HEAVEN AND NEAR-DEATH ENCOUNTERS

Good news from beyond the grave

I have been writing to the Sons of Issachar readers for more than one year and many of my readers tell me that what I write is depressing and bad news. Looking back of many of my posts, I think that the feedback is correct!

As I look out today over the plains of the Snowy Mountains region here in Australia, the cold weather has temporarily disappeared and it is a warm autumn day. All looks well with the world until you hear the news:

• Another court case against President Trump;

• Millions pouring across the southern US border, facilitated by the UN and the US government;

• Australian government ads telling people to get their COVID-19 “shots” “topped up”, despite the extensive information about how ineffective and dangerous these “shots” are;

• The war in Ukraine reaching a critical point with threats of nuclear retaliation by Russia after the drone strike on the Kremlin;

• A globalist, multi-faith, climate change alarmist and new world order advocate installed as king in the UK and “head of the protestant church”;’

• Billions of dollars heading off to Ukraine to be laundered in an international corruption scheme;

• The police and justice system being used to act against individual citizens who have been deemed threats to governments;

• The sexualization of children in schools and promotion of gender fluidity;

• Claims of racism being used to foster crime and violence in cities and bring about lawlessness;

• Eviction of farmers off productive farming land in the name of “climate justice”;

• “Rewilding” programs with crazy schemes like wolves being introduced into areas they haven’t been for hundreds or thousands of years;

• “Health care” increasingly controlled by governments together with advocacy of abortion and euthanasia – a type of new eugenics;

• Inflation out of control and governments printing money and propping up big banks.

It’s enough to make you depressed, and these examples were just a few I pulled off the top of my head from my recent reading and viewing.

Is It Best to Live in Denial?

Now, one solution is denial, which as a friend of mine always says – “is not just a river in Egypt”. Perhaps we are best not to know and just go about our days like Basil Fotherington-Tomas at St Custard's, a mythical English boarding school. Fotherington-Tomas is a pupil disdained by the notorious Nigel Molesworth, a fellow pupil and “the scourge of St Custard’s”. St Custards is a fictitious private English school written about by Geoffrey Williams and illustrated by Ronald Searle in the now hard-to-obtain “Down With Skool”. It has been one of my favourite books for the last 60 years and brings me back to my own boarding school days. Molesworth despises Fotherington-Tomas, a dreamy curly-haired boy, who skips around the school saying “hullo clouds, hullo sky” and other “drippy things”. To Nigel, it is clear that Basil is completely out of touch with reality.

I often think of Basil Fotherington-Tomas as I walk around the farm and say “hello chickens, hello horses” and all seems well with life. I realise that I am living in denial.

I have to remind myself that all is not well with the world and it is important to be alert to what is happening around me. Of course, it is difficult to find out what the truth is because there is so much suppression of information that is deemed to be “fake news”. Governments will continue to find ways to stop alternative voices and just today I read about a new office in the Pentagon called the “Influence and Perception Management Office”. These types of government-controlled “information management” offices will proliferate in all countries in coming years.

Can We Have Hope for the Future?

With all these ideas running around in my mind, it is difficult to strike a balance between being cognisant of the signs of the times and the evil afoot, with having hope for the future. It is easy to become depressed when you see all the things we have put our confidence in – the justice system, the education system, government agencies and even the private sector being hijacked to spread a godless and evil left-wing agenda. Deception is increasing and it is effective because by its nature, it is deceiving! Before our eyes, the state is gaining more and more control and clearly has plans to enhance this power further.

Is All lost?

The answer to this question is no, but only if you take a long enough view. Many of those whom I have heard giving messages of hope, believe that somehow “we the people” will rise up and assert our “unalienable rights”. This may be the case but the experience from the lockdowns related to the “pandemic” demonstrated that the large majority thought that governments were keeping us safe and that they needed to be more strict. It demonstrates how propaganda and fear can overcome our desire for independence and freedom.

All Western governments are creating more and more government dependence, and it is difficult to believe that there will be a populist uprising with oppressive governments thrown out. The direction is clear – there will be attempts at increasing government control and a move towards a global government in the name of peace and security.

