“Seek the LORD while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return to the LORD, and He will have compassion on him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.” (Isa 55:6-7)
Journal,
Most of us older folk will well remember Rex Allen. He was known as the Arizona Cowboy. Rex became a movie star and a singer. He began quite young, playing the guitar with his fiddle playing father.
Rex typified the ‘cleaner’ old days. Rex Allen, was one of the singing cowboys along with Roy Rogers and Gene Autry, who personified the clean-cut, God-fearing, American hero of the wild west.
Of course those days are long gone. The world we live in today is growing steadily darker. (I’ll come back to Rex Allen a bit later.)
Should we be surprised that the world is growing darker? Not really. The Bible plainly lays out that the closer we get to the coming of the Lord Jesus, the more upheavals will be seen on planet earth. These upheavals will affect all strata of earthly meanings, from that of nature itself to all of human existence.
I believe we have already entered into what the Lord Jesus, spoke of as …
The Beginning of Birth Pangs
Women are well acquainted with the issue of birth pangs. Once they begin there is no stopping. They steadily begin and then become more rapid and with increasing strength. According to the Lord, it is these pangs that will be the strongest witness that a birth is about to take place.
Listen to the Lord:
[note note_color=”#dbfba4″ text_color=”#501e9b”]“And Jesus began to say to them, ‘See to it that no one misleads you. Many will come in My name, saying, “I am He!” and will mislead many.“When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be frightened; those things must take place; but that is not yet the end. For nation will rise up against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will also be famines.
“These things are merely the beginning of birth pangs. But be on your guard; for they will deliver you to the courts, and you will be flogged in the synagogues, and you will stand before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them.
“The gospel must first be preached to all the nations.” (Mar 13:5-10) [/note]
Here the Lord gives a synopsis that reaches across the age. Some of what He shares speaks directly to the earliest Jewish Christians. Some of what He shares has to do with the ending of the age of grace as we know it. (Known as the church age.)
The one thing we may question has to do with, ‘You will be flogged in the synagogues.’ We know this actually happened to the earliest Jewish believers, including the apostles. But what relevance does it have to the ending of the age?
Think about it. Who are the most hated people on planet earth? It is the Jew first with the Christians holding second place. But why are these groups so hated? It is a spiritual issue. Satan knows that his time is short. He also knows that God’s plan of redemption wraps itself around these two groups.
This is why I have often told people to keep your eyes on Jerusalem. It ends there. Satan knows that he has to control Jerusalem. As for the hatred, take note of how the nation of Israel is surrounded by multiplied millions of people who have been poisoned with a ‘Jew-hatred’ philosophical system.
Where the Bible describes the ending battles of the age, it all takes place over Jerusalem. Do not think for a moment that all the bloodshed of the middle east has no meaning.
Listen to what the Lord has to say through prophet Zechariah [I will skim portions of a longer prophecy]:
[note note_color=”#dbfba4″ text_color=”#501e9b”]“… Thus declares the LORD who stretches out the heavens, lays the foundation of the earth, and forms the spirit of man within him,“Behold, I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that causes reeling to all the peoples around; and when the siege is against Jerusalem, it will also be against Judah.
“It will come about in that day that I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples; all who lift it will be severely injured. And all the nations of the earth will be gathered against it.
“In that day the LORD will defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and the one who is feeble among them in that day will be like David, and the house of David will be like God, like the angel of the LORD before them.
“And in that day I will set about to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.
“I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and of supplication, so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter weeping over a firstborn.” (Zec 12:1-11)[/note]
Some may wish to argue that the Lord is not talking about the second coming of Jesus, but rather the first coming. Others like to argue that this speaks of the destruction of Jerusalem, in 70 ad.
I believe neither of these premises. The Bible describes the second coming of Jesus, as being the Savior of Israel. Listen to the apostle Paul [Again in portions of a larger reading.] –
[note note_color=”#dbfba4″ text_color=”#501e9b”]“For if their [Israel’s] rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? If the first piece of dough is holy, the lump is also; and if the root is holy, the branches are too.“For if you were cut off from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and were grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these who are the natural branches be grafted into their own olive tree?
“For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery–so that you will not be wise in your own estimation–that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; and so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written,
“THE DELIVERER WILL COME FROM ZION, HE WILL REMOVE UNGODLINESS FROM JACOB.
“THIS IS MY COVENANT WITH THEM, WHEN I TAKE AWAY THEIR SINS.
“From the standpoint of the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but from the standpoint of God’s choice they are beloved for the sake of the fathers; for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.” (Rom 11:15-29)[/note]
This bring us to another issue that is capturing the hearts of people, all over the planet.
What About the Blood Moons
I really haven’t taken much of a look into what is written about the blood moons. Whether they are signs or not, I don’t know.
What I will say is that I am without question that we are in the wrap up of the age. In my opinion the birth pangs have already begun.
Perhaps my stand in all this accord with an ancient Jewish instruction that goes like this:
“If there is a sapling in your hand when one says to you: ‘Behold, the Messiah is coming!’ finish planting the sapling and then go and welcome the Messiah.”
My advice to all believers is simple – ‘Go about your business. The Lord has all of this under control. Jesus said that when we see these things happening, we are to lift up our heads. Our redemption is quite near.’
OK …
What About Rex Allen
Back to Rex Allen. I used him as an attention grabber.
On the personal side, the reason I’ve always loved Rex Allen is because of a record I had of him singing, ‘Cattle Call.’ (Recorded 1949) Would you believe I learned how to yodel, and began playing the guitar, by listening to Rex. (Probably his most famous song was titled, ‘Don’t Go Near the Indians’.)
However, there was another song that Rex Allen sang that should touch the heart of every ‘straying’ child of God. It is titled, ‘Wasted Years.’ This song was taken up by many gospel singers and groups. The reason is you can hear the voice of our Father in it.
The original song was an appeal to the straying child of God, to return to the Father. It really touches one’s heart.
Yet, a later song was written with the same title, ‘Wasted Years’. It is in this song that you hear the voice of the straying child of God, coming back to the God of his or her youth.
As a minister of old (nigh fifty years), I look at those who have strayed from their first consecration to the Lord, and it grieves me deeply. So many have mixed their lives with worldly ideals. They went astray from the holy things of God for the dregs of worldliness.
But it is never too late.
And so, take time for this later song. If you are one of the straying children, let this song be your own response to God.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92PYA-GbBUQ[/youtube]In Christ always,
Buddy
Views: 119
