What Tastes As Sweet As Honey But Turns Your Stomach Sour?

What Tastes As Sweet As Honey But Turns Your Stomach Sour? - This Week’s Feature Article by Jack Kelley – www.gracethrufaith.com

Then the voice that I had heard from heaven spoke to me once more: “Go, take the scroll that lies open in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land.”

So I went to the angel and asked him to give me the little scroll. He said to me, “Take it and eat it. It will turn your stomach sour, but in your mouth it will be as sweet as honey.” I took the little scroll from the angel’s hand and ate it. It tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth, but when I had eaten it, my stomach turned sour. (Rev. 10:9-10)

For years now Christian commentators have warned that the USA is due for judgment. We’ve pointed to the redefining of homosexuality as merely an alternative lifestyle and the murder of 50 million pre-born children in the name of responsible family planning as major indicators that Americans are in the final stages of rebellion against God. Even Billy Graham, who is not noted for inflammatory rhetoric has been quoted as saying, “If God doesn’t judge America, He’ll have to apologize to Sodom and Gomorrah.”

We who study prophecy have regularly warned that the US stands in the way of the fulfillment of a major End Times sign, the ascendancy of a European Super State to world dominance. Whether it’s seen as a form of the European Union or an Islamic caliphate, everyone agrees something has to happen to get the US out of the way before it can take center stage. (With conditions in Western Europe being what they are, it’s looking more and more like the Islamic option will prevail, but that’s a discussion for a different day.)

Lately the combination of social, economic, and political woes in the US make it seem like our time of judgment is arriving, as a growing number of experts are predicting even darker days ahead for America. There’s a feeling that our government isn’t being exactly honest with us about things like unemployment rates, borrowing costs, the declining dollar, etc. and the “man in the street” is beginning to wonder if the situation is worse than we’ve been led to believe.

What’s That Got To Do With Me?

Pre-trib scholars often teach that the church will be snatched away before any serious judgment happens. But the millions who can’t find work and have lost their homes or seen their savings wiped out can tell you it seems to be getting pretty serious already. (And let’s not forget believers in other parts of the world who are facing even worse conditions, with hundreds being martyred for their faith every day.)   Nowhere does the Bible ever promise that we’ll disappear quietly from the lap of Earth’s luxury into the eternal bliss that awaits us without ever suffering a moment’s uncertainty. On the contrary, Jesus said we’d have trouble in this world (John 16:33).

We all know the US is officially in open rebellion against God. There are many areas of our national life that don’t pass muster. I mentioned abortion and homosexuality above, but the list also includes dozens of other things like governmental corruption, sexual depravity as entertainment, a broken judicial system, etc. And how about our appeasement strategy toward Islam? It’s nothing short of the kind of flirtation the Jews conducted with Greek philosophy and religion during the reign of the Selucids 2200 years ago. It led to complete subjugation by the Greeks. Do you think this will turn out any differently? They’ve already publicly stated their goal is subjugation as well.

As long as the coming judgment remained out in some undefined future, it was easy to agree with those who say it’s what we deserve. But as news reports and Bible prophecy converge, telling us that the time for judgment might be a lot closer than we thought, it becomes a different matter. Suddenly it’s not so exciting any more, and that’s what John meant by saying the scroll was sweet as honey in his mouth but turned his stomach sour. He knew that the judgment he was told to prophesy about was just and righteous (sweet as honey) but watching it take place made him sick to his stomach.

We all love the idea of being the generation that sees the Lord’s return, and it is the most exciting time in all of human history. But it’s also a very unsettling time to be around, one that places us way out of our comfort zone and requires the kind of faith most of us have never had to muster up before.

So What Can We Do?

I’m not a financial adviser so I won’t offer any advice in that department. The kind of advice I can give you is spiritual, and that’s good because this is a spiritual matter. If you haven’t already done so, study the promises of God, especially Matt. 6:24-34. I don’t mean just read them. Really study them.

“No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.”

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?”

“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

To help make these promises come true for you, seek to honor God in all that you do. Take care to avoid behavior that will disappoint, embarrass, or offend Him. Sure you’re saved by grace, but that doesn’t give you a license to sin. Show some gratitude. You shouldn’t bite the hand that feeds you, after all. When you do sin, confess early and often, confident that you’ll be forgiven. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)

Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. (Luke 6:38) Give generously with a grateful heart. And remember, your tithe is not a measure of your generosity. No one, having enjoyed a great dinner, would be considered generous for leaving a 10% tip. It’s what you voluntarily do beyond your tithe that makes you generous. And remember this as well. Through your generosity on Earth, which is your temporary home, you’re storing up treasure in Heaven, which is your permanent home (Matt. 6:19-21, 2 Cor. 4:18). Would you rather be well off for a little while longer here, or well off forever there?

In your anger do not sin: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold (Ephes. 4:26-27). Don’t let your anger over some offense, no matter how justified, put you out of fellowship with God. It’s not worth it. Forgive those who’ve wronged you and seek forgiveness from those you’ve wronged. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone (Romans 12:18).   When our ways are pleasing to the Lord, He makes even our enemies live at peace with us (Proverbs 16:7).

Maintain an attitude of gratitude. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.(Phil. 4:6-7) Worry about nothing, pray about everything, be thankful for anything. It’s true, Jesus said we’d have trouble in this world. But He also said, “Take Heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). Because He has, we will too. Keep things in their proper perspective. In just a little while this will be all over and we’ll be embarking on the adventure of a lifetime.

