Two important prophecies that speak of the role of believing women in Britain's future: one from a Russian bishop in 1911, and the other from an Asian Christian, given at the 1986 Mount Carmel gathering.

The 1911 Prophecy: Background

Mother Barbara, Valentina Niolaevna Zoegkova, was born in Moscow on January 2 1889, the fourth child of extremely pious parents. Her father, Nicholas Alexeevitch, was chief director of one of the biggest banks in Russia, yet throughout his life he dedicated himself to defending the interests of the church and to serving its people.

From her birth, Valentina was surrounded by the intensely spiritual. Her family were often visited by 'starets' (holy men) and other Russian religious figures. This kind of contact filled her with an intense desire to consecrate herself to the Church and in her early youth she was blessed for missionary work and monachism by her spiritual father, Bishop Arseny of Moscow.

One starets who regularly visited her parents' home was Bishop Aristocoli, from Mount Athos. Ten days before his death, Aristocoli spend some time in discussion with Valentina, outlining her own future and that of a Russia already under a revolutionary yoke.

"You have received the gift of speaking and writing about what is useful for the soul, especially in our times", said Aristocoli. "Your inclination to monastic life will find its fulfilment, but far from here. You will live in one country, then will go further - to Palestine, to Jerusalem, and you will live there for a long, long time. In Jerusalem is the Holy Land, where much work and activities exist. You will live under different powers, but do not fear anything. You will always be under the protection of a right and just hierarchy.

Many sufferings will come to the world. Many people will perish. But it is not yet the end of the world; the time and the hour are known only by God. God's army- the powers of angels -will battle with Satan's army. In Russia people will suffer. It will be a worldwide sorrow from the evil spirits who put to trial all believers in God. Many will be killed. God knows who he must take, and who to leave. But Russia's fate is in God's hands and she will rise again. It will be a great miracle of renewal after great sufferings, sent to her with purifying aims. Light from the Orient will shine on the whole world and God will forgive in answer to suffering and repentance. This is very important- to have a conscience about one's sins; everyone and all are siners and all must repent."

The starets said much more to Valentina, foreseeing the establishing of a convent in Palestine and the building of a school, all of which eventually came to pass.

The 1911 Prophecy

Shortly before his death, Bishop Aristocoli passed this prophecy onto Mother Barbara.

Tell the women they must belong absolutely to God.They must believe in the great things that are happening and that God is doing on the earth. They must prepare their souls, their children and their husbands. And they will have very much work to do for God. Oh, what a great work the women will have to do in the end time, and the men will follow them.

Not one country will be without trial - do not be frightened of anything you will hear. An evil will shortly take Russia and wherever this evil comes, rivers of blood will flow. This evil will take the whole world and wherever it goes, rivers of blood will flow because of it. It is not the Russian soul, but an imposition on the Russian soul. It is not an ideology, or a philosophy, but a spirit from hell.

In the last days Germany will be divided in two. France will just be nothing. Italy will be judged by natural disasters. Britain will lose her empire and all her colonies and will come to almost total ruin, but will be saved by praying women. America will feed the world, but will finally collapse. Russia and China will destroy each other. Finally, Russia will be free and from her, believers will go forth and turn many from the nations to God.

The 1986 Prophecy: Background

On Mount Carmel, March 1986, an Asian man shared a prophetic insight with a woman from Britain. He had visited Britain only on the one occasion of his journey to Israel for the Carmel gathering, and knew little or nothing of the state of the church. As he stepped over the threshold of the conference centre on Mount Carmel, he was aware of a strong anointing from God and was given a vision concerning Britain.

The 1986 Prophecy

He saw a large church with a number of people in it. As he looked he saw that the men were asleep on their benches- and scattered around the church were women standing with arms uplifted crying to God.

He asked the Lord, 'What is this?'

God said 'I am showing you the true situation in the church in Britain. The men are asleep and not aware of what is going on, but I have my handmaidens who are seeking my face and who are understanding my heart and I am using my handmaidens for the nation.'

He then asked the Lord for a scripture to confirm the vision and the interpretation and was immediately given Judges 4:4: The situation in Israel at that time was bad and God chose a woman, Deborah, to judge Israel. She knew God's ways and was receiving messages for the people. Then, when she saw that the time for confrontation had come, she called for the man who was commander-in-chief of the army (she respected him and reverenced God's order). He would not go without her, so she went with him and because of this the victory would be the Lord's, but the honour would go to the women. Jaal hammered in the nail that killed Sisera, captain of the enemy forces. God used women who both knew his ways and waged warfare and gained the final victory.

God's call comes to his handmaidens of Britain to stand strong, to seek his face, to know his ways and to wage warfare. He says 'I am with you, be strong and of a good courage.' They will be persecuted from within the churches, but the time will come when those same people will come and ask them to show them the way in the battle and to go with them. The Lord will be victorious through the church but the honour will go to his handmaidens. 'When my people take a firm stand then I will reveal my glory through them'.

Zechariah 4:7 - the mountains will become a plain - we have nothing to fear.

When Christianity loses its Hebraic foundations, it loses its vital focus on community...

Introduction

Following on from our previous study, we recall that Paul would have seen no new concepts in his apostolic ministry. He used the Tanakh (Old Testament) as his Scriptures. He understood the glorious revelation of what God had in mind in all the years leading up to that time, now fulfilled through Jesus. For example, he would have understood:

• how the covenant with Abraham was to be fulfilled.
• how the New Covenant that Jeremiah foresaw (Jeremiah 31) was fulfilled in Jesus the Messiah.
• that what God promised for Israel came to clarity through Jesus.
• in what manner Israel was to be a light to the Gentiles.
• the basis of the Olive Tree metaphor.
• that sin needed a permanent remedy.
• the types and shadows of the Tabernacle in the wilderness.
• the balance of Law and Grace.
• the heart principles of Torah.
• the balance of justice with mercy and of faith with works.

