Are We Getting Better Yet?

Some long-time friends and I have been exchanging emails back and forth about the condition of our world, the New World Order, and UFO's. It all started out so innocently, but then we suddenly became engaged in trying to figure it all out. Being the token religious freak in the group, I added my two cents.

Basically, I summed it all up by saying this: Satan rules the affairs of this planet. I know that is a shocking statement, and I am not saying God does not rule or has no control, but to sum up the Biblical world view in one short, pithy sentence: We gave Satan, the enemy of our souls, the dominion to rule this planet by choosing to obey him rather than God when we ate of the wrong tree.

Many consider this a fairy tale, and truthfully, it kind of sounds like one, but let's summarize what all of the internet chatter and history in general have taught us:

1. The rich and powerful oppress and exploit the rest of us. This has been true since the beginning of time. Doesn't sound fair, and since God is just and fair, this would not be indicative of His rule, so, it must be the rule of a sinister, evil force. Given all of the New World Order talk all over the internet these days, sounds like the same old song of Czars, Kings and Sultans having all the power to rule their lands, just being played out on a grander scale now. Why would this happen now when America has proven to be a prosperous enterprise for everyone involved -there would be no reason to suddenly change this money-winning formula. I think it is because it is not enough to be rich and powerful, but to be the the richest and most powerful. It is not about our happiness and prosperity, it is about theirs. However, if they can keep us all fat and happy while they do whatever they want, so much the better for them - it keeps us quiet that way, sort of like a "Brave New World" system.

2. Aliens. This is one of the most insightful articles on alien visitations I have ever seen: http://www.space.com/searchforlife/seti_shostak_visit_020627.html. Makes no sense that they would visit us, unless they accidentally stumbled across us like a scout ant finding food, and then sending the entire ant community to come and feed on us. On the other hand, if they are evil spiritual beings (as this article indicates: http://www.orthodoxinfo.com/praxis/alien_abduct.aspx), and their purpose is to draw us further from God, then again, it aligns well with my statement that Satan rules the affairs of this planet.

3. Mass confusion - Red states, blue states, unions, no unions, God, no God, evolution, devolution, truth, no truth. The list goes on. We should expect this sort of confusion and progressively getting worse scenario if in fact we are a fallen race. We wouldn't expect a terminally ill person to get better each day, but would expect their condition to worsen until death. In the same way, as our "fairy tale" points out, we didn't choose Life, but because we chose the other tree, the Tree of Life was barred from us so we wouldn't remain in this fallen condition forever. In that sense, death is a merciful act - can you imagine how deteriorated and gruesome life would become if our fallen condition perpetuated forever?

So, there you have it folks - not rocket science to see that history plays out our fallen human condition in the hands of a sinister, evil force whose aim is to keep us from life-saving truth. Everything else is simply ornamentation on the same ugly frame of a lost and dying humanity in search of a drop of life-giving water to sustain us one more day. We all need hope to give meaning and purpose in our arduous journey toward our graves, and our hope needs to be rightly placed, or we will certainly be disappointed again and again.

May you find the true meaning of the Incarnation of the Uncreated God into His created world and all the implications of this act during this joyous Christmas season!

Obama Is Not The Antichrist...But Maybe Something Worse.

I have never been one for making "political" commentary, and I'll admit I haven't deeply explored the issues, but watching from the sideline, I am seeing some connections between our new president, and our old prophecies. Seems like people have been looking for the Antichrist for years, and each generation has never been disappointed to find one, even several! Maybe we have moved past that now to something even more ominous - the beast.

Each generation has always thought they were it, that they would be the ones to see the end of the world, and each has been mistaken. Eventually, it will happen. The current image our new president has around the globe seems irrationally glowing. The whole world seems to be following after him. I read somewhere that 44 sheep were sacrificed in his honor. Perhaps I do not know enough about world history, but I have never heard of a political leader who has had the entire globe fawning over him. Hitler could certainly be considered an Antichrist, but he by no means had the world's favor. Considering the messianic aura that was imposed on Obama prior to the election coupled with the current fervor, one has to wonder about the biblical implications of this one man's status.

We are informed in the Bible that we can be assured the Second and Glorious coming of our Lord has not happened yet because the man of lawlessness has not been revealed. Now, a charismatic, charming man appears on the world's political stage and is heralded as the "first truly global President" by mainstream media outlets, and whose moral convictions include live birth abortions. That in and of itself impresses me as a lawless man. The list of his lawless convictions is much bigger than this, and it all basically undermines each of the Ten Commandments.

I have heard of Christians who voted for him for economic reasons. They believe he will save the economy. If economics is the most important thing, then our focus is in the wrong place. We cannot serve both God and money. Incidentally, there is only one other reference that I know of in the Bible regarding the number 666, and it is regarding Solomon's gold. If the mark of the beast has to do with our love of gold instead of our love of God, then maybe this is the time when the man of lawlessness has been revealed. Just maybe.

The Spirit Behind the Crucifix

I have a friend who is a Protestant missionary in Bolivia. His Christian background is heavily Charismatic, and, with that background, he tends to suspect "spirits" behind events and circumstances. Although I appreciate his sensitivity to the spiritual world, something I think more Christians should be attuned to, it seems as if his focus is on the evil spiritual world. One day, he was telling me how people in that area worship the cross. He said he was curious "what spirit was behind that crucifix."

I was curious why he would think there was an evil spirit on a crucifix! I guess the real question for him and for all of my Charismatic friends is this: If an evil spirit can reside on an object, why can't the Holy Spirit also reside on an object? I think it is clear from the book of Acts that the Holy Spirit does "attach" Himself to physical objects, such as Paul's handkerchief. Can someone know that a person is worshipping a cross, or can an evil spirit attach itself to a cross and deceive someone who is calling out to our Savior who has conquered death through death - the crucifix being the very image of the cross where he disarmed the powers and authorities, triumphing over them (Col 2:15).

The cross is a holy thing. Holy things have the Holy Spirit on them. The Spirit does manifest Himself in the world giving great glory to God and affirming the reality of His kingdom. My missionary friend has never been to an Orthodox Church before. I wonder if he would relish in the abundant saturation of the Spirit of God seen in every corner and heard in every hymn, or wriggle at experiencing the Real Presence of God perhaps for the first time ever.