AMERICA, GOD WILL ACT

J. Grant Swank, Jr.


In fact, God presently acts for God always acts, even in His patience and mercy.


But one of these days God will act like no one will have expected. His nature demands it.


God’s mercy is far beyond any of ours. His patience likewise.


However, in balance to His mercy is His justice. Therefore, when His mercy reaches a particular line known to eternity, divine justice strikes.


Why? Again, because of the Lord’s persona. It is His nature for He is holy in mercy and justice.


America’s tolerance of immorality along with Barack Obama’s purposeful institution of nationwide secularism as the New Religion will only continue so long. Then the God who acts will perform the perfect event in answer to this paganism.


While a student at Harvard Divinity School, I had only one genuinely biblical professor—Old Testament Professor G. Earnest Wright. He authored “The God Who Acts.”


The thesis was that the Bible is not a theology book. It is a book recording happenings. These occurrences are brought about by a deity who acts.


So true. From Genesis to Revelation, God acts through people and situations to reveal who He is. From these events we cull doctrine and formulate theology.


With that, this Church Age continues to record the acts of God. This present anti-God era has experienced some of the divine moves. More are in the offing, like the planet has never seen, just as Jesus predicted in His prophetic dialogues with the disciples.


Consequently, we biblical believers must keep the faith though our numbers are not necessarily influential with the political powers-that-be. Biblical believers’ are mightily influential at the throne of heaven.


In the Acts of the Apostles, chapter two, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at the Pentecost Festival example the decisive divine acts. Suddenly God thundered through the sky so as to fill the entire house where the believers gathered in prayer.


God acted. He did so quickly. He moved with a mighty noise witnessed by all Jerusalem so as to upset the entire city, rushing multitudes toward the Spirit’s infilling of Christ’s disciples.


What a contrast with Christ’s resurrection. Christ came back from the dead as practically a whisper. He revealed Himself—not with a dramatic push into Herod’s and Pilate’s administrative suites—but to a nondescript Mary of Magdala.


That was an act privy to the humble followers primarily.


However, at the Pentecost Festival, God acted with noise and power so as to turn a metro upside down. No wonder God’s ways and thoughts are far above ours.


In this time in which we live, this same God will act creatively to bring to naught the God-haters and honor the righteous remnant.

TERRIFIC TIMES FOR BIBLICAL BELIEVERS

J. Grant Swank, Jr.


This is one fantastic era for the truly biblical believers.


We stand out more than ever.


It used to be that all church folk were all logged as believers. If you went to the sanctuary you were “Christian.”


Of course, church going does make a soul right. It is only by Jesus accepting the repentant heart does one become His disciple. And that means a genuine conversion from darkness to light.


With today’s immorality accepted as legitimate, sincere biblical moralists are all the more visible. That’s the way it should be. That’s the picture we get of the New Testament Church. It could not hide. It was too obvious; therefore, it was blessed by God by “turning the world upside down.”


This is now the biblical believers’ chance to turn our world upside down for biblical truth. We stand out.


All the more that real Christians not dilute the gospel or hide under today’s politically correct screen. Real Christians need to be upfront in their scriptural convictions.


It is now the time for all Jesus people to wear proudly the name of the Savior and live according to His ethic. This is the age when mortals clothed in the power of the Holy Spirit truly make a vital difference.


Sometimes biblical believers complain that they are being attacked for their righteous stand. Instead of complaining they should rejoice that their righteous stand is noted now more than ever.


Why would the real Church want to remain muffled or sidelined when it can be recognized clearly for what it is? This is the era of recognition. It is the climate for in-the-open proclamation. That makes our age the terrific era.


All around us the apostate churches are closing their buildings. I just returned once again to the U.S. from Nova Scotia where the liberal church buildings are closing their doors.


In our village they are talking about taking closed church buildings and uprooting them into one location. There they will stand alongside one another as pretty gift shops.


I thought: Is this not the evident display of theological liberalism’s death certificate? Churches that are meant to proclaim salvation are now locked up, then moved geographically alongside the village river to serve as gift boutiques.


Jesus cast out the merchant sellers from the House of Prayer because they were desecrating it. But in our part of Canada these sanctuaries are turned back into the five-and-dime that Jesus lashed out against. Interesting, isn’t it?


