Category: Uncategorized

Putin blasts Israel’s ‘disrespect of status-quo’ in call with Abbas

 April 19, 2022- World Israel News

Putin phones Palestinian leader to express disapproval of Israel’s actions on Temple Mount as fallout from Lapid’s statement about Russian “war crimes” grows.

By Lauren Marcus, World Israel News

On the heels of a strongly worded letter to Prime Minister Naftali Bennett demanding that Israel transfer ownership of a church compound in Jerusalem to Russia, President Vladimir Putin phoned Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to slam the Israeli security forces’ recent actions on the Temple Mount.

According to a report from Russian state-owned news agency RIA, Putin discussed a number of subjects with Abbas.

As global food prices soar due to inflation, with the supply chain crisis sparked by the COVID pandemic and the war in Ukraine, Putin reportedly told Abbas that Palestinians will enjoy unfettered access to “Russian wheat, materials, and crops.”

PA-owned state news agency Wafa said that “Putin stressed Russia’s firm position in support of the rights of the Palestinian people, and that Russia will continue to …support…the Palestinian cause in all international forums.”

Wafa reported that Putin expressed his disapproval of Israel’s large-scale arrests of violent rioters on the Temple Mount, saying that he did not agree with “the Israeli practices that prevent worshippers from freely accessing the Al-Aqsa Mosque.”

Putin also was said to have criticized Israel for not “respecting the existing historical status quo at Al-Aqsa Mosque and Jerusalem.”

Moscow has long maintained warm ties with the PA. Dozens of Palestinians in Bethlehem staged a modest pro-Putin rally in Bethlehem’s central square at the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

After Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid slammed Putin for committing “war crimes” in Ukraine, in a major departure from Israeli government policy of remaining neutral during the conflict, Russia fired back with a harsh statement.

“The Israeli Foreign Minister’s statements evoke regret and rejection,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Saturday.

“There was a poorly camouflaged attempt to take advantage of the situation in Ukraine to distract the international community’s attention from one of the oldest unsettled conflicts — the Palestine-Israeli one,” the ministry claimed.

Russia warns Israel: Hand over Jerusalem compound immediately

 April 18, 2022- World Israel News

After conflicting decisions by Israeli prime ministers, Putin demands ownership of church compound in Jerusalem be officially transferred to Russia.

By Lauren Marcus, World Israel News

Prime Minister Naftali Bennett must immediately follow through on a promise given to Russia by his predecessor, Benjamin Netanyahu, and transfer ownership of a Jerusalem church to Moscow, wrote Vladimir Putin in a strongly worded letter to Israel’s premier on Sunday.

The timing of the demand is significant, as it came shortly after Foreign Minister Yair Lapid harshly criticized the Russian invasion of Ukraine, accusing Moscow of war crimes.

Israel also recently voted to remove Russia from the UN’s Human Rights Council, a move which sparked Russian officials to summon the Israeli ambassador in Moscow for a dressing down

The Alexander Nevsky Church, also known as the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, is a prominent holy site for the Russian Orthodox Church, located in the Christian Quarter in the Old City of Jerusalem.

During the Ottoman Empire era, the site was registered as belonging to the “Russian kingdom.” In 2017, Russia requested that Israel officially transfer ownership of the church and its compound to Moscow.

Initially, the Israeli government held that such a change in ownership would need to be investigated and decided upon by the Supreme Court.

But after Israeli-American Na’ama Issachar was imprisoned for traveling through a Russian airport with a small amount of cannabis in her possession in 2020, then-premier Netanyahu agreed to formally return the site back to Moscow.

Israeli land registry records were changed to state that the compound belonged to Russia later that year.

However, after taking office, Bennett reportedly ordered that the decision be reversed and the matter once again be determined by the Supreme Court.

Up until recently, it had appeared that a Russia was willing to wait until the case played out in an Israeli court, but Lapid’s comments make have ended Moscow’s patience.

“Now we are fighting for the return of the Compound, and it is very difficult: we were almost there, we worked for five years, we found all the historical documents, but the situation with Ukraine occurred, and Israel behaved as it often does – playing with both sides, playing ping pong with everyone,” Sergei Stepashin, who is currently visiting Israel and manages Russia’s properties in the Middle East, told media.

Many of us who follow the current events with an eye on Biblical prophecy believe the current war between Russia and Ukraine is a possible prelude to the Biblical war of Gog and Mago in Ezekiel 38-39.  Israel 365 News reported on February 28, 2022, that Russian President Vladimir Putin is recruiting Muslims from Syria and Chechnya to fight along beside his military forces in Ukraine.  Russia has a long history of siding with the radical elements of Islam who hate the West.  During the Cold War, the former Soviet Union supported the radical Muslim elements in the Middle East against Israel. So, this makes these Muslims a natural ally of Russia against the West.  Many Muslims are now praying that Russia will defeat Ukraine and spread its war across the European continent.  They see Putin as a strong leader who will aid them in the defeat of the West, and especially the United States.

