Understanding the Role of the Stars

Today’s Topic: Understanding the Role of the Stars

Scripture: Genesis 1:14,15; Matthew 24:17,30; Numbers 24:17; Matthew 2:1,2

Greetings Kingdom Citizens

In the last message we left off talking about the star that guided the wise men to the newborn King, Jesus. And we stated that the wise men said that they were guided by His star. So what is it about stars that are so important? Well let’s go back to the beginning and see. Look at Genesis 1:14:

“ And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and for years”

Now how many times have we read this and did not think twice about what God said when He said “Let them be for signs..”? The sun, moon and stars are all objects and things that illuminate the day and the nighttime sky and they are also there for signs, seasons, days and years. Now what this tells me is the heavens (stars, moon and sun) is God’s billboard for us to know when something or someone from the eternal is about to impact the Earth. Now the human study of the stars trace all the way back in history to the kingdoms of Samaria and Babylon. Now you may wonder how did these stars get their names? The names were primarily given by the Arabs, Romans and Greeks who also studied the stars after the Samarians and Babylonians. To give you an example of one or two constellation of stars that are Arabic are Zuben Elgenubi and Al Zimach. So what we have established is that the heavens of this realm are for signs to the Earth that the eternal is impacting or about to impact the Earth. The study of the stars and even their naming, go back as far as Samaria and Babylon to the Arabs of the Middle East and the Romans of the Roman Empire (before Christ). Now what I want to show you is this correlation in what the wise men saw in the east and how they knew that the King of the Jews had been born on Earth. Now I want to walk you to the wise men in scripture to show there has always been in scripture the prophecy of a star being the sign that Jesus, the Messiah was on Earth. Let’s start with Numbers 24:15-17.

Numbers 24:15-17

Here we have the words of Baalam and the verse I want you to lock in on is verse 17. Now in verse 17 we have these powerful words:

“I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: There shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel…”

Now who is it that they shall see? Jesus. Baalam then says in the vision that he shall behold him but not yet. Now the revelation, there shall come a Star out of Jacob. Now here is one of the first references to Jesus and a Star. So the ancients new of this scripture and had written knowledge of a star signifying the Messiah. Now Numbers is one of the five books of Moses so this is obviously written information so that the elders, scribes and chief priests can know that there will be a star in the sky signifying the Messiah has come.

Now I must emphasize this and we will continue this wonderful revelation in the next message, God always warns and prepares His people for the impact of the eternal on the natural. Take a look at some of the things that God warned mankind about before it happened:

1. Promise of Death from Sin – Adam

2. The Flood – Noah

3. The Coming of the Messiah – The Law and the Prophets

4. The Return of the Kingdom of God to Earth – John the Baptist

5. The Return of the Lord – Jesus Himself

6. The Demonic Kingdom on Earth: Daniel and the Apostle John (Revelation)

Now these are major events and there are thousands of others I could use but to keep us in focus we will stick with the first coming of Jesus. In the next message we will continue to look at evidence and proof of the stars being set for signs in heavens for us to know when the eternal will impact the earth.

At the Father’s Service,

Elder Calvin Calhoun Jr.

Signs in the Sun, Moon and Stars

Today’s Topic: Signs in the Sun, Moon and Stars

Scripture: Genesis 1:14,15; Matthew 24:17,30; Numbers 24:17; Matthew 2:1,2

Greetings Kingdom Citizens

Now in the past few messages we talked about the shaking of the heavens and the demonic kingdom falling out of the eternal heavens into the realm of time and space on Earth. But the question is when will this happen and what are the signs? Now we talked about the signs in the heavens, do we believe that there will be signs in the Earth to let us know when these things will happen? Absolutely! One thing that is consistent about God, when dealing with mankind, there is always a warning of an event or consequence that will come about either by sin or just by mere sequence of events in time. Now, what do you think would have happen if God did not warn mankind about the flood? Then mankind would cease to exist and the program of God to have sons, fails. God knows our pattern of thinking and reasoning and He knows if He did not give us a sign or warning then we would not be able to stand when events in our lives happen that will challenge our very existence. The Return of the Lord is no different. So what are the signs in the earthly heavens (those we can see) that will tells us of eternal events impacting time? Well let’s start with the statement of Jesus in Matthew 24:30:

“And then shall appear a sign of the Son of Man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory”

Now Jesus is telling you a sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven. Well what type of sign? Before we answer this we need to understand which heaven Jesus is talking about. Jesus is talking about the earthly heaven, the stars, sun and planets we can see. So we will receive a sign prior to the Lord returning. Has there ever been a time where this has happen such as a sign in the earthly heavens? Yes and you will find this to be unique when I explain this. Let’s look at Numbers 24:17. Here in this scripture we see a prophecy of Jesus but in the same scripture we see these words: “There shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre will rise out of Jacob.” Now if the prophecy is talking about Christ then in this scripture there is a star that is associated with the coming of the Lord. Well there are thousands of stars, how will you know the difference between those and this one star. Let’s jump to Matthew 2:1,2. Here we see the story of the wise men and they are inquiring about the King of the Jews that was born. Now I know at Christmas time we read this all the time but we miss the subtle things in this very scripture that is crucial. How did the wise men know to look for the Newborn King of the Jews at that exact time? Well look at their answer in verse 2: “We have seen HIS STAR in the east and are come to worship him”. So the wise men knew that there was one particular star that when it was visible to them they knew that the King of the Jews had been born.

