FUTURE PERSECUTION IN JAPAN!
6/88
DO 2439
--A WARNING from the Lord!
1. I GOT SOMETHING FROM THE LORD THIS MORNING. I've been thinking about it for quite some time. I was reading a newspaper article about the history of Christian persecution in Japan centuries ago. Then suddenly after reading this newspaper article, the Lord spoke just as clearly as anything & He said, "There is STILL secret oppression of Christianity in Japan!" It's now SECRET oppression, it's not public, they don't publicise it, but they secretly oppress Christianity & Christians there, our Family has found that out.
2. YOU CAN'T REALLY GET A GOOD JOB OR DO WELL IN BUSINESS OR ANYTHING ELSE THERE IF THEY KNOW YOU'RE A CHRISTIAN. Now that's secret oppression. It's not publicised, you don't read about it, but the whole impression of the message was that such oppression is still going on, but secretly.
3. IN OTHER WORDS, THE ENEMIES OF GOD ARE STILL JUST AS ACTIVE & STRIVING JUST AS MUCH, the Devil is just as interested in oppression of Christianity in Japan, trying to stamp it out, wipe it out, stop it, obliterate its literature, etc.--And they have a secret network of communication through which they do their best & their damnedest.
4. I'M SURE THAT THE LORD INTENDED THAT TO BE A WARNING TO THE FAMILY THERE TO WATCH THEIR Ps & Qs, because the Devil is still there & working very hard to stop any new efforts to convert the Japanese! Do you suppose for a minute he hasn't heard about us, & THEY haven't heard about us? Our literature is still getting out to the general public & has in Japan for years, by the MILLIONS! I don't doubt that the persecution stirred up against our sidewalk witnessers there was probably stirred up by our enemies, which, sad to say, include not only the Shintoists & the Buddhists, but the Christians, the formal churchianity Christians!
5. THEY GOT US OFF THE STREETS BUT THEY DROVE US UNDERGROUND. Do you suppose for a minute they haven't heard about our recent underground successes & even our overground success there with the School & their Pyramid? What do you think they're doing right now? (Fam: Probably figuring out a good way that they can get the Family, of course.)--Exactly! Just like in the 3-1/2 years of Jesus' public ministry, the Scribes & Pharisees were CONSTANTLY counselling together how they could get RID of Him. It took them 3-1/2 years to do it. The Lord kept them off & prevented them from stopping His ministry for 3-1/2 years. But they were boiling all the time & seeking how they might go about to kill Him!--Jn.5:16,18; 7:1,32; 8:59; 10:31; 11:53, etc.
6. SO JUST BECAUSE THE FAMILY THERE IS GETTING BY WITH IT & THINGS ARE GOING SO BEAUTIFULLY & GLORIOUSLY & SO MIRACULOUSLY DOESN'T MEAN THAT THEY'VE FORGOTTEN ABOUT US or that they intend for it to KEEP on going that way! Now that's a sobering thought that I want you to remember & think about. Because to be FOREWARNED is to be FOREARMED, & the wise man, God's Word says, FORESEETH the disaster or the trouble, & endeavours to avoid it.--Prov.22:3. Do you get it? I'm not trying to scare you, I'm just trying to FOREWARN you to know that it is going to come sooner or later, & they are planning it NOW! They are trying to figure out what would be the best way to stop it & get rid of it without appearing to be intolerant.
OUR ENEMIES' STANDARD ACCUSATIONS & PROCEDURES!
7. REMEMBER WHEN THE SCRIBES & PHARISEES DECIDED TO ATTACK JESUS, THEY TRIED MANY DIFFERENT APPROACHES.--First of all, regarding His religious doctrine. But the Roman government didn't give a damn about Him not agreeing with the Jews' religious doctrines. So you know what charges they finally made against Him, they had nothing to do with religion.
8. THEY FINALLY CAME UP WITH CHARGES OF SEDITION AGAINST ROME, & literally blackmailed Pilate into his hands-off decision by saying, "If you let this man go, you are no friend of Caesar's!"--Jn.19:12. In other words, "We're going to tell Caesar about it, that there's this radical rebel down here stirring up the people against Rome"--which were all lies, of course--"& you did nothing about it, you let Him go!" So he supposedly washed his hands & said, "See YE to it!"--Mat.27:24. In other words, "I don't see anything wrong with this guy, I'M not going to do anything about it," but he let THEM do it. In fact, he let them use his Roman soldiers to do it!
