Timely Messages

A Timely Message For Today From 2006

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Blessings from above from the Father of mercies be yours, beloved in the Lord, this day and every day of your life. I and my loved ones are doing well, G-d granting the increase both in numbers as well as in joy.

Today’s article is not “news” about Israel, but once again what the Lord has me see happening in the Body living in the West. His special concern right now are the “prophets” who claim to speak in His Name, yet do not bring the Lord’s flocks into the place HE, the GOOD SHEPHERD, would have them be.

I receive lots of e-mails, which include prophetic messages by the “acclaimed” prophets, and calls to prayer by the “acclaimed” intercessors. And I have observed a strange phenomenon occurring through the years: these prophets and intercessors seem to have developed “tunnel vision”. In medical terms this particular gradual degeneration of vision is known as “retinitis pigmentosa”, and sometimes is also called “rod-cone dystrophy”.

Retinitis pigmentosa causes the degeneration of photoreceptor cells in the retina. Photoreceptor cells capture and process light helping us to see. As these cells degenerate and die, patients experience progressive vision loss.

There are types of photoreceptor cells: rod cells and cone cells. Rod cells are concentrated along the outer perimeter of the retina. Rod cells help us to see images that come into our peripheral or side vision. They also help us to see in dark and dimly lit environments. Cone cells are concentrated in the macula, the center of the retina, and allow us to see fine visual detail in the center of our vision. Cone cells also allow us to perceive color. Together, rods and cones are the cells responsible for converting light into electrical impulses that are transmitted to the brain where “seeing” actually occurs.

The most common feature of all forms of Retinitis Pigmentosa is a gradual degeneration of the rods and cones. As the disease progresses and more rod cells degenerate, patients lose their peripheral vision. Many report the sensation of tunnel vision, as though they see the world through a straw.

Normal vision As seen by a person with retinitis pigmentosa

As you can read, photoreceptor cells capture and process LIGHT helping us to SEE. It is these cells – rods and cones – which are responsible for CONVERTING LIGHT in such a way that “seeing”, or “perception” occurs in the brain, i.e., with UNDERSTANDING.

Yeshua is the LIGHT that has come into this world to lighten every man who comes to Him. It is by Him alone that we SEE, that we gain SIGHT, and it is the Holy Spirit Who CONVERTS this Light into opening our spiritual eyes to gain insight and understanding, for it is He Who leads us into all the Truth.

As we allow something or someone to gradually gain an ever increasing importance in our EYES until it subtly, almost unnoticeably, usurps Yeshua’s place in our hearts and lives, degeneration of “spiritual vision” will begin. If not checked and corrected, this process of spiritual “retinitis pigmentosa” will lead to increasing loss of spiritual vision until finally one sees only that which usurped the Lord’s place in our heart – unnoticed.

I frequently receive letters by a certain, prominent servant of the Lord and I noticed the alarming rate by which his vision decreased until at present it appears to have changed into spiritual tunnel vision – for all he sees is the United States of America, with the exclusion of everything else. He has lost his “peripheral vision”.

And he is not the only one!

“Prophet” after “prophet”, and “intercessor” after “intercessor” seem to have completely divorced Yeshua from His people, land, city, inheritance. Their sole concern, prophecies and calls to prayer focus on the churches of former Gentiles, on America and on the President. Because of their loss of “peripheral vision” in the Spirit they do not recognize many of the root causes of America’s troubles. Tunnel vision can only recognize what is going on within that limited sphere of vision. Consequently, these prophets and intercessors repeatedly miss the mark by a large margin.

For example: when building a wall – if the first brick is not placed in perfect alignment with the given measurements, by the time the lastbrick is laid the wall is way off the ordained line. G-d’s servants must continually check who is first in their lives, who is enthroned in their hearts. No one is exempt, inasmuch as something or someone taking our Lord’s place in our heart and life can come about ever so undiscernibly, so imperceptibly, that we ourselves can be fooled into believing that all is well and Yeshua is still the Lord of our lives.

When we are entrusted with a ministry by the Lord, we give our all to fulfill this call, this vision, which at the first is pure and only done in obedience to the Lord. But as He gives the increase and our efforts are being blessed and show great results, our hearts begin to get attached ever so unnoticeably to the ministry, the call, the work. Unless we cede it then back unto the Lord such as Abraham did with his supernatural child, Isaac, we are in danger of letting the ministry take the place of the Lord.

