Is Prophecy Playing Out?

There is so much talk of the End Times and the date of December 21, 2012 that it all can make our heads spin.  We are seeing so much turmoil, not only in this great country of ours, The United States of America, but in the world over.  We are still fighting for democracy and survival in Iraq and Afghanistan and now in countries lining North Africa.  We have seen governments fall in Egypt and Tunisia and now we are seeing the potential fall of Muamar Qaddafi in Libya.  Are these signs that the Arab world is looking to become more like the United States or are we looking at something more devastating?  Well, according to Franklin Graham of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, "World history centers around Israel.  As news unfolds, now and in the future, the key nation to watch is not the U.S. or China, but Israel.  The Bible says, "Pray for the peace of Jerusalem"  (Psalm 122:6,NIV).

This is not to say that when the world is in crisis that it is always Israel that is to blame.  It means that what is happening is the possibility that prophecy is playing out and that the war between Gog and Magog is beginning to play out.  When I received an envelope last evening from the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and the letter from Franklin Graham was drawn out, I really began to think about what is happening in the Middle East.

Here is what the Bible says about the War of Gog and Magog:  Ezekiel Chapters 38 and 39 is where the Prophecy is spelled out.  This is from the NIV Translation of the Holy Bible:  I will take each chapter and verse and try to spell it out for you and for me:

The word of the LORD came to me: ² “Son of man, set your face against Gog, of the land of Magog, the chief prince of^[a] Meshek and Tubal; prophesy against him ³ and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am against you, Gog, chief prince of^[b] Meshek and Tubal. ⁴ I will turn you around, put hooks in your jaws and bring you out with your whole army—your horses, your horsemen fully armed, and a great horde with large and small shields, all of them brandishing their swords. ⁵ Persia, Cush^[c] and Put will be with them, all with shields and helmets, ⁶ also Gomer with all its troops, and Beth Togarmah from the far north with all its troops—the many nations with you. 

It is Ezekiel that God is talking to here.   Gog is referring to a foreign prince and MaGog is his land.  In prophecy of the Apocalypse, Gog and Magog refers to Russia.  It is said that large armies from the North will reign down on Israel and God with His mighty hand stop the invading armies from destroying Israel.  There are beliefs at the same time in other parts of the world that Gog and Magog refer to giants or demons.  No one knows for sure, yet they are mentioned and they are most likely real.

 ⁷ “‘Get ready; be prepared, you and all the hordes gathered about you, and take command of them. ⁸ After many days you will be called to arms. In future years you will invade a land that has recovered from war, whose people were gathered from many nations to the mountains of Israel, which had long been desolate. They had been brought out from the nations, and now all of them live in safety. ⁹ You and all your troops and the many nations with you will go up, advancing like a storm; you will be like a cloud covering the land. 

Verses 7-9 shows how God tells the hordes along with Gog that they will be called to arms.  At the same time what is interesting here is the mention of future years and how Gog will invade a land that has recovered from war.  Thinking of future years, could God be talking about now?  Could He truly be talking about the war on terror that exists today?  I mean, think about it.  There are terror attacks inside Russia.  The northern countries of Africa are collapsing under the pressure of the people.  Could Qaddafi in Libya truly be right when he says that it is Al-Queda who is tearing his country apart?  I do not think that they are directly involved, they could be indirectly which means that it is possible the Muslim Brotherhood is attempting a strangle hold in these Arab countries so that eventually war with Israel is imminent.

At the same time, is God involved here getting ready to play out the scenario of the prophecy explained in Ezekiel 38 and 39?  Only time will tell.

  

¹⁰ “‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: On that day thoughts will come into your mind and you will devise an evil scheme. ¹¹ You will say, “I will invade a land of unwalled villages; I will attack a peaceful and unsuspecting people—all of them living without walls and without gates and bars. ¹² I will plunder and loot and turn my hand against the resettled ruins and the people gathered from the nations, rich in livestock and goods, living at the center of the land.^[d]” ¹³ Sheba and Dedan and the merchants of Tarshish and all her villages^[e] will say to you, “Have you come to plunder? Have you gathered your hordes to loot, to carry off silver and gold, to take away livestock and goods and to seize much plunder?”

