* YES GOD IS LOVE - HE IS ALSO A LOT MORE THAN THAT

I am increasingly concerned with the continuing modern focus on the love aspect of our wonderful God.  Yes, God is love.  We know that.  The Bible tells us that.  Look at Jesus’ actions in going to the cross for us.

Yes, it is true.  God is love.

He is also many other things.  And this is where so many today who profess to be Christians just turn a blind eye.

God is patience.  He is long-suffering, but that patience does not last forever.  Eventually people have to realize who he is and what he expects. 

And he is jealous.  He is a jealous God.  You cannot have other gods before him.  You cannot put other things in life before him.  You just can’t.

And he is a just God who indeed does avenge.  Vengeance is mine, says the Lord. 

If you read the Bible you know that God will only tolerate evil so long, even in his chosen people the Jews.  Notice how he brings all sorts of calamities on the Israelites over the years when they are out of line.  Eventually at one point he even lets Jerusalem be overrun and the leaders taken away to Babylon.

And he makes it clear in the Bible that all these things that happen aren’t just necessarily by accident.  The book of Nahum notes the Lord’s way is in the whirlwind and storm.  And the book of Amos asks has disaster come to a city and the Lord not caused it?

Pretty chilling, is it not – certainly .  Except for the fact that we also do know the goodness and love of God!

Yes, God is God.  I wrote about that quite a bit recently in the newsletter in March titled NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE WITH GOD.  People today just can’t seem to get a grip on the immensity of God.  All powerful.  All knowing.  All present.  He is God. 

We humans can hardly imagine God! 

One approach is to look at some movies where an emperor or other powerful figure is portrayed.  Maybe a movie about Caesar or Genghis Khan or some other powerful historical figure.  I expect you have all seen something like that.  Remember how sometimes a trembling subject or stranger is brought in before the ruler, and the subject is kneeling or crawling on the floor.  They are terrified because of the great power of the ruler.

Well, they should be.  The ruler can just decide to end their lives, or maybe send them off to some battle, or take their possessions away, or whatever.

I tell you, none of those rulers have even a tiny percentage of the power that our God has.  If people fear someone who can take away their life, how much more should they fear someone who not only could do that but also could send them for an eternity into a horrible place to exist?  Here is the actual scripture that makes that point:    “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.”  (MT 10:28 NIV)

Most people just don’t appreciate the immensity of God or who he really is because they don’t know him – let’s be honest.  They just don’t.  God to them is someone in a book or someone talked about once in a while or at church.

But we are talking about God.  Yes, he is love.  Yes, he is patient. 

But do you remember when he killed everyone on earth except Noah and seven members of Noah’s family, because he was so upset by the behavior of people? 

And do you remember when he was going to eliminate all the Israelites because of their behavior, and start over with Moses?  Moses interceded and God decided not to do that.

God is love all right.  The actions of Jesus in his first visit to earth were love, all right.  Lots of demonstrations of compassion.  And his love for us comes through in our times of prayer and communication with him. 

But even Jesus is returning as the great leader of the army of angels and saints to win at Armageddon and then to establish his rule from Jerusalem.  Jesus himself kills everyone in the army opposing him at Armageddon.  Jesus.

I am telling you all this because I am so concerned that people today just look at the love aspect of God.  For sure he loves us and he forgives us and he wants the best for us.  But he also wants his plans to be fulfilled and his words to be obeyed. 

We are very near the time Jesus will come to collect his believers and take them away, giving them a new glorious body.  During the time they are away in heaven, the seven year tribulation will occur.  Yes, terrible things are done during that period by the antichrist, the false prophet, and the devil.  See Chapter 13 of Revelation, for example.  But many horrors poured out during that seven year period described in many chapters in Revelation beginning in Chapter 6 are horrors poured out on the remaining humans on earth and on the earth itself by God.  They are the wrath of God.  At the time of the seven year tribulation, God will have been long-suffering for long enough.  He still will be seeking those who will turn to Jesus, but he will also be pouring out his wrath.

Don’t let anyone mislead you so into thinking that God is only love.  Remember, he is absolutely God.  Someone to be feared as well as loved.  And yes, that advice about fearing the Lord is in the Bible too.

