Changing of the Watch

Joseph Herrin (04-28-2011)

Psalms 116:15
Precious in the sight of Yahweh is the death of His godly ones.

David Wilkerson

Yesterday, April 27, 2011 was a significant day in my life, and I believe it will also prove to be significant to many more in the body of Christ. Around 9 P.M. I received a phone call from a sister in Christ informing me that David Wilkerson had been killed in a car accident. The news  is reporting that brother Wilkerson’s car swerved into another lane, striking an 18 wheeler. David Wilkerson was pronounced dead at the scene. His wife Gwendolyn was airlifted to a hospital with injuries. David Wilkerson was 79 years old.

There have been few ministers in this day whom I have admired as much as David Wilkerson. I remember as a youth back in the 1970s reading the book “The Cross and the Switchblade.” This book recounted pastor Wilkerson’s beginnings as the Father led him to minister to the gangs, the prostitutes, drug addicts, and homeless in New York City.

Those who have read the book will be familiar with the humiliating beginning he experienced. David traveled from Pennsylvania where he was a minister, to New York to plead with the court on behalf of some gang members who were being tried in a high profile case. He burst into the court room, asking the judge to show mercy to these youths. The event was caught on camera. Brother Wilkerson was removed from the court room, appearing to all the world to be some lunatic preacher. The event was broadcast on the news, where he was lambasted, looking to all the world as a fool.

Some days later David was on the streets of New York. Some gang members surrounded him, and would possibly have done him harm, but one of them recognized him from the television broadcast. Observing that this was the man who asked the judge to show mercy to the gang members, the attitude of those surrounding him changed. They accepted him, and in time many of them were saved.

David Wilkerson has manifested a spirit of godliness. When many pastors were moving their churches away from the inner city, out to the more affluent suburbs, David Wilkerson heeded the call of God to establish a church in Times Square. He labored, with many others, right among the lowest members of society. He established drug recovery programs, and helped many young women to escape a life of prostitution. Brother Wilkerson ministered among the very ones that Christ went to when He performed His ministry.

Matthew 9:10-13
Now it happened, as Yahshua sat at the table in the house, that behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat down with Him and His disciples.  And when the Pharisees saw it, they said to His disciples, "Why does your Teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?" When Yahshua heard that, He said to them, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.  But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy and not sacrifice.' For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance."

Brother Wilkerson was much more than an inner city minister. He became one of the chief prophetic voices God raised up to speak to America. In 1985 he published the book “Set the Trumpet to Thy Mouth.”

The book sounded forth a clarion call, announcing the judgment of God to fall upon the nation, and the church, due to her grievous sins. In an hour when many ministers were preaching smooth messages, telling the saints that God wanted to prosper them financially, and satisfy their lives with many material things, here was a message calling the body of Christ to righteous living and repentance from a self-focused life.

In the year 2000 David Wilkerson published another book. This one predicted the coming financial collapse of America.

I would not be surprised if you have not heard of this book. It was written before 9-11. It came at a time when the prosperity of Americans was increasing. The nation was riding one speculative bubble after another. The message of a coming financial holocaust was out of synch with the legion of prosperity preachers urging the saints to pursue “Your Best Life Now.” In a decade when millions of copies of books were sold telling the saints how to prosper and get rich, brother Wilkerson’s voice was like a whisper in a hurricane.

The book was proven to be prescient, for in 2008 America’s vaunted financial institutions began to experience alarming setbacks. The housing bubble collapsed, leading to tens of millions of defaults on mortgages. The Collateralized Debt Obligations that repackaged these mortgages and sold them as prime investments were suddenly revealed to be junk. Trillions of dollars in losses occurred, and many of the biggest financial institutions in the world began to collapse. Emergency measures followed one after another to keep the entire house of cards from collapsing.

Although the news, the government, and a myriad of Christian writers and ministers are announcing that the worst is over, and America is on the rebound, they are nothing more than false prophets proclaiming that which man’s carnal soul desires to hear. Far worse is yet to come, and it is growing very close.

As I pondered the significance of David Wilkerson’s death at this hour, I sense that the world has reached a time of the changing of the watch. In ancient days, watchmen were set up on towers, and on the walls around a city. They were given three hour shifts, called the first watch, the second watch, etc.. They were to be ever on the look-out, intent to spot any threat to the citizens that lived in the city. If they saw a threat, they were to blow the trumpet.

David Wilkerson was a watchman. He has seen the enemy coming. He has observed the sin that has opened up holes in the walls of the nation and the church. He has declared that calamity is at hand. Many have mocked his message. Some have simply ignored it, being consumed with the pursuit of worldly things.

In the news for the past month there has been one report after another of Air Traffic Controllers who have been sleeping when they were hired to be alert and watchful. This is a profound parable of the condition of the nation and the church. The Air Traffic Control towers resemble the ancient towers in which watchmen were stationed to look for an approaching enemy.

There has been such a rash of reports of ATC employees sleeping that it led to the resignation of a top official at the FAA, the government agency overseeing this area. What is occurring is a parable of the nation and the church. The watchmen have been sleeping.

David Wilkerson was one of the rare watchmen who remained at his post, alert and watchful. Yet, when he blew the trumpet, few heeded. Many mocked. Most continued to slumber. With David Wilkerson’s death yesterday, there is the marking of an end of his watch. He was faithful in his duty. He was not perfect. Certainly he made mistakes, but his heart was true. He sought always to please the One who had appointed him a minister and watchman.

The question needs to be answered, “Who will now take up the watch?” In an hour when so many slumber, who will arise to the task, remain alert and sober? Who will cry forth a word of warning? Many of the things David Wilkerson prophesied to be coming forth as judgment are even now at the door. Will his message of warning die with him?

It is a difficult task to be a watchman. Brother Wilkerson’s ministry began in shame and humility, and he was scorned routinely in the decades that followed. He never attracted the following of the messengers of prosperity. He was denigrated, being labeled a “Doom and Gloomer.” He knew much hardship and sorrow in his life. Many of his family members battled cancer, and he lost a beloved grandson to cancer not long ago. His heart was broken over the loss of his beloved grandson, yet he continued to announce the goodness and mercy of God. Because he was a man acquainted with sorrow, he was able to minister to others in their sorrow. He learned compassion by the things he suffered.

The day David Wilkerson died proved to be one of the stormiest days in the history of the nation. The news this morning is announcing that hundreds were killed in the past 24 hours as severe outbreaks of weather have spawned tornadoes, violent winds, thunder and lightning, across many states. Over a hundred were killed in Alabama alone.

At the same time, the news is reporting record flooding in the upper Midwest. Entire towns risk being deluged. In Texas, Oklahoma, and other parts of the Southwest, severe drought has been occurring and wildfires have been burning across vast swaths of land. All these things are indicative of the hour in which we live. The nation is reeling from natural disasters, financial decline, rampant crime, moral impoverishment, and political deception and wrangling. Things are soon to get much worse.

There is a cost to being a watchman. There is an afflicted path all must walk who would stand as overcomers in Christ. Yesterday brought a new trial in my life. An unexpected visitor stopped by around noon. A process server from the local Sheriff’s office delivered papers telling me I will once more have to stand before the judge. My wife, who departed from walking with me six years ago is desiring that I get a secular job to send her alimony. The Father told me clearly in February of 2008 to leave secular employment and to minister full-time.

Eighteen months ago I faced a similar situation. I stood before the judge, and he instructed me to go out and seek employment in the world. I told him I could not in good conscience do so, as God had told me specifically what I must do at this hour. I was charged with contempt of court and spent 60 days in jail at that time.

May 24, I will have to go before the judge again. I can tell him nothing different. The Father has told me to “feed My sheep.” Like Paul, I anticipate that bonds and imprisonment await me. I can only adopt the mindset that he had that I might finish my course with joy.

Acts 20:22-24
And see, now I go bound in the spirit to Jerusalem, not knowing the things that will happen to me there, except that the Holy Spirit testifies in every city, saying that chains and tribulations await me. But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Yahshua, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.

I took no lawyer with me last time. I presented no defense. The Father has testified that my life would be like Joseph’s. He too had a woman ask of him that which he could not give her. When she grew tired of asking, she had him thrown in jail.

