"THE MARK OF THE BEAST", AN ALTERNATIVE CONCEPT TO THE TRADITIONAL VIEW.

Revelation 13:16-17, “He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.”

The most popular view today regarding the Mark of the Beast in Revelation 13 is that it is a literal mark physically placed in the forehead or right hand of those who worship Antichrist. Many teachers of Biblical eschatology will even refer to modern 21st century technology and point to some type of tattoo or implantable microchip under the skin when attempting to explain the mark.  But why?

 What is in the text that leads many to believe that this mark must be physical when, after all, virtually every one of us would agree that while the book of Revelation speaks about the dragon, the Beast, the “Whore of Babylon” or the mark of Christ upon the elect etc. that these descriptions are not referring to a literal dragon, a literal animal, a literal prostitute or a literal seal of Christ? This is obviously figurative language pointing to something completely different.  On the other hand, so to speak, is there anything from Scripture to indicate for us that this mark need not be a physical mark at all, but could instead be something else entirely?

After careful consideration, I believe that the Mark of the Beast is very likely a spiritual mark just as the mark of Christ upon the elect is spiritual.  Since many will resist the suggestion that a figurative Beast will also have a figurative mark, despite the fact that there is nothing in the text stating that the Mark of the Beast must be physical, it is important to rightly divide the Word of God and study, from the whole of Scripture, the significance of the hand and head and how it often relates to man’s condition in the Biblical text.
According to the “charagma = physical mark” argument, the Beast should be literal. The dragon should be literal. The ten horns on the head of the dragon, the crowns, the lamb, etc. etc etc. should all be literal because the words that John used refer to things that are physical by definition.  

We would all agree, however, that these are figurative.  It does not stand to reason that the figurative dragon, with the seven figurative heads, ten figurative horns and a figurative crown upon each figurative horn — a figurative dragon who hates the figurative woman and who gives power to the figurative Beast that opposes the figurative lamb (a figurative lamb who figuratively marks those who follow the figurative lamb with a figurative seal) — puts a literal, physical mark upon those who worship the figurative Beast.

The song “One Of These Things (Is Not Like The Other)” comes to mind, doesn’t it? It makes much more sense that the word “mark (charagma)” is used figuratively by John, just as “lamb (arnion)” and “crowns (diadema)” and “horns (keras)” and many others all refer to something physical and tangible that we can identify with. All are symbolic or spiritual, not literal and physical.

The Significance of the Head and Hand, and Being ‘Marked’ in Scripture.
As for the significance of being ‘marked’ in the head or hand, let’s review a few portions of Scripture that refer to the head and hand and what these terms mean in those specific contexts.

Exodus 13:9 says, “And it shall serve AS A SIGN to you on your hand, and AS A REMINDER to you on your forehead, that the law of the LORD may be in your mouth; for with a powerful hand the LORD brought you out of Egypt.”

The Lord said that His words are to be as a sign on our hand, and as frontals on our foreheads. The word “as” is “used to express similarity or equality in a specified characteristic, condition, etc., as between one person or thing and another.” It means “like” or “similar to.”
Sign: H226 Strong’s Bible Dictionary “ôth” – Probably from H225 (in the sense of appearing); a signal, as a flag, beacon, monument, omen, prodigy, evidence, etc.: – mark, miracle, (en-) sign, token.

Deuteronomy 6:5-8, ”You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up. You shall bind them AS A SIGN ON YOUR HAND and they shall be AS FRONTALS ON YOUR FOREHEAD.”

Deuteronomy 11:18, ”Therefore you shall lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and bind them AS A SIGN ON YOUR HAND, and they shall be AS FRONTLETS BETWEEN YOUR EYES.”

James 4:8, ”Come near to God and he will come near to you. WASH YOUR HANDS, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you DOUBLE-MINDED.”

Psalms 119:48, ”My HANDS ALSO I WILL LIFT UP to Your commandments, Which I love, And I will MEDIATE ON YOUR STATUTES.”

Instead of interpreting Scripture to conform to our understanding, we must allow our understanding to conform to Scripture. When Scripture is permitted to interpret itself we’ll then begin to see why the Mark of the Beast need not be literal at all, but is instead simply an identifying mark upon the head or forehead to represent the mind, what you believe, your faith, how you think, and in the right hand to represent actions, works, what you do. There is nothing in the text necessitating a physical and visible mark upon the forehead or right hand as in a microchip or tattoo or anything else that a people or government can physically place therein or upon. It just doesn’t exist.

The Mark of the Beast – A Closer Look

Aside from those who worship the Beast, the only other figure in the book of Revelation directly related to the Beast and described as having a mark or name upon their forehead is one who many Bible scholars and prophecy teachers refer to as the “Whore of Babylon.”  This “woman” is described as being carried by the Beast (17:7), and all agree she is figurative and identified by the name upon her forehead.
This alone should beg the question: If the name marked upon the forehead of this “woman” is figurative to designate identity, would this not then infer that the Mark of the Beast is itself also a figurative mark to designate identity, especially considering the fact that the mark of God upon the foreheads of the elect is itself also figurative to designate identity (Rev 7:3, Rev 9:4, Rev 14:1, Rev 22:3-4)?  Common sense would dictate that, yes, it would.

In Scripture, the seal of God upon the forehead of the elect refers to those who keep the commandments of God and who do not worship the Beast.  Conversely, those who have the Mark of the Beast would therefore be identified with those who worship the Beast and do not worship God. This would be the direct antithesis to the mark of Christ and symbolic of worship, of allegiance, of identity to permit all readers of Revelation to know to whom the individual or group belongs to and to whom their allegiance lies. 
And for those with the Mark of the Beast, it is not with YHWH the God of Israel. Just as those who worship Christ receive the mark of Christ and are “sealed for the day of redemption” (Eph. 4:30), those who worship the Beast receive the Mark of the Beast and will “drink of the wine of the wrath of God” (Rev. 14:9-10) and suffer the same fate as the “Whore of Babylon”: destruction.

The Beast Carries the “Whore of Babylon” – Who Is She?
In chapter 5 of the book of Zechariah we read about a vision that Zechariah was given of a flying scroll and a “wicked woman”.  An angel tells Zechariah that “This is the curse that is going out over the whole land” at the appointed time (5:3,11). The Prophet Zechariah then writes that “the angel who was speaking to me came forward and said to me, ‘Look up and see what this is that is appearing.’ I asked, ‘What is it?’ He replied, ‘It is a measuring basket.’ And he added, ‘This is the iniquity of the people throughout the land.’

Then the cover of lead was raised, and there in the basket sat a woman” (Zech 5:5-7).  Zechariah continues, “He said, ‘This is wickedness,’ and he pushed her back into the basket and pushed the lead cover down over its mouth. Then I looked up–and there before me were two women, with the wind in their wings! They had wings like those of a stork, and they lifted up the basket between heaven and earth. ‘Where are they taking the basket?’ I asked the angel who was speaking to me. He replied, ‘To the country of Babylonia to build a house for it. When it is ready, the basket will be set there in its place.’” (Zech 5:8-11.
Of particular interest here is the fact that this “curse” is described as a “woman” who would be set up in “Babylon” (Shin’ar). The Babylonian Empire encompassed areas of Saudi Arabia (the birthplace and spiritual homestead of Islam) to the south, to parts of Asia Minor (Turkey) in the north, and from Egypt in the west to Persia (Iran) in the east. This area is today the epicenter of Islam. Additionally, one intriguing aspect to the “curse” that goes out over the whole land is that the word for “curse”, and even how it is pronounced, is the Hebrew word “alah”. The Prophet Isaiah, in describing the condition of the earth at the time leading up to the Second Coming of Messiah, says that “the curse [alah] has devoured the earth, And those who dwell in it are desolate” (Isa 24:6).  To dwell in the earth does not in and of itself make one “desolate”. But the same cannot be said for those who dwell in the “curse.”

