The Prophetic Future Concealed In Israel’s Festivals Order Printed Copy
- Author: Perry Stone
- Size: 1.24MB | 233 pages
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About the Book
"The Prophetic Future Concealed in Israel's Festivals" by Perry Stone explores how ancient Jewish festivals hold key insights into future events and the second coming of Christ. Stone delves into the symbolism and spiritual significance of these festivals, shedding light on their prophetic implications and offering readers a deeper understanding of God's plan for humanity. Through detailed analysis and biblical references, Stone reveals how these ancient celebrations foreshadow significant events in the Christian faith, making a compelling case for the relevance and importance of understanding Israel's festivals in a modern context.
Keith Green
Born on October 21, 1953, in Sheepshead Bay, NY; died on July 28, 1982, in Lindale, TX; married Melody Steiner, 1973; children: Josiah (deceased), Keith, Bethany (deceased), Rebekah. Addresses: Record company--Sparrow Records, P.O. Box 5085, Brentwood, TN 37024. Website--Keith Green Official Website: http://www.lastdaysministries.org.
Known for his uncompromising approach to both his faith and his music, Keith Green has become a legendary figure in Contemporary Christian music since his death in 1982. Taking on the role of a modern-day prophet, he earned a fervent following thanks to his explicit evangelical message and buoyant brand of pop-rock. Green was a critic both of secular society and of commercial tendencies within the Christian community. Since his passing, he has been the subject of several tribute albums and was inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 2001.
From early childhood onward, it seemed certain that Green would become a musician. Born in New York, he relocated to the San Fernando Valley area of California with his family not long after. At age eight, he began to perform in stage musicals, appearing in such notable roles as Kurt Von Trapp in a local production of The Sound of Music. In 1965 he published his first song, "The Way I Used to Be," and became the youngest member of the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers. That same year he signed a five-year recording contract with Decca Records and released his first single, "Cheese and Crackers."
Though Green was groomed to be a teenage idol, he never quite achieved success. The late 1960s found him experimenting with drugs and dabbling in various Eastern religions. His life began to turn around after he met (and eventually married) songwriter Melody Steiner in the early 1970s. Under Steiner's guidance, Green began to explore fundamentalist Christianity. Before fully embracing the faith, he began keeping company with singer/songwriters Larry Norman and Randy Stonehill, two of Southern California's best-known Christian rock artists. His skills as a singer and composer began to develop as he edged closer to religious conversion. Finally, in 1975 he became a committed Christian after becoming involved with the Vineyard, a well-known San Fernando Valley church. With a convert's fervor, Green became involved in a series of Christian music projects, including the band Good News and the stage musical Firewind. He also began writing spiritually themed songs, among them "Your Love Broke Through," which went on to become a Christian pop standard recorded by Randy Stonehill, Phil Keaggy, and others.
Dedicating his reawakened creativity to glorifying God, Green founded Last Days Ministries in 1977. He and his followers evangelized to young rock music fans, street people, and others not being reached by conventional churches. At the same time, he made his debut as a Christian recording artist, signing with Sparrow Records and releasing the album For Him Who Has Ears to Hear. This song collection displays the essentials of Green's musical style: exuberant singing, piano-based melodies, and well-crafted pop/rock production. Among the best-known tracks on Green's first album are "You Put This Love in My Heart," "No One Believes Me Anymore," and "Your Love Broke Through." Balancing the warm-hearted testimony of these tunes are some humorous moments, including "No One Believes Me Anymore," a mock lament sung from the Devil's point of view. Overall, For Him Who Has Ears to Hear introduced Green to the Christian music market as a gifted musical evangelist of enormous potential.
As his audience grew, Green made clear that his focus was on spreading Christian teaching rather than providing entertainment. He sought to challenge the assumptions of his fellow believers, criticizing Christians who took their faith for granted. Some compared him with the Old Testament prophet Ezekiel, who decried the loose morals and weak faith of his generation. A number of the songs on Green's 1978 album No Compromise were addressed to the spiritually lazy. Most important among these is "Asleep at the Light," a ringing call for Christian activism sung by Green with palpable emotion. Less intense but still effective is the playful "Dear John (Letter to the Devil)" and the country-tinged "Soften Your Heart." All three of these songs received considerable airplay on Christian music stations.