For years these liberal churches said that all souls were on their way to heaven, that Jesus was not important, that a real-life conversion was fanaticism. So what good were these pulpits? What eternal significance did these anti-Bible preachers implant? None.


Therefore, all the more good that they go their death routes. Time that they close their front doors and scat.


But evangelicals did not have to see to it. These churches have brought tombstones to their doors by their own anti-God sermons, bureaucratic proclamations, and purposeful disdain for the biblical verities.


Consequently, if you are a biblical believer, claim this age for the gospel. Get to the reason for your being. It is to tell those about you that Jesus is Savior. He can be Lord of every repentant soul—now and forever.


This is the terrific time for the real Christian.

NO ONE KNOWS JESUS’ RETURN DATE

J. Grant Swank, Jr.


There is much speculation regarding Jesus’ return within the biblical believers’ community.


What is certain is that only the Father knows the day and hour.


Before Jesus ascended to heaven, He told His disciples that the times and seasons are known only to the Father.


In His dialogue with the disciples during his three year public ministry, Jesus accented that only the First Person of the Trinity knows the Second Coming day and hour.


However, Jesus left it open for believers to know the year and month of His Second Coming. In fact, Jesus, in His vision given John on Patmos, stated in Revelation 11 that believers will know how to calculate the year and month of His return.


Jesus in that vision stated that two witnesses will begin the about-seven year tribulation by appearing preaching in Jerusalem, enemies seeking to murder them. They will proclaim the gospel for the first half of the tribulation; consequently, believers can count off the first three-and-a-half years to the desecration of the temple.


With that, believers can calculate the second half of the tribulation that is given as 42 months in Revelation 11. From the temple desecration to the Second Coming are those 42 months that obviously can be figured out on the calendar by the biblically informed.


However, that will still yield to the knowing only the year and month of Jesus’ return, not the day and hour. The day and hour are known only to the Father.


Therefore, no one knows specifically the Second Coming day and hour; but biblically attuned disciples can count out the year and month, the last month shortened somewhat for the elect’s sake.


How thorough is God in providing such detail to believers! This is exceptionally comforting in that such data also reveals once again God’s love for His saved ones.


All the more it is imperative that believers scour the Bible for detail regarding the present global frequencies as they lay alongside Scripture.

JESUS, WHAT DO I DO WHEN MY THOUGHTS JAM?

J. Grant Swank, Jr.


There are times when your thoughts jam together so much that there’s nothing but mush.


You’re overstressed so that thoughts circulate over and over again.


Or they pile on top of one another all at once. Thoughts start but don’t finish. Then another intrudes so as to threaten to take over. Then a third takes a swing at your head.


Sometimes these jams take place in the middle of the night—dark dark dark and nowhere to go but couch and no one to talk to, obviously.


The devil can use these jams to get you confused to the nth degree. Also, that’s the time doubt sets in. Is Jesus really there? Are the promises really true? Am I believing in a mist?


Finances. Marital problems. Children disappointing. Lost job. Ill health. Friends let you down. And so forth.


Sometimes these all jam at once in the cranium. Where is Jesus?


Jesus is right there. He never leaves us. He has dealt with jams before. Then let Him deal with your jam.


Surrender every thought to Jesus when it’s in the good time. Learn how to “take no thought for the morrow” (Matthew 6:34).


Stick to that thought process. Let Jesus talk to you. When He is not forming your thoughts, then it’s time for you to rest. Jesus orchestrates rest stops in the rhythm of thought pattern construction and silence.


We need the silence. We need the quiet. We need to shut down until Jesus plants another thought.


I mean being very practical here. Jesus will tell you to make the bed, wash the dishes, vacuum the carpet and empty the garbage. Do whatever He tells you when He tells you.


That’s learning how to surrender your thought patterns to Jesus, not just the pious ones but the practical ones.


Jesus will tell you to spend that money for this or that. Jesus will tell you not to spend that money for this or that.


Jesus will tell you it’s time to turn off the television and go to bed. Jesus will direct you to a book to read, a movie to watch, an outdoor scene to take in, a phone call to make.


Jesus will tell you it’s time to praise Him, thank Him, tell Him that you love Him.


So when you learn how to surrender your thoughts to Jesus, taking no thought for the future but letting Jesus hold your future’s security, you will be ready for the jam.


