There have been a lot of earthquakes in Oklahoma this week. There has been some ‘spillover’ in that there have been quakes in bordering Kansas (four of which are on this map). Here is a map showing quakes in Oklahoma in the past 7 days.
Here is a news spot about the OK quake swarm.
Magnitude 4.0 earthquake hits central Oklahoma, follows six other quakes Friday A magnitude 4.0 earthquake shook central Oklahoma shortly after 10 p.m. Friday, the U.S. Geological Survey reported. The quake followed two other earthquakes — a 2.8 and a 2.6 magnitude — that were centered near Langston just minutes earlier and four other earthquakes ranging from 2.7 to 2.9 magnitude near Guthrie, Yale and Crescent on Friday afternoon and evening, the Geological Survey reported. That makes seven earthquakes of magnitude 2.6 or greater recorded in the state on Friday. Since January 2009, more than 200 magnitude 3.0 or greater earthquakes have hit central Oklahoma, marking a significant rise in the frequency of the seismic events, the Geological Survey reported. A study released last year shows that one to three magnitude 3.0 or greater earthquakes occurred yearly in Oklahoma from 1975 to 2008 but that the average grew to around 40 earthquakes per year from 2009-2013.
In this map of earthquakes recorded by the US Geological Survey in the past thirty days (each quake is marked by a dot on the map), Oklahoma is a clear hot spot. (USGS)– (source)
This article states, “[T]here have been more than 500 earthquakes in Oklahoma this year and 150 last week. (As of 2/19/14) … No one is disputing that such a dramatic spike is unusual. The question is why it’s happening now, and science suggests that the fracking boom may be, at least in part, to blame. Researchers say the toxic wastewater, stored thousands of feet underground, reducing friction along fault lines, which can trigger earthquakes.”
Or does it? This scientist said six months ago of the connection between hydraulic fracturing (fracking) and earthquakes in OK:
Seismologist: Fracking doesn’t cause earthquakes “Frohlich cited six earthquakes since 2008 in Texas, Arkansas, Colorado, Ohio and Oklahoma, ranging from magnitude 3.3 to magnitude 5.7. Their locations show that human-caused earthquakes are geographically widespread and geologically diverse, but “very rare,” given the amount of petroleum produced and the amount of waste being disposed of. Why some injection wells cause earthquakes and others don’t remains unclear, he said. Frohlich hypothesizes that quakes occur when a “suitably oriented” fault lies near an injection site.” “Texas has 10,000 injection wells, Frohlich said, and some have been in use since the 1930s. That effectively makes the state a giant research lab for the shale-gas drilling issues now facing Appalachian states including West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Ohio and New York. If injection wells were “hugely dangerous,” he said, “we would know.” “Texas would be famous as a state that just rocks with major earthquakes,” Frohlich said. “That is not true.“”
Scientists will debate this and that. Whether all the quakes in Oklahoma are from fracking or not isn’t the issue. The issue is where can we find truth? The bible has it. We are told that in the last days there will be earthquakes in diverse places, and we are in the last days. We have been in the end times since Jesus ascended. (Hebrews 1:2).
“For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. These are but the beginning of the birth pains.” (Mark 13:8) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Eschatology Charts: If you want a helpful overview of dispensationalism, historical premillenialism, postmillenialism, and amillenialism, then these charts (prepared by Mark Vander Pol) should be helpful.
In January of 2012 I wrote a report of the global sky sounds people have been hearing. Variously called sky hums, sounds of the apocalypse, or sky quakes, they have appeared recently and have not only been heard by many, but have been recorded and reported on by mainstream news. I wrote:
Strange noises in the sky: hums, booms, and other apocalyptic escapades
“The noises are usually a low pitched hum that veritably drives the residents crazy, or a boom from the sky that people liken to a sonic boom. When they occur, the authorities receive dozens to hundreds of phone calls asking if there had been an earthquake. In most cases, the boom is not related to a military activity nor aeronautic exercise, not to a quake, and not to drilling or explosives. These things are checked out and the usual explanation is usually absent, leaving residents to wonder what is the cause of the noise. That’s why they are termed mysterious.”
Since the general emergence of these sounds; a few years ago, they have continued to perplex and frighten. Just this week in St. Paul, Minnesota, another spate of sounds frightened the residents there.
St. Paul Residents Ponder Loud, Mysterious Noise Heard Thursday Morning
“A loud, strange noise early Thursday morning woke up some residents in St. Paul and frightened others. People heard it for about an hour, in and around the Highland Park and Mac Groveland neighborhoods. KSTP called Ramsey County dispatch and sent a crew to investigate. Dispatch said they received about 10 calls from homeowners wondering what the noise was. They sent out a few officers to investigate but they couldn’t find anything. The howling traveled for miles, right through the walls of homes.”
Now, there is a difference between these particular sounds, and other sounds that normally occur and startle residents. For example, the transformer in front of my house was struck by lightning and blew up, and it made an enormous sound which scared me (and the cats) like to death. However, it was the suddenness of the sound and the loudness of the sound and not the sound itself which was startling. I recognized it as a normal, if very loud sound. The same with a thunderclap and the same with the boom associated with the earthquake that happened near GA this week, and the same with sonic booms that occasionally happen as jets takeoff at the Air Force Base some distance away. We have a catalog of sounds in our head and when we hear one we classify it. The brain immediately categorizes those sounds as infrequent but normal.
Not so with these sky booms. They aren’t even particularly loud, but it seems that is it the quality of the sound that spooks people. They are unclassifiable. Here are some quotes from people who heard the St. Paul noise-
Howling sound ‘creeps out’ St. Paul –“It was kind of a howling, kind of a scraping, kind of a metallic sound,” said Aaron Buesing. –Trudy Moloney explained it as “kind of a somber music and eerie sounding.”
Quite often, the noises are described as metallic, spooky, and eerie. They describe them as chains clanking or sometimes, something straight from hell.
In this report from the UK, also from last week,
Coventry residents left baffled by mystery ‘Independence Day’ noise
“Reports have come in describing a loud noise in the sky which lasted around one minute and was heard by residents in Whitley, Walsgrave, Stoke and Wyken. Mitch Wise, 19, from Walsgrave, said the noise was so loud he could hear it inside his house despite all the windows and doors being closed. He said: “I did think it sounded like something out of Independence Day, that kind of noise.” [Independence Day, the alien invasion movie]
Or this from Kentucky, also this week:
Booms in the Night; Officials scurry to locate source; MSU professor offers explanation for strange sounds
“A series of strange noises awakened Murray-area residents in the pre-dawn hours Friday, causing law enforcement agencies to answer several calls related to mysterious sounds that were being reported. Dr. George Kipphut, chairman of the Murray State University Department of Geosciences, said he is relatively certain that a phenomenon known as a frost quake is the cause of the eerie resonance…. I’ve never heard one, and this is unusual for this climate we live in,” Kipphut said. Kipphut said frost quakes — officially known in the geological community as cryoseisms — are more associated with the extreme northern portions of the United States into Canada.”