 ¹⁴ “Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say to Gog: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: In that day, when my people Israel are living in safety, will you not take notice of it? ¹⁵ You will come from your place in the far north, you and many nations with you, all of them riding on horses, a great horde, a mighty army. ¹⁶ You will advance against my people Israel like a cloud that covers the land. In days to come, Gog, I will bring you against my land, so that the nations may know me when I am proved holy through you before their eyes.

 ¹⁷ “‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: You are the one I spoke of in former days by my servants the prophets of Israel. At that time they prophesied for years that I would bring you against them. ¹⁸ This is what will happen in that day: When Gog attacks the land of Israel, my hot anger will be aroused, declares the Sovereign LORD. ¹⁹ In my zeal and fiery wrath I declare that at that time there shall be a great earthquake in the land of Israel. ²⁰ The fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the beasts of the field, every creature that moves along the ground, and all the people on the face of the earth will tremble at my presence. The mountains will be overturned, the cliffs will crumble and every wall will fall to the ground. ²¹ I will summon a sword against Gog on all my mountains, declares the Sovereign LORD. Every man’s sword will be against his brother. ²² I will execute judgment on him with plague and bloodshed; I will pour down torrents of rain, hailstones and burning sulfur on him and on his troops and on the many nations with him. ²³ And so I will show my greatness and my holiness, and I will make myself known in the sight of many nations. Then they will know that I am the LORD.’ 

Ezekiel 39

 ¹ “Son of man, prophesy against Gog and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am against you, Gog, chief prince of^[f] Meshek and Tubal. ² I will turn you around and drag you along. I will bring you from the far north and send you against the mountains of Israel. ³ Then I will strike your bow from your left hand and make your arrows drop from your right hand. ⁴ On the mountains of Israel you will fall, you and all your troops and the nations with you. I will give you as food to all kinds of carrion birds and to the wild animals. ⁵⁶ I will send fire on Magog and on those who live in safety in the coastlands, and they will know that I am the LORD. You will fall in the open field, for I have spoken, declares the Sovereign LORD.
 ⁷ “‘I will make known my holy name among my people Israel. I will no longer let my holy name be profaned, and the nations will know that I the LORD am the Holy One in Israel. ⁸ It is coming! It will surely take place, declares the Sovereign LORD. This is the day I have spoken of.
 ⁹ “‘Then those who live in the towns of Israel will go out and use the weapons for fuel and burn them up—the small and large shields, the bows and arrows, the war clubs and spears. For seven years they will use them for fuel. ¹⁰ They will not need to gather wood from the fields or cut it from the forests, because they will use the weapons for fuel. And they will plunder those who plundered them and loot those who looted them, declares the Sovereign LORD.
 ¹¹ “‘On that day I will give Gog a burial place in Israel, in the valley of those who travel east of the Sea. It will block the way of travelers, because Gog and all his hordes will be buried there. So it will be called the Valley of Hamon Gog.^[g]
 12 “‘For seven months the Israelites will be burying them in order to cleanse the land. ¹³ All the people of the land will bury them, and the day I display my glory will be a memorable day for them, declares the Sovereign LORD. ¹⁴ People will be continually employed in cleansing the land. They will spread out across the land and, along with others, they will bury any bodies that are lying on the ground.
   “‘After the seven months they will carry out a more detailed search. ¹⁵ As they go through the land, anyone who sees a human bone will leave a marker beside it until the gravediggers bury it in the Valley of Hamon Gog, ¹⁶ near a town called Hamonah.^[h] And so they will cleanse the land.’
 ¹⁷ “Son of man, this is what the Sovereign LORD says: Call out to every kind of bird and all the wild animals: ‘Assemble and come together from all around to the sacrifice I am preparing for you, the great sacrifice on the mountains of Israel. There you will eat flesh and drink blood. ¹⁸ You will eat the flesh of mighty men and drink the blood of the princes of the earth as if they were rams and lambs, goats and bulls—all of them fattened animals from Bashan. ¹⁹ At the sacrifice I am preparing for you, you will eat fat till you are glutted and drink blood till you are drunk. ²⁰ At my table you will eat your fill of horses and riders, mighty men and soldiers of every kind,’ declares the Sovereign LORD.
 ²¹ “I will display my glory among the nations, and all the nations will see the punishment I inflict and the hand I lay on them. ²² From that day forward the people of Israel will know that I am the LORD their God. ²³ And the nations will know that the people of Israel went into exile for their sin, because they were unfaithful to me. So I hid my face from them and handed them over to their enemies, and they all fell by the sword. ²⁴ I dealt with them according to their uncleanness and their offenses, and I hid my face from them.
 ²⁵ “Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will now restore the fortunes of Jacob^[i] and will have compassion on all the people of Israel, and I will be zealous for my holy name. ²⁶ They will forget their shame and all the unfaithfulness they showed toward me when they lived in safety in their land with no one to make them afraid. ²⁷ When I have brought them back from the nations and have gathered them from the countries of their enemies, I will be proved holy through them in the sight of many nations. ²⁸ Then they will know that I am the LORD their God, for though I sent them into exile among the nations, I will gather them to their own land, not leaving any behind. ²⁹ I will no longer hide my face from them, for I will pour out my Spirit on the people of Israel, declares the Sovereign LORD.”