Keep Your Eyes on Jesus!

                                                                                                    (APRIL, 2016)

                                                                                        Copyright © 2016 by John Newlin

[NOTE:  This article may and should be copied, printed, or forwarded by email to others so long as it is copied, printed, or forwarded in its entirety with the appropriate attributions included.  We in fact encourage you to do so and especially to give printed copies to those who you know would benefit and do not have access to computers.]

P O Box 15797, Wilmington, NC 28408       910 395 1465      www.johnnewlinministries.org

            Email: info@johnnewlinministries.org       Twitter.com/johnnewlinmin
     
                                    Blog:  johnnewlinblogspot.com

* GOD’S TIMING – A MESSAGE FOR EVERYONE

Many years ago Cathy and I were in a wonderful Christmas Eve service at a local church.  As we were sitting there, suddenly the Lord spoke directly to me:  “John, these people are celebrating my birth, and here I am getting ready to come back soon.”

I knew immediately what he meant, and so I expect do you.  He has already been born as a human being.  That happened more than 2000 years ago.  Wonderful as that was and is, what is important now is that he is coming back soon.  The really important issue for people living now is whether they know him and are prepared for that return!

This past Easter season, or Resurrection Sunday as many like to say, I thought the same thing.  The crucifixion and the resurrection and ascension have all happened, and many years ago.  Thank God for that!  Thank Jesus for his going through with all that!  Still, that is the past.  Now we are at the point of his return.  How many of your friends and neighbors and people you interact with daily know that?  How many are ready for that return?

I know the answer to those questions.  Not many.  Not nearly enough.

You know, all this reminds me of many times and periods in ministry.  I have seen over and over that God operates in seasons.  At the peak of one of his seasons, things go really well, but when that season has ended the same things, the same approaches used that worked well in the past just don’t work as well.  I have also seen how he generally likes to do new things, how he likes to answer prayer and do things in ways we do not expect.

In our ministry I can see several seasons, such as years of primarily focusing on healing services and conducting Holy Spirit led services and leading people into the presence of God, and years of teaching and preaching the fullness of Jesus and all he did, and years of recording and producing CDs and producing and broadcasting television programs, and years of writing and sending out our various publications.  Yes, sometimes there has been overlap of these, but really they have been pretty distinct seasons.

If you are following God’s call and seeking to do all he leads you to as and when he leads, you will see there are seasons.  God has specific times for you to do something.  You may be living and working in fulfillment of what you understand he wants you to do, and then almost suddenly, or maybe slowly and quietly, what you are doing will gradually fade away and he will begin to move you in a new direction.

Many of you who have known us for several years know of my burning desire early on to teach and preach and lead people into the presence of the Holy Spirit and for them to experience divine healing.  So many people just did not know about any of that.  And then gradually we moved into focusing on the fullness of Jesus and all he did and all we are in him, still of course ministering in the spirit and healing as led to do so.  About ten or so years ago one time specifically Jesus spoke to me right in the middle of a service while I was up teaching and preaching:  “John, tell people who I am and that I am coming soon.”  So while we continued doing what we were doing, I began to shift more and more into teaching about the Lord’s imminent return.  As he revealed more and more to me on that subject and as I realized all the Biblical prophecies of events to happen before that return that had now happened, I focused more and more on the return.  Then about two and a half years ago God gave me very specific guidance containing several points.  The one I want to mention here is his point that now the return is my message.  In other words, that is what I should be teaching and writing about!  Thus my increased focus on all aspects of the return recently.  He gave Cathy an amazing scripture while we were praying about this guidance - 1 Peter 4:7.  I want you to look that up.  Amazing.  The Lord was also very strong about my not being distracted from what he wanted me to focus on – all that he told me then.

So at times when I see people crying out that we all need to have a type of program that we or others  had decades ago, I appreciate their heart and their desire that more and more come to know the Lord and realize where we are in time.  But I do not necessarily think we need to replicate what was done way in the past.

My experience is that God likes to do things in new ways.  He operates in new seasons.  Symbolically, he uses new wineskins, not the old tired and worn wineskins that will burst and fall apart and not work.

