3 THINGS 2 LIVE BY

Over the last months I have come to realize there is, as the old saying goes, a lot more than what meets the eye going on around us. I’ve been challenged in every category concerning what I have imagined certain things to be regarding spiritual matters. As I’ve pondered the data I’ve been accumulating over the last four months from around the world, I’ve come to realize that we are a lot further along, as far as end-times realities are concerned, than I had previously thought.

Not to be an alarmist, but I have uncovered in my journey to create a compelling story, information that has not only blown my categories, but caused me enough distress that I felt compelled to communicate something I believe will be manna to those who are willing to open their minds to the vastness of God’s word and His admonitions to us as to how to overcome what is surely on it’s way and coming very soon.

There is a dearth of information and understanding in the Body of Messiah. Wool over the eyes shall we say. Most believers are ill informed and unprepared for the coming days ahead. To make things worse, the rise of the pretribulation rapture theory has added unbelievable confusion as well as present an escapist mentality for all those have not only bought into it, but will be overcome when the disappointment of it not happening throws cold water in their face. Y'shua/Jesus Himself said in Matthew 24:30-31, “Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.” This is only one of many passages that speaks to a specific event we have all come to know as “the rapture”. But this is from the mouth the Lord Himself, my friends. Don’t be deceived!

What is coming on the earth is beyond human comprehension and reason. Science fiction, horror movies, books and stories cannot capture the sheer terror that the end will produce. Y’shua/Jesus said in Matthew 24:21-22 “For then there shall be great tribulation, such has not been seen since the beginning of the world until now, no, nor ever shall be. If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened.” It’s going to be worse than the days of Noah! How bad was it? It wasn’t just sin, it was fallen angels doing genetic abominations… so God destroyed everything!

            So how will we “overcome till the end”, especially in light of the fact that, based on what’s coming, it seems no one would be able to endure it?

I believe one needs to first understand “who” it is they will be overcoming. The end will be like a science fiction/outer space/genetic reengineering abomination horror movie rolled up into one. But it won’t be a harmless film made of special effects that you can either leave the theater or turn off your television and walk away from unharmed and unaffected. It will be living and breathing, and it will be everywhere. No one will be unaffected. The “who” that we will be dealing with will be fallen angels, along with the dispossessed spirits from the flood known as the demonic world, run amok. When the restrainer who keeps the lid on all evil is removed, they will have full liberty to do whatever wicked and evil thing they desire. In other words, ALL HELL WILL BREAK LOOSE! But there is one thing they do know… it’s that Y’shua/Jesus is God and that His blood can bring their most wicked schemes to not and render them powerless.

Revelations 12:11 says, “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives unto the death.” The Hebrews in the time of Moses in Egypt were commanded to put the blood of a spotless lamb over the doorposts of their homes. The angel of death passed over those whose homes were sealed with that blood. Those whose weren’t, paid the price… death! Y’shua’s/Jesus’ is THE PASSOVER LAMB that was slain! The angelic and demonic world recognizes the Blood of Y’shua/Jesus. It knows its power. And the word of our testimony… it’s not our personal how we got saved testimony. No one is going to sit around in those days singing Kumbaya listening to how you overcame your vices. It is our corporate allegiance and dependence upon THE Sacrifice of God, Y’shua/Jesus! In other words, who’s side are you on.

And the final of the three, and maybe most important thing to “live by” will be, “not loving your life unto the death.” What does that mean? Well, it means you are so secure in Who is it you belong to that if it meant laying your life down, you would be FEARLESS!

If you’re not there yet, now is the time to put all things in perspective. Talk to the Lord! Tell Him where you’re at… He knows already, but now would be a good time to have that heart to heart with the One who fearlessly laid down His life for you.

The good news is: HE ROSE FROM THE DEAD… AND SO WILL YOU!

© 2010 Steven Bliss
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THE MINARETS OF ALLAH

 (I wrote this as a web article for a close friend of mine. It was the result of spending two weeks in Israel in November of 2006. It is even more relevant today.)

In every city throughout the Muslim world, five times a day a cry goes out from the Muezzin in the minarets of the Mosques. It’s a call to prayer. This is nothing new as it has been going on for 13 centuries. But these days, the insidious deception that weaves its intoxicating aroma from the towers of allah no longer is just a simple call to prayer… it is a call to action for all those who pledge allegiance to the dark lord to deliver death blows to all those who will not bow in submission to their demon king; the awakening blast for the day has come for the “Great Jihad”.

I read an editorial not long ago by Sherrie Gossett who wrote, “The Dutch melting pot has turned into a boiling pot as public indignation rises over the murder of Amsterdam filmmaker Theo Van Gogh by a young Islamic radical. The morning of November 2, the killer emptied his clip into Van Gogh who was riding his bike, and then used a knife to all but sever his head.  The killer also left a letter stabbed into Van Gogh's chest declaring Jihad on unbelievers, and Dutch politicians specifically.”

