Are You a Continuationist or Are You a Cessationist?

29 December 2016: Mindful in the extreme of this sensitive subject matter, the intent is to wade gently through it so as to not cause any major ripples. At the same time there is a compulsion to put this before as many as will read it.

Have you ever wondered why the current church, the bride of Christ, does not exhibit the same incredible spiritual empowerment of the Holy Spirit  as manifest in the very beginning of our faith, such as those things recorded in the Book of Acts and other inspired works? Have you ever prayed on this? For myself, the answer is 'yes' to both questions.

Going back as far as I can recall, the teaching has always been that God hates sin. He loves the sinner, but hates sin. In no way can He abide with or by the defiling filth of sin; his absolute unblemished holiness is the perfection of perfection. It is sin that has always and will always separate the unredeemed human being from Him. It is the saving grace of the Blood of the Lamb which redeems us and provides the aspiration toward achieving a holiness like Him, to live re-born to be like Him, to be Christ-like and without sin.

And in our redemption through the Blood of the Lamb we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit, because in that moment we are blameless, sinless. That is how and why the Holy Spirit, God, can be within us. Yet the Christian is able capable of sin; we have an inherent sinful nature as sons of Adam. So when the Christian inevitably does sin does the Holy Spirit, being an integral part of God, depart from indwelling the human being in that moment?

When a discussion of this crops us I will invariably bring up the difference between receiving the Holy Spirit upon salvation in Christ Jesus, and another experience which is a baptism in the Holy Spirit and the special gifts that come to the individual with that baptism. Trust me on this, I know many Christian brethren who will turn up their noses and deny such a thing exists; they will claim that such 'quackery' is the realm of Pentecostals and Charismatics and other assorted 'holy rollers' and snake handlers who get carried away in or with excessive worship, and so on and so on.  I happen to know different from direct experience, a baptism in the Holy Spirit is the ultimate in unique Christian experiences; there is nothing like it and nothing will alter the truth I adhere to about it following my experience.

But to get back to the central point, if a Christian sins, does the Holy Spirit depart because He can no longer indwell where sin is resident once again? Could this be the reason why the incredible spiritual empowerment that once was so prevalent in the Church in ancient times is now-a-days not so evident? If so, then how ill-equipped are Christians living in sin to fight against the dark forces spoken of by Paul in Ephesians 6:12? Very ill-equipped if biblical reason is applied.

Be mindful, no position is being stated or taken here, and I am as far from anything dogmatic on this as one can be. Yet it was at this point recently when I became aware of a debate within Christendom on this very subject, and the debate is encapsulated the title above. I came upon an entry in the GotQuestions.Org website dealing with this issue which reignited interest in the theological issues at the heart of it. I suggest a reading of the linked article if this subject holds any interest for you. Based upon my own experience with a baptism of the Holy Spirit I have to say that I am a little more than partial to the Continuationist view, but I am praying the Lord through His Spirit to guide to a doctrine to adhere to.

One thing I am absolutely sure of it that when the Lord pours out His Spirit upon all Israel it will be for them and those they encounter exactly as its was in the days of the Lord's Apostles. 

Marana'tha!

Breaking News Alert 05-16

🔺 29 December 2016: The anticipated uber arrogant and condescending speech of yesterday from SECSTATE Kerry was even worse than anticipated. It is absolutely illustrative of the fantasy world the global elite, the un-elected global oligarchy, and their mindless minions have created for themselves to live in. Moreover, these developments provide iron-clad, prima facie evidence that the strong delusion sent by the Lord (II Thessalonians 2:11) may already be in place.

That said, and with a big "hat tip" to SammiD, the proverbial "other shoe" has apparently also dropped. The other shoe is the subject of this breaking news alert, a must read report from The Jewish Press.com, headlined "Jimmy Carter to Obama: Grant Recognition to 'State of Palestine' at UN." 

Seems to me we're barreling along with a full head of steam into the final act of the Psalm 83 scenario. "These things must take place." Marana'tha!

Global SITREP E7-16: The Little Horn

The Little Horn

27 December 2017: Appropriately SITREP E7-16 will be the last one for the year 2016 AD. As can be seen by the image, this is about the prophecy found in Daniel 7:7-8. This is the fourth beast, different from the three beasts which had appeared before it in Daniel's night visions (dreams). At the initial and very first appearance of this fourth beast in Daniel's vision - it has 10 horns. The horns represent 10 nations. These ten nations are the heir nations of the ancient Roman Empire. 

The ancient Roman Empire had taken the place of the beast of the Macedonian-Greek Empire of Alexander the Great and his four Diadochi (generals), represented by a four-winged and four-headed leopard; which had taken the place of the beast of the Persian Empire, represented by a bear, raised up on one side with three ribs in its mouth; which had taken the place of the beast of the Babylonian Empire, represented by a lion with the wings of an eagle, which were torn off and it was made to stand like a man and given the heart of a man (Daniel 7:1-6).

The fourth beast that appears with the ten horns is the final world empire of the 'last days'. it will exist as such when the little horn, the Antichrist, rises among these ten nations. One of the very first things this little horn does as he rises is tear out three of the ten horns by their roots. The Antichrist takes these three horns, these nations, and makes them his own. The remaining seven horns follow after him and pledge themselves to him. This is the prophetic vision of the rising of the final world empire; this is the near future of the West, of Europe and the Western Hemisphere. 

This appears quite likely according to the common interpretation of Ezekiel 38:13 which speaks to a mixture, or alliance of nations of the Arabian Peninsula with the major Western mercantile trading nations of Europe and its former colonies (young lions thereof). NATO in other words. 

Never before in history have the Arabian nations been so intermingled with the merchants of Tarshish and their former colonies which are now independent nations. This has become the fact-of-the-matter due to the events and continuous flood of wars of the past twenty-five years, from the military coalition of the first Gulf War against the land of ancient Babylon (Iraq), through the second Gulf War, and to the current war in that ancient land and in Syria and the resultant mass exodus into the West. The populations of the lands of the ancient Roman Empire are being intermingled in these 'last days' as they've not been at any point in previous history. The inevitable conflict of these two civilizations is unavoidably attendant, and it will be resolved prior to the 70th Week. 

