Author: brm7

International speaker and author of 12 books, Bill Rudge has spoken over 2,500 times in schools, colleges, churches, prisons, and military bases throughout the U.S. and abroad with over one million of his books and CDs touching lives in more than 100 countries. From being voted least likely to succeed to directing an international outreach whose theme is challenging believers to reach their maximum potential in Christ, Bill is an ordained chaplain and has a weekly worldwide radio broadcast.

A Mother and Grandmother’s Prayer

~ brm7

by Karen Rudge

Looking at the ministry and all that the Lord has done through it and our staff, I can’t help but praise God! The prayers of Bill’s mother, Florence, were a primary influence in bringing it about. Florence’s dad, John Bombeck, wanted to be a minister and went to The Moody Bible Institute, but his voice was too soft. His daughter, Florence, prayed that one of her children might be a minister to fulfill her father’s calling. She also prayed that all her children would come to know the Lord.

Out of her five sons and one daughter, Bill would be the one to follow in his grandfather’s steps by going to Bible college to become a minister and start this ministry. Florence’s prayers began to bear fruit, like Timothy’s mother and grandmother in the Bible: “When I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded is in you also” (2 Timothy 1:5),

When Bill and I met as teenagers at a party, we were two young people raised in the church but who did not have a relationship with Jesus. We never even thought, at that time, about living for the Lord, but within a year, all that would change. I accepted the Lord at a Jesus Festival and brought Bill to church. A few months later, he surrendered his life to the Lord and was called to Bible college.

After graduating and serving as a youth pastor in North Carolina, he was asked to go to New Jersey to train with Youth for Christ. However, the Lord had other plans. I contracted a life-threatening liver disease, so we moved back to Pennsylvania to be close to our families. The Lord impressed upon Bill’s heart to start this ministry, and shortly thereafter, the Lord healed me, enabling me to assist him for over 45 years. Our son and daughter have worked for the ministry and now our granddaughter Caeleana is working with us, as well as several of our other grandchildren who volunteer: all this from the prayers of a mother and grandmother.

The Lord hears your prayers! You may never know, like Florence, who is with the Lord now, how and when your prayers will be answered, or how many lives will be touched and brought into the kingdom. We know that the Lord’s return is soon, so we keep on spreading His Good News to those who are lost (John 9:4).

Prophetic Ponderings

~ brm7

Bill Rudge

Photo by Bill Rudge

Coming Collision

We are on the verge of a collision that will change America and the entire world forever. Is it an asteroid striking Earth? Will it be an invasion by China or a nuclear strike from Iran, North Korea or Russia? Could terrorists overwhelm our Southern border spreading acts of terrorism across America? Perhaps an economic collapse due to skyrocketing debt? How about an alien invasion or takeover by Artificial Intelligence? Maybe massive earthquakes or other natural disasters?

No! I am not referring to any of these potential scenarios, but a collision of worldviews that is accelerating across America and the world: a growing hostility toward those who refuse to accept the “new morality” and who are obeying God’s command to evangelize the world.

The day is coming – and is almost upon us – when quoting certain “offensive” verses in the Bible, standing for righteousness or leading someone to faith in Jesus Christ as the only way of salvation will be more severely punished than robbery, rape or even murder.

Opposition toward those who adhere to biblical values is already happening and will intensify – even by those claiming Christianity.

What Have We Done?

  • The Creator reveals Himself in Scripture as the one true God, but much of the world refuses to give Him honor and instead “creates” other gods – or no god.
  • We are commanded to not take the name of the Lord our God in vain, yet in most movies, casual conversation and in many work places, His name is profaned and blasphemed.
  • God intended marital purity between one man and one woman; He forbids fornication and adultery, yet sexual immorality is rampant.
  • God is the author of life. He forms the infant in its mother’s womb, but millions of babies are murdered by abortion every year.
  • The Bible tells us not to steal or bear false witness. However, lying, stealing and deceit permeate our society. Many political, corporate and even religious leaders are corrupt.

What has become of us and this nation? So many of our people have turned to atheism and the occult; we are blasphemers, live immoral lives and pursue pleasure rather than seek after God. The most powerful nation in the history of the world is being dramatically weakened from moral and political corruption.