There should be little doubt that the “woman” of Zechariah 5 that would have a house built for it in Babylon directly represents the “Whore of Babylon” referred to earlier. Over 600 years after Zechariah’s vision of the end times, John in Revelation 17 is given a vision of the future and of “the great harlot who sits on many waters … And on her forehead a name [was] written: MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH” (17:1,5).

Given the fact that the “Whore of Babylon” directly represents the curse (alah), is being carried by the Beast, and is herself marked with a name upon her forehead, does it not stand to reason that the Mark of the Beast would therefore be associated with, or directly related to, the “woman” and “curse” (alah) prophesied by Zechariah and John?

Babylon: Spiritual Confusion and the Quagmire of Islam.
The name Babylon written upon the forehead of this “woman” comes from the Hebrew word “Babel“, which means “confusion (by mixing)”. Since the region of ancient Babylon is today the epicenter of Islam and its god “Allah”, it would be befitting to note a brief history of the founder and ‘prophet’ of Islam, Mohammed, and his self-proclaimed holy book, the Qur’an.

In an effort to entice Jewish and Christian converts to Islam, Islam’s ‘prophet’ incorporated a twisted mix of Jewish and Christian teachings with the existing Babylonian religion of Arabia early in his campaign to gain adherents to his “new” monotheistic Arab religion (formerly polytheistic), even going so far as to claim that “Allah” was the same god that Jews and Christians worshipped. But Jews and Christians would not be deceived and, already familiar with the polytheistic religion of the Romans and their Greek gods, understood full well that just as abolishing all other Greek gods except Zeus would not suddenly make Zeus the God of Israel, neither would abolishing all Babylonian gods except for the moon god “Allah” suddenly make Mohammed’s god the God of Jews and Christians.

This complete rejection of Mohammed and his teachings infuriated the ‘prophet’ of “Allah”, resulting in subsequent “revelations” for the Qur’an for the next 20 or so years that grew increasingly hateful and violent against Jews, Christians and all non-Muslims in general. This twisted mixing of Judeo-Christian teachings, Babylonian paganism and vengeful anti-Semitic and anti-Christian hatred is what permeates every crevice of Islam, even today.

The Curse of the “Whore of Babylon”.
“In examining ‘curse’ (אלה , alah), its first use appears in Numbers 5 in ‘the adultery test’, the Mosaic methodology for determining the faithfulness of a wife to her husband.  If the man suspects adultery, the wife is made by the priest to drink bitter water.  If she’s innocent, she will be immune, but if guilty, the ‘water that brings a curse shall go into your stomach, and make your abdomen swell and your thigh waste away.’ (Num 5:21).
 
The actual first occurrence in v19 reads:  ‘If no man has lain with you and if you have not gone astray into uncleanness, being under the authority of your husband, be immune to this water of bitterness that brings a curse‘.  I think its more than a coincidence to see that first use of the word ‘alah’ in scripture is in connection with an unfaithful woman – is this not perhaps a foreshadowing of the Revelation Harlot riding the Beast?”And indeed, there should be no doubt. This is a reoccurring theme regarding the “Whore of Babylon”:

Revelation 14:8, “A second angel followed and said, ‘Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great, which made all the nations drink the maddening wine of her adulteries.”

Revelation 17:2, “With her the kings of the earth committed adultery and the inhabitants of the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries.”

Revelation 17:4, “The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls. She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries.”

Revelation 18:3, “For all the nations have drunk the maddening wine of her adulteries. The kings of the earth committed adultery with her, and the merchants of the earth grew rich from her excessive luxuries.”

Revelation 19:2, “for true and just are his judgments. He has condemned the great prostitute who corrupted the earth by her adulteries. He has avenged on her the blood of his servants.”

This is obviously spiritual adultery/fornication. Daniel 11:37-38 reveals that a Last Days ‘Antichrist’ will not regard “the God of his fathers” but instead “he shall honor a god of fortresses; and a god which his fathers did not know he shall honor with gold and silver, with precious stones and pleasant things.” Many Arabs and Muslims are descendants of Ishmael, whose father was Abraham.

To not regard “the God of his fathers” implies that this Last Days ‘Antichrist’ will do precisely what Islam does today — completely disregard YHWH the true God of Abraham (and Ishmael, whom God took care of after he and Hagar were sent away), and instead honors a god whom they never knew, one that is forced upon the inhabitants of all nations surrounding Israel in the eschaton, and in increasing measure upon the world, whom they refer to as “Allah”. And today in increasing measure the West, virtually lobotomized by the scalpel of political correctness, bends over backwards to accommodate and embrace her, and have indeed become intoxicated with the “maddening wine of her adulteries.”

Islam – Belief, Behavior, Bureaucracy, and Business.

According to Islam, anyone who believes that Jesus was God in the flesh who died on the cross for the sins of mankind, a foundational tenet upon which Christianity is built, is accused of committing the worst of all possible sins called “shirk”. In Islam, this is an unpardonable sin that “Allah” will never forgive. In Christianity it is the key to everlasting life. But although Islam includes religious teachings as a vital, integral part of its core — Muslims must pray five times a day, and the only way for any Muslim to guarantee Paradise after death is to wage Jihad and be killed for the cause of “Allah” — it is not just simply a religious ideology that seeks to assert itself in place of Christ and all other religions.

It is also a works-based system that completely encompasses legal, political, economic and even military components as well that seek to replace all other non-Islamic religions, values, laws, governments and economies until only Islam reigns supreme throughout the world. Not only does Islam force its adherents to submit to “Allah” and his ‘prophet’ and demand that you reject any belief that Jesus is the Son of God and all other non-Islamic teachings, it also teaches that “Allah” weighs the good deeds and bad deeds of Muslims on a scale to determine who makes it into Paradise, and who does not.

In contrast, notice how we as Christians only receive a mark on our foreheads when we are sealed by God. Why not in our right hand as well? Unlike Islam, which is based upon works, Christians are saved by grace through faith, by being born again, by believing in the true Jesus of Biblical Scripture who died upon the cross, by being transformed by the renewal of our mind. We are not saved by works, lest any one should boast (Eph 2:9).

No One Can Buy or Sell Unless They Have the ‘Mark’.
The biggest question that many will have regarding a symbolic mark is, “If the Mark of the Beast is only symbolic, how can those who do not have a literal mark not buy or sell?” This is often used as well by some as an argument against a figurative mark, arguing that any such mark must be visible and/or physical if it is required in order to buy or sell.  However, the answer to this question is much simpler than many may think.

When it comes to the conditions that exist in many Islamic nations for Christians, Dr. Labib Mikhail, a former professor of homiletics from the Faith Mission Bible College in Cairo, Egypt, states that one reason why people are forced to embrace Islam is because of the poverty they will assuredly find themselves in if they do not. “If you don’t embrace Islam you may not find a job; you may not find an apartment, and you’ll be in financial trouble”.Non-Muslims, particularly Christians and Jews, living in Muslim-dominated countries are finding themselves subjected to an ever increasing wave of discrimination, oppression and persecution at the hands of the Ummah (Islamic Community).  Even today a Christian in a Muslim country is often treated as a second-class citizen or worse, unable to serve in the military or police, many cannot work or own a business, or even find a place to live. They cannot own a weapon to defend themselves, nor can they testify against a Muslim in court, etc. etc. etc. And this type of treatment is getting worse, not better. (Update: Read here to find out just how much worse this has become in 2011 alone).