For a real end-time revival, or awakening, before the Lord returns, I think we all must be open to the fact that the Lord will likely move in ways we have not seen.  It is clear from the actions of various pastors and serious believers in past years who try to hold meetings that will lead to a revival, who hold all night prayer meetings over and over in preparation, that we and they just can’t on our own make the end-time revival happen.

God has to do it.  It has to be God’s timing!  We several years ago had a series of amazing meetings that still warm my heart and bring a smile to my face, meetings in which the Holy Spirit showed up in great power and in obvious demonstration.  People encountered God who had never done so in their lives.  Most people have never seen God operate right in front of them, right in their presence.  But they did in those meetings.   People were healed, people encountered the Holy Spirit, people met God.  Wonderful.  Amazingly none of these meetings led to all those present going home and dragging everyone they knew to our subsequent meetings. 

For example in one overwhelming meeting in a traditional denominational church the Holy Spirit touched everyone in the service.  I expect none or at best only one or two of the church members had never seen anything like that before.  But God chose that night to reveal himself to all.  One elderly man said to me later that he had been in that church fifty-seven years, and after that night he knew all that had been a waste.  What he meant of course was that he met God that night for the first time.  But do you know, the church never invited us back to do another program there.  And even though there were real repercussions from that meeting – for example one woman sent one of our CDs to relatives far away who then used it to hold teaching classes in their church – there was no large revival in that area.  The people who were impacted somehow did not act in a way that would lead to a large revival in the region.

Here’s my thought.  You know why that did not happen?  Because it was not God’s time for it to happen.  Just that simple.  I have seen serious born again, spirit filled ministers of God eagerly set up programs to preach to a community which they hope will lead to a large revival.  I have seen people like this set up ongoing programs to teach truths of Jesus that most just do not know.  And in all this I only see in general the same local believers attend who always typically come out to events like that.  There may be a few new ones reached.  But not many, not the hoped for revival.  Just not God’s time.

So my advice for anyone seriously contemplating setting up such a thing: have you heard from God on this?  Is this the time?  Is it now?  Is it your idea or God’s?

We are about at Jesus’ return, and I have no doubt there will be an end time revival.  So the time does have to be soon.  But’s let’s all be alert and sensitive and wise to take the steps God wants – not our steps but the ones he guides us in. 

Keep Your Eyes on Jesus!

                                                                                               (APRIL, 2016)

                                                                                             Copyright © 2016 by John Newlin

[NOTE:  This article may and should be copied, printed, or forwarded by email to others so long as it is copied, printed, or forwarded in its entirety with the appropriate attributions included.  We in fact encourage you to do so and especially to give printed copies to those who you know would benefit and do not have access to computers.]

P O Box 15797, Wilmington, NC 28408       910 395 1465      www.johnnewlinministries.org
Email: info@johnnewlinministries.org       Twitter.com/johnnewlinmin
     Blog:  johnnewlinblogspot.com

LIVING IN THE MIDST OF MADNESS - Experiencing 2 Corinthians 4:4 in Action

Our newsletters and our Sign of the Times and A Watchman Warning publications for the last several years have focused on Biblical prophecies of things to happen before the Lord returns and on how they have been fulfilled.  As we have moved past the period the Lord referred to as birth pains, we have focused on what I consider the very current and deeper prophecies – the warning about deception and the warning about the falling away from God, the apostasy.  I don’t see how any of us could deny we are right in the midst of those. 

                                                                                                                                                

Recently, as I have written more about specific occurrences and behaviors in this world and how they relate to the prophecies, I have moved into at times pointing out drastically incorrect and evil and wrong behavior on the parts of people and countries.  Massive groups, governments, and individuals seem to have fallen victim to the Bible’s statement in 2 Corinthians 4:4 that the god of this world (the devil) has blinded the minds of nonbelievers.  How else could you explain their behavior that so clearly leads to increasing dangers for the people, often being almost suicidal?  Yet they apparently cannot see the danger or just cannot believe it.

 

Below I give several concrete examples of this behavior that is truly insane to most of you, to anyone who can discern the truth and think rationally.  Thank God for those of us who are born of water and the Spirit, who have the Holy Spirit and have been baptized with the Spirit.  Such a person has the gifts, and one includes discernment, the ability to discern truth from falsehood.  It is these people – us – who see the horrible errors being made by leaders and countries and people, who realize the folly of so many actions today, and of course who are so distressed over these bad actions and over the blindness of so many around us. 

