Category: Bible Prophecy

We Are Living in Amazing Days!

“Do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God.”

One of my major complaints over the past several years is that many churches/pastors are not teaching what the Bible tells us is going to be happening in our culture during the Last Days before the return of Christ.  I have heard that many Christians don’t even read their own Bibles, let alone those people who aren’t believers! Or, if a Christian does read their Bible, some will skip over those parts that make them uncomfortable or parts they don’t understand.  If pastors don’t speak/teach on such things, the difficult and challenging things, how on earth are we going to be prepared for the world-wide deception that is coming? Jesus himself admonished us in Matthew 24 to not be deceived. The only way you do that is to learn the truth of it from God’s Word so you will recognize the deception when you see it. God gives us prophecy in the Bible to prepare us, not to scare us! That way when we see these things happening it will encourage our faith to know that he is God and his Word is true.

 I thank God for Pastor Jack Hibbs! I can’t attend his church personally as he is located in California and I am not, but I check in regularly online as a supplement to my local church. I would strongly urge you to settle in with a coffee or tea and watch each of the following teachings in their entirety.  They just may open your eyes to a whole new understanding of scripture that you’ve never even thought of before. Look up the scripture references yourself in your own Bible and ask God to help you understand his Word.  Whether you want to believe it or not, there IS a spiritual battle going on for the souls of men/women, and I truly believe we are on the verge of witnessing demonic deception on a level that we have never thought possible. Buckle up and hear what God has to say about it!

In the Daze of Deception Part 1

In the Daze of Deception Part 2

In the Days of Deception Part 3

Following are some of the key scriptures referenced by Pastor Jack:

Luke 21:34-36 – “Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with dissipation, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you unexpectedly like a trap. For it will come upon all those who live on the face of the whole earth. Be always on the watch, and pray that you will be able  to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man.”

1 Thessalonians 5:1-9 – “Now, brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, “Peace and safety,” destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Luke 21:28 – “When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”

1 John 4:1-3 – “Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits (with the Word of God) to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.”

2 Corinthians 11:14-15 – “… for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising, then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve.”

Colossians 2:8 – “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.”

Ephesians 4:14-15 – “Then we will no longer be (spiritual) infants, tossed back and forth by the waves (troubles of life), and blown here and there by every wind of (false) teaching, and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up (spiritually) in him who is the Head, that is, Christ.”

Luke 21:8 – “He (Jesus) replied: ‘Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them.”

I have to admit that I didn’t grow up going to church or reading my Bible. It wasn’t until late high school/early college that I experienced a spiritual crisis that led me to salvation in Jesus Christ. Oh, how I NEEDED him!! And from the very beginning of that relationship I knew deep in my heart that I would experience the return of Christ in my lifetime. But how did I know? I can only say it was by the Holy Spirit. I had no knowledge of the “End Times”, the Book of Revelation or biblical prophecy – I had never even really read the Bible at all! But I knew that God exists, and I had come to know his Son intimately, and I believed his Word. And if I believed Christ had come the first time, to be the perfect sacrifice and to shed his blood as a ransom for all, then I had to believe that he is coming back – because he promised that he would. And he has given us a road map of things to watch for; signs of the season, of sorts. I pray with all my heart that you would hear his voice today and respond with your heart to welcome him in. I promise, you will not regret it in the least!

Until next time, be blessed!

What is the World Coming To?

“When you see all these things you will know that it is near, right at the door.” Matthew 24:33

Planet Earth

Many people are feeling overwhelmed and fearful these days, and no wonder . . . the COVID-19 virus has been spreading like wildfire, many people are sick and/or dying, economies are stagnant, businesses and the stock market are crashing, money and supplies are scarce.  What normal person wouldn’t be fearful in seeing these things that are impacting us on a global scale?

Sure, it’s easy to be terrified when seeing these things through our physical eyes.  So I want to try to change your perspective and see these things through a spiritual, or biblical, lens – to try to get a much wider bird’s-eye view, God’s perspective if you will, in the hope that we will gain a greater understanding as to what is really going on.

Many Christians knowledgeable of biblical prophesy concerning the End Times believe we are on the cusp of the return of Jesus Christ to the Earth. But before that happens, terrible times ensue through what is called the Great Tribulation. The Bible tells us there is a great spiritual battle taking place behind the scenes of our reality, and whether or not you believe this is really beside the point, you are a participant whether you choose to be or not.  But we are also told that God knows the end from the beginning, and although things will get very dark we know how the story will ultimately end because gives us specifics through biblical prophecy.

