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“Paradise Restored” (Revelation 22:1-6, 12-20) Paradise lost. Paradise restored. That’s the story of the Bible, from cover to cover. In fact, the Bible literally has bookends, at front and back, telling that story. As we will now see. Thus our theme this morning: “Paradise Restored.” The last couple of weeks we’ve been hearing about the new Jerusalem to come, in Revelation 21. Today we continue in Revelation 22, the last chapter both of the Book of Revelation and of the whole Bible. Our text begins: “Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal,...

“The Holy City, the New Jerusalem” (Revelation 21:9-14, 21-27) Last week we went from the now to the new. We saw that one day there will be a new heaven and a new earth. Indeed, we heard the Lord say, “Behold, I am making all things new.” And so we also saw the new Jerusalem, the holy city coming down out of heaven from God--the new Jerusalem, the dwelling place of God with man. This morning we take a tour of the new Jerusalem. This is good, because the new Jerusalem is our final destination. It’s where you and I...

Bill Gates and the World Health Organization have started drafting a New World Order global pandemic treaty on pandemic preparedness that would grant it absolute power over global biosecurity, such as the power to implement digital identities, vaccine passports, mandatory vaccinations, and travel restrictions. World Health Organization Pandemic Treaty: What It Is, Why It Matters and How to Stop It FROM THE DEFENDER: The globalists that brought us the wildly exaggerated COVID pandemic in an effort to cement a biosecurity grid into place are now hard at work on the next phase of this New World Order. The World Health...

“From the Now to the New” (John 16:12-22; Revelation 21:1-7) Our readings today take us “From the Now to the New.” What I mean is, they take us from the “now” we are experiencing in the present to the “new” that awaits us in the future. And that knowledge of the “new” gives us the hope and strength we need to carry on in the “now.” Let’s start with the “now” of the disciples. Their “now,” as we read about it in John 16, was a time of sorrow and sadness and grief. It’s Thursday evening, and Jesus has been...

“The Good Shepherd and His Flock” (John 10:22-30; Acts 20:17-35; Revelation 7:9-17) Today is the Sunday in the church year known as “Good Shepherd Sunday.” You’ll notice that on this day all of the readings, the psalm, the hymns--all carry the theme of the shepherd and his flock, the sheep. And this will strengthen our faith today and give us life and hope for the future, as we see what God’s word says about “The Good Shepherd and His Flock.” The first thing we need to do is to identify who this shepherd is and who are his flock. The...

You know who you are. You’re the person other people tiptoe around when it comes to discussing current events or religion. You are the person who can spend hours devouring scripture or news with equal vigor, pointing out ‘last days’ events to anyone who would listen to you. You are semi-shunned at church. You are disinvited from church socials because you are just too intense and narrow-minded. You’re called a ‘conspiracy theorist’ or a ‘Jesus Freak’ behind your back. You’re always going on about the Lord’s return and that “Rapture thingy”. Admit it. You are one of them, one of...

“The Lion of Judah, the Lamb Who Was Slain” (Revelation 5:1-14) What’s going on in our world? Is anybody in charge here? It seems like the world is spinning out of control. We’re just getting over a global pandemic, and then we go into a global panic. Russia attacks Ukraine for no good reason, putting everyone on edge. Here at home, we’ve got men winning women’s swimming tournaments and a new Supreme Court justice who doesn’t even know what a woman is. Then there’s the economy. I checked my investment portfolio the other day, and, year to date, it’s down...

“Only Jesus: No Other Name” (Acts 4:1-12; Revelation 1:4-18; John 14:1-14) Something significant, something momentous, happened in the city of Chicago 175 years ago this week. No, I’m not talking about the day I was born. I was born in Chicago, yes, but I’m not quite that old. No, but something else was born there 175 years ago. It was the birth of our church body, the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. It was on April 26, 1847, that representatives from fourteen Lutheran congregations came together at First St. Paul Lutheran Church on the north side of Chicago, and they formed a...

The Bible is replete with passages and information regarding the coming Messianic Kingdom in which Christ and the Church rule and reign for a thousand years upon a restored earth. However, the information about the time beyond that, not so much. Out of the 1,189 chapters in the Bible, only two deal specifically with the subject of our future in eternity (Rev. 20-22). There are, additionally, 37 passages that speak or mention eternal life, three that speak to the eternality of God, and two that speak to the nature of eternity itself. Thus, information about the age to come is...