The current fact as we enter the year 2017 AD and 5777-78 on the Hebrew calendar, is this: the God-breathed Biblical prophecy of several major prophets are now bubbling in a virtual boil prior to a literal flood of sequential and or concurrent fulfillment's. And we stand on the threshold of the literal physical manifestation and fulfillment of Daniel 7:7-8 before our eyes.

And while we know not which three horns or nations Antichrist will up-root from the among the ten to take as his own, yet as assuredly as the sun rises tomorrow we can also watch for this to happen in the coming months, possibly as an adjunct or final resolution to the ongoing conflict between the Islamic and pseudo-Judeo-Christian West.

Marana'tha!

Breaking News Alert 04-16

🔺26 December 2016: Today India successfully test-launched for the fourth and final time the Agni-V (Agni-5), a nuclear-capable, road-mobile ICBM. The Agni-V is a three-stage, solid propellant nuclear weapon delivery system that has been indigenously developed by India's Defense Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). 

Agni-V has a widely acknowledged range of over 5000km (3100mi), with Chinese officials claiming that this figure is under-reported; that a more accurate reporting of its range would be in excess of 8000km (4970mi). Agni-V boasts multiple independent re-entry vehicle (MIRV) warhead technology.

Breaking News Alert 03-16

🔺 23 December 2016:  One day after it appeared that the efforts of Israeli PM Netanyahu and U.S. President-elect Trump had forestalled a UN Security Council resolution in Israeli settlement construction, outgoing Islamist U.S. President Obama stabbed Israel in the back today by abstaining from the UNSC vote thereby allowing it to pass. Obama also made sure the U.S. did not cast a veto against the resolution. US SECSTATE  John Kerry also shares blame for this travesty.

Yesterday the measure, which had been brought before the UNSC by Egypt, had been indefinitely postponed due to strong last minute diplomatic efforts being conducted by Netanyahu and Trump. The measure ultimately was withdrawn by Egypt late yesterday, but was then re-introduced by a group of nations (New Zealand, Malaysia, Senegal and Venezuela). 

We can expect strong counter-action by President Trump to commence on 21 January 2017. A declaration of Jerusalem as Israel's indivisible capital city and the moving the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem are likely among the principal early actions to be taken.

Breaking News Alert 02-16

🔺 UPDATE 14 March 2017: As of this date it appears that what had been a covert deployment of Russian special forces (i.e. Spetsnaz) has now been fully compromised. The Russian Spetznaz forces are reportedly operating from an Egyptian airfield an hour east of the Libyan border. The airfield and adjacent Egyptian air defense sites are located three miles south of the coastal Egyptian town of Sidi Barrani, itself sixty miles east of the Libyan border. The Spetsnaz unit is operating in support of General Khalifa Haftar's (noted below) Libyan National Army (LNA). The LNA has suffered a series of defeats over the couple of weeks, losing control of key oil terminals. Increased and long-term Russian military (land,sea, air) forces activity here is a virtual certainty according to Bible prophecy (Daniel 11:40-45).

22 December 2016: How appropriate that the content of this second in the series breaking news alerts is what it is. Russia president is not standing still. In concert with the trilateral meeting described in Breaking news Alert 01-16, Russia is also forging a military alliance with the newly emergent Libya, another of the nations identified in Ezekiel 38/39 as joining in the near-future attempted invasion of Israel.

Libyan Gen. Khalifa Haftar departing Russian Foreign Ministry, Moscow recently.

The current Libyan strongman is General Khalifa Haftar. Through his rapidly improving and ever more lethal military machine (Libyan National Army) General Haftar controls the vast majority of Libyan territory, far more than any other Libyan faction. Russia's Putin personally extended his hand to General Haftar six months ago, and since then Russian military hardware, expertise and funding have been steadily arriving at Haftar's primary bases in eastern Libya.

On the loosing end of the new Russian adventurism in the Mediterranean Sea region is the United Nations-supported government of Prime Minister Fayez al-Serraj in Tripoli, Libya and its military forces formerly known as Libya Dawn and Government of National Accord. The U.S. (under Obama) and E.U. are also supporters of the al-Serraj government. 

Breaking News Alert 01-16

🔺 21 December 2016: A trilateral meeting of the Defense Ministers of Russia, Turkey and Iran is occurring today in Moscow. They are ostensibly discussing the military 'end game' for the civil war in Syria in which they have intervened. A secondary goal of Russia and Iran may be to facilitate Turkey's immediate withdrawal from the NATO alliance. Students of Bible prophecy recognize these three countries as being among the principle nations identified by Ezekiel 38/39 to launch in the near future a doomed attempt to invade and conquer the State of Israel for its wealth.

New Feature - Breaking News Alert

🔺21 December 2016: A new feature on the Eschatology Today blog as we move into 2017 will be Breaking News Alerts. It only makes sense given the rapidity and unpredictability of events that in addition to the standard Global SITREP that breaking news alerts are part of the mix here. Breaking news alerts will be heralded by the red triangle symbol. 

Global SITREP E6-16: Damascus and Syria

 "I love Damascus" sign in Damascus, Syria 31 OCT 16 (Nabih Bulos/Los Angeles Times)

18 December 2016: The above image was published in the Los Angeles Times on 31 October 2016 in an article reported directly from Damascus, Syria by Nabih Bulos on that date. The headline for Nabih Bulos' article: "In Syria's capital, the civil war suddenly seems far away." A second panoramic image from the same article appears just below.

Bustling thoroughfare near Damascus University 31 OCT 16 (Bulos/LA Times)

In the above image the view is to the north, facing Mount Qasioun in the background. Mount Qasioun has been the site of numerous strikes by the IAF during this and previous years. More importantly, and to reinforce what has been covered in previous SITREPs, these images taken just 49 days ago in central Damascus vividly illustrate that this city has not yet filled the prophetic words of Isaiah 17:1.

“Behold, Damascus will cease from being a city,

And it will be a ruinous heap."

