The exhilaration that emanates from a typical soccer match is often not just the case of goals scored, but equally capable of setting off an adrenaline rush are showstoppers like missed chances and sending-offs. Picture a dour game where none of these are present; instead, there’s lots of dribbling around the center half, frequent off-sides, and to make it even more of a drag – almost zero action near the goal mouth! As the game grinds to an inevitable double 0 scoreline at the final whistle, a sigh of relief precedes a yawn that signifies a long-drawn bore.

One thing mirrors the above-said scenario; it has dragged on shortly after the pandemic began and still shows little signs of abating. That natter and chatter about the corona virus vaccine still rages on; nagging questions about whether to take or reject this shot fail to stop popping up. The arguments for this continued debate stem from a somewhat contorted view of the prophetic Word. Proponents stick to the notion that they have to grasp the inevitable. But this myopic appraisal of the prevailing situation only sidetracks the need to focus on the wider picture.

Have these people asked the question, where do they stand where the prophetic hours matter? All this while they are captivated by the intricacies that are tied to the future vaccine. Is that the only matter of prophetic significance? It is as good as they missed the real target, as good as numerous crosses that are not capitalized but instead giving way to mere throw-ins and perfunctory goal kicks! More like something you can doze off to.

There are a host of events that are of equally significant value where the prophetic truth goes. Look at what is speeding up north of the Golan Heights; it could be a matter of time before a very large part of Ezekiel 38 comes to fruition, and the total destruction of Damascus could be headline news that sees the fulfillment of Isaiah 17:1.

What about the heightened lawlessness that is now sweeping across many US cities and making waves in Europe? What is most telling about these riotous trends is the wholesale desecration of historic monuments on the grounds that these depicted exploitation of the have-nots. There is a pinch of truth in this line of argument, except that it is blown out of proportion.

Then there is an area few bother to examine; this concerns designer babies made from human genome manipulation through the indiscriminate use of CRISPR – this Biblically forbidden practice reeks of the mention of the Days of Noah that precede the coming of the Son of Man!

All of the above-mentioned events that herald the 7-year Tribulation are moving at the speed of the Train Grand Vitesse (TGV) if not that of the Shinkansen bullet express. The race for a vaccine might be likened to the pace of a fully laden freight run on Southern Pacific! On this note, the focus is not on the nearness and imminency of the Day of Redemption but, sadly, on the hard moment of truth meant for the Christ-rejecting horde. We, who believe in our sure redemption through the blood of Christ our King, should pay attention to that more-than-split-second moment that spares us from the horrors that come on the world.

Rather than rant and rave about something not meant for believers, let us continue to burn bright for His Kingdom and Glory until that final moment. The Lord always keeps his promises, this especially so in Revelation 3:10-11 : “Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth. I am coming soon. Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown.”

We must hold fast and believe with all our hearts that HE will spare us from all evil. Even if your guess about what would happen was spot on, be rest assured that you will not come close to it.

Maranatha

Edwin

edwinuk13@gmail.com

 

THE DANGERS: In studying and teaching prophecy, there is a great danger to go too far with trying to understand events. This has been a common failing by some who begin making predictions and claims; only one of those has to fail, and all credibility is lost. As an example of this, I will post this review from TIME Magazine. In the 1970s and in 1988, I was teaching Revelation in the places where I was living, and we had to debunk these silly ideas which were sweeping the churches at that time.

“Edgar Whisenant published a book in 1988 called 88 Reasons Why the Rapture Will Be in 1988, which sold some 4.5 million copies. Whisenant once famously said, “Only if the Bible is in error am I wrong.” When 1989 rolled around, a discredited Whisenant published another book, saying the Rapture would occur that year instead. It did not sell as well, nor did later titles that predicted the world would end in 1993 and again in 1994. The genre’s most popular tales are in the Left Behind series, written by Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins, which, though they do not predict an end date, provide a vivid fictional account of how Earth’s final days could go. The 16 novels have sold more than 63 million copies worldwide.“

As mentioned earlier, this is what happens to those who made predictions in the past, and now again, predictions for 2020 or for some other year, or who try reading events into blood moons or distorting a person’s name to make it read something someone wants it to read (like President Trump = “the last trump” [1 Thess 4, KJV] the trumpet leading to the Rapture).

