Psalm 18:1, “The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.”

We are living in unprecedented times. No need to describe it because it is obvious- it’s falling apart. At this time in history, people are scared and confused because of how quickly life and freedom are changing. What we can be assured of is that regardless of what is happening, God is still with us and is still the Rock that we can stand on and not fear the happenings around us.

Every day there are occurrences of things going awry, or those things happening are getting worse. People are scared and frightened with the “new norm” that seems to change every day. A great number of secular people inherently know something is coming, but not knowing God, they are left to seek out the responses from the secular world of what is coming.

Just based on my little sphere in life, I see the same emotions happening to believers. They, too, are scared. Why? I can only guess that this stems from bad preaching or just being nominal Christians that are not in tune to the spiritual battles happening and what Bible prophecy says.

I agree that the world is falling apart socially and politically, but God is unchanging. As bad as things are getting, He is still our Rock. He won’t fail us or abandon us or leave us to fight alone.

The fear being perpetuated by the world and those of the world can become contagious to believers if they let their guard down. This does not have to be so. When we stand with our Rock, we are more aware of the times and intents of the world and the evil that is rampant.

Remember that God is our Rock! Do not give in to the ways of the world. Do not let yourself get caught in the snare of the lies and fearmongering happening in the world. Christians, we are in battle and are at the front lines of this battle. We will be weary, but we must not give up in the fight. We are in round 12 of this match and need to stay on our feet until the bell rings and we are victorious with Christ!

We must evaluate, through self-reflection, if we are living our lives on the sand or on the Rock. Sure, we say we are on the foundation of God, our Rock; however, it seems that as life in this world is falling to evil ways and people, some believers realize they have built their lives on the sand. And they either continue to live blindly on the sand or climb onto the solid and sure foundation of God, our Rock, which our faith calls for.

When we stand on the Rock and increase our faith and hope, we do not need to fear what is happening, nor will we be blinded by the evil schemes from Satan and those he controls to turn people away from turning to God. It is a fight to the end, even though victory on His part is sure.

There are many sitting on the fence of redemption today with all that is happening. They are not sure of what is going on in the world and are frightened. Some will turn to the world for relief, and some will jump to the side of the fence where there is redemption. This depends on if they respond to the call to come to Christ.

Christ calls each one of us. If we heed His call, accept Him and believe in Him, we are in Christ. If they do not accept but reject the call to grace through Christ, they are destined to hell. Period – no in-between, no halfway there. All in or all out.

Jesus calls unbelievers to grace continually. He knocks on the door of man’s hearts, and if one opens their heart to Him, accepts Him as their Lord and Savior, they become adopted sons or daughters of God through Christ. If they don’t and reject Him, their hearts will become black and hard, and they will no longer heed the call of Christ, nor will He seek them.

When one accepts Christ, He becomes their Redeemer to stand firmly in faith on. They no longer need to rely on the wishy-washy world for stability and comfort for a better future.

No longer is there a need to build their hope and lives on the sand, but they can stand strong on Christ’s death and resurrection, if they believe.

There is only one condition needed to stand on the Rock and the safety and surety that comes with it; it is receiving the grace offered by Christ. There is no cost for this; it is a free gift, no strings attached. It is a life and eternal changing event when one accepts Christ as their Lord and Savior.

Satan will do his best to draw people away. That voice in their head and pull in their heart towards our Rock, Satan will try to drown out through the world. He will do his best to lead them away and quiet the calling voice to salvation by trying to convince them that they are either not good enough for salvation, or that God is not real, or that there are other ways to heaven other than through Jesus.

For those of us who believe — whether new to the faith or mature — regardless of what is happening right now in this world, in this chapter of history, He is still our Rock. He is all-powerful. He is never-ending. He will not leave us to suffer with the unbelievers when He judges the world.

Please don’t forget that God is our Rock. Through Christ, we became adopted sons and daughters of God. This is a contractual transaction, one of many in the Bible. God does not lie and will not break a contract, or covenant, if you wish to call it that. Once we come to Christ, we are bound together with God.

Many believers are weary. They are tired. They are beaten down. Don’t forget that we stand with the greatest Warrior in the universe. He will give us bread and water to keep us going, even when we don’t think we can. He will pull us and hold us through these tumultuous times until He calls us home or raptures us up with Christ.