Nor have the prophetic words of Jeremiah 49:25 come to fulfillment.

"Why is the city of praise not deserted, the city of My joy?" 

The point of this is to even more vividly illustrate that Damascus is precisely in the condition which immediately precedes its cessation from being a city; its becoming a ruinous heap, and Syria, contrary to ongoing media reports, is itself well within the process of fulfillment of the end of the dynastic Al-Assad kingdom which rules it.

Jeremiah 49:26-27 continues where verse 25 left off:

"Therefore her young men shall fall in her streets,
And all the men of war shall be cut off in that day,” says the Lord of hosts.

'I will kindle a fire in the wall of Damascus,
And it shall consume the palaces of Ben-Hadad.'"

These verses point backwards from verse 25 to the events occurring this year in northwestern Syria, in the very locations specified in Jeremiah 49:23, the region from Hamath (modern Hama) to 'Arpad (located adjacent and north of what is left of modern Aleppo). Therefore, contrary to the teaching going around that Damascus has already attained "ruinous heap" status, we stand at this time of being in a position to witness the literal fulfillment of Isaiah 17 and Jeremiah 49:23-27 in real-time should the LORD God tarry further in sending His Son to collect His betrothed.

Global SITREP E5-16: "Behold, I will break the bow of Elam"

14 December 2016: Ten days ago the above video appeared online, and like a couple of others which date to 2012 and 2015 respectively, it clearly records in graphic detail another in a series of epic failures of the vaunted Russian S-300P surface-to-air (SAM) missile system to launch. The failure is that of the 5V55KD missile itself to ignite following its 'cold launch' from the tube. The missile (the arrow) then falls back onto the launcher (the bow) destroying both.

Upon seeing this video an instantaneous reminder came to mind of the God-breathed words of the prophet Jeremiah. Jeremiah 49:35 to be exact:

“Thus says the Lord of hosts:

‘Behold, I will break the bow of Elam,

The foremost of their might.'"

Behold indeed! It has been with much media fanfare and all-around hand-wringing dread that the Russian S-300P air defense system was recently deployed to Iran after years of political delays.  As discussed previously, the land of ancient Elam is where the crown jewel of Iran's nuclear program is located, and it is here that Iran would seek to defend with the foremost of their military might that crown jewel. Undefended jewels are exposed and vulnerable, as is the country in which they reside.

UPDATE 18 December 2016: According to a report published yesterday afternoon by the Middle East Monitor (MEMO), the Islamic Republic of Iran through the mouthpiece of its IRGC commander, General Hossein Salami, has threatened the Gulf States with "Islamic conquest" as has just occurred in Aleppo, Syria. 

Quoting IRGC General Hossein Salami's comments to Iranian media: “It is now time for the Islamic conquests. After the liberation of Aleppo, Bahrain’s hopes will be realized and Yemen will be happy with the defeat of the enemies of Islam.”

NOTE: In the above linked MEMO report are a pair of embedded videos showing that as the remaining civilian refugees begin to evacuate eastern Aleppo city, mostly on foot but also in cars and buses, the Shi'a militia proxies of Iran open fire with small arms and heavy machine guns, further terrorizing those fleeing through checkpoints set up by the Russian military forces. These videos lend themselves to corroborating other reports of the massacre of fleeing civilians in eastern Aleppo in the past week.

General Salami's statement indicates that Ayatollah Khamenei and his clerical support have authorized these wars of "Islamic conquest" which are without any doubt the creation of chaos in the furtherance of the Shi'a Hojjatieh agenda of hastening the appearance of their awaited al-Mahdi figure. It is noteworthy to also say that neither Bahrain or Yemen could be conquered by Iran without also launching full-scale war against the Sunni's of Iraq, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Jordan and several other nations as well, including the Western alliance led by the United States, and Israel. 

Clearly within this Iranian threat is an overt threat of a greater war in the heart of the Middle East. A 'rumor of war' in the words as prophesied by our Lord Jesus Christ in the Olivet Discourse of Matthew 24-25. Virtually all of us can now see clearly the inter-linking of several very specific Bible prophecies concerning the final wars of the pre-70th Week world as we know it. Time is short.

Global SITREP E4-16: F-35I 'Adir' Arrives in Israel

IAF F-35I  'Adir' at its unveiling in Texas

12 December 2016: Ar 0700 EST/1400 IST today Israel will receive its first first two of the fifty  F-35I 'Adir' ('Mighty') stealth fighter aircraft purchased from the United States of America. As I write the initial paragraph for this SITREP these aircraft are approximately 45 minutes from being 'wheels down' at Nevatim Air Base in southern Israel. Israel the first country outside of the U.S. to bring these truly awesome 5th Generation aircraft into operational service. Count this as a definitive blessing. Watch the F-35I video here.

There are several countries around the world who will eventually be flying the F-35A variant, but in all the world there is only one F-35I and Israel has it. Israel will be the first country in the world outside of the U.S. to have an operational F-35I 'Adir' squadron, and that will occur sometime late next year when the next nine aircraft are delivered to Israel. 

This bad bird guarantees Israel Air Force's domination of Mid-East skies 

13 December 2016: The uniqueness of the F-35I is mostly found in its avionics package and other technological goodies built by Israel's Elbit Systems and IAI.  And that uniqueness will expand well beyond anything the Adir's designers imagined. The Israeli pilots who will fly this incredible aircraft will in the coming months develop operational procedures that other countries can only dream about. This aircraft will ensure that Israel will not only dominate the skies of the Middle East for the foreseeable future, but will enable it to take on combat missions it has thus far not been fully capable of executing as would be desirable with the F-16I Sufa and F-15I Ra'am. The F-35I 'Adir' will execute these missions at less cost and with less support which can be allocated to other fronts needing attention.

To quote the IAF Chief-of-Staff Brigadier General Tal Kalman, "The future is here." Yes sir, it is, and then some.

