:15).

2. Your Manhood
Like Adam, the sins of men fall into two general categories: sins of comission (doing what you’re not supposed to do) and sins of omission (not doing what you’re supposed to do). This leads chauvinistic or cowardly tendencies:

Chauvinism

No Sissy Stuff Sam: whatever women do, do the opposite

Success and Status Stewart: masculinity = material success

Give’em Hell Hank: angry and abusive

I’m the Boss Bob: domineering and controlling; in authority, not under authority
Cowardice

Little Boy Larry: never grew up, disorganized, lives with his mother, etc.

Sturdy Oak Owen: absolutely dependable but emotionally absent

Hyper-Spiritual Henry: Hides behind religious behavior and “God talk.” Talks at you but not to you.

Good Time Gary: irresponsible life of the party

3. Your Savior: Jesus Christ (the Last Adam, 1 Cor. 15:45)
Ephesians 5:25 calls men to love their wives as Christ loves the Church. Men are not ready to be good husbands until they are a part of the Church and understand how Christ loves the Church by taking responsibility for her and sacrificing himself for her.

The essence of true masculinity is taking responsibility.

4. Your Wife
Understand that a wife’s fears (1 Pet. 3:6) are legitimate; men dominate the lives of women and children, for good or for evil. Honor your wife:

Honor her maritally. Take a wife honorably. Establish right priorities, and be a one woman man–absolutely faithful to your wife.

Honor her physically. Be strong for your wife, not against her. Be protective of her and present with her.

Honor her emotionally. Be emotionally present and intimate. Take her on dates.

Honor her verbally. Speak honorably to her. Speak honorably of her, when she is present and absent.

Honor her financially. Provide for the financial needs of your family, organize your budget, and be generous towards your wife.

Honor her practically. Consider her needs and how you can serve her.

Honor her parentally. Be “Pastor Dad” by shepherding your children (praying with them, teaching them about Jesus, reading the Bible with them, etc.).

Honor her spiritually. You initiate and lead prayer, Bible, chats, church attendance, etc. Take responsibility for your church.
What happens when you fail to honor your wife? God ignores you (1 Pet. 3:7). Repent.

Further Study:

Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, by Wayne Grudem and John Piper
God, Marriage, and the Family, by Andreas Kostenberger
New Men, Soft Patriarchs: How Christianity Shapes Fathers and Husbands, by W. Bradford Wilcox

The Fallacy of Relevancy

2009-03-24T13:01:00.000-07:00

So, what's wrong with this picture?

Nothing.

Josh Elsom captured this moment; and a picture is worth a thousand words.

The picture reminds me of the old Sesame Street song, "One of these things is not like the others. Which one is different? Do you know?"Four kids on bikes. Their bikes are similar. Their clothing is similar. Their hats and sunglasses are similar. And standing in the midst of those four kids, proclaiming the Law and the Gospel, is Mark Mackey--a 57-year-old bread truck driver and evangelist.

Mark doesn't look like the people to whom he is speaking. He isn't dressed like them. He's old enough to be their father. And he doesn't have a spiffy BMX bike so that he can relate to them.

What Mark has, however, is of far greater value and is far more powerful than relevancy. The reason Mark was able to engage these four young people in spiritual conversation is simple, really. Mark loves God and loves people.

Mark long ago realized that he didn't have to be "of" the world in order to reach the world with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Unlike so many so-called ministries these days that cater to the worldliness of the lost, Mark is modeling Christ-likeness in his evangelism efforts by speaking the truth in love.

Yes, it is true that those kids would have remembered Mark had he rode up to them on his own BMX bike, sporting the hair, clothing, and backward hat of a person 1/4 his age. They would have remembered how silly and unauthentic he looked.

Instead, what those kids will likely remember is that an older guy who they will never likely see again cared enough about them to speak honestly and lovingly to them about the things of God.

And it is the proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ, not worldly relevance, that the Lord uses to draw unbelievers to repentance and faith.

Thanks for your godly example, Mark.