Standing on the Rock assures us of victory for eternity. Building our lives and faith on the Rock ensures we will not fall victim to the plight of Satan and his minions as he influences the world to believe and practice actions contrary to the edicts of God, as found in the Bible.

Not well-versed in God as the Rock? Pick up that Bible and start reading. When we do this, we gain knowledge, wisdom, and confidence in God and our faith. Do this regularly. Satan is wily and will do his best to trick and turn us from God to him, but when we learn what the Bible says, we are able to contradict Satan’s lies and tricks and will be able to discern truth from falsity.

Put your faith in action, and don’t hide in the shadows. Stand with God in this end-time battle. Be strong and courageous because we are near the finish line of this race. We may be tired, we may be scared at times, but we can be confident that victory is ours, and we can rest on that truth.

johnflysaught@gmail.com

What a year 2021 has been! Recording-breaking in all the wrong ways. Now that it has drawn to a close, it is perhaps time to start looking more deeply into 2022 and to pondering what prophecy-related challenges this new year may bring.

Many of the issues and trends established in 2021 will continue unabated into and throughout 2022. Many of these trends will become even more entrenched. Some will, no doubt, turn into genuine crisis points for the world.

The following summaries are by no means complete, but they do represent a precis of where I personally see some of the main issues occurring over the next twelve months, especially from a biblically prophetical point of view. I intend to touch on a number of key areas in the following articles, encompassing Coronavirus, the global pandemic and the erosion of personal freedom, Israel, and finally, the key world geopolitical flashpoints for 2022. All these areas are spheres any Christian should be watching closely.

However, before I begin, a word of caution – call it a caveat, if you will. As a Christian who believes in a literal interpretation of the Bible, and especially of Bible prophecy, it is my contention that events are now increasingly spiraling out of control in all spheres. I believe the momentum of events is speeding up too. I genuinely believe that this fallen world has now reached, indeed has far exceeded, the point of no return. It is clearly a fallen world closing in on its death throes, and the only hope here, now or ever, is to be found in a personal salvation established in the blood of, and a personal relationship with, Jesus Christ.

The way of salvation today is just as clear and open to all as it was two thousand years ago. As Paul explained to his jailer 2,000 years ago, so he explains to us all today,

“…and after he brought them out, he said, ‘Sirs, what must I do to be saved?'”

They said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved…” (Acts 16:30-31).

Outside of Jesus, there simply is no hope, individually or corporately. In a world increasingly devoid of hope, this message is all the more important and prescient for it. Today is the day of salvation, not tomorrow,

“For he says, ‘In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you.’ I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation'” (2 Corinthians 6:2).

If you have yet to make that fateful decision for Jesus Christ, then do it today. None of us are promised any tomorrows, “…seek the Lord while He may be found; call on Him while He is near” (Isaiah 55:6).

History, and world events, often take place on a continuum. It is therefore easy to predict that some trends and events next year will likely impact in much the same way as they have this year.

However, it is my contention that these multiple flashpoints are now, alongside other prophetic indicators, converging into a potentially bigger world engulfing series of crises that are beginning to feed into one another. This in itself will likely increase the frequency and severity of what may potentially take place over the next twelve months.

The first potential flashpoint to note for 2022, and the main focus of this article, is perhaps the most obvious one: Covid-19. This is the biggest global topic of 2021 and will no doubt be one of the biggest of 2022. Covid-19 and the endless pandemic it has birthed is not going anywhere anytime soon.

It is hard to quantify the amount of damage Covid-19 has caused over the last 12 months. The damage to the economies of the world alone has been almost incalculable. The negative impact upon trade, tourism, small, medium and larger businesses, and to business owners, the self-employed, those who have lost their jobs because of the pandemic… I could literally go on and on about its impacts. Nothing like this has occurred in recent history, and in terms of impact alone, certainly from an economic point of view, it sits right alongside the Second World War in respect to the damage caused to the worldwide economy.

Yet, despite this, I genuinely believe that some of the more severe consequences that will come to be associated with Covid-19 may remain yet future.

