The Derailment of Brandon Holthaus

 

Reverend Brandon Holthaus is the Senior Pastor of Rock Harbor Church in Bakersfield California. He has an online ministry focusing on End Times Bible Prophecy which I have been watching weekly since 2020. I often watch the early Sunday service at Rock Harbor Church Livestreamed and participate in the Live Chat.

Pastor Brandon and I both believe in a Pre-Tribulation Rapture.

We are both Premillennialists 

who believe that Jesus Christ will physically and literally return to the earth to reign for 1,000 years after the 7-year Tribulation.

We are both Zionists who believe God gave the Jewish people Israel and we actively support Israel's right to exist and flourish in their land PROMISED to them by God.

We both are against Replacement Theology which is basically the belief that the Christian Church has taken the place of the Jews and Israel in God's eyes and that everywhere in the Bible God makes a promise to Israel it doesn't count anymore. Since Jesus has come His promises apply to only Christians because we have REPLACED Israel, which is a completely false doctrine based on a twisted interpretation of the Bible and is often used in Christian circles to justify antisemitism.

So what's the problem, Laura-Lee?💁‍♀️

Lately I have watched Pastor Brandon completely lose it❗️

He has turned from a Biblically solid End Times Minister watching over his church flock and informing people following him online into 

a Biblically inaccurate Pastor who stomps around a stage screaming out his sermons and ranting about Tucker Carlson, Candace Owens, Trump and (particularly) the “martyrdom of Charlie Kirk”.

However these manifestations only made me pray deeper for him, but he has now crossed a line and the Lord has asked me to shine a light on it.

In his constant push back against antisemitism and Replacement Theology somewhere along the line Brandon's thinking has become severely muddled.

💁‍♀️

You know I always say we should place our Scripture reading in context. We should know when and where it happened, who was saying it, who was receiving it and mostly who was it ultimately meant for. It's this last part that Pastor Brandon is in error over and it is a HUGE error that Jesus feels must be IMMEDIATELY corrected.

Let's cut to the chase.

In Brandon Holthaus's sermon from the end of September (2026) he referenced 3 specific Bible verses that most Christians are well aware of.

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“If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”

2 Chronicles 7:14

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“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

Jeremiah 29:11

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“And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.”

Acts 2:17

Then Pastor Brandon boldly stated (actually he yelled it because that's the only way he communicates now) to his entire congregation and everyone watching online who was a Christian that if we believed these verses were meant for us we are “WRONG❗️”

They were originally given to Israel and are only for ISRAEL and then explains his conclusion with some very convoluted  thinking.

Well, Brandon YOU 🫵  are WRONG and Jesus is deeply concerned for the people who follow you that you have just stolen these Scriptures from them by telling them they don't apply to anyone who isn't Jewish. In your pushback against Replacement Theology your “pendulum” has swung completely to the opposite extreme by attributing promises from God spoken to (or about) Israel being meant ONLY for Israel and therefore do NOT apply to Christians.

Let me clarify this by helping everyone understand the difference in how God views the Jews and Christians by looking at it in a biological way.

It's as if the Jews are Biological Children of God and the Christians are ADOPTED into God's family with all the legal rights, inheritance and love the Father gives his Biological Children, except all this is happening at the Spiritual level.

“But as many as received Him to them He gave the right to be called sons of God.”

John 1:12

“If some of the branches have been broken off, and you, though a wild olive shoot, have been GRAFTED IN among the others and now share in the nourishing sap from the olive root, do not consider yourself to be superior to those other branches. If you do, consider this: You do not support the root, but the root supports you. 

 You will say then, “Branches were broken off so that I could be GRAFTED IN.”

Romans 11:17-18

(emphasis mine)

“For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God.”

“The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.”

Romans 8:14,16-17

“There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all ONE IN CHRIST JESUS.””

Galatians 3:28

Don't fear, Children. God's promises to Israel (as a nation) will be lived out in the physical realm and to the followers of Jesus in the spiritual realm. Then someday (hopefully soon) Jesus will return to earth physically and ALL God's promises will be completely fulfilled in both realms.