-Tony Miano

The Lawman Chronicles

Protecting Our Idols

2009-03-23T06:09:00.000-07:00

What pops into your head when you hear the word "idol"? The first thing that may come to many of our minds might be a small figurine carved out of wood or ivory and placed on an altar. Or a statue adorned with jewelry or flowers with incense burning on either side. In many cultures and religions that would be an accurate definition of an idol. The Hindu religion for instance has hundreds of millions of these idols which are ascribed deity.

In the West our idols look much different. They look like office buildings, bank accounts, sports teams, televisions, or even family. You see an idol does not have to be carved out of wood it can be carved out of the heart. An idol is simply anything that you pay obeisance to. It is the thing you work for, the thing which you invest in, the thing you love, and that you sacrifice for. Idolatry happens when a gift of God is esteemed higher than God Himself, the giver of gifts.

Idols are the objects which we attempt to guard when they are endangered. When something or someone threatens our idol we sin to protect it. For instances people will lie on their 1040A to protect their bank account, they will spend 80 hours a week at work to further their career, and they will tear down a friend to protect their idol of pride.

People will do the most unbelievable things to protect their idols. Consider the following story published this morning in the AP.

More women needing cash go from jobless to topless

By KAREN HAWKINS, Associated Press Writer Karen Hawkins, Associated Press Writer Mon Mar 23, 12:01 am ET

CHICAGO – As a bartender and trainer at a national restaurant chain, Rebecca Brown earned a couple thousand dollars in a really good week. Now, as a dancer at Chicago's Pink Monkey gentleman's club, she makes almost that much in one good night.

The tough job market is prompting a growing number of women across the country to dance in strip clubs, appear in adult movies or pose for magazines like Hustler.

Employers across the adult entertainment industry say they're seeing an influx of applications from women who, like Brown, are attracted by the promise of flexible schedules and fast cash. Many have college degrees and held white-collar jobs until the economy soured.

"You're seeing a lot more beautiful women who are eligible to do so many other things," said Gus Poulos, general manager of New York City's Sin City gentleman's club. He said he got 85 responses in just one day to a recent job posting on Craigslist.

The transition to the nightclub scene isn't always a smooth one — from learning to dance in five-inch heels to dealing with the jeers of some customers.

Some performers said they were initially so nervous that only alcohol could calm their nerves.
"It is like giving a speech, but instead of imagining everyone naked, you're the one who's naked," Brown, 29, said.

Eva Stone, a 25-year-old dancer at the Pink Monkey, said dealing with occasional verbal abuse from patrons requires "a thick skin."

Makers of adult films cautioned that women shouldn't rush into the decision to make adult movies without considering the effect on their lives.

"Once you decide to be an adult actress, it impacts your relationship with everyone," said Steven Hirsch, co-chairman of adult film giant Vivid Entertainment Group. "Once you make an adult film, it never goes away."

The women at the Pink Monkey say dancing at a strip club might not have been their first career choice, but they entered the business with their eyes wide open. The job gives them more control and flexibility than sitting in a cubicle, and "it's easy, it's fun and all of us girls ... look out for each other," Brown said.

In this economy, "desperate measures are becoming far more acceptable," said Jonathan Alpert, a New York City-based psychotherapist who's had clients who worked in adult entertainment.
For some, dancing is temporary, a way to pay for college loans or other bills. Others say they've found their niche.

Dancers at the upscale Rick's Caberet clubs in New York City and Miami can make $100,000 to $300,000 a year — in cash — even with the economic downturn, club spokesman Allan Priaulx said.

Priaulx said 20 to 30 women a week are applying for jobs at the New York club, double the number of a year ago.

Still, analysts say, the industry isn't immune to the economic recession. Business is down an estimated 30 percent across all segments, including adult films, gentleman's clubs, magazines and novelty shops, said Paul Fishbein, president of AVN Media Network, an adult entertainment company that has a widely distributed trade publication and an award show.

"In the past, people have said this industry is recession-proof," said Eric Wold, director of research for financial services firm Merriman Curhan Ford. "I definitely don't see that; maybe recession-resistant."

Strip club dancers and managers said they're drawing in the same number of customers, but fewer high rollers.