It’s the same with jammed thoughts. Surrender the confusion. Jesus can handle confusion. He is up to it. Then don’t wrestle with the jam. Don’t try to fight it on your own. Don’t try to straighten it out.


Instead, surrender the jam to Jesus. Say, “Jesus, my head is going round and round. I’m scared. I cannot control my thoughts. I now surrender my head jam to You.”


I would suggest then that you go to the Psalms. I have found that by going at random to the Psalms, Jesus directs me to the verses needed. My experience has been that in time the jam unloosens by way of the Psalms’ comfort and direction.


Again: don’t try to unwind the jam intertwining. Don’t work at making thoughts orderly. Let Jesus take the jam just as it is. He knows what to do with it.


Now here is another recommendation that I hope you will understand so as not to think I am diminishing the Jesus power.


I recommend that you see your family doctor if the jam is too often and too messed up. If it goes on and on, see your doctor.


If your doctor is like mine, he’s wise. He will give you medicine to aid you in calming down the thought stress.


But why should you do this when Jesus is all-powerful, all-knowing, all-sufficient? Why not? Jesus creates medicines. They are heaven’s gifts when we need them.


Therefore, Jesus may work through medicines to correct the jam clog.


Again, I don’t consider this thinking less of Jesus’ input. I think it as Jesus guiding me to a doctor for the medicine gift.


That’s what I have experienced. My own life has directed me at times to rely on prescriptions to assist in leveling out the thought jams that pile up. They cut through depression. They help clarify my head. They work to build up my strength to carry on.


So where was Jesus in all that? Jesus was in the medicine, in the doctor’s skill to provide me with what I needed and in my logic to do what was necessary.


Read SURRENDER YOUR THOUGHTS TO GOD at http://truthinconviction.us/weblog.php?id=P2940


Read WHAT DO I DO WHEN JESUS DOESN’T SPEAK? at http://grantswank.blogtownhall.com/2009/02/19/what_do_i_do_when_jesus_doesn%E2%80%99t_speak.thtml

THIS JACKSON THING HAS GONE WAY OUT OF HAND

J. Grant Swank, Jr.


It is true.


The Republic has become the United States of Entertainment.


All revolves around our dvds, ipods, celebs, theatres, and so forth.


This has become a religion so that today’s church must entertain or else it’s a wipe-out.


This Michael Jackson funeral thing has simply got out of hand. It is as if he were deserving a state funeral. It is a wonder his body was not placed in the US Capitol building due public viewing for days on end.


Every newscast is covering every single twinge of Michael Jackson etcetera.


Yet is not this the one who placed his body mid-section of the bed with young boys gathered around—eating cookies, telling stories and only God knows what else?


We all know about the litigation circling all this little boy craze with Jackson. No need to go into obvious detail.


Yet when he dies, he is lifted up as The Icon. One musical and Hollywood voice clangs on and on about their siding up to Jackson about such and such.


This is utterly off the wall.


I thought America was an intelligent nation. Its brain has slipped far below normal.


Once the United States of Entertainment succumbs to adoring these kinds of situations, mesmerized by these personages, we are truly on the dark skids.


That leads me to Barack Obama, naturally.


That fellow got where he is because he was considered, especially by the young, as a celebrity. A twinkling celebrity, not a wise statesman, got elected to the Oval Office.


Now we are faced with the socialist, left of left, anti-Christian heritage, relativistic immoralist demolishing our country in high speed.


As I turn on the news to watch one more twitch regarding Jackson, I cannot help but merge Obama into that profile. By that I mean that the Republic has become swooned by a celebrity mindset so as to be absolutely frightening.


One does not remain sound as a culture when that happens. One starts to die on the vine, that vine itself is starting to wilt into oblivion.

SPIRITUAL TERRITORIES

J. Grant Swank, Jr.



There appear to be geographical territories which are given over to varying spiritual powers.


There are some geographies which are dominated by demonic forces. This makes for exceedingly combative warfare within the invisible realms.


There are other geographies which are blessed by heavenly forces. This allows for exceptional freedom in preaching the gospel, also for free wills to respond positively to that preaching.


There are still other geographies which are languishing between the two polarizations. They are seasonal and moody. They are unpredictable and not well-charted. The demons have control for a time; then the Holy Spirit has more authority at other times.