Are you willing to stand in the place God has called you to be? Are you willing to perform that duty He has entrusted to you? What if it be an unpopular duty? What if it results in scorn and shame? What if you are experiencing suffering, and imprisonment when your brothers are living as free men pursuing the course their soul directs them to? Will you remain steadfast?

The Spirit has testified of my life that the things I have experienced in the past 12 years, and continue to experience, are coming to His sons and daughters who will walk faithfully with Him. The church for generations in America has found her life to be an easy one. Her profession has been a light one. There has been little cost. The time is at hand when God will perfect a remnant by leading them down an afflicted path. Will you yield yourself to follow wherever the Lamb would go?

Revelation 14:3-4
They sang as it were a new song before the throne, before the four living creatures, and the elders; and no one could learn that song except the hundred and forty-four thousand who were redeemed from the earth. These are the ones who were not defiled with women, for they are virgins. These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. These were redeemed from among men, being firstfruits to God and to the Lamb.

The words above are spiritual words. To be redeemed from the earth is to be delivered from bondage to the flesh. Being undefiled in the eyes of God is to be espoused to Christ as a pure virgin (II Corinthians 11:2). It is to be devoted to Christ alone, not being enticed by other loves and lovers. The Lamb is a sacrificial animal. It surrenders meekly to go forward to its own slaughter. Yet, therein is the triumph of the saints. It is evidence of placing the Father’s pleasure above our own interests.

Isaiah 53:7-8
He was oppressed and treated harshly, yet he never said a word. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter. And as a sheep is silent before the shearers, he did not open his mouth. Unjustly condemned, he was led away.
[NLT]

Christ is set forth as the pattern for all the sons of God who would be numbered among the overcomers. All must entrust their lives wholly to the Father. When we seek a way of escape, when we begin to defend ourselves, when we look to the arm of the flesh to save us, we lose our peace. We also fail to grow in the faith and obedience required of those who would rule and reign with Christ. We must follow the pattern of Yahshua.

I Peter 2:20-23
But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God. For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow in His steps: "Who committed no sin, nor was deceit found in His mouth"; who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously...

David Wilkerson experienced shame and much suffering in his life as he followed the leading of the Spirit of Christ. So too will all who yield to follow Christ in this day. How can Christians live in one of the most sensual, materialistic, sinful societies that ever existed, and not experience judgment, and condemnation if they are living to do the will of the Father? The world has not become more tolerant of godliness. Rather, the church has fallen short of living a life yielded to be led of the Spirit.

II Timothy 3:10-12
But you have carefully followed my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, love, perseverance, persecutions, afflictions, which happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra - what persecutions I endured. And out of them all the Lord delivered me. Yes, and all who live godly in Christ Yahshua will suffer persecution.

The words above contain the message I have been charged to proclaim to the people of God. “All who live godly in Christ Yahshua will suffer persecution.” There is an afflicted path that leads to life, and few there are who find it. Will you also do your part in filling up what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ?

The night is far spent. Let us be vigilant and sober. We do not walk alone. Please pray for me as I set my face to follow the Lamb.


Heart4God Website: http://www.heart4god.ws    

Parables Blog: www.parablesblog.blogspot.com    

Mailing Address:
Joseph Herrin
c/o Fair Harbor RV Park
515 Marshallville Road
Perry, GA 31069-3016

Under the Microscope - Examining All Things Closely Part 6 - True and False Witnesses

Joseph Herrin (04-26-2011)

II Timothy 3:13
But wicked men and imposters will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and leading astray others and being deceived and led astray themselves.
[Amplified Bible]

This post will look at one more aspect of arriving at the knowledge of the truth. It is necessary to distinguish between a true and a false witness. In the court system today it is common to call in “expert witnesses” to bolster an argument. Simply because someone is proclaimed an expert, does not mean that their testimony is true. This is certainly evident in the American court system where experts have declared that homosexuality is hereditary, rather than a choice, and proclaimed that babies in the womb are not human beings. It is quite possible to find an “expert” who will say anything that a person desires.

This tendency to call out expert witnesses, or big names, is also common among those who make unfounded claims about HAARP, the Large Hadron Collider, the Comet Elenin, Chemtrails, and a host of other subjects. I have encountered more than a dozen reports advocating that HAARP is causing earthquakes which have brought up the name of Nikola Tesla. The recent quote that I shared in one post on this series is typical of how the name of this man is bandied about as proof that HAARP is being used to create earthquakes throughout the world.

Brother, while our faithful and true Savior is still in charge it would be an interesting study for you to view the research of Nicola (sic) Tesla - evidence is overwhelming and accepted by the scientific community on his ability back in the 1920's to split the earth in two - he caused an earthquake in New York City in 1898 so severe the authorities were involved in making sure his machinery did not do it again.

Such statements as those above are quite astonishing for a number of reasons. This brother stated with great confidence that “evidence is overwhelming and accepted by the scientific community on (Nikola Tesla’s) abilitity back in the 1920's to split the earth in two.” This brother also writes with equal declarative force that Tesla caused an earthquake in New York City in 1898. These statements are astonishing, for if they are true, they are a tremendous revelation. To think that man has had the ability since the 1920s to create earthquakes, and to split the earth in two, is a profound matter. If a lone man, such as Nikola Tesla could split the earth in two nearly a century ago, what would prevent some suicidal terrorist from destroying the earth in this manner out of some impulse to annihilate mankind?

The statements are remarkable for another reason. I have tested these claims and found them to be false. They are the product of wild boasting initiated by Nikola Tesla himself, who was renowned, and often criticized during his life, for making wild, exaggerated, premature, and pretentious claims.

This brother who wrote to me did not originate these reports himself. I have encountered them in a myriad of sources on the Internet. His failure was not one of creating false claims, but rather of not investigating the claims to see if they were sound. The claims that Tesla could split the earth in two, and cause earthquakes back in the 1920s, appealed to the bias he had in his mind. He had already concluded that HAARP is a super weapon being employed covertly by the American government, so there was no pressing desire to probe too deeply to see if the Tesla claims were accurate. We must maintain a passion for truth, for without it, we too will fall into much error.

A sister in Christ, knowing of my interest in Nikola Tesla, sent me a biography of his life a couple years ago. The book is titled “Tesla - Man Out of Time.” It is authored by Margaret Cheney. The author performed a prodigious amount of research. In the Introduction to the book the breadth of her knowledge of this man and his work is made evident. The author writes:

In reviewing my own interest in Tesla, since high school days I was fascinated by his high frequency, high voltage researches for which he became world known. I was disturbed, however, by the inordinate difficulty in obtaining copies of his technical writings and, as well, identifying references to writings by others about Tesla’s work. This prompted what was to become a project of many years - that of producing an exhaustive catalog (published in 1979 as a bibliography...) of the writings by and about Tesla and his work. In the course of pursuing studies in electrical engineering, and continuing interest in Tesla’s high frequency, high voltage researches, my inquiries eventually led me to meet those who worked for him, such as his secretaries Dorothy Skerritt and Muriel Arbus, and laboratory technicians such as Walter Wilhelm.

This biography is clearly not the product of a momentary interest in Tesla. It was produced with access to an unusual degree of sources and people intimately related to the man. On top of this, the author has training in the field of electrical engineering. It is an excellent source book for discerning the origins of the mythology that has grown up around the man.

That Nikola Tesla was a creative genius is beyond question. He is the originator of the polyphase electrical system of alternating current that powers the homes, businesses, and industries of the world. He also was a pioneer in radio, and was the first to demonstrate the potential of radio as a medium to remotely control objects. In 1897, just a few years after the invention of radio broadcast, he demonstrated its use with a radio controlled boat demonstration at Madison Square Gardens. He was a leader in x-ray technology, and fluorescent and neon lighting systems. He has approximately 700 patents to his name worldwide (many are duplicated among nations.) He has approximately 40 U.S. Patents.

I found the biography of Nikola Tesla to be highly informative. I learned much about the man’s triumphs, as well as his failures, idiosyncracies, and prideful behavior. Nikola Tesla was a visionary, but many of the things he envisioned were no more than speculation. For example, he said it was an absolute certainty that intelligent life existed on Mars, and advocated construction of some type of radio communication to make contact with the intelligent beings that lived there. When Einstein published his Theory of Relativity, Tesla said Einstein was wrong. Tesla promised to produce his own competing theory, but never did.

