Shoes, Bush and Feet in Scripture. ,

Last weekend, President Bush made a surprise visit to Baghdad, sneaking in under cover of darkness, like *ahem* a "Thief in the night", to pay his final respects to a country that he has been allowed to trample into dust. The next day, during a press conference, an Iraqi reporter threw both of his shoes at the president, and was then tackled, arrested, and severely beaten while in custody. His imprisonment has sparked tremendous protest in Iraq, and people throughout the middle east have been praising the shoe thrower for his boldness and bravery.

When Bush dodged the first shoe he came back smiling, and avoided the second shoe easily. He then laughed it off for the media, and said something presidential about how he should expect such things from "a free society". He said he was in no way insulted by the footwear assault. Good job Mr. President. If we take his words at face value, and then move on with our lives, we could judge this situation as an example of Bush's light-heartedness, and love for democracy. But everything about this president's history should warn us against taking anything he says at face value. By digging slightly, you can come to know that the journalist suffered many injuries, including broken bones and internal bleeding after he was arrested in the so-called "free society", with freedom of expression that Bush insists Iraq now is.

My view is that Bush smiled because he knew what would happen to the man after his fifteen seconds of protest, and he delighted in seeing how his own policy of destruction was affecting his victims. I hold this view because George Bush is historically sadistic. He actually delights in the suffering of others. Evidence of this mentality comes from a variety of sources; most notably his ritual of "branding" new fraternal initiates with a burning hot wire coat hanger when he was president of the Yale fraternity, DKE. Another revealing example is Bush's 1999 interview with Tucker Carlson concerning the execution of Karla Faye Tucker. In this interview, Bush was asked about his decision to execute this professed born again Christian, despite her high-profile interview with Larry King just before her death, and the potential backlash among popular opinion. Bush mockingly recounts her begging for her life on that show (even though she didn't), and in that moment, with Bush's guard down, Tucker Carlson and his viewers were exposed to his real self, and his own personal sense of humor. As soon as Bush realized his blunder, he then tried to recover by saying that being governor was a tough job and he had to make tough choices. But the damage was done, and the evidence was on TV. These are just two examples of Bush's cruel heart.

But for me, the irony of this incident is that this event brings feet to the spotlight. What amazing timing, considering what is going on right now in the world, and what the promise of the great day of the Lord is all about. I've been working on a teaching about the feet of the body of Christ for the past few months, and I recently came across an already published and very well written expose by 20th century prophet of God, Bill Britton. This teaching is well worth the time it takes to read, and I will give a link to it at the end of this post. But first, I'd like to share a few of my own thoughts and scriptural connections.

------ The Feet ------

Almost four years ago, when I prayed to God for my eyes to be opened, and I enlisted my life in his service, I was coming before him broken and humbled by the selfish waste of time that my late teens and early 20s were. I felt like the prodigal son at that moment, willing to bargain with my heavenly father for a seat in his house, no matter how meager. In my prayer, I offered to be a janitor for the kingdom of God if he would but accept me, actually imagining myself to be scrubbing heavenly toilets, and seeing that as more valuable than the most comfort filled life that this world had to offer. I knew I was a sinner, and knew that God knew, but I really wanted to serve him anyway. It was probably the most significant prayer of my life. I needed God to be real in my life, and nothing else mattered compared to it. His amazing response to that prayer is the reason I am here now, writing this. But it wasn't an instant response; that happened about two or three days later when I stumbled across the Bush is Antichrist website (but that's another story).

The reason I'm mentioning this prayer is that while I was in a bargaining state, I also said that I'd be willing to be a part of the little toe of the foot of the body of Christ. I said that because at the time, I thought that the feet of the Body of Christ were not very honorable. How little I knew! Through reading the scripture, and listening to the teaching Spirit of God, I have come to understand that the feet of the body of Christ have special honor and purpose.

Those who are a part of the "feet" are those who will be alive on earth, overcoming the evils of a world ripe for judgment when Christ returns to manifest his kingdom. They are the ones who will be perfected in their natural lives, by nothing less than the power of the promise of Christ. I believe it is the "feet" that will bind up the enemies of God, preparing the way for the coming of the Lord. The feet will be anointed by the spirit, and be granted the power to invade and conquer the earth on behalf of Christ, for it is nothing less than the entire earth which is God's full and final "Promised Land". Remember how Jesus's feet were anointed with tears, and again with expensive perfume? Remember how Jesus washed the feet of his disciples clean the evening of the last supper? These were signs of something that was yet to happen in the greater story of Christ and his body. Have the feet been washed or anointed yet? I don't think so, but I believe it's coming, and I sincerely hope to be a part of it.

I believe that Satan imitates God to an obsessive degree. I also believe that there are patterns throughout the universe, and that there is a certain amount of balance and symmetry that pleases God (for why else would he have made things this way?) Paul referred to this phenomenon as "types and shadows". When you read the scriptures on an ongoing basis, you can see these patterns emerge.