Daily Devotion

We Are All Children of God

by David M. Brown

Founder, Mission Lighthouse Ministries

On Resurrection Sunday, also known as Easter, I, as many did at my church, got to witness two young children accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, the Messiah and the Son of God.  Then, they were Baptized in the Lord.  This was an incredible sight as well as an incredible blessing for children to want to know Jesus Christ and to have eternal life in Him.

A few days before Resurrection Sunday, my Brother-in-Christ and best friend posted something on Facebook that really touched not only my heart but I am sure many that read the post.  It went something like this:  His oldest daughter, all of six years old, after coming home from school told him that she wanted to take a nap.  She went off to her room and a few minutes later, my friend went to go check on her to see if she was really taking that nap she said she wanted to take.  When he opened the door, he was blessed to see that his daughter was on her knees at her bed and she was praying to God.   What a sight that had to be.  God is Great!  Amen!

So, today, my Brother-in-Christ and I had one of our morning conversations and sometimes they seem to be filled with a lot of "useless information."  I certainly have been told that I am filled with this talent and I can only say that God blessed me with it.  At the same time, he mentioned to me, which is something that I already knew, he gets up before heading off to work and holds daily devotions with his daughter.  He has another younger daughter and there is no doubt that he will soon be including her in the Daily Devotions as she comes of age to understand them.

Let the Children Come to Me

This brought me to share what the Gospels of Jesus Christ says about the little children and the following is based on Luke 18:15-17, the English Standard Version which says the following:  "Now they were bringing even infants to Him that He might touch them.  And when the disciples saw it, they rebuked Him.  But Jesus called them to Him, saying, "Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the Kingdom of God.  Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the Kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it."'  

Because my wife and I do not have children, it is not for me to tell anyone who does how to treat them or how and when to teach them about God.  Yet, Jesus, who was and is God in the flesh, took not only the young one's as His own but proclaims that we are all children of God.  Think about it, He created Adam and Eve, the first two children of God and even proclaimed in Genesis 1:26 that We will create them in our image.

It is great every time I hear that another Child of God comes to Him through accepting Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, the Messiah and as the Son of God.

God Bless You and all Children of God!