Now what that means is that the world was given a sign to know that Christ had been born. But unless you know and understand what to look for as signs of the return of the Lord, you will be lost. Now I need to stop here and in the next message we will look at this particular star that the wise men saw and understand that we will be given signs in the heavens to know something from the eternal is now impacting time. But we need to understand how these wise men know this star from all the others.

At the Father’s Service,

Elder Calvin Calhoun Jr.

The Demonic Kingdom on Earth

Today’s Topic: The Signs in the Heavens: The Demonic Kingdom on Earth

Scripture: Haggai 2:6; Revelation 12:7-12

Greetings Kingdom Citizens

One of the greatest myths and mistakes that have been made in the Christian faith is believing every demonic attack is a personal one between you and Satan. We have extensively studied that the demonic is a kingdom themselves (Ephesians 6:12). The ruler or head of that kingdom is Satan. Now he is not the only one in the demonic kingdom. One-third of the original angels from Heaven that were kicked out are also in this realm. Now there are about 153 countries on the Earth that can be ruled by one of these fallen angels and it leaves a multitude to just roam and defile the earth with deception and lies. When we think with that concept we began to allow the spirit of discernment to show us or differentiate a demon from the Holy Spirit. When we learn that these spirits can talk to you and give you information then you can appreciate the importance of knowing the voice of the Lord. But at this current time the demonic kingdom is eternal and invisible and these creatures enjoy a slight advantage of invisibility and power over us. This is why having the Holy Spirit is so vital and having a relationship with the Holy Spirit is even more important because there are people who have the Holy Spirit but have no relationship with Him. Now after all of this, there is a day coming that the powers of Heaven will be shaken and what can be moved will be and we discussed and concluded that the demonic kingdom will no longer enjoy invisibility but will be cast into the visible world with power. Now I do not want you to think this is just talk, so let’s look at the scripture for confirmation.

Revelation 12:7-12

Verse 7-8

In this scripture we see this clash between the angels of God lead by Michael the archangel and the dragon, satan and his angels. So it is evident that this is a war and it will be the final climatic war in the sense of the demonic staying in the heavenly. How do we know? Verse 8 tells us that the demonic did not prevail and neither was there place found any more in heaven. So if the demonic is not in the heavens where are they?

Verse 9

Here is our answer and it starts out describing who was kicked out of the heavenly and where they were thrown to. The Devil, that old serpent, the dragon, Satan (what a set of names) was cast out into the Earth, AND HIS ANGELS WERE CAST OUT WITH HIM. Now I do not care how someone tries to picture this or shape it. The Word is clear when He says, that Satan and his angels will be cast out into the Earth. No more invisibility, but nowhere here is it stated that they would not have power. So imagine this, what do you think the human race will see and feel when these demonic fallen angels are no longer invisible but face-to-face with mankind? Bone-chilling isn’t it. But the next scripture is a wonderful one despite the horror and wrath that will come to the Earth.

Verse 10-11

In this wonderful scripture when demonic kingdom is cast into the Earth, look what now happens: “Now is come the salvation and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ.” Ok this should make you feel good inside. The full power of the Kingdom of God will now be given to the saints when the demonic hit the Earth. Right now we all have the Holy Ghost but the power is imparted to us to complete a certain task, but the full power will be given to the saints when the demonic are on Earth. When the saints received this power the scripture says they overcame the demonic by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony and they loved not their lives unto death. See no longer will these saints care or try to protect their lives because they understand that they are fully empowered and will lay down their lives doing the perfect will of God with the full power of the Kingdom.

Verse 12

Now God tells the heavens to rejoice when this happens but then He gives a warning in the same verse. Woe to the inhibiters of the earth because the devil is come down to you having great wrath because he knows that he hath but a short time. Now this is one of the unique scriptures in the Bible because now we see the devil and the demonic no longer associated with the eternal but with time. No wonder the devil will be so angry because now he is subject to time and he knows that he will die in the eternal lake of fire.

Now with all of this, how will we know when this will happen or will we know when it will happen? The answer is we will know and there will be signs in sun, stars and moon in our heavens will tell us when.

At the Father’s Service,

Elder Calvin Calhoun Jr.

Fallen Angels and the Demonic Kingdom Part 2

Today’s Topic: Signs in the Heavens: Fallen Angels and the Demonic Kingdom Part 2

Scripture: Deuteronomy 18:10,11; Psalm 12:8; 2 Chronicles 7:14;