As we all know, Israel's F-35I Adir's landed last evening at nevatim Air Base in the Negev. They were flown in by American pilots. This morning Israeli pilots took to the skies over Israel in these aircraft. As stated in the comments section of this SITREP, Israel's pilots who will form the IAFs F-35I combat squadrons have been training on cutting-edge flight simulators for some time now. Today they simply hopped into the cockpit and flew victory laps in the skies over Israel. Watch the video above, courtesy of the IDF Spokesperson Office.

Global SITREP E3-16: IDF Publishes AOOB for Lebanese Hezbollah in Southeast Lebanon

IDF Air Order Of Battle for Lebanese Hezbollah

07 December 2016: Yesterday the IDF Spokesperson's Office posted to its Twitter account what amounts to an approved, declassified public release of the IAF's color-coded Air Order of Battle (AOOB) for Hezbollah and IRGC targets in southeastern Lebanon.  The IDF is on record for months now saying that its next war with Hezbollah will be the last war with Hezbollah. This image would tend to confirm that battle plan.

The color-coding within the above image lends itself to understanding how the IDF has prioritized its targeting data and how this war will be prosecuted against Hezbollah from Day One to Day X.  I would surmise the prioritization is Green Dots (Communications, Command and Control - i.e. C3 targets) and Blue Dots (fixed offensive weapons positions) and Black Dots for the obvious reasons. Pink, Orange and Purple dots are subsequent targets during the landwarfare phase of the coming war.

08 December 2016: The coming war? Didn't President-elect Donald Trump yesterday near the home of the 82nd Airborne Division and US Army Special Operation Command (USASOC) say that America would "stop toppling foreign regimes that we know nothing about, that we shouldn't be involved with." Yes, indeed he said that loud and clear. 

However, he also said loudly and clearly so that his words could be heard at the same volume in Tehran, Iran. He said, "Instead, our focus must be on defeating terrorism and destroying ISIS, and we will."  The emphasis here is on the phrase "defeating terrorism," because the Islamic Republic of Iran is the world's number one terrorist state and has been in a state of war against the United States of America for the past 35 years. 

President-elect Trump has also said he will completely enforce the compliance of Iran on the ridiculous nuclear agreement his predecessor and his EU allies made with Iran. This is an agreement that the government of Iran has thus far never officially accepted nor ratified nor abides by in full compliance. So how does one completely enforce a nuclear agreement that Iran, the world's number one terrorist state, has not accepted or ratified nor abides by? By force of arms, that's how.

So, did you see or feel the tectonic shift which just occurred within this SITREP? We went from Israel vs. Hezbollah and Iran in Lebanon to the US vs. Iran in Iran. Has this blog not given a sort of 'heads up' warning for months now of a literal flood of prophetic fulfillments in these final months and years prior to the start of the 70th Week. Yes, indeed these warnings have been given. And a flood of prophetic fulfillments literally links them all together, like a series of cascading prophetic dominoes. One tips over the next. I think you're getting the picture now.

9 December 2016: At the beginning of His sermon on the Mount of Olives, our Lord Jesus said that at the end of the current age and of the things there were to come there would be wars (akouō polemos: literally meaning the Jewish people would hear with their own ears both single battles and series of battles) and rumors of wars (akoē polemos: literally meaning the learning from multiple reports of battles occurring elsewhere), and "take heed, do not be frightened by these, they must take place, but notwithstanding these battles and wars, the end is not yet." 

He immediately followed that prophetic statement saying literally "For multitudes of foreign heathen (not worshipers of the true God) shall rise against multitudes of foreign heathen (also not worshipers of the true God), and kingdom against kingdom..."  

I hope we are all aware that this is precisely and exactly what has been occurring close to the borders of Israel - close enough so that some of these battles between heathen armies can be heard by Israeli ears, and others are conveyed in news reports coming from the neighboring lands. Non-state foreign heathen warriors are at war with other non-state foreign heathen warriors; non-state foreign heathen warriors are at war with foreign heathen nation states, and nation states are at war with nation states. Jesus in these two prophetic sentences perfectly described the current situation in Syria, just across and within hearing distance of the Israeli Golan, and just as is seen in the map above. The rest comes in media reports, again, exactly as He said it would happen. Indeed, we know there is more to come.

"Take heed, do not be frightened by these, they must take place, but notwithstanding these battles and wars, the end is not yet."

Global SITREP E2-16: Red Lines Are Red Lines

Russian S-400 Triumf (NATO Name SA-21 Growler)  at Khmeimim Air Base, Syria

1 December 2016: Early yesterday morning Israel time a pair of IAF strikes occurred on both a Syrian military target near Damascus, and on the Damascus-Beirut Highway against a Hezbollah-bound weapons convoy. Most reports indicate these strikes were launched while the IAF's F-15I 'Ra'am' strike aircraft were in Lebanese air space. This is likely due to an existing and very explicit understanding between Russia and Israel; had the IAF aircraft launched the strikes while in Syrian airspace the Russian S-400 air defense system at Khmeimim Air Base would have been obliged to fire upon the Israeli aircraft. The long and short of it is that Israel's red-line on the transfer of advanced weaponry to Hezbollah in Lebanon from Syria remains intact, as does the Russian commitment to defend Bashar al-Assad's military forces from airstrikes launched in Syrian airspace.

IAF F-15I Ra'am strike aircraft

My only technical analysis note is that the image at the top clearly illustrates a pair of radar emitters (Kasta 2E radar on the left and PRV-13 altimeter on the right) seen between the vertically deployed missile TELARs are not normally known to be associated with a foreign deployed S-400 system. They indicate a possible reduced capability to detect targets between 20 and 65 miles distant at altitudes between 328 and 3,280 feet in altitude. These two systems may be only for point defense of the Khmeimim Air Base against low flying fixed or rotary wing aircraft and/or cruise missiles.

Details on these pre-dawn strikes strongly indicate that the main arsenal for the elite Syrian 4th Division in As-Saboura was struck simultaneously with the Hezbollah weapons convoy. One could very reasonably assume that the 4th Division arsenal was the source of the weapons transfer and the convoy the enroute weapons themselves.  As is normal the Israel Ministry of Defense will neither confirm or deny the strikes took place. Nevertheless, the Israeli-Russian understanding contains no illusions as to what Israel's very real red-lines are or the fact that direct military action will be immediate when those lines are crossed. Wednesday morning's IAF action proves this beyond question. 