Green was uneasy in his role as an emerging celebrity. He spoke out against the Christian music industry's increasing tendency to imitate secular show business ways. "Why do we idolize Christian singers and speakers?," he asked in a statement issued through Last Days Ministries. "We go from glorifying musicians in the world, to glorifying Christian musicians. It's all idolatry! ... It's true that there are many men and women of God who are greatly anointed to call down the Spirit of God on His people and the unsaved. But Satan is getting a great victory as we seem to worship these ministers on tapes and records...."
Turning away from the California Christian music scene, Green relocated to Lindale, a small east Texas community, in 1978. In addition to maintaining Last Days Ministries, he decided to launch his own record company, Pretty Good Records. Through this label, he released his next album, So You Wanna Go Back to Egypt, in 1980. This eclectic effort pokes fun at weak-spirited believers in its title track and offers a personal confession of need in "I Want to Be More Like Jesus." The most enduringly popular track proved to be "Oh Lord You're Beautiful," a powerful hymn that became a favorite at Christian worship services. In a bold move, Green announced that So You Wanna Go Back to Egypt would be sold for a variable price, even given away for free to those unable to pay. This decision sent shock waves through the Christian music industry, causing other artists to reconsider their album and concert pricing policies. An estimated 200,000 copies of the album were eventually distributed on a "pay what you can afford" basis.
Unlike some of his Christian music peers, Green showed little desire to dilute his message in hopes of reaching a wider audience. His 1982 album Songs to the Shepherd concentrates on worshipful material, praising the Lord in musical settings ranging from uplifting pop ("You Are the One") to blues-seasoned rock ("O God Our Lord") to old-fashioned country ("Draw Me"). While these songs were little-heard outside the Christian community, they helped fire Green's already-committed audience to a greater level of devotion. Fusing his work as a performer and evangelist, he toured actively during the early 1980s, mixing personal testimonials and heartfelt exhortations in between his musical numbers.
Green's life was cut short just as he began to hit his stride as a musician and minister. On July 28, 1982, he boarded a small Cessna aircraft for a brief sightseeing flight around his property in Lindale. Also on board were his son Josiah and daughter Bethany, along with the pilot and eight other passengers. Overloaded, the plane crashed shortly after takeoff, killing everyone on board. Recovering from her loss, Melody Green decided to carry on with Last Days Ministries and Pretty Good Records. Recordings of her husband's music were released posthumously, beginning with Prodigal Son and Jesus Commands Us to Go in 1983. Though lacking the cohesiveness of the albums released during his lifetime, both these song collections capture Green in strong creative moments. Prodigal Son's dramatic title track is a particular highpoint.
Melody Green continued to guide Last Days Ministries through the coming years and, in 1985, also took on the directorship of Americans against Abortion. Green's musical legacy remained vital as well, with many of his best-known recordings repackaged in compilation albums by Sparrow during the 1980s and 1990s. Multi-artist tribute albums also began to appear, starting with 1992's No Compromise: Remembering the Music of Keith Green. 2001 saw the release of Start Right Here: Remembering the Life of Keith Green, featuring spirited interpretations of his songs by such notable Christian rock acts as MxPx, Joy Electric, and Starflyer 59. Your Love Broke Through: The Worship Songs of Keith Greencontains covers of Green tunes by Michael W. Smith, Twila Paris, Rebecca St. James, and other top-rank Christian pop/rock talents.
On November 27, 2001, Green was inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame. The honor served as an acknowledgment of his continuing influence in Contemporary Christian music some 20 years after his death. Green's intensity and dedication have continued to make him a role model for younger Christian performers, such as Rebecca St. James, who paid tribute to him in a Sparrow Records press biography. "I think what touches me most about him was that he was so committed to loving God and living for Him," she said of Green. "I know he was very strong-willed and people were sometimes offended at what he did and said, but it all came out of a pure motive of trying to be committed to Him in every part of his life. He wasn't going to back down just because of what people thought of him. That, to me, says that he was more focused on pleasing God than on pleasing man, something I think we should all try to focus on."
Keith Green's Career
Began career as child stage actor and composer, early 1960s; signed with Decca, released debut single, "Cheese and Crackers," 1965; began writing Christian songs, mid-1970s; founded Last Days Ministries, released first album, For Him Who Has Ears to Hear, 1977; founded Pretty Good Records, released album So You Wanna Go Back to Egypt, 1980.
