Defense Agreements of God And Men

 DEFENSE AGREEMENTS OF GOD AND MEN

By: Dr. Stephen Jones Posted On: 08/28/2021

Blog Post Date:  9-1-2021

For many months—even years—we knew that August 15, 2021 was a date to watch, because it was the 50^th anniversary (Jubilee) of America going off the gold standard “temporarily” in 1971. The event in 1971 itself had gutted the Bretton Woods Agreement in 1944, which had created a new financial order after the devastation from World War 2.

America had come through World War 2 without any devastation of its cities and infrastructure, and it had a large gold reserve, as well as silver. So the US dollar was made the world reserve currency and was given the main responsibility to stabilize the dollar with gold.

However, the Vietnam War caused America to spend huge sums of money, and by 1965 its huge silver holdings had been depleted. So the silver in the US coins was replaced by other metals and the Silver Certificates (paper currency) were replaced by Federal Reserve Notes.

The final blow to the integrity of the dollar came when President Nixon, in 1971, declared that the dollar would no longer be convertible to gold. The gold-backed dollar was then replaced by the petro-dollar through an agreement with Saudi Arabia. The Saudis would sell their oil only in US dollars, and the US military would protect the Saudis.

The US dollar, then, was backed by oil, rather than by gold and silver. Hence, we saw the rise of the so-called “petro-dollar.” That system lasted 50 years, and it has now come to an end. Perhaps the 1971 agreement had secretly drawn up a 50-year contract.

Saudi Arabia Signs Defense Agreement with Russia

On August 24, 2021 the Saudis signed a military agreement with Russia. Perhaps this was a last-minute arrangement in the wake of the US retreat from Afghanistan on August 15. But I doubt it.

https://www.rferl.org/a/saudi-russia-arms-weapons-/31425164.html

Saudi Arabia and Russia have signed a military cooperation agreement at an arms expo outside Moscow.

Saudi Deputy Defense Minister Khalid bin Salman announced on Twitter on August 24 that he signed the agreement with Russian Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Fomin “aimed at developing joint military cooperation between the two countries.”

Salman also met with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu during his visit outside Moscow to the arms expo International Military-Technical Forum Army-2021.

The deputy defense minister said the meeting explored ways to "strengthen military and defense cooperation between our two countries."

I have no inside information, but it seems to me that military cooperation agreements are never drawn up in just nine days. These things take months and even years of negotiations. So I suspect that the 1971 agreement was a 50-year contract, and as we draw near, the Saudis decided to negotiate a defense agreement with Russia.

The transition will take some time, of course, but the biggest impact upon America is that the US dollar will lose its world reserve currency status. Its status has been eroding already for many years, but this will soon be formalized.

What will replace it? It seems most likely that a basket of currencies will replace it, rather than a single currency. The world learned its lesson. The US government had weaponized the dollar through economic sanctions and by cutting off access to the SWIFT payments system through the Federal Reserve. The nations will no longer trust a single nation with such power, unless some nation gains the power and influence to force its will upon the world.

The real question is this: What will the Russians be given in exchange for their military protection? The US government was given a new (oil) backing of the dollar. Will the Saudis begin selling oil in rubles? This does not seem likely. More likely, the World Bank will set up a basket of currencies and issue Special Drawing Rights (SDR’s), which the Saudis will then accept as payment for its oil.

Nigeria Signs Defense Agreement with Russia

On August 25, 2021 Nigeria too signed a military cooperation agreement with Russia.

https://www.reuters.com/world/nigeria-signs-military-cooperation-agreement-with-russia-2021-08-25/

ABUJA, Aug 25 (Reuters) - Nigeria and Russia have signed a military cooperation deal providing a legal framework for the supply of equipment and the training of troops, the Nigerian embassy in Moscow said on Wednesday.

President Muhammadu Buhari had expressed interest in such a pact with Russia as far back as 2019, when he met with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin at a Russia-Africa summit.