Even when the loud booms and explosions are heard and there is likely a natural explanation, like cryoseisms, it seems that there exists something weird with these, as well. In the above story, they are happening in places where they don’t usually. In the article below, they are happening much more frequently than they ever have.
A cryoseism is a frost quake. As Wikipedia explains, “They may be caused by a sudden cracking action in frozen soil or rock saturated with water or ice. As water drains into ground, it may eventually freeze and expand under colder temperatures, putting stress on its surroundings. This stress builds up until relieved explosively in the form of a cryoseism.”
This past January in Vermont, apparently several cryoseisms occurred. As Gib Brown, who works as both a geology and physics educator, explains, “I thought a tree fell on my house,” Brown recalled. “I looked outside, I looked up and down the street, couldn’t see anything. It had to have been a cryoseism.” Brown likened the phenomenon to the way potholes can be formed by freezing water, except under the earth, where their invisibility adds to their mystery. Brown called the frost quakes fairly rare but not wildly unusual. “I would say the numbers this year are way above average,” Brown said.” [underline mine]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Let’s turn from the fact of these noises and the reaction to them … to the Bible. I’d said in the blog essay I wrote two years ago that the Bible specifically does not address the noises as a sign. Though officials have searched for an explanation (airplanes, drilling, ice, etc) they have come up empty. Neither biblical nor secular explanations seem to be coming to the fore. So from this paragraph forward there is only speculation on my part. However there is perhaps an application to the end times that I want to share.
First, there are these verses from Jeremiah 25:30-31
You, therefore, shall prophesy against them all these words, and say to them:
“‘The Lord will roar from on high,
and from his holy habitation utter his voice;
he will roar mightily against his fold,
and shout, like those who tread grapes,
against all the inhabitants of the earth.
31The clamor will resound to the ends of the earth,
for the Lord has an indictment against the nations;
he is entering into judgment with all flesh,
and the wicked he will put to the sword,
declares the Lord.”
Verse 31, ‘the clamor’ also is translated ‘a noise.’ Pulpit Commentary says of ‘a noise’, the word is used elsewhere for the tumultuous sound of a marching army, or the roar of waters.
Many people say that the noise they’ve been hearing includes a clanking or a metallic sound. I’ve said before that I often wonder if it is leak-through from the unholy angels gathering for the great unleashing upon the world. When prophet Elisha asked God to open his servant’s eyes, I wonder if in addition to seeing the angelic army … if he heard anything too.
Then Elisha prayed and said, “O LORD, please open his eyes that he may see.” So the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. (2 Kings 6:17)
The fear.
There is fear of the LORD, which isn’t a scary fear for a Christian. CARM says of the fear of God:
Yes, we should fear God because He is the Almighty Creator who can discipline us should we rebel against Him. He is so holy and so awesome that being in His presence brings an inspiring fear. … When anyone experiences the Majesty of the Lord, he naturally is humbled and the awesome greatness of God automatically produces a normal and healthy fear.
But we do not need to fear God’s judgment. As for satan, we need not fear him because Jesus has already overcome satan. We only need resist satan and he will flee from us. (James 4:7).
The unsaved don’t fear God. They do not fear satan either. They unknowingly serve satan. If they happen to have encounters with the supernatural, often times satan’s ministers appear as angels of light, (2 Corinthians 11:14-15) or in new age terms, ‘spirit guides.’ Since satan chooses either to allow himself to be culturally diminished (as in a pointy horns and a red tail made fun of on Halloween) or as a gentle spirit guide, muse, or another kind of other worldly helper, the unsaved don’t fear satan.
What would people think whose incorrect notion of satan or spirit guides were to be unmasked and they say the demons as they really are?
I believe they are getting a taste of it with these sky noises. If these people who heard the sky noise for one second and were frightened out of their wits, what will happen when they see the very demons of hell unleashed?
And the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star fallen from heaven to earth, and he was given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit.a 2He opened the shaft of the bottomless pit, and from the shaft rose smoke like the smoke of a great furnace, and the sun and the air were darkened with the smoke from the shaft. 3Then from the smoke came locusts on the earth, and they were given power like the power of scorpions of the earth. (Revelation 9:1-3)
Read the rest of Revelation 9.
These demons are allowed to torment any person during the Tribulation who does not have the seal of God on their foreheads. How would you feel to see a demon chasing you? Biting you? Tormenting you? The Greek word for torment in the verse is literally “torture”.
These sky booms have no liken in the world. They aren’t made naturally. They frighten people, and I believe the sounds are made supernaturally.
Matthew Henry said of the Jeremiah verse, “Who can avoid trembling when God speaks in displeasure?” And who among the unsaved can avoid trembling when the demons of hell sound their chains their appearance?
You know how it energizes the arena when Queen’s “We will rock you” STOMP STOMP CLAP comes over the loudspeakers? Of course it would incite the demons’ maniacal glee to know the time is near. Because they know. (Matthew 8:29). I wonder if the restless demons in gloomy dungeons (Jude 1:6, 2 Peter 2:4) are chanting “we will, we will bite you!” CLANK CLANK CLAP
It’s interesting to think hypothetically of the sky booms as a demonic version of this:
The GOOD NEWS is that Jesus paid it all, and we no longer need fear God in a bad way nor fear what satan can do to us. If you repent, nothing on earth can frighten you. Not an eerie noise, not a demon masquerading as an angel of light, not even satan.
And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. (Matthew 10:28)
The world is going crazy. Things are deteriorating at a pace that older people have never seen happen so fast in previous generations. People who don’t believe in Jesus even are noticing this. Many people are asking, “What’s going on?”
This is where prophecy comes in. Prophecy is the future told in advance. In order for the future to be told with such detail accuracy in its fulfillment, only God, who is outside of time and the author of history, can do so.