Greetings Kingdom Citizens

I know we talked extensively of how the fallen angels receive authority to rule over populations by the leaders of that population yielding their authority to these fallen angels through decision making and worship. Now we talked also about how these civilizations and nations would appease the gods through blood sacrifices and worship. Now I want to add to this because before we solve the problem we need to identify all problems. The sacrificing of children does not only include blood sacrifice and in Deuteronomy 18:10,11 God tells us other ways we allow or make our children pass through the fire. Those who practice divination, observer of times (zodiac signs), an enchanter, witch, charmer, consulter with familiar spirits, a wizard or a necromancer. In certain African nations, witch doctors are telling people who have AIDS, which is devastating the landscape, to have intercourse with virgin and they would be healed. Now as backward as that may seem that is the culture and when it is allowed to go uncheck and without Kingdom influence then this cycle continues under the authority of the demonic spirits. In addition when we condone and allow our children to watch and listen to these movies, t.v. programs, entertainers (music or television) we permit the fallen spirits to rule. Let me show you this, Psalms 12:8: “The wicked walk on every side, when the vilest men are exalted”. When we lift people up who are sinners and do not care about the true and living God as evident in their lives then we allow the wicked (fallen spirits) to walk freely. So when we put someone in office, regardless of race or color, who yields themselves to promoting or accepting homosexuality or condoning abortion then we have yielded our nation through the leader to the authority of the demonic. Do you know that God will actually allow and even appoint the lowest of men to show a nation its sins? Let’s look at Daniel 4:17:

This matter is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the holy ones: to the INTENT THAT THE LIVING MAY KNOW THAT THE MOST HIGH RULETH IN THE KINGDOM OF MEN, AND GIVETH IT TO WHOMSOEVER HE WILL, AND SETTETH UP OVER IT THE BASEST OF MEN.

The basest of men is the low of the low and it is to let the nation know through a mirror (the leader) the sins they are committing against the Most High. Now sin is disobedience or rebellion and this is what the fallen angels tried to do in Heaven and is what got them exiled out of the Highest Heaven. Now after all of that, what is the solution? How do we heal this problem? Very simple!

2 Chronicles 6:14: “If my people who are called by my name (sons of God), shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land”.

Unless we as a nation and a people really get back to God not just in prayer but in actions and allow God to appoint us a Kingdom-lead person in office then the nation will always be under demonic rule. So if you want the nation to be under the firm rule of the Most High then the nation needs to turn to God and allow Him to appoint His leader. A great example was when the children of Israel was being led by God and noticed that these other nations had a visible King that ruled over them, they pleaded with God to give them a King they could see. Now God said I will be your king and you will be my people and the people said they wanted a king they can see like everyone else. Kingdom citizens, never settle for less than what God wants to give you. So God let them select a king and they chose Saul. Now Saul had a little problem and it was false god worship and Samuel had to inform Saul that he has sinned against the Most High. Later on Saul would fall and God will appoint David. Now David had his own problems but David loved God and chased after the heart of God. Under David, Israel prospered and grew. Even though David would fall due to disobedience, it does not go without saying the difference between Saul, the people appointed king and David, God’s appointed King. Furthermore it would be the King David throne that Jesus would sit on and not the King Saul throne. We as Kingdom citizens are called-out to be the voices of the Lord in a world full of sin. We are called–out to be light for all to see. Not a light as ourselves but allow the light of Christ to shine in a world ruled by darkness and allow those in darkness to see the light which is Christ and be drawn to Him. The demonic fallen angels hate this and there is no wonder why the demonic is fighting Christ on every side from trying to ban prayer and suppression of the celebration of Christ, His birth and His resurrection. No matter how much darkness there is in a room, when a little light shines, no matter how little it is, the darkness cannot consume it nor contain it. The fallen angels will never consume nor contain the Word of God, no matter how they may try. They may have the saints killed and persecuted but God will continue to have children preaching and displaying the Kingdom of God unto the end of the Age. Are you willing and able to stand up to the demonic. Greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world. If you keep that and know that, then there is no need to fear them.

At the Father’s Service,

Elder Calvin Calhoun Jr.

The Fallen Angels and the Demonic Kingdom

Today’s Topic: The Signs in the Heavens: The Fallen Angels and the Demonic Kingdom

Scripture: Matthew 24:29; Haggai 2:6-9; Daniel 10:13-21; Revelation 12:8-12

Greetings Kingdom Citizens

I know in past messages we have talked about the fallen angels, including Satan will be cast into the Earth from the second heaven (Revelation 12:9). Now today I would like to shed some light on these fallen spirits and show you what they are doing even to this day and what their impact on coming to the Earth means for the saints at that appointed time. But let’s look at the book of Daniel and I want to explain a few points and then end at the coming of the demonic to the Earth.