Keith Green's Awards
Induction (posthumous), Gospel Music Hall of Fame, 2001.
Famous Works
For Him Who Has Ears To Hear , Sparrow, 1977.
No Compromise , Sparrow, 1978.
So You Wanna Go Back to Egypt , Pretty Good, 1980.
The Keith Green Collection , Sparrow, 1981.
Songs for the Shepherd , Pretty Good, 1982.
The Prodigal Son , Pretty Good, 1983.
Jesus Commands Us to Go , Pretty Good, 1984.
Because of You--Songs of Testimony , Sparrow, 1998.
Here I Am, Send Me--Songs of Evangelism , Sparrow, 1998.
Oh Lord, You're Beautiful--Songs of Worship , Sparrow, 1998.
Make My Life a Prayer to You--Songs of Devotion , Sparrow, 1998.
weakness may be your greatest strength
How well are you investing the weaknesses you’ve been given? Perhaps no one has ever asked you that question before. Perhaps it sounds nonsensical. After all, people invest assets in order to increase their value. They don’t invest liabilities . They try to eliminate or minimize or even cover up liabilities. It’s easy for us to see our strengths as assets. But most of us naturally consider our weaknesses as liabilities — deficiencies to minimize or cover up. But God, in his providence, gives us our weaknesses just as he gives us our strengths. In God’s economy, where the return on investment he most values is “faith working through love” (Galatians 5:6), weaknesses become assets — we can even call them talents — to be stewarded, to be invested. It may even be that the most valuable asset God has given you to steward is not a strength, but a weakness. But if we’re to value weaknesses as assets, we need to see clearly where Scripture teaches this. The apostle Paul provides us with the clearest theology of the priceless value of weakness. I have found 1 Corinthians 1:18–2:16 and, frankly, the entire book of 2 Corinthians, to be immensely helpful in understanding the indispensable role weakness plays in strengthening the faith and witness of individual Christians and the church as a whole. Paradoxical Power of Weakness Paul’s most famous statement on the paradoxical spiritual power of weakness appears in 2 Corinthians 12. He tells us of his ecstatic experience of being “caught up into paradise,” where he received overwhelming and ineffable revelations (2 Corinthians 12:1–4). But as a result, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:7–10) In these few sentences, Paul completely reframes the way Christians are to view weaknesses, even deeply painful ones that can appear to hinder our calling and that the powers of darkness seek to exploit. What at first seems to us like an expensive liability turns out to be a valuable, God-given asset. Weakness and Sin Before we go further, we need to be clear that Paul does not include sin in his description of weakness here. The Greek word Paul uses is astheneia , the most common word for “weakness” in the New Testament. J.I. Packer, in his helpful study on 2 Corinthians, Weakness Is the Way , explains astheneia like this: The idea from first to last is of inadequacy. We talk about physical weakness [including sickness and disability] . . . intellectual weakness . . . personal weakness . . . a weak position when a person lacks needed resources and cannot move situations forward or influence events as desired . . . relational weakness when persons who should be leading and guiding fail to do so — weak parents, weak pastors, and so on. (13–14) But when Paul speaks of sin, he has more than inadequacy in mind. The Greek word for “sin” he typically uses is hamartia , which refers to something that incurs guilt before God. Hamartia happens when we think, act, or feel in ways that transgress what God forbids. “Weaknesses manifest God’s power in us in ways our strengths don’t.” Though Paul was aware that hamartia could lead to astheneia (1 Corinthians 11:27–30) and astheneia could lead to hamartia (Matthew 26:41), he clearly did not believe “weakness” was synonymous with “sin.” For he rebuked those who boasted that their sin displayed the power and immensity of God’s grace (Romans 6:1–2). But he “gladly” boasted of his weaknesses because they displayed the power and immensity of God’s grace (2 Corinthians 12:9). In sin, we turn from God to idols, which profanes God, destroys faith, and obscures God in the eyes of others. But weakness has the tendency to increase our conscious dependence on God, which glorifies him, strengthens our faith, and manifests his power in ways our strengths never do. And that’s the surprising value of our weaknesses: they manifest God’s power in us in ways our strengths don’t. That’s what Jesus meant when he told Paul, “My power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9) — “perfect” meaning complete or entirely accomplished . Our weaknesses are indispensable because God manifests the