Tesla did not fully understand the dangers of x-rays, believing that they were therapeutic and health inducing. He often exposed himself to x-rays intentionally, believing he was receiving some healthful benefit. The author of his biography writes:

Tesla, entranced with the novel and mysterious force, was one of those who at first refused to believe there was a danger. Convinced he had discovered a way of “stimulating” his brain, he exposed his head repeatedly to radiation.


“An outline of the skull is easily obtained with an exposure of 20 to 40 minutes,” he wrote...


He noted strange effects: “... a tendency to sleep and the time seems to pass away quickly. There is a general soothing effect and I have a sensation of warmth in the upper part of the head.”
[Pages 103-104]

The claims of Tesla causing an earthquake are derived from an event described in Tesla - Man Out of Time in the following words:

One day in 1898 while testing a tiny electromechanical oscillator, he attached it with innocent intent to an iron pillar that went down through the center of his loft building at 46 East Houston Street, to the sandy floor of the basement.


Flipping on the switch, he settled into a straight-back chair to watch and make notes of everything that happened. Such machines always fascinated him because, as the tempo built higher and higher, they would establish resonance with first one object in his workshop, then another. For example, a piece of equipment or furniture would suddenly begin to shimmy and dance. As he stepped up the frequency, it would halt but another more in tune would take up the frantic jig and, later on, yet another.


What Tesla was unaware of on this occasion was that vibrations from the oscillator, traveling down the iron pillar with escalating force, were being carried through the substructure of Manhattan in all directions. (Normally earthquakes are more severe at a distance from their epicenter.) Buildings began to shake, windows shattered, and citizens poured into the streets in the nearby Italian and Chinese neighborhoods.


At Police Headquarters on Mulberry Street, where Tesla was already regarded with suspicion, it soon became apparent that no other part of the city was having an earthquake. Two officers were dispatched posthaste to check on the mad inventor. The latter, unaware of the shambles occurring all around his building, had just begun to sense an ominous vibration in the floors and walls. Knowing that he must quickly put a stop to it, he seized a sledgehammer and smashed the little oscillator with a single blow.


With perfect timing the two policemen rushed through the door, allowing him to turn with a courteous nod.


“Gentlemen, I am sorry,” he said. “You are just a trifle too late to witness my experiment. I found it necessary to stop it suddenly and unexpectedly and in an unusual way.... However, if you will come around this evening I will have another oscillator attached to this platform and each of you can stand on it. You will, I am sure, find it a most interesting and pleasurable experience. Now you must leave, for I have many things to do. Good day, gentlemen.”
[Pages 115-116]

The author cites as her source for this story, another biography that came out shortly after Tesla’s death. The biography originating this story was written by John J. O’Neill and titled “Prodigal Genius.” I am not sure what source Mr. O’Neill used, as I do not have his book. Unfortunately, this is third hand reporting at best, most likely derived from some account that Nikola Tesla gave to a reporter, as he was frequently in the company of reporters, and widely quoted.

The television show Myth Busters examined Tesla’s claim. They have posted a quote attributed to Tesla, though it differs in many key details from the citation above.

"I was experimenting with vibrations. I had one of my machines going and I wanted to see if I could get it tuned with the vibration of the building. I put it up notch after notch. Suddenly, all the heavy machinery in the place was flying around. I grabbed a hammer and broke the machine. Outside in the street there was pandemonium. The police and ambulance arrived. We told the police it must have been an earthquake. I told my assistants to say nothing.
[Source: http://kwc.org/mythbusters/2006/08/episode_60_earthquake_machine.html]

Note some of the key differences in these two reports. In the first one, Tesla is alone in his workshop. In the latter one assistants are present. In the first account there is no mention of Tesla intentionally trying to get the building to resonate. Instead, it is described as an innocent and unintentional accident. In the second account, Tesla says he was deliberately seeking to find the resonance of the building at which it would vibrate. In the first report there is mention of one piece of equipment after another beginning to resonate, with no mention of any of the resonance producing violent results. In the second we have the words, “Suddenly, all the heavy machinery in the place was flying around.” In the first account two policemen arrive. In the second police and an ambulance arrive. In the first account Tesla admits that his oscillator experiment went awry. In the second we have him telling his assistants to say nothing. (In other accounts found online he tells the police it must have been an earthquake that caused the disturbance.)

In reading the book on Tesla’s life, there are a multitude of examples of him declaring astonishing things, or promising extraordinary accomplishments, which he never brought to fruition. The man was given to frequent, and extreme exaggeration. Whether this account above was the product of his disingenuous boasting, or whether others embellished the story, is difficult to tell. What is evident from these two accounts, is that the stories do not harmonize (pardon the pun).

It is interesting to read, or watch, the account of the Myth Busters experiments. Their conclusion is that this story is false, for they were unable to duplicate anything near the results spoken of in this description. You can view the videos of the program episode and judge for yourself.

https://youtu.be/SEgPLdj2kRw




You can also find at the following link a newspaper article written by Earl Sparling that appeared in the New York World-Telegram July 11, 1935. Sparling was invited with many other reporters to Tesla’s birthday party in 1935, where he recounted this story to them.

http://www.rexresearch.com/teslamos/tmosc.htm

Tesla’s boast to the reporters that he would have $100,000,000 in two years time due to his inventions are indicative of the type of wild boasting he was prone to. Tesla died a relative pauper, while promising investors throughout his lengthy career that he would make them rich from promised inventions that were never produced.

It should be understood that Tesla’s tendency to make such boasts was partially a product of his need to attract investors so that he could continue his research. Throughout his life, Tesla depended upon the benevolence of investors to continue his experiments, and was frequently begging investors for money, including J.P. Morgan, while promising them immense returns in a short amount of time. Having sold his patents for the polyphase alternating current system to Westinghouse early on, Tesla struggled for money the rest of his life.

Another motive for his boasting was that Nikola Tesla was a vain and proud man. Tesla had many legitimate accomplishments. Some of them, such as the invention of radio, were attributed to others, such as Guglielmo Marconi. This greatly chafed Tesla, who wanted to be recognized for his inventions. For many years, Thomas Edison, who was already well known and financially well off, derided Tesla’s A.C. power system. Edison was staunchly in favor of direct current power. Edison waged a tireless war to discredit Tesla and A.C. power, even using such cruel demonstrations as electrocuting animals in public with A.C. currents to lead people to believe it was dangerous. Edison even electrocuted an elephant in one demonstration, filming the event to scare people away from A.C. power.

http://www.wired.com/science/discoveries/news/2008/01/dayintech_0104

Tesla’s response was to become a promoter of his own achievements, both real and imagined. Tesla boasted of being able to create death rays that could knock whole squadrons of airplanes from the sky at a distance of 200 miles. He predicted that in a short time he would be able to transmit energy across any terrestrial distance without wires, and without any appreciable loss. Tesla’s claim that he could split the earth in two appeared in an article February 1912, in the magazine The World Today. The article authored by Allan L. Benson was titled “Nikola Tesla, Dreamer.”

"Tesla claims that in a few weeks he could set the earth's crust into such a state of vibration that it would rise and fall hundreds of feet and practically destroy civilization.  A continuation of this process would, he says, eventually split the earth in two."

This was nothing more than another wild boast by Nikola Tesla. The same article includes quotes from Tesla where he boasts of using a turbine he has invented to power ships across the Atlantic at 50 mph, and saying he has in mind another turbine that will enable a ship to make the Atlantic crossing in 16 hours. He “guarantees” that he will adapt one of these turbines to a Wright biplane and fly it at 200 mph.

http://books.google.com/books?id=MULzEgKLoQAC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false

Tesla fulfilled none of these boasts. The author of the biography I read went into some detail regarding Tesla’s turbine. He never could bring it to production as the qualities of the metals available at the time were causing the turbines to fail when subjected to high speeds and stress.

The author of the biography I have in my possession recounts the things that Tesla told Allan Benson. Following is an excerpt from the book.

