Tag: messiah

It’s Time to Make a Stand: Christian Zionism is a Dead End

Roger Mitchell1 Comment

“Within the Zionist lobby, everything is extremely rational and carefully calculated—up to the moment when the final act arrives: the coming of the Messiah. That is the promissory note on which everything is built. It is issued against a future event. If that future does not arrive, everything collapses. Christian Zionism is even worse: everything in it rests on pure hallucination (the Rapture, and so on), which cannot come to pass, no matter how much one might wish it.” — Alexander Dugin

I’m going to unload here. I’ve been carrying this for a long, long time and it’s time to shuck it completely.

I subscribe to Alexander Dugin and have a lot of respect for his insights, but I’m not quite sure how to take this. He calls (the Rapture, and so on) pure hallucination, therefore, it cannot happen and, while I agree that he is spot on about the religious belief, nevertheless, I’m not ready to put God in a box. God can do whatever He wants and, if God wants the Rapture to come to pass, it will, no matter the protest from Dugin. Granted, however, he might have just used poor wording and grammar to make his point and, if so, I’ll withdraw my protest.

Not that it matters greatly to me because I don’t think it’s going to happen the way that so many are hoping for.

  1. What happens to the Zionist movement if the expected messiah, Moschiach, does not show up on schedule?
  2. What happens to the Christian Zionist Rapturist Dispensational Evangelical movement if…ditto?

I was born into and grew up in a conservative Baptist family and became well-steeped in the pre-millennial theory that Jesus was coming back soon, real soon (it’s always real soon), to take the true believers out of here (Rapture) and punish the evildoers with a rod of iron for 1000 years. As I recall, we were pre-tribulation Rapturists, but I knew (still know) many people who held to the mid-trib and post-trib opinions. I read Hal Lindsey’s blockbuster book, “The Late Great Planet Earth” at least twice and, by the time I was in my mid-teens, pretty sure that I had it all figured out. I’m not ashamed to admit that for a little while, I considered the possibility that Richard “Tricky Dick” Nixon might be the Anti-Christ and there were a few times when I found myself alone, wondering if the Rapture had occurred without me.

My parents encouraged us (siblings, myself) to think and question, so I did, and eventually in my late teens, became acquainted with the writings of dominion theology authors (Gary North, et al), absorbing the material like a dry sponge soaks up water. It didn’t take much “education” before I made the decision to leave the pre-millennial world behind and embraced post-millennialism whole-heartedly and with vigor. That was close on to fifty years ago and I have not looked back once, never regretted the change of direction, nor entertained any ideas about returning to the “fold” in the hopes of leaving Earth without dying.

One of the main tenets of pre-millennialism (pre-trib, mid-trib, post-trib) is that the nation known as Israel must be present in the End Times (that period at the end of the world in which Jesus comes back physically). It is believed that world affairs will be orchestrated so that there will be an immense, ferocious battle between the nations in Israel, with the blood of the slaughtered humans rising as high as the bits in the mouths of the horses. How this would play out in an age of digital warfare where drones and missiles have become the dominant weapon is beyond me, but no matter. Armageddon MUST play out so that Jesus can return to prevent the total annihilation of His “Chosen People” and, by extension, save the Gentile believers as well. Once the battle is over and the Anti-Christ has been defeated, there will be an extended period of peace, 1000 years, after which all Hell and Mayhem will break loose once again, forcing Jesus to conquer Satan once and for all, condemning him and his hordes of demons to the Lake of Fire forever and ever, Amen!

This is a pretty simplistic explanation, but millions and millions of people actually believe this or some variant of it. I have no problem at all with calling it out, as Alexander Dugin did above, as a fantasy, a hallucination of the mind, a false religion. If this hurts your feelings and you want to respond in a Christian manner, well, I allow comments. Click on the button at the top of the page. Heck, if you want to unload on me in a non-Christian fit of rage, go ahead. I can take it.

There are any number of reasons why I reject the pre-millennial Rapture theory, but the main one is that it is a belief of hopelessness. I have heard this expressed untold numbers of times. Evil is getting worse and worse, the Bible guarantees that it will, and there’s nothing anyone can do about it until Jesus comes back to rescue His church from the mess which it is mired in.