He would also have reflected on the Feasts and Sabbath and seen the reason for the days of preparation for the coming Messiah. And his mindset would have been the building up of the Covenant family of God.

Revelation of the Word

Paul's revelation of Jesus, a bright shining light from the dim shadows of understanding, would have stood in context because of his rabbinical training. The preparation of his understanding of the Tanakh (Old Testament) makes the revelation of the Gospel not only rooted, but also understood through the contrasts that were made.

Take, for example, the concept of salvation. This was not a new concept with the New Testament. It is a constant theme with over 150 direct references in the Old Testament, of which over 60 are in the Psalms. The Psalms deal with mankind's response to all the travails of life. Their application is first to the trials of this life, developing into a Messianic expectation that looks to a permanent separation of the righteous from the wicked, and to an eternal life free of the pressures in this life.

For Paul, the revelation of Jesus made perfect sense in view of the Old Testament, in which concepts like salvation and the coming Kingdom are constant themes."

Jesus confirmed this when he spoke the parables of the Kingdom, bringing faith and hope to those who were downtrodden with no human means of escape or salvation. There are also glimpses of the future Kingdom in the Tanakh, such as in Job and the Psalms:

For I know that my Redeemer lives, And He shall stand at last on the earth; And after my skin is destroyed, this I know, That in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, And my eyes shall behold, and not another. How my heart yearns within me! (Job 19:1-27)

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever. (Psa 23:4-6)

It needed the revelation that Paul had directly from Jesus to understand the greatness of the salvation brought through Jesus. This did not change, but shed fresh light on his earlier training in the Scriptures. The whole world needs this same revelation. This is the Gospel message, echoed by the writer of the Hebrews:

Therefore we must give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we drift away. For if the word spoken through angels proved steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just reward, how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation, which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed to us by those who heard Him, God also bearing witness both with signs and wonders, with various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit, according to His own will? (Heb 2:1-4)

Paul would have known that the Hebrew word for salvation- Yeshua -became the name and ministry of the Son of God, whom Christians re-named Jesus.

Without the revelation of the eternal purposes of God, it is only ever possible to interpret the Bible in earthly terms."

Without the revelation of the eternal purposes of God, it was only possible to interpret the shadows of the Gospel message in earthly terms. Even with the scholarship of the Rabbis, there was misunderstanding and disagreement about the future hope for Israel:

For Sadducees say that there is no resurrection -- and no angel or spirit; but the Pharisees confess both. (Acts 23:8)

From the same source material as the Jewish Rabbis of his day (the Tanakh – Old Testament), however, Paul understood its true fulfilment in the life, ministry, sacrifice and resurrection of Jesus. His understanding linked Heaven to earth. There was both a promise for eternal life and an application to this life.

The Man and the Message

Pause, and imagine Paul travelling from place to place through the countries surrounding the Mediterranean. He was both the man and the message. He was a prepared vessel, ready to share the Good News of Salvation from his very inner being, from the foundation of the Gospel to its fulfillment in Jesus.

He traveled from place to place sowing the good seed, pouring himself out, as it were (Phil 2:17). All this was before the Church Councils that re-defined Christianity as a new thing, separate from its Hebraic foundations.

Now let us turn briefly to the application Paul had in mind for building community on this earth.

Community

One of the most important consequences of the Gospel message, understood against its Hebraic background, is that it is linked to community. It was Greek philosophical thinking that turned the message of salvation into an other-worldly theological concept, often overly detached from application to this world. The Gospel of salvation can become the end, not the beginning, preached Sunday after Sunday to those already converted, forgetting the fact that we should be building a mature witnessing community in this world.

Paul and the other apostles had a 'this-world' perspective of the Gospel: it was a beginning, not an end, to be played out in community."

Paul and the early Apostles would have had a 'this-worldly' perspective of the Gospel message, emanating from their Hebraic background of being rooted in the community of Israel. Salvation is personal but the consequence, on this earth, is to strengthen family and community.

Greek Humanism

By way of contrast, consider what Greek philosophy has imposed on the Christian Church. Greek humanist thought would have been unimaginable to Paul on his apostolic journeys, as he sought to invite Gentiles into the ancient family of faith promised to Abraham and fulfilled in Jesus.

Contemporary author and lecturer John Carroll has seen in humanism what many Christians have not seen. In Humanism: The Wreck of Western Culture (Fontana, 1993), he has a telling message relating to the post-Reformation Church. Carroll's main thesis is that the Greek philosophies, on which humanism is founded, fail to answer the deepest questions of mankind – namely those associated with death.

In his book, Carroll also sees elements of failure in the Church as well as in the humanistic world. The humanism of the Renaissance was not completely washed away from the emergent Church of the Reformation. The author makes a brief, but perceptive, analysis of the Protestant Church that emerged at the time. He writes of the great work that was done in many ways to bring the message of personal salvation, but he also notes that this was at the expense of community:

The Puritan's constitutional inability to relax in the world combined with its reliance on his own conscience to undermine the role of both priest and church. Protestantism is in essence, under Calvin's huge shadow, a conglomerate of one-man sects loosely held together by a common metaphysics. Its achievement was to create another powerful individualism with which to counter the new humanistic individualism. The cost was the decline of community. Once there is a faith alone and Calvin's conscience, the vital unifying role of family, village and town has been eclipsed. The Reformation threw out the incense and holy water, the chanting, the bleeding madonnas and most of the sacraments. It burned the relics and smashed the statues; it banned the dancing. It found, however, that the Church it occupied had cold floors and bare walls. The communal warmth had gone. (p62, emphasis added)

Paul's Gospel message emerged from the community of Israel, and was based on a covenant community that expanded to include those saved from the Gentile world. When the Hebraic roots of the Gospel message are neglected, Greek shadows replace them and so the Gospel loses its community setting. This is one of the most important aspects of restoring the Hebraic foundations of the Gospel message.

When the Hebraic roots of the Gospel message are neglected, Greek shadows replace them and the Gospel loses its sense of community."