The Nigerian ambassador to Russia at the time said Buhari felt Russia could help defeat the Boko Haram Islamic insurgency in the northeast of the country, which remains a major problem.

Both Saudi Arabia and Nigeria are very important oil-producing countries—as is Russia itself. Again, what does Russia gain from the deal? We will have to watch this closely, because Russia is gaining world influence as world confidence in the US declines. The Afghanistan debacle served to mark the specific point in time where world confidence in the US government’s power to protect its allies ended. The world will never be the same again.

490 Days: April 21, 2020 to August 24, 2021

Last year on April 21, 2020, oil futures dropped as low as MINUS $37/barrel. That means a person could theoretically be paid $37 to purchase a barrel of oil!

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/about-150-years-of-oil-price-history-in-one-chart-illustrates-crudes-spectacular-plunge-below-0-a-barrel-2020-04-22?siteid=yhoof2&yptr=yahoo

The formerly unthinkable drop in oil prices below $0 a barrel on Monday is still reverberating through financial markets, as supply overwhelms demand destroyed by the coronavirus pandemic, forcing some energy companies into possible bankruptcy as storage reaches maximum capacity.

Indeed, the now-defunct May West Texas Intermediate crude US:CLK20, which expired on Tuesday, plunged into negative territory to start the week in a history-making event that saw, the front-month contract, at the time, settle at negative $37.63 a barrel before recovering some of that in the following session.

The main problem was that no one had any spare storage space, so no one wanted to buy the oil. This caused an unprecedented price collapse to “negative $37.63 a barrel.” We recognized at the time that the petro-dollar had just died in front of our eyes for all to see. We knew that this was a major prophetic event in the collapse of the US dollar—as well as a major sign of the collapse of Mystery Babylon as a whole.

What we did not know at the time was that this oil-price collapse was the start of a 490-day cycle ending with the Saudi-Russian defense agreement on August 24, 2021. When Nigeria signed a similar agreement the next day, the importance of this time was confirmed by the double witness.

Our Defense Agreement with God

Of course, God is always ahead of the game. He knows the end from the beginning, and He always takes steps to defend His people in the midst of tribulation in the world. In this case, we were led to hold a 3-day Prayer for Deliverance from April 8-10, 2020, nearly two weeks before the collapse of oil prices. You can read those prayers here as a reminder of His protection:

https://godskingdom.org/blog/2020/04/day-1-deliverance-prayer-campaign

https://godskingdom.org/blog/2020/04/day-2-of-deliverance-prayer-campaign

https://godskingdom.org/blog/2020/04/deliverance-prayer-for-day-3

The first day we prayed Psalm 46, which began: “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear, though the earth should change and though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea.”

The second day we prayed Psalm 91, which says, “I will say to the Lord, ‘My refuge and my fortress, My God, in whom I trust!... No evil will befall you, nor will any plague come near your tent. For He will give His angels charge concerning you, to guard you in all your ways.”

The third day was a combination of Scriptures, and we prayed: “We receive Your Divine protection now through the high praise of Your Word through Isaiah” (Isaiah 26:9 KJV).

My Fast: August 2-14, 2021

As most of you know, I was led to go on an extended fast beginning August 2 and ending on the evening of August 14. The breakthrough occurred on August 11, when the “famine of hearing the word” was broken. This “famine” was mentioned in Amos 8:11, and for me it ended on 8-11 (August 11). I did not make that connection until others pointed it out to me after the fact.

At any rate, from April 8, 2020, when we started our prayer of deliverance, until August 11, 2021, when the famine of hearing the word was broken, was precisely 490 days. When dates align like this, it shows a direct correlation between them. The cycle itself is a grace period before the event is applicable.

In this case, our deliverance prayers were made just prior to the oil price collapse in 2020, and 490 days later, we received the breakthrough just before the oil agreements were signed with Russia. This is not a coincidence. Though we see big changes coming in the geopolitical world, we know that God will protect His people and lead them by His word  through these troubling times. While the nations plan their next moves, God is preparing us for His big move.