Hallelujah! Maranatha! 🥹

Now, ☝️what do we do about Brother Brandon's doctrinal Derailment? ❓️🤔 

Well, if nobody corrects him directly and convinces him he's wrong then not only will he continue to spout out more errors but they will get bigger and more profound as time goes on.

He is now in such an insulated position from any contact outside his inner circle he cannot be reached by a regular email or a regular person like me. 🤷‍♀️

I am hoping that someone reading this may have a way to get through to him directly.

And if not, the Holy Spirit can get through to him directly. So I will continue to pray for him.

But I must strongly caution you. ⛔️ 

As long as Brandon Holthaus remains in such huge error and perverts the Scriptures we must give him a wide berth.

Do NOT go back to listening and following him until he fully repents and comes clean and Jesus restores his authority with some sort of obvious sign so we will  all know he's safe again.

Keep reading your Bible DAILY.

Stay sensitive to the prompting of the Holy Spirit and …

… don't let ANYONE take God's promises from you. 🤨

The Truth with Love,

 Always Laura-Lee 

A previous posts of mine that may be helpful as next steps.

Why Petra is NOT the End Times Hiding Place for the Jews"

"How to Tell if a Bad Christian Leader has Become a Good Christian Leader" LauraLeeWasHere Blog

😖 (whew) That was a really, really tough post.

Let's get build up again with a nice song. 🫠

"The PROMISE" by 4Him 🎶

Why So Angry About the Rapture ❓️

As I've mentioned before, I became a Born Again Christian in 1978 one month before my 12th birthday (Oops❗️🫢 Accidently outed my Biological and Christian age on the internet again). I joined an Evangelical Church that taught the Rapture occurs BEFORE the 7-year Tribulation period.

This is known as the “Pre-Trib Rapture” belief. Add to this the beliefs that the only End Times prophetic event that needed to happen before the Rapture was Israel becoming a nation again (happened on May 14, 1948) and that Jesus could snatch us away suddenly in “the Twinkling of an eye” (1 Corinthians15:52), and you are dealing with a VERY intense group of people and way of living.

There is also a group of Christians that believe the Rapture will take place at the end of the 7-year Tribulation period and we will know when it's coming to the exact day. This is known as the “Post Trib Rapture" belief.

When I first encountered these beliefs in 1978, even though my church taught Pre-Trib, I couldn't accept it. It sounded just too good to be true and just Wishful Thinking.

“Oh, we're all going to be ZIPPED up to Heaven by Jesus before anything bad happens! Won't that be lovely." 🤩 

(Don't judge me too harshly. I was a teenager)

I was young but I just knew Life didn’t work that way. And even though Pre-Trib was by far the most prevalent view by the entire Evangelical church at that time, I was a hold-out opting for the Post-Trib view for 30 years! During that time I participated in some very “lively” debates, Bible studies and discussions on that topic and Bible Prophecy in general until in 2008 I flipped to the Pre-Trib viewpoint just during a quiet, personal prayer and Bible study time alone with Jesus.

I've participated in discussions about the End Times and Bible Prophecy for almost half a CENTURY from two different Rapture viewpoints but I have NEVER before witnessed the amount of open scorn and rabid hostility against anyone who believes in a Pre-Trib Rapture as I have in the last six years or so.

I am Deleted and Blocked on Social media, told I'm going to Hell for my Pre-Trib beliefs and called everything from a Heathen to a B*tch and nobody wants to discuss it further.

As a Behaviorist, whenever I see radical or extreme behavior warning bells go off, Red Flags go up and my Puzzler 🤔🧠 goes into action and I ask the question, 

“Why so angry about the Rapture?” 

If you believe in a Pre-Trib Rapture you have probably experienced this extreme hostility too and feeling really bad about it because the hostility is coming at us from WITHIN the Christian Church!

I think the answer (or at least part of it) can be found in 2 main Bible verses.

“Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man. 27 People were eating, drinking, marrying and being given in marriage up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and destroyed them all,”

Luke 17:26-27

“The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. 6 The Lord regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled. 7 So the Lord said, “I will wipe from the face of the earth the human race I have created.”