All biblical prophecy is literal, but making it fit the times is something that needs caution. For example, in Zechariah 14, Jerusalem is surrounded by all the nations’ armies (yes, that is what the verse says), and it is written in terms the writer knew in his own day. With modern warfare, things are different, and Jerusalem could be destroyed with just one bomb. However, taking the Zechariah passage literally, Jerusalem WILL be surrounded and WILL be sieged as Zechariah says. (We must take note that Zechariah 14 is set for the Second Coming [time of Armageddon] and beyond. It ends the Tribulation; and if you study Revelation taking note of the judgments of God through those 7 years, it seems only a small minority of people are left on earth. Mind you, right through the Tribulation, people have the opportunity to repent, but this is typical of their attitude (Rev 9:20-21).

I caution again – anyone calling him or herself a prophet is not one. There are no prophets past the completion of scripture. These are false prophets, and we are warned about many false teachers arising.

Study the Bible, comparing scripture with scripture, and have all that you find meld together as a flawless whole.  If a Bible prophecy does not fit harmoniously with other biblical prophecies, then you are applying it wrongly.

There were commentators who lived a few hundred years ago who really did not understand the position of physical Israel, mainly because back then no one remotely saw the beginning again of the Jewish nation; that happened in 1947 thanks to WW2. These commentators used to take the Old Testament prophecies about Israel and apply them to the Church, which is where they placed their fulfillment. Look at Joel 2 and 3, where these great chapters deal with Israel’s future and restoration in terms that could never be applied to the Church, and it does not fit; but a lot of commentators try making it fit the Church. That is what happens when you force prophecy to fit some wrong theology or wrong event or wrong timescale. That, though, is a different kettle of fish from the modern herd, those who arise and claim for themselves the title “prophet.”

We know from chapters 38 and 39 of Ezekiel that Gog and Magog and their allies will be part of the world’s armies in Israel at the end of the Tribulation, leading up to Armageddon. This is one small part – Ezek 38:1-6, “The word of the LORD came to me saying, Son of man, set your face toward Gog of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal, and prophesy against him . . . Persia, Ethiopia, and Put with them, all of them with shield and helmet; Gomer with all its troops; Beth-togarmah from the remote parts of the north with all its troops — many peoples with you.”

There you see Persia (Iran) and the nations of the remote north (of Israel), which has to be Russia and its allies (and possibly current Islamic nations). They will have a hatred for Israel, and assemble for the battle of Armageddon. Today, Iran is building its forces and supplying Israel’s enemies in ‘Palestine’ with weapons. Iran is threatening to exterminate Israel. Also, Russia is developing a military base in Syria where Putin and Assad are in an alliance. Assad is one of the world’s most evil men. This is most significant: Gog and Magog is taking shape. These are the signs of the times.

Jesus said of His Jewish believers in the Tribulation, “You will be hated of all men for My Name’s sake.”  The world will increasingly hate Israel, and has started to legislate against God’s nation.

Here is a report on the United Nations vote on Israel from 30 November 2017:

“The UN General Assembly voted overwhelmingly to disavow (disallow) Israeli ties to Jerusalem as part of six anti-Israel resolutions condemning Israel it approved on Thursday in New York. The vote was 128 in favor and 9 against, with 35 abstentions. The resolution came as the Trump Administration decided to relocate its embassy to Jerusalem.

“In New York, only nine countries out of 193 UN member states fully supported Israel’s ties to Jerusalem: Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Togo, Guatemala, Palau, Honduras, the United States and Israel itself, voted against the UN resolution. There were 35 abstentions. The full list of abstaining countries (a bit cowardly of them) was: Antigua-Barbuda, Argentina, Australia, the Bahamas, Benin, Bhutan, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Cameroon, Canada, Colombia, Croatia, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Fiji, Haiti, Hungary, Jamaica, Kiribati, Latvia, Lesotho, Malawi, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, the Philippines, Poland, Romania, Rwanda, the Solomon Islands, South Sudan, Trinidad and Tobago, Tuvalu, Uganda and Vanuatu.“

When speaking on “the signs of the times,” one must be careful not to read too much into what is observed, because it is possible that events in coming years or even months might alter or clarify one’s view. We read the signs of the times according to our current estimations.