In this servant’s case it is America that has taken the Lord’s place in his heart. While patriotism is certainly a good thing, misapplied it can be a profoundly blinding power. This otherwise precious and sincere man of God has become “blinded” by a misconception of patriotism and loyalty. While undoubtedly he means well, what he believes to be from the Lord is actually from his own heart and mind by now.

Now, now, don’t get all upset with me and don’t take offense because I said that this beloved servant of the Lord has become blinded. My foremost concern is not my ministry, or what you think of me, or President Bush, or America – my absolute foremost concern are the interests of the Lord! What is on HIS heart matters the most to me, and I watch carefully that nothing will ever matter more to me than my Lord and His perfect will and interests.

Another beloved “internationally known” prophet, and good friend of the above, has suffered loss of “peripheral vision” as well. And so have a good number of prophets who all are from or in the same “school”.
A True Prophet Has No “Tunnel Vision”; His Vision is “Peripheral”

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Let me put it more plainly: no true, genuine prophet will ever divorce His Lord and Master, Yeshua the Messiah, from the people and land where He manifested at His First Coming and to which He will return at His Second Coming. It is impossible to prophesy truthfully in His Name while utterly disregarding, ignoring the significance of the restoration of Israel. A genuine prophet sent by the Lord will not see himself separate from the Commonwealth of Israel because his spiritual eyes, ”enlightened” by the Light Yeshua, and “converted” into understanding by the Holy Spirit, see him not only as a member of the Body of Messiah, but also as a co-heir and fellow-citizen of Yeshua’s people, Israel, the Jews.

Consequently, his vision is peripheral. For, since Yeshua lives in Him and is enthroned in his heart, and he, the prophet, lives, and moves, and has his being in Him, he is positioned at once both in the heavenly places as well as at the “center” of the earth, Israel, even at the “navel” of it – Jerusalem. It is from THIS position that he sees the events unfolding on this earth, and he will see with perfect clarity.

America is NOT the “promised” Land, although for many it was and is. The American people are a mixed multitude from many nations across the globe, of different ethnic backgrounds, faiths, and race. They are NOT G-d’s covenant people, although a large number of them live in America as well. Most Christians firmly believe that America got so blessed by G-d because of the nation’s Christian “founders”. Most Christians do not at all connect G-d’s blessing America with the Jews who found a peaceful harbor in this land when driven once again out of their homes and possession in another guestland. Yet in every city of America where there live Jews prayers are made in synagogue on behalf of that city and of America. The American people enjoy special hospital care, libraries, parks and other beneficial social structures and enterprises without realizing that these were donated by Jews.

Every nation, which received Jews and allowed them to live and prosper among them in peace, got blessed by G-d and increased in power. Every nation which turned against the Jews, persecuting, robbing, murdering them and driving them from their homes and possessions, lost G-d’s special favor and was diminished in greatness. The day that America’s Jews will leave her shores to return to their own and divinely promised Land, the tide of America’s power will recede as will her wealth.

I have listened to most Christian leaders in America, and of those most prominent only a handful have understood their place BOTH in the Body of Messiah AND in Israel.

But most of the prominent TV ministers, intercessors and Pastors of mega churches have so focused on the (Gentile) Church and on America and her ills, they cannot see anymore anything beyond that. THEIR Jesus is evidently NOT Jewish, nor is THEIR Jesus interested in the nation Israel and what is done to and in her. They defend the war in Iraq, even though G-d has not gone with it.

If you read my newsletter Vol. 45, you will see that what the Lord said BEFORE the President sent troops to Iraq has come to pass and is still going on. The situation is comparable to the one when the children of Israel were to go into the Promised Land and take it, G-d going with them. But because of the ill report by the 10 spies they refused. Afterwards they repented and said they would go and do what the Lord had said. This time, however, Moses warned them that the Lord would not go with them. They did not heed and suffered great losses.

No true, genuine prophet of the Lord will defend the ongoing war in Iraq. It was neither the time nor the season for this second invasion. Yes, Saddam is (was) presently incapacitated to commit his evil deeds. While he tolerated other religions but kept the fanatic Shi’ites under fist control, now these same fanatic elements are creating pandemonium in all of Iraq. And there will be no end to it. For while Saddam wanted himself worshiped and not Allah and thereby withstood that principality of Islam, President Bush opened the door to this principality without even so much as realizing it.

BUT THE PROPHETS SHOULD HAVE REALIZED IT! THE PROPHETS SHOULD HAVE KNOWN AND WARNED AGAINST THE TIMING OF THIS ILL ADVISED WAR!