This is just a beginning, but it’s a good one. Assuming that the course has already been set, and powerful nations will be reluctant to change their strategies, we can expect things to become more and more unsettled. A growing number of experts from across the spectrum are predicting that life will likely become noticeably more difficult very soon.

And for those of you who’ve already written this article off as just more religious fluff when what you need is some real world advice, I’ll say this. The fact that you think you can survive whatever is coming in your own strength just shows how far you have to go in rebuilding your faith in the only One who can see you through. Following the advice of Matt. 6:24-34 is the one sure way to keep your bearings in the days ahead. Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness and let Him take care of the rest, like He said He would.

Top Ten Issues Contributing to the Demise of America

Top Ten Issues Contributing to the Demise of America

The top ten issues contributing to the demise of this country are not as obvious as one might think. Of course, we can all agree that government spending, homosexuality, taking God out of the public square, marriage under attack, political correctness, one world foreign policy, abortion, limiting freedom of religion, taxes, unemployment, and inflation may be issues that are tearing apart our nation. But I believe, and you may disagree or agree, that the way to solve all these issues is not by focusing on the issues themselves, but rather on the cause of the issues. In reality, there are another set of top ten issues that if they were solved, there would be no problem whatsoever in this nation. Here's my take on them (early apologies to those who like the short "Jots", please bear with me):

Lack of a relationship with the one true God. The first commandment is "Thou shalt have no other gods before me (Exodus 20:3)." If you are going to be tolerant of other gods--Islam, for example, you are bowing down to them because Islam means submission to allah. In order to turn around your life, the life of your family, the lives of your countrymen, you must have a relationship with God and know Him and be obedient to him.

Putting idols before God, family and country. The second commandment is "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth (Exodus 20:4)." The Lord goes on to say in verse 5: "Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me." Is television your idol? Is your job your idol? Is your spouse or children your idol? Is your political party your idol? Who are you serving and why? The condition of this nation cannot change without its people putting aside their idols and serving God.

Misguided and false doctrines. If you are a Christian who sits around waiting for the rapture, or shuns involvement in the public square because you wish to be holy, or whatever the excuse, it is likely you are following a false doctrine. These false doctrines can be anything taught in the church that distracts you from doing what Christ commanded, especially in the Great Commission (preaching the gospel to the world and making disciples). If we were all doing what Christ told us to do, our nation would be an irresistible beacon. Instead it is falling apart. Ephesians 4:14 says, "That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive."

Lack of knowledge. Hosea 4:6 says, "My people are destroyed for a lack of knowledge." With all our technology and information, we have become a most ignorant people. In order to know how to restore a family, a community or a nation, we need to understand the principles of God. Our history, the heritage of the social contract that spawned recognition of inalienable rights from God and why we protect them with a limited government; how current issues match up with God's word; the principles of the Bible that cause a man to prosper or his demise--are all knowledge of which this contemporary American society is largely ignorant. If you want to change the society, it seems that you have to know where it has been, where it is, and why, then apply biblical principles to fix it. How can you do that if you lack knowledge?

Separation of Church and Society. Jesus said in Matthew 5:16, "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven." If your church has become a club with no or little outreach, it could be separated from society. If you are allowing society or accepting that society is able to preclude God from the public square, you are unable to let your light so shine. There can be no separation of Church from society in the sense that Romans 12:21 charges us to overcome evil with good. All too often church has become so grafted to society or ingrained in the humanist way that people cannot tell the sheep from the goats.

Lack of moral clarity. We are supposed to be in the world, not of it. 1 John 2:15 tells us "Love not the world, neither the things in the world." We need to know biblical morals and apply them to our society. The whole separation of church and state argument has had a horrible impact on Christians. How many have come to believe this? Even Exodus 18:21 tells us how to select our leaders: "Moreover thou shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them to be rules of thousands, and rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens." America's founders believed that our Republic could not survive without moral and religious people in leadership. From the government schools to television to social media--all these things are breaking down moral clarity by the second.

Apathy. Ephesians 6:19, 20 says, "And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak." We are not to be an apathetic people. Yet how many of us are so bogged down with all things in life that we do not even care to get up and do something about the condition of our family, our community or our nation? One person can make a difference. You can make a difference.

Pride. Proverbs 16:18 says, "Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall." Pride stands in the way of a lot of things. 2 Chronicles 7:14 says, "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." Want your land/nation healed--this is the formula, but you have to give up the pride first.

Paralysis. Paralysis is caused by being totally overwhelmed by the immensity of the issues we face. They have become so great that we cannot begin to wrap our minds around understanding them, let alone how to solve them. But the Word of God again has the answer: Philippines 4:13 says, "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." 2 Timothy 1:7 says, "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." Every problem is solved by starting to solve it. Paralysis is not an answer.

Covetousness. Exodus 20:17 says, "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house, thou shalt not covet they neighbor's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor hi ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbor's." We do not need to keep up with the Jones's. This is a distraction. Covetousness is what has caused the government to run up debt so huge that every family owes some $520,000 as their share of it. This is a great evil perpetrated upon our lives. If we were not working so hard to accumulate stuff, we would have time to exercise our civic duty.

These ten items are starting points. They are just my opinion. I believe that we need to change hearts in order to change the nation. If people were truly living the Christian life, the issues mentioned in the first paragraph would not even exists. Building up people is a lot harder than sitting back and complaining about the world around us. But that is what we are called to do. Blessings to you and your house. Be encouraged, even inspired.

Have a Blessed and Powerful Day! 

Bill Wilson
www.dailyjot.com