The Antichrist

This idea sounds far-fetched until you read various Old Testament prophets (particularly Daniel) and the Book of Revelation (which amazingly is the only book of the Bible that promises a blessing just from reading it and keeping those things written in it – see Revelation 1:3).

At the big picture level, the Bible tells us that an evil man will arise (the antichrist) and that he will seek global dominion and will persecute all believers in Christ. Eventually, he will institute mandatory worship of himself. It will not be possible to buy or sell without taking a special “mark”, name or number associated with this evil man (Revelation 13:17). This idea of a “mark” has puzzled Bible scholars for 2,000 years but today it is easy to see how such a “mark” could be implemented. I believe that we have even seen a trial run, with the attempts to mandate “green” or digital passports and in the future, a biometric chip.

To reach such a point in history, there will have to be a global system and currency, a worldwide dictatorship and a one-world religion. It’s possible to see all these things happening even in the near-future, by understanding the times we live in. According to the Bible, ultimately, those who resist will be killed as the antichrist establishes himself as world ruler and “god”.

So as I look at the signs of the times, I can draw a dotted line towards the rise of the antichrist and a global government where individual freedom will just be a distant memory. We should resist the globalist agenda wherever we can. Still, ultimately the terrible events associated with the rise of the antichrist are on God’s timeline and will result in the return of Jesus, which is a cause for joy and great hope.

The Return of Jesus

Back to my original point – many depressing things are happening around the world today, even in countries like Australia and New Zealand, which once were bastions of individuality and freedom. From my study of the Bible over the last 20 years, I think that this is to be anticipated as we move towards the end of the age and the return of Jesus. Jesus warned that we won’t know the day or the hour but we can prepare ourselves by understanding the times and the seasons (Matthew 24:36-51). Jesus likened the time of his return to the period before Noah and the Great Flood, when no-one apart from Noah and his family was prepared. However, because we don’t know the day and hour, we can pray for God to overthrow wicked governments and be prepared to stand against them. It may be that just like the planned destruction of the great city of Nineveh at the time of the prophet Jonah, repentance of the people may lead to God staying His hand.

In any case, for those who put their trust in Jesus, we can have hope that wicked rulers will eventually be overcome. Benjamin Franklin understood the challenge ahead when he wrote to Jean-Baptist Leroy in 1789 :

“Our new Constitution is now established, and has an appearance that promises permanency; but in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” Franklin has proved to be prescient and accurate in his assessment over the last 250 years. It is wise not to put our hope in any human “saviour” but we can put our faith in Jesus’ return, even though we don’t know when this will be.

So, at least in the big picture, we can have hope in the return of Jesus, who is alive today and with His Father in heaven. He will return to bring justice and defeat death. Well – that seems great (even if not believed by most) but what if we die tomorrow?

Life After Death

Ever since Jesus appeared, risen from the dead, in an altered human form to hundreds of his disciples (see Matthew 28, Mark 16, Luke 28, John 20), those who believe in Jesus have had a hope that sustains beyond the grave. As I was thinking about the hope that there is life beyond death, this hope is one that should strengthen and sustain us. I have long thought about this, and I was very much taken by Jesus’ comment to the thief crucified beside him. Luke writes about this in his description of the crucifixion of Jesus. Two criminals were crucified with Jesus and we are told:

“Then one of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed Him, saying, “If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us.”

But the other, answering, rebuked him, saying, “Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong.” Then he said to Jesus, “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.”

And Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.” (Luke 23:39-43).

I don’t think that Jesus was offering false hope just to bring comfort to a man dying beside him. He was telling him something remarkable – this criminal who put his faith in Jesus, would live beyond the cross and be in Paradise that day! In effect, while the body died, the soul or essence of this man, would go to paradise. Death is not the end but as Winston Churchill would have said, it is merely the end of the beginning.