9. SO THIS IS THEIR STANDARD PROCEDURE OF ATTACK & HAS BEEN EVER SINCE THEN. They don't come out & charge you, saying it's a crime that you're a Christian or because you don't believe just like they do or anything like that. They always try to charge you with an actual CRIME that's against the LAW, or to say, like they did in [one country] that you're COMMUNISTS trying to undermine the government by advocating the violent overthrow of the government!--All kinds of absolute lies that they had in the papers, to finally persuade the people. They tried to use the fact that we were Christians converting the people, but it didn't work. The government said, "We don't care about that!" But when they finally went to the newspapers & the public & smeared us & said we were Communists, that's what did it.
10. SUCH PERSECUTION USUALLY COMES--& IT ALWAYS COMES--WHEN OUR JOB IS DONE, when God feels we've done our best & reaped the best we could & the job is done. This is just standard procedure, you already know that, I've written about it. He then lets the Devil loose to purge & make white the Christians, to sift them & divide the sheep from the goats & the men from the boys & all the rest, to test & try us & to see who really means business.--Dan.11:35.
OUR WEAK POINT--VISAS!
11. SO SINCE THEY CAN'T ATTACK YOU JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE CHRISTIANS & JUST BECAUSE YOU ARE WINNING SOULS THERE, which you're winning a lot, how will the Enemy attack you? It will come, it's BOUND to come, & the Family there needs to be PREPARED to face it when it comes & have contingency plans to handle it! Now you tell me, how do you think our enemies there will attack, & what do you think they're doing now?
12. WHAT IS THE FIRST WAY THEY ALWAYS ATTACK? (Maria: They're probably INVESTIGATING the Family to see who we really are.) Who do you think is most likely doing the investigating? (Maria: The Christians & the religious people there.) Yes, they usually instigate it & agitate for it, but who do they get to do their dirtywork for them? (Maria: The government.) Always, it's just the old timeworn process & policy of action, our religious enemies go to the government & complain, just like the Scribes & Pharisees did. This is historical & as set a standard policy as you could possibly imagine!
13. SO, WHAT ARE OUR WEAKEST, MOST VULNERABLE POINTS WHERE THE GOVERNMENT CAN BE AGITATED TO DO SOMETHING without it looking like they're against CHRISTIANITY or against us RELIGIOUSLY? What kind of legal violations could they choose to push against us? (Maria: They could probably come up with a very legitimate reason why they can't grant our Family VISAS.)
BUT IF NOT!--VISAS
14. NOW WE ALWAYS HOPE & PRAY FOR THE BEST, BUT WHAT ELSE DO WE DO? (Fam: Prepare for the worst.) Exactly. The Bible has established the principle by a good many illustrations & stories. "But if Not!" Now I don't believe the Lord will allow our work there to be stopped YET. The Devil may try to put a few traces in the way & a few obstacles & hindrances, such as forcing everyone to go back to taking long visa trips in order to stay there.
15. "BUT IF NOT!"--ARE YOU FAMILY MEMBERS THERE PREPARED FOR SUCH AN ALTERNATIVE & DO YOU HAVE CONTINGENCY PLANS of how you're going to continue even if you DON'T get the Immigrations approval for all your visas? As the Boy Scout motto goes, "Always Be PREPARED!" HOPE & PRAY for the BEST, but PREPARE for the WORST! Then you'll never be disappointed.--Well, you might be disappointed, but you won't get caught short & unprepared!
16. SO EVEN IF YOU'RE GETTING BY WITH SOMETHING LIKE VISA EXTENSIONS THIS TIME, what are you prepared to do NEXT time? What if the next official is not so generous & so fascinated? The Lord is very gently warning you that your enemies have not gone out of existence, they're still around, & they have their own secret communication network, & they haven't forgotten us.
ANOTHER WEAK SPOT--BUILDING INSPECTIONS!
17. BESIDES VISAS, ANOTHER AREA THEY CAN USE TO GET YOU IS BUILDING INSPECTIONS. Our large Homes & Schools could also have visits from the health inspector because they're feeding so many people, etc. I don't know what the laws are there in Japan, but I know back in the States any kind of public or private schools which house & feed their students, have to abide by certain health rules, safety rules, this, that & the other. (Maria: Then they check the kitchen & the food preparation.) Yes, & the temperature of the dishwater & things like that.