In Daniel 10:13-21 we have the angel Gabriel making his appearance to Daniel as the answered prayer of Daniel. But when we look at verse 13 we see that Gabriel tells Daniel that he was held up by the prince of the kingdom of Persia for 21 days. Now here is a question: We have an angel being held up by a prince, are not angels eternal creatures? Yes! So how can they be princes also? To firmly explain this we need to jump to Ephesians 6:12. When you look at this scripture we see these words: 1. Principalities (Areas), 2. Powers, 3. Rulers (Authority), 4. Spiritual Wickedness (Forces or Armies). Now if you look at these four words, these describe a kingdom. So the second heaven is the seat of the Demonic Kingdom. Now the key to understanding this is the words Principalities and Rulers of Darkness, Areas and Authority. So these fallen angels area of authority is this world. That is why the scripture says the rulers of the darkness of THIS WORLD. So the prince of the kingdom of Persia was a fallen angel. That is why he could hold up or fight the angel Gabriel on His way to deliver the answer to Daniel’s prayer. Now when Gabriel got held up in verse 13, Michael, one of the chief princes came to help him. The Archangel Michael is the chief war angel. Now let us skip to verse 20 because I want to show you how these fallen demonic spirits have authority in the Earth. In verse 20 Gabriel is saying to Daniel that he has to return to fight with the prince of Persia. The Prince of Persia is not a video game, nor a movie. It was a fallen demonic angel. That is why Michael said he had to return to fight the prince of Persia. Now Michael says he has to fight the prince of Persia and after that, then the prince of Grecia (Greece) will come. Now this blew my mind when read this was in verse 27 where it was noted in the scripture (Book) of truth that this will happen. Michael told Daniel that after the Persian Kingdom has declined and been destroyed then the nation of Greece will arise with a demonic fallen angel as it’s ruler or prince. May not seem interesting but let me explain. During this time while Daniel was in Babylon, this was also the time of the Persians and Medes kingdoms. Now the Kingdom or Nation of Greece has not been formed yet. The nation of Greece was separate Ionian states or cities at the time. Michael showed Daniel the coming of the nation of Greece 300 years before the nation was even formed by the changing of the princes or fallen angels which have authority over that population. So Brother Calvin are you saying that fallen angels have authority over populations of the Earth? Yes absolutely! But how? Demons or fallen angels can only do what you allow them to do. You have to yield authority to them. When the leader of a nation or tribe yields him or herself to these demonic spirits then they also yield authority. Let me give you some great examples.

Ancient Greek cultures would worship the various gods of greek mythology. These ancient deities were of course fallen angels and because they were worshipped as gods the leaders yielded their authority to the fallen spirit. This is why the prince of Grecia that was to come was a fallen angel, the one Michael spoke of to Daniel. But this has gone on for thousands of years and even today. Many times God will call judgment on an entire civilization. Why would God do that? God hates the sacrifice of children to false gods. Deuteronomy 18:9,10 tells us the God does not want the children of Israel to do after the abominations of those nations and God then describes the abomination as this in verse 10: Do not let your children pass through the fire (sacrifice)…” and then He talks about various forms of dark magick and sacrifice. The reason God brings judgment upon whole civilizations is because He is tired of the blood sacrifice of children to these false gods.

One example is the ancient Aztec civilization that was destroyed by the 15^th century settlers at the bay of Cortez. This civilization would make deals with these false gods (fallen angels) and sacrifice the blood of humans to appease the gods they serve. On many of their buildings they have pictures of the gods, whether symbolic or what they saw. God makes the decision to destroy the entire civilization because of the gross loss of blood to these fallen angels. Not only the Aztec civilization but even in the ancient city of Babylon which is in modern day Iraq. But even though these civilizations are destroyed there are current nations that are being governed by fallen angels because the leader has yielded his authority through the decisions he or she makes to the fallen angels. Nations that permit homosexuality and abortion will be judged. Those nations that enslave people through racism and oppress people by religious oppression will be judged. I will say this that America has yielded itself to the governing and rulership of the demonic spirits. Through our condoning of the spirit of homosexuality and abortion (murder) and false god worship through leaders who are a part of secret societies and other religions put the nation under the rule of the demonic spirits.

I want to pick up on this topic in the next message because there is a solution to this problem and this is also why God tells us to pray for our leaders because if they are influenced by the demonic then you will know by the decisions they make because they will be against God and his laws, statutes and commandments.

At the Father’s Service,

Elder Calvin Calhoun Jr.

Signs in the Heavens: The Concept of Shaking Part 2

Today’s Topic: Signs in the Heavens: The Concept of Shaking Part 2

Scripture: Matthew 24:29; Hebrews 12:25-28; Numbers 24:17; 2 Corinthians 12:1,2; Ephesians 6:12; Revelation 12:7-10

Greetings Kingdom Citizens

In the last message we laid the groundwork for what shaking is and briefly talked about the purpose of shaking and what is being moved in the heavens. Today we will look extensively at Hebrews 12:25-28 to get more understanding to why things are shaken and what it means for us.

Verse 25: “See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on Earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven.” Now in just this scripture we see the Holy Spirit speaking through Paul and giving us an ominous warning not to refuse the one who speaks. Now this could be anybody, but it is referring to the person that speaks on behalf of the Lord. Now I am going to tell you this but expound on it later in the message. In this scripture the person that spoke on Earth who they refused and did not escape the wrath of God was Noah. Noah told the people that it was going to rain and to prepare themselves and the people refused him and all those that refused did not escape. Now God did not stop there, He warns us of how much more we will not escape if we turn away from the words that are spoke from Heaven. Listen this is very important and vital and I am going to put this sentence separate from this paragraph:

It is vital to your survival that you learn the voice from Heaven within you, the Holy Spirit because the fallen angels will attempt to deceive you and in these days approaching the Return of the Lord, the deception will become stronger and stronger to a point that even the chosen children of God, if it were possible, would turn away from God completely and worship the devil freely.

But for all of those who do not heed the words of our Lord, not only in the Bible but also from the Throne itself you will not escape the wrath of God that will be unleashed on the Earth and for some the Lake of Fire, the second death, the eternal death.

Verse 26: “Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the Earth only but also heaven” Now the Holy Spirit was referring to the scripture through the prophet Haggai in Haggai 2:6. And there is now a clear statement that this time, just like the last time God shook the Earth was the Flood in Noah’s time, God will shake the Earth and the Heaven this time. So if we look at Haggai 2:6 the prophecy clearly describes both natural things and eternal things will be shaken.

