Thoughts on Amos 5:18

Woe unto you that desire the day of the LORD! to what end is it for you? the day of the LORD is darkness, and not light. Amos 5:18.

Dispensationalists,* those that adhere to the pre-tribulation rapture of the NT Church, desire the Lord's Coming at any time. They pray Maranatha! (O Lord Come!) this word is found once in Scripture used by the apostle in 1 Cor.16:22. The Day of the Lord will be inaugurated at His Coming, when He will set up His millennial reign on earth in juxtaposition with heaven. As (true) believers, whatever our understanding of unfulfilled, and indeed fulfilled prophecy, it should ever be one's desire "to be present with the Lord" 2 Cor.5:8 and "to be with Christ; which is far better" Phil.1:23. The Christian should not fear death as those "which have no hope" 1 Thess.4:13, now, this doesn't mean that every believer wants to die any time soon! but, that when his God appointed time comes, he or she will not be in fear of it.

But who was this verse written to? at any rate, pre-tribulationists seem to desire the Lord's Advent at any moment, many pray for Him to come today, and have prayed thus ever since the pre-tribulation rapture theory gained a foothold in the churches back in the mid to late 19th century. To those teachers of this theory, they would know that their pre-tribulation rapture is inextricably linked with the Lord's Second Advent to the earth (Zech. 14:4), for they teach that the rapture (His coming to meet them in the air; 1 Thess. 4.16-17) will happen approximately seven years before His bodily descent to the Mount of Olives. Unbelievers cannot desire the Day of the LORD, for they don't believe. There is however, a militant rank among many pre-tribulationists, those who are in league with unbelieving Jews by hastening the the building of the third temple, and all the artifacts thereof, in which the coming Antichrist will sit in! There are many, many pre-trib ministries involved in this, two of the bigger ones, Mike Evans Jerusalem Prayer Team and John Hagee's Cornerstone Church Texas come to mind here. It is Evans's mission "to guard, defend and protect the Jewish people....until the Redeemer comes to Zion."** John Hagee's ministry "has given millions of dollars toward bringing Soviet Jews from the former Soviet Union to Israel."*** what are we to make of this? The aforementioned high profile Christian Zionists are stridently trying to 'help' God fulfill His purposes, of that, there is no doubt. The question is, does God need their help? can anyone help God to fulfill His purposes? Granted, He uses humans to to His bidding, that much is true, for so He will yet use the coming Antichrist, "Howbeit he meaneth not so, neither doth his heart think so" Isaiah.10:7. Evans and Hagee are raising piles of money helping unbelieving Jews. Prime Minister Netanyahu speaks glowingly of Evans; "Mike Evans is a fighter for freedom in a world of darkening and narrowing horizons" (JPT website). Netanyahu is no Christian, he is an unbelieving Jew; "Shouldest thou help the ungodly, and love them that hate the LORD?" (2 Chron.19:2) were the words of God's prophet to Jehoshaphat because of his alliance with the evil king Ahab of Israel. Evans spends a great amount of his time in Israel, and is in league with well known heretical Christian leaders; he is "lead adviser" to President Trump's "faith advisory team"in Israel, members include Kenneth and Gloria Copeland, Paula White, and others within the charismatic and word faith circles.

Clearly then, pre-tribulationists "desire the day of the LORD" for they are ever trying to hasten its coming. Briefly, at the root of the unbiblical pre-tribulation doctrine is that law and grace are mutually exclusive, that is, the NT Church is saved by grace, and the OT saints were saved only by keeping the law (in other words not by God's grace, but their works). They believe Israel are the earthly people and the NT Church the heavenly. Theological opponents to Hagee and Evans have accused them of holding to a form of "dual covenant" theology. There will be a remnant of the unbelieving Jews saved at His Coming (Zech. 12:10). Now, I am all for helping any in need, but this over zealousness for anything Jewish is clearly wrong. Certainly we "pray for the peace of Jerusalem" Psalm 122:6, for that Day will come, and the Lord will rule the earth from Mt Zion (Isaiah 2:3, 24:23, Joel 2:32, Micah 4:2, Zech. 8:3 etc).but what is special about unbelieving Jews? nothing, they are sinners the same as every one else! they need now to repent and believe in the blood of Christ alone for their salvation.

Evans is described as a journalist, author (on the New York Times best seller list several times), and political commentator (he has several political & ecumenical affiliations).Clearly Evans and others have much zeal for anything Jewish, but "there is a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge" Rom. 10:2. When I believed in the pre-tribulation rapture (in my more biblically ignorant days!), in my house, we had "Shalom" in the entrance porch, a sprinkling of menorahs about the place, pictures of Jerusalem, and such like; to top it all of, I would name the Name above all names Yeshua or Yahashua, instead of the correct English translation, Jesus. I am not so daft as to believe that the Lord heard His Name pronounced J-E-E-S-U-S, but then I know not how His name was pronounced in the Hebrew, Greek, Aramaic, and the other various tongues in the NT era!

Should any Gentile Christian be in Jerusalem at the time approaching the Lord's visitation? clearly, it will only be true believers that will heed His warning "to flee unto the mountains" Matt. 24:16 upon seeing "the abomination of desolation" in the previous verse. This will be a time of great deception; will not the "tares" (false Christians) linger about in the vicinity, especially if they have had their hands involved in the building of Antichrist's temple? Back about ten years ago, I know of a certain Christian man who went to Israel to assist in the rebuilding of a Jewish synagogue that was burned down, such is the zeal of some; you just as well as get involved in the building of a mosque!
It is not easy filling in all the dots as it were, but, the Antichrist will possess super-human intellect being energized by Satan, for to "sit in the temple of God, setting himself forth as God" 2 Thess. 2:4, is no mean feat! It may be that "in the midst of the week" when "he shall cause the sacrifice and oblation to cease" Daniel 9:27 that he may show counterfeit crucifixion nail marks on his body (see Luke 24:40 & John 20:20) deceiving many into believing that he is the Christ! and utter the words of the prophet Isaiah 1:11-13 to the Jewish nation; "I am full of the burnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts; and I delight not in the blood of bullocks, or of lambs, or of he-goats...bring no more vain oblations..."

One can't but help believe that some of these Christian Zionists will be among those pleading their wonderful works in judgment day (Matt.7:22)?

*  Pre-tribulation Dispensationalism has spawned the pre-wrath doctrine, which teaches that Paul taught the dead & alive saints would be "caught-up" (1 Thess.14:16-17) that is just prior to the Lord's Second Advent, though they cannot affirm its exact placement. The rapture doctrine, has been separated from its true place-that is the Second Advent.
**Source-soundchristian.com
***             ditto

New Zealand Mosque Attack Kills 49.

A dreadful atrocity, no other word for it.

As Christians, we should live our lives according to the commandment that we "love our neighbour as ourselves" and we should do to others what we would have them do to us (Luke 6:31) whether he be a Jew, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, Atheist...and that certainly doesn't mean going around killing or maiming people. (or even secretly desiring their hurt).

There is much talk these days about "hatred toward Muslims", I have absolutely zero hatred toward Muslims, but I hate Islam with every bent of my body. Muslims are people, Islam is the false ideology that they follow. There is a massive distinction!

I hate Islam because it teaches that God has no Son! "Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father." 1 John 2:23. Muslims are deceived and in total darkness, and unless God opens their eyes to the truth, there is no hope for them.