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        Another week of terrorist attacks reminds us that terrorism continues to be a tactic of choice for Islamic extremists. 

                The terror tactic has a long and tragic history. Military historians tell us that the worst terrorist of all time was Genghis Khan, whose armies destroyed the agricultural hinterlands of their enemies, drove the peasants into the cities, and then destroyed the cities without mercy. Second to the Mongolians were the Romans, who merely destroyed the cities without mercy. Modern examples abound, from the London Blitz to the 9/11 attack.

                As a military tactic, however, terrorism is a double edged sword. More often than not, it backfires on to the terrorists. Thus, the London Blitz steeled British resolve and in the end it was the cities of Germany that were reduced to rubble. Palestinian terrorist intifada attacks brought swift retribution and isolation behind the Israeli wall. The 9/11 perpetrators were tracked down and their Afghan sanctuary was overrun by Americans. It turns out, according to military historians, that terrorism only works for militarily dominant powers like Genghis Khan and Rome. For weaker opponents the terror tactic only leads to destruction.

                Even so, terrorists inflict much suffering from their self destructive path. There is also a spiritual battle, as terrorists hope to paralyze their enemies with fear and goad them into overreacting in order to create more terrorists. This is truly spiritual warfare, and we must use our spiritual weapons to defeat the terror tactic of the ultimate terrorist, Satan.

                We must first learn to pray blessings on our enemies. Not blessings for their violence, but blessings that their eyes be opened and that they will be satisfied with good things and desire to live in peace. Judgment still belongs to God, and it is for Him to avenge, not us. At the same time, God wants our enemies to come into His Kingdom, and we must not let bitterness or unforgiveness set us against God’s purposes. Instead we must deploy the powerful spiritual weapon of love to stay in step with God.

                We must also turn back the spirit of fear which has been sent against us. We know from the famous 91^st Psalm that our protection comes only from God, and that He will be with us in our trouble. Yet we also know that we can overcome the evil one if we do not love this life more than the next (See Rev. 12:11). Let us live fearlessly in faith as God intended, looking forward to the day when we will be called home to Heaven.

                Yes, we mourn for the victims of these cowardly terrorist attacks, and pray that God will comfort them. But we will not quit loving our enemies and living by faith.        

                And, just as the terror tactic is a losing strategy for weaker opponents in the natural world, so is the terror tactic futile against the most powerful kingdom on Earth, the Kingdom of God.        

This week on March 23rd will mark the 2021st anniversary of the birth of Jesus.

That’s right. We believe that we can put together the prophecies, historical data, astronomical data, and scripture to pinpoint the birth of Jesus to March 23, 5 BC.

We know from Luke 3:23 that Jesus was about 30 when He began His ministry. The prophet Daniels tells us the year of Christ’s anointing would come 69 7’s, or 483 years, after the decree which sent Ezra to Jerusalem in 458 BC. (Daniel 9:25) Doing the math, and remembering that there is no year “0”, Daniel’s prophecy says Jesus would begin His ministry in 26 A.D. This year is backed up by two dates from Scripture. John the Baptist began his ministry in the 15th year of Tiberius, 25 AD, (Luke 3:1) and Jesus cleared the Temple the first time 46 years after Herod began renovating it (John 2:20) in 20 BC (According to Josephus), or 27 AD. Thus, many Bible scholars believe that 26 AD is the year Jesus began his ministry. If He was 30 years old, remembering again that there is no year “0”, He would have been born in 5 BC.

Jesus would have been born either in the Spring or Fall of the year according to the Scripture surrounding the birth of John the Baptist. John’s father, Zechariah was a member of the priestly order of Abijah (Luke 1:5) which, according to Rabbinical sources, ministered at the Temple in May and November. The Angel Gabriel appeared to Zechariah in the Temple, and Zechariah would have gone home and probably conceived John the Baptist in June or December, who would have been born 9 months later in March or September. We know from Scripture that John the Baptist was six months older than Jesus (Luke 1:26) so Jesus would have been born in September or March of 5 BC.