There are pockets of integrity and personal repentance, but the overall moral and spiritual state of America is worsening. We are progressively rejecting God’s standard for sexuality, marriage, gender, justice and morals. The words of the ancient prophet Isaiah are accurate for today: “Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness” (Isaiah 5:20).

The very sins referred to in Revelation for which the end-times generation refuses to repent are rampant today: immorality, violence, murder, sorcery, lying, stealing and profaning and blaspheming the Name of the Lord. Some believe the greatest days for the United States are still ahead. However, in light of every form of wickedness imaginable increasing across our land and with continuous effort to push God out of every sector of our society, unless there is widespread, genuine and rapid repentance, God’s hand of judgment on this nation will intensify. When all is said and done, the final words will be,“true and righteous are Your judgments…” (Revelation 16:7; 19:2).

Moaning in the Streets

Our nation and the world at large are increasingly dangerous, dark, deadly, destructive, deceptive and depressing. Our only hope is in Jesus Christ.

Moaning and crying in the streets of America will become more pronounced and more widespread. No! I did not have a dream or see a vision; I wasn’t visited by an angel, but I assure you, it is coming! Scripture and history clearly foretell the future of a nation that is blessed by God but forsakes Him and His commandments.

It has been said that those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. All we have to do is look back over the corridors of time to see what fate awaits a nation who disparages the Lord God Almighty and perverts His precepts.

America was built upon Judeo-Christian values and biblical principles which have kept her strong. However, our nation has increasingly forsaken its heritage and our God. The blessings we received as the greatest nation in the history of the world are being systematically lost.

Past generations and those who fought and died for the freedoms of this nation will one day rise to condemn this generation for what has befallen America – both the ones who have propagated it and the ones who tolerate it.

Chaos

  • The more the Bible is removed from our society and God is expelled from our schools and universities, the more our police are needed to protect students and teachers and to patrol the streets.
  • The more we violate the principles of God’s Word, the more we need therapists to deal with depression, with devastated lives and dysfunctional families.
  • The more we redefine the biblical concept of marriage, sexuality and gender, the more confusion and trauma young people experience.
  • The more we push God away, the more evil rushes in.
  • The more we dim the light of the Gospel, the more darkness and demonic phenomena emerge.
  • Someone astutely said, “The more we resist reaching up to Heaven, the more our world falls into chaos and despair.”

Former president Franklin Roosevelt said:

We cannot read the history of our rise and development as a nation without reckoning with the place the Bible has occupied in shaping the advances of the Republic. Where we have been the truest and most consistent in obeying its precepts, we have attained the greatest measure of contentment and prosperity.

The psalmist stated: “Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people whom He has chosen for His own inheritance” (Psalm 33:12).

Widespread violence has infiltrated virtually every facet of life in America – schools, workplace, shopping centers, theatres, city streets, neighborhoods, homes and churches. Suicide, as well as addiction to, and death from, drug usage is impacting untold numbers of families with pain and grief. Lies, deception and thefts permeate our society. Sorcery and nature worship (venerating the creation rather than the Creator) is the form of new spirituality. Occultism has infiltrated every aspect of our culture and apostasy (falling away from the faith) has permeated and impacted the Church.

Scared or Prepared?

It is hard to believe that even as undeniable prophetic signs occur, few pastors teach and preach on the end times to prepare their congregations for what is assuredly on the way.

Christians who know there is a coming Tribulation period, Battle of Armageddon and Second Coming as described in Revelation and are familiar with other prophetic Scripture in both the Old and New Testaments, are not terrified of “doomsday.” The real doom and gloom people are those who do not know the Bible and end-times scenario, so they are distraught over every potential global catastrophe.

These are the ones who panicked and thought all life on earth might be destroyed when scientists were experimenting to create black holes. These are the ones who were terrified when scientists predicted an asteroid could strike the earth and annihilate all life. These were the ones who thought the invasions of Desert Storm, the Iraqi war, the invasion of Israel by Hamas and the attack from Iran were Armageddon and the end of the world. These are the ones who fear that a pandemic, a nuclear holocaust, aliens or generative artificial intelligence will mark the end of humanity. These are the ones fearful that climate change will make our planet uninhabitable – it is not climate change, it is biblical prophecy.