According to NIFCON (Network for Inter Faith Concerns) in Iraq, for example, minorities have faced a tremendous crisis due to their religious identity and are increasingly becoming targets of unprecedented terror. Canon Andrew White, vicar of St. George’s Anglican Church in Bagdad and head of the Foundation for Reconciliation and Reconstruction in the Middle East, testified as a witness in 2007 at a hearing that Christians, in particular, “are being disproportionately targeted” and many Christians are being threatened either to convert to Islam or face execution. In fact, in April 2011, “an Iraqi Muslim scholar issued a fatwa that, among other barbarities, asserts that ‘it is permissible to spill the blood of Iraqi Christians.’ … Among other atrocities, beheading and crucifying Christians are not irregular occurrences; messages saying ‘you Christian dogs, leave or die,’ are typical. Islamists see the church as an ‘obscene nest of pagans’ and threaten to ‘exterminate Iraqi Christians.’”

On one hand, while many are coming face to face with the threat of death for not converting to Islam, other Christians elsewhere are threatened to convert in other ways that, for some, make life just as difficult.  In many Islamic nations, for instance, everyone must be given an ID card and this ID card specifies what religion you are, such as “M” for Muslim or “C” for Christian or “J” for Jew.  For example, “Christian converts and members of minority religions suffer daily discrimination in Egypt, which restricts their access to work, education, travel and healthcare… Every Egyptian over 16 years old must have an ID card which mentions religious belief”.

In fact, “an ID card is required for the most basic needs in Egypt — to open a bank account, get a driver’s licence, obtain a pension cheque, enrol at school, get a job, and even for childhood immunisations…” Some Muslims will convert to another faith other than Christianity, but “Muslims who convert to Christianity account for many more and their treatment is often harsher as they are considered to be apostates, which some Muslims see as punishable by death”. And now, since the fall of Hosni Mubarak and the rise of the ‘Egyptian Revolution’, the situation has worsened dramatically for Jews and Christians.   This is where Islamic supremacy veiled in a cloak of ‘democracy’ will take you in a country where Islam is the overwhelming, dominant religion.  It’s like Sunni and Shia.  It’s like iron and clay.  Democracy and Islamism will never fully mix.

Although only Iraq and Egypt were provided as examples, similar conditions exists for Jews and Christians all throughout North Africa and the Middle East or elsewhere where Islam dominates or seeks domination, from the Ivory Coast to Nigeria, Sudan, Ethiopia, Tunisia, Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Pakistan, Iran, Malaysia, Indonesia and others.

When we begin to understand the dire social and economic conditions that Christians are increasingly facing in Islamic nations we begin to understand that those who will not be able to buy or sell, or are targeted for execution, are those Christians that refuse to submit to Islam both in mind (forehead) and in deed (right hand) yet remain in Islamic nations during the rise of the Beast.  How can a non-Muslim “infidel”, who is often threatened with death, buy or sell if they are not permitted to work and earn money, if they are not granted permits to open a business, if the superior Muslim will refuse to sell to the inferior “dhimmi”?  As bad as this situation is now, it is only going to get worse.

Chi-Xi-Stigma — In The Name of Allah?

Revelation 13:18, “Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number [is] Six hundred threescore [and] six.”

Someone asked me once if I believed Walid Shoebat’s theory regarding Revelation 13:18 and “666″. Shoebat says that when he first saw the Greek symbol that is translated in the Bible as “666″ he immediately recognized it as the Arabic character for “Bismillah”, which translates to “In The Name Of Allah.” His theory is interesting and is something to consider.  At the very least, it is prudent to have an open mind to his position, especially given the likelihood that the Mark of the Beast is, in some way, directly related to Islam.   

Although I believe that the mark is primarily a spiritual designator, much like the mark of Christ that is upon the foreheads of the elect, that is not to say, however, that there cannot or will not at times also be a physical indicator that could identify the spiritual condition.   Jihadists typically wear the “Bismallah” on the forehead and on the right arm, which itself is significant because the Greek word translated as “right hand” is dexios which not only means the right hand, but also the right side (the right hand side). In fact, even the Hebrew word “yad” means both hand and arm..

—
Another item worthy of consideration is the fact that the word for “number” in Rev 13:18 is “arithmos” and it does not simply mean number.  It also means multitude.  This is significant because it therefore means that the Greek text can also be translated as “the multitude of the beast: for it is the multitude of a man.”  But what man would that be?  There is nothing in the text telling us that the man referred to here must be the end-of-days Antichrist.   In fact, consider the following — in order to convert to Islam one must recite the Islamic creed, called the Shahada, by declaring, “There is no god but Allah, and Mohammed is the messenger of Allah.”
Because of this very fact it therefore stands to reason that the multitude of a man refers not to an eschatonic Antichrist, but rather to Mohammed, the founder and prophet of Islam. If you cannot acknowledge Mohammed, you cannot become a Muslim. Thus, the multitude of the Beast, which is the multitude of a man, are they who receive the Mark of the Beast upon their ‘foreheads’ and are therefore destined for destruction.  This is the direct antithesis or contradistinction to the great multitude, which is the multitude of the Lamb (Rev 7:17, 14:4) that receives the seal of God upon their foreheads (Rev 7:3, 14:1) and are therefore destined for redemption (cf Eph 4:30).  One multitude is lost and separated from Christ forever (Rev 14:11), the other is saved and received unto Christ (Rev 7:15-17, 19:6-9, 22:2-5) to be with Him always.
Article written by "ICA" from "Midnight Watchers Blogspot".

Revelation 22:3-4 says, “And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him: And they shall see his face; and his name [shall be] in their foreheads.” (See also Rev 14:1).

Knowing that the mark of Christ included a name upon the seal, it makes sense that the Mark of the Beast could also have a name upon its seal as well. If it is plausible that what John saw was Arabic for “In The Name of Allah” for those who worship the Beast — the antithesis of those who worship God and are sealed with the name of Christ written on their foreheads — then in stark contrast those who worship the Beast and follow the religion of Mohammed could have the name of “Allah” on theirs, and there would be no doubt about who belongs to who.

To Whom Do You Belong?

New insights into Scripture and a review of developments being witnessed on a near daily basis in the Muslim world has lead a growing number of Christians, including myself, to now recognize that Islam is the religious system of the Last Day’s Antichrist and ideology of the Beast. It is the Adversary’s aim to corrupt and destroy anything that God has created, and this “curse” [alah] is his weapon of mass destruction. 
There should be no doubt today that we are in the last of the Last Days and as we can see every day in the media, the Judeo-Christian West is being bombarded by the steadily encroaching tentacles of Sharia influence as Islamists take advantage of our ‘political correctness’ and abuse our democratic freedoms. 

While they attempt to destroy us from within in the West, it is getting increasingly worse for Jews and Christians in the Islamic world as the Beast of this Islamic Empire coalesces, strengthens militarily, and from within becomes even more radicalized to force as many non-Muslims as possible into Islamic submission.  
Within this kingdom, laws will be enforced or implemented in accordance to Sharia Law to produce your ID card and/or prove you are Muslim in order to buy or sell. If anyone wants to have any semblance of a life they will be forced to convert to Islam if they have not already done so. It may even get to the point where one will be unable to obtain an ID card if they are not Muslim. Want a job? Prove you’re a Muslim. Want a bank account? Prove you’re a Muslim. Want a credit card? A business? A place to live? Prove you’re a Muslim. As radicalization takes hold it will also get to the point where either you convert, or you are killed.  Indeed, many areas are already at this point today.

Written By "ICA" of Midnight Watcher's Blogspot. An even fuller version of this article can be found at their website at http://www.midnightwatcher.wordpress.com/.

GOD CONTINUES TO SHAKE THIS EARTH. WATCH THIS SECOND SHORT VIDEO (UPDATED) OF EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS AND EARTH CHANGES IN APRIL AND MAY 2012

WELCOME TO THE WEBSITE BLOG OF THE NEWPORT PWMI, PLUS OTHER PWMI BRANCHES IN CALDICOT, PONTYPOOL, EBBW VALE, SWANSEA, BRISTOL AND SWINDON.