[MORE ON TROUBLE]
18. WHAT'S OUR LAST ACHILLES HEEL? (Maria: Our reputation.)
19. NOW HOW DO YOU THINK THAT [THE TROUBLE] WOULD HAPPEN? (Maria: From overseas, if some of the literature & brochures have been sent from people there to supposed friends or relatives or whatever.) That's one way. (Fam: Backsliders is one way, or Family friends who know the Family & the School, who turn against us.)
20. THERE ARE SEVERAL METHODS. I'm sure the Lord is preventing it & protecting the Family right now, because they could have easily already found it out & started spreading the word around. So it's only a miracle of God they haven't. Obviously the Lord is staving it off to help the Family accomplish as much as possible as long as they can.
21. I THINK THEIR SCHOOL THERE IS A PRIME SAMPLE, a prime example, of what can be done in the way of a BIG School. They are learning how to do it & what to do & what a terrific witness it can be & how to win souls that way, by using their School as a real witnessing tool. But when the news gets out & they start putting smearing things into the newspapers or even on television, there's nothing they love more than juicy, sexy stories, especially about religious people!
22. WE'RE KNOWN AS THE SEX CULT, THAT'S THEIR FAVOURITE NAME FOR US. Well, it really sells papers & it really makes TV shows get an audience, & we have really gotten publicity! I think that the World actually chuckles at it & likes it, loves it, because it really sells the papers. And they don't necessarily condemn us for it, a lot of them want to know where we're at! (Maria: Except for the most recent accusations, the child abuse issue. That's the one thing that the Devil really likes to use now.)
23. THERE'S A GREAT CLAMOUR COMING NOW, A BIG WAVE ABOUT CHILD ABUSE. And since we're accused of child abuse, that's one thing that hardly anybody will put up with. Even old sinners, nobody's going to defend that. Of course, it's not true, but nevertheless, our enemies don't hesitate to lie.
THE NEED FOR CONTINGENCY PLANS!
24. SO WHAT I'M ASKING IS WHAT IS THEIR CONTINGENCY PLAN, when we know, as the Lord said this morning, that our anti-Christ enemies there are still in operation & they've got their secret network. Right now they might even know who we are. But just going to the School & attacking the Family is not going to do the trick, what they have to do is try to turn the PEOPLE against us, & bad publicity has been their favourite method.--When they can persuade local media to expose us.
25. (MARIA: EXCEPT FOR THE LORD'S PROTECTION, THAT "20/20" PROGRAM IN THE STATES COULD HAVE SOME REPERCUSSIONS IN JAPAN ALSO.) Yes, I've have been thinking about that too. That program shows they haven't forgotten about us, & it shows they still consider us a threat. And every time they do that in the States, then it starts a new wave & the media pick it up, the papers pick it up, & then the INTERNATIONAL wire services pick it up, and it's news. Something new has been added, and as you know, it finally seeps around the whole World, and it's apt to come out in Japan as well.
26. SO, FAMILY, WHAT'S YOUR CONTINGENCY PLAN THERE, WHEN THE BAD PUBLICITY WAVE HITS YOUR SCHOOL? (Maria: That means when it hits ALL of Japan.) Well, if our other Schools there, our small local Schools, don't show any connection to the big School, they might be spared.
27. [B]ut what about when the BAD PUBLICITY wave hits?--Which is just almost BOUND to hit, it ALWAYS hits! When we've more or less done our job the Lord always allows it to hit to refine the products & to persuade us to move along to someplace else that's more fruitful.
28. I think maybe it's because they're not as well known there in Japan, they haven't had as much bad publicity there & those aspects of us have not been smeared around as much as they have in some other countries.--Probably because there aren't as many CHRISTIANS there & they're not on the job as much as they are some other places.
29. BUT SOMEBODY'S GOING TO GET WORRIED ABOUT THE FAMILY THERE SOONER OR LATER & start [trouble]. We'll see. I just want to warn you, & the LORD has warned you, that they have their own secret communications network & they could even be working on it right now & preparing their plans.
BE PREPARED!
30. I GUESS THAT'S ENOUGH FOR NOW. THAT'S MY JOB AS PROPHET, TO WARN YOU OF IMPENDING POSSIBILITIES, & to remind you that you need to always be prepared. If such adverse publicity begins to come out against the School there, what are they going to do about it? Well, the first thing we usually do, of course, is we try to COUNTER it & ANSWER it, & that way we get MORE publicity. The Lord knows that also, we not only get bad publicity, but we also get GOOD publicity for OUR side & OUR message, it helps to get the Word out. But of course you can't beat City Hall & they always win in the long run. I don't think we've ever won one of those battles yet. We've never really taken it to court & we're not going to because there's nothing they love better than to get us in court & just REALLY sock it to us! So we usually hit & then run.
