Jan Markell

Top Bible Prophecy Stories of 2016 :: By Jan Markell

Published on: by RR7
At the end of each year I like to review how Bible prophecy played out during the year.  Seeing dark news items from a prophetic perspective causes the darkness to be more bearable.   I often post these stories to my “headlines” daily which can be found here.
These Tribulation stage-setting events aren’t in any particular order. But we must keep our eyes on Israel, God’s timepiece. The minute-hand is Jerusalem and the second-hand is the Temple Mount. They have all been prominent in the news.
1) Zechariah 12:3 became a blunt reality on December 23. This was the day the U.N. Security Council voted unanimously to come against Israel. America abstained which is essentially voting with the other members. She symbolically became the world’s burdensome stone. This was initiated and instigated by the President of the United States which means terrible repercussions are coming to this land. So Israel is to return to 1967 “Auschwitz” borders. The holy city of Jerusalem becomes “occupied territory.” And Israel is further isolated and alienated as predicted.
2) The great falling away didn’t stop falling in 2016. Many evangelical churches became nothing more than advocates for open borders and multiculturalism. The social gospel made such giant inroads and salvation issues became unrecognizable. Emergent/Postmodernism raged. Other churches fell into lukewarmness. Hardly any would deal with the issues of the day or the Lord’s return.
3) The longing for a “man with a plan” was never so prominent. Even CNN’s Home page begged for a man who could restore order. It asks in smaller print, “Is there a leader who can stop the chaos and heal America?”
4) II Timothy 3 character was on overdrive in 2016. Various presidential candidates were consumed with pride and self-aggrandizement. Values seemed to tank this past year. National industries featured same-sex ads with no shame. It seemed like everyone was drowning the lake of me-myself-I.  

5) Israel’s re-convened Sanhedrin took the momentous step of nominating a High Priest for the Temple--for the first time since it’s destruction in 70 A.D.  The Tribulation Temple is in the works, even though the United Nations just declared this area off-limits to the Jews!

6) Israel struck Damascus in early December, targeting some weapons. This is a precursor to what is predicted in Isaiah 17:1.

7) God continues to intervene for His sovereign nation of Israel. In November, he sent a pillar of a cloud of dust and rain to push back ISIS on Israel’s border. See it here.He who keeps Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps (Psalm 121). The cloud of dust and rain stayed right at the border and did not cross into Israel.

8) There was stage-setting for the Tribulation’s natural disasters which will be far worse than anything the world has known thus far. Publications called many events “record setting,” “unprecedented,” and “of biblical proportion.”  The Bible calls them “birth pangs.”

9) The war on cash intensified. A few nations are banning cash and this will eventually lead to “Mark of the Beast” accounting. Technology was introduced that enables the total payment of goods and services using only an embedded chip.

10) Gog-Magog players are getting ready. Russia is the new power player in the Mideast thanks to America’s absence. So is Iran. Turkey is in chaos and looking to Russia for support. These are the three primary players in Ezekiel 38-39, although other nations participate.

11) Europe is in a meltdown–setting the unstable stage for the arrival of the Antichrist out of Europe. Its godless culture welcomes all things dark and occultic. Their refugee policy has thrown the continent into chaos. It will welcome a “Mr. Fix-It” to calm the storm. On June 1 they had a literal Satanic ceremony as they dedicated the Gotthard Base Tunnel in Switzerland. European leaders cheered this. Below is the demonic “goat man” who was celebrated. This was addressed by Amir Tsarfati at our October 15 conference.

12) The season of mocking the Lord’s return intensified. The Christian publication  “Christian Today” scorned the Lord’s return  and said a “zombie apocalypse” was more likely.
 
13) The predicted rise of evil continues as foretold in II Timothy 3:13.  A new term was introduced in late 2016: “Spirit Cooking.” It is too dark to write about but you can Google the information. We don’t recommend it for sensitive people. It is borne out of the occult followers of Satanist Aleister Crowley and it would have entered the White House and Oval Office had Hillary Clinton won. This may be the biggest reason the Left lost as many in the Clinton campaign were cheerleaders for this evil. 