Van Gogh was under a death threat after producing a 10-minute film called "Submission" how Muslim women are victims of sever domestic abuse. Brought to the forefront of the film are issues of race, immigration and integration, radical Islam, and freedom of speech as well as honor killings. The question begs to be asked, 'should Islamist immigrants be allowed the freedom to practice the tenets of Shari’a law in non-Islamic countries which states, "The penalty for contempt of the Holy Prophet… is death and nothing else?” The clear answer is ABSOLUTELY NOT!

Who would have ever believed we would see the rise of such evil? Who would have imagined Islamic extremists hijacking airplanes to attack and undermine the West?  Yet every day before our eyes thousands of innocents are killed somewhere in the world without defense as they boldly carry out their master plan.  And yes, it is a Master Plan! But their enmity is not just directed against us. They are bred with irreverence and the willingness to take life without remorse. This is an ancient war of the unseen world using human flesh as its agents of doom and obedience. This is a war between a fallen arch-angel and his Creator; the God of all creation! For us, the day fast approaches when it all be bow or die, and we can see by their willingness to brutally slaughter innocent people that there are no holds barred.

"Islamofascists are hard at work here as well, seeking to dominate their co-religionists as the prerequisite for forcing the rest of us to submit to a new, global Caliphate under an unforgiving religious law called Shari'a..." writes Frank Gaffney of the Jewish World Review.

What we have to understand is... we are not waging a war against terrorism. Nor is this a war against Al-Qaeda, Hamas, Hezbollah or the other factions rising from the pit of hell; this is a war against the movements and ideologies of the jihadists under the influence of principalities and dark angles that have ruled that land since the fall of man. They will stop at nothing and will not be contained. It is not about Iran or Iraq, or any other middle eastern country... this is an army whose sole aim is to destroy the Western world and bring the rest of the world to its knees in submission to its fallen god. If we don’t recognize it now... if we don't do something more radical than them now… the worst is yet to come. This is not a game; it’s an agenda from Lucifer himself with one intent: the destruction of all the sons and daughters of Adam and Eve. We are facing a foe whose ancient ideology is from a different place and time and whose god is the god of war, not peace. As we sleep in our safe houses at night it plots and plans in the war room of hell devising wicked schemes, strategizing its next move. Lurking in darkness, it waits to enforce terror and fear upon its next victim. Nothing is off limits as it will use women and children as part of its insidious plan. Life has no meaning. Hope has no chance.

Israel is not ignorant of this foe. It has lived next door and within her walls for over 61 years now and is unafraid to deal fiercely with it. Israel knows the truth. Benjamin Netanyahu said in his address to US Congress on September 20th in 2001, “Each one of us today understands that we are all targets, that our cities are vulnerable, and that our values are hated with an unmatched fanaticism that seeks to destroy our societies and our way of life. We have received a wake up call from Hell.”

These dark forces have two agendas: world domination and the total annihilation of all Jewry and Israel itself from the face of the earth. Its propaganda platform makes that of Adolf Hitler seem elementary. Its deception permeates and controls the media around the globe; its nostrils are inflamed with the smell of blood and violence. It lulls us into complacency. It swears allah is the same god of Christians and Jews. It pleads with the world to believe Israel’s retaliation against the unwarranted attacks of her enemies is no different than that of the Nazi wolves they barely escaped.

And like the Wicked Witch of the West in the Wizard of Oz, as she gazed into her crystal ball casting a spell on Dorothy and her friends saying, “Sleep my pretties, sleep…”, so the spell from the minarets of Allah blow their intoxicating aroma around the globe recruiting mindless souls from the nations of the earth. Will we become numb and succumb to its lies? Will we be like Europe in the 1920’s and 30’s? Will the whole world be deceived?

May the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob grant us sober minds and uncompromising hearts that hold fast to truth. And like Israel who remembers the Holocaust… " May We Never Forget".

Benjamin Netanyahu concluded his speech to the US Congress that day by saying this, “It is within our power. Let us now make sure that it is within our will.” God help us all.
As an update, on February 15th, 2015 with the escalation of ISIS and its purest mentality when it comes to executing the Mohammed's original ideology and it's threat to Jews around the world, Benjamin Netanyahu said in his speech, "To the Jews of Europe and to the Jews of the world I say that Israel is waiting for you with open arms." We are now witnessing the call to all who will hear, "COME HOME!" We are closer than anyone wants to think to the return of Messiah Y'shua and end of all things. 

May our ears be open to what the Spirit is saying! Come Lord Y'shua!

© 2007-2015 Steven Bliss
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CONSUMING FIRE

Sometimes I forget that GOD IS A CONSUMING FIRE! Hebrews 12:29 

It says in the epistle of James that "God opposes the proud"! Meaning He hates pride, and those who are prideful are in direct opposition to Him. 