Let us consider what is written in Jeremiah 38:2-6, 14-24 [LB), where Jeremiah delivered the words of the Lord, saying that everyone remaining in Jerusalem would die by sword, starvation or disease, but anyone surrendering [deserting] to the Babylonians would live; and that the city of Jerusalem would surely be captured by the king of Babylon. Then the leaders of the people went to the king and said, “Sir, this fellow must die. That kind of talk will undermine the morale of the few soldiers we have left, and of all the people too. This man is a traitor.”

Their “patriotic” feelings were aroused by Jeremiah and they were enraged against him, absolutely SURE that these words were not from G-d. Ha! And they threw Jeremiah into a pit full of mire. After Ebed-melech, the black eunich, had rescued Jeremiah from drowning in the mire, king Zedekiah sent for Jeremiah, demanding that he tell the truth and hide nothing from him. Then Jeremiah said, “If I tell you the truth, you will kill me. And you won’t listen to me anyway.”

Now, beloved, when and if a genuine prophet of G-d will come and speak the truth to the President and America’s leaders and to your religious leaders, what will they do? Will they honor and reward this prophet for speaking the truth? Will they even believe that he speaks from G-d? And even if they would believe, would they obey?

Trust me, neither Chuck Pierce, nor Dutch Sheets, nor Cindy Jacobs, or what all the names of the “big ones” are, would be ever again invited onto the speaker circuit. They would be silenced for having spoken the truth, most probably by the CIA. Dutch’s concern for America and the ills that have befallen her are righteous and godly. You can identify with the things he says he has heard from G-d and his call to repentance. And he tells you if you pray this Christian Judge in and that Christian Senator and… and… and… then it will be well with America. How so?

Is not President Bush supposed to be a believer in Yeshua? Or is it the Gentile Jesus Christ? For Yeshua of Nazareth did not counsel President Bush to have a state of Palestine formed upon the divinely covenanted land. Yeshua of Nazareth did not counsel the President to invite Moslem leaders into the White House for Ramadan. Yeshua of Nazareth did not counsel the President to insist on driving the Jews out of Gush Kativ. Yeshua of Nazareth does not call Judea and Samaria “Westbank”, for He is the Lion of Judah – not of the Westbank – and any man or woman claiming to belong to Yeshua of Nazareth would know that.

Yet President Bush Jr. seems to be utterly ignorant of these matters. Then why do these prophets continue to tell you that President Bush is a true believer in Yeshua? Why, when President George Bush Sr. called [East] Jerusalem – which is the city of the Great King – “occupied territory,” did America’s prophets and intercessors not speak up in the hearing of the President and overturn this curse?

And why, when Bethlehem¹, the city of King David and of Yeshua’s Birth, was given to His enemy upon demand by President Clinton, did these prophets and intercessors not fall on their faces, fasting in sackcloth and ashes, to overturn this evil deed and turn away the curse on America?

And why, when Clinton insisted on Hebron² – which is the birth-place of the Jewish people, their patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob having dwelled there, where Abraham’s wife Sarah died and was buried in the cave of Machpelah Abraham had bought with the surrounding field; the inheritance of Caleb the Jephunite and of the sons of Aaron the priest, and one of the cities of refuge – to be handed over to God’s enemies, did these prophets and intercessors not tremble before the Almighty, the Holy One of Israel, and overturn this evil deed with fasting and prayer?

Just as we who belong to Yeshua can do nothing apart from Him³, likewise America’s greatness and prosperity is not her own accomplishment but is from God⁴. Once the curses⁵ incurred by these evil deeds will nullify God’s blessings, America’s greatness and prosperity will become a thing of the past.

It is not of the sinners that God expects righteousness, justice and acting in accordance with His express Word and will. It is of the Body of Messiah representing His Kingdom in the earth that He requires it, and of those who are set apart to give counsel, instructions and direction, to teach and guide and to intercede, He demands it.

But – many Christian leaders of prominence, prophets and intercessors of repute, have developed “tunnel vision”!

¹ Micah 5:2; Matthew 2:1; Luke 2:4

² Genesis. 23:2-20; 35:27; 37:14; Joshua 10:36-37; 15:13-14, 20-21, 55; 2 Samuel 2:11; 5:1-5; Judges 1:20

³ John 15:5

⁴ Gen. 26:28; Ps 127:1-2; 2 ; Deut. 8:10-11, 17-18; Chr. 32:24-27

⁵ Gen. 12:3; 27:29; Nu 24:9