14) The run-up to the lawlessness in the Tribulation has begun. There was post-election rioting with the promise of much more to come — all a blatant rejection of Donald J. Trump. Barack Obama was the most lawless president in U.S. history. He even told illegals they could vote with no consequences. Now the Left is making daily comments about assassinating Donald Trump.

15) The gay agenda has turned blatant. Many major corporations promoted this with their national advertising. The “days of Noah” have returned as predicted by Jesus. The transgender agenda also flourished. In both cases Target led the way with promotion. 

16) The predicted rise in the persecution of Christians and Jews intensified.  At the same time, some pastors were forced to turn over sermons for inspection in America and Christian businesses were hammered for trying to stand for righteousness. Yet Islam is protected and no condemnation can be given.

17) For most of these to play out required the prophesied rise in strong delusion (II Thess. 2:10-12). Those who take delight in mocking and rejecting Him, He will condemn, confuse their thinking, and cause them to believe fables. And they do! Remember, global warming is a greater danger than radical Islam. Today it would seem the Mad Hatter is in charge.

18) Technology giants came against righteousness once again. From Facebook to YouTube to Google to Twitter, their progressive agenda rejected a conservative and Christian message. The Christian film “I Am Not Ashamed” had their YouTube trailer taken down one year in advance, marginalizing ticket sales.

Things are not falling apart — they are falling into place. Can you hear the hoof beats of the four horsemen of the apocalypse in the distance?


I won’t be silent about the signs of the times. If Jesus chastised the Pharisees for not knowing the signs of His first coming, why would we not be expected to be aware of today’s apocalyptic signs?


Rise up, wake up and look up!
   

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So Is the Rapture Now on Hold? :: by Jan Markell

Published on: by RR2

Are happy days here again? I am sensing that even Rapture-watching believers, some anyway, now think that event is delayed while America returns to prosperity. Thanks to the 2016 election results, we may now return to the role of international leader. Is America about to be great again with a return to prosperity?

A report on Friday said that in the wake of Brexit and Donald Trump, the European Union may fall apart. Have prophecy watchers been proven wrong? Neither of these fit into the presumed agenda.

An Election or a Revolution?
It’s true that an eight year national nightmare is ending. It’s been a time where Christians have been targeted, America has declined, lawlessness has abounded, corruption has been the norm, and aberrations have been celebrated. It would be difficult to explain to a Martian why putting children at risk in transgender bathrooms is cool.

So, millions of righteously indignant Americans got fed up with heavy-handed government telling them how to behave, what to believe, and what light bulbs to buy. They were sickened that the values of Jay-Z, Beyonce’, Katy Perry, and Madonna were not just celebrated but pushed on the average American. They wept at the future for their children and grandchildren and went to the polls to bring sanity back.

The media had told them Hillary Clinton was the slam-dunk winner. So had the polls. Clinton fireworks were set for election night. But few could afford healthcare, Americans were at risk in every big city and small town, and jobs had gone to foreign countries. Voters were ordinary people chipping away at our own Berlin Wall. They were sick of the glory going to “Black Lives Matter” when it was obvious that middle American lives didn’t matter.

We didn’t have an election back on November 8, we had a revolution.

What About the Globalist Agenda?
The globalist agenda has hit a road block because President-Elect Donald Trump is not one of them. How can that possibly fit with end-time eschatology? The opposite should have happened. The ardent globalist, Hillary Clinton, should have won November 8 to keep that freight train on the tracks and the end-time clock racing.

But Donald Trump’s election is the single largest setback to the one-world aspiration of modern time. This even dwarfs Brexit. Brexit is in the little leagues compared to our election result. Surely the global cabal won’t allow this to stand.

Then there is Israel. As predicted in Zechariah 12:3, she had become friendless. Now America is circling back to be her staunch ally. How does this line up with end-time scripture? Does this perhaps delay everything?