It is also apparent to Eschatology Today that the lessons Israel gave the Syrian dictator in early 2013 have been ignored by his regime and Iranian/Hezbollah allies, who, not coincidentally, have been actually running things in Syria for quite some time now. This type of military action guarantees the greater conflagration Israel's ancient prophets tell us is soon to arrive (Isaiah 17, Jeremiah 49:23-27). These are appointments of the Lord's prophetic calendar. Of particular note right now are the very similar circumstances in Wednesday's strikes and those that occurred a mile or two away in Damascus' suburb Qudssaya in late January 2013 which came to mind immediately once As Saboura was located on the map. For reference details see the contents found in: The "Morton Salt Scenario" (When It Rains, It Pours) and Global SITREP A11-13: No 'Game Changer' for Hezbollah/IRGC .

Global SITREP E1-16: NATO or EU Army?

GETTY Image: EU Army

22 November 2016: If you're listening to secular, corporate and globalist media you know, as several of you have written to me of late, that the push is on again for an EU Army. The topic of NATO was touched upon in the context of the incoming and quasi-secular Trump Administration within SITREP D11-16. Now is the time to address the issue of the globalists fervent desire for an EU Army.

To begin with, the same European globalists who are clamoring for an EU Army are the same political entities who haven't for the past half century and longer not paid their fair share of costs for NATO defense of their homelands. So what makes anyone think they'll now ante up in monumental amounts of cash to establish a brand new from scratch defense force where NATO has fulfilled that role? 

And we must be mindful of the fact that some of the European nations clamoring for an EU Army were on again-off again members of the NATO alliance since its inception. Are the potential members of a new EU Army sufficiently feeling the warm and fuzzies that these same nations would not in the future decide to opt out of such a defense arrangement? 

The smaller nations within the EU community are without any doubt giving buckets of prudent thought to this potentiality. No doubt they will opt for the historically proven and time tested alliance for their defense requirements. This at a time when the threat of Russian military aggression on the European continent is foremost on the minds of defense establishments north, east and southeast of where Angela Merkel, who may in 2017 be as gone as Barack Obama, makes her home. And how many of those small European nations have anything in common with increasingly Islamist Turkey; would they follow Ankara out of the alliance thereby forsaking NATO membership and all of its benefits? I kinda doubt it. In fact, I highly doubt it.

And then there's BREXIT. Most everyone who studies these sorts of national defense issues knows that the United Kingdom, which possesses the best European force in terms of funding and professional warfighters, has absolutely zero intention of leaving NATO. 

Most importantly there's Bible prophecy, and Bible prophecy given the angel Gabriel points to an overwhelmingly powerful military force - air, sea, land and space - being existent in the West, particularly at the start of and during the 70th Week. It is a force, which even if only for 42 months, appears to guarantee a security arrangement which covers the whole of planet earth. This is not something a newly emergent and relatively small EU Army would be capable of accomplishing.

The overall probability versus risk valuations for the establishment of an EU Army supplanting the longstanding NATO alliance are just not present, particularly in light of Bible prophecy. Dreamers will always have their dreams, and then they wake up to the rousing scent of freshly brewed coffee and they come to their senses and deal with the reality of a situation like military force posturing on a global scale.

Global SITREP D12-16: The Urgent Need for Repentance in America

NOV-DEC 2016 Issue of Lamplighter

15 November 2016: The final Global SITREP of the current D-series for 2016 is highlighting the November-December 2016 issue of the Lamb & Lion Ministries bi-monthly Lamplighter online magazine. From this issue the spotlight in upon Dr. David Reagan's 3-part series entitled "What America Desperately Needs."  It will take the average reader a total of 15 minutes to read all three parts of this series.

Part 1 of 3  Our National Sins, The Call for Repentance and A Biblical Example

Part 2 of 3  The Power of Repentance in the History of our Nation

Part 3 of 3  The Warning of Romans Chapter 1

Our President-elect (a claimed born-again) and his Vice President-elect (a born again Christian) have as their regularly convening "Evangelical Executive Advisory Board" a fairly well-rounded group of more than two dozen brethren. According to multiple reports I have read, this group includes (in no particular order): Michele Bachmann, James Dobson, Ralph Reed, Jerry Falwell Jr., Richard Land, Jentezen Franklin, Johnnie Moore, Mark Burns, Robert Jeffress, David Jeremiah, James MacDonald, Tony Suarez plus a dozen or so others.

One of the first things this group should advise and act upon is the establishment of a National Day of Prayer in Repentance. They should also meet in the Oval Office and dedicate through prayer to God that room as being the point where the Lord's will be done in our country. America must get on its knees and we must lead the prayers for national repentance.

Global SITREP D11-16: The LORD God Blesses America to Bless Israel

President-elect of the United States of America Donald J. Trump

9 November 2016: As of this morning, a handful of states and district electoral college votes remain to be awarded. The lion's share of them will go to President-elect Donald J. Trump. The one and very obvious demographic segment of American voters not being fully recognized (as yet) by the corporate media for President-elect Trump's victory is ourselves, the bride of Christ. Approximately 90% of us voted for him. The will of the LORD God is done, but there's more to come, both good and bad because as our Lord said, "the end is not yet."

What's next? Eschatology Today precisely called the "what's next" eight months ago (back in March). What is occurring on college and university campuses and on the streets of several major American cities tonight is a surprise to no one who read and understood the Addendum of Global SITREP B1-16: The Approaching Storm Clouds. Everyone is hoping that we just move forward following the Trump election victory, and I would hope for that too, but our godless adversaries have a different agenda. That agenda is one of violent confrontation, and the blame for it can be laid squarely at the doorstep of the Obama Administration, its DoJ, the Clinton campaign and George Soros minions. 