Verse 27: “And this word, Yet once more, signifieth, the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain”. Now, the Holy Spirit explains what will happen upon this “shaking”. All things that were created will be moved. Now that includes, humans, angels, the Earth, the stars and planets. But what is unique is that there is something from all of this that will remain and will not be moved with this shaking and this is the revelation.

Verse 28- “Wherefore we receiving a Kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.” Is it no wonder why the message of the Kingdom is the most important message that the world needs, believers as well as unbelievers. Because unless you know and understand the Kingdom, when things get shaken up it will be hard for you to stand on the Word because everything centers around the Kingdom of God. It is the only thing that will not be moved. Think about it this way, when Satan and His fallen angels are cast out into the Earth, and this will happen, no longer will they enjoy invisibility but they will now be subject to the rules of time and they will come with fury and their evil power, do not think that the Earth will not be shaken up a little. Please put this in your mind for a second. We worry and fret about the demonic now, what do you think it will be like when humans come face-to-face with these demonic creatures and their power? So it is in your best interest to know the Kingdom, understand the Kingdom and experience the Kingdom, because when the shaking happens, you will be anchored to the Kingdom and will not be moved nor cast into the Lake of Fire.

This is not a maybe situation, this shaking is promised by the Lord and will happen. The question is, are you anchored to the Kingdom?

At the Father’s Service,

Elder Calvin Calhoun Jr.

Signs in the Heavens: the Concept of Shaking

Today’s Topic: Signs in The Heavens: The Concept of Shaking
Scripture: Matthew 24:29; Hebrews 12:25-28; Numbers 24:17; 2 Corinthians 12:1,2; Ephesians 6:12; Revelation 12:7-10

Greetings Kingdom Citizens
What was Jesus talking about when He said in Matthew 24:29 that the powers of the heavens will be shaken? Why would God shake anything? Well let’s look at this simple picture. When you shake something, you displace it or move it from where it is currently located. For example when we look at certain medicines, the bottle will say shake well before taking. Why? Because the medicine when sitting for a prolonged period of time will tend to separate and settle at the bottom and then you will see two distinct layers within the bottle. When you shake that bottle, you displace the medicine from the bottom to throughout the entire bottle. So the first concept of shaking is that God wants to move something.

When God wants to move us from a complacent life or advance us in the Kingdom, He will shake up our lives and this will cause us to move from the current state and move into another. One of the events in my life that I can recall when God shook me was when God was trying to get me to move to the job He had for me and not the job I wanted because of the money. My life began to be uncomfortable and unfulfilled from the standpoint of not finding a wife and feeling true happiness. But God needed me to move because where I was, I was not growing spiritually. But God knowing I would make some unwise decisions was ready to set me up to be where He wanted me to be. All I could see at the time was the loss of money but He saw prosperity. When I moved, I found true happiness and joy in the Holy Spirit. I began to learn more about the Kingdom. God removed all those people that called themselves friends and made it so that the only person in my life was Jesus. When I gave my life over to Him, the money did not matter, and I received when I was not looking my best friend and other half of me, my lovely wife Bianca. But it took God shaking me and making life uncomfortable for me to come closer to Him. Now as we know God shakes up our lives to move us from season to season but in the scripture, Matthew 24:29, Jesus said the powers of Heaven will be shaken.

The second concept to shaking is knowing what can be moved. So it is vital for us to understand what will be moved. Now, we already understand from the same scripture that the sun, moon and stars in our visible heaven will be moved, so what in heaven will be moved? Jesus said the powers in the heavens shall be shaken. To get the full answer we need to go to Ephesians 6:12. Here in this scripture is describes the demonic forces and there location but what I want you to key in on is in this scripture it says we wrestle against the POWERS and spiritual wickedness in high places. So what will be shaken is the demonic realm of the second heaven. Now the things that will be moved are anything that was created. Angels are created beings, are they not? Now the difference between us and them is that we are creatures born in time but when we are born again and become Kingdom citizens, we now become an eternal creation in time. Do not be confused. The demonic are eternal creatures for now. They enjoy the advantage of invisibility but when the heavens are shaken, that advantage will be taken away because they will, including Satan, will be cast out of the second heaven into the Earth.

So this stays consistent with the concept of shaking and the purpose which is to move something from its current position and place it in another. I would like to continue with this understanding of shaking because we need to understand God shook the Earth and we need to look back at this in a wonderful set of scriptures. We will continue of study of the Return of Lord and the concept of shaking.

At the Father’s Service,
Elder Calvin Calhoun Jr.

Signs in the Heavens: The Heavens

Today’s Topic: Signs in the Heavens Part 1: The Heavens

Scripture: Matthew 24:29; Hebrews 12:25-28; Numbers 24:17; 2 Corinthians 12:1,2; Ephesians 6:12; Revelation 12:7-10

Greetings Kingdom Citizens

Now I know there are many scriptures but we will look at all of these over the next few messages to understand the signs in the heavens of the return of the Lord. Now in the past three or four messages we look at signs in the Earth and Jesus informed us that these signs are the beginning of sorrows. Now if there are going to be signs in the Earth, better believe there are going to be signs in the heavens. Now I said that right being heavens, plural. Now since the word heavens is plural we need to define them and per my study I have only seen in scripture three heavens. But how do we know there are at least three? 2 Corinthians 12:1,3 Paul says that he knew a man that was caught up to the third heaven (verse 2). Then to describe this heaven in verse 4 it is described as paradise and heard unspeakable words that could not be uttered. What a powerful place, that what this man saw and heard, he could not utter or even put into words. Now that we know of at least three heavens, what are they then.