“…I will build My church, AND the gates of Hades shall NOT prevail against it.” (emphasis added)

Apparently, the implication of the words in Matthew 16:18 have not been thought out to their logical end, because Jesus does not say that the gates of Hades will be broken down by Him, but by His Church.

This mindset, Rapture escapism, then, is used to excuse personal inaction on any given issue, abortion, for instance. If this issue (or any other) is ever raised in an attempt to galvanize Bible-believing Christians into some kind of action to put a stop to it, they will raise the argument that I just mentioned. Evil is getting worse, the news proclaims it, and this just confirms it, which means all we can do is pray and hope that Jesus shows up soon. Real soon. Does the term “circular argument” resonate with you? Did it ever occur to you to change your “news” source?

Pre-millennial Rapturism is a failed, deficient theology and it will be made evident when the State of Israel, which is the bedrock foundation of Christian Zionism, is beaten and destroyed, disappearing into the dustbin of history, joining other cruel, vicious, murderous empires like Genghis Khan and the Mongols, Pol Pot, Chairman Mao, the Soviet Union, and, of course, the Roman Empire. Which brings me back to the question I raised earlier: When the expected return of the messiah (Jesus Christ, or the Jewish version, Moschiach) does not materialize, what are these people going to do, other than to watch their long-held, die-hard belief system crumble into dust.

Which, as far as I’m concerned, cannot happen soon enough.

Gary North had a saying. “You can’t beat something with nothing.” Since the Rapture theory is “something”, what that means is that, in order to beat it, I’ve got to have a superior philosophy, a better argument, otherwise, I have failed. I’m going to have to explain why I am so confident in my own beliefs and why I have an unbending faith in the future, in time and on Earth, without the physical return of Jesus Christ.

Let me just give you a taste, something to chew on.

“Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.” — Jesus Christ (John 16:7)

The Helper (Holy Spirit) would not come as long as Jesus was here, but has been present since He went away. What does it say about the power of the Spirit, Who is God, to overcome evil if Jesus has to come back to do the job Himself? If this is what you believe, then you are basically saying that the Spirit of God is not up to the task and must have help to finish the work.

Think about it.

I’ll be back.

God! What Do I Do Now?

Roger Mitchell3 Comments

This is a recent photo taken at the White House which has been spread far and wide in the also-recent revelation that members of the military have been subjected to “religious” persuasions and pressures from superior officers, presumably following the example and advice of the Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth. It reminded me of the painting which showed George Washington and Abraham Lincoln praying over George W. Bush while laying their hands on him. But, I guess that’s what warmongers do for each other.

The controversy began after an anonymous non-commissioned officer contacted the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) on behalf of several soldiers in a unit stationed outside the Iran combat zone. The individual wrote that a commander urged personnel to view the war as “all part of God’s divine plan,” while citing passages from the Book of Revelation. According to the complaint, the officer told troops that “President Trump has been anointed by Jesus to light the signal fire in Iran to cause Armageddon and mark his return to Earth.” — The Cradle

I am not concerned whether this is true, although it certainly would be in keeping with the character of the head honchos who have visited the latest military destruction on Iran. Understanding so-called Biblical “prophecy”1 from a Zionist, evangelical, and dispensational point of view, it is not hard to believe that Earth is indeed “in the last days” as foretold by Revelation, just prior to the return of Jesus Christ, the Messiah, who will rule and reign from Jerusalem for 1000 years, forcing everyone to bow and scrape to His authority on pain of being bopped by a Rod of Iron for disobedience, rebellion, and disbelief. Days of peace, indeed!

If, a big IF, Donald Trump has been set up in the Presidency by God Himself to usher in Armageddon and “light the signal fire” so that Jesus can find His way here, then he is certainly holding up his end of the responsibility. It makes me wonder, however, if this isn’t the wrong way to look at the situation. More than likely, instead of showing Jesus the way, Trump, his coterie of sycophantic yes-men and women, Lindsey Graham and his neoconservative ilk, and the world’s foremost arch-criminal, James Moriarty Benjamin Netanyahu and the entire leadership structure of Israel, are manipulating the actual sequence of events, literally forcing an appearance by Jesus to put an end to the fighting lest all mankind be killed and the Earth destroyed forever. And, if Jesus should somehow not show up, well, they win by default and take His place.