Life after death has always been a mystery but it is clear that Jesus’ remarkable resurrection and appearance to his disciples over a period of 6 weeks emboldened a group of frightened fishermen. This small group of men and women changed the Western world as they spread Jesus’ resurrection message throughout the Roman Empire.

With Jesus’ return, remarkably, there will be a bodily resurrection, and it will be a resurrection to judgment (John 5:29). Over thousands of years, God’s future righteous judgment against wickedness has been powerful in turning people towards Him. For those who put their trust in Jesus, it is a source of great hope.

St Paul writes:

“Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed— in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.” (1 Corinthians 15:51-53).  

None of us can stand before Jesus and give an account of ourselves without condemnation. We are dependent on putting our hope and trust in Him, the One who took the punishment we deserve.

Now this seems a little esoteric, but if we get back to the thief on the cross, Jesus said “today you will be with me in Paradise”. When we die, our souls, our very essence must live on in another realm – the realm of heaven, another dimension.

Imagine Heaven

I suppose that this is a long-winded way of getting to my main point in this edition of Sons of Issachar News. I have been reading a quite remarkable book by John Burke (2015), “Imagine Heaven: Near-Death Experiences, God’s Promises, and the Exhilarating Future That Awaits You”. Burke’s book has sold more than 500,000 copies and is based on almost 1,000 near-death stories that he has heard or read about over a period of 35 years. Burke writes:

“I started seeing amazing commonalities across stories—intriguing, detailed descriptions by doctors, professors, commercial airline pilots, children, people from around the globe. Each gave a slightly different angle to what started to look like a very similar picture.”

I found the book fascinating, no matter what belief system you have, because there is strong evidence that there is consciousness and remarkable out-of-body experiences of people who have died and been revived. These are called near-death experiences (NDEs).

There is an interesting video from 2016 with John Burke about his book that is worth viewing. The video clip is about 15 min long:

The interview provides an overview of some of the key points in his book.

In his book, Burke quotes data from Dr Jeffrey Long, a radiation oncologist, who has collected and analysed 1,300 NDEs from around the world. He found the following:

• Out-of-body experience: separation of consciousness from the physical body (75.4%)

• Heightened senses (74.4% said “more conscious and alert than normal”)

• Intense and generally positive emotions or feelings (76.2% “incredible peace”)

• Passing into or through a tunnel (33.8%)

• Encountering a mystical or brilliant light (64.6%)

• Encountering other beings, either mystical beings or deceased relatives or friends (57.3%)

• A sense of alteration of time or space (60.5%)

• Life review (22.2%)

• Encountering unworldly (“heavenly”) realms (52.2%)

• Encountering or learning special knowledge (56%)

• Encountering a boundary or barrier (31%)

• A return to the body (58.5% were aware of a decision to return)

There was consistency in most of the NDE stories and even evidence of people born blind being able to see things in their surroundings, where they had never seen before.

In the book there are wonderful descriptions of the city of God in heaven. Burke concludes his book as follows:

“..you will realize that all of the history of earth was merely the prelude to the first chapter of the real story of Life that’s just beginning. And the present Heaven with all its wonders is merely chapter one of God’s Story of Life. Greater things are yet to come with a new story of Heaven and earth renewed. You will realize that all the struggle, all the suffering, all the painful challenges, every act of faith, service, and sacrifice done on this earth produced for us “an eternal glory that far outweighs them all” (2 Corinthians 4:17). The life you always knew you were meant to live—that Life is just beginning. The most wonderful experiences imaginable lie before you. Imagine Heaven! Live for it now!”.

After I read the book and then looked at the interview with John Burke, I was reminded of a talk I saw many years ago with Ian McCormack, a New Zealand surfer who had an NDE after being stung by box jellyfish on the island of Mauritius. The interview is almost 90 min long but is compelling viewing.

Ian describes his experience as he edged close to death from the toxin of the box jellyfish. Ian was an atheist, but he remembered that his mother, a Christian, had taught him that if he got into real trouble, to call out to God. He remembered a key verse from the Bible: “For whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Joel 2:32; Romans 10:13). Ian’s own experience was similar to many of the experiences of people who had NDEs but also included an experience of hell after he had died. His story is extraordinary and he tells it in a simple and real way. If you haven’t seen his story before, it is worthwhile taking 90 min to view the video.

