Most are under the impression that the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict is primarily over land and sovereignty, with disputes over control of the Judea and Samaria, Gaza Strip, and East Jerusalem. It would seem that this is all about possession of land. Yet the Muslim nations surrounding Israel already possess over 250 times as much land as the Jews have in the tiny nation of Israel. So, there is clearly more to this issue than meets the eye.

There is much talk going around these days about how unified, triumphant and glorious the Church will be in the end times right before the return of Jesus. This pollyanna image of the Church is certainly attractive, but it only partially corresponds with what the Bible prophesies. But before we take a look at end time prophecies regarding the Church, let’s take a look at the Church in Bible prophecy in the past and present.

That genealogy in Genesis 5 is very tight. In fact, the wording literally states about those listed, “He himself begat.” You can’t put gaps in there. There’s no way you can fit millions of years in there. So people say, “Well, if we’re going to fit millions of years into the Bible, somehow we have to do it before Adam,” which means somewhere within the six days of creation. And that is the reason I find that people don’t want to believe in six literal days—because ultimately they’re trying to fit the millions of years somewhere into the Bible.

In other words, a large percentage of churchgoers do not have a biblical worldview when it comes to the sanctity of human life. Rather, these churchgoers have simply adopted the culture’s view (from the secular, thus anti-Christian, worldview) that children are a choice and their lives can be ended at the convenience of the parents—and 19% have acted on it!

“This is an unconstitutional heckler’s veto – silencing speech because others might disagree with it. Teaching students to engage respectfully with opposing viewpoints is a core function of public education, not a threat to classroom safety,” ACLJ said. “Moreover, by prohibiting religious figures as role models while permitting secular ones, the school discriminated based on religious viewpoint in violation of the Free Exercise Clause.”

The call to pray is a priority for evangelical Christians, who know that prayer must be true prayer, prayed in the Name of Jesus to the one true God. During a meeting of the Trump-appointed Religious Liberty Commission, held at the Museum of the Bible in early September, Scott Turner, U.S. secretary of Housing and Urban Development and a Southern Baptist minister, cast the vision for “America Prays” and said more than 70 faith organizations had already joined the initiative.

“This proposal seeks to clarify that hospitals participating in our programs cannot conduct these unproven procedures on children,” said CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz in a press release. “CMS will ensure that federal program standards reflect our responsibility to promote the health and safety of children.” The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon, is led by the attorneys general of New York, Oregon, and Washington.

Without knowable truth, everything rests on opinions, and opinions mold themselves into whatever shape seems most convenient. In such an existence, the thing we call “truth” becomes a mere justification for our desires and feelings. In politics, truth has become a commodity to be manufactured, bought, and sold — something that can be molded to fit the tastes of whatever audience the politician wants to reach at that moment. While freedom from objective truth can at first feel liberating, it eventually entraps and entombs people in a nightmare of shifting ground.

Iran's state television broadcast was hacked amid a near-total internet blackout, with video clips of exiled crown prince Reza Pahlavi and images of ongoing anti-government protests briefly airing on multiple channels. Pahlavi used the opportunity to call on the Iranian military to break with the Islamic Republic and to side with protesters who have been demonstrating against the regime.

Interestingly, the Jerusalem Post reports that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is "currently the most popular person in Iran." One Tehran resident said that "people have fallen in love with him." Iranians were "impressed" by Israeli strikes on Iran in June as part of "Operation Rising Lion," as the air force focused only on regime infrastructure and did not harm civilians.

To fully understand the deeper meaning of what is happening in Iran right now, we must understand the historical context and the emergence of the Red-Green Alliance. Historically, the colour red symbolised socialist and communist ideologies, while green represented Islamist movements. Though seemingly at the diametrically opposite ends of the political and theological spectra, one inherently atheistic and the other theocratic, these two currents have repeatedly formed alliances of convenience. Their shared opposition to Western liberal democracy, Israel and the United States has provided sufficient unity for cooperation. 

As Christians, we should always examine world events with a Bible in hand. Through the lens of Scripture, we understand two critical insights that are unique to those with a Biblical worldview: Where we should stand on an issue and what God's prophetic Word states will happen in the future. Through these insights, let's examine the chaotic developments in Iran.

Minneapolis saw it in 2020 with George Floyd, and lo and behold, that same spirit reigns again in my hometown. This time, the accused are ICE agents doing their job. And well. The Antichrist won’t have to rent-a-mob—and be assured, many rioters are hired guns making good wages. When he reigns, much of the world will be lawless, godless, tumultuous, and confused. Antifa will be the normal! Anti-ICE demonstrations will be mild in comparison.

Analysts and Trump himself suggested that the operation against Maduro also represented a dramatic reassertion of the Monroe Doctrine, the foreign policy articulated by President James Monroe. It holds that the U.S. government rejects attempts by foreign governments to impose their subversive ideologies, systems, or controls in the Western hemisphere. For nearly two centuries, that doctrine served as a clear warning that the U.S. government did not approve of foreign empires meddling in or dominating the Americas.

“President Trump is trying to fix this tragedy and keep America from becoming like these countries that have been ruined by socialism, communism, corruption, crime, and drugs,” Franklin Graham wrote. “Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and Samaritan’s Purse have worked for many years with churches in Venezuela—over 4,500 of them. Please pray for these congregations and ministers of the Gospel as they share the hope of Jesus Christ.”

The United States has seized another crude oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, marking the second such operation in less than two weeks as President Donald Trump intensifies pressure on Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his government.

Satan could do nothing to stop Jesus’ resurrection two thousand years ago. So, part of his strategy now is to make people doubt that Jesus really rose from the grave. He promotes lies, often cloaked in pseudoscience, to plant seeds of skepticism regarding the resurrection.

None of these possessed any supernatural abilities or space age technology that made them heroic; rather, they used their God-given gifts coupled with dauntless determination to utilize the time God gave them to make a difference in the world in the service of and for the glory of Christ. They were no different than you or me. But as their lives show, God can do extraordinary things using ordinary people who make themselves available.

Christianity is more than just a decision to make Jesus your Savior. It's also a determination to walk with Jesus as your Lord. If you don't do that, you're going to become what so many in the church have become: pew potatoes—the spiritual equivalent of couch potatoes. They watch things happen, but they aren't "doers of the word" (James 1:22).

God has established our life’s course, and that leads us to naturally assume that He knows where we ought to plant our feet. Our responsibility is to ask, “Where next, Lord?” I am convinced that God desires to lead us more than we could possibly imagine and that His voice goes out more frequently than we might have considered. 

In the long centuries since Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem, a great nostalgic myth has arisen around His birth. Artists and songwriters have softened the circumstances of His arrival. It is a scene befitting a baby’s birth, with solemnity suitable for a king’s nativity. But those are not the circumstances foretold in Bible prophecy.