Shall we do evil so that good may come? Yeah, for sure, as long as the good comes to me.

Of course, that might be a little too far-fetched, so I’ll rescind the assertion and apologize to anyone whose feelings were hurt and whose beliefs were bruised. It is far more plausible to see things as Alexander Dugin explains in a well-written expose of Zionist thought.

“…Zionism is Judaism’s heretical rebellion where Jews declare themselves God, seize the Holy Land by force, and plunge tradition into apocalyptic upheaval.“

Well, Donald Trump hasn’t yet declared himself God, but he thinks of himself as The Supreme One. It wasn’t long ago that, in answer to a question about restraints on his behavior, he replied,

“…Trump insisted, just “one thing” that can curtail his desire for global supremacy: “My own morality. My own mind. It’s the only thing that can stop me.” — from an article on People

Add to that, his statement that, as President of the US, he can do whatever he wants, and you get the idea that he really thinks he is above the law, not just international law, but the Law Itself. The Highest Law. The one which says, “Thou shalt not kill. Thou shalt not steal. Thou shalt not lie, unless you’re on the campaign trail or at war.”

All this is to raise a question, however. Who or what were those people, including Donald Trump, praying to as shown in the photo above? If he cannot be stopped by anyone once his mind is made up and if he can act in any manner he wants, then why does he feel the need to seek guidance from a “higher” authority? Considering that he also is rumored to have said that he is not a Christian, that he hates his enemies, and that he has no compunction nor regrets about destroying others for his own sake (unarmed, hard-working fishermen in the Caribbean, e.g.), I am confident in stating2 that he does not worship the same Prince of Peace that I (and millions of other Americans) do. Maybe he recognizes and serves some other nefarious character who encourages him to indulge his god-like powers, you know, kill, steal, and destroy. I’d be willing to bet that all of the people in that photo think of only one thing–power and how to gain more of it, which is about as far from true Christianity, selfless sacrifice in the service of others, as anyone can get.

One of the ironies of the American War between the States, the War of Northern Aggression, the Civil War as some call it, is that the people on both sides of the conflict, both Union and Confederacy, believed that they were right, that their cause was just, and they prayed to the same God to give them victory over their enemies–the others, those over there. The same god, the same religion, the same belief structure, yet they expected God to pick and choose sides, to favor one while hurling lightening bolts at the other. Kind of like the internecine wars the Greek gods on Mount Olympus would involve themselves in and with just about the same results–a lot of dead people and widespread destruction.

Since, as human beings created in the Image of God, aren’t we all one big family? Brothers and sisters? Related to each other? Yet, in this current war which Trump and Netanyahu deliberately started, whose god is going to triumph? The stronger side? The more resilient force? The ones who don’t run out of ammunition first? The one who punched first or the other who punched back? Far be it from me to predict how God is going to act, but I am sure of this.

“God resists the proud…” (James 4:6)

Interestingly, I typed this exact phrase into my Brave browser which produced this response.

God resists the proud — a declaration rooted in Scripture, most directly found in James 4:6, which states, “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” The Greek word used, antitasso, conveys a military image of deliberate, strategic opposition — God actively arranges circumstances to confront and humble those who exalt themselves. 

This resistance is not arbitrary but a response to pride rooted in self-reliance, arrogance, and a refusal to acknowledge God’s sovereignty.  As seen in Proverbs 3:34 (quoted in James), pride leads to divine opposition because it excludes God from one’s life. Psalm 10:4 describes the proud as those who “make no room for God,” and their self-sufficiency blocks true relationship with Him. 

Yet, the message is not only warning — it is an invitation. God’s resistance is not final rejection, but a call to humility.  Those who humble themselves, acknowledging their dependence on God, receive His grace. As James 4:7-10 urges: “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.” 

In essence, God opposes the proud to bring them to humility, so they may receive His grace and be restored.

Not bad for AI. Wouldn’t it be ironic if Iran was playing the role of antitasso?

  1. I have a close friend who calls it profit-cy, which, for those who make money off other’s misery, fits far better. ↩︎
  2. “By their fruits you will know them.” — Jesus Christ (Matthew 7:20) ↩︎