Dear Pastor____,
I am sorry some people in your church are in emotional distress because of two recent fiction books that are passed off as serious biblical truth. Brother, we live in a day of massive deception. Thus pastors must protect their sheep even when they do not want his pastoral care.
I remember people running for the hills because they had been deceived into thinking that the year 2000 was “the End.” Despite my warnings, they quit their jobs and moved to remote places like Iowa. They hated me for warning them!
I know you want my honest opinion and that is what you will get: the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
I will begin with a review of The Mystery of the Shemitah. Then I will review The End of America .
First, what is the biblical meaning of Shemittah?
First, the Shemittah year waives all outstanding debts between Jewish debtors and Jewish creditors. Gentiles do not get released from debt. This aspect of Shemittah observance is known as shemittat kesafim, “release of debts.”
Second, farm land owned by Jews should lie fallow that year. No sowing or reaping.
Third, no Gentile nations are included in the Shemittah. They are not commanded to keep it and were not condemned for violating it.
Second, what are the fundamental errors of the book?
A. The attempt to apply the Shemittah to America or some other Gentile nation is 100% without any biblical support. Gentiles are SPECIFIALLY excluded in Leviticus.
B. If the entire world did not produce any food for a year, many millions would die.
C. No prophet or apostle or Jesus used Shemittah as a prophetic tool to predict the End of the world or some Gentile nation.
D. There is no “secret” meaning. Walter Marin taught me that whenever someone begins by saying that they and they alone have found the “secret” meaning of a verse, run for the exit.
1. Third, my deep concerns about the book The Mystery of the Shemitah.
a. The author is not a biblical scholar and has no academic background in theology or history. He is a fiction writer.
b. I began by checking the back of the book to see if he documented his claims with many footnotes and a solid bibliography. He generally DID NOT document anything. He simply asserted this or that and did not bother to put footnotes.
c. His handling of Scripture was terrible. He took verses that applied to Israel and applied them to America!
d. His “cycle of seven” for all of history is fiction, and, particularly, his attempt to view the last century of the US in terms of seven is without merit. He is doing numerology. I attached my refutation of “biblical” numerology.
e. Rabbinic scholars today readily admit that the traditional Hebrew calendar is not valid and is fundamentally flawed. They do not agree with the books dates.
f. I found the book without merit and see why no Bible College or seminary would use it as a textbook.
g. Lastly, the author has claimed on various shows such as Jim Bakker’s TV program that he got his information FROM SPECIAL REVELATION! Pastor, that is exactly the same claim that Joseph Smith, Ellen G White and other cult leaders did. They could not find ANY biblical support for their teachings, so they claimed revelation. Walter Martin always said once someone claims he received special revelations from God for doctrine or morals, run for the nearest exit!
Conclusion: Pastor, warn people not to put any credence in this book. It is biblically and historically flawed to the point that it is pure fiction dressed up as facts.
Part Two: The End of America – The Role of Islam in the End Times and Biblical Warnings to Flee America by John Richard Price.
1. The author is not a biblical scholar in any sense. He is an attorney and fiction writer. I could not find even one scholar who supports his claims. This is a red flag.
2. He put the words “Biblical warnings” in the title and I searched in vain for any biblical exegesis of any text of Scripture. He usually just quoted a passage or used it as a proof text. He took verses out of context and applied them to America and modern times without any biblical justification. I was amazed at his mishandling of Scripture.
3. In 1995, I was on a panel with nine of the best prophecy teachers in the US and we all agreed that America is NOT mentioned in the Bible at all. I suggested that the Bible does not mention the US because it is not around when Armageddon takes place.
4. That Islam will use terrorism against the US is a no brainer as it has already done so and will continue to do so until the West destroys the Kabah as my book says. Islam and Muhammad are not mentioned in the Bible either. They will not be around when Armageddon takes place.
5. The next thing on the biblical calendar is for the appearance of the Anti-Christ and his false prophet, and then a one world government and a one world religion (2 Thess. 2:1-12). I speculate that a pope will hold the CEO position of that new religion. The one world religion will be a universal religion that will include ALL religions without saying any of them is the one true religion. Liberal Muslims will join liberal Hindus, Catholics, Protestants, Buddhists, etc. They will stamp out all “fundamentalists” in all religions. Anyone who says they have the one true religion will be persecuted. Muslim terrorists will be destroyed as they are “fundamentalist” Muslims. The politically correct crowd will destroy all who think their religion is the only true religion.
6. Tell those running away to Central or South America that moving to a Catholic country may not be the best move. It is like moving into the belly of the Great Whore! They will have no problem seeking any non-Catholics to kill.
7. The year 2015 is not identified in Scripture in any sense.
8. Lastly, have the authors of these two books followed their own advice and left the US? NO. They are too busy counting the money received from those who buy their books!
Conclusion: I faced the same thing over the 2000 New Year’s date setters. They had people running for the hills, buying dried food, bottled water, etc. I rebuked some pastors who were fear mongering about the year 2000. In the end, they were wrong. BUT they did not refund the money from the survival goods they sold. LOL!
I fear that if people are moving out of the US because of these two books ALONE, they will be depressed in a year as none of the predictions will take place. I was told by two pastors to get out of Vegas because it was going to be destroyed in July of this year. One even left the city in anticipation of the terrorist attack. He is now back in town and does not want to discuss his predictions.
If I wanted to move to another country, it has to have clean air, clean water, safe and clean food, law and order, good medicine, easy to get to and from, no Communist revolutionaries or Muslim terrorists around, the English language must be the language, etc.
Central America is filled with Marxists and they are winning local elections. Places like Belize, Costa Rica, etc. will be eventually overrun by the local communists who will confiscate the homes of “rich” Americans living there.
South America has a bad record of dictators. Chile is good right now. But look at Venezuela. Its money is now worthless. Brazil is headed in that direction. The economy of Chile is based on minerals, with the Chinese number one buyers. What if China has a recession and stops buying? If you do not know Spanish or are too white to pass as locals, you will stand out in a crowd and be easy pickings for thieves and corrupt police.
There are good reasons to consider one day to leave America but those two books do not give them. It may be necessary one day, as you look at the world situation. But you if you give up your US citizenship you have to give the US 30% of all your assets to do so. Get a dual passport in those countries where you can do so.
Preach on 2 Thess. 2:1-12 as the same kind of deception was going on in that church. Jesus will come “when you think not,” not when a book sets the date and the author announces it on TBN.