It is difficult to do justice to the challenging topic of life after death and judgment. What I have tried to do this week is to acknowledge the challenges we face as evil seems to be gaining the upper hand among the nations. It is depressing and it is shocking. However, it is not the end of the story by any means. There is a Coming King who will rule with justice and authority. In the meantime, it seems wise to learn to be His friend as we put our hope and trust in Him.

The stories from Imagine Heaven provide real evidence that this life is not all there is and that there is much more to come. It is life that is more wonderful and more extraordinary than anything we can imagine. I recommend reading or listening to John Burke’s book. It will encourage you and stimulate you to think about this area of life that we all tend to ignore – death!

Death is certain but there is a great hope that we have for life beyond the veil.

STORIES THAT CAUGHT MY ATTENTION THIS WEEK

A lot has been happening this last week but my attention has been focused on the US. The coronation of King Charles has had a lot of publicity and I may put together some thoughts on this next week and on the challenges facing the United Kingdom. However, the US, as the last bastion of freedom, is under continuing assault and I have focused on US stories that I thought were of wider significance and also briefly alert readers to the 75th anniversary of the foundation of Israel, which was not widely covered by the mainstream media.

The Illegal Migrant Surge at the US Border

Ever since Joe Biden was inaugurated as US President, there has been a surge in illegal immigrants at the US southern border. In effect, the Biden administration has looked the other way as millions have streamed across the southern border and caused chaos and mayhem. This is not incompetence but seems part of a broader policy to change US demographics. It also is part of a larger UN policy where “everybody has the right to seek asylum and seek safe refuge…”.

The millions (some estimates are almost 7 million in the last 2.5 years) are mainly coming to seek a better life in the US where there are myriad handouts. Various cartels are making hundreds of millions of dollars from shuttling people across the border and there is horrific child trafficking taking place. Most of the media and the Biden administration are uninterested but the impact in border towns is horrific.

The Florida Sentinel reported about what is taking place at the border in an article in late April. The story is much worse than most of us have imagined. Here is what Jonas Vesterberg has written in the Florida Sentinel:

“Michael Yon is a former Green Beret – and one of the world’s most accomplished war correspondents. Right now, he is at the Darien Gap in Panama – a hub for human trafficking and illegal immigration. This is where migrants are put on buses to take them further on the journey where the destination is the U.S. southern border.

The Darien Gap camp is a transit point for migrants coming from all corners of the world. It is largely managed by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) – a United Nations agency that promotes and facilitates migration from developing countries and China to the West.

“This is weaponized migration,” Michael Yon tells The Florida Standard. “Weaponized migration is being used to change the U.S. demographic, and it’s going on in many parts of the world. It’s clearly going to destroy Europe and the United States,” Yon says.

Many of the migrants processed through the Darien Gap and loaded onto buses there are Chinese nationals.”

The report provides further assessment from Michael Yon,

“Michael Yon says that up to 30 to 40 high-end tour coaches leave the camps each day. These buses full of migrants just left toward America from Darien, Panama. Any idea the Darien is closed is false. I made this video a couple minutes ago.

“They drive Highway 1 up to a camp in northwestern Panama near the city David. Then they go in smaller buses towards the Costa Rican border, where they are dropped off. From there they enter Costa Rica and continue north,” Yon explains.

He says that the current rate of migrants processed through the Darien Gap is around 400,000 individuals.

“It’s a serious operation that is well-organized, but it’s ad-hoc as well. There’s a program between Costa Rica and Panama called Controlled Flow, which was brokered by the United States. It makes for migrants to move through Costa Rica in a more or less orderly fashion,” Yon says.

“The Chinese are coming through here in large numbers, about 200 per day and increasing, heading to the U.S. One Chinese man said he had tried to get into Florida by buying a boat in the Bahamas. He paid 5,000 dollars for it but ran out of gas and was picked up by the U.S. Coast Guard. The Bahamians deported him back to China, but he got off the plane in Cuba and then went to Quito, Ecuador. Then to the Darien Gap.”