NEWPORT: Welcome to our blog. This is quite a new venture for the Newport branch of the Prophetic Witness Movement. We hope to keep you fully informed of all our meetings, and also those of our other Welsh branches at Caldicot, Ebbw Vale and Swansea, the newly opened Pontypool branch (Feb 2012), and also our good friends over the Severn Bridge in Bristol and Swindon.

The Newport branch started in 2010 with meetings at various venues, but more recently we have used Nancy's Farm in Bassaleg, the Salvation Army in the City Centre, and the YMCA on the outskirts of Newport. Speakers have included the Rev Byron Jones, Rev Colin Le Noury (the General Director of the National PWMI), Dr Paul Wilkinson, Brian Gemmell, and also other excellent teachers such as Bob Mitchell (formerly of Revelation TV), Alan Franklin (see http://www.thefreepressonline.co.uk/), and Jacob Prasch from Moriel Ministries.

Speakers lined up for 2012 include, Brian Gemmell (from the Bible Prophecy Foundation), Dr Sam Gordon (from the Messianic testimony), Pastor Jon Ikin (PWMI Council Member from Bath),  Dr. Tom McMahon from the Berean Call In America on his British tour (DO NOT MISS THIS ONE), Alan Franklin (from The Free Press Online), Tony Pearce (from London) and Dr Paul Wilkinson from Stockport (both PWMI Council members). There may be other speakers added at fairly short notice (ie Jacob Prasch), so watch this space for further information.

PONTYPOOL:  As well as organising the Newport branch, Hazel and I have opened a new PWMI branch in TALYWAIN, PONTYPOOL on February 17th, 2012.  We have already had Brian Gemmell, Colin Le Noury, Jon Ikin, and Jacob Prasch, and future teachers include Brian Gemmell (again), Tony Pearce and Paul Wilkinson to speak at the ZION church we have managed to acquire. The full address is Zion Christian Fellowship Church, 4 Pisgah Road, Talywain, Pontypool, NP4 7HZ, and we are trusting the Lord for guidance to use this as a platform for a new PWMI meeting in this area.  We also have a new blog for PONTYPOOL at http://www.ziontalywain.blogspot.com/. which will keep you up to date of all developments at TALYWAIN. Please contact me (Neville Stephens on 07808-251502) if you would like more information, or directions to the Church.

CALDICOT: The Caldicot branch meet on Friday evenings approx four times a year at the Elim Pentecostal Church, Longcroft Road, Caldicot, NP26 4EX (contact Tom and Pearl Jones on 01291 421850). In March, their speaker was the uplifting and entertaining Dr Sam Gordon from the Messianic Testimony (for more details, see larger report on this blog).

Their last speaker in June was the respected Pastor Eric Horley from Ammanford, who gave a splendid address on "Resurrection, Past, Present, And Future". The next minister on Friday, the 7th September will be our National General Director, the Rev Colin Le Noury who will lead the Caldicot gathering. Their list for 2012 will be completed by the dynamic Dr. Paul Wilkinson, the youngest council member of the PWMI, who will be coming to Caldicot on November 16th, on his mini tour of our area.

EBBW VALE: The Ebbw Vale group meet at the Apostolic Christian Centre, Crown Buildings, Ebbw Vale, NP23 6XQ, just off Cemetery Road, on Friday evenings starting at 7pm (contact Dulcie Evans on 01495 302523).

This year Dulcie and Marion have had the Rev Byron Jones in February, in March they had the ever popular Pastor John Ikin from Bath, who spoke on "The Three Wars That Must Take Place Before The Tribulation", and following this they had Dr Sam Gordon in May speaking on "When The Saints Go Marching In".

On June 15th Dulcie had Pastor Steve Lloyd from London, who spoke on "Fulfilled Prophecy, Coincidence, Or God's Plan?". The Ebbw Vale group will finish their line up for this year with the inspirational Alan Franklin from The Free Press Online in Hampshire on September 21st on his weekend in South Wales. Alan will also be speaking at the Newport branch  with a double seminar on the Saturday morning, September 22nd (see larger advert for more details).

SWANSEA: Approx fifty miles to the west, we have our Swansea branch, and they meet three times a year at the Treboeth Gospel Hall, Treboeth, Swansea, SA5 9EH on Saturdays at 7pm. At the end of last year they Dr Sam Gordon from the Messianic Testimony, who gave a riveting exposition of 1 Thess 4, and titled his message "JESUS IS COMING AGAIN". There were also four delightful songs from the ever impressive Swansea  "Voices Of Praise" Ladies Choir. In 2012, Swansea have had Pastor Eric Horley in March, and Bryan Sheldon in May, and their final meeting of the year will be on October 13th when they have the PWMI's Tony Pearce from The Bridge Fellowship in North London. For further details for Swansea, please email Geoffrey Fewkes at geoffreyfewkes@btinternet.com or phone Peter Bridgens on 01792 773700.

BRISTOL: Just across the Severn Bridge, we have our Bristol branch who meet four times a year. The venue for their gatherings is the Unity Chapel, Shaldon Road (off Lockleaze Road), Bristol, BS7 9TN. Their meetings start at 7.30pm, and the Secretary is Tony Fry, who can be contacted by phone on 0117 967 4111, or by email at pilgrims-rest@hotmail.co.uk.

This year Tony has booked an exciting list of speakers, which started on March 22nd with the ever popular Dr Sam Gordon from the Messianic Testimony (see larger report on this blog for more details) followed by Roy Hill on the 14th June, who spoke on "The Judgement Seat Of Christ". On September 6th, Tony has booked our National General Director the Rev Colin Le Noury from Lancashire, and finally the excellent Dr Paul Wilkinson (a PWMI Council Member) will lead the gathering on the 15th November. All of these speakers are well worth travelling to hear teach and preach, and I have no hesitation in recommending them to you.

SWINDON: We are very pleased to announce that just a little further down the M4 corridor from Bristol, we had a new branch open in Swindon on February 25th. Our good friend Tony McLellan and his lovely wife Diane have taken the bull by the horns after many months of prayer, meditation (and some hesitation), and they launched out at their original venue at the St Aldhelm's Centre, Edgeware Road, Swindon, SN1 1QS. Our General Director, the Rev Colin Le Noury officially opened the new branch, and the PWMI chairman Rev Glyn Taylor dedicated the venture in prayer. 

Rev Taylor also spoke at the second meeting on 12th May when his subject was "The Signs Of The Times", followed by the excellent Brian Gemmell from the Bible Prophecy Foundation who ministered on June 7th when he spoke on "Things That Must Take Place During The Tribulation" (see larger report on this blog). 

Looking ahead, Tony has booked the highly respected Alan Franklin from Hampshire, and author of The Free Press Online, who will speak on Thursday, the 20th September at 7.30pm (see larger advert for more details). For this meeting, Tony hopes to have a new permanant venue, as he has received some excellent support from his local Pastor. The new venue will be The Storehouse Fellowship, 150 Cricklade Road, Gorse Hill, Swindon, SN2 8AG. For further information, you can contact Tony by phone on 07931-421157 (mobile), or 01793-526075 (home), or via email at apmclellan1@gmail.com. 

PHOTOGRAPHS: We have a photo gallery of some of the excellent teachers mentioned in the above article. Please scroll down to the bottom of this page to see some pictures of Brian Gemmell, Colin Le Noury, Jacob Prasch, Bob Mitchell, Alan Franklin, Paul Wilkinson, John Ikin, and others.