“There is no way to explain the Bible’s ability to predict the future unless we see God as its Author. For example, the Old Testament contains more than three hundred references to the Messiah of Israel that were precisely fulfilled by JesusChrist (Christ is the Greek translation of the Hebrew word Messiah). Peter Stoner, a scientist in the area of mathematical probabilities, said in his book Science Speaks that if we take just eight of the Old Testament prophecies Christ fulfilled, we find that the probability of their coming to pass is one in 1017.” (source)
God said that this world will end. This affects every human being living at the time of when it happens. During the Tribulation, it will be a time of UNcreation, when the orderly creation account we read in Genesis is reversed but in a chaotic and horrific way. For example, every island will flee away and every mountain will be thrown down. (Revelation 16:20). This prophesied event will affect every person living on the planet. For those who are not alive during this period when God’s wrath descends to earth, affecting everyone on it, He said that some will be awakened to everlasting life and others to everlasting wrath. (Daniel 12:2). Either way, prophecy has meaning for every person who ever lived or is living at the time of fulfillment, believer in Jesus or not a believer. Therefore, prophecy is of utmost importance.
The purpose of prophecy
Considering such weighty emphasis upon prophecy in the Scriptures, we may properly ask regarding its purpose in God’s unfolding plan. Why did our heavenly Father cause so much of his word and revelation to consist of prophetic utterances that spoke of future times, circumstances, and events? All Scripture, we understand, “is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness” (2 Tim. 3:16). But what is the special role that prophecy holds in influencing the life of the believer?” (source)
All scripture is profitable. (2 Timothy 3:16-17). Since two-thirds of the bible is prophecy, it is obvious that God put the words of prophecy in the bible to profit us for His purposes.
Prophecy exists to reveal the glory of God: “I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done” (Isa. 46:9, 10).
Prophecy exists to establish the bible’s credibility and to authenticate the biblical speakers of prophecy, including the Triune God and the men that God designated to speak His words. (2 Peter 1:21).
Prophecy exists to enlighten the believer and to stimulate to activity. (Mark 13:23). (source)
I hope you understand by now how important prophecy is to the believer and non-believer alike. So the next question is,
What does God say is going to happen?
God has been working since before the foundation of the world. He is still working. (John 5:17). After He created humans there was an entire span of time He was doing works that will result in His glory. But then Jesus came. In the days of His flesh (Hebrews 5:7) Jesus taught and performed signs and miracles to prove who He was. Then He was killed and nailed to a cross and absorbed all God’s wrath for sinners. (2 Corinthians 5:21, Isaiah 53:5-6).
Pleased with His son’s obedience, God raised Jesus on the third day and soon after, Jesus ascended to heaven to be at the right hand of the Father. (Hebrews 12:2). When Jesus ascended, the Spirit came and thus began this present age, the age where Jesus is building His church. (Matthew 16:18).
When the church is complete, Jesus will call His church to heaven in an event known as the rapture. (Romans 11:25, 2 Thess 2:1-12, 1 Thess 4:16, 1 Corinthians 15:52). All those who have come to saving faith in Him since He began building His church will arise from their graves or from their live bodies, be glorified instantly and meet Jesus in the air. He will lead us to heaven, where we will enjoy the Bema Rewards ceremony where our works we performed while int he flesh will be tested. Then we’ll having received our crowns for works done in His name on earth that stood the test.
During that time in heaven there will be ceremonies and activities and hallelujahs and praise. But back on earth, there will be Tribulation. (Matthew 24:21). This tribulation will involve Israel, and the whole world. Since all believers will have been taken to heaven at the rapture, and along with them, the indwelling Holy Spirit, His restraining ministry will cease.
Did you know that the Spirit restrains man from the worst they can do? Did you ever wonder why there isn’t a Hitler or a Jeffrey Dahmer every day? Man are totally depraved and sinful, but they don’t do their worst because the Spirit restrains us. (Genesis 6:3). When Jesus calls us to Him in heaven the Spirit will still draw men to belief but He won’t restrain sin. Sin will be loosed to run fully rampant. (Daniel 9:27).
It will be a time of unparalleled evil in the world. Murders and heinous acts and death and disease and horror and hell on earth. It will be a time of the uncreation of the world. Volcanoes, earthquakes, heat, hail, drought, bloody waters, and more. Demons marauding and putrid corpses. Hell.
This tribulation will begin immediately after the rapture. It will last 7 years. Most of the world will die.
Then at the end of the Tribulation, Jesus will return. He will rescue His remnant left on earth, kill the armies assembled against Him at Armageddon, and install His throne on earth. peace will reign for 1000 years. This is called the Millennial Kingdom, because it will last 1000 years. Ezekiel 41 onward has the scene.
At the end of that time, satan who had been bound for the 1000 years, will be loosed so as to deceive the nations one last time, and many will follow him. Jesus will squash the rebellion, he will be thrown into the Lake of Fire, and all who ever lived will be resurrected to face their judgment. This is known as the Great White Throne Judgment (Revelation 20:11-15) and it will occur at the end of time. Glorified bodies will be given to those who are raised from death, so that those who are destined for hell can withstand their eternal punishment, and those who are destined for eternity with Jesus can withstand looking Him full in the face with all His glory. The eternal state will begin as the earth melts away. (2 Peter 3:10). The bible doesn’t say what comes next.
So if you have followed along, the rapture is the next event in God’s long, long plan for humankind. Please be on board with all that is required to join Jesus in the air. You don’t need your money. You don’t need your works. You don’t need baggage or clothes, those will be provided. All you need is faith in the work and person of Jesus Christ, to lay your sin down at His feet, sorrowful for your blasphemies against Him. This is called repentance. He will forgive you of those crimes and invite you to His abode in heaven, He will give you His spirit as a seal of the guarantee of your place.
“Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober” (1 Thess 5:6).
“But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer” (1 Peter 4:7).
Over the last week a hot war has broken out in South Sudan. I’ve stayed away from political and war stories the last few days due to the holiday but it is important to bring this news to you now.
Sudan is one of the regions mentioned as being a future participant in the Gog-Magog war. (Cush, Ezekiel 38:5). And, anything happening in the so-called ‘epicenter’ is worthy of note. As Joel C. Rosenberg’s Facebook page states, he “tracks geopolitical and spiritual events and trends in Israel and throughout the Middle East”. We call this region the epicenter because all historical-to-prophetic events important to God arise from this region, especially Israel.
The Washington Post reported on December 23, “The world’s newest country is already on the brink of civil war. Here’s how it happened.” “It was considered one of the world’s great successes when, on July 9, 2011, South Sudan became an independent nation. After many unhappy years as a region of Sudan, the new country declared its independence with crucial support from the outside world, particularly the United States.” “Now, less than two and a half years later, South Sudan appears to be on the verge of a potential civil war. Since an alleged coup attempt Dec. 15 (it probably wasn’t really a coup), fighting between rebels and government forces has killed at least 500, injured four U.S. troops and left entire cities disputed. As of this writing, the South Sudan army says it’s preparing to attack rebel groups who’ve taken control of oil-producing regions. How did this happen?“
The report goes on to enumerate four reasons, and explains them in easy to understand terms.