To find the exact time of year we look to Astronomy and Archaeology. We know that there was a star which appeared when Jesus was born and that Magi from the East, possibly following the prophetic teachings of Daniel the Magi (Daniel 2:48), came looking for Him (Mathew 2:1,2). The Chinese also saw the Star, identifying it as a Nova which appeared in the Spring of 5 BC and burned for 70 days. Thus, John the Baptist was conceived in December of 7 BC, Jesus was conceived in June of 6 BC, John the Baptist was born in September of 6 BC, and Jesus was born in March of 5 BC.

King Herod, the tyrannical ruler of Judea, had interviewed the Magi when they arrived in Jerusalem. According to our research, described in The Stars of His Coming, there were signs in the Sun, Moon, and Stars surrounding the birth of Jesus beginning with Zechariah in 7 BC. The Magi would have testified to the same date, and for that reason Herod ordered all of the Children under 2 years old in Bethlehem to be killed. Josephus tells us that there was a Lunar Eclipse on Passover and that Herold died later that year. This lunar Eclipse, or Blood Moon, occurred on March 23, 5 BC. The Blood Moon occurred in the Spring of 5 BC, concurrent with the Star of Bethlehem, but one additional piece of evidence is needed to suggest that this is the day Jesus was born.

We find it in Revelation 12:1, 2, which describes a sign in the Heavens, a woman clothed in the Sun with the Moon at her feet, at the moment of Christ’s birth. The woman clothed in the Sun is the Zodiacal constellation Virgo (The Virgin), which promises that God will send a savior through Virgin birth. Astronomical research shows that the Blood Moon of March 23, 5 BC occurred while the Moon was in the feet of Virgo. Thus, Revelation 12:12 presents us with a picture of the night sky when Jesus was born, and that night was March 23, 5 BC.

Of course we know that the whole world will continue to celebrate the birthday of Jesus on December 25. In its way, it is fitting to celebrate the advent on the old Roman winter solstice, when it all began with the conception of John the Baptist around the winter solstice of 7 BC and signs in the Sun, Moon, and Stars begin to appear.

Even so, it is nice to know His real birthday so we in His family can honor Him on His actual birthday.

Happy Birthday Jesus!

St. Patrick’s Day, March 17, is recognized as an Irish celebration, but in fact the whole Christian world owes a large debt to St Patrick.
Brought to pagan Ireland as a slave, Patrick escaped and returned to his home in Roman Christian Britain. However he was unable to forget the lost souls of Ireland and returned to evangelize the island. The Pagan wizards and priests were no match for the man of God, and the whole island was Christianized as the result of his efforts. For this he is rightly honored as the evangelist of the Irish.
But his legacy of a Christian Ireland blessed far more people than just the Irish. Even before his death in 461 AD the Roman Christian Britain of his boyhood was being overrun by the Pagan Angles and Saxons. Soon the British and Irish switched roles: The newly Christian Irish sent missionaries to the newly Pagan Britain. And in about a century the Anglo-Saxons were Christianized. So the British saved the Irish so the Irish could save the British.

An even more remarkable turn about occurred as the European continent fell into chaos during the time known as the Dark Ages. The formerly barbarian, unlettered Irish were able to save countless manuscripts from destruction and became the custodians of the civilized Western worlds’ knowledge. They also expanded their evangelistic efforts into Europe, bringing about a revival of Christianity in France and Italy. Thus, Patrick’s Irish followers became a beacon of learning and hope in the Dark Ages, helping preserve the centers of European Christianity as well as its British and Irish outposts.

Alas, the Irish were not immune to the instability of their times, as they were first invaded by the Vikings and then colonized by the ungrateful English. After the Reformation they were persecuted for their Catholic faith and allowed to starve in the horrible famine of the 1840’s. The Island remains divided between the Catholic Republic in the South and the Protestant North.