NEWPORT: The Newport branch use a variety of venues, including the the Salvation Army Hall in the City Centre, the YMCA in Mendalgief Road, Newport, NP20 2HF, or sometimes Nancy's Farm in Bassaleg. Please phone Neville on 07808-251502 for details of meetings and venues, but they will all appear on this website blog as they are updated.

We hope to keep you fully informed of all developments in South Wales, and also the PWMI branches just across the Severn Bridge and down the M4 at Bristol and Swindon. There are now over forty PWMI branches across the U.K. with five of them situated in South Wales. More branches are opening regularly as more and more people are taking an active interest in what the Bible has to say about the future, and in particular The Rapture, and The Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.

If you would like more information, you can contact me via email at propheticwitnessnewport@gmail.com or you can telephone Neville Stephens on 01495-772323 (home) or 07808 251502 (mobile).

MARANATHA BLESSINGS TO YOU ALL,
NEVILLE..

NEW SUPER VIRUS HITS MIDDLE EAST COMPUTERS IN PLACES SUCH AS SYRIA, EGYPT, AND SAUDI ARABIA.

New super-virus hits Mideast computers; Israel is prime suspect

Tuesday, May 29, 2012 | Ryan Jones

http://www.israeltoday.co.il/tabid/178/nid/23238/language/en-US/Def...=

A new computer virus being described as the most sophisticated cyber-weapon in history has begun tearing through government and other computers in Iran, Syria, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the Palestinian-controlled territories.

Dubbed "Flame," the new virus contains 20 times more code than the Stuxnet virus that infected Iran's nuclear program two years ago, according to Internet security company Kapersky. Stuxnet was previously marveled over for its incredible ability to adapt and alter its attacks, and it was concluded that only a national government would have the resources to develop such a program.

Flame is said to contain some of the code for Stuxnet, creating a clear link between the two viruses. Flame may also have been introduced into the region at the same time as Stuxnet, but has remained dormant until now. All of this again points to Israel, which hinted in the past that it was behind Stuxnet.

Speaking to Army Radio on Tuesday, Israeli Minister for Strategic Affairs Moshe Yaalon would not give a definitive response as to whether or not Israel was behind Flame, but did say, "Israel has been blessed with a prolific hi-tech sector that opens possibilities in both the business and security fields."

Currently, Flame is believed to be conducting targeted attacks on specific data. The virus collects its target data and then deletes it. To date, most of the infected computer systems are in Iran.

The virus was discovered by Kapersky analysts, who were shocked that Flame remained hidden for so long despite its enormous 20 gigabyte size.

"It’s pretty fantastic and incredible in complexity," Kapersky's chief security expert, Alexander Gostev, told Wired magazine. "It will take us 10 years to fully understand everything."

At the same time Flame was discovered and made public, Israel announced that it would invest an additional $13 million in national cyber defenses. Much of those funds will be awarded to private Israeli companies that can demonstrate innovative methods for dealing with new cyber threats.

Netanyahu deputy hints at Israeli involvement in Iran cyber attack

In Israel's first official comment on Flame worm, which was revealed on Monday to have infected computers in Iran and various Arab countries, Vice PM Ya'alon says such steps 'reasonable' in face of Iranian threat.

By Haaretz | May.29, 2012 | 10:44 AM

Vice Prime Minister and Strategic Affairs Minister Moshe Ya’alon hinted on Monday at possible Israeli involvement in the Flame bug, which was revealed to have targeted computers in Iran and the West Bank on Monday.

"Anyone who sees the Iranian threat as a significant threat – it's reasonable [to assume] that he will take various steps, including these, to harm it," Ya’alon said Tuesday morning in an interview with Army Radio. "Israel was blessed as being a country rich with high-tech, these tools that we take pride in open up all kinds of opportunities for us," he added.

According to experts at internet security company Kaspersky who first detected the virus, Flame was most likely created by a state actor, and is capable of transferring files, screenshots, audio recordings and keystrokes from infected computers.

Ilan Proimovich, Kaspersky's representative in Israel, told Army Radio that the worm "does not operate independently, but is controlled by a remote computer, and thus only when it receives an order does it start working. For this reason, it is difficult to detect, because it is not always active." Calling it a "masterpiece of programming," he said it was sophisticated enough to change its characteristics and develop according to orders.

Kaspersky said on Monday that Flame shared certain characteristics with Stuxnet, the bug that attacked Iranian centrifuges and was discovered in 2010. Unlike Stuxnet, however, which was designed to cause damage to computerized equipment, Flame is meant to collect information. The source of the bug is as yet unknown.

DREAMS OF IMPENDING JUDGEMENT ON THE USA?

Not everyone is comfortable about God speaking to them in dreams, but it does appear to be happening more and more in these latter days, and particularly in the Arab and Muslim countries, and again in Africa. Below is an article by Rick Wiles from "Trunews", and it is certainly thought-provoking at the very least, and possibly prophetic! (Neville).

"The Holy Spirit gave me a stunning vision in 1998 of America’s demise when He showed me American cities on fire and refugees staggering out of the burning urban centers. God commissioned me that day in April 1998 to warn the American people that time was running out for this nation to repent and return to obey God’s commandments and ways. I have spent the last 14 years in full-time ministry proclaiming that message.

Since the beginning of 2012, I have detected a marked intensity in the warnings from God. They are coming to me from various sources and ways. Many people are experiencing disturbing dreams. Others are seeing visions. In recent weeks the warnings have taken on an alarming new level of urgency. Reports of prophetic dreams and visions are flooding into our offices daily in recent weeks. Without a doubt, I am convinced that one or more catastrophic events will strike the USA before the end of 2012.

One reoccurring theme I have seen in these various prophetic warnings that have been forwarded to me recently are two general dates in 2012: July/August and November/December. Upon careful examination of these many warnings, it appears that God is telling His saints in America that they must have final preparations in place by late July or early August. I do not know the reason. Perhaps there will be travel restrictions imposed this summer. Again, I do not know the reason.

What I do know is that a growing number of mature, devout Christian men and women are privately telling me that God is strongly telling them to have everything in place in July or August. Many of them are selling everything and fleeing the USA.

The second date is fall 2012. Many of the dreams and visions indicate that great woe is coming to the USA in November – notably shortly after the presidential election. In particular, many of the prophetic dreams hint at trouble during the Thanksgiving holiday season.

Several days ago I received three more prophetic dreams from two people who listen to the Trunews radio program. They arrived in my email box simultaneously. I was stunned by the dire warnings of imminent judgment, bloodshed, and captivity. Unless God intervenes, I do not believe the USA will be a free nation beyond November 2012.

I contacted the two recipients of these dreams and asked for permission to release them to the general public. Both agreed on the condition that I do not release their names or places of residence.
The first person received two dreams three weeks apart. This person is a newly naturalized American citizen. The first dream arrived in the first week of May 2012. The second part of the dream came on Sunday night, May 20. Likewise, the second person received a prophetic dream on Monday night, May 21, 2012. All three dreams were sent to me on Tuesday May 22, 2012.

Below are the dreams. Do not dismiss these warnings. Instead, seek God with all your heart about what He desires you to do in the coming weeks. Please forward the dreams to everybody you know. You may have only weeks to prepare for a time of horrific violent bloodshed in the streets of America later this year.
Know this: America has forgotten the God who made the nation great. He will now strip away America’s greatness. Perhaps Americans will rediscover His greatness in their poverty and captivity.

Rick Wiles
President
Trunews


FIRST PERSON: DREAM #1 – Received first week of May 2012

I saw patriots dressed in battle uniform (from the 1700's) perhaps they were pilgrims. They were on an island. Their leader was hoisting the American flag and it went half mast. Then I saw a man on a balcony looking through a telescope and I could see these patriots through his lens. He was a dictator, an evil man. The next thing I knew he had a canon and fired at the men. I didn't see them get hit but I knew they had died.