Nor was this all. He boasted to Benson that he could split the earth in the same way - “split it as a boy would split an apple - and forever end the career of man.” Earth’s vibrations, he went on, have a periodicity of about one hour and forty-nine minutes. “That is to say, if I strike the earth this instant, a waver of contraction goes through it that will come back in one hour and forty-nine minutes in the form of expansion. As a matter of fact, the earth, like everything else, is in a constant state of vibration. It is constantly expanding and contracting.”

“Now, suppose that at the precise moment when it begins to contract, I explode a ton of dynamite. That accelerates the contraction and, in one hour and forty-nine minutes, there comes an equally accelerated wave of expansion.  When the wave of expansion ebbs, suppose I explode another ton of dynamite, thus further increasing the wave of contraction. And, suppose this performance is repeated, time after time. Is there any doubt as to what would happen? There is no doubt in my mind. The earth would split in two. For the first time in man’s history, he has the knowledge with which he may interfere with cosmic processes!”

When Benson asked how long it might take to split the Earth, he answered modestly, “Months might be required; perhaps a year or two.” But in only weeks, he said, he could set the Earth’s crust in such a state of vibration that it would rise and fall hundreds of feet, throwing rivers out of their beds, wrecking buildings, and practically destroying civilization. To the relief of ordinary citizens, Tesla later qualified his claim. The principle could not fail, he said, but it would be impossible to obtain perfect mechanical resonance of the Earth.
[Pages 116-117]

Tesla never publicly demonstrated the ability to bring a building down with one of his oscillators, much less the ability to cause the entire surface of the earth to move violently. For those who would link Tesla’s claims of splitting the earth in two to HAARP, it should be noted that Tesla’s oscillator that is reputed to have shaken buildings was electro-mechanical. It applied a mechanical force to an object to make it vibrate. His theory of splitting the earth also depended upon tremendous mechanical pressure being applied through the exploding of dynamite. The HAARP system has no such apparatus for applying a mechanical force to the earth. It has a microwave heater able to alter the temperature of localized areas of the ionosphere, but this is quite different from the technology described by Tesla to split the earth in two.

I am not advocating that everyone who encounters speculative claims about the government causing earthquakes, hurricanes, and other calamities, should spend a lot of time researching these things as I have here. What I do suggest is that the saints not embrace, or disseminate, these claims apart from fact checking the evidence, and testing the legitimacy of the arguments.

If you have the time, and the leading, then investigate these matters. If you don’t, it is best to not adopt a position on them until you have done so. There are many false witnesses in the world. Even the most famous names, or the most brilliant minds, can be fountains of speculation and false claims. I have erred in the past by being too quick to embrace some report or idea. I hope through my experience to be able to encourage others to avoid doing the same.

Heart4God Website: http://www.heart4god.ws    

Parables Blog: www.parablesblog.blogspot.com    

Mailing Address:
Joseph Herrin
c/o Fair Harbor RV Park
515 Marshallville Road
Perry, GA 31069-3016

Under the Microscope - Examining All Things Closely Part 5 - Scrutinizing the Inscrutable

Joseph Herrin (04-25-2011)

Winston Churchill once made the statement:

I cannot forecast to you the action of Russia. It is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma...

Many people are similarly daunted at the challenge of understanding  the various reports and technical and scientific claims that are being passed around en masse across the Internet today. How is a non-technical person to decipher whether some claim is true concerning HAARP, the Large Hadron Collider, far off comets, the claims that the government is using chemtrails to poison the masses, or a myriad of other subjects? To become expert at all these areas would be impossible. Scientists and researchers tend to be specialists today, for knowledge of all areas is increasing exponentially. They must pick a specific field, or a subset of one field, and devote themselves to becoming expert in that area.

The Father has not called me to become a scientist, nor to seek to attain advanced degrees in such a broad range of study. I am called to be a minister, teaching and shepherding the people of God. I would have to abandon my call as a minister to give adequate attention to attain to the level of knowledge and understanding to work professionally in these fields. Some thought should be given to how much time the Father would have us to spend in attending to these myriad of issues, rumors, speculations, and theories.

Many people devote an inordinate amount of time to the exploration and discussion of conspiracies, doomsday reports, and the latest prophetic utterances of calamity and collusion. Such people become like the proverbial ambulance chaser. They have never met a calamity, or startling claim, that did not excite their interest. There are well known Christian ministries that are predominantly focused on disaster warnings. There is always a risk of getting out of balance in one’s focus. We must consider how much time God would have us devote to investigate these matters.

Part of my reason in writing this series is to provide a reference that I can point people to that might answer questions that I receive frequently. More importantly, I would like to encourage the saints to test all things, and develop the habit and ability to find the answers themselves. I have found myself spending a lot of time answering people’s queries about various claims and reports. In a span of a few days I had half a dozen people ask me what I thought about Comet Elenin. I believe there is merit in seeking to understand whether various reports are true or false, but I would rather teach the saints how to fish, testing matters themselves, than have to give them a fish every day.

At first glance, the task of discerning what is really going on at an installation such as HAARP might seem daunting. HAARP stands for the High frequency Active Auroral Research Project. It is described on its government homepage as “A premier facility for the study of ionospheric physics and radio science.” I don’t know about you, but I am a little rusty on ionospheric physics, and my knowledge of radio science doesn’t go much beyond turning on the radio and tuning in a station. How can you or I possibly fathom all the science and engineering involved in an installation such as HAARP? The answer is, “We cannot, but we don’t need to.”

When we encounter some claim, or conspiracy theory relating to an installation such as HAARP, what we really need to examine are the arguments set forth by the person originating, or forwarding the report. Are their claims founded upon solid evidence and accurate logic? Do they provide specific, verifiable data as evidence to demonstrate that they have tested the matter themselves, and to provide the reader the ability to do the same? Are the examples and testimonies they provide in support of their claims credible?

Although you or I may not be able to divine all the science behind a subject, we do possess the ability to fact check a report, and to test the logic of the arguments being set forth. We should be able to recognize speculation when we see it. HAARP has been reported to be a covert government installation that has been accused of being instrumental in mind control experiments on the population, causing volcanoes to erupt and massive earthquakes to occur, as well as being an instrument of weather modification. As revealed in a correspondence I shared from a brother in Christ, some are attributing Hurricane Katrina, and other destructive weather events to HAARP.

It was an easy thing to fact check the brother’s claim that Hurricane Katrina nearly died out over the Gulf of Mexico, but then mysteriously strengthened due to the government using HAARP to control the weather. The data is available on the Internet from an array of sources.

The burden is always on the person promoting a conspiracy theory to provide the evidence to support it. I have not found credible evidence in relation to the viral e-mails and posts all across the Internet that decry the calamities caused by HAARP. What evidence is provided is vague, irrelevant, lacking in specificity, and generally useless with regard to establishing any type of credible link. For example, more than one brother sent me a link to a government document titled “Weather as a Force Multiplier.” The subtitle was conveniently left off, which reads, “Owning the Weather in 2025.”

http://www.fas.org/spp/military/docops/usaf/2025/v3c15/v3c15-1.htm

The document contains a study presented to the Department of Defense in 1996, examining the “potential” for using weather to shift the balance toward America in an armed conflict. Following is a quote from the published study.

Technology advancements in five major areas are necessary for an integrated weather-modification capability: (1) advanced nonlinear modeling techniques, (2) computational capability, (3) information gathering and transmission, (4) a global sensor array, and (5) weather intervention techniques...


Current technologies that will mature over the next 30 years will offer anyone who has the necessary resources the ability to modify weather patterns and their corresponding effects, at least on the local scale...


In the United States, weather-modification will likely become a part of national security policy with both domestic and international applications. Our government will pursue such a policy, depending on its interests, at various levels...


In this paper we show that appropriate application of weather-modification can provide battlespace dominance to a degree never before imagined. In the future, such operations will enhance air and space superiority and provide new options for battlespace shaping and battlespace awareness. "The technology is there, waiting for us to pull it all together;" in 2025 we can "Own the Weather."
[End Quote]

On the surface, this appears to lend credence to the arguments that the government is using HAARP to create massive hurricanes, and other types of weather. However, a careful reading of the above words reveals that no such technology exists at present, and the authors of the study are predicting technologies that did not at that time exist, nor exist today. As a person reads through the study, it is realized that what is forecast in the above very optimistic words is far less than the ability to create and steer hurricanes.