Genesis 6:5-7

In those verses we are seeing evil people racing around, going about with a “business as usual” attitude and utterly refusing to acknowledge any indication that God is NOT PLEASED with them. They are scoffing, mocking and name-calling us, just like I'm sure they did while Noah was building the Ark all those years without any clouds in the sky. 

Now we Pre-Trib Rapture Believers are taking the brunt of hostility from Christians who are carnal, concerned predominantly about the temporal things of this world and  don't wish to give up sinful, self-indulgent lifestyles, even if it means turning their backs on Jesus, not studying Bible Prophecy and not preparing for the Rapture, which God alerts us will come “Like a thief in the night.” 

(1 Thessalonians 5:2)

I used to listen to a young preacher who made fun of anyone who studied Eschatology. He calls us “End Times Junkies” and equates our lifestyles with people who quit their jobs, sell their homes and lay in a field waiting for the Rapture.

(😅🤣😂. Yes, I know but Jesus is starting to sort out his mistakes by letting satan sift him, so it's actually no laughing matter to scoff, omit major chunks of Revelation and lead others to do the same.) But I actually heard him say during a sermon, “If I actually believed Jesus would return at any moment I wouldn't be standing on this stage right now. I'd be rushing into the street to tell whoever I could find!”

Which is exactly how we Pre-Trib People live. We have prioritized our lives into what truly matters by whether or not it has Eternal value, we are filled with boldness to speak up and we feel the intensity of these End Times without being Fear-driven by them.

So try not to respond with hurt or frustration and remember this is not a “Salvation Issue”. Our primary goal is not to convince people of a Pre-Trib Rapture but to give our Testimony about what Jesus has done for us personally so others will want to know and love Him too.

As I like to say, “All the Christians who don't believe in a Pre-Trib Rapture are suddenly going to be VERY pleasantly surprised!” 😉😃

And if you're not one of the Hostile-Angry people, just ask us WHY we believe in a Pre-Trib Rapture and we'd love to talk about it.

 We might be much fewer in number these days, but a group of people more excited about Christ's return you will not find. 

 

The Truth with Love,

 Always Laura-Lee 

BUTTERFLY depiction of Rapture 

Keep looking up, Kids.

Maranatha❗️

My previous post "Mathematical Proof of a Pre-Trib Rapture"

Why Petra (Jordan) is NOT the Wilderness Hiding Place for the Jews❗️

These are the main Bible verses you need to know for our topic.

"When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)

Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:

Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house:

 Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.

And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!

But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day:

 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be."

Matthew 24:15-24

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"The woman fled into the wilderness to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days."

Revelation 12

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"He will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’ In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him.

Daniel 9:27

Now let me pop in one of my whiteboard charts to clarify things.

These three Scriptures are all talking about the SAME thing.

Soon a UBER fabulous Politician (the Bible calls the AntiChrist) will take over as the sole leader of a Global Government. He will sign a 7-Year "Peace" Deal with Israel which will allow them to rebuild the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem.

(It was ripped to shreds in 70 AD by the Romans and only a tiny part of the Western wall (aka. Wailing Wall) remains.)

In the middle of the 7 years the antiChrist goes into the Jewish  Temple and declares himself to be God.

The Jews realize they have been duped by this false leader and God's full measure of wrath hits the earth in the second half of the Tribulation.

The antiChrist and his world government start hunting the Jews but God has a special place He promises to hide them for the remaining 3 1/2 years.

The Bible never specifically names this place but people who currently teach Eschatology (End Times Bible Prophecy) have latched onto the idea it is Petra in Jordan, even though it doesn't ever name the place in the Bible.

They don't say, "I think it might be Petra" or "It is my opinion it's Petra" they say, "God is going to hide the Jews in Petra." as if it is a Biblical FACT.

"Why do they say this if it's not in the Bible"❓️

GREAT Question! 

Let's take a quick look at Petra first.

I got my first look at this amazing place in the movie, "Indiana Jones: The Last Crusade" (the one where Sean Connery plays his Dad).

Here are some basic facts about Petra.

So it was made by these Nomadic Arabs called the Nabataeans and it housed their homes, tombs and lots of graven images of their idols.

It's a major Tourist site, wheelchair and scooter accessible, people pay lots of money to travel there and go GLAMPING there and it's not even in Israel.