Then I was on another island. It was more like a forest. I saw a pilgrim woman dressed in a long black dress. She was with child and looked very distressed. She was gathering grain in her skirt. I asked her what she was doing. She replied that she was hungry and had to feed her baby, but there wasn't much food. She warned me "they" were watching her. There were eyes watching us. I felt we were encircled by something like a barbed wire fence or so, not sure, but I knew she couldn't leave the island and she was being watched.

Then I realized there were other islands and there were pilgrims/patriots on them and they were stuck there. They couldn't get out, and they were all being watched. It wasn't a good thing to be on those islands. Originally, I thought this dream meant that Christians would flee to islands, but would be trapped as they united to fight the dictator. The second dream, however, revealed they were not on literal islands, but instead, they had fled to places they thought were “safe zones” or “places of refuge.”

FIRST PERSON: DREAM #2 – Received May 20, 2012

My spouse and I were speaking with some old men. They were good men. Kind, very clever and very smart men. One talked about how he built his house with his hands. I saw the house it was made of massive beautiful wood, and it had an ocean front - it was so well built. He was proud of that house. Then another old man was referring to another friend who managed to save $1 million Dollars in his lifetime. He was very old. Then one of them said "they are coming to get our homes, you know" "yes, that's the first thing they're taking, our homes" and maybe I heard him say "when you hear rumors of that it will start to get very bad" or "when that happens it will get very bad". There was a feeling of anxiety but we were still very casual, having fun, even laughing. But all of a sudden everything changed as they were talking.

I suddenly saw hoards of people gathered together in some coastal area. In front of us was a city called "Christian City.” It was what everyone thought was a safe harbor, a city of refuge. There was a sandbar right outside the city - it was on an island. It was a city everyone fled to for safety. It was magnificent; it had huge buildings; it appeared to be fortified. We were assembled with a huge crowd. I knew all these people surrounding me and my spouse were kind people.  They had to be Christians.

We were, however, like cattle. There was so much chaos I had a hard time thinking, but I kept hearing a voice in my head saying "Go!" or "Leave" but I was so confused. The voices of the people were so much louder than the voice in my head. Everyone was saying something at the same time. Then something happened. All of a sudden I found myself in a vessel with my spouse and all these people. We were like cattle placed in that vessel against our will. There were evil men, I couldn't see their faces, but they surrounded us. They wore uniforms. They were armed and they were watching us. More people were forced into the vessel against their will.

None of us could believe what was happening. I was so very shocked. I then saw the same pioneer (pilgrim) woman in the black dress on the vessel with me. She was the woman I saw in my other dream. She and I were talking. She was telling me something but I can't remember a word she said, I don't even think I could hear what she was saying. Then I put my hand on her shoulder or her chest and I saw the future.
 
I saw her on a bed, she was ashen, like a Holocaust victim and I was there with her on her death bed. She must have died. I took my hand off her and I was where I was, back on the vessel. Suddenly the city in front of us was burning. There are no words to describe the feelings I felt in the dream, because my feelings were so intense. It was a feeling of complete and utter fear, grief - deep grief and disbelief all at once. Suddenly, I saw a multitude of hands from the people trapped in the vessel reach for the city. I reached too. We were all wailing, mourning, and reaching for that beautiful and beloved city. I didn't want to leave it. I remember thinking this is America, I just got here, I love this country so much, it's my home and now it's gone. It was as if my conscious mind connected that city to America in my sleep.

As our hands reached for the burning city, I saw there were children's hands, small hands, old people's hands, so many hands all reaching for the city. My spouse told me to not worry. He tried to assure me that we would escape from the vessel and run back to the island to hide somewhere. He was trying to calm me, but we were both very sad and scared. I knew we would die because there was no way out. There was an indescribable presence of evil.

Suddenly all the hands that were stretching forth to hold onto the burning city started waving goodbye. We all waved goodbye to the City of America that was burning to the ground. We knew the evil authorities were taking us away in the vessels. We didn’t know where they were taking us. We were very afraid. I couldn’t tell which emotion was stronger: grief, dread, or disbelief. I woke up from the dream crying for America.
Upon waking up, I was deeply disturbed by the dream. I spent the day (Monday May 21) in deep prayer and intercession. I believe this is the interpretation the Holy Spirit gave me. It must be God’s thoughts, but I can’t imagine me saying such things. I have never liked the “gloom and doom” message, but these two dreams have shaken me to the core of my soul. Here is what I believe the Lord told me.

INTERPRETATION:
Which kingdom do you belong to? The test that is here is the test of obedience. Are you bound to the conveniences of this world? Are you so wedded to the world’s luxuries you’ve known in your lifetime that you cannot let go of it?

When you said "Lord, I will follow You to the ends of the earth. I will do anything for you. I will lay down my life, everything!" Did you say that out of emotion or did you mean it? The test that is here is the test of true sacrifice. Will you follow the Lord wherever He leads you? Will you follow Him to an unknown land where you must learn another people’s culture and language that is so foreign to your lifestyle? Will you truly trust the Hand that leads you, or will you turn it away? The Lord's hand is outstretched. For now, His mercy is calling you. That time will soon end. His hand will still be outstretched – but for judgment. Which hand will you take? Mercy or judgment?

This is the test: To see if He truly is your Lord and if you truly are of His Kingdom. God weeps over this nation. His heart is broken. He has knocked at the hearts of your people, but they would not listen. Even those who profess to love Him in reality love this life more than Him. The dreams they claim are His are really their own. They suffer from a cacophony of confusion. Voices, there are so many voices. It seems too difficult to discern the Shepherd's voice. Voices in your head, voices from the enemy….voices of people who will not let go of this kingdom and will drag you down with them. Voices everywhere! Be still and listen to His voice.

Watch the time, watch the season. Judgment will strike when you least expect it. People will be merry. They will ignore the air of anxiety. They will speak of the good times of days gone by. Judgment will strike. Confusion…so much confusion! You will be taken captive against your will. Many good people will suffer. Many innocent people will be killed. Oh the children, the innocent children who will long to go home. (I cannot continue writing what I feel. It is too heavy).

The test that will soon be here will split marrow from bone. It will separate His true disciples who will follow Him and live from those who will die because of their greed. They follow false dreams and pride of their heart because in the deepest chambers of their hearts they refuse to surrender to Him. Listen! Listen while there is still time. The window is closing quickly. There will be no safe havens! Dreams of a better future…dreams of great achievements are now gone! They will never return. The veneer is ready to break.

There is no hiding place in the darkness. There is no future in God's judgment. He calls the righteous out. This is the test. It is the beginning of birth pangs. The world will soon change. Though the great change is near, people are in disbelief. They see only the glory of the past. They long for America’s past glory to be their future. This is the test that divides flesh and spirit. The true man – whether flesh or spirit – will decide his or her fate. This nation will soon witness its fall. God’s hand of mercy is stretched out for you. Which kingdom will you serve? Where your treasure is, there your heart will be too.

SECOND PERSON: Dream received May 21, 2012

I had this dream last night…early morning actually because it woke me up when it was finished.  It was around 5:30-6am.  It was very disturbing.  I felt a great deal of sorrow and mourning when I woke up.  It was very heavy.  The dream was a series of “scenes” in which I saw back to back.  It made me very sad.

THE DREAM:

Scene #1
A family was sitting at a dinner table.  Mom, dad, baby in high chair and 2 small children. They were enjoying a meal. A bomb was placed down in the middle of the table and they completely ignored it. The bomb was round and large – about the size of a basketball.  The family kept eating. At first the mother and father slightly glimpsed at it but then they ignored it. The children started drawing on it with crayons. The parents were interacting with their children and laughing. Then the bomb started ticking and the ticking became more intense, louder and faster. Their eating slowed down and the parents looked at each other in fear.Then the ticking stopped and the parents grabbed each other’s hands and held on to their children. The bomb exploded.