In the section entitled 'Salvation: Escape or Involvement?' in Our Father Abraham, Marvin Wilson echoes the same thoughts:

The Hebrews boldly affirmed their God-given humanity. Again and again in Scripture we see that their identity was found in society, not in isolation from others. They did not view the earth as an alien place but as a part of creation. It was on earth alone that human beings' highest duty and calling could be performed – namely, that of bringing glory to their Maker through the praise of their lips and the work of their hands. (p179, emphasis added)

For Study and Prayer

If Paul visited a church in the Western world today, would he recognise it as emerging from the Middle Eastern context of his day?

Next time: Our inheritance from Israel and the Jews

Continuing his series on prophecy, Edmund Heddle turns to the life and ministry of John the Baptist.

Great interest was excited throughout the land of Israel when after three hundred years of prophetic silence, John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness of Judah. He required the people to submit to a baptism of repentance in the River Jordan as the only right way to prepare for the imminent arrival of the Messiah (Luke 3:3).

This 'prophet of the Most High' (to use the description given him by his father Zechariah immediately after his birth and naming, see Luke 1:76) was to be the recipient of the highest accolade possible for a prophet to receive when, years later, Jesus declared "there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist" (Matt 11:11). Clearly, it is essential to include a consideration of John's prophetic ministry as we seek to understand 'What is a prophet?'

Contemporary Religious Outlook

The Jewish people, smarting under the Roman army of occupation, had been saved from complete despair by the messages of the great Hebrew prophets to which they listened in their synagogues Sabbath by Sabbath. Most of them wanted God's promise of deliverance to bring them a Messiah, a King of outstanding strength, who would rid them of their foreign overlords. However, there were a smaller number, sometimes styled the 'quiet in the land', who prayed continuously and looked expectantly for a righteous leader, a great prophet like Moses.

At a time when many nations are facing great political uncertainty with immorality, crime and violence apparently unstoppable; like Israel of old they need the prophetic warning that unless they repent disaster is inevitable, together with the persistent cry of the 'quiet' intercessors who prepare the Lord's way into their crisis situations.

At a time of such uncertainty, like Israel of old we need both prophetic warnings and the persistent cry of the 'quiet' intercessors who prepare God's way."

Similar Background

John and Jesus, who were cousins, both shared this latter background and were brought up among those who like Simeon "were waiting for the consolation of Israel" (Luke 2:25). There are intriguing parallels between the lives of these two. John and Jesus were born at nearly the same time, and in both cases their births were miraculous. They both had a long period of 'hidden years' before their public ministry, yet in total their lives were both short. At the commencement of their public ministry they knew tremendous popularity, but for both this later gave place to unmerciful hatred.

Finally both were killed by those who hated them and their righteousness. In each case only a handful of their disciples mourned their master's death and cared enough to carry their dead bodies away for burial. Today's prophets, like those of long ago, must be prepared to face rejection and suffering. Their demand for personal holiness and national righteousness is unlikely to improve their popularity rating.

Yet So Different

That there are striking similarities in the backgrounds and subsequent life experience of John and Jesus cannot be denied, and yet in other ways they were so different.

First, in their attitude to life. Jesus summed up their differences in his familiar words: "For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say 'He has a demon.' The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say 'Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax-collectors and sinners" (Matt 11:18-19).

Second, in their kind of ministry. Folk who were commending John's ministry nevertheless admitted "John never performed a miraculous sign" (John 10:41). Whereas, when John's disciples asked Jesus if he was the coming Messiah, he pointed to his miracles as evidence and told them to tell John: "The blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the deaf hear, the dead are raised", and that he should cease doubting that Jesus was the Messiah, even though their ministries were so different.

There are intriguing parallels between the life of Jesus and that of John the Baptist, but they also differed greatly in their attitude to life, their ministry and witness."

Third, in the duration of their witness. Jesus showed that John was "a lamp that burned and gave light" (John 5:35) and for a while they had enjoyed his light. As a lamp attracts moths so for a while did John attract the crowds and even Herod himself (Mark 6:20). John was just a lamp which had to be lit and fed with oil. Jesus however is the self-perpetuating light to which John came to bear witness (John 1:8-9). Prophets may differ in their interpretation of Scripture and in the lifestyle they choose to adopt, but they need to be careful that their opinions and actions do not colour or conceal the pure light of Christ shining through them.

Fundamental Difference

The basic difference between John and Jesus was one that John was ever eager to point out. Jesus was 'the coming one', the one whose coming the prophets had foretold. John's coming was also foretold in Scripture but he was never more than a herald, a messenger sent to prepare the way of the Lord (Isa 40:3; Matt 11:10).

John stated that he was not fit to carry Jesus' sandals (Matt 3:11) for God had made it clear to him that when the dove came down and remained on Jesus after his baptism, this indicated that Jesus was nothing less than the Son of God (John 1:32-34). John is forever the servant of, and is inferior to, the Lord Jesus.

Jesus went even further when he said that "he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than [John]" (Matt 11:11). Those who are in the Kingdom are brought nearer to God, have a clearer knowledge of God and have higher privileges than the greatest that were before Christ. So the prophets who prepare the way for the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus have a greater and more glorious message than John could have imagined.

John and the Earlier Prophets

Jesus regarded John as the greatest of the Old Testament prophets (Matt 11:11). In what ways was he like them and did he differ from them? John the Baptist did not reproduce all the aspects to be seen in the Old Testament prophets. We have already seen that he did not perform any miracles to confirm his spoken word, neither do we have any record of his making public intercession for the nation.

Jesus regarded John the Baptist as the greatest of the Old Testament prophets. John may not have performed miracles, but he was given the privilege of introducing the Saviour of mankind onto the public stage."

However, we hear him making strong ethical demands of his hearers and he reiterates the earlier prophets' demand for repentance. Unlike those who preceded him he was able to announce that God's promised visitation of his people was imminent. He stands alone in his use of baptism as an act of prophetic symbolism and is unique in his being able physically to introduce the Saviour of mankind on to the stage of his public ministry.