At this point, the fact of the matter is that the storm clouds are no longer approaching, they are upon us. Do not be deceived by Obama's saying that he has directed a smooth transition and transfer of power. That's all PR smokescreen. Our adversaries are simply not going to just walk away from the past eight years of moving their agenda forward. And please recall what I wrote as my comment in the previous SITREP on 1 November:  "I'm in full 'expect the unexpected' mode from today to Veterans Day, Nov. 11th. Anything can and probably will happen, so I will expect it." 

Our enemies, both foreign and domestic, would be completely out of character to not at least try to take advantage of the current situation. Somewhere, somehow. There are thousands of illegals in this country; there are thousands of potential Islamic terrorists the current administration has admitted into communities all over the country. Do not fear these things, but be prepared for them. Expect the unexpected knowing full well that God is in complete control.

Beyond this, we also are very keenly aware that great changes must take place because the current global configuration is very close to, but not quite what Bible prophecy describes about the immediate and very short-term closure to the pre-70th Week era and the 70th Week itself. There will be no 'newspaper exegesis here; Eschatology Today is boldly stepping forward to identify these coming changes well in advance. The Trump Administration will not commence for another 70 days minimum. Cutting-edge, as it has been here from the beginning of Eschatology Today eight years ago.

Therefore, Eschatology Today has adopted the view that the Trump Administration will be a key - if not critical - change agent to this end. The role of the Trump Administration becoming a key change agent, particularly in the next two to four years, falls precisely in-line with expectations as outlined in previous SITREPs for Israel's 70th national anniversary as a nation (mid-2018). The Trump Administration four years down the road in 2020 will have effected or made great strides in all of these changes, and we know what they are in advance because Donald Trump has already told us what they will be. 

Let us begin.

The Obaminazation of the United States Armed Forces of the United States will come to a screeching halt on Inauguration day, if not sooner. The Armed Forces of the United States will be rebuilt from the bottom up, taking a near hollowed-out and ideologically-driven PC force and turning it again into an all-volunteer world-class leading force, a force without equal on the planet.

NATO. Big, and we mean really big and dynamic changes are coming to NATO, and this will be in line with the changes that are coming to the EU itself, via the BREXIT (as another leading change agent in Europe) and coming FREXIT and the other wholesale regime changes coming to the current crop of European leaders. 

The Merkel's and the Hollande's, et al, are all living on very limited and borrowed time, to borrow a phrase. Trump is right, NATO is obsolete and must be updated and so it shall be. These changes will be made manifest from the obvious changes coming to American foreign policy. It is inevitable and as sure as the sun rising tomorrow. European NATO partners are already on the path to paying their financial share of the force that NATO will be in the very near future.

Russia. Big changes coming here also, which along with those coming to NATO will make make more sense to us now of the prophetic statement made in Ezekiel 38:13. We should expect the kinds of changes  in the US/NATO/Russia paradigm which this prophecy makes clear "must take place." 

China. Relations with China means more big changes. The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TTP) according to Trump's election platform is a target and therefore we can anticipate that it will be toast just as NAFTA will become toast. There's little doubt that these changes will accommodate the rapid rise of the prophetic "kings of the East. 

Environment. "Climate Change" will also likely go the way of bell bottom pants during the Trump Administration.

Global Trade. Is there any doubt that global trade agreements will be scrapped and/or completely renegotiated. As a matter of course new spheres of influence and non-interference will be established all over the planet. This makes the rise of the "kings of the East" very observable even before this process begins in earnest. China, in the coming negotiations, will be given responsibility for "handling" North Korea. Who needs a rogue state armed with nuclear weapons on their border?  Think regime change ala Bejing as a viable option; a swift coup to bring the madman in Pyongyang and his regime to an end.

Iran. This has been discussed in pretty clear terms in the virtual preemptive discussion that began yesterday in the comments section of this SITREP, so there no real need to re-hash those points again. 

Islamic State and the War in Syria. The events next 70 days will determine much here, so it remains to be seen what the situation here will be when President Trump first takes his seat behind the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office. Whatever happens, the prophecies of Isaiah 17 and Jeremiah 49:23-27 will come to fulfillment.

Israel. Most importantly, the Trump Administration will be completely committed to Israel. In short, as stated here previously, America will once again bless Israel. The Lord's promise of Genesis 12:3 stands firm with America once again being Israel best and closest ally in the world. Therefore, the horrors of the past eight years for Israel brought on by the Obama Administration will end very abruptly on Inauguration Day. Perhaps even sooner as Eschatology Today believes is the truth of the behind-the-scenes matters and maneuvering. 

Key item in all of these changes in the America-Israel dynamic is that American political intervention during Israel's military operations against Islamic terrorist organizations within and without her borders will be non-existent during the Trump Administration. And you know full well how Donald J. Trump feels about defensible borders. It's a no-brainer: all of the chatter about a "Palestinian state," well, in a Trump Administration and as they say in New York, fuggedaboutit.

That means one very important thing for Israel and the fulfillment of Bible prophecy: the political handcuffs which had been placed on the IDF's offensive military operations since 2009 will have been removed. The IDF will finally take care of business in Gaza, Judea and Samaria, the Sinai and even Lebanon. We're talking Psalm 83 here brothers and sisters. It will also come to fulfillment as sure as the sun's rising tomorrow. 

UPDATE 11 November 2016: And speaking of "expecting the unexpected," a virtual 'black swan' event occurred immediately on the heels of President Trump's miraculous election victory early Wednesday morning. That same morning Russian President Vladimir Putin dispatched his Prime Minister Dmitri Medvedev to Israel. Medvedev's first stop on Thursday (yesterday) was a visit to the Western Wall of Jerusalem. 

However, even before the wheels of Medvedev's aircraft touched the tarmac in Israel word was flashed to Bibi Netanyahu and his cabinet of what the Russian Prime Minister had just stated was the official position of the Russian Federation: 

"Our country has never denied the rights of Israel or the Jewish people to Jerusalem, the Temple Mount or the Western Wall." 

When it comes to unexpected 'black swan' type events, this one is a really powerful stunner. The kind that you have to be sitting down for, and if you're not sitting down it will stop you dead in your tracks. The kind that makes you eyes pop and your brain to freeze in disbelief.

