Ian West: Australia Lucky or Blessed? Also, Sea at Bondi Beach Turns Blood Red

In his commentary today, Ian West of the Living Church of God has the following:

In 1964, academic and social critic Donald Horne wrote The Lucky Country—a book about his homeland Australia. His title came from the opening words of the book’s last chapter: “Australia is a lucky country, run by second-rate people who share its luck.” In his 1976 sequel, Death of the Lucky Country, Horne clarified his meaning regarding Australia’s “luck.” He had not meant that the country had abundant mineral resources. “I had in mind the idea of Australia as a British derived society whose prosperity in the great age of manufacturing came from the luck of its historical origins… In the lucky style we have never ‘earned’ our democracy. We simply went along with some British habits.”

Horne was correct, in that the prosperity of Australia came from its historical origins—but he certainly was not aware of how deep the true historical origins really are.

As a matter of fact, they go back thousands of years, long before Britain even existed. Actually, the British people are the descendants of Joseph’s son Ephraim, who was blessed by the patriarch Jacob and was prophesied to “become a multitude of nations” (Genesis 48:19). Just prior to his death, Jacob prophesied regarding the future for each of his twelve sons in the end times. Concerning Joseph, he said, “Joseph is a fruitful bough, a fruitful bough by a well; his branches run over the wall… By the God of your father who will help you, and by the Almighty who will bless you with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that lies beneath, blessings of the breasts and of the womb. The blessings of your father have excelled the blessings of my ancestors, up to the utmost bound of the everlasting hills. They shall be on the head of Joseph and on the crown of him who was separate from his brothers” (Genesis 49:22, 25-26).

The nation of Australia has been a recipient of these promises. That is not a matter of being “lucky,” but rather having been truly blessed by God as a result of the promise made to Joseph over three thousand years ago. Sadly, because of disobedience to God, these blessings are being taken away, as they are for all of the Israelite nations. The children of Israel were admonished by Moses to “choose life” that God’s blessings would be maintained and their obedience rewarded (Deuteronomy 30:19-20). However, even he predicted that their downfall would come when they walked astray from God (Deuteronomy 31:29) and would suffer in the “latter days.” We see this happening today, and the same pattern of curses are now falling on the descendants of the Israelite people—modern America, Britain and their relatives around the world. The same heart of disobedience remains—although God will one day change that as well and redeem His people (Ezekiel 36:26; Hosea 3:5).

For the time being, however, Australia and its allies are beginning to see their “luck” run out. http://www.lcg.org/cgi-bin/tw/commentary/tw-comm.cgi?category=Commentary1&item=1353969261#read_more

Australia has done quite well the past few years. Yet, like the other Anglo-descended nations, it too needs repentance as it will suffer in the time of Jacob’s trouble (Jeremiah 30:7). Those who have received various blessings from God need to realize that the Bible also shows that cursings from God are also promised for the disobedient.

Australia made the secular news for different reason today:

Blood Red Beach Gets (Almost) Everyone Out of the Water

ABC News – Nov 27, 2012

Sydney’s famous beaches, popular with surfers, looked more like a scene out of a horror movie today when the waters were stained blood red from an algae bloom. Bondi Beach, nearby Clovelly Beach and Gordon’s Bay were closed while authorities tested the water…Algae blooms are most prevalent in hot, humid weather, the newspaper reported. http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/lifestyle/2012/11/blood-red-beach-gets-almost-everyone-out-of-the-water/

I have actually visited Bondi Beach and when I was there the water looked fairly normal. Yet, the photo I saw related to the above news item showed it blood red.

Notice the following prophecy:

8 Then the second angel sounded: And something like a great mountain burning with fire was thrown into the sea, and a third of the sea became blood. (Revelation 8:8)

Some believe that the physical reason that the sea will look like blood is because of the overgrowth of algae that could occur if heated up. If so, what is happening near several beaches in Australia is a foretaste of the prophecy in Revelation 8:8.

Some articles of related interest may include:

Anglo – America in Prophecy & the Lost Tribes of Israel Are the Americans, Canadians, British, Scottish, Welsh, Australians, Anglo-Southern Africans, and New Zealanders descendants of Joseph? Where are the lost ten-tribes of Israel? Who are the lost tribes of Israel? What will happen to the Jews in Israel? Will God punish the U.S.A., Canada, United Kingdom, and other Anglo nations? Why might God allow them to be punished first?
Will the Anglo-Nations be Divided and Have People Taken as Slaves? Will the lands of the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand be divided? What does Bible prophecy teach? Are there non-biblical prophecies that support this idea? Who will divide those lands? Who will end up with the lands and the people?
What Do You Mean — Repentance? Do you know what repentance is? Have you truly repented? Repented of what? Herbert W. Armstrong wrote this as a booklet on this important subject.
Are You Saved? Do You Love Jesus? What is a True Christian? What is the Gospel? Evangelist Richard Ames answers those important questions.
True vs. False Conversion Are you really converted or willing to be? What is true conversion? What is false conversion? What are the dangers of false conversion? Evangelist Roderick Meredith provides information on those important questions.
Barack Obama, Prophecy, and the Destruction of the United States This is a 160 page book for people truly interested in prophecies related to Barack Obama and the United States, including learning about many that have already been fulfilled (which the book documents in detail) and those that will be fulfilled in the future. It also discusses what will happen to nations such as Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. This book is available to order at www.barackobamaprophecy.com. The physical book can also be purchased at Amazon from the following link: Barack Obama, Prophecy, and the Destruction of the United States: Is Barack Obama Fulfilling Biblical, Islamic, Catholic, Kenyan, and other America-Related Prophecies?
Barack Obama, Prophecy, and the Destruction of the United States–Amazon Kindle edition. This electronic version is available for only US$2.99. And you do not need an actual Kindle device to read it. Why? Amazon will allow you to download it to almost any device: Please click HERE to download one of Amazon’s Free Reader Apps. After you go to for your free Kindle reader and then go to Barack Obama, Prophecy, and the Destruction of the United States–Amazon Kindle edition.)