The BBC reports this morning, “South Sudan crisis: Kenya and Ethiopia leaders in Juba for talks“ “The leaders of two of South Sudan’s neighbours, Kenya and Ethiopia, have arrived in the capital, Juba, in an attempt to halt fighting there. Thousands of people are feared dead in violence that began 11 days ago and has raised fears of a civil war. President Salva Kiir was seen going into talks with Ethiopian PM Hailemariam Desalegn and Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta on Thursday.”
There is oil in S. Sudan…
“Fears are intensifying that South Sudan is on the verge of full civil war, and that the country’s estimated 250,000 b/d of oil production could be put at risk as a result. Hundreds of oil workers are flying out of South Sudan as former vice president Riak Machar claims his rebel forces have seized control of the oil-rich Unity state, which can produce some 45,000 b/d of oil.” (source)
The United States was hit while trying to evacuate personnel:
“Gunfire hit three US military aircraft trying to evacuate American citizens in a remote region of South Sudan that on Saturday became a battle ground between the country’s military and renegade troops, officials said. Four US service members were wounded in the attack in the same region where gunfire downed a UN helicopter the day before.” (source)
The US is sending troops to South Sudan in anticipation they may be needed to respond to the violence, as well as the UN “increase in peacekeepers in a bid to rein in South Sudan’s ethnic violence.”
Here is a chart of the modern names of the ancient nations named in Ezekiel’s prophecy of a future regional war: (Ezekiel 37-38).
So that is the unfortunate news. More strife in the Middle East, more deaths and eternal destinies cemented forever. More inching toward the moment when it will all break out as Ezekiel and the other prophets have said. Prophecy is sure, so it will happen, perhaps on our watch or perhaps on another generation’s. I feel it will be us who sees the final eruptions begin even as we are whisked homeward by the call of our Savior.
“You’re stupid. You people have been saying it’s the end times, like, forever.”
True. That is because it HAS been the end times like forever. At least two thousand years. They began when Jesus ascended, and will end when Jesus returns. (Acts 2:17, Hebrews 1:2)
The last days is like a woman who is pregnant. Her baby grows inside her, and as the weeks progress, she shows more and more evidence of her imminent state. (in today’s terms, ‘baby bump’.) As she nears the end of her pregnancy, she develops other signs that her term is nearing the end. Her body aches. Her stomach grows. Her doctor visits become more frequent.
Then there is a final sign, the final sign that the baby’s birth is nearing. The pregnant mom’s water breaks. This is the moment when it becomes evident in the long gestation that the final phase has been entered. There is pain, blood, mess, and screaming.
Then the baby is born. New life has arrived. (Revelation 21:1)
The gestation is the end time, or last days. This is the time that Jesus is building His church. (Matthew 16:18, Romans 11:25, Luke 21:24). The water breaking is the rapture. The blood, mess and screaming (labor pangs) is the Tribulation. (Matthew 24:8). The new baby is the new earth and the Kingdom, fresh and new.
Jesus likened the last days as to the woman’s pregnancy, and specifically to labor pangs. In Matthew 24, Jesus answered the disciples specifically as to three three things they were wondering:
“As he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” And Jesus answered them, “See that no one leads you astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray.” (Matthew 24:3-5).
They asked —
1. When will it happen? 2. What will be the sign of your coming? 3. What will be the sign of the end of the age?
Jesus said no on knows when, so we can get that question out of the way fast. The disciples were waiting for Messiah and of the Kingdom that had been promised them. They had learned as Jews that when Messiah came, He would institute the covenant promises, so naturally the disciples were eager for it all to start. What they did not know (but should have) is that His coming would be in two phases, Lamb and Lion. Suffering Servant and Sovereign King. So they asked excitedly in Matthew 24 and several other times too, “Is it now? When? When? When?”
What we know from our vantage point is that Jesus has been building the church, growing His bride for these last two thousand years. The disciples thought it was all going to take place right then, and they didn’t have the church on their radar.
As for question #2, Jesus went on in Matthew 24 with all the signs. These are signs of His immediate coming, His return after the 7 year Tribulation. Matthew 24 is a Tribulation chapter relating to the Jews. These are signs the Tribulation saints will be looking at and waiting for His return on the Day of the LORD.
I think we are moments away from the water breaking. I really do. I think we are in the last moments of the last days.
I could be wrong. But the rapture is always imminent. Always has been, always will be, until it happens.
“And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.” (Romans 16:20)
“Looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus” (Titus 2:13).
“Let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the Day approaching” (Heb 10:24-25).
“For yet a little while, and He that shall come will come, and will not tarry” (Heb 10:37).
Here is the plea:
Do you know where you would go if you were to die in the next few moment of time?
Do you know what would be happening if all the true Christians suddenly disappeared and the world went to hell (literally. That’s not a swear. The Tribulation is a time hell comes to earth). Well, do you?
No?
You can. You can know where you will go when you die. If you repent of your sins (be sorry for them, truly sorry that you’ve done things that disobey Holy God), you can ask Jesus to forgive them. He is the resurrected Lamb, whom God exhausted all His wrath for sins. Pleased with Jesus’s sacrificial death, He raised Jesus from the dead and set Him at His right hand in heaven. Now people who are sorry for their sins can come into heaven under Jesus, since He already took your wrath for your sins for you.
Once you do that you become born again, born from above, you will go to heaven when you die.
Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3)
If you do not repent, and do not ask Jesus to forgive your sins, and are not born again, when you die you will go to hell. That’s because you still have a debt to pay- that wrath. You didn’t want to come in under Jesus, who already blocked God’s wrath from you. So now you have to take it, and that will happen forever in hell.
It’s much better to get your sin-debt to Jesus taken care of now, before you die. Christians have been saying this for two thousand years, and how much closer is the kingdom today than yesterday? Closer.
“and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” (Mark 1:15)
“You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. (James 5:8)
Don’t wait until tomorrow. You may not have a tomorrow.
“Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.” (James 4:14)
Eternity is long.
“It is everlasting wrath. It would be dreadful to suffer this fierceness and wrath of Almighty God one moment; but you must suffer it to all eternity. There will be no end to this exquisite horrible misery. When you look forward, you shall see a long for ever, a boundless duration before you, which will swallow up your thoughts, and amaze your soul; and you will absolutely despair of ever having any deliverance, any end, any mitigation, any rest at all. You will know certainly that you must wear out long ages, millions of millions of ages, in wrestling and conflicting with this almighty merciless vengeance; and then when you have so done, when so many ages have actually been spent by you in this manner, you will know that all is but a point to what remains. So that your punishment will indeed be infinite. Oh, who can express what the state of a soul in such circumstances is! All that we can possibly say about it, gives but a very feeble, faint representation of it; it is inexpressible and inconceivable: For “who knows the power of God’s anger?” Jonathan Edwards, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, excerpt)
I had a mouse problem in my apartment. It’s an old, old house (100+ years) and it is inevitable that critters will try to get in through the cracks. I have two cats, so before this fall, I’d never had a problem inside the place before, though I knew that there were mice cavorting unseen just outside.