So, what is the purpose of prophesy, you might ask?  Why does it matter what the Bible says about the future of earth and mankind?  Simply put, God tells us what will happen in the future so that when we see those things happen we will know that he is God and we will be able to trust him more.  This is the purpose of biblical prophesy.  It increases our faith in God and helps to give us a sense of peace that, despite what we see happening around us, God is still in control.

Following are certain End Time events that are prophesied in the Bible, and I believe we are beginning to see them converging and all beginning to happen at once.  Jesus tells us the significance of this convergence: “When you see all these things you will know that it is near, right at the door.” Matthew 24:33

  • Many false prophets will come in Jesus’ name, and will deceive many people
  • Wars and rumors of war around the world
  • Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom (includes people groups)
  • Famines in various places (food shortages)
  • Earthquakes in various places
  • Believers handed over for persecution and death (hated by all nations because of their belief in Jesus as the Messiah) – Christianity has been all but wiped out in the Middle Eastern Muslim nations due to persecution/execution by Islam
    • Many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate one another
    • Many false prophets will appear and deceive many people = other ways to get to heaven apart from Jesus
    • Increase of wickedness → love of many will grow cold (toward one another), BUT we are told in the Bible that the one who stands firm to the end will be saved

We are told by Jesus in Matthew 24 that all these things are the beginning of birth pains.  Those of you who have been through childbirth know how this process works. First you start getting a couple sporadic contractions.  Nothing too strong, intermittent, but enough to get your attention.  As the birth progresses, the contractions get stronger and stronger and closer together until you reach the point where the body takes over and you no longer have control of the situation.

We have been seeing things like wars, famines and earthquakes for thousands of years, and many others before us have believed that Jesus would return in their lifetime as well.  But I believe we are seeing a convergence of these things like never before – and now we are seeing signs, or what I like to call foreshadows, of things that are prophesied to come to pass during the Tribulation period as described in the book of Revelation, the final book of the Bible (covering a period of 7-years) before Jesus Christ returns to judge the Earth:

  • A one-world government will be established
    • A secular politician will rise to take control of the whole earth and head up this one-world gov’t (known by many as the Antichrist, the Bible calls it “the beast out of the sea”)
    • The dragon (Satan) gives this beast his power and his throne and great authority
    • The whole earth is “filled with wonder” and follows the beast
    • People will worship the dragon (Satan) because he gives authority to this beast and he appears to be indefeatable
    • The beast is boastful, proud and speaks blasphemies against God (slandering his name and his dwelling place and those who live in heaven)
    • The beast will exercise his authority for 42 months (3.5 years) – the first half of the Great Tribulation
    • He is given power to wage war against Christians and to conquer them – he will kill those who don’t swear allegiance to him – the beast will pour out his wrath on believers in the Earth
    • “All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast – all whose names have not been written in the Lamb’s book of life, the Lamb who was slain from the creation of the world.” Revelation 13:8
  • A one-world religion will be established
    • There will be a religious leader over the one-world religion (known by many as the False Prophet, the Bible calls it “the beast out of the earth”)
    • It will appear humble like a lamb, but it speaks like a dragon (Satan)
    • It will exercise all the authority of the first beast/Antichrist on its behalf, and will make the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast/Antichrist
    • It will perform miraculous signs (even causing fire to come down from heaven)
    • Because of its ability to perform miraculous signs, it will deceive many people on earth (known by many as the great deception)
      • It will cause an image of the Antichrist to be set up in his honor in the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem, and he will “be given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that the image could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed.  It also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of its name.” Revelation 13:15-17
  • There will be a one-world currency (most likely digital)
  • The Temple will be resurrected in Israel (the Jews will believe, for a time, that the Antichrist is their Messiah returned to earth – many Jews do not believe that Jesus was the Messiah) and the Jews will be allow to perform animal sacrifices again in the Temple
    • Once the Temple is rebuilt, the Antichrist will cause the sacrifices to cease, and he will declare himself to be god and will demand that he be worshipped in the Temple (the Bible calls this the “abomination that causes desolation”)
  • The Antichrist will require that everyone receive a mark on the hand or forehead as a sign of allegiance to him – required in order to buy or sell anything
    • If you don’t receive it, you will be killed
    • The Bible says if you willingly receive the mark, then your salvation is lost with no hope of redemption. “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives its mark on their forehead or on their hand, they, too, will drink the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath.  They will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb.  And the smoke of their torment will rise for ever and ever.  There will be no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and its image, or for anyone who receives the mark of its name.” Revelation 14:9-12