Jesus' Admiration of John

On the occasion when the deputation of John's disciples were leaving, Jesus spoke to the crowd about John. "What did you go out into the desert to see? A reed swayed by the wind? If not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear fine clothes are in king's palaces. Then what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written 'I will send my messenger ahead of you who will prepare your way before you'" (Matt 11:7-10).

John was not someone who would allow the winds of opposition to deter him from doing what he knew was right. Neither was he a pampered courtier fawning over the monarch. He was a man with a message and a man who had the courage to deliver that message. In fact this was how John came to spend the last part of his life in prison, because he had the courage to rebuke Herod the Tetrarch for taking his brother's wife (Matt 14:3-4).

John never allowed opposition to deter him from doing the right thing. He was a man with a message, the delivery of which required great courage and a strictly disciplined life."

Earlier John had given very clear and critical advice to tax collectors, soldiers and others who came to him seeking baptism (Luke 3:10-14). Even the religious leaders were made to face the need for a change of lifestyle before their professed repentance could be accepted. John likened them to the snakes that came scurrying out of their shelter in the grass and bushes when a desert fire broke out (Matt 3:7). It is a demanding role to declare what God requires of people both in secular and religious spheres of life, requiring not only considerable courage but also a strictly disciplined life.

Holy Violence

Jesus commended the single-minded determination he saw in John the Baptist and said that this was the attitude required of those who would seek to enter the kingdom. "From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and men of violence take it by force" (Matt 11:12 RSV). The time had come to cast aside indifference and to maintain a holy resolution. Jesus' crusade for 'holy violence' was not a physical one, but a spiritual one: it required the death of formality in the quest for utter holiness.

John the Baptist's Problems

There were two temptations that John had to face. The first was when people began to turn away from John to join up with Jesus in considerable numbers, as their ministries proceeded side by side in Judea. One of John's lieutenants reported: "Rabbi, that man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan...well, he is baptising and everyone is going to him" (John 3:26). As happens so often, the truth was spiced up with a bit of exaggeration, but John refused the temptation as he replied: "A man can receive only what is given to him from heaven." He may have been tough, but he was certainly also gracious.

The greatest problem for John was being imprisoned by Herod. It must have been terrible for this man of the desert used to the wind blowing through his hair and able to freshen his sun-tanned face in the waters of the Jordan - he must have felt like a caged animal. In such circumstances John fell victim to doubt and depression (see Matt 11:2-6). Was this Jesus really the Messiah? Why wasn't he burning up the chaff? Why was he not demolishing all opposition to his kingdom? Jesus' reply warned him not to be offended at Jesus' very different approach (Matt 11:6).

It is important to remember that even John had doubts, and faced temptations. But his grasp of who Jesus was and what his ministry was about remained outstanding."

A Christ Centred Message

Apart from moments of self-questioning, John is outstanding for his grasp of who Jesus was and what his ministry was about. To John, Jesus is: the Son of God, the Lamb of God, the Baptiser in Holy Spirit, the coming one who had arrived, the one who was before John and greater, the wielder of his winnowing fork, the axe-man aiming at the root of the tree, the one from above, the bridegroom, the one whose sandals John was unfit to untie or carry and supremely the one who comes from heaven and is 'above-all' (Matt 3:10-12; Mark 1:7; John 1:27-34; John 3:29-34)!

John the Baptist shows all today's prophets the right attitude to Jesus when he says: "He must become greater; I must become less!" (John 3:30).

First published in Prophecy Today, Vol 2 No 6, November/December 1986.

"The axe is already at the root of the trees" (Matt 3:10): Clifford Hill asks if these words of John the Baptist have relevance for us today.

I have always thought that in this verse John the Baptist is speaking about judgement falling upon Israel. That is what all my commentaries say. The axe is about to cut down the tree. But John does not say this. He says that the axe is at the ROOT of the trees, not the trunk!

This changes the meaning of the metaphor: the root of the trees was being cut off so that the "nourishing sap" (to use Paul's words in Romans 11:17) from the root could not feed the tree to produce good fruit. Therefore, it would have to be cut down.

Israel's long-awaited Messiah was about to appear and John's mission was to prepare the way for him. Meanwhile, the spiritual life of the nation was being corrupted by the Scribes and Pharisees whose teachings and interpretations of the Law made life difficult for ordinary people. The Israelites were being cut off from their spiritual heritage in the teaching of Moses and the prophets, so they were unable to read the signs of the times. Jesus wept over Jerusalem: "If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace – but now it is hidden from your eyes" (Luke 19:42).

Our Spiritual Heritage

In Britain, America and Europe since the Second World War, we have been cutting off our Judaeo-Christian roots. The 'nourishing sap' of the word of God that has blessed our nation for centuries is being cut off at the very time when we most need the guidance and the blessing of God.

Just as Jesus came to Israel at a time when they were cut off from their own spiritual heritage, so now Britain and other 'Christian' nations are cutting themselves off from their own Judeao-Christian roots."

The nations are being shaken with greater speed and severity each day but because the leaders of the Western nations do not know the word of God, they are unable to perceive the significance of what is happening. They do not know what to do: so inevitably they are making all the wrong decisions.

The Greek TragedyProtestors clashed with police outside the Greek Parliament on Wednesday.

In Brussels the Eurozone nations are struggling to save the euro. They may have succeeded in a patched-up deal to stop the Greek crisis bringing down the whole structure of European finance – but they are simply 'kicking the can down the road', delaying the day of judgement. They continue to build up a mountain of debt that will eventually become a volcano that will burst and spill out, engulfing not only Athens but the whole of Europe.

Battle in the Middle East

In the Middle East the power struggle for control of the Muslim world is increasingly centring upon the two behind-the-scenes main players in Iran and Saudi Arabia. With America's President Obama having another year to run, there is huge danger in his desire to be friendly to Iran, despite the recent treaty.