First Heavens

This heaven is the one that is visible to our eyes such as the stars, moons and planets. Now Jesus in Matthew 24:29 stated that the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give her light and the stars shall fall from the heaven. Now this is actual for us. We will see the stars fall, the sun and the moon darkened. This is not a symbolic thing. This will happen in the heaven we can see. So in actuality God uses the stars as a billboard to let us know that something has happened or about to happen. How do I know? Let’s look at a famous story in the Bible. The wise men, how did they know that the King, Jesus was born? Matthew 2:2 says: “Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? For we (the wise men) have seen HIS STAR IN THE EAST, and are come to worship Him”. So it was a star that the wise men saw that told them that Jesus had been born. Now does that mean we need to turn to the stars to know everything or predict the future? No! There is a difference between astrology and astronomy. Astrology is using the stars to predict the future and this is witchcraft. Zodiac signs, palm readers and psychics use astrology to tell you your future. Astronomy is the study of the stars, what they are and how they align. Now, it is evident that these wise men were astronomers because they study the stars when they saw this one star appear in a certain constellation, they knew that Jesus had been born and we will discuss this soon. But the first heaven involves the planets, stars and the moon that we can visibly see.

Second Heaven

This is the seat of power for the demonic. Remember when Satan and the other angels that rebelled against God, they were removed from the highest Heaven (3^rd) and displaced to the 2^nd Heaven. Now, this second heaven is still eternal because these fallen angels for the time are still eternal creatures. But to prove that there is a second heaven let’s look at Ephesians 6:12: “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities (Areas), against powers (Ability), against the rulers of the darkness (Authority) of this world, against spiritual wickedness (Forces) in high places (Heaven). Now based on that, this proves a functional kingdom of darkness and this scripture tells you they have authority, powers and areas to function in. So the second heaven is represented by the demonic and please keep that in mind because this will go to prove and disprove many myths about these fallen angels and their place during the end of the age and the return of the Lord.

Third Heaven

Of course in our scripture in 2 Corinthians 12:1,2 we see that the man being caught up to the third heaven which represents the Highest Heaven. It is also where the Seat or Throne of God resides.

It was important to lay this foundation because as we progress to the return of the Lord these signs will come from not only the visible heavens but the invisible or eternal heavens. Now with all of that said, Jesus said in Matthew 24:29 that the stars will fall from heaven and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. In the next message we will look at the concept of shaking the heavens because it has been stated not only in the New Testament by Jesus, Paul and the written visions of John in Revelation but also in the Old Testament by the prophets.

At the Father’s Service,

Elder Calvin Calhoun Jr.

Beginning of Sorrows: Famines, Pestilences, Earthquakes, Roaring Seas

Today’s Topic: Beginning of Sorrows: Famines, Pestilences Earthquakes, Roaring Seas

Scripture: Matthew 24:7; Luke 21:25

Greetings Kingdom Citizens

Now I group these four because we can look at them and see how these coincide with the time as being the beginning of sorrows. We will take each one and show you at least two examples of each and show how Jesus prophesied the growth and frequency of these things.

Famines

The word famine back then can be used today to describe what we call economic crises. Back then it was poverty in agriculture and decreased amount of food that was not enough to meet the needs of the people. One of the most popular famines that I can recall in my lifetime was the great famine in Ethiopia of 1984 and 1985 where over 1 million people died from hunger and famine. Another famine that I can recall was the Great Depression in 1932 in the United States. Now these famines are happening all over the world from Darfur to the Philippines and from The United States to the countries of Central America and the Caribbean. These famines are increasing in number around the world and even within the year 2009 the world markets were crashing and world governments began to panic and people were losing their jobs and health insurance at alarming rates. This is just the beginning, quote Jesus.

Pestilences

We are seeing new diseases at an alarming rate, from the Black Plague to Small Pox, Polio, Cancer, Diabetes, Sexually Transmitted Diseases, Swine Flu (H1N1), Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). There is no doubt that this is evident and growing at alarming rates. We are seeing a growth in the number of reported AIDS and HIV cases and there are probably even more that are not reported. We have gone from general cancer to Breast, Bone, Pancreatic, Colon, Prostate and Throat cancer and a growth of them within the past 20 years. Another set of pestilences that are on the rise are those of the mental status. From psychotic diseases such as schizophrenia and dementia to Alzheimer’s disease we have seen a rise in these cases. In addition, one disease that has really been a question mark in my mind but has risen in the past 20 years is Attention Deficient Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD). Now the reason for my question on this is where was ADHD 35 or even 40 years ago. My parents never heard of this ADHD but yet we have it now and it is plaguing our children and some of our adults. As a health care professional I have seen the growth of these terminal and manageable diseases within the past 10 years and it will only get worse. Yes God has given man creativity to learn more about these diseases and gifted him create drugs that delay the progression of the disease and for that we are thankful. But Jesus has told us, this is just the beginning.

