“A whole lot of shakin’ goin’on”

Get ready for everything as you know it to be shaken.

Events – both political and “natural” earth events – are speeding up dramatically.  There have been more significant earthquakes in recent years than ever seen before, for example. We’re also watching more “political earthquakes” occurring.  BEFORE the return of our King, the Messiah Yeshua (Jesus the Christ), we will see more and more political and natural events shaking the foundations of everything we’ve known. Everything will be shaken – the heavens, the earth, everything – until what remains is only what cannot be shaken (Hebrews 12:25-29).  Folks, that shaking has to include us.  Are we spiritually and mentally ready for it? I doubt that many are. I preach to myself too. On the other hand, this is an age of incredible excitement and opportunity, if we’re on the right side of our Maker. You and I have been born into what is likely “the end-time generation”. Could we have been put here for just such a time as this, as Mordecai said to Esther? Let’s be excited about it and play our role with the sure foundation we have in Yeshua and seek the peace that comes from knowing Him.  Read the rest of this blog for scriptures and insight into what kind of shaking has already begun and will continue in intensity before the coming of Messiah.

Hebrews 12:25-29

25 See that you do not refuse Him who speaks. For if they did not escape who refused Him who spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven, 26 whose voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised, saying, "Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven."  27 Now this, "Yet once more," indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain. 
28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. 29 For our God is a consuming fire.

We all know that YHVH, the living God, has many scriptures about “refining” His people. “Shaking what can be shaken” is another way of looking at it.  He says He wants only what can’t be shaken to remain. Children of the Highest, do we realize what this means?  Are we mentally – and more importantly, spiritually – preparing for this?  I believe the shaking has already begun and will increase in intensity until the coming of our Savior and King.

Be sure to hear many more details in my coming full length sermon on this subject. But for now, what can be shaken?  And why the shaking?

In the last decade or so before the Christ lands on the Mt. of Olives, Father will be shaking the whole world so people realize “something really unusual” is going on.  Even now, we call earthquakes, tornadoes and hurricanes “acts of God”.  So when these events grow in intensity and frequency, more and more people will come to recognize the true Creator of the universe and repent. We know at the very end, there will be “a great innumerable multitude” that is repentant (Rev. 7:9-16).  So the shaking is to get everyone’s attention and eventually many will come to worship Him (Haggai 2:6-7) in Jerusalem. Remember this is exactly what Yehowah said as He sent plague after plague upon Egypt: that they may know that YHVH is the One true God (Ex. 7:14-18; 9:13-21)

So even the “people of God”, the saints, will be shaken. Many of us are Laodicean, or lacking in zeal, or are asleep, or spiritually non-involved. Father also includes us in the shaking because we need shaking up! We need waking up!  And since we’re in the world even if we’re not “of” the world, what happens in the nations around us also affects us!  Our faith will be shaken by personal tests and trials as well as world events. We will be tempted at times to wonder where our loving Father is, as we also go through tough times. Remember that Israel also had to suffer through the first three of the ten plagues in Egypt.  Though many of us believe there will be a place of safety, that doesn’t mean we won’t have to first go through very, very tough times. And ultimately our safety is in Yehowah our God (Joel 3:16).  [Hear my sermon on “Place of Safety”- March 2012]

So we should expect it to be harder and harder to practice our faith.  We will see more attacks on believers.  Laws will be passed that will force us to compromise with sin – or speak up like Esther did. Eventually, we won’t be able to buy or sell unless we come under the worldwide “mark of the beast” (Rev. 13:11-17).  Imagine that! Not being able to buy food, clothing, pay bills, buy or rent a house, buy gas/petrol – imagine! And yet if we do knowingly come under the mark of the end-time “beast power”, we’ll lose out on our eternal rewards (Rev. 16:2; 20:4).   This is a major shaking which many of us will experience.  We’d best resolve NOW to remain faithful to Him who is able to provide for us even when it appears hopeless. Many believers will be martyred during this time as a witness. So our faith is going to be shaken until He knows – like Abraham, the father of the faithful – that nothing will tear us loose from our Abba, our dear Father.

And for true believers, let’s not lose sight that this is the most exciting age anyone could ever have lived in. Hallelujah.  It’s time to speak up for our God and King. It’s the time to be counted. It’s the time be zealous. It’s the time to get our house in order (Luke 21:34-36). It’s the time to pray, fast, study, and establish our relationship with Father and our Savior as never before. It’s the time for our marriages and human relationships to be where they are supposed to be. It’s the time for believers to quit splintering into more and more groups – but to come together as the One Body we are!  It’s the time to demonstrate the amazing agape love between believers that marks us as HIS children.

We the children of God, live in a world ruled presently by Satan (2 Cor. 4:4). As world powers and nations are shaken, we also will be affected.  But we keep this hope: that soon Messiah will reign. 

Luke 21:25-28 (but read through verse 36 on your own)
25 "And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring [tsunamis, hurricanes, typhoons];  26 men's hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.  27 Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.  28 Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near."

Sometime in the coming 2 months, God willing, I hope to have a full sermon on this, where I’ll discuss the shaking of the nations, the political events going on in the USA, Islamic world and Egypt, Persia/Iran, Europe, China – and all around the world. We’re about to see a whole lot more shaking going on.  We’ll see world rulers changing the political scene dramatically – right now in the USA and Egypt, 2 prime examples. I believe God certainly allows or even places kings and presidents into power, but often it is not the person HE would have chosen.  Just read 1 Samuel 8 the whole chapter (and especially verses 6-9, 19-22) and Hosea 8:4, for 2 strong examples of that.  Yehowah allows mankind a lot of rope, as He allows free moral agency. But yes, He allows and sometimes directly places the rulers over us and we must accept that. We can still speak up - -even as Samuel did – to be sure those around us know we’re not complicit, we’re not in agreement to their actions.  Someone once said “Silence is complicity”.  There’s a lot of truth to that at times.

So – don’t panic as we see the shaking going on.  Who knows whether you were born for a time such as this, to give witness to our King and Father. You’re part of this chosen generation which gets to the witness the turbulent change of leadership from Satan’s world – to God’s world. It won’t be pretty at first. So all this shaking going on is a sign that we’re very close to the final years before our Redeemer arrives. I’m not setting dates. The shaking could be longer than we wish. Remember the shaking happens BEFORE the final years of earth without God.  So we could still be 7-10 years or more, yes, maybe considerably more than we like to even ponder. My heart’s desire is that His coming be right now -- sooner than later, but that’s up to Father and HIS timetable. But just know there will be a great shaking, and you and your family will also be shaken to your very core, until only that which cannot be shaken will remain. Expect it, recognize it as it happens.  I will speak on this in much greater depth when I give the full sermon on it.  Be watching for it.

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