Covid-19 has already deeply impacted our personal freedoms and our civil liberties. This erosion will certainly continue into 2022. Covid-19 is going to be used more and more as a platform to radically change and erode personal freedoms in 2022. To put it bluntly, we are all losing key rights and freedoms in this pandemic that we will never ever get back, short of the return of Jesus Christ himself.

It is highly likely that it will not be too long, perhaps in 2022, that we will see the first ruling for mandatory vaccinations taking place. As of this writing, there is a decision still pending in the U.S. Supreme Court about Biden’s vaccine mandate, which is certain to affect U.S. businesses nationwide. (1)

Of course, it will not be labeled as such. People will still have “a choice.” The catch, though, will be that businesses will not be able to employ you unless you take that vaccination, and shops will not allow you to buy your groceries unless you can prove you are vaccinated. Either way, it will be the same — comply or suffer the consequences. No jab will very soon equal no job.

Unfortunately, for those who choose to remain unvaccinated, I suspect 2022 will not be any easier a place for them than 2021 has been. It is my opinion, just from observing the news and in conversations generally, that many of the vaccinated are rapidly losing their patience with the unvaccinated. This is especially so as one of the many falsehoods circulating right now in Western Europe and America is that the vaccinated are having to take all these necessary precautions imposed upon them by Covid-19 expressly to protect the unvaccinated. That this is just plain nonsense becomes clear when one considers that Omicron, the most recent and virulent variant, is currently spreading with equal speed among both the unvaccinated and the vaccinated alike.

It will also not be long, perhaps in 2022, when every person in Western Europe and the United States of America will have to be able to produce some form of digital “Covid Passport” just to access basic services and facilities. It will not be too long before just such a digital ID will be needed to even “buy and sell.” We have heard this before, and we all know just where that particular thread is heading,

“…that no man can buy or sell, save he that have the mark or the name of the beast or the number of his name” (Revelation 13:17).

This time is almost upon us. How long before this digital passport — already so brazenly and openly discussed by politicians and lawmakers of every political persuasion, which will also be linked to our finances, debt history, social security, criminal records and more — will be replaced “for ease” with some kind of chip, or a quantum Nano tattoo? No doubt inserted on the right hand or the forehead.

“…and he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in the right hand, or in their foreheads…” (Revelation 13:16-17).

In terms of the Coronavirus itself, I also have to wonder if this pandemic will yet take another, more ominous turn. Other commentators have talked often in columns such as this about the birth pains associated with the end of the age. They have talked about how both the frequency and intensity of the birth pains will increase the closer we get to that final terminal hour. With regard to Covid-19, the one question I am constantly asking myself is not how this current phase will come to an end so that life may return to normal (life is never going back to the way it was before), but what may be coming next, further down the line?

No matter what one’s views currently are on the severity of Covid-19, or whether one believes this current crisis is whipped up out of all proportion or not, we do know from scripture that pestilences are a big part of end-time events, that a huge swath of the earth’s population will be killed by just such pestilences and diseases, in just a short time to come. The obvious question one has to ask at this point is whether the pestilences described in scripture are, in fact, further variants of Covid-19, ones that are far more infectious, transmissible and deadly, or something altogether different?

One of the huge, unspoken worries at the moment by those involved in public health is the potential emergence of a super mutation. Currently, with the rise of Omicron, there are two pandemics taking place simultaneously in the world. There is a Delta pandemic and an Omicron pandemic, both separate but taking place at the same time in the same places. The big concern is that an individual who is already immunosuppressed, such as a person living with undiagnosed HIV, may get the Delta variant and the Omicron variant at the same time. The worry is that this could or may then mutate and combine together into a super mutation that would have the transmissibility of Omicron but the increased detrimental health impacts of Delta.

Only time will tell, but it would not surprise me at all if at least some of the pestilences that are described as wiping out a huge percentage of mankind at the end of this age were much more deadly variants of the relatively mild disease that we currently know as Covid-19.

Next time, we will look at God’s prophetic timepiece, Israel.

matthew.ward77@gmail.com

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not unto your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5).

1. https://www.forbes.com/sites/edwardsegal/2021/12/08/predicting-the-course-and-impact-of-the-covid-crisis-in-the-new-year/?sh=5c56d74f2cca