Following are recent interviews, teachings and news articles you might find interesting:

J.D. Farag – Urgent Prophecy Update (3.29.20)

J.D. Farag – Bible Prophecy Update (4.5.20)

Bible Prophecy Happening Now (April 2020)

ID2020

ID2020 Alliance Unveils Digital ID Program

Bill Gates ID2020 Vaccine Implant COVID-19 Digital Certificates

ID2020 Summit 2016

Pope Francis Worlds Religious Leaders Build Future Together

Interfaith Harmony Week

What is the coming one world religion? (Greg Laurie)

The Mark of the Beast (Greg Laurie)

I’m sure you may have many questions about the topic of this post, among other topics as well.  Please check out my Resources page for links to numerous reliable resources that I use for study and research.

I believe with all my heart that time is running out, and that no one is promised a tomorrow.  If you die without Jesus then it is too late. There is no Pergatory – your choice for eternal life must happen before you die.  If you don’t have a personal relationship with Jesus and you’ve never asked him into your heart it is really very easy.  Your salvation is not based on the good things you do or being more good than bad. It does not matter if you are a good person. What matters is the condition of your heart and whether you have accepted the free gift of salvation that Jesus obtained for you on the cross.  Your eternal salvation is really as easy as A-B-C:

  • A = Acknowledge that you are a sinner and need a savior.  The Bible tells us in Romans 3:23 that we all have sinned and fall short of God’s glory.
  • B – Believe in your heart that Jesus is the Son of God, that he came to earth and died on the cross to take your sin upon himself so that you can be reconciled to God.
  • C – Call upon the name of the Lord (Jesus) and ask him to save you. Confess with your mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord.

 

Why the Rapture of the Church Has to Happen Before the Tribulation

I really value the teachings and insight of Pastor J.D. Faraq, and I happen to agree with him on his scriptural interpretation of this topic.  So I want to share this with you to equip you and to prepare you for what is coming:

Why the Rapture of the Church Has To Happen Before the Seven Year Tribulation – Part 1

Why the Rapture of the Church Has To Happen Before the Seven Year Tribulation – Part 2

Why the Rapture of the Church Has To Happen Before the Seven Year Tribulation – Part 3

Why the Rapture of the Church Has To Happen Before the Seven Year Tribulation – Part 4

Why the Rapture of the Church Has To Happen Before the Seven Year Tribulation – Part 5

Why the Rapture of the Church Has To Happen Before the Seven Year Tribulation – Part 6

Why the Rapture of the Church Has To Happen Before the Seven Year Tribulation – Part 7

Until next time – be blessed!

You Can Be Certain Christ Will Come Again

(originally published 08/31/2011)

Most people know of Christ’s first coming to Earth through the traditional  Christmas story – the virgin giving birth to a child in a stable because there was no room in the inn, laying him in a manger, the angelic visitation to the shepherds, the star in the sky leading the magi to visit from afar bringing gifts of gold, frankincense, myrrh, etc.  But did you also know that the Bible assures us He will come to Earth a second time?

A recent Gallup poll reveals that 66% of Americans believe that Jesus Christ is coming back to Earth in the future. That is at least 25% more Americans than those who claim to be born-again Christians. So it is not only Christians who necessarily believe it. A lot of people are beginning to sit up and take notice, and they believe Christ is coming back again.