Wikimedia Commons
So at first I thought I heard a whisper of a sound when all was quiet. I put that to regular noises an old house makes when it settles. But then I saw the cats perk up when the tiny sound came along again. After a while, the cats would not only perk up from snoozing placidly at my feet while I typed at the kitchen table, but sit up and stare intently at the spot behind the sink faucet.
Sometimes their eyes and head would track a sound I could not hear and a thing I could not see. It was preternatural, to be sure.
Then I opened the large drawer under the stove and saw the beginnings of a mouse nest. I went into combat mode and cleaned it all out. I took out the pots that were under there and put them under my re-arranged and cleaned under the sink area, leaving a nice wide expanse and one mouse trap. I also put mouse traps next to the stove and under the sink in that cabinet. Plus, some D-Con pellets.
I was unsure of where the creature was coming in, but I supposed that was one of the mysteries of living in an old farmhouse.
Feeling good, having four traps set and two cats waiting, I went back to work typing at the kitchen table. After a while I heard a slight tinkle of a glass in the sink. Knowing that glass doesn’t move by itself, I got up to investigate. Immediately I saw the mouse in the sink. He scrambled up and disappeared like smoke down a crack behind where the sink cabinet butts up against the outer wall.
I admit I screamed like a girl. My friend on Facebook later said that I AM a girl. I know, but I always thought that when the moment of horrible crisis came (spider, mouse, demonic invasion, Atomic bomb…) that I would handle it with aplomb and serious intentional purpose. Nah. I screamed EEEEEKKKK! just like in the movies, and went running into the bedroom. Girl.
Later I peeped over to the crack where I saw her go out, and I marveled that the fat mouse could even fit into that crack. It’s a small crack, man! Look, it’s only half a penny wide!
And that is the widest, the rest of the counter is less than half a penny wide. It narrows to nothing by the ends. A penny is 0.750 inches. Half of that is 0.375! Yet the mouse came in and went out confidently, going and coming in through the tiniest of cracks, despite the fact that there is a large, lumbering lady in the kitchen 10 hours a day and two cats 24/7.
False doctrine is that pregnant mouse. It’s quiet. It’s stealthy. It comes in when you’re not looking, under cover of darkness. It comes in through the tiniest of doctrinal cracks.
What happens if you leave it alone? If you let it be? If you don’t challenge its encroachment into your territory? Don’t scream at it, so as not to hurt its feelings? Allow its filthy feet to trample all over your counter where you fix sandwiches for your children? Ignore the fecal matter left behind?
Crispin Glover in 2003 Willard remake
You end up like Willard. And if you remember the original movie or saw the remake, the rats that Willard had trained and thought were his friends, in the end turn on him and eat him up. That is what false doctrine does. It kills you, eating you alive.
Some days I feel like that guy standing there, with so much verminous doctrine around.
BE ALERT
Taking this metaphor further, I was alert in my house. On guard. I detected minute sounds that should not be there. That is how Christians should be in life and in church. Listening for and detecting the first whispers of false doctrines being preached or offered in a curriculum, sounds and whispers that should not be there. Once I heard the sound of the mouse I was fully alert and detecting from whence it came. It helped to have the cats there, with their ability to see and hear things I could not. That is what the Holy Spirit does. He alerts you, aids you and prompts you to what He can see and hear that you cannot. Our fight is with the invisible.
“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:12)
BE ACTIVE
Once I heard something that should not be there, I launched into action. I cleaned out my stove and under the sink. I jumped in the car and went to the Dollar Store to buy traps. I came home and immediately set them. I continued to listen and be watchful.
If you detect false doctrine, don’t wait a moment. Don’t let it go. Don’t stand around. The mouse was building a nest because she wanted to have babies. That means more vermin infestation, and soon. The mouse had a very good reason for wanting in. It was not an accident that she was busy settling in to a place she should not be. Soon there would be more, lots more to deal with. Vermin always spreads.
“How is it that you fail to understand that I did not speak about bread? Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” Then they understood that he did not tell them to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees. (Matthew 16:11-12)
“But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness, and their talk will spread like gangrene.” (2 Timothy 2:16-17a).
Whether using the example of leaven (yeast) or gangrene, false doctrine spreads from within and affects the whole organism..
Jesus said one of the signs of His soon appearance will be that false prophets will come. In the Olivet Discourse of Matthew 24, He is speaking of the Tribulation.
“For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.” (Matthew 24:24).
However the false teachers that come will pile on more and more throughout the church age. Paul reminds us of that-
“Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.” (2 Timothy 3:12-13)
“The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons” (1 Timothy 4:1).
MacArthur wrote, “We read that in the end times there’s going to be a rise of cults, false religions called by Paul in his letter to Timothy doctrines of devils. We read that in the last days there are going to be apostates who go around denying the Lord that bought them, 2 Peter 2. That things are going to get worse and worse and worse, not better.”
The advance of falsity throughout the world and deep inside born-again Christianity is amazing. Just the last few years have seen an incredible change for the worse. Sometimes it seems like too much! There is false teaching everywhere! False teachers encroach into all churches! Oh no, the burden is so great, I’ve fallen and I can’t get up!
But wait! We don’t have to protect the world. The genius of how Jesus set things up is that He made us part of His body. We are all connected but perform in different areas and with different gifts. He sent the Spirit to endow us with spiritual gifts and the Spirit enables us to serve Him in maximum fashion within our spheres. The Spirit even gave some five talents and others two talents and still others one talent. So, some have more to do but a greater capacity to do it. God is genius!
I do not have to exterminate the mice in the yurt in Mongolia. I don’t have to listen for vermin scratching at the door of the tent in the Amazon. I don’t have to wonder if encroachment is happening in the igloo in Sitka. All we have to do is do our best where the Spirit has places us, with the gifts He has given us.
Even though the Matthew 24 discourse relates to the Tribulation, I see the flood of false doctrine, false teachers, false pastors, and false everything coming as a flood. The false teachers came on strong against the first century church and they haven’t let up one bit, but only gotten more numerous like mice unattended. Is the end near? The loads of false doctrine we see is a sign. Ultimately because the bible says the end is near, the end is near, (1 Peter 4:7; Romans 13:12) but no one knows the day nor hour. So I don’t know, but this is a great verse to think about:
“But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.” (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18)
Just do what you can do with the Lord’s talent that He gave you. Be alert, speak up, clean house, pray hard, serve well, love Him, and do it all while waiting for Him. As James said,
“You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near.” (James 5:8)
USA Today remarks in an interesting article, that there is a run on prophecy books. People who see events unfolding in the Middle East with Syria, Iran, Israel, and Egypt are wanting to know more. This is good.