It is ironic that these two peoples, still divided over religion, owe their Christian faith to the other: The Irish to the British Patrick, and the British to the Irish missionaries. Yet, there is progress being made to reconcile these peoples. Several years back we at Corporate Prayer Resources made a Prayer Journey to Ireland and saw our and many other prayers answered as a peace process began in Northern Ireland. There are also continuing reconciliation efforts underway between the Catholics and the Protestants to heal this terrible division.

As we look forward to this St Patrick’s day, the best way to honor St. Patrick would be to pray that there would be reconciliation, forgiveness, and peace between his British homeland and his beloved Ireland, and between Catholic and Protestant.
And may it be so.

On March 10, 1528 Martin Luther published a book which changed the course of history. And not for the better.

            His book, “The Book of Vagabonds and Beggars,” proposed that the State should establish a social welfare system to replace the Church in caring for the poor. Up until that time the Church had made care of the poor a centerpiece of its ministry. Giving to the poor was seen as a sign of Christian virtue and a sign of spiritual vitality in the Church.

            Luther’s proposal was based on the idea of the State Religion, which had been a fixture of Christian life since the days of the Roman Empire. In his view the Religious State should meet personal needs while the State-Sponsored Church should restrict itself to spiritual activities. This idea took hold throughout Protestant Northern Europe as the State began taxing citizens to pay for relief for the poor. It was the beginning of the modern Welfare state.

            Luther failed to take into account the possibility that the Religious State would quit being religious, pushing the Church out of community life. Beginning with the French Revolution, the State began to see itself as the source of Welfare not just for the poor, but for the whole society. With Godliness marginalized in secular States, the State itself became a substitute for God in the socialist, national socialist, and communist philosophies. Leaders like Lenin, Stalin, Hitler, Mussolini, and Mao gained power by promising to use the godlike power of the State to bring prosperity to the masses. What came instead was poverty and death.

            The ghost of Luther’s bad idea still haunts the world today. The Welfare States of Greece, Italy, and Spain are facing financial collapse, and their European neighbors are not far behind. In countries like Venezuela ruthless leaders destroy their national economies to buy power from the masses. Even the rich United States is marching toward a crisis as its national debt and Welfare State become unsustainable. No one knows what when happen with these nations become unable to keep their Welfare promises.                  

            What Luther and the modern Welfare States have forgotten is that God will not share His Glory with usurpers. Like the gods of Egypt humbled in the Exodus, God has shown that the socialist, communist, and Welfare states are not the gods of provision they claim to be. It is not a question of if, but when, failure will occur. The real question remaining is what the Church will do about it.

            We must pray that the Church will rise up to the crisis and the opportunity coming from the collapse of the Welfare State. The crisis will come as people’s needs are no longer met by Government, and social order breaks down. The opportunity comes if the Church follows God’s admonition to care for the poor, revitalizes Church institutions for the poor, and creates a Godly order in the midst of chaos. The crisis could lead to revival.    

            Let us pray that the people will once again look to God as their source as they one did before Luther’s bad idea led us astray.     

                The time is fast approaching when the Church will need to remember the lesson of German Pastor Martin Niemoller.

                Pastor Niemoller was a man of great courage. He had been a submarine captain before he entered the ministry. As a minister, he spoke out against the atrocities of the Nazi regime. On March 2, 1938 he was sent to prison, where he spent the war because of his Christian beliefs.

                Nevertheless this Christian Hero apologized for his delay in opposing the Nazis. Here is what he said:

“First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out, because I was not a Socialist. Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out, because I was not a Trade Unionist.

Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out, because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me and there was no one left to speak for me.”

You may think that Nazi Germany is far removed from today’s America, but you should think again. There are forces in America which no longer believe in individual liberty and democracy. Our freedoms are being diminished day by day, and most Christians remain silent.