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A Two-Edged Sword

 A TWO-EDGED SWORD IS COMING

By: Dr. Stephen Jones Posted On: 08/19/2021

 

Blog Post Date:  8-20-2021

A few days ago, the Lord gave instructions—and confirmed His word—to read Ezekiel 21 over the land (America). I did so at the 9^th hour of the day yesterday, August 18, 2021.

This chapter is about God sending His sword throughout the land of Israel, which, in the context of the prophet Ezekiel himself, was a prophecy of the destruction against “the land of Israel” (Ezekiel 21:2). The sword in his day was indiscriminate, for we read in Ezekiel 21:3, “Behold, I will draw My sword out of its sheath and cut off from you the righteous and the wicked.”

By that point in time, this sword was unstoppable, even by prayer, for “It will not return to its sheath again” (Ezekiel 21:5). Whatever intercessory work had been done in the past had been complete. Judgment had been delayed for a long time through prayer, but at some point, when the final verdict is rendered, nothing can stop whatever is coming.

The sword is “sharpened and polished” (Ezekiel 21:11), “polished that it may be handled,” and sharpened, that it may be effective.

The Two-Edged Sword

Fortunately, God’s sword has two edges, not just one. Hebrews 4:12, 13 says,

¹² For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart, ¹³ and there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.

God’s tongue is His sword. He does not swing His tongue like men swings swords. He speaks His word, and His word is “the sword of the Spirit” (Ephesians 6:17). The tip of one’s tongue was said to be the point of a spear or sword (in Hebrew metaphorical language). Hence, we read of the “edge” (peh, “mouth”) of the sword in Exodus 17:13, which was used against Amalek.

When God spoke His word as a sword upon the land, He raised up the Babylonians to carry out His word with their physical swords. Therefore, this judgment was carried out according to the Old Covenant in which they had trusted. If the Israelites at Mount Sinai had been able to hear the word at that first Pentecost, they would have received the sword of the Spirit at that time. But the New Covenant sword was delayed for 1,480 years until the disciples received it in Acts 2.

That sword was largely lost once again throughout church history—except for the remnant of grace, who heard and embraced His word with New Covenant eyes. We today have engaged in spiritual warfare for decades. Our swords are tested, sharpened, and polished. The more we understand the word, the sharper it is. To know the word is to know the mind of God and His plan. Such understanding is necessary, if we hope to use His sword effectively and constructively.

I was led to go before the Divine Court and the Throne of Grace to read Ezekiel 21. The double-edged sword of the Spirit thus will have two different effects upon the land. It will no longer destroy indiscriminately, for God will preserve His people this time. In fact, His people are the ones through whom God speaks in the earth. God speaks from heaven; His people speak what they hear their Father say, bearing witness to Him as Amen people.

My understanding is that we have reached the point where divine judgment has been rendered. One edge of the sword will remove the wicked from the land; the other edge will empower the righteous with the Holy Spirit. This was the essence of my prayer in dealing with Ezekiel 21, and God confirmed that this is indeed what He will do. So I am confident that I was praying according to His will and plan.

Application

In that this chapter was supposed to be directed toward this land (America) and not the old land of Canaan, I understand that it specifically applies to America. On the other hand, the broader principle applies universally and will eventually include the land of modern “Israel” and “Palestine.” In fact, Ezekiel 22 applies this prophecy to “the bloody city” (Ezekiel 22:2), which is a reference to the earthly Jerusalem.

We know that the New Jerusalem will not be judged, for it is the heavenly city that Abraham sought. The heavenly Jerusalem is the true City of Peace. It is the city that alone can fulfill the meaning of its name, Jerusalem. The earthly city has been the City of Bloodshed since the days of the prophets. The city was known for killing the prophets (Matthew 23:34-37).

So the children of the City of Bloodshed will have to suffer along with their “mother” (prophetic Hagar, Galatians 4:25). Meanwhile, the children of the City of Peace will inherit the Kingdom along with their “mother” (prophetic Sarah, Galatians 4:26, 31).