Just consider a few examples:

EUROPEAN FEAR

Recently the NY Times had a headline:  Europe Far Right Fueled by Fear.  There is only one thing wrong with that. It should have read:  Europe Far Right Justifiably Fueled by Fear.

If all Europeans are not fearful today, they are not alive.  Serious changes to their culture and peace are underway.  The threat to Europe of the huge muslim immigration of recent years and continuing today cannot be overstated.  The threat of the murderous jihadists who hide in this immigration pool is obvious. 

Europe is in for dark days. Look already at Paris and Brussels.  Europe seems incapable of dealing with this.  Allowing more people of a truly alien culture which harbors violent terrorists to enter every day is a policy of death.  The leaders seem incapable of recognizing what is happening.  I think this parable captures the views of the European leaders and media and many lost people:

Someone says there are a hundred people outside your home who think almost entirely differently than you and want to come in and live.  They want to maintain their beliefs and culture at the expense of whatever happens in your home.  And one or two of these are horrible terrorists who intend to kill you and your family while they are here.  You (representing the leaders of Europe) then say “Come on in!”

If ever there was a time when the leaders of the people were blind to what is happening and truly lost, today in Europe is that time.  Taking this on to America, those who cannot see the danger here from such blind immigration policies fall into the same camp.

TEMPLE OF BAAL

Hard to believe I am writing about this, isn’t it?  Many of us probably think of Baal as a word used in the Old Testament, not in our day.  But no.

Not long ago in Palmyra in Syria ISIS destroyed the temple of Baal that was there.  In their fundamentalist approach, they are opposed to any idols and structures like this.

Now, in some convoluted effort to remember this archaeological item (best word I could use for such a wretched thing), there are plans to build that temple in Times Square in New York City.  Or at least part of that temple.  And evidently plans to do so elsewhere in the world as well.

Can you think of anything more evil and more wrong to do ever, and especially as we approach the Lord’s return?  Baal?  The devil himself?  A temple?

What are the people opening up when they build such a temple?  What does this portend for New York City and the USA?  I think you can imagine.  God will not be pleased. 

Remember, the god of this world has blinded the minds of nonbelievers.  And those are obviously the people doing this.

BLASTED FOR PROTECTING THE CHILDREN

Recently the North Carolina legislature and governor took action to stop the application of a Charlotte ordinance giving a person the right to use whatever public restroom with which he/she most identified. 
The objective of the Charlotte ordinance evidently was to help that tiny percentage of the public who are transgender (figures I have seen are about 0.3% of the public).  But under this ordinance a ten year old girl could go into the ladies’ room followed legally by a strapping male with all the normal equipment.  This ordinance put all children and women at risk.

I have to think that any rational clear-minded person agrees with the state’s action to stop this ordinance.

But amazingly major corporations such as APPLE, American Airlines, Facebook, even Bank of America have come out against this action of the state.  There have been threats to move the NBA all-star game from Charlotte to another state.

I can remember and probably you can too when major corporations were focused on never offending the values of the majority of society.  Now they are backing extreme minority positions that do not make sense to us – except for 2 Corinthians 4:4.  Their positions don’t even make sense from a business standpoint as they are surely offending a large portion of the population with this backing.

REFUSAL OF US GOVERNMENT TO FORMALLY RECOGNIZE WHO THE TERRORISTS ARE

The extraordinary rise of radical muslim terrorists through major groups like ISIS and BOKO HARAN and the TALIBAN and AL QUEDA and more is well known by all of us.  I would suggest even the word terrorist is inapplicable.  This is a major movement, conducting a real war against western faith and values.

Yet the official government of the United States still refuses to use the word muslim in describing these groups.  And there seems to be a constant effort to downplay the seriousness of all this.  If the leaders of the government truly do not see the seriousness of this and cannot recognize this for what it is, they truly are living in 2 Corinthians 4:4.  And they are imperiling all the citizens of the country.