Everyone knows that the Iranian nuclear programme is not just to produce nuclear power for peaceful purposes, because they are sitting on the world's fourth greatest reserves of oil. They don't need nuclear power! What they do want is a nuclear bomb! Then they can control the Middle East and prepare to attack Israel. But if they succeed in their nuclear ambitions, the Saudis will have to do the same. They will immediately purchase a nuclear bomb and the race for survival will be on! Who will blink first?

Global Insecurities

With the rising tide of terrorism from militant Islam, the threat to world peace grows daily. So too does the danger of worldwide financial collapse. In Beijing the Communist rulers are struggling to control their stock market casino as the gambling fever that grips the nation has paved the way for a gigantic double-dealing con-trick that has swindled millions of small investors out of their savings. Clearly there is no way that a massive $3.5 trillion could have gone through a life-and-death cycle in a mere 80 trading days of normal commercial activity! Yet, the all-powerful commissars of China are powerless to protect their own people from financial disaster.

For those who have eyes to see and ears to hear, there have been warning signs of these global problems for a long time. Many Christians believe that a critical point in world history will occur around the time of the Feast of Tabernacles this year which coincides with the Lunar Eclipse, the 'Super Blood Moon' on 28 September, 2015.

Whether or not this is the case, we are certainly living in volatile times. What can be done? The most effective thing Christians can do is pray – but we need to know how to pray and what to pray for. This is where knowledge of the Bible and an understanding of the nature and purposes of God are essential.

The most effective thing Christians can do is pray- but we need an understanding of how to pray and what to pray for."

When we can understand what God is doing, we know how to pray. We should be praying for our nation; for repentance for all we have done that is contrary to the word of God and the way we have cut off our spiritual roots. God is slow to anger and abundant in mercy. It is time to call upon him for help. Never was there greater need than today.

'Peace in Jerusalem: But the battle is not over yet!' by Charles Gardner (Olive Press, 2015, 241 pages).

The following is a prophetic word for Great Britain given through Lance Lambert, who had a great love for the UK as his adopted country after he escaped here from the Nazis as a child. Please read and weigh this prayerfully.

Lance Lambert, Saturday 6 August 2011

Hear the voice of the Lord, O Isles that I have so greatly loved and favoured. I the Lord the Almighty, I took you when you were nothing, clothed with skins and woad, and through My saving power, I made you great. When you were nothing, through My Word and your faith in Me, l lifted you and made you Great Britain. Through many awakenings and many revivals, stage by stage, I took you until you became a great power with the greatest Empire in the history of the nations. From you My Gospel and My Word went throughout the world, and tens of thousands came into an experience of saving faith! That Empire with all its many failings and weaknesses was still one of the most just and righteous Empires of history.

Those Isles of yours were soaked with the blood of My faithful martyrs and its soil received the burnt ashes of those who would not renounce My Name, My Truth, and My Word. I, the Lord have not forgotten those who gave their all for Me!

But now the whole nation that l created and sustained has turned from Me. They paganise their land, state and institutions; there is no voice heard to warn the nation. False religion, the work of world rulers of darkness, cover your Isles; a Laodicean church, neither hot nor cold, rumbles on like machinery. It is a church where I am outside of its routine; its organisation and its methodology. It is Christianity without Me: Religion without Me!

My being is seared with pain, for judgement is determined against your land. I can do no other. I will destroy the vestiges of her greatness; l will return her to her first estate. I will wreck her economy, destabilise her in every way. I will change her climate, even her weather. I will prove to her that the way of the transgressor is hard and terrible. I will allow demonic forces held in check erstwhile by My Word and Gospel, and the living faith of so many, to become rampant in her social life, to the destruction of her society.
Will you who know Me and love Me go blind and dumb and deaf into this judgement?

It is time for you who love Me, who are faithful to Me, to take action! Stand before Me and plead The Finished Work of My Son. At least cry out to Me, that there will be those who turn from darkness, from sin, and be saved for whosoever shall call upon My Name in the midst of these judgements, l will save!

lt will cost you everything to stand in the gap, but you will enter into My heart, and know deep fellowship with Me. Such travail conceived in your heart by My Spirit will cost you deeply, but it will end in My Throne and Glory.

Magna Carta Unravelled (Wilberforce Publications, 2015, 217 pages, £7.99)

This book, a joint venture between Wilberforce Publications and Voice for Justice UK, is a collection of essays by eight experts in various fields (eg politics, law, the Church) largely based upon talks given at a conference held in May to commemorate the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta. Among the better known contributors are Baroness Cox, Lynda Rose, and Bishop Michael Nazir-Ali, but all those involved have distinguished reputations and are highly experienced.

Six of the original talks were expanded by the speakers into written form and to these were added two extra chapters. The overall result is a comprehensive survey covering the origins of Magna Carta, the development of its ideas throughout history, and its relevance today. The whole makes an important contribution towards the discussion on the contemporary challenges we face in our nation regarding our freedoms.

The opening chapter provides an excellent overview and sets the scene, declaring that "what we need to recognise today is that we are in the middle of a predominantly three-stranded ideological war: between Christianity, secularism, and Islam" (p29). Society is now in the grip of competing belief systems as the ruthless imposition of non-Christian values with their own ideas of 'rights' and 'freedoms' are being selectively applied. The result is a vigorous shaking of our foundations which is causing many to wonder what the eventual outcome will be.

This is an important contribution towards debating the ideological war currently gripping British society."

Other chapters cover the historical and theological background to Magna Carta, its Christian origins and legacy, the role of the State concerning freedoms, and the rise of Islam and sharia law in the UK. The final parts focus on the current challenges to individual liberty. On reflection, not all sections are of equal interest or engagement; some are more difficult to follow and rather stolid. Certainly, there are also many anecdotes and testimonies, including up-to-date personal stories, but often these have been well covered elsewhere and are over-long in the context of this particular book. There is even some overlap between speakers, which may be one of the disadvantages of a book produced from a conference. Overall it is difficult not to be disappointed at times that this is not a more enjoyable read.