False prophets and false teachers are definitely on the increase, and because of the social media (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc.), have worldwide exposure. There are two of these at present who have huge YouTube followings, and I am following the errors on both sites. One is an Arian (from the Arianism heresy in the 300s A.D. that taught Jesus was begotten of God in heaven = He was created by God and has existed from that time, and many other falsehoods). The other believes we are in the Tribulation and explains the 4 horses of Revelation 6 as matching world events now. He reads messages into numbers and signs of the moon.

The Pandemic of Lawlessness

There is one important matter emerging as we look at the Signs of the Time. I call this a pandemic because it has gone worldwide. Let us consider these verses:

2 Thessalonians 2:1-3, “Now we request you, brethren, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him [THE RAPTURE], that you may not be quickly shaken from your composure or be disturbed either by a spirit or a message or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. [THE DAY OF THE LORD COMES AFTER THE RAPTURE.] Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction.”

The man of lawlessness is the Antichrist/World Leader who arrives on the scene with the opening of the first seal in Rev 6:1. Lawlessness is rebellion, and the one who fits that description is Satan who rebelled against God and was cast from heaven. Those who do not follow God are sons of rebellion. It is Satan and his demonic forces who stir up lawlessness in the world.

Decent people in June of 2020 were horrified and saddened at the unfolding events over the death of a man in the USA. As a result of that, there have been protests worldwide, marches with banners saying “black lives matter,” and emerging from that, an attack on statues and institutions everywhere, but not in totalitarian nations like China and North Korea. Why is this movement of protest and rebellion the way it is?

Nothing will justify the way the black man in the US died, but why is it that we are seeing such violence and retribution and anger being spread throughout because of it? These people are protesting against the violence that killed him, but are themselves far more destructive and horrifying and violent than the initial act. Then to follow that wickedness and to turn against statues of ones like Winston Churchill and Captain James Cook, and even a threat to Abraham Lincoln’s Memorial, is a sinister move. It can only be understood in terms of increasing lawlessness in this world. I believe we must expect that as we near the end of the Church age, because it won’t be long before this world finds itself in the Tribulation where lawlessness will be rampant, because the lawless one will have control.

There is no time to talk about the anarchists and agitators, mainly from the left, who inflame these protests.

Personally, I get really saddened about the unfolding of chaos the nations are entering, but I know lawlessness will increase. Paul says so: 2 Thess 2:7, “For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work.  Only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way.” (The Restrainer is the Holy Spirit, but that is another topic.)

Our redemption is drawing near (and fast). The Lord is our Hope! The rapture is our blessed hope.

LASTLY, THE VIRUS: There is a lot of discussion about this corona thing from what could be called “Christian websites,” from the utter ridiculous to some sane comments. Can we say anything about its relationship with the signs of the time? No doubt, this is the greatest tragedy to hit the world since the second world war, but can we read anything into it or match it with some Bible prediction?

There is no link whatever to any biblical event or prophecy. This is another health disaster like the Spanish flu was in 1918/19 when one-third (or 500 million) of the world’s population was inflected, and at least 50 million people died. That is over 300 times more than those who have died with corona. The Spanish flu (from bird origins) was a pandemic as corona is.

I have said this before, but what I see in it is God allowing a slight glimpse into what is one small detail of what the soon-coming Tribulation will contain.

The fourth horse at the start of chapter 6 (verse 8) is a pale or dappled horse and represents “pestilences” which include infections, diseases, etc.; following the third horse which is famine; following the second horse which is wars and rumours of war when peace is taken away from the earth. All that follows the first horse in Revelation 6:2 which is the appearing of the Revived Roman Empire, or Antichrist if you like. The Church WILL NOT ENTER THE TRIBULATION, FOR THE RAPTURE TAKES THE CHURCH AWAY BEFORE ANTICHRIST CAN BE REVEALED.

1 John 4:1, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God because many false prophets have gone out into the world.”

Matt 7:15, “Beware of the false prophets who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.”

2 Timothy 2:15-16, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth, but avoid worldly and empty chatter, for it will lead to further ungodliness.”

Look up, for your redemption draws near. The Lord is coming again, and that should be soon.

ronaldf@aapt.net.au