"They're not getting the big spenders," said Angelina Spencer, executive director of the Association of Club Executives, a trade group for adult nightclubs. "They're not getting the guys who come in and drop $3,000 to $4,000 a night anymore."
Still, the clubs' operating structure leaves them with low overhead and profit margins of up to 50 percent, Wold said.

Dancers are independent contractors, paying clubs a nightly flat fee depending on how long they work. At the Pink Monkey, for example, dancers who arrive at 7 p.m. Sunday through Thursday pay a $40 "house fee," while women who don't arrive until midnight pay $90. And they keep their tips.

Wold and others say it's almost impossible to estimate the size of the adult entertainment industry because few companies are publicly traded. He does pay close attention to three that are: Lakewood, Colo.-based VCG Holding and Houston-based Rick's Caberet, which own clubs, and New Frontier Media, a Boulder, Colo.-based adult film producer and distributor.
All three are profitable.

Rick's Caberet had $60 million in revenue in its 2008 fiscal year, up from $32 million the year before, Wold said, and he estimates VCG will have $57 million for last year, compared with $40.5 million in FY2007. New Frontier Media generates more than $400 million in consumer buying a year.

Larry Flynt, whose half-billion dollar Hustler empire publishes magazines, produces and distributes films and operates a casino, said he's continued to do well. But he doesn't expect those who are solely in the film business to survive.

"A lot of the small studios are out of business now, there's no doubt about that," Flynt said.
Adult magazines also are struggling along with the larger publishing industry, and have to cut pages like everyone else.

But the economic realities aren't keeping jobseekers away.
Vivid Entertainment's Hirsch said the number of women in his business has doubled in the last couple years, with roughly 800 working as adult actresses. "It is more competitive than I've seen it in 25 years," he said.

That doesn't mean all the newcomers are planning on lengthy careers in the industry.
Stone, who has a bachelor's degree in graphic design, took up dancing four years ago to help pay her student loans. She plans to go to graduate school this year to pursue a master's in education.
Brown, meanwhile, has a ready answer for those critical of her career choice.

"I have job security," she said.

Bobby Schott

2009-03-21T14:29:00.000-07:00

1 Corinthians 1:21 tells us that,"..it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe." and in verse 27 of the same chapter that,"God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong..."

God is in the business of taking weak vessels and using them for His glory. He uses the shepherd boy to defeat the giant, the farmer with an army of 300 to defeat a nation, and rag tag group of 12 to change the world. Such is the case of Bobby Schott.

Please watch the following video and consider how God uses the most unlikely people to do the most amazing things for His Kingdom.

Christ's Only Prayer Request

2009-03-20T20:08:00.000-07:00

Did you know that Jesus made only one request for prayer in the Scriptures?

Yep, and it is found in Matthew 9:37-38.

Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest."

Sadly this is a prayer which is woefully neglected in the hearts of most professing followers of Jesus Christ. Why do we not pray with great sincerity to the Lord to send more laborers into the harvest? There can only be three reasons; ignorance, apathy, or self-preservation.

First, one may have no knowledge that this request has been made by our Lord. This state of ignorance would indeed be temporary, of course. For if one knows what he has been saved from and how he has been saved from it then his conscience would demand that something be done. Intuitively the regenerate man will pray for laborers to be dispatched into the world.

Second, the professing christian may be apathetic to this request. They simply do not care whether other people (neighbors, friends, or family) are saved from the wrath of God. They may claim with great passion that they care but in the deepest parts of the heart they do not. This is a very dangerous place to live by the way. Charles Spurgeon said,"Have you no wish for others to be saved? Then you are not saved yourself. Be sure of that."

The third reason that this prayer fails to be uttered is because of self-preservation. Understand, there is no way that this prayer can be honestly spoken without taking action. How can one genuinely pray for laborers to be sent while sitting on one's own hands? It can not be done, the faithful child of God knows who they are and knows to what they have been called. The carnal man may know as well but still refuse to execute faithfully that which is required of his commission. So because of the burdening of the conscience this third man will not pray the request of his Lord. He knows that praying this prayer for laborers would implicate him in his lack of zeal for the lost. He would therefore rather remain quite, exclude the prayer for laborers, and remain safely planted in his home. There is no suffering for the sake of Christ for this one. There is no mockery for the one who does not move, there are no stones thrown at those who do not speak, and there is no burning stake for those who do not love.

