I left the topic line in tact - a
post from Linda Shields.
She had asked if a certain "prophecy" was from God. I
answered "no."
I suppose there will be many who will see that "prophecy" as one from
God. The question is "why?"
And it appears to me that the answer is "because it fits."
Over the years, I have seen much that is accepted as "from God" for
no other reason than "it fits." I submit that because "it
fits" is no reason to assume a statment is from God.
I mean, just a casual look to the book of Revelation would tell some that
this is prophecy centered around my life.
Think about: Pale Rider is once of my favorite Westerns
-- and it the only one on my "favorites" list that is about a
preacher. The 144,000 describes a small city in Sout Dakota that I lived
in some 44 years ago -- a community chosen by God (of
course) to provide me yet another geographical opporntunity to grow in His
grace. The "two witnesses" are obviously Barth and
Torrance. The "12" is a reference to the Notre Dame football
team (again, My favorite) and its offensive unit along with the
place kicker. The seven headed beast is secular Rome (amid 7
hills -- the head that received the severe wound) and,
again, The Team.
I could go on, but you get the point. I can make the Revelation
"fit" my life.
The United States of America is no more the "chosen" people of God than
is Cuba. But there is a thelogy out there -- and
I mean WAY out there - that insists that before the cross,
the Chosen Nation was Israel and, now, after the cross, it is the US of
A.
Is the discipline of God a resident fact associated with every nation of
people? I don't think so. God deals with
us, whether as a church or nation, as individuals. There is
only one "chosen" nation (and I am talking about world
governments) ................. Israel. There is no
parallel to this circumstance that I can see (in scripture). Those
who argue otherwise are a part of the "it fits" crowd.
Trying not to have a fit
JD