Amen

What Does Resurrection Sunday Mean to Me?

by  David M. Brown


A long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far away I remember what my life once was like.  I was born and grew up in a great Conservative Jewish home living first in North Miami Beach, Florida, then Atlanta, Georgia and for some time in the capital of the United States, Washington, D.C.  I also found myself living in the Holy Land, the Land of Milk and Honey, the State of Israel also known as the Land of Israel and the Jewish State.  Living the life of a devout Conservative Jew, I believed the last of the names listed but today, I know it is also the land where my Personal Lord and Savior, My Messiah and the True Son of God was born, ministered, died and rose again.

You surely recognized the title of this commentary or testimonial as calling tomorrow Resurrection Sunday.  Why?  Well, as many people have asked over the years, where does the idea of the bunny and easter eggs come into the story of Jesus Christ's life, ministry and death and resurrection?  Easily said, these are not symbols of His life.  They are simply symbols of the time of the year, Spring.

I will be the first one to tell you that I would never have believed that Jesus Christ died and rose again and still would not if I remained in my old life.  I would say this as well, I am not even sure if I would be alive today if I did not come to accept Him as my Lord and Savior.  I feared death because I had no idea what was in store for me afterward.  I have heard about Heaven and Hell but I was never sure what any of this meant.  I have heard of pergatory and being in limbo, but once again, had no idea what any of this meant until I read Dante's poems and stories in American Literature classes in my first year in college.

Then, I felt that it was absolutely necessary to pick up the Holy Bible and begin to read.  Read I did and read I do each and every day.  Way back when, I would spend hours and days in Hebrew School reading from the Torah and the Siddur (Jewish prayer book) but I still did not find a lot of the answers that I was looking for.  In neither of these great books did I ever find the mention of the Precious Name of Jesus Christ.

When I came to my decision to accept Jesus Christ into my life, I learned from my first pastor that there were many signs in my prior life that led me to the day of my conversion.  I did not see them until he and I talked for nearly three hours.  Wow!  I learned that he knew more about my life than I knew about my life.

So, today, as I have done over the last ten years since my conversion into the life of Jesus Christ, I come to gather my thoughts, dwell in His Word and come to an understanding that without knowing and accepting Jesus Christ, I would still be asking the same questions and definitely continuing to fear death and even fear itself.  I would still be lost and wondering what was to come in my life after death, if anything without Christ.

Dwelling in the Word, the Holy Bible and knowing Jesus Christ, I have the greatest understanding of what my life is to be and how I am to lead it.  Understanding the story of the Resurrection is so important that knowing without it, we would not have a Christmas.  Without the Resurrection, we would all be wondering, what happens to us after death?

But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared.  And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.  While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel.  And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, "Why do you seek the living among the dead?  He is not here, but has risen.  Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise."  And they remembered his words and returning from the tomb they told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest, Now it was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles, but these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them.  But Peter rose and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; and he went home marveling at what had happened.  Luke 24:1-12 English Standard Version

So, just as was foretold in the Scriptures, Jesus Christ had risen again.  He has Risen!  He Has Risen Indeed!  Jesus is Alive!  He is with us!

So, Resurrection Sunday means to me that I have eternal life because I have accepted Jesus Christ into my life, into my heart and into my mind.  He is truly the Son of God, the Messiah!  And, there is no turning back!

Happy Resurrection Sunday!

Ten Years Ago, I was Born Again

by David M. Brown

Well, this was supposed to start off differently but I have to tell you a little story.  Earlier today, I was typing a Facebook Post, which was the subject of what I am posting here in my blog.  It was being done on my SmartPhone while I was getting ready to have dinner.  Well, I knew that my battery was getting low but I had no idea that as I was about to finish my post, the phone said GoodBye!  Then, it went black.  Oh well, I bowed my head and prayed and felt myself even laughing with God.  He did this to me because He knew that a Facebook Post would not do what I have to say here, justice.