The report goes on to suggest that by the year 2025 the technology might exist to create localized rain, and thunder storms, or to dissipate fog, but anything larger is considered untenable. Following is a quote from the report:

Extreme and controversial examples of weather modification-creation of made-to-order weather, large-scale climate modification, creation and/or control (or "steering") of severe storms, etc.-were researched as part of this study but receive only brief mention here because, in the authors' judgment, the technical obstacles preventing their application appear insurmountable within 30 years.
[End Quote]

A short distance below this, the author’s state, “The weather-modification applications proposed in this report range from technically proven to potentially feasible. They are similar, however, in that none are currently employed...” Although the author’s predictions of what might be possible in weather modification thirty years in the future may prove accurate in some degree, it is very obvious that there is no assurance that even their modest forecasts will be attainable.

Such technology to create massive weather systems, and steer them accurately, certainly does not exist at this date. With millions of dollars invested, and a legion of men and women devoting their lives to the study of meteorology, weather forecasting is still very primitive, extremely near-term, and fraught with error. There are advances occurring, but they are incremental, not paradigm changing. The report continues...

Two key technologies are necessary to meld an integrated, comprehensive, responsive, precise, and effective weather-modification system. Advances in the science of chaos are critical to this endeavor. Also key to the feasibility of such a system is the ability to model the extremely complex nonlinear system of global weather in ways that can accurately predict the outcome of changes in the influencing variables. Researchers have already successfully controlled single variable nonlinear systems in the lab and hypothesize that current mathematical techniques and computer capacity could handle systems with up to five variables. Advances in these two areas would make it feasible to affect regional weather patterns by making small, continuous nudges to one or more influencing factors. Conceivably, with enough lead time and the right conditions, you could get "made-to-order" weather.
[End Quote]

Can you perceive that what is forecast in these words is very tenuous? There is nothing certain. There are too many variables whose interplay in the creation of weather are not clearly understood. At best, the author’s are predicting that man by the year 2025 might be able to influence to a small degree as many as five factors that effect weather. How many factors exist? The answer is unknown, but certainly far greater than five.

The report expresses other caveats throughout its length.

Critical to the success of any attempt to trigger a storm cell is the pre-existing atmospheric conditions locally and regionally. The atmosphere must already be conditionally unstable and the large-scale dynamics must be supportive of vertical cloud development. The focus of the weather-modification effort would be to provide additional "conditions" that would make the atmosphere unstable enough to generate cloud and eventually storm cell development. The path of storm cells once developed or enhanced is dependent not only on the mesoscale dynamics of the storm but the regional and synoptic (global) scale atmospheric wind flow patterns in the area which are currently not subject to human control.
[End Quote]

This is an excellent document. It contains a multitude of references to other studies and scientific reports. There is an extensive bibliography at the end, providing the reader the ability to fact check statements.

What this document does NOT do is provide evidence that HAARP is being used for weather modification. Nor does it support the claim that the government manipulated Hurricane Katrina, turning it into a super storm and steering it toward New Orleans. In fact, the report provides much evidence AGAINST such a claim.

People of God, this report was one of the best pieces of evidence provided to me by individuals claiming a link to HAARP and weather modification. Much of the remaining evidence I have seen is mere conjecture. It is often presented by people who are not expert in the field. It lacks citations, contains poor logic in the arguments, and it contains very dubious scholarship. This report stands out as a rare exception, but in the end it simply does not support the claims of those who insist HAARP is being used by the government for the purposes they claim.

There is a section of this report that actually does touch upon what HAARP may one day lead to. It presents a model of technology developed to make changes to the ionosphere. The study of the ionosphere, and the ability of man to make changes to it, is the stated domain of HAARP. The government is not being secretive about this. Over 100 professional papers have been published by scientists, professors and their students who have used the HAARP facility. The HAARP website provides a link to some of these published sources, establishing that this is the function for which the facility is being used.

The following information is listed on their Q&A page:

Where can I read about the research that is conducted at the HAARP Facility?

Research conducted at the HAARP Observatory is generally published in peer-reviewed scientific journals such as the Journal of Geophysical Research, Geophysical Research Letters, and Radio Science. Since the first research campaign at HAARP in 1999, well over 100 scholarly papers have been published in these and other scientific journals. While the best place to search for results of HAARP research is at a university library, some of these journals provide an on-line search engine for their own publications. For example, to search for HAARP research published in one of the journals of the American Geophysical Union, go to their on-line search site:

http://europa.agu.org/?view=search

Enter the search term "HAARP" and press the search button.

Who are the people that conduct research at HAARP?

The scientists who conduct research at HAARP are university physicists, their students, government scientists and scientists from commercial firms having an interest in communication and radio science theory and applications.

What Universities have participated in the HAARP program?

Several universities have played a major role in HAARP from its inception to the present time including the University of Alaska, The Leland Stanford University, Penn State University (ARL), Boston College, Dartmouth University, Cornell University, Virginia Tech, University of Maryland, University of Massachusetts, MIT, Polytechnic University, UCLA, Clemson University and the University of Florida. The development of the program objectives and initial design concept, selection of the prime contractor, development of diagnostic equipment, and the planning of research campaigns have all been heavily dependent on university involvement. University students and professors make up the majority of attendees at the annual Ionospheric Interactions Workshop where progress in ionospheric research is reported.
[Source: http://www.haarp.alaska.edu/haarp/faq.html]

Rather than being the secretive facility that conspiracy theorists imply, this is a facility whose research, and researchers, are very public. Have any of those who are espousing that HAARP is a secret facility to create earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and to modify the weather, read the reports published in professional journals and scientific publications that have come from those who have performed experiments there? I doubt it. The writings and videos on this subject that I have seen reveal a glaring absence of critical review of the evidence.

In the study on weather modification I have been citing, there is a section that clearly relates to the HAARP facility today. The section follows:

Several high-payoff capabilities that could result from the modification of the ionosphere or near space are described briefly below...


Ionospheric mirrors for pinpoint communication or over-the-horizon (OTH) radar transmission... The major disadvantage in depending on the ionosphere to reflect radio waves is its variability, which is due to normal space weather and events such as solar flares and geomagnetic storms. The ionosphere has been described as a crinkled sheet of wax paper whose relative position rises and sinks depending on weather conditions. The surface topography of the crinkled paper also constantly changes, leading to variability in its reflective, refractive, and transmissive properties.


Creation of an artificial uniform ionosphere was first proposed by Soviet researcher A. V. Gurevich in the mid-1970s. An Artificial Ionospheric Mirror (AIM) would serve as a precise mirror for electromagnetic radiation of a selected frequency or a range of frequencies. It would thereby be useful for both pinpoint control of friendly communications and interception of enemy transmissions.


Besides providing pinpoint communication control and potential interception capability, this technology would also provide communication capability at specified frequencies, as desired. Figure 4-2 shows how a ground-based radiator might generate a series of AIMs, each of which would be tailored to reflect a selected transmission frequency. Such an arrangement would greatly expand the available bandwidth for communications and also eliminate the problem of interference and crosstalk (by allowing one to use the requisite power level).

Figure 4-2. Artificial Ionospheric Mirrors Point-to-Point Communications

Figure 4-3. Artificial Ionospheric Mirror Over-the-Horizon Surveillance Concept.

Disruption of communications and radar via ionospheric control. A variation of the capability proposed above is ionospheric modification to disrupt an enemy's communication or radar transmissions. Because HF communications are controlled directly by the ionosphere's properties, an artificially created ionization region could conceivably disrupt an enemy's electromagnetic transmissions... The payoff of research aimed at understanding how to control these variations could be high as both HF communication enhancement and degradation are possible. Offensive interference of this kind would likely be indistinguishable from naturally occurring space weather. This capability could also be employed to precisely locate the source of enemy electromagnetic transmissions.
[End Excerpt]

To put this quite simply, the Department of Defense has been exploring ways to improve their communications, while also looking for ways to disrupt the communications of enemy combatants. This is certainly an area of study that the government would have an interest in funding. The research proposed in this study on weather as a force multiplier is actually being carried out at the HAARP facility. The study was published in 1996. HAARPs first season of research began in 1999.

I do not doubt that some of the results from the experiments performed at the HAARP facility are classified. However, there is adequate published work from reputable sources to establish that this is indeed the focus of the facility. Its microwave heater, and its array of antennas, lose their mystery as one learns of this line of inquiry and experimentation.