Joel C. Rosenberg was asked to speak at the Kansas House of Representatives chamber yesterday and he preached today on Isaiah 17 and Jeremiah 49 in Topeka. He posted “A few pictures from the event inside the Kansas State Capitol discussing Syria & Damascus Countdown.”
“So grateful for the questions people asked during the Q&A.”
Some quotes I like from the USA Today article:
“The situation in Syria as it relates to scripture could be something that we’re witnessing, but we should be cautious. What prophecy really is about is the faithfulness of God’s word.” (Pastor Gary Cristofaro of the First Assembly of God in Melbourne, FL)
Always, always remember that prophecy is a way to see God as sovereign. He declares the end from the beginning . When a prophecy is fulfilled we shout for joy because He is faithful to His word and He is showing Himself as King of events, people, heaven, earth, and the angels. In studying the end time prophecies, we become comforted because of this. We also become fervent in urgency to witness to the lost because we know time is short (either through death or end of days events).
“Interpreting events doesn’t lead to an understanding of what’s going on. I believe it actually clouds the understanding,” said Tom Lombardo, a San Franscico-based author and researcher of end time beliefs.
Some people might not like me saying this and I may take heat for it, but I’ve stopped listening to Pastor JD Farag of Calvary Chapel Kaneohe. His weekly prophecy updates have been a blessing but I have noticed a sad trend. When I found his teachings several years ago he used to explain the prophecies from the bible. He’d take a passage and show from the bible what it meant. Slowly over time during his prophecy updates, he now focuses more on the news than on the bible. That balance has been tipped.
Last Sunday’s message was noteworthy in a negative way, unfortunately. He said that due to events occurring in Syria and Egypt and the Middle East, he had read and read and read the news, it all became a blur and he had read it for hours. I thought, “he should be spending that much time on reading the bible, not the news.” Then he said that he was putting off their regular study in Samuel so as to spend time bringing the flock up to speed. See? The congregation collects to worship God through the hearing of the word, not the news.
I think that Pastor JD is a tremendous pastor, sensitive, studious, mindful of Jesus and the Great Commission. I only mention this because we can get so wrapped up in the news that we forget the word. I have been guilty of this myself. But the more that I see events happening that seem to be hurrying us to the end, the more I back away from the news and stick with the bible. If God-ordained troubles are going to be unleashed on the world soon, and I personally believe that they are, then I want to be sure to be as strong as possible spiritually so as not to be deceived. Be mindful of the balance between the news and the word. Because, as the man said above, “Interpreting events doesn’t lead to an understanding of what’s going on. I believe it actually clouds the understanding,” Only the bible brings clarity.
I liked this tip on how to maintain a balance from Pastor Gary Cristofaro of the First Assembly of God in Melbourne FL again,
“We try to find balance by immersing ourselves in prophecy rather than being affected by it.”
Because when we immerse ourselves in prophecy of the bible we are immersing ourselves in the bible. Far from being an also-ran sphere of study, prophecy is mentioned in every New Testament book except Philemon. All the NT authors make reference in one way or another to prophecies, some new at that time, some reminding us of the prophecies of old. Either way, immersing yourself in prophecy is a good thing and hardly can be avoided if you read the bible at all!
Read the next quote: This is a good sign, actually.
Christian bookstores such as Family Christian Ministries in West Melbourne report that book sales of prophecy-themed works by charismatic minister Perry Stone, Pastor John Hagee and novelists such as Joel Rosenberg have increased in recent weeks since tension in Syria and Egypt escalated.
But just like anything, WHO you turn to for illumination is just as important as realizing prophetic implications of current events and praising God as a result. Perry Stone and John Hagee are not too solid as biblical scholars. Joel Rosenberg has been careful and he sticks with bible verses and not speculations.
People’s instinct is always to turn to the bible for understanding when large events happen. In 2008 when Obama was elected, there was a collective shudder that ran throughout fundamentalist Christendom, and for good reason. Back then, there was a run on books and studies on the antichrist. People ran to the bible and to prophecy books. When the Japan quake happened in 2011 (magnitude 9.0 which rocked the earth off its axis) people again ran to the bible. On my blog, any essay dealing with God and earthquakes got enormous hits. People want to make sense of the world and intuitively understand that sometimes it’s just the world but sometimes there is a spiritual overlay and anomalous events drive them to the bible. Earthquakes do that.
Now again two years later in 2013 with the Syria issue, people are feeling uncertain, hopeless, questioning, or just plain afraid. This is perfect time for us who have the answers to share them!! The Gospel is powerful to save and for the heart that wants answers, who are clamoring for understanding of prophecies, now is a ripe time to share and proclaim!
Maybe this is the last essay I’ll ever write, if we are raptured in the next moments of time. Maybe we will still be here five years from now and we will look back on this heightened period of biblical portent with wistfulness that the Lord still hasn’t come. I don’t know. But I do believe the time is dwindling quickly. I believe equally that every day is a good day for salvation.
