A question was posed by Pastor Abdelrahem and Rabbis Spazi and Shabu in the previous update: “What is the purpose of the prophecies (Scriptures) revealed to us? Prophecy serves as a warning bell, reminding us of our responsibilities…” What are these responsibilities? First of all, the generation that witnesses Israel becoming a sovereign nation after nearly 2,000 years of dispersion around the world, is the generation that will witness Jesus’ return. Jesus said it Himself and made that abundantly clear in the parable of the fig tree–which in Scripture is symbolic of Israel. We, Bible-reading and Christ-following believers, should, without question, know this as a fact. Jesus even criticized the religious leaders for being able to predict the weather by the appearance of the sky–yet failed to interpret the signs of the times.
Since we know what the hour is that we are living in, we must recognize the responsibility we, as the “final generation”, have to live our lives knowing that Jesus could call us at any moment. This means not only “knowing” in our heads, but living a “knowing” life. In other words, because of the special responsibility placed upon us by the Sovereign God in this time, putting action to our “knowing.”
What does this mean? It means recognizing that we only pass this way once! Yesterday cannot be relived, today is passing by quickly, and then, only if Jesus tarries, do we have tomorrow. We cannot afford to put off until tomorrow what God has given us to do today. Most of us are very good at procrastinating. Procrastinating with time, however, is much like playing “Russian Roulette.” The sudden moment will come.
Another aspect of our responsibility is to recognize the capacity we have been given to fulfill God’s assignment. We think we are insignificant — whether it has to do with talent, abilities, finances, etc. God has given us all a task, and it is HE that brings the increase — the harvest. The question could be asked: “Can that which is little contain that which is big?” No. “Can that which is finite encompass that which is infinite?” No. Yet, we can! Think about it this way: A closed container can only hold what it has room for. A quart jar can only contain a quart of whatever is put in it. But, a quart jar with the lid off has no limitations. It can now contain the blowing of the wind (the Holy Spirit), or the outpouring of the rain (the abundance of God’s provision and blessing). Maybe even the flowing of a river? The river of Life flowing through us, even in this fallen world. We are meant to be a light, salt, and container of the life of the Spirit in a very dark, fallen world — until we are called Home.
Only by opening ourselves up can we come to know that which we don’t already know. Only by becoming an open vessel can we contain that which is greater than ourselves. The truth is always greater than “our knowing.” Our minds and hearts are finite, clay jars. But, God has no end or limits. The Eternal is infinite … always flowing. When we, the jars, open ourselves up to Him, we become unlimited. It is only the open vessel and open heart that can contain the infinity of God.
As the last generation before Christ’s return, we cannot chance missing the last opportunity given to us to do our part for the Kingdom of God with what God has blessed us with. Tomorrow is not guaranteed to anyone!
But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us. 2 Corinthians 4:7
“Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know. Jeremiah 33:3
But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. 2 Corinthians 9:6
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The report below is from Dr. Nibras and was received this week. Enjoy reading the account of another of God’s miraculous interventions for the sake of the spiritually blind and lost!
Greetings, brother Jack, and to all the Lord’s beloved. The outpouring of the Spirit of God across the globe today is truly astounding. Reading about the great miracles occurring in some of the world’s most difficult regions, one cannot help but kneel in gratitude to our Father in heaven for His incomparable love for humanity. In a world where chaos reigns and bloodshed never ceases, the blood of Jesus remains the only blood that sets man free — a freedom that lasts forever!
Most in the West probably don’t know this, but there are at least thirty jihadist groups operating, in one way or another, in the Middle East today. Amidst all the chaos, death, and destruction this brings, there stand hundreds of faithful missionaries — some of whom have been martyred while serving — proclaiming the good news of Almighty God’s love for humanity through Jesus Christ, the true Messiah.
I received a call from Saudi Arabia this morning. Here is what I gathered from the latest report, brother Jack:
Brother Omar, who is presently serving in Saudi Arabia, was teaching a group of people about the Blood of Jesus using materials provided by the House of Blessing organization. A large crowd of men arrived at the teaching venue in Taif (a city about 55 miles southeast of Mecca). They did not identify themselves upon arrival, yet it was evident they were not merely casual observers listening to the lesson. As far as the missionaries knew, these men might well have been sent to catch Christian missionaries red-handed while teaching “illegal” religious material. Many Christian missionaries have lost their lives in this way, including many from the House of Blessing.
After the lesson concluded, these men approached Omar and introduced themselves as a group of sheikhs planning to travel to Mecca and Medina — destinations where hundreds of thousands from countries like Egypt, Yemen, the UAE, and southern Saudi Arabia had already arrived. However, after listening to the teaching, their perspective on the “Day of Arafah” changed. A customary practice on this Muslim holy day involves the ritual slaughter of an animal as an atonement for a Muslim’s sins.
(NOTE: The Day of Arafah is the holiest day of the Islamic year for the Hajj, marked by standing at the plain of Arafah and seeking Allah’s mercy and forgiveness. Pilgrims gather at the Plain of Arafah, near Mecca, from noon until sunset, standing in supplication, seeking forgiveness, and praying for mercy. This ritual, known as “wuquf”, is the central act of Hajj, and missing it invalidates the pilgrimage. Interestingly, for Muslims not performing Hajj, the prophet Muhammad recommended fasting on the Day of Arafah, stating: “Fasting the Day of Arafah expiates the sins of the past year and the coming year.” Incidentally, roughly one million or more animals are sacrificed every year during this observance).