Consider for a moment the effect of this official statement of the Russian government upon the the Iranian Ayatollah and his existential threat to Israel, its people and Jerusalem. Or even more, its effect on both radical Sunni and Shi'a jihadists and so-called moderate Sunni Muslims and governments throughout the Middle East, and beyond to include within the Russian Federation itself. In Moscow! 

Are you kidding me?!  Expect the unexpected between November 1st and 11th I wrote to this blog. I think I'll be sitting down for the rest of the day today. 

Oh, and happy Veterans/Remembrance Day.

Obama Team

One final note. SG lives and works half-way around the world on the island nation of Madagascar. He emailed me to say the following that I think should be shared because several of us have made similar comments.

Hi Sean;

Great news from halfway around the world.  Looks like the man is moving fast to make good on his campaign promises.  Nice also to see that Mr. Netanyahu was (I think) the first to get an invite to the WH.  I heard that there was a standing ovation in the Dumas on the news also.  Not sure if that's true or not - or what the significance could be.  If true, I guess they just didn't like the alternative - understandable.

You've probably seen the attached (see the image above) - but it is an absolute knee-slapper the looks on the faces - in particular the Gatekeeper.  She looks a bit menacing actually.  One commenter noted that if he had a bunch looking at him like that, he would be marking the exits and keeping his gun hand free.

You are right - prayers are needed more than ever.  Those 'magnanimous' speeches by Zero and Clinton were just maskirovka.  They are seething and something is very definitely planned - more than just those stupid protests around the place.

I saw the news that Michelle Bachmann was involved in the nationwide and Jerusalem election night prayers and that the very minute they kicked off, the tide turned against the Clinton machine.  The prayers of the righteous availeth much.

BTW - I am now dialoguing with Christian Aid Mission about possible link-up with our local evangelism activity here in Madagascar.  Thanks once again for that referral.

Yours in Christ,
SG 

SG makes a strong point here in correctly using the Russian word maskirovka. This is the Russian word for military deception; it carries the literal meaning of masking. It also literally means deception via concealment, camouflage, and even includes deception by imitation with decoys and dummies. 

This is where the above update regarding Russian PM Medvedev in Israel and at the Western Wall immediately comes to mind as a bald-faced example of maskirovka in real-time. The Russians know well President-elect Trump's position on Israel, and Jerusalem in particular. So within hours of Trump's electoral victory a Russian maskirovka operation commences inside Israel at the highest levels of government interaction, and goes so far as to include the statement quoted above regarding the nation, people, Jerusalem and even the Temple Mount. Maskirovka. Keep this word in mind, we're going to be seeing a lot more of it in coming days.

Unlike the Russians, the Obama WH Team as seen in the image above are unmasked, just like their ideological minions in colleges, universities and major city streets across that nation have unmasked themselves in the past couple of days. The Obama maskirovka also extends to the PR nonsense that is being shown on all US media of late in the sit down between President-elect Trump and outgoing President Obama.  The faces in the image above above belie the photo op smiles and handshake between them we're seeing in the news. Keep fresh in your mind the third paragraph of this SITREP; it's 100% consistent with what SG has communicated via his email - and he could see it all the way from Madagascar. Thanks Steve.

Global SITREP D10-16: America Has A Choice To Make

Reverend Billy Graham exactly 42 years ago at his Tidewater VA Crusade, November 1974

4 November 2016: How utterly appropriate for us today is the message given by the Reverend Billy Graham at his Tidewater, Virginia Crusade 42 years ago this week. Here are the first four sentences of that message embedded in the link above:

"The world is changing so rapidly that I hardly know it anymore. While we Americans are glued to our television screens watching football games, the world is reeling and rocking from crisis to crisis. Dangerous explosions are almost everywhere. We are on the edge of a precipice."

Please use the link, and read the entire message - you can almost hear Billy speaking these words as if he were saying them this very day. This is the paramount message I believe the Lord wants America to hear as we head into a national election a little more than 100 hours from now. The Lord wants us to hear these words because Billy, who will be 98-years old on the day before the election, cannot deliver them as he did 42 years ago. 

If you're like me, these words resonate as the words of any prophet of God will resonate; indeed, the Holy Spirit is powerfully moving as these words are read again, for I do believe these words are prophetic and they might well be His final words to America. Who shall heed the word of the Lord from a man I do regard as America's prophet.

Then, Billy Graham continued...

"Before we take a look at the future, we should look at the past and remind ourselves of the roots from which we sprang. I do not see how anyone could study the history of America without recognizing religious influences that have helped mold this nation from the beginning. In no other nation’s founding documents can we find so many declarations of allegiance to God. Time after time in our history there have been appeals to the “Supreme Judge” in seeking to build a new nation. This idea of freedom as a right of all men everywhere is unique among nations."

And then Billy Graham clearly and unequivocally laid it on the line...

"I believe that every problem facing us as Americans is basically a spiritual problem. Crime is a spiritual problem. Inflation is a spiritual problem. Corruption is a spiritual problem. Social injustice is a spiritual problem. The lack of will even to defend our freedoms is a spiritual problem."

The same question that Billy Graham followed up with 42 years ago remains unanswered by our nation as a whole... 

"The great question before us tonight is: Will this nation survive as a free society? ... Will America turn to God at this late hour, or will America continue on the broad road that leads to destruction?"

In just about 40 hours from now we are going to learn the answer to the multi-faceted spiritual question Billy Graham asked. We're going to find out where the Christians of America stand regarding all of the spiritual problems in this country. 

I've stated on this blog that this election is about Globalism versus Nationalism, but it is much, much more than that.  Christians MUST voice their opposition to the spiritual causes of all that ails this nation and they must do so by going to their local polling place to ensure that the godless Globalist candidates are soundly defeated in every state of the union. This is something I believe strongly that the bride of Christ must do before we hear the call to "come up hither!" I can think of nothing better to give Billy Graham on his 98th birthday.

Happy Birthday Billy!