7.0 Quake Rocks Alaska’s Aleutian Islands “Several aftershocks rattled a remote Aleutian Island region off Alaska in the hours after a major 7.0 temblor struck with a jet-like rumble that shook homes and sent residents scrambling for cover. At least three dozen aftershocks, including one reaching magnitude 6.1 in strength, struck after the major quake Friday, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. “I heard it coming,” said Kathleen Nevzoroff, who was sitting at her computer in the tiny Aleutians village of Adak when the 7.0 temblor struck at 8:25 a.m. local time, getting stronger and stronger. “I ran to my doors and opened them and my chimes were all ringing.” “There were no reports of damage or injuries from the earthquake, which occurred in a seismically active region. It was strongly felt in Atka, an Aleut community of 64 people, and the larger Aleutian town of Adak, where 320 people live. The earthquake and the aftershocks didn’t trigger any tsunami warnings, but Michael Burgy with the West Coast and Alaska Tsunami Warning Center in Palmer, Alaska, said the center is monitoring for potential tsunamis caused by landslides, either on land or under water.“
5.2 100km SSW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-31 3.6 29km NW of Nikiski, Alaska 2013-08-31 5.1 103km SSW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-31 5.2 97km SW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-31 3.0 127km NNW of Kodiak Station, Alaska 2013-08-31 3.4 124km NNW of Talkeetna, Alaska 2013-08-31 3.9 119km SSW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-31 4.0 118km SSW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-31 4.2 111km ESE of Adak, Alaska 2013-08-31 5.2 99km SSW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-31 4.3 111km SSW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-31 4.8 102km SSW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-31 4.5 105km SSW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-31 4.3 148km SE of Adak, Alaska 2013-08-31 5.5 108km ESE of Adak, Alaska 2013-08-31 4.9 113km SSW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-31 3.8 124km SSW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-31 5.9 106km SSW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-31 4.5 115km SSW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-31 4.9 93km SW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-31 3.7 99km ESE of Adak, Alaska 2013-08-31 3.8 119km ESE of Adak, Alaska 2013-08-31 4.5 103km SSW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-31 4.8 97km SW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-30 5.4 108km ESE of Adak, Alaska 2013-08-30 5.8 0km S of Benzilan, China 2013-08-30 3.0 51km S of Estacion Coahuila, Mexico 2013-08-30 2.7 79km SSE of Akutan, Alaska 2013-08-30 4.3 95km SW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-30 5.0 96km SW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-30 3.7 87km SE of Old Iliamna, Alaska 2013-08-30 4.1 78km E of Adak, Alaska 2013-08-30 3.3 108km SW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-30 4.3 90km SSW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-30 4.6 88km SW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-30 4.6 107km SSW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-30 4.9 91km SSW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-30 3.5 111km SW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-30 2.5 101km ESE of Adak, Alaska 2013-08-30 4.0 113km SE of Adak, Alaska 2013-08-30 2.9 37km S of Ester, Alaska 2013-08-30 4.5 98km ESE of Adak, Alaska 2013-08-30 3.8 83km SW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-30 4.1 103km ESE of Adak, Alaska 2013-08-30 2.6 87km SSW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-30 2.8 109km W of Cantwell, Alaska 2013-08-30 4.7 113km ESE of Adak, Alaska 2013-08-30 3.1 106km SW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-30 2.9 98km SW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-30 3.3 97km SSW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-30 3.3 102km SSW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-30 3.6 106km SW of Atka, Alaska 2013-08-30 7.0 94km ESE of Adak, Alaska 2013-08-30
————————- Isn’t it amazing that a huge earthquake like that plus all the aftershocks occurred, yet there were no deaths, no injuries, and no damage discovered so far. The Lord will not always be so generous. The bible records several prophetic quakes still to occur in the future which will yield maximum damage. One will happen in Jerusalem where a tenth of the city falls and 7,000 die. (Revelation 11:13).
Revelation 6:12 records a mega-quake. “I watched as he opened the sixth seal. There was a great earthquake. The sun turned black like sackcloth made of goat hair, the whole moon turned blood red,”
Another in Revelation 8:5, Revelation 11:19, and a HUGE one in Revelation 16:18, such as no man has ever seen before.
In an essay I wrote last night I’d called for repentance from among the brethren for daily sins post-salvation and repentance unto salvation for those who are unsaved. While not every earthquake is a judgment from God, it is wise to think of Him anyway when one occurs. He is the Lord of the Earth and everything in it. Please consider these things.
This weekend an unusual event occurred in Rome. Motorists on Saturday noticed smoke emanating from the ground, more specifically, from a hole which opened up close to a runway at Rome’s Fiumicino airport. The hole is estimated in size to be 6 feet wide and 3 feet deep. The UK Telegraph reports that the smoke was in fact gas, “suspected to be a cocktail of carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulphide and methane. Tests are now underway. “ “While initial reports suggested the gas came from rotting organic matter trapped underground, one expert said volcanic activity was more likely. “From Mount Etna in Sicily up to the Alban hills around Rome there is a good deal of underground volcanic activity,” Alberto Basili, a seismologist at the Italian National Institute for Geophysics and Vulcanology, told the Daily Telegraph.The area covers Mount Vesuvius, which buried the Roman city of Pompeii when it erupted in 79AD, to a number of lakes formed in extinct volcanoes north of Rome.”
Location of Fiumicino airport, Rome. Wiki map
There is quite a bit of volcanic activity in Italy. One of the most famous of eruptions to ever have taken place is the eruption of Mt Vesuvius in Pompeii. The volcano suddenly erupted in 79AD and completely covered the towns of Pompeii and Herculaneum, just 130 miles from Rome.
Wikipedia explains of Vesuvius, “Vesuvius has erupted many times since and is the only volcano on the European mainland to have erupted within the last hundred years. Today, it is regarded as one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world because of the population of 3,000,000 people living nearby and its tendency towards explosive (Plinian) eruptions. It is the most densely populated volcanic region in the world.”
Did you know that Vesuvius was still active? I didn’t. Vesuvius last erupted in 1944.
The gas that experts suspect is part of the mixture wafting from the hole is hydrogen sulfide. Hydrogen sulfide is noted for its pungent smell of rotten eggs. The Minnesota Rural Water Association explains,
“Hydrogen sulfide gas (H2S) can occur in wells anywhere in Minnesota, and gives the water a characteristic “rotten egg” taste or odor. … Hydrogen sulfide gas can result from a number of different sources. It can occur naturally in groundwater. It can be produced by certain “sulfur bacteria” in the groundwater, in the well, or in the water distribution system. It can be produced also by sulfur bacteria or chemical reactions inside water heaters. In rare instances, it can result from pollution.” “What causes hydrogen sulfide gas to form in groundwater? Decay of organic matter such as vegetation, or chemical reactions with some sulfur-containing minerals in the soil and rock, may naturally create hydrogen sulfide in gas in groundwater. As groundwater moves through soil and rock formations containing minerals of sulfate, some of these minerals dissolve in the water. A unique group of bacteria, called “sulfur bacteria” or “sulfate-reducing bacteria” can change sulfate and other sulfur containing compounds, including natural organic materials, to hydrogen sulfide gas.”
Decay of organic matter was one of the possible reasons the smell came from the opened hole, as stated in the Telegraph article. Another expert said, no, it is likely volcanic in origin.
Hydrogen sulfide is also known as sulfur. Sulfur occurs naturally as the pure element (native sulfur) and as sulfide and sulfate minerals. When sulfur is a gas it is called hydrogen sulfide.
Another name for sulfur is brimstone. Yes, THAT brimstone. The exact element that rained down on Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim in times past. (Deuteronomy 29:23). It is the element that is prophesied to kill a third of mankind from the smoke emanating from the horses’ mouths, in Revelation 9:17-18, in times future. The Lake of Fire is filled with brimstone (sulfur) which will eternally burn. (Revelation 19:20).