It is a great leap, however, and lacking in evidence, to suggest that HAARP is responsible for earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and worldwide weather events. To those who do not test all things carefully, any theory appears plausible. Even the most astonishing claims, left unverified, are adopted and passed along when they appeal to an individual’s natural distrust of the government. If the message is what they want to hear, they do not trouble themselves to verify the authenticity of the claims.

People of God, this subject is not my area of expertise, but neither is it likely to be the area of expertise of the people who are sending out the claims attributing all manner of world-wide calamities to HAARP. Although I am not an ionospheric or radio scientist, I can check the sources that others say prove their point. I am able to judge whether they have accurately understood and interpreted the material they are setting forth as evidence. In the material looked at here, I believe the honest and accurate judgment is that this material does NOT support the contention of HAARP causing these events.

In an hour when deception abounds, and men and women are not demonstrating the willingness to think critically and examine all things, the saints must manifest a different spirit. It did not take me long to look through this study that was presented to me as evidence that the government is using HAARP to create hurricanes, and other earth events. In truth, I do not believe the people sending the information to me performed due diligence in reviewing the material themselves. Their minds were already made up. Their thoughts had already taken on a bias in this matter. Consequently they were seeing only what they wanted to see. They failed to observe the facts right before their eyes.

In an hour of increasing darkness, we must strive to do better. I do not have the time, or leading, to be the tester of every claim that comes along. The saints are going to have to test matters themselves. Don’t be daunted. Just look at the evidence presented to you. Do some fact checking. See if the material actually says what people are suggesting. Examine the logic and the foundation of the arguments presented. Is it fact, or is it speculation?

Isaiah 8:11-13
For Yahweh spoke thus to me with a strong hand, and instructed me that I should not walk in the way of this people, saying: "Do not say, 'A conspiracy,' concerning all that this people call a conspiracy, nor be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled. Yahweh of hosts, Him you shall hallow; Let Him be your fear, and let Him be your dread.”

There are true conspiracies, and many evil things accomplished by man, but let us test all reports. Not all are accurate. A great many are nothing more than fables. Nevertheless, they have gripped the minds of many who have accepted them without testing them first. Patience is needed.


Heart4God Website: http://www.heart4god.ws    

Parables Blog: www.parablesblog.blogspot.com    

Mailing Address:
Joseph Herrin
c/o Fair Harbor RV Park
515 Marshallville Road
Perry, GA 31069-3016

Under the Microscope - Examining All Things Closely Part 4 - When the Truth Offends

Joseph Herrin (04-22-2011)

Note: I have changed the comment option on the blog where it now requires a person to enter an ID in order to post comments. It has been very difficult to communicate with people when they do not leave a name. Anonymity also tends to encourage people to write things that they would not normally if their name were attached to it. This is almost always detrimental, leading to intemperate remarks, and violations of love toward others.

A person will now be asked to provide an OpenID username to leave a comment. Most people already have one, though they may not be aware of it. If you have an account with Google, AOL, Yahoo, Flickr, MySpace, or one of many other online services, you already have an OpenID account. For more information on OpenID, please visit the following website:

http://openid.net/get-an-openid/

When the Truth Offends

I do not believe there is any greater hindrance to an apprehension of truth than having a closed mind. The refusal to consider something as true has sealed the fate of many. The Jewish rulers, Priests and Pharisees refused to consider that Yahshua was the Messiah prophesied in Scripture. Though He performed mighty miracles before them, even raising the dead, they would not permit the light of truth to enter their minds, for this man before them was not what they wished Him to be.

The Jewish leaders were looking for a Messiah who would vindicate them, declaring them to be the rightful rulers of the world because of their natural heritage as descendants of Abraham. Instead, Yahshua exposed their lack of relationship to Abraham. They did not believe God, nor honor Him with the obedience of Abraham. They were unable to rule themselves, much less others.

The Son of God is called “the Truth” (John 14:6). Though Truth was standing directly in front of the Jews, and providing many attesting signs, and fulfilling every prophetic word, the Jewish leaders and those who followed them staunchly denied the Truth. They rejected the Lord of glory, ridiculing and mocking the Truth.

Men continue to do the same thing today. Sadly, even Christian men and women refuse to give truth a hearing. This was prophesied to be the state of the church in the last days before the return of Christ.

II Timothy 4:3-4
For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.

What do these words mean, “they will not endure sound doctrine”? It is testifying that men in the church will not permit truth to be heard. They will resist truth fervently, preferring lies. They will embrace that which is false, and do so with great defiance and zealousness.

Although Paul had in mind doctrines of the Kingdom of God and His Christ, his words apply equally to other areas of truth. Paul is describing an attitude of men’s hearts in the last days. They will be stubborn, hardened, willful, violent, and proud. It requires patience, humility, and gentleness to receive truth, especially when the truth does not vindicate us, nor appear in the manner we would wish.

Someone has said, “Don't trust information given in a discourteous or slanderous spirit.” There is some wisdom in this advice, for a discourteous or slanderous spirit may reveal the presence of a prejudiced mind that will act with enmity and violence to every opposing thought, no matter its worthiness. However, a person’s courtesy, or lack thereof, should not be taken as sure evidence of truth or error. At times rude people can have truth, and there are many pleasant liars in this world.

I believe one characteristic of all who will be judged as overcomers in Christ is that they will have a deep love of truth. They want truth, even if the truth offends them, or is not what they would wish it to be. This devotion to truth was revealed in Peter, and the core group of disciples Yahshua had chosen (excluding Judas).

In John chapter 6 we read of an encounter between Christ and the multitudes who had joined themselves to Him. Christ knew that most of them were following for the wrong reasons. They wanted the bread and the fish He had multiplied. They wanted someone to lead them who would satisfy their carnal desires. Christ wanted followers who were passionate for truth.

In this encounter we find Christ speaking some difficult sayings to the people. The sayings offended them. Consequently, the multitudes dispersed, including many who had been disciples. Christ turned to the twelve and asked them, “Do you want to leave as well?” Peter’s response is revelatory:

John 6:68
But Simon Peter answered Him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life."

Peter and the rest of the disciples were surely offended by Christ’s words, as were the others. The words Yahshua spoke were difficult, and hard to understand. Peter and the rest of the twelve saw Christ driving away the multitudes, and this surely did not please their souls. They most likely were gladdened that Christ’s followers were increasing, and they were numbered among the inner circle of His followers. This provided them honor, and prestige, and they could envision this increasing as the whole nation began to follow Christ. When Christ drove the multitudes away, the twelve were surely confused and disappointed, prompting Christ to ask what He did of them.

I have found this to be a great error of the church today. The church seeks to attract people to Christianity by alluring them with things other than truth. They present a distorted gospel, devoid of the cross. They proclaim a message of prosperity and blessing to those who would follow Christ. They entice them with false doctrines of a full and satisfied life now,

and rapture out of this world before tribulation arrives.

In effect, the church is attracting people through a message that appeals to the flesh.

Christ gave a very consistent invitation to those who would be His disciples. He said, “Come and die.” “Come, take up your cross, and follow Me.” Christ did not appeal to the flesh. He offended the flesh. Christ’s appeal was in revealing that He alone was the Way, the Truth and the Life. Those who loved truth would come to Him despite the offense His message presented to the flesh. This would assure that it was those who loved truth who were following Him.

What the church has done in removing the offense of Christ’s message, and seeking to allure carnal people into the embrace of the church, is to take unto herself multitudes of people who do not love truth.

A sister in Christ came to visit with her husband some weeks back. As we were talking I began to speak of the afflicted path that leads to life. This sister asked a very sincere question. She asked, “How will people be drawn to Christ if we focus on affliction and the cross? Won’t such a message drive them away?” I was mindful of the approach of most Christians and churches today. They seek to attract people by offering them what the flesh wants. They have Christian rock concerts, flashy entertainment, short motivational messages, and programs, programs, programs. There is something to appeal to every group among the church; for those sports obsessed, to the shop-a-holics. The churches offer softball teams and trips to the outlet malls. For the more well-to-do, there are the ever present Christian cruises with the banquet tables open 24 hours a day.