However, the book clearly has a place within the current re-assessment and evaluation of Magna Carta. It is of a suitable length to fit between short introductions and fuller studies, and above all it does ask the right questions. Realising that the UK is "at a crossroads, with the soul of our nation at stake" (p17), it is very pertinent to consider the relevance of Magna Carta. Clearly it is an important historical document but what about now, eight centuries later, in our multi-cultural society? The fundamental principles and freedoms that it established have recently been attacked, dismantled and shattered. How did this happen and why? And where do we go from here?

This book asks the right questions about the present situation and future outlook in Britain, showing how Christian principles and values are not just being eroded and marginalised, but being branded as dangerous."

As the authors show, Christian principles and values are currently being marginalised, rebranded as hate speech and provocation if expressed publicly, and even portrayed as dangerous to a liberal and secular modern society. At the very least the likelihood is that there will be continuing attempts to contain Christian views and eventually eliminate them in the cause of new freedoms and ideas of tolerance. The ultimate fear is that we will lose our specifically Christian freedoms altogether.

Is this unduly alarmist or a wake-up call? You decide! Either way here is an informative and valuable resource for those seeking to think through these vital issues.

How to pray as the Greek crisis goes global...

This weekend the leaders of all the countries that are part of the European Union have been called together to consider how to deal with the so-called "Greek Crisis". The referendum held by the Greek Government last Sunday produced a resounding 'NO' to the austerity measures which the Euro club countries are trying to force upon them.

The people of Greece have said "Enough is enough"! Years of austerity have done nothing to improve the national economy crippled by debt. It has simply increased the unemployment rate so there are less people able to pay taxes and the country has become poorer and poorer. But the powerful nations of Europe, led by Germany and the European Central Bank, are blindly demanding yet more austerity.

You don't have to be an economist to know that if the present policy is not working it is sheer madness simply to press on enforcing the same policy with even greater stringency! The ordinary people of Greece have recognised this, and they have bravely determined to confront the bankers and say "Can't Pay: Won't Pay!" (It would be even better if they said Can Pray: Will Pray! But of course, you have to know how to pray and what to pray for!).

You don't have to be an economist to know that if the present policy is not working, it is sheer madness to press on enforcing it with even greater stringency."

Underlying Crisis

Of course, there's lots more to it than that! Most Greeks are aware that there is great need for reform in their national lackadaisical approach to the duty of ordinary citizens to pay their taxes, and that there is endemic corruption in their political system. But they have also been the victims of grossly corrupt banking practices on a global scale. Their banks have been used for sharp practices by Russian oligarchs as well as their own wealthy Greeks, whose sudden withdrawal of investments triggered the crisis.

But what began as a problem for a national bank in one country has now become a crisis threatening to unravel the whole of the European Union and the stability of NATO which has an effect upon east-west relationships that is causing great concern in Washington. If Greece leaves the Euro and turns to Russia or China for help in coping with its financial chaos, this will have an immediate effect upon the balance of world power.

The People Revolt

There are similarities here with the peasants' revolt in 18th century Britain over the inflated price of bread, due to imported corn being cheaper than homegrown corn. Their protests threatened to destabilise the nation at a time when Britain was at war with half the world. So too the peasants' revolt in Greece is likely to have far wider ramifications.

It is time to recognise the fundamental weakness of the whole capitalist system that has built up vast sums of national debt that struggling national economies are unable to meet. Greece is not alone in facing a burden of debt that is beyond any possibility of being repaid. If the International Monetary Fund cancels even part of the Greek debt, others will demand equal treatment. Already there are strong anti-austerity protests in Portugal, Spain and Italy. The unfairness of the whole debt-ridden world economy hits the poor harder than the rich. The peasants' revolt in Greece is likely to spread like wildfire across Europe. This is the fear gripping European bankers.

It's time to recognise the fundamental weakness of the whole capitalist system: Greece is not alone in facing a vast burden of debt that is beyond any possibility of being repaid."

Unjust System

Karl Marx was surely right when he said that capitalism contains within itself the seeds of its own destruction. You don't have to be a Marxist or even an anti-capitalist to recognise the truth of this statement. There is something fundamentally unjust in a system that allows 1% of the population to live on vast excesses of wealth whilst the rest of the population struggles to make a living, many experiencing malnutrition and disease which could be eliminated if there were a fairer system of wealth distribution.

The Bible foretells a day when God will deal with this injustice. He will humble the proud and lofty, according to the prophet Isaiah (2:12-21). The oppressors will be overthrown and God's justice will be seen. Maybe the Greek crisis is part of God's plan to allow the whole financial system to collapse, so that his justice can be established. Christians should be careful not to pray against the great shaking of the nations. If this is how God is working out his purposes, we must trust him.

Christians should be careful not to pray against God's purposes being worked out. We must learn to trust him."

Right Prayer

If you pray "Peace, Peace" when God is saying "There is no peace" – you put yourself against God! The next verse in Isaiah 2 says "Stop trusting in man, who has but a breath in his nostrils. Of what account is he?" If our trust is really in God we can trust him with our lives – even if we are nervous of how we are going to survive the storm.

If God is at work shaking the nations, it is wrong to ask him to stop the shaking. The right prayer is to ask God to fulfil his purposes and to make the shaking effective! He will certainly take care of those who put their trust in Him.

"If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith" (Romans 12:6)

In this series on Spiritual Gifts listed in the New Testament, Monica Hill turns from her overview of the various gifts to looking at each of the Gifts listed in Romans 12 in turn.
The first of the gifts mentioned in Romans 12 – prophecy - is mentioned in three of the lists given by Paul - Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12 and Ephesians 4. Although they all have the same definition of prophecy, there is a distinction between each of them.