Earthquakes

Now I know we can point to the devastating earthquake in Haiti in 2010 where over 150,000 people were killed. Nearly 1 month later we have earthquakes in Chile, Japan and Turkey. Of course there was the earthquake in Pakistan (2005) where over 80,000 people lost their lives. We have had these earthquakes happen in many other places leading to tremendous loss of life. The frequency of these earthquakes should be noted and understood to be a clear sign that were are at the beginning of sorrows.

Roaring Seas

Now when we look at these roaring seas as a sign we can talk about Tsunamis and Hurricanes as major contributors and results of roaring seas. The Tsunami of 2004 in Thailand, Tsunami of 2009 in American Samoa and Hurricane Andrew of 1992, Hurricane Katrina of 2005 are a few examples of how the roaring of the seas have devastated lives and land. These economic crises from these situations have produced famines and pestilences. We know that these earthquakes in divers places (seas) produce these huge Tsunamis were water can move over 200 miles per hour and destroy anything in its path.

What we are seeing in these four situations is a common theme and it is nature in revolt. But these are to be a sign for us on the Earth that the return of the Lord is eminent. We need to open our eyes and realize the importance of working for the Kingdom daily because we never know when it will be our time. All of the people in these horrifying situations, for many, never saw it coming. Some died without accepting Christ and some died in the body of Christ. When these things happen we should never jump to the conclusion that it is because the place where it happened was unholy because if that is the case then this should happen everywhere. We just need to be ever prepared and treat each day like it is our last day. Please keep everyone who has been affected by the various acts of nature and physical diseases in your prayers.

At the Father’s Service,

Elder Calvin Calhoun Jr.

The Beginning of Sorrows: Wars

Today’s Topic: The Beginning of Sorrows: The Wars

Scripture: Matthew 24:6,7

Greetings Kingdom Citizens

As we look through this framework of the beginning of sorrows and the signs associated with it. Jesus states in these scriptures that there will be wars and rumors of wars and kingdoms will fight against kingdoms and nations against nations. Now before I go further in this message, I am not taking sides but using examples of what Jesus mean, so please do not be offended. Now in this present day we hear about wars and rumors of wars. For example, the war in Iraq and Afghanistan is an actual war taking place. An example of a rumor of war is that of the United States and Iran or North Korea over nuclear proliferation. Now I am only speaking from the perspective of the United States but there are clear evidences of other wars that have happened or are rumored to be on the horizon or a possibility. But Jesus comforts us and tells not to be troubled because these things MUST come to pass. But Jesus does not stop there, He goes on and describe the kinds of wars we will see. He said there will be kingdoms against kingdoms and nations against nations. Now for some of us that may sound redundant but it is not. Let’s look at the nations against nations first.

The word nation in the Greek is translated as ethnos or ethnic (race). So we will see ethnic or race wars in this period of time. Have we seen them? Absolutely and let’s name a few:

1. Nazi Germany against the Jews

2. Balkin War (Serbs against Croats)

3. Segregation Era of the United States (Blacks against Whites)

4. The Tutsis and Hutus

Now the reason this is a sign is because the spirit of murder and racism will reign in these cases and in the lives of these people. Just because of the color of their skin they will murder another human being. We saw Hitler and Nazi Germany murder millions of Jews. The Tutsis and Hutus have also killed millions between each other. In the Balkin War between the Serbs and Croats hundreds of thousands of people were murdered because of the ethnicity of one group over another. Now Jesus also says Kingdom against Kingdom.

Now when we look at kingdom versus kingdoms we need to deal with the one that matters most and it is the Kingdom of Darkness and the Kingdom of God. This war has raged ever since the fall of the sinful angels from glory to the 2^nd Heaven where they abide today until the appointed time to where they will be kicked out of Heaven on Earth. The reason this war is so important is because it is an eternal war and depending on the side that you choose to be on, that determines where you will spend eternity. We as the children of God are in the middle of this war and because you are born again, Satan cannot take you out of the Kingdom but he can defile you through setting traps and atmospheres so that you will sin against God. Now there are earthly wars of kingdoms against kingdoms and let me bring this out so that we have a firm understanding of what is really going on. When Middle Eastern Countries (some not all) view the west, they are typically talking about the United States and the United Kingdom and as we know the United States is a ally of Israel. Now some of these Middle East countries do not recognize the country of Israel and its right to exist so there are constant attacks and wars and rumors of wars between Israel and those nations. Now, after September 11 in the United States, the military of the United States and other countries invaded the country of Iraq to fight terror. Now some say it was political reasons, to fight terror, overthrow Saddam Hussein and even oil (economic reasons). Now I can tell you I have no clue what the exact reason is but the way we view it in the west is not the way they view it from these Middle eastern Muslim Countries. When these countries see the United States and other western countries in their land, they are not thinking political they are thinking religion. They see Christians invading Muslim lands and trying to enforce their ideals and beliefs on the people. Now here is the kicker. When you are dealing with a person who believes that what they are doing will get them in Heaven and sacrifice is viewed as a great thing, then death is not a fear-factor for them because they are willing to die for what they believe in. There is a Muslim fighting group called the Mujahidin fighters and they declared a holy war against those Christian nations in their countries. So they see it religiously where for the most part we see it as fighting terrorism. So Jesus has told us do not fret or worry because these things must come to past.