But aside from personal opinion, Tim LaHaye points out that the second coming of Christ is mentioned eight times more frequently in the Old and New Testaments than His first coming was.  This leads us to believe that “Christ’s second coming is evidently the second-most-important doctrine in the entire New Testament, for the only subject mentioned more frequently is that of salvation!”  Tim LaHaye, Understanding Bible Prophecy For Yourself.  I would venture to say that the two doctrines are inter-related, since Christ tells us in John 14:1-7:

“Do not let your hearts be troubled.  Trust in God; trust also in me.  My Father’s house has plenty of room; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.  You know the way to the place where I am going.”  Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”  Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me.  If you really know me, you will know my Father as well.  From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”

The underlines in the above passage are my own emphasis, pointing out that Jesus himself has promised us that He will return again to take us to be with Him in heaven (i.e., his Father’s house).  He didn’t say if he should come back, He said, “I will come back.”  So the key to making it to Heaven is knowing Jesus – really knowing Him – having a personal relationship with Him, not just head-knowledge about Him.  In fact, Matthew 7:21-23 tells us:

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only those who do the will of my Father who is in heaven.  Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”

So we see that our salvation is not based on our works (what things we may do in the name of God), but on a personal relationship with Christ.  The people mentioned in this scripture knew about Jesus, and evidently knew the power in his name, but they did not know him – and he did not know them.  It’s not a head issue (knowledge about God), it’s a heart issue (have you surrendered your pride and your heart to him).

This is where your choice in the matter comes into play.  Many people have asked, “How can a loving, forgiving God send people to Hell?”  The point is, He doesn’t!  THEY CHOOSE to go themselves by denying His Son, Jesus, as their Savior.  God has given us a tremendous gift in the exercise of our free will.  He doesn’t desire mindless robots or slaves to worship and fellowship with Him. He desires that we choose to love him.  Anyone who is married, or has children, will tell you that love, true love, is a constant choice that we must make.  Emotions are fickle; they wax and wane by the day, and the people we care about will say and do things that hurt us deeply.  They will repeatedly fail to meet our expectations and will let us down.  But if we truly love them, we choose to overlook their faults and forgive them, and make the choice to love them anyway.  This is what God does for us, repeatedly.  We don’t deserve His love. We are sinful by nature, and deserve nothing but His wrath and damnation – but for Jesus.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.  Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.”John 3:16-18

So the outcome comes down to what you choose to believe.  It is my sincere prayer that you would choose today to believe in Jesus and the salvation He offers you through His death on the cross.  The choice is yours on where you will spend eternity – God has already made a way for you, but you must choose to accept it – so choose wisely while you can.

Next time, we’ll look at numerous scriptures that describe the second coming of Christ so we can know what to look for – very exciting! Until then, be blessed!

 

WHY Should We Study “End Times” Prophecy?

(originally published August 22, 2011)

Quite frankly, because Jesus told us to, so we would be prepared for what’s coming and can be ready.

Many Christians automatically think of the Book of Revelation when they think about End Times prophecy (for those that aren’t Christians, this is the last book in the Bible).  But this book can be daunting to study because many people consider it filled with symbolism, which makes it difficult to understand.  Suffice it to say, I’ll address the Book of Revelation in greater detail at a later time.  But Jesus himself warned his disciples repeatedly in what’s known as the Olivet Discourse about what would happen at the “end of the age.”  The Olivet Discourse is a private discussion that Jesus had with his disciples while sitting on the Mount of Olives about what would happen in the end times.  This teaching of Jesus is repeated in three books of the New Testament: Matthew, Mark and Luke.  To make this study easier, I’ve attached a comparison compiled by Debbie Blank, which shows the text of these three books side-by-side (Olivet Discourse Comparison).  Just so you know who she is, Debbie Blank is a popular Bible teacher, author and speaker located in Omaha, Nebraska.  She and her husband, Bob, are co-founders of Living Word Ministries (www.livingwordministry.org).

Let me stop here for just a moment and say that it is my sincere hope that you would take nothing I say as truth without taking the time to read it for yourself in your own Bible and think on it and pray about it for yourself.   Gods tells us in Proverbs 2 that if we accept His words and ask for His wisdom and insight, if we take the time to search for it (in the Bible), then we are promised that we will understand the fear of the Lord and will find the knowledge of God.  In other words, He will begin to open your eyes to what He’s trying to say to you in His Word and He will give you greater understanding.  This is the power of the Holy Spirit working in you, if you are a born again Believer (a.k.a a follower of Jesus).

Back to the Olivet Discourse . . .

When comparing these texts together, we see some high level instructions to Believers:  1) we are told what the signs of His coming will be, 2) we are told not to be afraid, and 3) we are told not to be deceived.  We are even told that Believers will be persecuted, and some put to death, because of our affiliation with Jesus.  We are warned that many false prophets will arise and mislead many (and how are we to know the counterfeits if we don’t spend time getting to know the true Jesus?  There’s that communication thing again!).