America in Prophecy
Online prophecy writer Matt Ward states, “Trump’s promise to ‘make America great again,’ is, I believe, a genuine aspiration. His nomination may be a reprieve, a last chance type of situation for repentance and the renewal of a once great nation and power.

“But I am not sure that America, or the world, have that kind of time left. When I look around today, I can see the obvious convergence of end-time Bible prophecy in a way never witnessed before. This convergence is coupled by the clear speeding up of prophetic events. We are careening toward a point of no return. These two facts alone clearly point to the lateness of the hour.”

Ward continues, “If the assumption that we are rapidly approaching a point of no return is correct, a presidency that involves at least four or perhaps eight years of ‘making America great again,’ led by a man who genuinely wants to affect this change, would, therefore, seem to be incongruous with Bible prophecy.”

Business as Usual
Let’s say for the sake of discussion that America and even the world go back to “business as usual.” Is that not what the climate will be at the time of the Rapture? As Bill Perkins writes in his Compass publication, “The Trump victory does seem like it fits better with Matthew 24 and Luke 17. Those verses say things should be normal before the Rapture. They specifically mention ‘planting and harvesting,’ ‘eating and drinking,’ ‘building,’ and social events. In other words, normal things in life. If Trump rights our sinking ship a bit, it would fit scripture like a glove.”

Perkins says, “Contrary to what was predicted, the stock market is rallying. The money people think Trump will do better than Obama on managing the economy. By His grace, God has given us our own Brexit moment–maybe even a Nineveh moment. Maybe this is God’s answer to our prayers by temporarily slowing the progress towards the Biblically prophesied ‘one world order.’ He may have amazingly given us a reprieve from the illegal and unchecked madness of those in power.”

Imminency Still Reigns
The important thing to remember as it concerns Rapture timing is “imminency.” This suggests any moment. It’s why the early church greeted each other with “Maranatha.” From the earliest days of the church, the apostles and first-generation Christians nurtured an earnest expectation and fervent hope that Christ might suddenly return at any time to gather His church to Heaven. The writers of the Bible suggest nothing has to precede it.

“Be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain. You also be patient. Establish your hearts,for the coming of the Lord is at hand. Do not grumble against one another, brethren, lest you be condemned. Behold, the Judge is standing at the door.” (James 5:7-9)

Paul was convinced he himself might be among those who would be caught up alive to meet the Lord! That’s imminency. A solid conviction that Christ could return at any time permeates the whole New Testament.

Perhaps we have more time to delay the decay. We are to “occupy until He comes,” be salt and light, and rescue the perishing while there is time. Many believe it is the Rapture of the Church that will devastate the world. Once this small but powerful remnant of believers is removed, all hell breaks loose. It matters not who is president, king, ruler, or emperor.

False Teaching Alert
Bill Koenig alerts readers in his weekly e-newsletter that, “There are people in the Kingdom Now/Dominion Theology community who believe that President-elect Donald Trump will have a major role in establishing the Kingdom on earth beginning in the United States and expanding worldwide.”

Koenig also says, “There will be many prophecies by self-appointed prophets in the days ahead who call President-elect Trump the modern day King Cyrus. They did the same when President George W Bush was elected and took office. However, his fate changed dramatically when he called for a Palestinian state and then pushed for it.”

Perhaps Today
The spirit of the Antichrist seems to reign even in America. The progressive left is rioting, burning, and behaving as though they cannot wait for the man of lawlessness to arise so they can worship him. I believe he is still waiting in the wings. Nothing has changed. The birth pangs will continue to reverberate around the world.

As for Europe, the more it destabilizes the more it sets the stage for the Antichrist. The coming together of the ten kings that shall arise shall do so AFTER the Rapture. What is taking place now in Europe is not all that important.

The Rapture is not delayed. The theme of the Bible is perhaps today. Don’t grow weary in waiting. Keep watching expectantly. Jesus Christ will soon take His own to the Father’s house (John 14:1-3). We are awaiting our “blessed hope” (Titus 2:13) and it is imminent.