The formation of an Islamic coalition is natural for Putin.  It is estimated that there are 20 million Muslims living in Russia.  They comprise about 14 percent of the Russian population.  The Russian Orthodox church is also a part of the radical religious group that supports Putin.  These pagan church leaders have been known to publicly bless the production of Russian nuclear arms.  (See the photo that shows a Russian priest blessing nuclear arms. – Copied from The Moscow Times February 4, 2020.)  Putin claims to be an Orthodox Christian and is hailed as a beloved hero by them.  This is so reminiscent of Hitler in the pre-WWII era.  Nothing is more sinister than a political figure who cloaks himself as a follower of God, while being an agent of deception and death.   

According to Ezekiel 38:5-6, radical elements of the Islamic world will join “Gog” [the ancient Biblical term for the leader of Russia] in his sudden invasion of Israel in the last days.  It seems that with each passing day there is new evidence that this Biblical war of Gog and Mago is on the imminent horizon.  

As I spelled out in my March newsletter (Click the elephant on this page to receive it via e-mail.), I believe all the pieces to the prophetic puzzle in Ezekiel 38-39 indicate this invasion by Russia and its Muslim allies will take place either immediately before or after the Rapture of the church.  There is some solid evidence presented by Ezekiel that the events that follow the sudden and catastrophic defeat of this collation will be accomplished before the Kingdom of God begins at the end of the Tribulation Period.  Ezekiel reports that Israel will burn the weapons left behind by the coalition.  It will take them seven years to burn these weapons (Ezekiel 39:9).  The stated purpose of Israel’s recovery of this war is to “cleanse the land” (39:12, 16).  Many Bible scholars believe this cleansing of the land of Israel must be completed before the Millennial Kingdom can begin.  Naturally, this would indicate this battle must take place at least seven years prior to the end of the Tribulation Period. 

It is all unfolding, just like the Bible has predicted!  “Be ready for the shout that will take us out!”

At this moment in time, once again the world is looking into the tragic face of war.  My heart is torn as I watch the news and see the suffering of the Ukrainian people.  Parents, children, and the elderly in Ukraine are all experiencing the sudden upheaval of every fabric of their lives.  As Christians, we must pray that believers in Ukraine will have a great open door to share the only real hope and peace in the world – faith in Jesus Christ.

One of the strong signs of the end-times is the collapse of peace and security.  While speaking about the last days, Jesus said, “And ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.  For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and [pandemics], and earthquakes, in [different] places” (Matthew 24:6-7).   While speaking about the Tribulation Period, the Apostle Paul wrote, “For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape” (1 Thessalonians 5:3).

This current invasion of Russia into Ukraine illustrates that we are living at a time when our world is in turmoil.  The United States has been the strong nation of freedom and peace around the globe since the end of WWII.  As the U.S. shows signs of weakness, it is sending a message to the tyrants of the world, that now is the time for them to make their move to acquire more power, wealth, and resources.  Therefore, President Vladmir Putin has made his dramatic move against an independent sovereign nation along his border. He wants to control and acquire more energy resources and to restore Russia to its glory days of the former Soviet Union. We can expect other tyrants, like those in China, North Korea, Iran, and Turkey to follow in the footsteps of Russia.

According to the prophetic Word of God, our world is heading into the most dangerous and volatile time in modern history.  The 20^th century saw two World Wars.  During World War II, about 80 million people [3 percent of the global population] died.  During the final seven years before Christ returns to earth from heaven, the world will face human suffering and fatalities that will boggle the human mind.  There will be numerous wars as the final global dictator attacks every nation on the planet to set up his global kingdom.  In the first half of the Tribulation one-half of the global population will die because of wars, famines, pandemics, and an attack by demonic hordes from hell (Revelation 6:8; 9:15).  The last half of the Tribulation will be more horrific than the first half.  Isaiah 24:6 declares, “Therefore, hath the curse devoured the earth, and they that dwell therein are desolate: Therefore, the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men left.”

The final war, Armageddon, will involve every nation on the planet.  This war will end when the Lord Jesus comes back to earth in a display of great power and glory (Matthew 24:30).  He will strike dead all the armed forces that accompany the Antichrist in his attack upon Jerusalem (Revelation 19:11-21).

Jesus will return to earth to establish a global kingdom of peace.  For 1,000 years the world will not experience any conflict or war.  The Bible declares, “And they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore” (Isaiah 2:4).

The Bible teaches that peace treaties will not work in a world filled with depraved souls.  History demonstrates that conflict and war are a part of the sin nature of mankind (James 3:14-17).  Human governments must rule from a position of strength to deter violence and lawlessness (Romans 13:1-4). Therefore, Jesus will rule the world with an iron scepter (Revelation 19:15).  Jesus will rule over depraved humanity during the kingdom from a position of strength.  There will be no peace until the Prince of Peace comes to establish His kingdom of peace!

My friend, our world will not get better.  We are moving into the most dangerous period this world has ever experienced.  The only way to escape is to receive Jesus and exit the world in the Rapture before the Tribulation period begins.  Now is the time to receive Him.  Don’t wait another day!

Until that time comes, cry out to the Lord to give you wisdom to live in a fallen world filled with violence, war, and death.