Whatever is happening under Rome’s airport will be revealed in time while the experts look at the situation. The point of this post is not to explain it, but to draw your attention to something else.
Revelation.
The book of Revelation is a book that prophesies what will happen in the last days of the last days. The events depicted there (ans in other Old Testament books as well) will bring this age to a conclusion. It is the last 7 years of history.
The Tribulation will be a time when the LORD will unleash His stored-up wrath upon the rebellious world.
The purpose of the Tribulation is clearly laid out in scripture. This not an ordinary kind of tribulation, as in trials, or troubles, or persecution. Oftentimes the pre-tribulation naysayers will deny that the church will be whisked out of the way of this period prior to its beginning, by saying ‘why should the church escape, we have always had trouble, and we have always been persecuted.”
However, Jesus made a distinction about this particular time period as being different in purpose and in intensity. He said in Matthew 24:21a, that “For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved.”
It is THE Tribulation, not mere troubles that the world has always hassled people on the earth. And it will be so bad that left untouched to take its natural course, the trouble would kill all flesh. the earth. As GotQuestions explains,
“The Tribulation is a future time period when the Lord will accomplish at least two aspects of His plan: 1) He will complete His discipline of the nation Israel (Daniel 9:24), and 2) He will judge the unbelieving, godless inhabitants of the earth (Revelation 6 – 18). The length of the Tribulation is seven years. This is determined by an understanding of the seventy weeks of Daniel (Daniel 9:24-27; also see the article on the Tribulation). The Great Tribulation is the last half of the Tribulation period, three and one-half years in length. It is distinguished from the Tribulation period because the Beast, or Antichrist, will be revealed, and the wrath of God will greatly intensify during this time. Thus, it is important at this point to emphasize that the Tribulation and the Great Tribulation are not synonymous terms.”
Daniel 9:24-27 lays it out. Please read that chapter in context for the full understanding.
During this time of the Tribulation (AKA “Time of Jacob’s Trouble), the earth will continually shake and quake. Large earthquakes will happen. In one, 7,000 will die in Israel. (Revelation 11:13). In another instance, when Russia and the Gog coalition attacks Israel, there will be a large earthquake (Ezekiel 38:19). In Revelation 16:18 another quake occurs, one which is described, “a great earthquake such as there had never been since man was on the earth, so great was that earthquake.”
So many things happen in such rapid succession, the left-behind, unbelieving world will not have time to emotionally or mentally process it all. A quarter of the earth’s population dies in the first openings of the seal judgments. A third of the grass and vegetation dies. A third of the seas are filled with blood and the animals die. (Revelation 8:7-9). A third of the ships are destroyed.
Can you imagine a third of the world’s seagoing vessels, carrying important cargo, food, and military personnel, destroyed? No food. And, the loss of life? Astronomical.
It will be an incomprehensible time.
When the hole at Fiumicino opened up, just imagine that happening every day, and that the hole isn’t a mere 6 feet, but hundreds of feet. And earthquakes and 100 pound hail and mountains crashing into earth and the sun going partially dark and demons flying around…
The incident at the Rome airport is one that is certainly concerning. As a reminder of what is to come, it is definitely worth pondering the implications of globally repetitive chaotic events on a scale that far exceeds what happened at Fiumicino this week.
Please let this be a reminder of being a good witness for Christ and to evangelize one and all. We are all sinners saved by grace. I was a sinner due for wrath before my conversion. Please share the Good News with people, so they can hear the wonderful opportunity awaiting them of forgiveness and escape from wrath. Christ took it, and if we repent before the rapture, we will not endure it.
After a seeming period of quiet there have suddenly been a spate of major earthquakes. USGS lists a quake as major if it exceeds 6.0 magnitude or those others with a red background have been identified as “significant”, based on a combination of magnitude, PAGER alert level, and the number of Did You Feel It? responses. Here is the list of quakes in the last week the USGS deems significant.
Mag 6.6 102km WSW of Mutis, Colombia Mag 6.1 90km WSW of Paita, Peru Mag 6.0 112km NW of L’Esperance Rock, New Zealand Mag 6.0 189km WNW of Saumlaki, Indonesia
Significant: 4.9 9km SSW of Volcano, Hawaii
The Guardian UK reported on today’s 6.6 quake in Columbia “According the U.S. Geological Survey, a severe earthquake has occurred in the Pacific Ocean near Columbia. The earthquake is 6.7 magnitudes and hit about 10:43, local time, this morning. It landed approximately 59 miles west southwest of Mutis, Colombia. No immediate reports of damage and according to the Alaska Tsunami Warning Center, no tsunami warning was issued.”
God has used earthquakes to speak to His people in the past and will again in the future. In Acts 16:26, He used a quake to release Paul from prison. When Jesus died on the cross, a quake occurred, recorded in Matthew 27:54, “When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God!” The quake was God speaking to humans … and they understood. A few days later as Jesus rose from the grave there was another earthquake. Matthew 28:2 records it. “There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it.” In Ezekiel 38:19 God promises to show Himself through an earthquake (among other things). “In My zeal and in My blazing wrath I declare that on that day there will surely be a great earthquake in the land of Israel.”
During the Tribulation, an earthquake will occur in Jerusalem as described in Rev 11:13 where 7000 people will be killed. Later, in Rev 16:18, “Then there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder and a severe earthquake. No earthquake like it has ever occurred since man has been on earth, so tremendous was the quake.” Every mountain will crumble and every island will flee away.
“My sixth point is this: God uses calamity to call people to repentance. I believe this is intended by God to warn people of what is coming when he destroys the earth. I believe it is to call people to repentance.
And then one last point. Time is limited to heed the warning. Time is limited to heed the warning. Jesus tells a story in verse 6. “A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, came looking for fruit on it and didn’t find it. Said to the vineyard keeper, ‘Behold, for three years I came looking for fruit.” By the way, three years was the limit. That’s how long they let a fig tree go before they cut it down because it would show its fruit by the third year.
“‘I waited three years, I come looking for fruit on the tree, don’t find any. Cut it down. Why does it even use up the ground?’ And he answered and said to him, ‘Let it alone, sir. For this year too, until I dig around it and put in fertilizer. If it bears fruit next year, fine. If not, cut it down.'”
What does that say? God is patient, but his patience has a limit, right? Give it another year. No fruit, cut it down. The LORD is compassionate, gracious slow to anger, abounding in loving kindness, but he will not always strive with man.
Sinners live on borrowed time. Sinners have a temporary reprieve. What a profound teacher is an earthquake. Life is fragile, there are limits to self-protection, death is inevitable, the world is cursed, temporal disasters are only previews of what is coming, God uses these frightening calamities to call people to repentance, and you better repent because time is limited.
the-end-time.org 