You know the only safe person of these three would be the one who is ignorant, but if you've read this far then you no longer have an excuse.

So pray to the Lord of the Harvest that He would send more laborers into the fields; that is, in addition to you.

God Is My Provider

2009-02-10T21:19:00.000-08:00

This post is a little different than those which I have written in the past because it will expose some information that I would normally consider private. However, I believe what God has miraculously done in these recent days will far outweigh what small amount of humiliation I may experience in revealing my fallibility. I pray that this, the story of my past mistakes and God's restorative work, will serve as both a lesson and a blessing to you.

God has been working aggressively over the last 5 years to tear down the idols in my life. Many of these gods were quite visible and took center stage on the mantle, while others were tossed in the dark recesses of the closet. One by one they have fallen. Two weeks ago God completely destroyed the largest of my asherah poles. His name was Mammon.

Mammon manifest himself in a number of ways; the nicest television I could afford, the most impressive surround sound I could get my hands on, an overpriced home, a hot rod Mustang, and on and on. I was always hot on the tails of the Joneses.

What God revealed to me about this god in these last weeks was that he was a god of materialistic pursuit; a lifestyle of having, getting and pride. One of the problems associated with serving a god like mammon is that one's sins are not confined to the obeisance one pays him. He requires more time at work and less time at home. He demands that one gets more and give little back (even to God).

This was the god that my God began to expose this last year and fully destroyed two weeks ago.

The following video contains the short story of how God through the working of His Holy Spirit transformed my heart and redeemed what was lost.

The Cup

2009-01-21T17:55:00.000-08:00

What did Christ actually go through in Gethsemane? Listen to this amazing sermon clip by C.J. Mahaney to find out.

Jesus Said,"I AM God, Worship Me."

2009-01-19T07:50:00.000-08:00

Two articles below this one you will find an entry entitled "You Shall Worship the Lord Your God". Last week this article and its associated video were picked up by Todd Friel, host of Wretched Radio.

This video is Todd Friel's response to Khaled Yasin's $5000 Challange.

You Shall Worship the Lord Your God

2009-01-11T20:34:00.000-08:00

I found myself in another online debate this weekend. This time it was on YouTube. I normally do not pay much attention to the comments that go on below the videos that play on YouTube, many of them are sensless and many more are just profane. However, both the video I watched and the comments that followed could not be left unchallenged.

The claim that is made in this video is that Jesus Christ never claimed to be God. The man attempting to make the case is Khaled Yasin, a lecturer and teacher of Islam. The argument that this man brings is remarkably weak and intellectually dishonest. However, his weak reasoning and poor hermenuetics may be enough to trouble the unprepared heart and unrenewed mind. Rather than presenting his complete arguments here I will just have you listen to this teacher in his own words. The video will be posted at the end of this article.

There were a few points that I made in the course of this debate but I want to focus on one issue. That is, that Jesus allowed Himself to be worshipped. And the fact that Jesus would allow Himself to be worshipped can only mean one of three things. He was either a blashpemous liar, a lunatic, or He was who He claimed to be, God manifest in the flesh.

I used a bit of strategy when coming to this point and I believe that it will prove to be very useful. I wanted the Muslims to tell me that men should not be worshipped as God and that God alone is worthy to be praised. The line of questioning went as follows:

YeshElsm
What is a person to expect by worshipping Muhammed? What would Muhammed do for them or tell them if they got down on their knees and praised him as Allah? Would he accept them? Would he take them to Paradise?

0wnag3f3v3r
Muslims do not worship Muhammed (pbuh). We worship Allah only.

YeshElsm
I realize that. But if I wanted to worship Muhammed as Allah would he allow it and receive it?