I shared with this sister that we are not to seek to draw others to Christ through fleshly enticement. The type of bait you use will determine the fish that you catch. If you allure people with that which appeals to the flesh you will end up with a bunch of carnal people who have no real love for the truth. Instead, we must present Christ as the Truth, not avoiding the mention of the disciple’s cross, or the afflicted path. If we use Truth as bait, then we will catch those who are lovers of the truth.

Understanding that the vast majority of Christians today have been allured to embrace the Christian religious system through carnal enticements and sensual doctrines, I am not surprised when I encounter such a high percentage of professing Christians who manifest no real love for truth. It was not truth that drew them to Christ. It was a promise of receiving a get-out-of-hell-free-card. It was the programs and entertainments of the church, along with its no-cost message that drew them.

There is only a remnant today among the body of Christ who love truth, and who were attracted to Christ because He is Truth. The message of the cross does not appeal to the flesh. Many have canceled their subscription to this blog when the message was offensive to them. When I spent time writing about the afflicted path, many who were attracted by the blogs speaking prophetically of the parables in current events fell away. Some are titillated when they hear some sign proclaimed of the end of the age and of the soon return of Christ, but they are offended when they hear of the suffering they must pass through.

I have not gotten sidetracked from my initial message here. There is a tie-in between what I have shared about following Christ even when His message offends us, and these current events and theories that we are discussing. If you love truth, you will not close your mind to evidence that leads to a conclusion your soul does not desire; You will be open-minded, willing to embrace truth, even when it offends, or is not what you wished, or anticipated.

Already I am receiving comments and e-mails from professing Christians who are offended by this current teaching series. In two comments yesterday I was characterized as “hypocritical” and “shallow and unenlightened.” Although the presence of such discourtesy is not conclusive proof that the writers are in error, it does not give testimony to the fruit of Christ being present in their lives. The focus of yesterday’s post was being patient and gentle in setting forth our arguments in a manner that is helpful to a brother, being able to lead him to truth. The need to manifest love in our words and actions was stressed, yet the comments received were insulting and disparaging.

People of God, if Christians are to be offended and begin to insult one another over some matter as mundane as the latest conspiracy theory, then what will they do when they are faced with the offense of suffering reproach, loss, imprisonment, beating and even death for His sake? Truly we will see fulfilled in these days Christ’s words that “many will betray one another,” and “many will fall away.”

I challenge you, as you set your mind to discourse with others on topics such as the ones named in this series, to observe your words and attitude. Are you offended because someone disagrees with you? Are your words disparaging toward the other person? Are you impatient? Have you manifested a willingness to carefully consider arguments contrary to your own view? Do you desire for all parties to arrive at truth more than to prove yourself right? Do patience, love, gentleness, and humility characterize your writings?

Christ said we would know those who are His by their fruit. Are the fruit of the Spirit being manifested in your words and in your conversations with others? Be aware of the presence of personal offense when you are discoursing with others. Personal offense is a tell-tale sign of some selfish motive. It reveals that a man or woman has let their soul take over the conversation, and they are no longer being led of the Spirit. Personal offense is never approved by God.

James 3:13-18
Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom. But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

May you be blessed with peace and understanding in these days.


Heart4God Website: http://www.heart4god.ws    

Parables Blog: www.parablesblog.blogspot.com    

Mailing Address:
Joseph Herrin
c/o Fair Harbor RV Park
515 Marshallville Road
Perry, GA 31069-3016

Under the Microscope - Examining All Things Closely Part 3 - Loving Truth and Others

Joseph Herrin (04-21-2011)

A few weeks ago I had correspondence with a brother in Christ who suggested that the earthquakes around the world are not acts of God signifying the time of birth pangs foretold by Christ and His apostles. Instead, he described them as the acts of men, suggesting that those who are commonly called the New World Order, were behind them. I wrote back to him the following:

Dear Brother,

I am familiar with some of the views advocating that man may be causing the earthquakes, but from a Biblical, revelational, and practical perspective I have not been able to accept them. I will share with you my reasons, not to denigrate your opinions, but to encourage you to further consideration.

Yahshua testified clearly to His disciples that there would be signs on the earth, equating them to birth pangs, before His return. He specifically named earthquakes, and what better representation of the contractions of birth pangs could there be than earthquakes? If man were able to duplicate such things, then it seems likely that the Lord would have warned His disciples to beware of false labor pangs, and to have disclosed that Satan would be mimicking such signs in the last days, but there is an absence of any such warnings in the Scriptures. We are simply told that earthquakes, and the roaring of the seas and the waves, would be signs preceding the return of Christ.

On a revelational level, the location of the quakes has been very significant. From the 8.8 quake in Concepcion, Chile, to the two recent temblors that devastated Christchurch, and all of these recent ones being on the Ring of Fire, there is a profound testimony coming forth. I see no reason to attribute these earthquakes to man when Yahweh has always been the one to whom such events have been attributed. Even the secular world calls them "acts of God."

On a practical level, I have heard much theorizing about things like HAARP, and the Large Hadron Collider being able to generate earthquakes, but I have never seen any evidence, only speculation. It seems to me that the theory of evil men causing these disasters is appealing to the mind of man and has given such hypothesis traction in this hour. I certainly do not contest the evil of which man is capable, but I have very sincere doubts about man's ability to control, or cause, such enormous events as the recent Japanese earthquake.

I encourage the saints to guard against such speculations. I know how easy it is to be allured by them, but we are called to proclaim the truth of God. I find in myself the need for much self-restraint in writing and speaking of the causes and meanings of the world events that we are observing.

May you be blessed with peace and understanding in these days,

Joseph Herrin

This led to further discourse between this brother and myself. In reply, he wrote the following to me.

Hi Brother Joseph,


I fully appreciate your position, however, what do we do with the US Military admitting they caused certain disasters?  For example the U.S. Navy admitting to helping cause the Northridge earthquake in California in 1994 after too many questions were raised - their final reasoning was that their intent was to relieve stress on the San Andreas fault.  Or the modern quake in Sumatra in 2004.


Brother, while our faithful and true Savior is still in charge it would be an interesting study for you to view the research of Nicola Tesla - evidence is overwhelming and accepted by the scientific community on his ability back in the 1920's to split the earth in two - he caused an earthquake in New York City in 1898 so severe the authorities were involved in making sure his machinery did not do it again.


Then we have the evidence of Hurricanes being "enlarged" - such as Katrina - the first Hurricane in U.S. history to reach Category 5 status after nearly dying out in the Gulf of Mexico.


You might research the Air Force Document: USAF 2025 - Weather As A Force Multiplier.


There are a plethora of facts available to prove not only is man tinkering with nature he is and has been causing many "natural" disasters.
[End Excerpt]

Following is my response:

Dear Brother,

It is with kind intent that I write the following. You have many astounding claims, and you write as if you believe it would be right and proper for me to accept the claims you make as truth. Yet, you are not giving me the information and evidence needed that I might be led to adopt the things you are writing as truth. A rational man would like some evidence to support the things that are being asserted. For example, consider the following. You wrote:

what do we do with the US Military admitting they caused certain disasters?  For example the U.S. Navy admitting to helping cause the Northridge earthquake in California in 1994 after too many questions were raised - their final reasoning was that their intent was to relieve stress on the San Andreas fault.

If we take just this one claim and look at it, I would ask you whether you have presented to me anything solid or substantial upon which I could be able to judge your claim, and thereby possibly be persuaded? Where are the citations? Where is the evidence? What one normally finds on the Internet is that people making such claims assume that you will believe them because they say some other person has said it is so, though they most likely did not provide any solid evidence of these things either. One wild claim gets passed along ad infinitum, with little consideration to provide those who wish to test the accuracy of the claims with any real tangible evidence.

You go on to mention various things like the government document on "weather as a force multiplier." I read it several weeks ago. I read it very carefully. You know what I found? Those advocating using weather modification said that it had "potential," while admitting that it could only work in very limited and ideal circumstances, and even then the results would not be assured. Reading through the details it seemed that about the only thing they thought the military might be able to do is cause some rain or a thunderstorm to occur over an enemy location, but only in the right climates, when the wind was blowing in the right direction, and when there was adequate moisture and other atmospheric conditions to make it work.