31. THEY SHOULD THINK & PRAY ABOUT WHAT TO DO TO PREPARE, & LET THE LORD LEAD. One thing they can cling to, one promise, is that whatever temptation, He'll ALWAYS make a way of ESCAPE!--1Cor.10:13. That's a good promise to claim. Maybe they'd better have their [next place] picked out! (Maria: Maybe the weaker ones will have to go back to their home countries, & the stronger ones could maybe go to one of our remaining open fields.)
32. WELL, PTL! TYL! THE JAPANESE GOVERNMENT MAY HAVE TRIED TO STAMP OUT CHRISTIANITY THERE 400 YEARS AGO, but it's still there & it's flourishing right now more than ever, especially with the Family! Of course, this is probably its LAST stand, & the Antichrist Government will then take over! But praise God, we'll keep on going as long as we can, just like those early Christians did. (Maria: We're sowing a lot of little seeds now. Even if they don't really understand much of what they're doing & they receive the Lord, in times of trouble when they have to make a decision & stand up, the Lord will show them more & He'll help their religion to flourish.)
33. I DON'T KNOW WHETHER THAT HELPED YOU ANY OR NOT, but I just thought it was important to warn you that "offences needs must come, but WOE unto them through whom they come!"--Mat.18:7. But why do they need to come? It says there in Daniel, "to purify & make white."--Dan.11:35. It helps us, strengthens us, tests our metal to see if we're pure gold, to see if we really MEAN what we say & we're willing to SUFFER & even DIE for our faith!
34. THE LORD LOVES MARTYRS, HE'S HAD A LOT OF THEM!--Psa. 116:15. They're the ones that in Heaven are pictured as being especially honoured in the Book of Revelation, etc. (See Rev.6:9-11; 20:4.) So it's no terrible disaster or catastrophe or tragedy for people to even get KILLED for their faith! All those Japanese Christian martyrs probably have special status up in Heaven right now & are glorified for how they suffered for their faith because they refused to deny it. So that time is coming too. But in the meantime, let's keep on doing our best, amen? Why don't you close in prayer, Mama?
CLOSING PRAYERS
35. (MARIA: THANK YOU JESUS FOR THIS WONDERFUL COUNSEL, LORD, & these wonderful words of guidance, instruction & care & love for us. We thank You Jesus that You're so faithful to always warn us & always prepare us, Lord. We thank You for it & ask You to help us all to not just be hearers, but also DOERS of the Word, each of us to do what we CAN, Lord, to prepare for the things to come & to also be as careful & prayerful as we can, to not make it come sooner than You want it to because of our unwise actions, Lord. We ask You to hold it off as long as possible, as long as You know we need to do the job.) Amen, rebuke them in Jesus' name! Rebuke the Enemy & all of our enemies! That television show, Lord, may You turn cursing to blessing! PTL! TYJ!
36. (MARIA: HELP US TO DO AS MUCH AS WE CAN AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE, LORD, to work before the night has come (Jn.9:4), to do all we can, while we can, Lord, not only at that School, but the whole Family throughout the World that are doing their best for You! Help them to realise the SHORTNESS of time & the importance of really having their GUARD up against the wiles of the Enemy! Give us all wisdom & strength, & continue to give us counsel & guidance through Dad. Strengthen him, Lord, & make us all strong in spirit to do Thy Will. TYL!)
37. AMEN, THANK YOU JESUS! YOU KNOW THE SITUATION, LORD, & YOU KNOW THE FUTURE. Help us not to worry about it, but to be AWARE of it, Lord, & to be FOREWARNED is to be FOREARMED, prepared for it, & not be surprised or in any way be taken unawares, but to be prepared & to prepare for it, & to all keep the PILGRIM ATTITUDE, Lord, to remember that we're ALWAYS pilgrims & strangers here in this World, we have here NO certain resting place, but HEAVEN is our Home! What a day of rejoicing that will be when we all get to Heaven, Lord, & shout the victory! PTL!