Jesus could do little Kingdom work in some locales. The Bible states that the reason was because of lack of faith on behalf of the residents. In other words, the demonic forces were particularly strong in those geographies due to the free wills given over to darkness.


When Jesus performed miracles in some locales, residents were not thankful but instead ran Him out of town. These miracles were outlandish in their impact for good and health. Yet humans in that area were repelled by them. It is because the evil influence was so overwhelming that the people willed not to appreciate the good of God.


This happens on occasion in churches. The Lord provides an evident boon to the congregation. Yet carnal souls discount it immediately. They deride it or purposefully ignore it as if the good did not exist.


This leaves the godly persons in a quandary. "Why can't these people see the good that is happening here in our church?"


The pastor is stumped. He cannot figure out why there is not continual praise from the entire congregation because of the obvious blessing from heaven. "When are these people (that is, the obstinate ones) going to get on board?"


This a direct parallel to the reaction in Jesus' time regarding some of His fantastic miracles. There are certain geographies where the demonic forces have such a hold on some free wills so that the latter will not acknowledge God's work.


It was finally this purposeful disrespect for the divine that murdered Jesus. In the end, the envious religious authorities in particular could not take His wonderment any longer; therefore, they killed Him.


In other words, the conflict can reach such a pitch--then and now.


How did Jesus instruct His disciples regarding analyzing geographies when they went from village to village? He taught them to decipher the spiritual frequencies in those areas, that is, what was happening in the invisible realms. If there was receptivity to the gospel, they stayed and worked for the Kingdom. If there was meanness, they moved on to another geography, dusting off shoes when exiting.


Jesus recognized in that instruction particularly the existence of varying spiritual geographies.


When Paul wanted to enter Asia Minor to plant churches, the Holy Spirit explicitly instructed him NOT to do so. He may have had his paradigms, charts, maps, videos and latest paperbacks in his satchel ready for the challenge. Yet the Holy Spirit knew that the geography was not ready for the Kingdom gospel. It is a plus for Paul that he did not push the paradigms but obeyed the Spirit.


So it is in every age. The overview is the same. Some geographies are given over to the gospel due to free wills open to God. Other geographies are not given over to the gospel due to free wills in rebellion against God.


I recall hearing a Mideast missionary relate that it actually took ten years for a Christian convert to become grounded spiritually in that geography. I heard another missionary from the Caribbean relate how Christian converts were springing up over night, stuffing out the church buildings, hanging out the church windows.


Why? Did one missionary have it over the other when it came to church planting, missionary advance, evangelism, church growth technique? No, they were of equal commitment and ability.


Why then the difference in the two geographies? In one location, there was a free will openness to the gospel; in the other, there was a free will resistance.


I pastored in one church where the congregation seemed to grow over night. In other another pastorate, I labored the same methods and message for eleven years with scant results.


Why the difference? I was often asked. I wondered that myself. Then it became clear: In the blossoming congregation, there was such a hunger for God.


The other geography was extremely interesting. Within a three mile radius, any gospel work was thwarted on every hand; it did not matter what the denominational tag. We gospel pastors frequently met for prayer and exchanged circumstances so that the picture became clear as to what was going on in the invisible realm.


One congregation had been split three times. In another, not much "for the charts" seemed to work for God though there was a positive attitude within the struggling group itself. In still another, the pastor built up a congregation with flimflam methods, then disappeared with one of the women who was not his wife. In still another, half the congregation walked out after a morning service. Trouble everywhere.


Those outside these churches had no concern whatsoever for the gospel call. Therefore, to see through evangelism in that pagan land was truly a Herculean feat.


Understanding varying spiritual geographies has given comfort to many of us in the daily ministry. After all, we have spent lifetimes here and there. We have seen varying responses to the gospel call. We have experienced all kinds of situations: discouraging and delightful.


When the numerical growth responses have not been all that promising, we have carried unnecessary guilt, lived with frustrations as to why programs were not producing, frequently had the pastor blamed for being inept or lacking in one take-charge area or another.


The fact of the matter may have nothing to do with the pastor nor the committed flock. It may have to do with the invisible forces at work in the geographies. If the free wills in that area are open to the gospel, then God can work. If they are not, God's work is thwarted. Such is a sound biblical appraisal.


Then there finally is no one to blame but those humans who exercise their free wills against the God who created them--and the devil who oversees their resistance to the gracious face of Jesus.