Are you telling me THIS is the best hiding place the Lord could think up❓️❗️

So let's return to your question of, 

"Why do Bible Teachers say it's in the Bible if it's not in the Bible?"❓️

(sigh 😞)

I'm sorry, my Dears, but it is the same reason it usually is these days.

Money❗️

These ministers have for years (some for decades) been leading and hosting Tours to Israel. People pay GOBS of money to see Petra and the teachers have fit it into their tours. It has become a huge part of their income.

At this point, even if they did want to repent and come clean, it would crumble their ministries so they have to keep justifying it more and more.

I have sent (very gently worded) emails to several Bible Teachers I admire and value. Mostly initially in the form of the question,

"If Petra isn't actually mentioned by name in the Bible why do you think it's the place God will hide the Jews during the Tribulation?"

Without exception I have been responded to immediately with huge hostility. I've been called some very nasty names and been blocked by them across all their Social Media.

I won't name them. I don't have to. You'll know who they are because they are CONSTANTLY pushing their next trip to Israel.

Usually telling us that "the Bible takes on an entirely new depth" or "you never read the Bible the same way again once you see where Jesus walked" and "we will be staying at a 5-star hotel" or "this is the best way you can bless Israel in her current situation" ...

(It doesn't do their pockets any harm either! 🤨)

I wish I could spare you knowing that the majority of our church leaders have no integrity and are falling away because of their love of money, but I alert you to it for some very good reasons.

1. To keep you from falling into the same trap. We must NOT alter the words of the Bible (especially the book of Revelation) for ANY reason.

"18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to that person the plagues described in this scroll. 

19 And if anyone takes words away from this scroll of prophecy, God will take away from that person any share in the tree of life and in the Holy City, which are described in this scroll."

Revelation 22:18-19

It's okay to discuss these things and even wonder and speculate about them. I hope you do. But when you pass it on to others you MUST make sure they know the difference between what is in the Bible and what is just an opinion.

2. There is SO much error about what is actually in the Bible that by the end of the day my head feels like it's spinning and the methods of deception are demonically clever.

3. Even if these Bible teachers are sincere and have talked THEMSELVES into the lies, they are leading millions of their Followers astray, so I MUST speak up according to my commission as a Watchman in Ezekiel, chapter 3.

4. It is also my hope to motivate you to start a small Bible Study of your own. You don't need to have anything but your love for Jesus and your Bible.

There is a ravenous hunger for God's word right now and perhaps God wants to use you wherever you are right now.

Would you ask Him this in your prayers?

5. Also, I don't want you to be fearful when you see our admired leaders bail out on us and Jesus to chase money. This will turn us back to Jesus as the HEAD of the Church, which is His Body.

 Link to Romans 12 Description of Body of Christ 

If YouTube and the Internet suddenly got shut down or we were denied access to it 😱 we'd be okay because we have the Holy Spirit living inside of us to comfort, instruct, guide and unite us ... for Eternity.

I hope I've helped by bringing you ...

The Truth with Love,

Always Laura-Lee 

PLEASE NOTE:

I have NO ADS NO Store. I'm not Monetized anywhere and I NEVER ask for Donations.

Remnant Responses

 

"Times are tough but I'm excited because prophetic events are falling into place and we have front row seats to the End of the World!"

I've actually heard many of my fellow Remnant Believers in Jesus say that.

We are about to see God's Wrath poured out and some truly dark days. Billions of people will suffer and die. If you're getting any thrill from that prospect, you've got issues.

All I seem to care about these days is encouraging my Fellow Remnant Believers who are so sick and weary and just want to get out of here. 

Do NOT GIVE UP❗️

Jesus is so close. Time to literally be scanning the sky from the East to the west.

As for being an Evangelist❓️

I have spent most of my life telling people about Jesus and what the Bible says and after 48 YEARS of it I'm sick of getting a "Ho Hum", lethargic, "Jesus, I can take Him or leave Him" response from people in western countries.

There are 5 BILLION people on this planet who DON'T know anything about Jesus. I'm going to go find them.

The Truth with Love,

 Always Laura-Lee 

"For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man".

Matthew 24:17