But I want all of you to really understand the fight is not flesh and blood but with the principalities and the rulers of darkness.

At the Father’s Service,

Elder Calvin Calhoun Jr.

The Beginning of Sorrows: False Christs Part 2

Today’s Topic: The Beginning of Sorrows: False Christs Part 2

Scripture: Matthew 24:5; 2 Timothy 4:3

Greetings Kingdom Citizens

Now in the previous message we talked about one of the signs of the spirit of antichrist being that these people and angels will preach another gospel other than the Gospel of Jesus and the Kingdom of God. Now the next sign to let you know that you are dealing with the spirit of antichrist is the fact that these people and beings will deny Jesus as being the only and exclusive way to the Father. Now, I will use this illustration to show you how this is being accomplished through the spirit of fear. After the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 happened in the United States there was a sense of urgency by the nation to get back to prayer and of course this would be the reaction because people are afraid. But moreover, the attacks of September 11 was stated by the President of the United States to have been a religion (Islam) attacking the United States. Now, I am just using this as an example. When this statement was made the Muslim communities in the United States came out firmly against the terrorist and stating that their religion is not to bring war or kill people but to bring about peace. But ultimately happened was out of fear, we had the Christians, Muslims, Buddhist and Hindu religions actually come together under a Christian Cathedral (I cannot remember the name of it in Washington D.C.) to seek answers for what happened in the United States. Now what they were all searching for was peace because we now have a nation and other countries around the world in fear of these attacks. So here they put down their differences to say we are all brothers for the sake of peace because of fear. Now the problem with this is that the only person that can protect you and give you peace is Jesus Christ and He is the only one who has all the answers to the problems. Now this would present a problem if we had some true Christians at that Cathedral that day because that would mean that the Christian has to take a firm stance and say I know someone who can gives us peace and protection and His name is Jesus. Now the Muslims, Buddhist, Hindus and sad to say even some Christians would come against that stance even though it is the correct stance because it puts Jesus out on a separate island from everyone else as the way to the Father and the absolute answer to the problem. So in order for this thing to work with these various religions in one place, Jesus has to be put down. This is nothing but the work of the antichrist.

The reality is Christianity is being split into two factions and you need to know where you stand because when the kitchen gets hot, you will either survive or succumb to the heat. The two factions that Christianity is splitting into are these:

1. Those who are looking for convenience to be accepted by the world

2. Those who preach the exclusive gospel that Jesus is the only way.

Now the question is, where is your life sitting as a born again believer? Are you a conformer or an Ambassador of the Kingdom? Anybody that states that Jesus is not the only way to the Father, is accursed and today in the church, the spirit of antichrist is coming in and leading worship and praise through the spirit of homosexuality and when overseers allow this to be the case then our silence is acceptance and permission for the spirit of antichrist to walk around freely. Psalms 12:8 says it best: “The wicked walk on every side when the vilest men are exalted.” We have preachers, well-known media personalities that when asked the question: “Is Jesus the only way to Heaven?” they skirt around the issue and never come out and take that stance that Jesus is the only way. Let me say this to all of my brothers and sisters, be very careful who you listen to, especially when they have a large platform like the media. Let me explain. When you are a creature of the media then you understand that the media makes or breaks you. So in turn, these people compromise on the exclusivity of Jesus to conform to the media’s wishes so that they can keep their time slot and the money. When they do this, the spirit of antichrist is allowed to walk freely. Is that no wonder on stations such as TBN and The Word Network, we see preachers talking about prosperity but not deal with the sin that must be removed that allows you to experience the prosperity. Now will you ever really hear one who comes out against homosexuality! They will allow someone to come on and promote their books and allow them to make sick claims that a woman should sleep with a man after 90 days and nobody puts that in check. Because someone is famous we will give them a platform regardless of the life their living just because we want to show we know them and they are down with us. We look at these t.v. preachers and personalities that claim to know God but when asked about controversial issues, they take a soft stance and not speak truth and evangelize the world with Jesus. These people know that the media will make and break them and you have to allow the Holy Spirit to show you the deception because anybody that conforms to the media and compromises Jesus the exclusive and only way to the Father has the spirit of antichrist influencing them. Anybody can preach and give a good speech but the best sermons are lived and the fruits of their lives are evident of the sermons they preach.

Look, Jesus prophesied a rise in antichrist spirits and He said many will come in His name. So Jesus is telling you that you need to be spiritually discerned about everyone who claims the name of Jesus because the spirit of antichrist wants to lull you and deceive you so that you will accept the lie and to prove this let me show you in scripture because it is spoken in scripture that this will happen.

2 Timothy 4:3: “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears.”

This is the charge to the overseers and what I want to bring out here is that in these days and the days to come people will not want to hear the truth because it cuts, but will listen to those people who will tickle their ears with what they want to hear and not what God says. This is the work of the spirit of antichrist and all of this will lead to the one antichrist, the person, coming to earth. The only way not to be deceived is to have a relationship with Lord Jesus, the Christ.

At the Father’s Service,

Elder Calvin Calhoun Jr.