Brother, because I did read that document, I know that it is a very shaky piece of evidence for you to give to support your contention that men are masters of the world. The document actually reveals man's great impotence in these things.

I also have a book on Tesla in my library. I have been fascinated by his research and genius for many years. At the same time, I have observed that there has arisen vast amounts of hyperbole, speculation, and false claims about what he truly was able to accomplish. Men have taken his modest achievements, as brilliant as they were, and concocted all types of myths and fables that would make very good comic book material.

Again, I would ask, "have you provided me with any substantial proof, any CREDIBLE citations, or any supporting evidence to back up your claim that he was able to split the earth in two, or that he caused a powerful earthquake in NYC in 1898? You merely say "evidence is overwhelming and accepted by the scientific community..." If the evidence is credible, and overwhelming, would you mind sharing this evidence with me? I will examine it if you will provide it, but I cannot accept such grand claims without anything more than a personal endorsement that you believe this to be so.

Brother, I would not expect you to accept something as fact simply because I endorse it. In what you have written there are no names mentioned, no dates, no locations, no citations from scientific journals, magazines, newspapers, or broadcasts. There is no evidence presented that there actually were members of the scientific community at that time who accepted these things. You have not shown me that these experts in the scientific community, if they did exist, had the qualifications to know what they were talking about.

It would be unreasonable for me to expect anyone to receive such a testimony from me. I would not ask you to do so. If you want to write me back again on these same subjects and provide the information needed for me to be able to test these things, then I will gladly do so. But the evidence needs to be credible, not third hand rumors and repeated claims that have no verifiable evidence to support them.

In an hour when deception and deceivers are rampant, it is necessary for the sons of God to exercise an added diligence as they test all things. It is my desire to examine all things carefully.

May you be blessed with peace and understanding in these days,

Joseph Herrin

The brother I was writing to assured me he would look through his files and send me the supporting evidence that I requested. To date, he has not done so. I share this correspondence, not to malign a brother. I have intentionally withheld his name, for it is not my desire to embarrass another. If what he wrote was unique, and isolated to him alone, I would not share it at all, for it would have no benefit to others. What he wrote, however, is fairly typical of many of the e-mails I have received for years. There are numerous claims contained in his e-mail that if true would be truly world shaking (pun intended), but nothing substantial was presented to back them up.

Because I had done some research into a number of the things he cited, I knew that much of what he wrote was personal opinion, not fact. Some of the claims could be easily checked and refuted, while some would require more time to delve into. I had followed Hurricane Katrina closely, and wrote extensively about it, so I found his statements regarding the hurricane to be inaccurate. He stated:

Then we have the evidence of Hurricanes being "enlarged" - such as Katrina - the first Hurricane in U.S. history to reach Category 5 status after nearly dying out in the Gulf of Mexico.

This is evidently a reference to the belief of some that the HAARP installation of the U.S. government is being used to alter the weather. The data on this hurricane is readily available online from many reputable sources. It was being tracked continuously, with its barometric pressure and wind speeds sampled at regular intervals. It was constantly observable on radar and satellite, and it never came near to dying out in the Gulf of Mexico. After it crossed Florida, it immediately began strengthening over the warm waters of the Gulf.

Wikipedia summarized Katrina’s progress in the following way:

The storm weakened over land, but it regained hurricane status about one hour after entering the Gulf of Mexico.[2]


The storm rapidly intensified after entering the Gulf, growing from a Category 3 hurricane to a Category 5 hurricane in just nine hours. This rapid growth was due to the storm's movement over the "unusually warm" waters of the Loop Current, which increased wind speeds.[7] On Saturday, August 27, the storm reached Category 3 intensity on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale, becoming the third major hurricane of the season. An eyewall replacement cycle disrupted the intensification, but caused the storm to nearly double in size. Katrina again rapidly intensified, attaining Category 5 status on the morning of August 28 and reached its peak strength at 1:00 p.m. CDT that day, with maximum sustained winds of 175 mph (280 km/h) and a minimum central pressure of 902 mbar. The pressure measurement made Katrina the fourth most intense Atlantic hurricane on record at the time, only to be surpassed by Hurricanes Rita and Wilma later in the season; it was also the strongest hurricane ever recorded in the Gulf of Mexico at the time (a record also later broken by Rita).[2]
[Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_katrina]

I have made it a habit to fact check people’s claims. This should be something we all do. There is much error and deception being constantly bandied about. We should not trust that others have checked the accuracy of things, especially if we are passing the information along to others. We need to perform due diligence ourselves in checking the accuracy of information. I have not been perfect in this, and we should all manifest grace to one another. We should, however, not develop patterns of carelessness in these areas. If we do not apply ourselves to discern truth from error, it will eventually prove costly.

Oftentimes similar claims to those above are addressed to me, presented with much confident assurance. Some are offended if I do not accept some claim based upon their word. To be offended because another man has not adopted some view we espouse when we have not provided him the means to examine things and test them is nothing less than a manifestation of pride. To be Christ-like, we must have a different attitude. If we are confident that we have arrived at some important truth that our brother needs to know, then we must manifest a spirit of love by patiently and gently setting forth the evidence before him. This is the pattern revealed in Scripture for one who would instruct others in spiritual matters, and it applies to natural matters as well.

II Timothy 2:24-25
And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth...

Christians fall terribly short of this standard as they converse with others today. Pride, arrogance, contentiousness, slander, reviling, insults, and anger are very often the response received from a brother or sister when their opinions or claims are not embraced by another. This should not be so. The apostle Paul said, “And though I... understand all mysteries and all knowledge..., but have not love, I am nothing” (I Corinthians 13:2-3). Love requires that we are gentle with one another, seeking to convey our thoughts with patience. Love will not be easily provoked, nor seek to provoke others. Love does not behave rudely (vs. 5).

People of God, I want to emphasize the following point. Some, in desiring to avoid conflict, and to keep from offending another, refuse to tell others when they are unable to agree with some claim, or idea, they are espousing. We are to always seek to guard love of the brethren, but love does not demand that we avoid speaking honestly with our brothers and sisters. We are commanded to “speak the truth in love.” Some speak the truth without love, and others seek to maintain peace by sacrificing truth. Neither of these actions are satisfying to the Father.

I get a large volume of e-mail. Spurious claims and erroneous comments are common among the things sent to me. In hundreds of instances I have pointed out to others that there is some error present in what they have sent out. I do not do so to be unkind, but because I love the truth and I want to see others walking in truth.

III John 4
I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.

It would not be love for me to observe a brother or sister embracing, or passing along error, and to show no regard for them doing so. I seek to be discerning in knowing when to point out error, especially where kingdom doctrine is concerned, for a child cannot be fed meat. I don’t want to choke people who are not yet ready for some truth. God is patient and has a time for everything. Yet, in regard to the myriad of claims relating to this natural world, every saint should be testing these things, examining them to see if they are true.

When I share with others that there is error in what they have forwarded, or written to me, I realize that there is always the potential that some will be offended, or angered. Pride is usually the culprit, for it is present in everyone who has been born of Adam. Pride exists in my flesh. We must be diligent to buffet our bodies and keep them under subjection. We must not let our words and actions be motivated by pride, but put on a spirit of humility.

I know that not all with whom I correspond will respond in the Spirit of Christ. Many are easily provoked. Love has not been perfected in them. If this is the case, I may attempt to share with them further, but if I observe that they are close-minded, and combative, not open to consideration, then I will desist. This too is wisdom, and the instruction of Scriptures.

II Timothy 2:23
But avoid foolish and ignorant disputes, knowing that they generate strife.

Titus 3:9-11
But avoid foolish disputes, genealogies, contentions, and strivings about the law; for they are unprofitable and useless. Reject a divisive man after the first and second admonition, knowing that such a person is warped and sinning, being self-condemned.

The conclusion of the matter is that we should all manifest love of the truth and love for one another. Speak the truth in love. Do not avoid truth for the sake of peace, but neither should we continue to cast pearls before those who are divisive, manifesting a spirit of pride. To do so is vanity.

Romans 12:9
Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good.


Heart4God Website: http://www.heart4god.ws    

Parables Blog: www.parablesblog.blogspot.com    

Mailing Address:
Joseph Herrin
c/o Fair Harbor RV Park
515 Marshallville Road
Perry, GA 31069-3016