In short, these men were deeply moved by the teachings they heard regarding the blood of Jesus and desired to learn more. Upon receiving a comprehensive explanation about Jesus — and how His blood constitutes the supreme and only sacrifice capable of securing the forgiveness of sins — they expressed a desire to be washed by the blood of Jesus. They asked for prayer so they might receive forgiveness for their sins and become part of the Kingdom of God. Each of them — young and old alike — prayed a prayer of repentance with the HOB missionaries, inviting Jesus Christ to become the Lord of their lives.
Subsequently, these men were baptized in accordance with biblical teaching, making a public declaration of their newfound faith. Most were accompanied by their wives and children, who also came to believe in Jesus Christ. After everyone was baptized, the men participated in a ritual of foot-washing, just as Jesus had done with His disciples.
As previously mentioned, these sheikhs vary in age, and some have taught their own congregations — some of them for many decades. Many of the older men are head sheikhs, and some even own their own mosques — yet now, they do not know what to do with them! Their only desire now is to learn — to learn and learn more — from the Bible. Each of them yearns deeply to share this very same good news about the power of Jesus’ blood with their followers. What a magnificent miracle! Upon hearing of the great things God had done, Pastor Abdelrahem (who is now back in the far north again) and those around him spent the entire night rejoicing; they could not sleep! When I spoke with the pastor on the phone, he could say nothing more than: “Praise God! Praise God! Praise the name of Jesus! There is no power greater than the power of Jesus’ blood!” He then added, “The coming of Christ Jesus is very near! Look at the great harvest of souls being brought in!”
I agree with him completely! Never have I felt the urgency of the hour as I do today. Our time has run out; we are at the end of this age. Many in our world today think the end of the world is coming, but that is not the case. It is, however, the end of the age. The close of the dispensation of grace is imminent, heralding the beginning of “The Great and Terrible Day of the Lord” — “The Great Tribulation,” also known as the “Time of Jacob’s (Israel’s) Trouble.” God does not desire for anyone to perish, and His Spirit is moving powerfully across the earth today. We find a passage addressing this in 1 Corinthians 15:
50Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does corruption inherit incorruption. 51Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed — 52in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 53For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. 54So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: 55 “Death is swallowed up in victory. O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?” 56The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. 57But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 58Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord. 1 Corinthians 15:50-58
Because of the magnificence of the great event brother Omar witnessed in his final days in the south of Saudi Arabia, the work of the other House of Blessing missionaries seemed overshadowed. Yet, that is life every day. Not a day goes by without them realizing they might not return to their tents at night. Any day could be their last! Reports keep coming in about the message reaching hundreds in every country where the House of Blessing operates. Reports continue to arrive from Iran, the Kurdistan regions, Syria, and — of course — Iraq and Azerbaijan. The harvest is plentiful, heralding Christ’s imminent call for His Bride to meet Him in the clouds! Let me conclude with another one of my favorite passages:
1Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, 2not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come. 3Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, 4who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshipped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. 5Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? 6And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time.
7For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. 8And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of his mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming. 9The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, 10and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, 12that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12
What a magnificent promise! The man of sin — the Antichrist — will not be able to reveal himself until the Bride of Christ has been removed! The Restrainer — the true Church through the working of the Holy Spirit — must be taken out of the way before evil can run its full course during the Great Tribulation. Take courage, O saints. Take courage and be strengthened. Many Scripture show us that the true Church of Jesus Christ will not experience God’s wrath poured out upon a wicked world. God’s wrath will be poured out on that “Great and Terrible Day of the Lord.” The beginning of that “Day” is now imminent. Take courage; be strong; run the race and give it your all. The finish line is near, and we must cross it successfully! Let us all heed the words of our master: “Well done, good and faithful servant. Welcome into your Master’s joy!”
His Servant Forever,
Dr. Nibras
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In a few added texts I received, it is reported that another 1,000 people joined the crowd being baptized. There is a well-known sheikh named Al-Sakandari who declared his faith in Christ. He is now connected with Omar and has also become a servant of Jesus the Lord. This particular sheikh has over 10,000 followers in the Taif / Medina area.
While Omar and the elders were praying over this man, the sheikh had a vision much like what another sheikh had not long ago. He saw the four Horses and Riders of the Apocalypse riding through the sky above. It was this vision that caused him to cry out to the Lord, seeking forgiveness. He cried: “Mercy, Jesus! I have committed wrongs, yet today there has not been justice. Come, Jesus, and save us from the disbelievers.” As he prayed, he kept seeing the Horses and Riders moving all around in the sky above. Did the man really see the Apocalyptic Horsemen? Probably it was “just” a vision. I do believe, however, that he was shown these same Horsemen and they are preparing for their last stampede around the earth. Although history shows that the judgments they bring have been unfolding in some form or another on the earth since Jesus’ ascension to the Throne, they are now ready for their final apocalyptic ride. This tells us how near we are to the Great Tribulation. This also means that our Homegoing is even nearer!! Are you ready?
Thank you all for your prayers and support for the House of Blessing. God is doing amazing things in this last hour. I am told that another 10,000 teaching booklets have been completed and sent out. Also, the room for the planned new printer in southern Saudi Arabia has been built and the electrical system, air-conditioning, etc. is being installed. Local new believers in the area have been contributing to the project as they are able. Please continue in your prayers and support!
Forever in His Service,
Jake (aka Jack)