The whole illegal migrant operation seems to be part of a bigger plan by the US government and UN to change the United States. Undoubtedly, it will bring further crime and violence to the US.

Susan Rice Replaced as Biden “Domestic Policy Advisor”

The notorious Trilateral Commission was founded in 1973 by David Rockefeller. The organization is very influential in Western politics and the group says on its website that it brings together “senior policymakers, business leaders, and representatives of media and academe to discuss and propose solutions to some of the world’s toughest problems”.

The organization is extremely influential and has a globalist agenda that is being implemented by its acolytes throughout North America, Europe and Asia. I noted last year that the UK Labour Leader, Sir Keir Starmer, had found his way onto the Trilateral Commission (the only UK parliamentarian to do so). Clearly Sir Keir is being groomed to be the next UK Prime Minister.

Susan Rice is a Trilateral Commission member and as Biden’s Domestic Policy Advisor, brought the priorities of the Obama administration to the US government. Rice leaves her post later this month and will be replaced by Neera Tanden, who previously ran the left-wing Centre for American Progress. Neera Tanden has a chequered history – see this link and undoubtedly will continue to promote the extreme left-wing agenda of the Biden administration.

It is interesting that in the last few months, as Biden’s approval ratings have plummeted, his chief of staff and domestic policy advisor have resigned. While Biden has announced that he will run for president again, his key advisors seem to have made the decision that it is unlikely that he will make it to the start line. It may be that the rats are leaving the sinking ship.

The Biden Crime Family

Ever since the notorious “laptop from hell” appeared months prior to the last US Presidential election, stories have circulated about large sums being paid to Biden family members. Joe’s son Hunter was at the centre of the stories with money coming to Hunter from a range of foreign sources, including China and Ukraine. Now, James Comer, who is the Republican Chair of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, has obtained bank records that demonstrate millions of dollars flowing from various foreign sources to members of the Biden family.

A story was released this week by the Oversight Committee which stated:

“The Oversight Committee has obtained thousands of pages of financial records revealing the Biden family and associates’ complicated network of companies set up during Joe Biden’s vice presidency and the millions the Bidens received from foreign sources. The financial records also reveal how the Bidens used complicated transactions to hide payments from foreign nationals, including CCP-linked associates, and provide clear indications of influence peddling schemes during then-Vice President Biden’s tenure.  

“The Bidens intentionally sought to hide, confuse, and conceal their influence peddling schemes, but bank records don’t lie. The Bidens made millions from foreign nationals providing what seems to be no services other than access and influence. From the thousands of records we’ve obtained so far, we know the Biden family set up over a dozen companies when Joe Biden was vice president. The Bidens engaged in many intentionally complicated financial transactions to hide these payments and avoid scrutiny. In at least one instance, the Bidens’ CCP-linked associates took steps to conceal the source of the payment to the Bidens.

Israel’s 75^th Foundation Celebrations

Israel celebrated the 75^th anniversary of its foundation at the end of April this year. This is a notable event, given that the odds have been stacked against Israel since its inception and its Arab neighbours have sought its destruction ever since Israel’s foundation in 1948. Most Bible scholars up until that time did not believe that the Jews would ever be regathered in their ancestral home, despite it being prophesied in the Bible.

Not surprisingly, around the time of the celebrations, there have been many internal and external attacks on the Jewish state as the state of Israel is an offence to many. The Jews are God’s chosen people and a state of Israel will continue to attract spiritual and physical attack. Internally, there is much opposition to the new government of Benjamin Netanyahu and externally, attacks have increased from Gaza and Lebanon. It is worthwhile following stories in the Jewish News Syndicate that provides the latest news from Israel.

Undoubtedly, these attacks will continue and it will be a challenging juggling act for Netanyahu to deal with the internal and external enemies. Fortunately, when you have God on your side, you are in a majority and so while there are many challenges ahead for Israel, God has a plan that has stood the test of time.