We are even warned that in the end times lawlessness will increase, and because of this, most people’s love will grow cold.  I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’ve been seeing a lot of news stories lately about flash mobs and rioting, people breaking out into fights at sporting events (some with guns), people being brutally attacked in public for no apparent reason, etc.  Yes, we’ve always had various types of crime to contend with, but I’m seeing a disturbing trend of a new level of violence that’s coming to the forefront more and more frequently.  In some cases, this violence is even taking over large portions of cities like Philadelphia, or even London.

Jesus goes on to tell us in the Olivet Discourse that when we “see the abomination of desolation  . . . standing in the holy place” (or when we “see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then recognize that her desolation is at hand”), then there will be a “great tribulation” such as the world has never seen before, or ever will again (pause to think on the Nazi regime and the atrocities it poured out on the Jews – it will be worse than that).   Jesus goes on, and foreshadows the Rapture, or gathering up, of the Church, warning us “of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.” Jesus goes on to compel us to be on alert and to be ready.  We’re instructed to watch for these things to happen and to discern the “season” (that He is close – right at the door!).

Well, I know that’s an awful lot of information to cover in one blog post, but I’d encourage you to spend some time reading over the scripture comparisons for yourself.  This is only the beginning, but we need to dive in somewhere.  I don’t know about you, but I want to be found ready when He returns.  I’m also comforted to know that, even though such horrible things will take place, we have been informed, so we’re not caught by surprise (although we may have to purposely work at not being afraid).  But God will surely help us with that if we just ask Him.

Until next time . . . be blessed!

What is “End Times” Bible Prophecy Anyway?

(originally published August 20, 2011)

If you haven’t spent much time in church, you may not have heard this phrase before.  Perhaps you’re starting to hear more people use the phrase “end times” when they talk about things they’re seeing on the news, like when the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks happened in New York City and at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., or the various Arab uprisings in the Middle East over the past several years.  Perhaps you’ve heard it mentioned when folks talk about the devastating earthquake off the coast of Japan on March 11, 2011, the outbreak of spring tornadoes in the U.S. this year, the faltering European economy, the faltering U.S. economy, the massive flooding of the Missouri river or the unbelievable drought going on in the southern U.S. this summer [2011].  Such cataclysmic events, especially when they occur so rapidly, cause many people to feel apprehensive and they begin to search for answers.

The good news is that God has given answers in the Bible that will aid us in our understanding.  According to Tim LaHaye, a nationally recognized speaker on Bible prophecy and the co-author of the best-selling Left Behind series, 28% of the Bible was prophetic when it was first written over 3,000 years ago (in other words, what the Bible said would happen had not happened yet).  In fact, there were over 1,000 passages of Scripture that were prophecies when they were written, and more than half of those have already been fulfilled.  This track record tells us that it’s just a matter of time before the remaining prophecies are fulfilled as well.  In fact, many Bible scholars say that our generation has witnessed the fulfillment of more “end times” prophecy than any other generation before it.   This stands to reason when you understand that Jesus taught about the end times saying,

“You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed.  Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.  Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.  There will be famines and earthquakes in various places.  All these things are the beginning of birth pangs.”Matthew 24:4-8

I’m sure you’re thinking that these things have always happened, why would this be any different?  Might I suggest that it is the timing and frequency with which we are seeing all these things happening together at the same time?  Jesus described these events as “birth pains.”  What happens when a woman is about to give birth? She begins to have contractions, and as the birth event draws closer, those contractions come more frequently and with much greater strength.  This is how it will be during the “end times.”

There are many Scriptures to explore on this subject, and there’s just too much information to cover in this one post.  But I hope I’ve whet your appetite on this topic because I plan to dive in much deeper and share some exciting information with you. You might want to pick up the book, Understanding Bible Prophecy for Yourself  by Tim LaHaye.  This was the basis for an exciting Bible study I attended over the summer, and it’s a resource I’ll refer to from time to time.  And if you don’t have a Bible of your own, I’d strongly encourage you to get one.  There are many modern translations which make the Bible easier to understand than the traditional King James version.  Your local Bible bookstore should have an adequate selection and should be staffed with folks who can help you choose the right translation for you.

Until next time, be blessed!