So, here it goes.....Tomorrow, Saturday, March 9, 2013, will be the tenth anniversary of my death.  That is my spiritual death.  I "died" and was then Born Again at my home church of Mount Carmel Christian Church in Stone Mountain, Georgia.  What this means is this:  I accepted Jesus Christ as my Personal Lord and Savior, as the Messiah and as the TRUE Son of God.  I will not go through the entire day with you as I am soon publishing a book about how my old life led me to that day, ten years ago.

After my new life began, I said and will always say, there is no turning back.  You see, over forty-eight years ago, I was born into a Conservative Jewish family in North Miami Beach, Florida.  For nearly thirty-nine years, I lived the life of a devout Conservative Jew.  I married as a Conservative Jew to my wife Amy, who was born a Southern Baptist.  There has been a great deal of things that I have learned over the last ten years and one of these things is that they might not have been the easiest ten years but no one said it would be easy.  That includes God and His Son Jesus Christ.  Neither of them promised an easy life.  

At the same time, I have learned that with my God and Jesus by my side, how can I fail?  Failure would not and will never be an option.  You see, in my old life, I tried everything.  I always believed in God, I would be foolish not to.  Why?  I was reminded that I was a Jew and that meant that I was part of the Chosen People.  Well, I have learned in the last ten years that the Chosen People are the Jews, yet, I also believe and know that Christians are also part of the Chosen People.  How could we not be?  Jesus was a Jew, so does this not make Him part of God's Chosen People?  He was and is God in the Flesh, is He not?  

An injustice would be done here if I do not quote the following:  "In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.  He was in the beginning with God.  All things were made through Him, and without Him was not any thing made that was made.  In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.  The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it."  John 1:1-5.

We are now in the time of the celebration of the life of Jesus Christ.  We celebrate His ministry and then His crucifixion and then His all powerful resurrection.  Yes, three days after His crucifixion on the Cross on Mount Cavalry, He rose again as promised, three days later.  I always love to use this time for reflection and to definitely say Thank You to My Lord and Savior for the sacrifice that He made on that Cross.  He died taking our sins and our transgressions with Him.  This was so much for the Son of God to endure.  I want to believe that I carry my Cross and that I carry it in His Grace.

There are a number of issues that I have pondered over the last ten years and I know that the decision I made on that Sunday morning at Mount Carmel Christian Church was the right one.  As I said earlier, there would be no turning back.  I have heard over the years that there have been those who have believed in Jesus Christ and have accepted Him into their lives and then turned away.  My only question when I hear this is:  Why?  Why turn away from The Lord and Savior?  Why turn away from The Messiah?  Why turn away from the True Son of God?

One of the issues was my marriage to my wife Amy.  In the nearly first three years of marriage, I asked myself and I asked God if there was a way that our marriage could be made stronger with one faith in the house?  Would my remaining a Jew and losing my sight of Him hurt our marriage or make no difference?  I found out, it would have made a big difference.  I found out that by accepting Jesus Christ in my life, I would be helping strengthen our marriage and at the same time I would be getting ever so closer to God.

The second issue was what was more important in my life, growing closer to God or continue to worship money and the need for more.  I grew up and always knowing that something was just not right.  Yes, I wanted to be successful as my parents were but I did not want to make money the number one issue in my later years.  I wanted to make God my number one issue and being closer to Him.  It was knowing Him and knowing Jesus that would become my "goal" in life.  This was not going to happen if I made money, the want for material things in my life to be the issue before God was the issue.

The third issue was how would my love for Israel change?  Well, it has not changed at all.  Actually, it has grown ever more stronger.  It was the area of this world that He came to us and it was the area of this world where Jesus came to us, where He conducted His ministry and it was where He died and rose again.  Israel is a great country, a great friend of the United States and I continue to be strong in my relationship with the Land of Milk and Honey and this now makes me a Christian Zionist.