Global SITREP D9-16: A Secular Look at the 70th Week

29 October 2016: The above 5-minute video (embedded from YouTube) is presented on Eschatology Today as a very high-probability secular look into the future. This video is entitled "Megacities: Urban Future, the Emerging Complexity." It has been produced by the US Army for students at the Pentagon's Joint Special Operations University. This video is clearly intended to prepare tomorrows battlefield commanders with the currently unfathomable and essentially chaotic realities they and their troops will face.

I located this video two weeks ago yesterday when it was published on the OSINT website The Intercept. The Intercept obtained this video via the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). That fact alone should speak volumes to one and all. Again, with emphasis and in detail, this video clarifies how today's military forces are looking forward to the year 2030. From Eschatology Today's perspective, this temporal frame of reference is close enough to make this video's content nearly synonymous with what we have come to understand as the period of time known as the angel Gabriel's "70th Week" prophecy. Eschatology Today has previously identified the prophetic 70th Week as occurring circa 2021-2028.

Both this video and God-breathed Bible prophecy agree on one thing, the future depicted in both is unavoidable. That means inevitable. What this video does not inform the viewer of, but the Bible does from cover-to-cover, is that only Jesus Christ provides the individual viewer an escape from the unavoidable, inevitability of the future. That is the blessed hope of and the escape provided by the Harpazo (the Rapture of the Church) through salvation in the blood of the Lamb of God.  

Global SITREP D8-16: About the Fulfillment of Ezekiel 38/39...

UPDATE 25 October 2016: Yes, this post has now become a SITREP in its own right. Here's why. It is no surprise to many of us that there are some prophecy teachers expressing their view of late that the ancient prophecy of Ezekiel 38/39 is about to occur. These teachers proclaim such teaching without any consideration whatsoever for the fulfillment necessity of Psalm 83, Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28:24-26 being in a position of sequential prophetic precedence.

These teachers are also completely overlooking the current real-world and very salient fact that there exists great opposition, which could translate into actual combat, between Turkish and Iranian forces in Northern Iraq. The Sunni dictatorship that has manifest itself in Turkey since the abortive coup d'etat of this past summer stands in direct opposition to the Iranian Shi'a Hojjatieh clerical dictatorship ruling in Tehran. More simply put, Turkey and Iran are enemies at war with each other in Syria and Iraq. 

Eschatology Today would very much appreciate an in-depth addressing of this specific issue by these prophecy teachers, if not simply because such an exercise would affirm and apprise them of the absolute necessity of the Psalm 83 scenario's sequential prophetic precedence.

Russian Airborne Assault Troops and Equipment

16 October 2016: There is something fairly important to mention with respect to the prophecy of Ezekiel 38/39. This is something a great many prophecy teachers fail to mention, especially when so many of them are teaching that Ezekiel 38/39 is next on the prophetic fulfillment 'line of succession.' This post is to inform and correct the incorrect teaching that is occurring.

Ezekiel's prophecies have been arranged, for the most part, in a chronological order.  The chronology of the invasion coming out of the northernmost parts led by Gog of Magog commences with the LORD God making a spoken and unalterable command: "And it will come to pass at the same time, when Gog comes against the land of Israel that My fury will show in My face. For in My jealousy and in the fire of My wrath I have spoken!" 

And there occurs "in that day," prior to the judgment a great shaking earthquake in the land of (post-Psalm 83 'greater') Israel. Every living thing on the earth, including the fish of the sea, will feel the presence of the LORD God in this great shaking earthquake. Mountains will fall. 

This tectonic activity is meant to get the attention of the entire world focused the land of Israel. You, the reader, are to make special notice of this - the focus is upon the land of Israel, not on Syria, but on Israel! 

The great shaking of the land of Israel also very effectively announces that a great judgment from the LORD God is about to fall upon Gog of Magog and all of his forces. The specific judgment has been foretold, and so when it happens there is no mistake make about who the judgment is from and why it has fallen upon those who are smitten by it.

Moreover, this great judgment is six-fold; the number six being the number of man and his imperfection. And the six-fold judgments that will fall upon Gog and all his forces are: 

1. pestilence, 

2. bloodshed, 

3. flooding rain, 

4. great hailstones, 

5. fire, 

6. brimstone.

Gog of Magog and all of the invading forces under his command die in this six-fold judgment. Not one-sixth or five sixths as some teach, but ALL of the invaders die when this very special judgment befalls them, and they fall dead upon the mountains of Israel.

So how will the entire planet know that the so-called 'Battle of Gog of Magog' is about to occur? When it is announced by the LORD God through the great shaking earthquake in the land of Israel!

Russian officer, middle, with Quds Brigade chief Mohammad al Saeed, right, and operations commander Mohammad Rafi, posted in October 2016. The Russian officer was embedded with the Quds Brigade as a battlefield advisor.

A Russian Lieutenant General bestowing medal on Quds Brigade commander Mohammad Rafi, posted in August 2016.

18th Guards Motor Rifle Division emblem matching the Russian Lieutenant General's arm patch in the above image.

UPDATE 19 October 2016: Attribution of the above images belongs to The Long War Journal. They depict Russian officers of the 18th Guards Motor Rifles Division posing with and pinning battlefield awards on members of the several hundreds strong Palestinian terrorist militia known as Liwa al-Quds, or the Army of Jerusalem, or simply the Quds Brigade.  

The long-term goal of the Quds Brigade, which is made up of Sunni Arab Palestinians with Russian troops embedded as advisors, is to 'liberate' Jerusalem and all of Israel. The Sunni Palestinians are directly involved in the slaughter of civilian and rebel Sunni Arabs in Aleppo, Syria, many of whom were previously their neighbors. The awards and recognition by Russian officers was due to the Quds Brigade's battlefield actions in the liberation of the Handarat Palestinian Refugee Camp north of Aleppo during late September and earlier this month.

These images and others clearly illustrate how deeply Russia has embedded itself in the Syrian Civil War, as well as in the long-term goals of Palestinian militia which are determined to wage war upon Israel (Psalm 83, Isaiah 11:14, Ezekiel 28:24-26). If there was ever a direct link between the current war in Syria and the coming final fulfillment of Psalm 83, and the prophecy of Ezekiel 38/39 these images and the very recent history behind them are it.