Children of the Flesh

Recall that in the evening of August 14 God spoke to me, giving me Galatians 4:29,

²⁹ But as at the time, he who was born according to the flesh persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit, so it is now also.

The next day the Taliban took Kabul in Afghanistan, which shocked the world. Tens of billions of dollars’ worth of military equipment from America fell into their hands. Suddenly, Afghanistan is the most well-armed nation in the region. This changes the entire Mideast landscape. I believe that this was the sign of the fulfillment of the above Scripture. The spirit of persecution in general is yet to be seen.

This time of persecution is not permanent. In fact, it is necessary to give lawful cause for God to issue His command, quoted in Galatians 4:30,

³⁰ But what does the Scripture say? “Cast out the bondwoman and her son, for the son of the bondwoman shall not be an heir with the son of the free woman.”

Ezekiel 21 tells us the outcome of this persecution. The children of the flesh, who have claimed to be the rightful heirs, have lost their case in the Divine Court. They persecute because they disagree with God’s word. They are reacting to their loss. Hence, His verdict becomes a sharp sword in His mouth, enforcing his decrees by whatever means is necessary.

There are children of the flesh in every nation and in every religion. Islam is rooted in Old Covenant faith, as is Judaism, and organizational Christianity. Therefore, all of these will be “cast out” on some level, leaving the “children of promise” to inherit the earth (Galatians 4:28). The children of promise are those whose faith rests in the promises of God, not upon the promises of men.

The Church’s support of Hagar-Jerusalem concerns me greatly, because so many are trying to become children of the flesh without realizing it. Their claim that Jerusalem is the “mother church” and that her children will inherit the earth can only lead to disaster. My hope (and belief) is that the outpouring of the Holy Spirit will cause the church to repent, change its prophetic view, and to change mothers. The time to get off a sinking ship is before it sinks.

The Blind Prophets

For many years I have carried the word of the Lord that runs contrary to that of modern prophets in the church. Few understand the prophecies of Esau-Edom. Few realize that Edom was the first Zionist nation (Malachi 1:4; Ezekiel 35:10, 11) that desired the land for himself. Few know anything about the history of this dispute in the Divine Court.

The reason for this blindness dates at least as far back as Isaiah 29, where the first 8 verses speak of Jerusalem’s destruction through divine judgment. Immediately after this prophecy, God says in Isaiah 29:9-12,

⁹ Be delayed and wait, blind yourselves and be blind; they become drunk, but not with wine, they stagger, but not with strong drink. ¹⁰ For the Lord has poured over you a spirit of deep sleep. He has shut your eyes, the prophets; and He has covered your heads, the seers. ¹¹ The entire vision [of Jerusalem’s destruction in verses 1-8] will be to you like the words of a sealed book, which when they give it to the one who is literate, saying, “Please read this,” he will say, “I cannot, for it is sealed.” ¹² Then the book will be given to the one who is illiterate, saying, “Please read this.” And he will say, “I cannot read.”

This is why even gifted prophets today cannot read the prophecy in Isaiah 29:1-8 with any real understanding. They have been blinded and put to sleep. The prophecy has been “sealed,” and they have been given no revelation of its contents. The result is that regardless of how literate they are, regardless of how educated they are, they cannot “read” it with understanding. How could they pray to be healed of blindness if they do not even know they are blind in this area? I marvel at the effectiveness of the “spirit of deep sleep.”

Yet the time is soon coming for the prophecy to be unsealed. The time is coming when God will awaken these prophets, open their eyes, and make them sober again. God is rising to the occasion with His two-edged sword. By revelation, we know where we are and where we stand. We know also the outcome. What is less known is the journey from here to there. It will require faith.

Faith is not a matter of thinking positively, nor is it wishful thinking. It is an inner knowing, a confidence that one has when one believes the promise of God and God’s ability to keep it. Anything short of that will be mixed with some level of fear.