The Thirty-Seventh (Boldness)

All praise be to our Abba, Father, King of the Universe! I hope you guys had a great week. I know things have been intensifying all over the world, but remember these are all the birth pains of the end of the age. Pray for Israel and her people. Bless them and stand with them (Genesis 12:3).

This week we're going to talk about boldness, but first I just want to offer some things to think about regarding these birth pains we're seeing. I know I've mentioned the difference in the world today from all previous times where there were those suggesting His coming is near. Namely, the fact that at the drop of a hat the whole world shut down, something never seen before. I believe I've also mentioned seeing more division between races, and its correlation to Matthew 24:7 where the Greek word for nation actually is referencing different races. But I think it's important to also take a look at nature and its role in these end time events.

Matthew 24 also talks about earthquakes in diverse places, and you can see the historical data showing that earthquakes have been increasing in number and intensity recently. We also see our sun activity increasing as we are in the next solar cycle which won't see its peak until July 2025. Our solar activity affects our weather and climate more than some scientists would like to admit, so we will definitely see more and more powerful and diverse weather. But truthfully, the thing that has me most convicted that we are nearing His return is something I never considered would come to pass in the way it is today.

I'm sure most of you don't follow the length of a day much. I mean, after all, since the start of measuring the length of a day with precision it's only increased, so there hasn't really been much news there. Days have always been longer and longer. However, in 2020, for the first time, the length of the year was shorter by 1.3 milliseconds. Now that may not seem like much, but it's looking like 2021 is going to be several magnitudes shorter. As in, right now they're calculating shorter by 90.33 milliseconds. That is a significant change for such a large mass in such a short period of time. I believe this is the fulfillment of Matthew 24:22, the shortening of days for the elect's sake, and the days will continue to be shorter until His coming.

Now that's just what I'm feeling, and I thought I'd provide it so you can think about it and decide for yourself. But regardless of what you come to, we all can agree that no matter what we are getting closer to His second coming. And more and more we need to exercise boldness in our message of the gospel to the world.

Something that occurred after I was brought back to Him and His light, was that I started feeling a calmness and relaxation in everyday life. To go along with that, I also felt a push of boldness to spread His Word. Hence this newsletter and the website! I thought it was all due to my new found trust in Him, but as I continued to read Foundational Truths for Christian Living, by Derek Prince, I came across the true source of this boldness: the Holy Spirit!

In Acts 4:31, we see that the Holy Spirit filled the apostles and gave them boldness to speak the Word of God. One of the definitions given for the Greek word for boldness, parresia, is "free and fearless confidence." Doesn't that just make you smile? In the world we're in today, with fear running rampant and our freedoms being taken away, we get free and fearless confidence by the power of the Holy Spirit to spread His Word.

Not only that, the apostles were given "great power" to give the testimony of Jesus' resurrection (Acts 4:33). The people they spoke to were so filled with the Holy Spirit, they became of one heart and one soul, saying what they possessed was not theirs but everyone's. They distributed everything so everyone had what they needed (Acts 4:32, 34,35).

Take a moment to think about that. These people had such faith they gave all they had, trusting God would ensure they were taken care of and supporting those in the body that were in need. Also notice that the apostles did not tell them they had to do it. It was not forced upon them. This movement of giving started with "the multitude of them that believed."

The Holy Spirit can do a lot of things if we just let Him. He can give the insecure boldness to speak the Word. He can give peace and comfort to the nervous and worried. He can give joy to the depressed. Let Him work in you, so you can be who God made you to be!

We hope you have a wonderful week! Shabbat Shalom and God bless you!

-Rob and Sara Gene