0wnag3f3v3r
nope, he wouldnt allow it. because he himself is a human being messenger, only saying the "words" of god, not being godly himself.

The following is the unabridged response:

Mohammed would be wise not to allow himself to be worshipped; for as Jesus said in His rebuke to Satan, “You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only shall you serve.” The Apostle Peter took this commandment very seriously. When he entered the house of a man called Cornelius, the man fell down at Peter’s feet and worshiped him. But Peter, being a wise disciple of Jesus, lifted him up and said "Stand up; I too am a man." The Apostle Paul and his disciple Barnabas reacted in like manner when the people of Lystra tried to bring bulls to sacrifice to them. They both tore their clothes and rushed out into the gathering crowd and shouted, "Men, why are you doing this? We too are only men, human like you!” These were very wise men who would not allow themselves to be worshipped. In the book of Acts we actually have a great example of what may happen to a person who does allow men to worship them. King Herod put his life on the line when he allowed his audience to worship him as a god. When Herod failed to direct this praise toward the one true God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died.

Jesus was different than all of these men. He was worshipped many times, yet he never once rebuked a person for giving Him the thanks, honor and praise that should only be given to GOD.

Here are but a few examples:

Matthew 2:2 - The wise men who came from the East came looking for the Jewish Messiah, King of the Jews. Not only did they come bearing gifts but they came to worship him.
Matthew 14:33 – After Jesus demonstrated His power and authority to even control the weather his disciples worshiped him.
Matthew 28:9 – After the two women discovered that Jesus had risen from the dead they ran to spread the news of His resurrection. On their way back to tell the disciples, Jesus appeared to the women. They both fell at His feet and worshipped him.
John 9:38 – After Jesus reveals Himself to the blind man He had healed, the man worshipped Jesus. In each case Jesus did not forbid their worship nor did he defer their worship toward GOD.

But perhaps the most conclusive and inescapable passage in the scriptures that shows Jesus allowing Himself to be worshiped as God can be found in John 20:28. Thomas was absent the first time that the Messiah appeared to His disciples. When his friends told him about Jesus’ appearing, Thomas said that he would not believe unless he were able to see the scars with his own eyes and thrust his finger and hand into Jesus’ wounds. Eight days later Jesus appeared and said to Thomas, "Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe." Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!"

Jesus the Messiah was either a lying blasphemer who allowed himself to be worshipped or He was precisely who He claimed to be, the God of Heaven and Earth.

Before I close this article I want to share with you one more perspective concerning the worship of the God-man Jesus, the perspective of GOD ALMIGHTY. I will spare you my commentary and simply allow the inspired writer of the letter to the Hebrews to speak for God himself.

God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become so much better than the angels, as He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.

For to which of the angels did He ever say: “You are My Son, today I have begotten You”? And again: “I will be to Him a Father, and He shall be to Me a Son.”? But when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says, “Let all the angels of God worship Him.” And of the angels He says: “Who makes His angels spirits and His ministers a flame of fire.” But to the Son He says: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; a scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; therefore God, Your God, has anointed You with the oil of gladness more than Your companions.”

Not only do we see that the holy angels worship Jesus as God but we also find that GOD Almighty declares the Son worthy of woship as God.

Amen.

The thread of comments can be found here. Warning: Explicit Language
$5000 Reward If You Prove That Jesus Said I am God, Worship Me

Listen to Todd Friel discuss this article and video on Wretched Radio!

Nothing They Do Will Be Impossible For Them

2009-01-14T21:52:00.000-08:00

I am not sure if this is exactly what the Lord had in mind when He said of the inhabitants of Babel, "Look! The people are united, and they all speak the same language. After this, nothing they set out to do will be impossible for them!" but this video is simply amazing to me!

I am constantly amazed at what man is able to accomplish. The explosion of knowledge and the rapid increase of information and innovation is growing exponentially in this day. We are doing things today that could not have even been imagined a few hundred years ago and what was imagined only a few years ago is now yesterday's news. I can not help but believe that this is due in part to the construction of our "new" common language. The Internet has done more to facilitate communication and the exchange of ideas than any one thing in our world's history. The borders of our countries and the vastness of our seas have become virtually nonexistent. We are heaping up knowledge at unprecedented rates and who knows what is next. Today man is flying with 10 pounds of nylon; tomorrow, perhaps he will need nothing at all. Are we once again finding ourselves in a day when nothing we set out to do will be impossible for us?