In Romans 12, prophecy is one of the natural gifts and is often equated with a good speaker who is able to expound the word of God so that others can understand it and benefit from it. Although this can be an intellectual exercise it is different from the Ministry of the Prophet (Ephesians 4) and the Manifestation (1 Cor 12) and is easily recognised when it 'has an anointing'.

The Romans passage wisely adds the condition that turns good speaking into prophetic proclamation: "in accordance with your faith". This gives the glory to God and follows up the invocation "do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you" (12:3).

There is the lovely story in Acts 24 of this potential gift recognised in Apollos by Aquila and Priscilla:

Meanwhile a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was a learned man, with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures...He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they invited him to their home and explained to him the way of God more adequately. (Acts 24:24-26)

Apollos became one of the 'anointed preachers' who could draw great crowds to hear the Gospel.

Defining Prophecy

In order to find the biblical definition of prophecy we have to go right back to the time of Moses. In Exodus 3, Moses argues with God after receiving the command to go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt. In the following chapter he pleads that he is not eloquent and asks God to send someone else.

God then makes a special arrangement whereby God would speak to Moses, Moses would speak to Aaron, and Aaron would speak to the people. "It will be as if he were your mouth and as if you were God to him" (Ex 4:16). This gives us the definition of a prophet as the mouthpiece of God.

In Exodus, we find the definition of a prophet as the mouthpiece of God."

Exercising the Gift

Moses said "Would that all the Lord's people were prophets and that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them!" (Num 11:29). This appears straightforward, but we need to put this desire of Moses into context. During the 40 years of Israel's travel through the wilderness, life was not easy and on this occasion the people had become very rebellious and were blaming Moses for bringing them out of Egypt.

When Moses complained to the Lord that he could not cope, the Lord rebuked him saying "Is the Lord's arm too short? [The Amplified Version reads "do you think the Lord's ability and power is thwarted and inadequate?"] Now you will see whether or not what I say will come true for you."

Moses was told to bring together 70 of the elders of Israel into the 'Tent of Meeting' where worship took place. God said:

I will come down and speak with you there, and I will take of the Spirit that is on you and put the Spirit on them. They will help you carry the burden of the people so that you will not have to carry it alone (Num 11:17).

When the Spirit came upon them they prophesied, or as the Amplified version says "they sounded forth the praises of God and declared His will". Another interesting point is that the two men who had stayed in the camp also prophesied. Although this seemed outrageous to Joshua, Moses replied "Are you jealous for my sake? I wish that all the Lord's people were prophets and that the Lord would put his Spirit on them!"

Being able to celebrate the Lord's presence with others who have also caught the vision and are really sounding forth praises of God and declaring his will is a wonderful, exhilarating experience for all concerned. This is the outpouring of the Spirit foretold in Joel 2 which was fulfilled at Pentecost:

In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.

The Acts version of the record from Pentecost adds the last four words to Joel's prophecy, "and they shall prophesy" to emphasise their importance. This means that every believer, baptised in the Spirit, is potentially able to prophesy. This is true of men and women, young and old, rich and poor.

Every believer, baptised in the Spirit, is potentially able to prophesy."

Old Testament Prophets

Today we often think of the prophetic gift as being relevant more to the Old Testament when the role of the prophets was greatly revered. They were individuals who were so in tune with God that they understood and knew what God wanted to say to his people. This has provided the basis of the teaching in the New Testament.

The task of the Prophets then (both those whose words have been recorded as well as those who we only know their names) was to bring the word of the Lord which was living in them to the nation. God used them to reveal his nature and purposes so that Israel would understand the God who had established a covenant relationship with them through their forefathers thus preparing them to be "a light unto the Gentiles"; a role which was eventually personified in Messiah Jesus.

New Testament Prophets

The prophetic role today is still to bring knowledge and understanding and to reveal the nature and purposes of God through the church to the world. Moses' words "I wish that all the Lord's people were prophets and that the Lord would put his Spirit on them!" is carried out most effectively when it creates a mature body of believers who can relate their faith to everyday life.

In this way they can present a united front to the world with a powerful spirit-filled anointing upon their works of service, which glorifies Jesus and causes multitudes to want to know him and find that their lives are transformed by God.

Not all are prophets, but all are called to be prophetic witnesses...

It was just before he said goodbye to his disciples and ascended into heaven that Jesus commissioned them, when they had received the Holy Spirit, to be his witnesses (Luke 24:48-49; Acts 1:4-8)

When his promise was fulfilled on the day of Pentecost, Peter explained that what had happened to the disciples was a fulfilment of a prophecy of Joel and stated the result - adding his own four words – "and they shall prophesy" (Joel 2:28¬-29; Acts 2:16-18).

Putting these two statements together the conclusion that we reach is that all Christians are appointed by Jesus and are enabled by the Holy Spirit to be his 'prophetic witnesses' to the whole world in general, and to their own generation and locality in particular.

Not All Are Prophets

Christ's witnesses function as prophets do, but this does not mean that every believer is a prophet in the sense that Paul had in mind when he asked: "Are all prophets?" (1 Cor 12:29); the presumed answer to which is 'No!'. The ministry of the prophet, to which Paul referred, is an important one, second only to that of an apostle; but this is a ministry given only to some persons.

Not all Christians are called to the ministry of the prophet. But all are appointed by Jesus and enabled by the Holy Spirit to be his 'prophetic witnesses' to the outside world."

It is also necessary to distinguish that 'prophetic witness' which Jesus expects his disciples to maintain among a world of unbelievers from the manifestation of the gift of prophecy which Paul sought to encourage in the assembly of the Lord's people in Corinth (1 Cor 14:1, 5).

All God's People Witnesses

God's primary purpose in calling a people to be his own, in both Old Testament and New Testament times, is for them to be his witnesses. Paul told a company of idol worshippers in Lystra that God had not left himself without witness in that he had given them rain and fruitful seasons, but it is evident from the context that these people needed witnesses to show them that such essential blessings are the provision of a loving God (Acts 14:15-18).