The fourth issue was would I be accepted in my new life?  My family seemed to not have a problem, yet, I knew that it would be hard on my mother.  My father, already deceased before I made the decision to accept Jesus Christ, I know would have accepted my decision.  My mother had a hard time at the beginning but then began to attend church with Amy and I, yes, more during Easter and Christmas.  She said this after one Christmas production at Mount Carmel Christian Church as I was driving her home:  "You know, the Christian people are the most loving people I have ever come to know/"  I said, "That is was this is all about. This is what Immanuel teaches us.  Love!"  You see, she came to love the Christmas song, "Oh Come, Oh Come Immanuel."  She did ask me who Immanel was and I read to her the part in the Old Testament from the Book of Isaiah:

 "Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign.  Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.  Isaiah 7:14

The fifth issue is that of fellowship.  I was wondering how I would be accepted in church?  Would I be called the "Token Jew?"  Would I be always looked at in a strange way.  Well, this certainly never happened and I really felt great from the first time I ever walked through the doors of a church.  What I have to say here is this:  The first Brother-in-Christ that I met was at Mount Carmel Christian Church.  It was one night in choir practice and since then, we have been Brothers ever since.  His name is Alex and I am so ever grateful that God brought us together.  We have prayed together, we have laughed together, we even climbed mountains together.  Without Jesus, we would never have met and as I said, I am ever so grateful.  God bless you Brother!  God is Great!

The fifth issue was would I be able to keep focused on God and Jesus?  How was I supposed to do this?  I knew that reading the Holy Bible, committing to prayer and committing to devotional time with God in the morning, in the afternoon and in the evening, at meals and whenever I need Him, He would be there.  He has been there and I love Him for this!  This includes worship.  I have to say this:  I love music and I come from a musically inclined family.  My wife and her brother Tim for many years formed the duet "Golden Breeze" and would sing many great Gospel songs, many of them written by Tim and put to music by Amy.  I wanted to sing to but I never made it in choir when I would attend synagogue.

So, I made it in choir at my home church and I sing in choir in my new church.  I love worship time with God and Jesus and I love to spend daily time in God's Word.  Both of these make a great couple.

Finally, I have to say thank you to my two church homes that I love so much.  Now, I am not saying that I am in love with two buildings.  I love those who make up the church.  This includes the congregation, the pastors and all of those who make the church successful through Christ.

First, Mount Carmel Christian Church, the first church I ever entered. It was where I accepted Jesus Christ.  I have to say thank you to Pastor Brother Randy who helped me see Jesus Christ.  He Baptized me and I will never forget him,  I also want to throw a shout out to Brother Billy, Brother Wye, Brother Art and the congregation.  Love you all and God Bless!

Second, I want to say that my new church, Mountain Park First Baptist, is a great new home.  Amy and I felt a calling to attend Mountain Park First Baptist after visiting for a couple of weeks.  More about this in the book that I am writing.  I want to send a shout out to the Pastoral Team, Senior Pastor, Brother Paul, Brother Josh, Brother Ron and t rest of the pastoral team that has made our transition so smooth.  I have to say that God is Great!

So, to end this testimony on my tenth year of my acceptance of Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior and as the Messiah and as the True Son of God, I want to say that all that I do from this day forward will be for God's Will and not for me but for Him!

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.  John 3:16.

Thank you Jesus!  Happy Easter and Happy Passover!

About Mission Lighthouse Ministry

Mission Lighthouse Ministry : The Rebirth

The Beginning.

In March 2003, I made the most important decision of my life.  I was 39 years of age at the time and it was a lifetime in the making.  Being born a Conservative Jew, I grew up knowing God and praising and worshiping God but not knowing a lot of the reasons as to why I worshiped God except for the fact that I had to, who it was that I was and where it was that I was truly headed in my life and discovering as I got older, God was getting further and further away from me.  It was getting to the point that I was afraid that I was going absolutely nowhere in my life that I had to find a way to rediscover my life and it had to include God.  It had to include not only here and there and when I had time but on a daily basis.