Explicit Language Warning: Last 15 seconds of the video.

Ten Indictments

2008-12-23T19:13:00.000-08:00

Ten Indictments was delivered by Paul Washer at the 2008 Revival Conference, October 21st - 23rd in Lilburn, GA.

Audio can be downloaded here.

Prepare to Suffer!

2009-01-08T20:58:00.000-08:00

"Will you join the Son in diplaying the Supreme Satisfaction of the Glory of Grace in joining Him on the Calvary Road of Suffering?
There is no other way the World is going to see the Supreme Glory of Christ today except that we break free from the Disneyland of America and begin to live lifestyles of Missionary Sacrifice that look to the world that our Treasure is in Heaven and not on this Earth.
Are you living a lifestyle that says that? Does the world look at your lifestyle and know that your Treasure is in Heaven and not in your Home, Car, Paycheck, Retirement account?
Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15:19: If in this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied. Why?

Do our lives represent one to be pitied if Christ, the Cross, the Gospel, Heaven, and Hell are not true?" - John Piper

For the complete sermon see How Our Suffering Glorifies God.

Incursion into Gaza

2009-01-06T22:06:00.000-08:00

Two days ago, January 4th, Israel began a ground offensive into Gaza to quell the rocket fire that has been raining down on her cities for the past 8 years. Interestingly this ground attack occurred on the third anniversary of Ariel Sharon's stroke and subsequent coma. You will remember that it was Sharon, then Prime Minister of Israel, who negotiated the disengagement of Gaza. It was on August 14th, 2005 (Tisha B'Av), that the Israeli Defense Forces entered the Gaza Strip and forcibly removed its citizens from their businesses, homes, and synagogues.

Many religious Jews felt that God would judge Ariel Sharon for this terrible misjudgement. And many secular Jews felt that they would just end up going back to reinvade Gaza again in the future.[1]

While considering the possibility and significance of this being a judgement of God upon Ariel Sharon and the coincidental timing of this recent ground attack, I was struck with a thought. If it was 3 years to the day from Sharon's coma to the invasion of Gaza, which certainly is curious, what might the span of time be between the disengagement of Gaza to its reoccupation?

Well, it turns out that the time elapsed is exactly 1,240 days, 42 months, or 3 1/2 years.[2]

In other words, 3 1/2 years after Ariel Sharon confirmed his peace covenant between the Land of Israel and the Gentile nations peace is ended and there is great trouble in Jacob.

Does this sound familiar? Is this yet another shadow of the impending tribulation to come?

[1] Mark Biltz
[2] (1240 days is 42 months or 3.5 years on the Jewish lunar calendar when not counting its leap months.)

Joseph: The Shadow of Messiah

2009-01-05T22:27:00.000-08:00

In the entries to follow this brief article I will be writing about the amazing story of Joseph, son of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. I will be focusing my study on the specific typology that we see in the account of Joseph's life and how it applies prophetically to the Savior; both what has been fulfilled and what is yet to be fulfilled in the life of Messiah Jesus.

I want to lay a quick foundation before digging into this story and this may require a brief review or explanation of what a type is. Simply put a type, or typology, is an interpretive practice of taking a person, thing or an event and defining it as symbolically representative of something yet future. So we can look at people, things or events in the Old Testament and see that they are prophetically symbolic of people, things or events fulfilled in the New Testament, or even in our future. For an example of this please read my article on Noah.

I pray that this short series of articles will be as much a blessing to you as the study of this story has been for me. For many, the striking similarities between the lives of Joseph and Jesus will be new and exciting. For the rest of you who are familiar with these amazing parallels, well I hope to surprise you. Many would suggest that all has been fulfilled in the shadows of Joseph's life. I simply ask that you stick around and see what treasures may have been left on the ground and are ready to be gleaned.