One such pattern is in Belshazzar's dream in Daniel chapter 2. This dream ends up being a prophetic vision for the future of empires in the world, up to the point of their destruction and inevitable collapse. It is a vision of a great statue of a man whose head is made of solid gold, his shoulders chest and arms likewise of silver, his belly and upper legs are brass, his lower legs are made of iron, and his feet made of iron mixed with clay. In the dream, King Belshazzar sees a great stone, "not cut by human hands" that soars through heaven and smashes the feet of this statue, causing the whole thing to crumble and topple. It is upon this great stone that a new kingdom is built in place of the one that is destroyed. Daniel reveals to the king that this statue represents great empires, from Babylon through to the final empire that is trampling the world when God comes back to judge it and destroy it's hold over the earth.

In interpreting the dream, Daniel tells the king that it's talking about the future. It is a dream of a timeline, which begins with:

1. King Belshazzar of Babylon as the head of Gold. This gold represents a majesty and purity that gets lost over time, as the value of the body diminishes further down.

-> Likewise, the body of Christ began with the head, Jesus, who was perfect in his purity, like gold. So we have the starting point of the body of empire, and the body of Christ beginning with a head.

2. An inferior kingdom that will replace Babylon rises up second (Medo-Persia). This is represented by the arms and chest of silver.

-> In the body of Christ, it was the early, spirit filled church of Pentecost which rose up in place of Jesus. It had power and a strong anointing of the spirit, but was still populated by men and women who made mistakes. It was not as pure and superior as Jesus.

3. A third kingdom comes to replace the chest of silver. This belly of Brass (Alexander's Greece) is also inferior in value to the first two, but it shines almost as brightly as the head of gold, appearing more valuable than it is.

-> Introduce the Roman Catholic church, established by the counsel of Nicea, it rises to replace the underground, power-filled early days church. With all of it's government-backed power, and it's tendency for grand , shining, and magnificent symbols of it's divine authority, (combined with a staggering collection of worldly treasures), this historical part of the body of Christ reminds me most of a belly of brass.

4. A fourth kingdom rises up that is like iron. This is represented by two legs. It is very strong, and very fierce, but not very rich in it's own way. The upper parts of the body give this part it's value. So was Rome: a thief of Greek culture, a strong and uncompromising conqueror.

-> Likewise, (after Rome fell) in the dark ages, and during the reformation: The church split (like two legs), and strengthened it's roots in the world. It also took part in several ugly and militant centuries. This was a time filled with trials, accusations, crusades, witch hunts and inquisitions. Countless tribes were slaughtered in the Americas in the name of Christianity; their cultures were destroyed. The church was on a mission to move and conquer, much like the Roman empire. There was as much resemblance between this church and Jesus as there is between Iron and Gold. Because of that, the power and Holy Ghost manifestations known by the early church were but distant memories of glory days. Men of faith who knew and served Christ lived in the church at that time (as throughout all stages of this body), but they were often persecuted by the established order. Martin Luther and Saint Frances of Assisi are good examples of these men.

5. Finally, the feet of this statue are partly of Iron and partly of clay. As far as metal goes, it's pretty much worthless: no comparison between the feet and the head; no logical reason that these feet should be entrusted to support the weight of such a large, and strangely arranged statue, but they stand firm, until God acts.

Just the same, when Rome fell, there weren't many other major world empires. England expanded her reach throughout Asia and Africa, but never rose to the stature of Rome. likewise, France and Spain attempted to permanently spread their influence abroad, but weren't able. In the 20th century the British empire fell apart (in part thanks to the power of the spirit of Ghandi, who I believe is a forerunner of the feet of Christ). Meanwhile, empirically minded nations such as Russia, Germany, Japan, and America attempted to rise to the top of the world. All have fallen but America, which could be falling even now (because God may be acting right before our eyes).

My point is that a bumbling, sadistic, fool like George Bush is in fact representing, in our day, the kingship of a long and sordid tradition of great empire kingdoms throughout history. He has about as much structural integrity in his leadership as Iron-and-Clay feet have at the base of such a large statue. But yet, somehow, here we are, America is still an occupying empirical country unchallenged by the global community, the Economic heartbeat of our country determines that of the global economy, for better or for worse. We have about 5% of the world's population, yet we consume about 1/4 of all the world's resources. Against all logic this arrangement exists in the world today: somehow, some way, it has managed to stand so far. I believe this is because God has allowed it to be so, and is getting ready to destroy it in front of everyone. I believe that modern, institutional churches are in the same position. But God has something else in mind. The chains of empire are about to be taken from off of the backs of all oppressed people because that is God's plan, and the time for that deliverance is now.

The feet of the kingdom of men are about to be crushed by the kingdom of God. The feet of the body of Christ complete the body, and connect the head to the earth once again. People living on earth will be selected from the earth to be used by God to destroy this lineage of empire. Just like the mountain that is cut from the earth without human hands, and is hurled at the feet of this statue. Only by God could something like this be done, but by God this will certainly be done! Praise the Lord!

Please press on to read what Bill Britton has to say about the feet of the body of Christ in prophecy. I agree with his message, he says it very well, and he cites many scriptures throughout his teaching about the feet to back it up. You can find it in this link. May you be blessed and inspired, and may the Lord reveal to you the truth of this matter.