We who know God’s prophetic timetable know that the world is not going to end in these ways. If you don’t want to be confused and frightened by all the hype and cataclysmic headlines in the media, then study Bible prophecy! You will have insight and discernment to understand what is going to happen in the near future. The purpose of studying God’s prophetic Word is not to scare you but to prepare you as the Lord’s coming draws near. Reading God’s Word will give you peace, hope and assurance that God is in control and fulfilling what He has foretold.

As You See the Day Approaching

What should you be doing as you see the day of Christ’s return approaching? Following are some pivotal admonitions in these end times:

Repent: In His great mercy and long-suffering, the Lord has given America additional time and opportunities to turn back to Him, but we have failed to produce fruit of repentance. During the Tribulation period, God’s global judgments will bring multitudes to their knees in repentance even as the whole earth abounds in wickedness. May our confession be: “Lord, we have perverted Your truth, profaned Your name and provoked Your wrath. We repent and turn from our ways that displease and dishonor you. Please forgive us and restore Your presence in this nation!” The prayer Daniel prayed in the book of Daniel 9:1-19 is crucial for all of us today. Take time to read and pray it this day.

Love His appearing: Some Christians seem indifferent with little interest in end time prophecy, but God’s Word promises “the crown of righteousness … to all who have loved His appearing” (2 Timothy 4:8). We should be eagerly awaiting our Lord’s return because as Hebrews 9:28 says, Christ “will appear a second time for salvation without reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him.”

Be ready: Stay awake and “be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming” (Matthew 24:42).

Study the Bible: Recognize the signs of the times (Matthew 16:3). “Blessed is he who reads, and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and keep the things which are written in it; for the time is near” (Revelation 1:3). God will fulfill all of His prophecies and promises. He will establish His millennial and eternal kingdom of righteousness, peace and joy.

Pray daily: Pray for strength to remain steadfast during difficulties and persecution. Like Israel, Christians have no one who will defend and support them – we must rely completely on the Lord. May our love and light for the Lord shine all the brighter in an increasingly dark and troubled world. May we pray for all our leaders and people to come to know Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord and be guided by His Word and Spirit…and “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem” (Psalm 122:6).

Develop discernment: Do not be deceived by the deception Jesus warned about (Matthew 24:24), and the apostasy and deluding influence foretold by the Apostle Paul (2 Thessalonians 2:3-11).

Attend church: “not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near” (Hebrew 10:25).

Persevere and be faithful: Remain steadfast in your commitment to the Lord all the remaining days of your life. Be faithful even unto death (Revelation 2:10). While opposition and persecution may lie ahead for those who remain faithful to Jesus Christ, in the not too distant future, those who refuse to repent of their sin will mourn and wail because all they built their lives (and eternity) on is destroyed. Yet, God’s people and Heaven will rejoice as Christ’s kingdom triumphs over all the kingdoms of this world:

Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you saints and apostles and prophets, because God has pronounced judgment for you against her (Revelation 18:20; also see Revelation 17:18 – 19:7). Difficulties, tribulations and persecution may lie ahead but those who remain faithful to Jesus Christ will inherit all God has prepared for those who love Him and obey His commandments.

Purify your life: You “ought to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God” (2 Peter 3:11-12). We must fill our lives and homes with the presence and peace of the Lord Jesus Christ. Read the Bible, listen to hymns and/or praise music, watch wholesome and uplifting movies. Encourage one another. Pray for one another.

Be a witness: At one time, it was popular to profess faith in Jesus Christ and the Bible, but that is no longer the case. Scandals in churches and ministries, along with a growing hostility toward biblical Christianity, makes it increasingly less popular to be a committed Christian. Nevertheless, while we still have opportunity, we Christians must unashamedly and boldly share our faith and hope in Jesus Christ with others.

Instead of succumbing to the current state of affairs or becoming desensitized to our decadent society, we must rise and courageously proclaim to our families and friends, our communities and workplaces, and throughout our nation and to the world that turning our hearts and lives back to Jesus Christ is the only answer to the chaos, confusion, hopelessness, despair and devastation ravaging this nation and world.