I never really considered the idea that to befriend the world, as it were, was in essence to become an enemy of God! How can that be? I've read those verses a thousand times in James, but I think I saw them more metaphorically, which diminishes their meaning and impact. I believe James is giving a clue when he says that "the Spirit He caused to live in us yearns jealously." Yearns jealousy for what? Our heart's! He doesn’t want us being pulled away and distracted from out relationship with the Life Giver Himself. Why? Because the truth is, there is no God but YHVH and the world presents us with other gods! The Hebrew word used for idolatry means to place something between you and the object of your focus (in this case God), thus blocking it from sight and causing something else to take it's place of importance. Simple, yet powerful!

Thank God James said "He gives us MORE grace!" He follows that thought with something from Proverbs. "... but He gives grace to the humble." 

So how do we humble ourselves to receive this grace? 

I think I'll sum it up this way... recognize the pride and then ache for the break. King David said, "a broken and contrite heart He will never turn away." 

This is the only confidence I have... what about you?

As the month of Elul is upon us and pushes us ever closer towards Rosh haShanah and Yom Teruah (Feast of Trumpets), in Judaism it is a time one is to take into account the last year of life, a soul search as it were, in preparation for Yom Kippur. It's probably not a bad thing to not only join into the process, but to ask God to show us how it is we have forgotten who He is and how the simplicity of our actions cause us to be at odds with Him, and His Spirit in us. Don't you?

Thanks for reading and shalom!

© 2010 Steven Bliss

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RULES OF ENGAGEMENT

(Several months ago a 7 year old boy was murdered by Taliban thugs in retaliation for the boys Grandfathers instructions to stand against the Taliban to the people of their small village in Afghanistan. A spokesperson for the Taliban accused the boy of spying for the US. The child was apprehended as he was playing and later found hanging from a tree not far from the village. In truth, it was clearly an act meant to instill fear and terror in the hearts of his family, and anyone influenced by the words of his Grandfather.) 

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2010/06/11/afghan-taliban-hang-year-old-boy-punish-family/ 


            We now live in an age of neo-barbarianism. Unlike its early predecessors, this age has arrived in a time when civilization has evolved and devolved at the exact same time. There are no excuses for insanity other than insanity itself, but the great big world we live in has gotten very small over the last twenty years. Whether it’s because of computers or travel, or the constant up to the nanosecond global information barrage from the media; as citizens of the world we are living in very tight quarters. What we were sheltered from in the past now stares us in the face. Good or bad, it forces us to look, and demands that we respond. 



In my opinion, the earthshaking event of a 7 year old boy being snatched from the safety of innocent play to be hung from a tree in order to terrorize all who see; as well as those of us who discover this horrific story, requires an aggressive, yet honest immediate response. 



In the ancient world, there were no rules of engagement. It was common practice to strike fear in the hearts of an enemy by cutting off the heads of those who oppose you and hang their bodies from the city walls and plant their heads on stakes for all to see. There was no civilized or humane sense about it. The point was, “This will happen to anyone who defies or comes against us. Be forewarned!” More often than not, it worked. Those who were struck with fear retreated into submission. But these are different times… right? We are no longer barbarians… right? 



Unfortunately the answers to these questions are being rapidly redefined. 



Sophisticated and intellectual warfare fought with fierce and formidable weapons are no real match for the ancient ways of war. Though the power of the weapons seems more apt to inflict greater casualty, it pales in comparison to the demon-like ferocity of those who wield the weapons of psychological terror. Strike fear into the heart and you control the mind. Even more insidious and greater still… those who are promised reward for their sacrifice willingly participate without fear of reprisal. 



Without exception, the use of children is at its least, criminal. At its highest it is unconscionable and requires a re-think of just how we are dealing with our enemy. If you are a parent, put yourself for one moment in the place of the parents and relatives of this child. 



In this present climate where even the terminology is being changed to dull the senses, we have been lulled into the hands of our enemy by disconnecting with just who it is we are fighting. We assume the posture of sophistication and intelligence against and enemy whose sole purpose is world domination through a “bow or die” mentality. They are drunk with the blood of their martyrs and as deceived as they are wicked. They are a consuming force making their way into the peaceful un-walled villages of our minds. Ours is to reason, theirs is to conquer. We seek to be civilized, compassionate, and help; they live to kill. It is an ancient foe... one that has ruled more than once on this planet, and seeks to rule again. 



The rules of engagement do not exist for those under such ancient influence. To engage this enemy with any mindset other than the one they employ is like trying to keep oil from slipping through your fingers. In these cases, an eye for eye is an acceptable position. Most will say this is nothing more than a barbaric approach to an ineffectual end. But when dealing with those who have no compunction in hanging a 7 year old child from a tree to terrorize the hearts of all who see, fire must be returned with fire… but not with the same fire used by the enemy… rather with fire that will char the palate of the demons within.



Thanks for reading. 



© 2010 Steven Bliss
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