When the courts in California overruled the democratic vote against gay marriage, there was little outcry. When the Government sabotaged the Defense of Marriage Act few noticed. When Christians were fined for refusing to participate in gay marriage ceremonies we were told that we were bigots. After the Supreme Court forced gay marriage on the nation, hundreds of florists and bakers have been attacked because of their beliefs. Now the “Progressives” want our daughters to be forced to shower with confused boys. We are getting perilously close to the old Soviet Communist concept of religious “freedom”, where you could have religious beliefs so long as you said nothing and did not act according to your faith.   

Freedom of Speech has been under attack in the cause of “Politically Correct” speech. University students, who used to demonstrate for free speech, new demand censorship on college campuses. In the Citizen’s United Supreme Court decision, so adamantly opposed by the “Progressives”, the Government actually argued that they had the right to censor books and movies. Must we wait until they are burning books to arouse from our slumber?

Under the guise of fighting crime the Government has passed thousands of laws which entrap innocent Americans every day. People have gone to jail for getting lost in a snowstorm on Federal lands or failing to follow packaging regulations of foreign countries. The Government can seize your money without proving anything and you have to hire a lawyer to get it back, except that you can’t pay a lawyer because the government took your money. You can become a criminal even if you have no criminal intent, and the “Progressives” fiercely resist any attempt to bring this elementary human right back into our legal system.

You may not have much sympathy for a business man who can’t defend himself because the government took his money. You may not agree with Catholics who are persecuted for their opposition to birth control. And the airways and internet are full of obnoxious political speech.    

Just remember that if you are cheering for the government as it moves against others, you are only bringing the day of destruction closer to yourself.

Stand up for freedom before there is no one left when they come for you.                     

On February 27^th in 380 AD Roman Emperor Theodosius made Christianity into the official state religion. It was one of the most catastrophic events in Church history.

Up until the time Constantine legalized the Church in 313 AD, the great strength of the Church was the fact that the Kingdom of God resided within the believers. Under Constantine the Church became “respectable” and began to attract the ambitious and worldly who would make a show of outward piety without an inward transformation. After 380 AD, the Church was swamped with unconverted Pagans and the outward rituals replaced the inner power for most Church members.

                The first to clothe themselves in the new mantle of the State religion were the emperors themselves. The Bishop of Rome was eventually forced to trade Church recognition for military protection in Western Europe, beginning with Frankish King Clovis, in order to remain independent of the Eastern Roman Emperor. When the European Church split between Protestants and Catholics the local Kings and rulers forced their own views to be followed in their realms and millions of Christians were martyred. The marriage between Church and State meant that religious questions would be solved with the sword instead of the Spirit.

                The religious wars of the 16^th and 17^th centuries left much devastation and little change, and the idea of religious toleration, espoused by Paul in the 14^th  chapter of Romans, began to take hold. The idea that Christians with different doctrines could be united in their diversity appeared in the 18^th century with The First and Second Great Awakenings and the interdenominational missionary societies. The United States, itself a patchwork of states with Catholic, Anglican, Quaker, Methodist and Congregational backgrounds, became a symbol of unity in diversity and its religious freedom is still a light to the world. The sword, which brought division, had begun to give way to the spirit which brings unity.

                The Pentecostal and Charismatic movements which swept the world in the 20^th century brought a Holy Spirit awakening in much of the Church. However the Spirit movements also cried out that “The Broken Body of Christ“ would be healed. Now, in our time, a historic video sent by Pope Francis to Evangelist Kenneth Copeland has opened the door for spiritual unity in the body of Christ in answer to the prayer of Jesus in John 17.     

                We believe that 2017 is a strategic year for Church and nation. It is the 500^th anniversary of the reformation and God is calling His Church to reconcile in answer to the prayer of Jesus. We invite you to pray with us for unity at the unitedinchrist.com and Teshuvah2017.com websites.     

                Let us pray for reconciliation of the Church and focus on expanding the whole Kingdom of God. Pray that the world will know us not by our swords, but by our love and unity in the Spirit.