We must focus our time, energy and resources on God’s priority in these end times: evangelism and missions. Nothing else has preeminence over this. Be a part of spreading the Gospel to the ends of the earth (Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 1:8).

A Life Transformed

~ brm7

Bill Rudge went from calling Christians “weak-kneed sissies” to calling Jesus Christ the Lord of his life. In this message, he shares many dramatic and unbelievably miraculous stories of all that God has done for him.

Paradise Restored

~ brm7

Bill Rudge

The Tree of Life by David Miles. Used by permission.

Those who have gone on to be with the Lord are delighting endlessly in the glory of the Creator, exploring the incomprehensible splendor of the heavenly realm, meeting the heroes of the faith and being reunited with loved ones who have gone on before.

Just ponder for a few moments what God has prepared for those who love Him. The whole universe will be a magnificent paradise of beautiful sights, amazing sounds, awesome feelings, incredible tastes and indescribable wonders we cannot even begin to imagine at this time with our finite minds. The psalmist said that in God’s presence is fullness of joy and pleasures forever (Psalm 16:11). Jude 24 tells us that in His presence is great joy.

Can you imagine what the New Jerusalem (the capital city of the New Earth) will be like with an endless array of remarkable relationships, extraordinary experiences and astounding adventures to satisfy us for all eternity? You will have forever to enjoy God’s bountiful blessings. Those who have been redeemed by Christ, whose names are written in the Book of Life, will receive everything He has prepared for those who love Him.

As Moses was given a glimpse of the Promised Land before his death (Deuteronomy 34:1-4), God has given us His Spirit as a pledge, guaranteeing what is to come (2 Corinthians 5:5)—immortality and blessing beyond measure in a city whose architect and builder is God (Hebrews 11:10).

A New Heaven and a New Earth

Scientist and personal friend, Dr. T.V. Oommen, sent me the following article he wrote before he went home to be with the Lord:

The crowning act of God is the creation of man in His own Image. God created a beautiful Garden on the earth for Adam and Eve to enjoy. He came to visit them every day. Adam and Eve had fellowship with God, but then things changed. You know the rest of the story. Adam and Eve abandoned their God and went for the wisdom offered by the Serpent which was the impersonation of Satan. From that moment humankind came under the power of Satan who gained control of the world. God cursed the earth and it gradually filled with violence and other evils. After several hundred years the earth became an intolerable place to live. That is when God stepped in to destroy it with the Great Flood.

Initially, God considered the earth He had created in six days the “Good Earth.” Everything He created was “good” or “very good.” But our present earth is far from the ideal earth He originally created. The Good Earth had ideal climate and topography. It was a unified supercontinent. This is inferred from the statement that God commanded all the waters to be gathered into one place (Genesis 1:9). Islands are mentioned only after the Flood (Genesis 10:5). Men and animals all lived on one piece of land surrounded by one ocean. When the supercontinent split and moved apart violently (during Noah’s Flood), the crustal plates collided with each other and created mountains such as the Alps and the Himalayas.

The Book of Revelation reveals the ideal world of the future following the Second Coming of Christ and the Millennium the New Earth in combination with the New Heaven (Revelation 21:1). Let us rejoice in what God has planned for His people. May we all be partakers of His eternal Kingdom!

Paradise Restored

Imagine living in a beautiful paradise surrounded by the radiant light of God’s glory and enveloped in the warmth of His love. Envisage the ideal environment and climate. Everything you could ever need or want is provided. There will be no pollution, rust, weeds, cancer, pain, suffering, jealousy, anger, bitterness, hatred, violence nor murder. There will be no more terrorism, natural disasters, corrupt governments, lying, immorality nor countless other ills that have plagued humankind for six thousand years of history. Instead of false gods and religions, one LORD and His name the only name.

In Genesis, fallen man and woman are banished from the Garden of Eden and the tree of life (Genesis 3:22-24); in Revelation, redeemed men and women receive the New Jerusalem (Revelation 21:1-2, 10-27) and are given access to the tree of life (Revelation 22:2). In Genesis, death and suffering enter (Genesis 3:16-19); in Revelation, God wipes every tear from the eyes of His children and removes death, mourning, crying and pain (Revelation 21:4). In Genesis, disobedient Adam and Eve hid from the Lord God (Genesis 3:8); in Revelation, believers live with God (Revelation 21:3) and see His face (Revelation 22:4). We will be in Christ’s presence beholding His glory throughout all eternity.