Scene #2
Men were in a yard throwing a baseball. They were playing a game of baseball together. It wasn’t professional baseball. It was like a bunch of family members together playing ball. In the middle of throwing the ball, the ball exchanged to a grenade. It looked like a grenade was thrown in to the game and the regular game ball fell by the side. The men at first looked at the grenade but paid no attention to it and continued to throw it….they continued with the game. Then it went off.

Scene #3
Men were running down a football field toward the goal. People in the stands were cheering. It was a professional football game. As they were running toward the goal a large missile came through the air, skidded in the dirt and dug in to the dirt right beside the goal. No one paid any attention to it being there…they were so engrossed with the amazing play and the game. The crowd was standing and cheering. I saw a couple of the football players (as they were running) look at each other and the missile that was buried half way in to the dirt. But they kept on running. Moments after the touchdown, the missile exploded. (The team was wearing a dark red color and I thought I saw something gold).

Scene #4
Children were playing on the school playground. A fence surrounded the entire parimeter of the school.  Suddenly men dressed in long white gowns and white head-dresses started coming out of the woods. Others got out of cars. They made their way to the fence and surrounded the school. The teachers on the playground watched the men gather. They had a look of uncertainty and worry but they said and did nothing. They just stood there and watched as the children continued to play. It seemed like a loud echoing sound was heard…then all at once in unison they jumped over the fence, pulled machetes from their gowns and began their terror. I don’t want to write what I saw.

Scene #5
Men and women that looked very ashen and thin were walking toward what looked like on the outside a bank. They walked up to the bank and put their money through a slot that was accepting their “deposit.”  They seemed sad and lifeless. Part of the bank became transparent so I could see in to it. It was totally destroyed on the inside….there was nothing. It looked like a bomb went off on the inside – it was a bottomless pit. There was nothing there – no floor. I saw the people putting their money into the slot. The money merely floated down into the bottomless pit.

I asked the Lord when these things will happen. I’m frightened. I don’t want this to happen to us and our children. The Lord said “Go back and look again.” I revisited every single scene. This is what I saw:
The family at the table:  They were dressed in sweaters and on their plates was cranberry sauce. The flowers on the table were not “spring or summer” flowers – they were darker in color – looked more fall.

The men playing ball were wearing jackets.The people in the crowds at the football game were wearing coats, some had scarves on, there was a light drizzle of snow that was dissipating on the ground.  I saw the breath of the players.

The children at the playground: The children were dressed warmly with heavy jackets. The men at the fence – their gowns were blowing heavily in the wind – the wind was very heavy.
The people at the bank were wearing coats and jackets.

The final scene:  I was using my hand to scrape away a thin layer of ice from a window so I could peer through….when I cleared the window I saw a large city with smoke coming from its buildings.  I remember saying in great sorrow, “My America!  My America!” 
I woke up immediately and felt a great sense of sorrow and mourning.


RICK WILES,
BACK TO TRUNEWS.

PLEASE DO NOT MISS THE EXCITING BIBLE PROPHECY TEACHING WEEKEND NEXT MONTH WITH THE HIGHLY RESPECTED BRIAN GEMMELL FROM YORK.

We are very pleased to annouce that our good friend, Brian Gemmell from the Bible Prophecy Foundation, and based in York, will be leading a PONTYPOOL PROPHECY TEACHING WEEKEND in June, to take the place of the cancellation of the Bob Mitchell weekend due to illness.

Brian will be speaking at our new venue at 4 Pisgah Road, Talywain, Pontypool, NP4 7HZ on Friday 8th June (7.30pm), then will be taking a full day's Seminar Special on Saturday 9th June from 10.30am.

The theme for the weekend will be "THE BATTLES OF THE LAST DAYS", and it promises to be a fantastic weekend of Biblical Prophetic teaching, and one not to miss if you have experienced Brian's up to the minute teaching in the past. The proposed programme for the weekend looks something like this, although the actual times are approximations depending on the length of the talks:

Friday      7.30pm       Battles Of The Last Days.       Part 1, "IT'S WAR!"

Saturday  10.00am     Tea and Coffee
               10.30am      Start and short time of Worship. 
               10.45am      Part 2, "PROPHESIED LITERAL BATTLES".
               11.45am      Short Comfort Break plus Tea and Coffee.
               12.00pm      Part 3, "WORLD WAR THREE!".
                1.00pm       LUNCH (Light snacks and refreshments available or BYO).
                2.00pm       Part 4, "SPIRITUAL BATTLES".
                3.00pm       More Tea and Coffee
                3.15pm       Part 5, "VICTORY".
                4.10pm to 4.45pm (approx) Question and Answer Session.

It promises to be a fabulous time of Biblical Prophecy Teaching, as well as good food and fellowship, so please try and come if at all possible.                        

                        

Shalom In Yeshua,
Maranatha,
Neville.

END TIMES PROPHECY EXPERT, GRANT JEFFREY DIES AT ONLY 64 YEARS OF AGE.

Its is with great sadness, that I have to announce that Canadian Bible Prophecy expert, Grant Jeffrey died over the weekend, aged only 64.

He was one of my favourite Prophecy teachers on television, and he often appeared on TBN, Daystar, God TV, and some of the other Christian stations.

I never quite understand why the Lord takes some of the best Christian speakers and teachers early, but what I do know is that earth is a sadder place today with the passing of Grant, and that Heaven has welcomed home another one of our modern day heroes.

He joins the likes of Barry Smith, David Watson, and Roger Price who were all taken from us "before their time", but we rest in the knowledge that God's Will has been done, and we will understand fully one day, when we stand before Him, the Perfect Judge.

Below is a fuller article from the excellent "Prophecy News Headlines":

"Grant Jeffrey, a Canadian Bible teacher known as an expert on Bible prophecies, an advocate of dispensationalism and host of TBN's "Bible Prophecy Revealed," passed away over the weekend after a cardiac arrest. He was 64.

"He is now without pain, he is healed and now with his Heavenly Father. He will be missed sorely," reads a statement published on the Grant Jeffrey Ministries website. The funeral will be held in Toronto, at a location to be announced soon, ministry officials said.

Jeffrey was hospitalized in Toronto, Canada, on May 7, in critical condition. The ministry said in a statement Saturday that Jeffrey died after suffering a cardiac arrest Friday night. He is survived by his wife Kaye, with whom he had been in full-time ministry since 1988.

Though a controversial figure, Jeffrey was popular and had many followers.

His 27 books, both fiction and non-fiction, were translated into 24 languages and sold an estimated seven million copies worldwide, according to the ministry. They were put out by giant publishing houses like Harper Collins, Zondervan and Bantam. Some of the best-selling titles include those focusing on prophecies, like Armageddon, Prince of Darkness, Final Warning or Countdown to Apocalypse, but also others, like Finding Financial Freedom (Jeffrey was an accredited financial expert) and The War on Terror (politics and history were other topics he indulged in). Among the latest titles are The Next World War, Shadow Government and The Global Warming Deception.

His novel based on prophetic theories, By Dawn's Early Light, co-authored by Angela Hunt, received a Christy Award for the Best Prophetic Fiction novel of 1999. The same year another of Jeffrey's books, The Millennium Meltdown, reached second on Publishers Weekly's bestseller list for religious paperbacks.

Jeffrey was working on a new book, One Nation Under Attack, at the time of his passing. It was to be released next year.

The popular author was a dispensationalist, who believes the Rapture – where the church will be caught up to meet Jesus – will occur right before a period of great tribulation; afterward, Jesus will return again with the saints for his final manifestation and reign for a thousand years.