For those of you who do not keep up with this, let me say that these groups are active all the time, in the ongoing wars in the Middle East but also in terrible attacks on innocent men, women, and children in countries throughout the world.  In just the past few days we have seen the horrible Brussels attacks at the airport and the subway station and the terrible slaughter of Christians at a park on Easter Sunday in Pakistan (mainly women and children).

AMAZING SILENCE OF WOMEN’S GROUPS AND HOMOSEXUAL GROUPS AS REGARDS THE ADVANCE OF THE MUSLIM TERRORISTS

The American people for the most part still are largely ignorant of the culture and policies of fundamental islam.  Women are greatly mistreated and subjugated, for example.  When I was in Saudi, women walked behind their husbands, did not really talk to me on the street, were almost totally covered in clothing, did not get nearly the education of men, could not drive, were limited in jobs they could hold, and on and on.  I understand there have been some improvements in this recently, but the gap is still enormous between men and women.  And the Taliban, wow…they make the Saudis look like flaming liberals.  So why haven’t we heard more from the women’s rights groups in working for the rights of muslim women?  Can’t they see?  Can’t they read?  Don’t any of them know the truth?  Ah, it’s 2 Corinthians 4:4 in action again.

On a related front, fundamentalist muslims do not tolerate those who take illegal drugs.  Truly.  And they do not tolerate homosexuals.  So why in the world haven’t we heard an outcry from the LGBT groups and those who support open drugs here in protest against this treatment?  Why are members of these groups not in real fear of an increasing presence of muslims, especially fundamentalist muslims?  They should be terrified.  Why aren’t they pressing the government to take whatever action it can to defeat the jihadist groups?  Well, you know the answer.

WHY ARE MAINSTREAM CHURCHES SO SILENT IN AMERICA?

Why aren’t mainstream churches in America speaking out and mounting demonstrations against horrible government actions and demonstrations in support of positive steps such as the step the NC government took as described above?  Why don’t we see a million person march to Raleigh to support the governor and the legislature against the attack of those lost pagan leaders of the corporate world who are speaking out against their action? 

You can answer this, I think.  Fear?  Partly.  Lack of knowledge?  Partly.  We know that the fullness of the gospel is just not taught in most churches – the Holy Spirit, the filling and baptism of the Holy Spirit, the gifts of the Spirit, healings and miracles, and now the imminent return of the Lord.  Amazing, is it not?  The Holy Spirit is God, you know.  A member of the Trinity.

When I early went into this ministry, one pastor friend came to warn me.  He said that some of the pastors of the churches I was encountering were not born again.  That is mind-blowing!  If they are not born again, they most assuredly don’t know the Holy Spirit and all that follows.  So what can they be teaching their congregations? 

The scripture 2 Corinthians 4:4 applies in individual churches too, you know.  If you don’t hear any of the issues I mention above being discussed in your church, why don’t you ask the pastor why not?  When the Lord returns, don’t you think he would want to find us out there doing all we can to advance his message and truth rather than being silent and withdrawn from society?

FOR MORE ON THE RETURN OF THE LORD: 

Many of our CDs, our television programs, and past newsletters – all of which are on our web site (television programs also on YOUTUBE) - focus on the crucial subject of this newsletter.  Go to them for much more teaching and revelation.  Request the CDs.

 

The August 2013 newsletter contains a trove of information on basic prophecies fulfilled.  Most newsletters in recent months deal directly with aspects of our time and the return.

 

And our blog contains dozens of writings on aspects of the return.  The home page of the web site connects you to each of the three latest articles and the blog itself, which contains all the articles.

Keep Your Eyes on Jesus!

                                                                                                               (APRIL, 2016)

                                                                                                Copyright © 2016 by John Newlin

[NOTE:  This article may and should be copied, printed, or forwarded by email to others so long as it is copied, printed, or forwarded in its entirety with the appropriate attributions included.  We in fact encourage you to do so and especially to give printed copies to those who you know would benefit and do not have access to computers.]

P O Box 15797, Wilmington, NC 28408       910 395 1465      
www.johnnewlinministries.org

           Email: info@johnnewlinministries.org       Twitter.com/johnnewlinmin     
                                                              Blog:  johnnewlinblogspot.com