What's in your future?

The times they are a-changing. (In case anybody perceives that as an ungrammatical sentence, I'll advise you those are song lyrics). The evidence starts adding up that we seem to be approaching the end times. Sure, people have been predicting the end of the world for a long time. Religions have been born from such bogus forecasts. A few years ago the members of a group in Korea sold all their property to get ready for the return of Jesus. I don't get that. If he was returning, what use was their money going to be?

Many Christians have the idea that Jesus is going to swoop down and rescue the believers before any bad stuff happens. Is that Biblical? There's a lot of argument on the topic. I have met a new friend and brother in the Lord who boldly goes where no man wants to go. He is predicting that Christians are going to face a lot of persecution (they already are in many foreign countries, but this show could be coming to the US of A sometime soon).
I'd like you to meet Joe Ortiz:

Former Talk Show Host Writes Book Challenging the Politics of Evangelicals

Redlands, CA - A former Los Angeles-based talk show host and Public Relations Consultant has written a book that challenges the evangelical doctrine that attempts to influence the U.S.’s political decisions concerning the state of Israel. Joe Ortiz, the first Mexican American to host and English-language talk show on a commercial radio station, claims evangelicals who support the dispensational, premillennial doctrine have been misinformed by proponents who have misinterpreted the Bible.

Ortiz (an Indio, California native) claims in his book, The End Times Passover (published by Author House) that careful scrutiny of the Bible proves that the Promised Land is not in the Middle East, the state of Israel is not God’s time piece to Armageddon, that there will be no Pre-Tribulation Rapture, and that God’s true disciples will experience great tribulation.

“Right wing evangelicals who promote the Left Behind doctrine (like Tim LaHaye, John Hagee, Hal Lindsey and others), believe the State of Israel is key to Bible prophecy,” said Ortiz. “The proponents of this erroneous doctrine have unwittingly been pounding their theological hammers on U.S. foreign policy for over a century, only to drive a bigger wedge between Jews and Arabs who want peace in the Middle East.

Ortiz stated his book is not a politically-motivated treatise designed to influence people to choose sides between Palestinians or Jews. He said his is an academic polemic designed for people to recognize their role should be one of peacemakers rather than promoting military solutions to a feud that’s been going on for centuries. He said his research was based on analyzing the etymology of key words in the Bible that prove conclusively that the Left Behind notion promoted by many evangelicals begins to fall apart when examined carefully.

“It took over 20 years of research to provide conclusive answers to the premillennial, dispensational debate,” said Ortiz. The author’s media experience includes more than 20 years of news reporting and hosting programs on TV and radio, as well as writing for a syndicated publisher in California. Ortiz claims that “when those preachers and teachers of Bible prophecy read this book, they will soon realize they have been promoting a militant and destructive doctrine instead of a genuine gospel of peace.”

Joe has also written a sequel called Why Christians Will Suffer Great Tribulation
You can get more information and his books on his blog at:

http://groups.msn.com/TheEndTimesPassover

Is the future etched in concrete? Is there anything we can do to alter what is coming through repentance and prayer? Let me point out one sobering detail: John the Baptist led the way for Christ. He was beheaded. Jesus came next and was crucified. Ten of the original twelve apostles were executed. Paul was as well. Do you see a pattern here. Not exactly the picture that is painted when the pastor says - with everyone's eyes shut and no looking around the room - is there anyone out there who wants to give their heart to Jesus? Just slip up your hand.

I'm not a prophetic person, but I am able to look at facts and make sense of them and predict what could happen. Here is what I see as a possibility (and this is not original thinking on my part) Christians who stand for their faith will continue to reject evolution, the homosexual agenda, abortion, etcetera. In a world crying out for peace and unity they will stick out as a sore thumb as troublemakers. The only way for peace to break out is to remove the people causing the problem so the rest of society can get along with their attitude of anything goes. But surely our constitution doesn't permit that kind of thing. You're right; it doesn't. But people in high places are making their own interpretations of the Constitution that would make our founding fathers roll over in their graves.

Are people like Joe Ortiz doing anyone a favor by sounding the alarm about approaching tribulation? I truly believe that if one isn't ready for it and it does arrive, that it will be extremely difficult to stand firm in the faith. Many would choose temporary safety to save their lives, so they can die of cancer or AIDS or in a car accident. I don't want to face a guillotine or some other lethal method of dispatching rebels, but even less do I want to deny Christ.
We were born in order to die.Publish Post I just hope I have the courage to die like Stephen if faced with such a decision.