“Robes Made White in the Blood of the Lamb” (Revelation 7:9-17) You may have noticed this photo as you came into church today. It’s a picture of Pastor Tom Reeder wearing a white robe and a white stole, preaching from this pulpit. It was taken during the Easter season a couple of years ago--you can see the white Easter paraments on the altar. This was the photo that I posted on my Facebook page on Friday when I announced that Pastor Reeder had fallen asleep in Jesus on Thursday night. I thought it really depicted Pastor as most of you...

Jan Markell talks to economist Dan Celia for the hour. The Bible suggests that the black horse of the four horsemen represents coming economic turmoil, mainly in the Tribulation. We are in a run-up to that now. The money issues of that time are casting a shadow on the Church Age. The new Covid economy doesn’t help. The Antichrist will wipe out all debt and offer solutions to a desperate world. A Rumble Video

A video posted last week showing how a microchip can be implanted containing a person’s COVID-19 vaccine status is causing speculation whether it is a precursor to the “mark of the beast” written about in the Bible’s book of Revelation. The Apostle John wrote prophetically that an evil beast would arise during the end times who would deceive many and seize control of much of the earth. John was likely referencing a beast-like person, comparable perhaps to Adolf Hitler. This beast will cause “both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the...

Swedish Company Implants Covid Passport Microchips in Hands.. A Swedish company is making headlines by calling to mind a nightmarish image for Christians around the world. A video from the South China Post went viral Friday for showing the microchip technology recently introduced by the Stockholm-based startup, Epicenter. The company’s “chief disruptor” Hannes Sjoblad demonstrated how their product, the size of a grain of rice, has been adapted as a Covid passport, implanted under the skin in the arm or hand. Sjoblad said the company developed the tech for other purposes, but quickly realized it had potential for use as...

The power brokers in today’s world aren’t shy about it but that doesn’t mean we must accept it. The rough beast whose hour has come round at last is the replacement of America’s constitutional republic with global governance. A critical mass of the country’s public servants, corporate heads and boards, academics, think tanks, religious leaders, and financial influencers, has intellectually accepted and promoted the loss of America as a sovereign nation. From one of America’s best-known families: Some even believe we [Rockefeller family] are part of a secret cabal working against the best interests of the United States, characterizing my...

How can Bible prophecy be interpreted in light of modern events? What are the ‘last days’ and how does Scripture describe them? How does the book of Daniel, written millennia ago, factor into expecting the world as we know it to end in the future? Is time running out? What is the purpose of the Tribulation? What does the Bible mean when it speaks of “the age” and how does it foretell of its ending? John Hagee: Dispensationalism is a series of defined periods, or ages, in history where God’s purpose and assigned stewardship for mankind is found. There are...

A guardian for international peace and security sits on the Visitor's Plaza outside #UN Headquarters. The guardian is a fusion of jaguar and eagle and donated by the Government of Oaxaca, Mexico @MexOnu . It is created by artists Jacobo and Maria Angeles. UN Photo/Manuel Elías

Thanks to an emailer friend recently, this postulation, in the form of a question, emerged to the forefront of my cerebral ruminations. Is the vaccine mandate madness, and particularly the COVID-19 virus which it involves, a part of Bible prophecy? The many signals of end times prophecy we have witnessed and continue to witness, proliferating in frequency and with intensity, make the postulation/question highly pertinent, I think. Is the Jab, an all-pervasive matter so at the center of all the signs, a prophetic indicator of Christ’s Second Coming? The emailer said she recently heard preachers/teachers mention Rev 18: 23 …...

“The Now and Not Yet of All God’s Saints” (Matthew 5:1-12; 1 John 3:1-3; Revelation 7:9-17) Today, as we do every year on the first Sunday in November, we observe the historic Christian festival known as All Saints’ Day. On this day we thank God for making us all his saints, his holy ones, set apart by God’s grace to belong to God alone. We thank God for the saints of the past, those who have preceded us in the faith, who by the witness of their lives inspire us and encourage us to carry on. And we remember the...

Join with fellow FREEPERS to pray for AMERICA: For those in Authority in Government, Family, Military, Business, Healthcare, Education, Churches, and the Media. I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone: for kings and all those in authority that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. 1 Timothy 2:1-2 Religion Forum threads labeled “Prayer” are closed to debate of any kind.

* The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America installed the Rev. Megan Rohrer to lead one of the church's 65 synods Saturday* Rohrer will oversee nearly 200 congregations in Northern California and southern Nevada * Evangelical Lutherans are one of the largest Christian denominations in the US, with 3.3million members* Rohrer was one of seven LGBTQ pastors accepted by the church in 2010 when it allowed ordination of pastors in same-sex relationships * Rohrer was elected to serve a six-year term in the role of bishop The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America installed its first openly transgender bishop in a service...