Re-Materialized and Resurrected

Scripture informs us that the body of every person who ever lived on this planet will one day be raised from the dead to stand before God (Hebrews 9:27). Whether the body deteriorates in the ground, is cremated, consumed by wild animals, lost at sea or experiences any other fate—our physical bodies will be re-materialized and resurrected to stand before God.

As Scripture promises, the bodies of believers in Christ will be transformed into immortal, incorruptible, imperishable, indestructible, glorified bodies to eternally rule and reign with Christ over an Earth returned to its original paradise.

The righteous will appear before the Judgment Seat of Christ to receive their eternal rewards, and the unrighteous will stand before the Great White Throne Judgment of God. From its final eternal verdict, there will be no appeal. At this point, their judgment is final; there is no reprieve, no second chance. There will be no opportunity to change one’s mind or reverse one’s destiny. Anyone whose name is not written in the Book of Life will be eternally separated from God’s presence.

The Greek word that is often translated hell (abode of the damned in the afterlife) in the New Testament is Gehenna. Gehenna is the Greek transliteration of the Hebrew Ge Hinnom, meaning “Valley of Hinnom,” located southwest of Jerusalem. In this valley, children were burned as sacrifices to the false god Molech and idolatry was practiced. During the reign of righteous King Josiah, the idolatrous sacrifices were stopped (2 Kings 23:10). The Valley of Hinnom became a location where every kind of garbage, even corpses of criminals, was dumped. It was infested with worms and maggots, and a foul-smelling smoke rose from the constantly burning fires. Jesus used the metaphor of Gehenna to describe the place of everlasting punishment (Mark 9:47-48), and, just as Gehenna was outside the gates of Jerusalem, the final fate of the unrighteous lies outside the gates of the New Jerusalem (Revelation 21:27; 22:15) where believers will dwell with the Lord.

Separated from God’s Presence

The darkness over the land and Jesus’ loud cry, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:45-46) were the consequences of His temporary separation from God as He was taking on Himself the sins of the world, being abandoned by God. Sin separates us from God, and since Jesus was bearing the sins of the world, He was momentarily forsaken by God. His cry is representative of the awful reality of being separated from God for eternity.

Cynthia Seigart Bryan, a wonderful person I met while speaking at New Hope Baptist Church in Florida, writes in her compelling book, And the Name Wore Sandals:

What does it mean to be separated from God’s manifested presence? What would it look like to experience the undiluted absence of God? The absence of the Light of the World is a heavy, smothering darkness. The absence of the Living Water and Bread of Life will produce nothing but unquenchable thirst and insatiable hunger of soul, resulting in burning unfulfilled desire. The absence of the God of peace would mean unending restlessness and conflict. The absence of the God who heals would yield eternal torment and the anguish of disease from head to toe. The absence of the Holy God of Righteousness would produce the stench of unfathomable debauchery and evil. The absence of the God of reconciled relationships will bring about stifling solitude—heart-wrenching loneliness….That is why our Lord spared nothing to save those who were lost and spent more time warning about hell than any other subject.

Is Your Name in the Book?

It has been said: The first two chapters in the Bible (Genesis 1 and 2) and the last two chapters (Revelation 21 and 22) are about perfection. They reveal God’s intent for His creation and the restoration, after the Fall, of His creation. Everything between Genesis 2 and Revelation 21 is the story of redemption and reconciliation.

Those people who do not receive the holy and just God’s provision of salvation will be given what they chose in this life to remain eternally separated from their Creator.

If your name is written in the Book of Life, then you will inherit all that God has prepared for those who love and obey Him. If it is not, then you have ignored or rejected Christ’s tremendous sacrifice and gracious offer of salvation (1 John
5:11-13). Do you know Him? Is your name in the Book of Life?

The preceding was excerpted from Bill’s new book Death, Dying and Eternity. Free of charge upon request.