In Isaiah's day, the people of God were reminded that they were his witnesses (Isa 43:10; 43:12, 44:8) with the responsibility of bearing witness to the fact that Jehovah is the living and true God as compared with all idols.

The Shema Witness

"Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord". These words repeated twice a day by orthodox Jews are called the Shema, from the Hebrew of the first word, meaning 'hear or listen'. In Jewish tradition, the last letter of the first word of the Shema and the last letter of the last word are printed in large type. These two letters are the letters of the Hebrew word 'witness'.

All believers are called to be witnesses: to listen to the living, speaking God and testify to his truth."

This statement which is part command, part creed and part covenant is an excellent summary of the witness Israel and the church today is called to sustain. The command is to listen, for God is a living God who speaks. The creed declares that he is one and besides him there is no other God. The covenant is implicit in his name Jehovah, who is the God who enters into covenant with his people.

New Testament Witness

By the time Jesus sent out his witnesses into all the world there was an additional piece of information to be added to the Old Testament witness: the God of glory had sent his Son to die for the sins of the whole world and had raised him from the dead. The essential aspect of New Testament witness is the fact of the resurrection (Acts 1:22).

Seven times over Luke informs us of this (Acts 2:32; 3:15; 5:32; 10:39; 10:41; 13:31; 17:18). No witness can claim to be truly Christian which denies, explains away or omits this fundamental truth (1 Cor 15:14-17).

Witness Word Study

The Hebrew word translated 'witness' literally means to repeat. It is part of being a witness to repeat what we have seen and experienced. However, the repetition may be that implied by the Old Testament's insistence that there must be at least two witnesses to establish the truth of any matter (Deut 17:6)- a principle which is carried over into New Testament teaching (Matt 18:16).

The New Testament word for witness is martus. This is the Greek root from which we get our English word 'martyr'. As F.F. Bruce has pointed out, by the time we come to the reference in Revelation 2:13 to 'Antipas, my witness', the Greek word 'martus' has begun its transition from 'witness' to 'martyr'. This stresses the cost of being a faithful witness.

The Greek word for 'witness' is also the root of our English word 'martyr'. Being a witness – that is, repeating what we have seen and experienced – comes with a cost."

The English word 'witness' refers to a person who has seen or can give first-hand evidence of some event. This quality of witness is emphasised in Jesus' words to Nicodemus. "We speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen" (John 3:11).

Witnesses Stand Out

The English word for 'witness' is made up of two words: 'wit' (meaning 'to know') occurs in several well-known phrases such as 'to have the wit to', 'to keep one's wits about one' and 'to be at one's wits end'.

The second word 'ness' is of French origin and means 'nose'. It occurs in a number of English place names e.g. Dungeness, Foulness, Shoeburyness, also Walton-on-the¬-Naze - all places which project or stick out.

The English word 'witness' implies someone who sticks out because of what he knows."

It would be hard to beat this definition of a 'witness' that he stands out for what he knows! Before leaving the words used for 'witness' it is important to note that the words 'testify', 'testimony' and 'bear record' are all translations of the Greek word 'martus' and have the same meaning as 'witness'.

Universal Witnessing

Jesus' words make it clear that he expects his disciples to carry out their witnessing to the ends of the earth. "To all nations, beginning from Jerusalem" (Luke 24:47), "in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8) indicates our marching orders geographically to be to the ends of the earth. But there are other 'worlds' into which we must seek entry for his gospel. The 'worlds' of music, art, drama, sport, society and many others have all to be evangelised.

We have been given our marching orders: to take the good news of Jesus to the ends of the earth and into every sphere of society."

We must regain the commitment of those early Christian witnesses who witnessed to Jewish rulers, to an occult magician, to a Roman jailor, to a Roman centurion, to Athenian intellectuals, to a rioting crowd in Ephesus, to King Agrippa and to a number of Roman governors. They didn't give their witness behind the closed doors of Church buildings in those days, expecting strangers to 'come and get it!'

Power-packed Witness

The secret of their powerful witness was their conscious receiving of the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus had promised them the dynamic experience which they had appropriated. He had told them that when the Holy Spirit came he would bear witness and they also were witnesses (John 15:26-27).

But the initiative was the Holy Spirit's. He showed them where to witness. He directed Philip away from a revival to a deserted road; persuaded Peter to break out of his religious apartheid and sent Paul sailing to Europe and finally to Rome itself (Acts 8:26; 10:20; 16:10; 27:24).

Witness Confirmed

He enabled them to witness effectively by transcending their merely human wisdom (1 Cor 2:4). He backed up their words with demonstrations of his power. When Ananias and Sapphira lied about their offering they collapsed and died (Acts 5:1-11). When Elymas the magician resisted Paul he ended up with temporary blindness (Acts 13:6-11). As they witnessed he brought conviction to their hearers and multiplied the number of those who were being saved (John 16:8-11; Acts 2:37-41).

The secret of successful witnessing is the conscious receiving of the power of the Holy Spirit, who witnesses through and with us, and backs up our words with demonstrations of his power."

Speaking God's Words

The most simple definition of a prophet is 'one who speaks God's words' and it was Moses who expressed the desire "that all the Lord's people should be prophets" (Num 11:29). That wish was fulfilled when Joel's prophecy was made a reality on the day of Pentecost (Joel 2:28-29). Then Jesus' promise became true: "When they deliver you up, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given you in that hour; for it is not you who speak but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you" (Matt 10:19-20). This is what it means to prophesy and all true witnesses are prophets in the sense that Moses had in mind.

This is the only manifestation of prophecy in which all the Lord's people can share. They cannot all receive the ministry of the prophet and it is unlikely that they will all be able to speak a word of prophecy in the worship gathering of the Lord's people; but they can and they must be prophetic witnesses to the world. The one about whom they bear witness is called "the faithful and true witness" (Rev 1:5; 3-14) and they can have no higher ambition than that their witness is also faithful and true.

First published in Prophecy Today, Vol 2, No 5, September/October 1986.