So, after meeting my wife Amy, a Southern Baptist, and marrying in May 2001, I discovered by attending church once in a while with her and her family in Atlanta, Georgia, that I was beginning to hear The Word again, the Word of God, The Holy Bible and it was time that I lived in it and with it.  I knew of the Jewish law as I was accustomed to try and follow and live the Ten Commandments and to know at least the Pentateuch, the First Five Books of Moses.  That is as far as it went for me, though.  I had never stretched my learning and my knowledge beyond the laws delivered to Moses from God on Mount Sinai.  

I had heard the name of Jesus Christ, Lord and Savior, The Messiah and the Son of God but only through the mouths of my non-Jewish friends.  I heard the name when I would be asked the all-important question:  "Why do you not believe in Jesus?"  I could only respond, "I am Jewish and I am not supposed to believe in Him."  Really, the answer was this:  I had no answer.  You see, growing up in a Jewish household, His Name  was not even allowed to be mentioned.  Unfortunately, when it was mentioned, it was in vain.  Little did I realize that I was not only cursing the Son of God but I was cursing God as well.

If there was such a thing of a Jewish Last Will and Testament Party as there is a high school senior Last Will and Testament Party, I would certainly be named, "The Least Likely to Convert to Christianity."  Well, that would certainly not have stuck.  Actually, at my high school senior Last Will and Testament Party, I was named, "The Most Likely to become an Israeli army general."  Go and figure.

The Conversion.

On Sunday, March 9, 2003, my life as it was known died away.  The person that I had known, no longer existed.  What was even greater, I was born again into Jesus Christ.  I accepted Jesus Christ as my Personal Lord and Savior, that He is the Messiah and that He is the Son of God.  I had been attending church for sometime before this day, almost a year, and I began to learn the truth.  What I have also learned is that knowing the truth is an eternity of learning. 

More about my conversion and what led to it in my new book:  Testimony of Faith:  What led me to Jesus which is due to be completed in 2013.

Why Mission Lighthouse Ministry?

Not long after conversion, I wanted to begin my time of witnessing to others and to teach them about Jesus Christ.  I also wanted to use my testimony, God's Word, the Gospels to do just that.  As scripture says:

"As servants of God (my emphasis) we commend ourselves in every way: by great endurance, in afflictions, hardships, calamities, beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger, by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, the Holy Spirit, genuine love; by truthful speech, and the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left...." 2 Corinthians 6:4. ESV

"For we are God's fellow workers (my emphasis).  You are God's field, God's building."  1Corinthians 4:9. ESV

and,

"Therefore, we are ambassador's for Christ (my emphasis), God making His appeal through us."  2Corinthians 5:20.  ESV

So, Mission Lighthouse Ministry was born knowing these three parts of scripture:  I am a servant of God, I am one of God's fellow worker's and finally, I am an ambassador for Christ.

The Name:  Mission Lighthouse Ministry

In secular terms, the idea of lighthouse to me means the lighthouse that stands watch to protect seafaring mariners so that their vessels do not come too close to shore and run aground.  This is the same thing about Christ.  He is our protector, making sure that we do not run aground, get lost and go to the darker side.  He is the Light and He is wants us, needs us to stay out of the darkness of Satan.

I love the study of the history of Lighthouses but they have such a deeper meaning.  A more spiritual meaning for me.  

Here is some scripture to back this up:  

The Light of the Gospel

"Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart.  But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways.  We refuse to practice cunning or "tamper with God's Word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone's conscience in the sight of God.  And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing.  In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.  For what we proclaim is not ourselves but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake.  For God who said, "Let light shine out of darkness, has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ."  2Corinthians 4:1-6. ESV

So, Mission Lighthouse Ministry is re-born.  It is my "tool" to present to you the infallible Word of God.  Just as I have come to accept and understand who my Personal Lord and Savior is, Who the Messiah is and who the Son of God is, I hope the same for you.

God Bless!  Glory Be to God!  

In the Most Holy and Precious Name of Jesus Christ,

David M. Brown

Founder

Mission Lighthouse Ministry

Tucker, Georgia

Thursday, January 24, 2013