fullness of his power through them. Asset Disguised as a Liability At this point, you may be thinking, “Whatever Paul’s ‘thorn’ was, my weakness is not like that.” Right. That’s what we all think. I have a thorn-like weakness, known only to those closest to me. If I shared it with you, you might be surprised. It dogs me daily as I seek to carry out my family, vocational, and ministry responsibilities. It makes almost everything harder and regularly tempts me to exasperation. It’s not romantic, certainly not heroic. It humbles me in embarrassing, not noble, ways. And most painful to me, I can see how in certain ways it makes life harder for those I live and work with. Often it has seemed to me a liability. I’ve pleaded with the Lord, even in tears, to remove it or grant me more power to overcome it. But it’s still here. Paul also initially saw his weakness as a grievous liability and pleaded repeatedly to be delivered from it. But as soon as he understood Christ’s purposes in it, he saw it in a whole new light: a priceless asset disguised as a liability. And he gloried in the depths of God’s knowledge, wisdom, and omnipotent grace. “God, in his providence, gives us our weaknesses just as he gives us our strengths.” I have been slower than Paul in learning to see my thorn as an asset (and honestly, I’m still learning). But I see at least some of the ways this weakness has strengthened me. It has forced me to live daily in dependent faith on God’s grace. It has heightened my gratitude for those God has placed around me who have strengths where I’m weak. Beset with my own weakness, I am more prone to deal gently and patiently with others who struggle with weaknesses different from mine (Hebrews 5:2). And I can see now how it has seasoned much of what I’ve written over the years with certain insights I doubt would have come otherwise. In other words, I see ways God has manifested his power more completely through my perplexing weakness. The fact that we don’t know what Paul’s thorn was is evidence of God’s wisdom. If we did, we likely would compare our weaknesses to his and conclude that ours have no such spiritual value. And we would be wrong. Stewards of Surprising Talents Paul said that his weakness, his “thorn . . . in the flesh,” was “given” to him (2 Corinthians 12:7). Given by whom? Whatever role Satan played, in Paul’s mind he was secondary. Paul received this weakness, as well as “insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities” (2 Corinthians 12:10), as assets given to him by his Lord. And as a “[steward] of the mysteries of God” (1 Corinthians 4:1), he considered his weaknesses a crucial part of the portfolio his Master had entrusted to him. So, he determined to invest them well in order that his Master would see as much of a return as possible. If you’re familiar with Jesus’s parable of the talents (Matthew 25:14–30), you might recognize that I’m drawing from its imagery. Jesus has given each of us different “talents” to steward, assets of immense kingdom value, “each according to his ability” (Matthew 25:15). And his expectation is that we will invest them well while we wait for his return. Some of these talents are strengths and abilities our Lord has given us. But some of them are our weaknesses, our inadequacies and limitations, which he’s also given to us. And he’s given us these weaknesses not only to increase in us the invaluable and shareable treasure of humility (2 Corinthians 12:7), but also to increase our strength in the most important aspects of our being: faith and love (2 Corinthians 12:10). But our weaknesses are not only given to us as individuals; they are also given to the church. Our limitations, as much as our abilities, are crucial to Christ’s design to equip his body so that it works properly and “builds itself up in love” (Ephesians 4:16). Our weaknesses make us depend on one another in ways our strengths don’t (1 Corinthians 12:21–26). Which means they are given to the church for the same reason they are given to us individually: so that the church may grow strong in faith (1 Corinthians 2:3–5) and love (1 Corinthians 13) — two qualities that uniquely manifest Jesus’s reality and power to the world (John 13:35). Don’t Bury Your Weaknesses Someday, when our Master returns, he will ask us to give an account of the talents he’s entrusted to us. Some of those talents will be our weaknesses. We don’t want to tell him we buried any of them. It may even be that the most valuable talent in our investment portfolio turns out to be a weakness. Since “it is required of stewards that they be found faithful” (1 Corinthians 4:2), we would be wise to examine how faithfully we are stewarding the talents of our weaknesses. So, how well are you investing the weaknesses you’ve been given?