He has argued, "Some critics have claimed that those who teach the hope of the pretribulation rapture are leaving Christians unprepared for the possibility of the coming persecution of the Tribulation period. However, in thirty-five years of teaching Bible prophecy, I have not witnessed pretribulation Rapture teachers instructing Christians that they are immune from end-time persecution. The prophecy teachers, myself included, who believe God promises that Christians will escape 'wrath of God' in the Tribulation often warn believers that persecution is coming, even in North America, if the Lord tarries much longer."

Other roles he has served in include chairman of Frontier Research Publications, Inc., for more than 20 years; public speaker at prophecy conferences around the world; part-time teacher of eschatology at several colleges; and host of the 30-minute show "Bible Prophecy Revealed" on TBN since 2007, which was broadcast twice a week. The show explored "the fascinating prophecies that point to the soon return of Jesus Christ" and demonstrated "the supernatural nature of the Scriptures." He also appeared often as a guest on other TV and radio shows.

The author embarked on multiple research trips to the Middle East and held interviews with military and intelligence experts, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Shimon Peres.

Jeffrey's passion for research led him to acquire a personal library of over 7,000 books on prophecy, theology and biblical archeology".

Neville.

REVIEW OF JACOB PRASCH'S MESSAGE AT THE PONTYPOOL PWMI ON MAY 13TH.

We were  very pleased to receive, at very short notice, the dynamic JACOB PRASCH from Moriel Ministries for just one meeting at our  ZION CHURCH in TALYWAIN, PONTYPOOL on his very busy schedule, last Sunday on May 13th.

Jacob, who is pictured in our photo gallery at the foot of this page, has suffered health wise recently and has had to cut down on his speaking engagements and overseas bookings. Despite this he took time out to perform a mini South Wales tour over the weekend, speaking at the Berean Fellowship in Mountain Ash on Saturday afternoon, then he spoke twice on the Saturday evening and the Sunday morning at The Church Of The Redeemer in Swansea, before travelling on to Pontypool to speak to our faithful saints in Talywain in the evening.

Jacob took as his subject the fabulous little book of RUTH from the Old Testament at ZION, and for over an hour and a half he had his audience of approx eighty saints gripped as he opened up this small portion of Scripture with an in depth exposition.

As well as expounding on the delightful story of the gentile Ruth being rescued and saved by her Kinsman Redeemer, the Jew Boaz, the Moriel teacher and broadcsater from New York gave us a marvellous "type and shadow" picture of how us gentiles (the Bride of Christ) are being saved by THE TRUE KINSMAN REDEEMER, THE LORD JESUS CHRIST, the greatest Jew of all time (foreshadowed in our illustration by Boaz, the human kinsman redeemer), before we are married to JESUS at the Wedding Feast of the Lamb of God.

There was also a marvellous time of questions and answers from the excited audience, and it is quite amazing how this great man of God can answer just about every question thrown at him with a sound and solid Biblical answer, which no one can argue with! He answered questions on the state of the Church in the West today, and how apostasy  is rampant in most of the mainstream churches; on the state of current Israel, how two thirds of the nation will be destroyed in the Tribulation before MESSIAH YESHUA Returns to Jerusalem to redeem them; the state of Revelation Television and why he and many other good preachers and expositors have pulled out from teaching on this TV station, and many other fascinating questions and subjects.

He stayed on to join in the food and fellowship, as well as marketing many of the products and materials from Moriel Ministries. The Praise and Worship was led by the splendid Sheila Mather, the national prayer co-ordinator for Wales for the Ebenezer Operation Exodus organisation, and Sheila too had a stand where she was able to share her materials with many people.

All in all, it was a lovely and quite emotional occasion, and many people commented afterwards how much they enjoyed the ministry, the fellowship, and the warm feeling generated by the presence of the Holy Spirit. We give all the praise and glory to our great God and Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Shalom In Yeshua,
Neville.

PS. Our good friend Tim Donnelly did a DVD recording of this meeting, and despite several small glitches, a watchable "freebie" is available. Please email me if you would like a copy.

PPS. Click here for the ZION blog: http://www.ziontalywain.blogspot.com/.

REVIEW OF THE SECOND MEETING OF THE NEW SWINDON BRANCH OF THE PWMI.

The newly formed Swindon branch of the PWMI held their second meeting on May 12th, when the PWMI National Chairman, the Rev Glyn Taylor led the proceedings.

Even more people attended this gathering than the initial opening on the 25th February, and supporters travelled from Wales, Bristol, Cheltenham, Melksham and other surrounding areas to help Tony and Diane McLellan continue their new venture as they seek to do the Lord's will for them in Wiltshire.

Rev Taylor titled his address as"The Signs Of The Times", and proceeded to look at events that have happened in the world recently, and are still happening before our very eyes today before the Rapture takes place, followed by the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ to Jerusalem, in Israel.

He sub-divided his message into five sections, and talked in depth about International Signs; Political Signs; Providential Signs; Social Signs; and Spiritual Signs. He looked at well known passages from Matthew 24; Second Thessalonians Chapter Two; plus two sections from First and Second Timothy, to back up his claims from these five sections of the Word of God.

Good food and fellowship followed the meeting, which was held at the St. Aldhelm's Centre, Edgeware Road, Swindon, SN1 1QS. The third Swindon meeting is to be held at this same venue on Thursday, June 7th when the excellent Brian Gemmell from The Bible Prophecy Foundation will minister, starting at 7.30pm. Please phone Tony or Diane on 07931 421157 for more details.

Maranatha Blessings,
Neville.

REVIEW OF PASTOR JON IKIN'S MINISTERIAL WEEKEND IN NEWPORT AND PONTYPOOL.

We were delighted to have Pastor Jon Ikin making his first appearances at our PWMI branches in Newport and Pontypool in May. Jon has ministered several times at our PWMI branches in Ebbw Vale, Caldicot, and Bristol, therefore it was a real privilege to have him with us over the weekend of May 4th and 5th. 

Jon, who is pictured in our photo gallery below, has just moved on from Pastoring the Ebenezer Evangelical Church in Weymouth, Dorset and is now in the process of putting the finishing touches as he prepares his new work for the Lord. He is taking over the Pastorate of the Union Chapel Evangelical Church, Combe Down in Bath in the near future, and he thanks all readers of this blog for their prayers following our advertisement for him several months ago.

On Friday May 4th, forty five saints assembled at the Salvation Army Hall in Central Newport to hear Jon deliver a dynamic message on "ANTICHRIST: SATAN'S RELIGIOUS WARRIOR", based on the fascinating prophecy in Daniel 11: 36-45.

On Saturday May 5th, Jon became the third speaker at our new PWMI branch in Talywain, Pontypool, and he gave two excellent addresses on the end times programme.

The first session was titled "THINGS THAT MUST PRECEDE THE TRIBULATION", based on 2Thessalonians Chapter 2, and he gave us an insightful glimpse into what is happening in the world today, and things to look out for in the near future as prophesied in the Bible before the Tribulation takes place. 

Jon's second session was named "GOD'S JUDGEMENT ON ANTI-SEMITISM", based on the small book of Obadiah from the Old Testament. The hatred of the Jewish nation, God's Chosen People, is on the rise again (see our video clip of this on this blog), and the young Pastor from Bath explained that things are going to get worse for this tiny nation, about the same size as Wales.

The Edomites were the main focus of his talk, but he stressed that all nations that come against Israel will be judged, and many destroyed (see Psalm 83, Isaiah 17, and Ezek 38 & 39) until Jesus returns to Jerusalem to redeem this nation when "All Israel Shall Be Saved". All three meetings were Powerful Powerpoint Presentations, which brought the sessions even more to life, there were some lively Q&A sessions, plenty of good food and fellowship, and we give thanks to the Lord for blessing Jon's ministry to us throughout the weekend.

Shalom In Yeshua,
Neville.