38. HELP US TO DO OUR BEST WHILE STILL HERE, WHILE WE STILL HAVE THIS GLORIOUS OPPORTUNITY TO SAVE SOULS FOR THY KINGDOM, for Thy Heavenly City, Lord! They'll be so glad when they get There, Lord, that we came & told them about You!--That we loved them enough, Lord, to try to reach them & save them for Eternity. We won't be sorry, Lord, we won't regret a single one, we'll be thankful for every single one that we won & led to Thee, Lord, everyone who was reached, ALL those that were witnessed to, even those that DIDN'T get saved, Lord, at least we gave them an OPPORTUNITY, we reached them with the GOSPEL & we at least did what we COULD.
39. WE DON'T WANT TO STRIKE FEAR OR TERROR INTO THESE HEARTS, Lord, about the future, but we just want to be strengthened & prepared. "A strong man armed keepeth his goods in peace" (Lk.11:21), & we are not ignorant of the Enemy's devices, of the Enemy's machinations, but are to be AWARE of the various fronts on which he may attack, & be PREPARED & be really in the spirit, Lord, eyes & ears & hearts open to Thee, so we can receive WHATEVER message of warning You may have for us to prepare us! And with every one, Lord, You'll always give some way of escape, & we claim that promise, Lord, in Jesus' name! PYL! TYJ! Even if it's straight UP, Lord, in the Rapture, or whatever it's going to be, You're going to get us out of this mess!
40. THANK YOU THAT WE'RE STILL ABLE TO WORK IN THIS MESS, LORD, & save souls out of the mire & out of the pit while we're here in this World! And thank You for the vision for Schools You've given us, to train our children properly & give them the benefits of good training & schooling & even recreation & all the rest, TYL! Our Schools are benefiting not only the HEATHEN, Lord, but also benefiting US as well. So we thank You Jesus for it all, & we know that it will go on just as long as YOU want it to, & that our enemies had better beware lest they be found to fight against THEE, Lord, & if this thing be of God, no man can stop it!--Acts 5:38,39. And we know it IS of You, Lord!
41. YOU HAVE DONE MIRACLE AFTER MIRACLE FOR YOUR CHILDREN, & we thank You for answering prayer & for keeping us & providing for us, Lord. Continue to keep us & continue to bless us, & most of all continue to make us a blessing. TYJ! Help the Family there not to fear, not to worry, but to TRUST You, Jesus, & just simply to plan for whatever may happen, Lord, so that we will not be left helpless or unprepared.--In Jesus' name. TYL! PTL! TYJ!
MAKE HAY WHILE THE SUN SHINES!
42. WELL, I'VE DONE MY JOB, THAT'S IT. I think you just need to remember that we do have enemies. And as the Lord said about Japan this morning, they still secretly oppress Christianity there & they have their own secret network of information.--Which means when our job there is done, they'll probably catch up with us. But don't worry about it or fear it, just accept it & know it's bound to happen sooner or later. That just may help our folks there to be even MORE energetic to work FAST, knowing that time is short & we have to work fast to make hay while the sun shines! Amen? PTL! Just don't waste time.
43. ALL RIGHT! TYL! THANKS FOR YOUR TIME! I felt it was necessary for you to kind of know what's going on. Considering the situation, the successful operation of that big School there is such a MIRACLE, the way God has blessed it & given us favour & friends & help. (Fam: It's sort of like "Stand back & see Me fight, saith the Lord!")--Especially when we've never done anything like this before!
44. (FAM: I'VE BEEN READING SOME OF THE OLD LETTERS, LIKE THE BLACK BOOK LETTERS, & in a lot of ways, the counsel about TSC, how WE didn't have to go out, the public came out to see US, it's all right there.) Right, in a way it really is sort of another TSC situation. PTL! (Fam: "Sample Not a Sermon" & all those Letters come so alive now because the situation in our big Schools is somewhat similar, those same principles can be applied.)
45. WELL, WE GO THROUGH DIFFERENT PHASES. None of them ever last, but they last as long as they are FRUITFUL & as long as we accomplish the PURPOSE, & then we move on, just like they did in the Bible, pilgrims & strangers, they never stayed anywhere very long.
46. (FAM: ANOTHER REAL BENEFIT BESIDES ALL THE FRIENDS BEING WON & EVERYTHING IS THAT THE FAMILY THERE ARE REALLY LEARNING A LOT.) There are a lot of benefits in having such Schools. We're really taking good care of our kids, giving them better training & more time, & they can see that we really love them & are trying to help them. They will cherish their days at our Heavenly Schools when they're gone. (Maria: They hope it's not going to be gone for awhile.) Well, it's always gone, it always goes!
Copyright (c) 1998 by The Family