by your
servant, Dan Baxley
(All verses
quoted in this study will be from The New International Version (NIV) 1984,
Unless otherwise noted.)
Since
writing “Great Quake Part 1” a few questions were raised leading to further
study into this topic of “earthquakes”. A few things must be covered in order
to consider the importance of the "great quake" of Revelation 6, and
the opening of the 6th seal -- It is the first event to occur, followed by
heavenly signs that will scare the life out of some and cause others to beg for
a quick death.
My
study (Part 1) initially was to explain how the Messiah will not return
before the "great quake" of revelation 6 as it is obviously still
future – so – He cannot come at any moment (imminent return doctrine) as the
Rapturist teach. We are told in very plain language that this event, the
"great quake" is the "Wrath of the Lamb" and so must
precede His coming. The "great quake" is so
massive as to move mountains and Islands out of their place and then this is
followed by events never before seen -- this is not going to be just another
earthquake, and it is not going to be the only earthquake to change the
topographical view of the earth, there will be at least five others. But, this
"great quake" accompanied by the heavenly events is the one everyone
will experience and it will be that generation that will witness the "time
of trouble" and the preaching of the "two witnesses" and hear
the "trumpet blasts" announcing the return of YaHshua. That
generation will be the true "end-time" generation and it is that
generation that in the Body of the Christ is known as the Laodiceans (Rev 3:14)
The
Purpose
After
much study and thought and investigating into what others have had to say I
have come up with something quite different from the normal teaching. Everyone
seems to have the timing of these events mixed up. Some, in fact most, see the
language of these events as symbolic. Nearly all commentators would have you
believe the "great quake" is but a shaking up of world governments
and it is certainly that but they negate the reality of the words as something
true, as something that is physically going to happen to the earth and the
people on it. It is my experience, concerning the use of symbolic language, the
reader is told the meaning, and it is not left up to the reader to guess.
When
John was shown something and did not understand it he was told what it meant.
The language of the 6th seal is not symbolic; it does not say the "great
quake" is "like" this or that, it simply states "it
is". Certainly I can understand, and I'm sure you can too, that the
preachers and teachers don't want to hear there will be a "great
shaking" of the whole planet, and they know their lay-members don't want
to hear it either, but this does not change what is to happen. I don't want to
hear it either but I can't ignore it and it does make my heart heavy when I
think on what it will be like. The teachers today have confused the issue and
further caused many to ignore much of the prophetic value of the Book of
Revelation by the Imminent return doctrine and the Rapture teaching that you
won't be on this earth when all this happens, and that is just not true, it is
a lie.
By
letting the scriptures say what it means we come up with a fresh new look – a
look that, I believe, unravels the confusion and presents
our Lords pure truth. No, I'm not saying I have the last word on this, but I
believe we can see there is more than enough room to allow for a different
understanding keeping closer to the written word, whether we like the outcome
or not.
Why
do we need to know this? What difference does it make if we think he is coming
any moment or a hundred years from now? As I mentioned in Part 1, so the
believers, those called into His Name, and perhaps anyone with an open mind
will be spiritually prepared for the coming events – events that will literally
turn the world on its ear. If you believe one thing and the opposite happens
you might become so confused as to abandon your faith, and this is what I
believe those trusting in the "Rapture" doctrine and of
"imminent return" doctrine (the two go hand in hand) are setting
themselves up for.
With
that said let’s take the plunge into what I believe to be the answer concerning
the "great quake” to come – not just any earthquake but a pivotal earth
event occurring prior to the coming of YaHshua. But first, one more thing, we
need to consider what our Savior had to say about events leading up to this
“great quake”. He actually tells us of this event to come in Matthew 24, a very
popular, and sometimes misunderstood, prophetic outline given by our Savior to
His disciples.
So,
what is the Messiah really saying in Matthew 24?
I
will attempt a verse by verse commentary of what our Savior taught His disciple
in a private teaching handed down to us from them. Please stay with me, when we
reach the end you will see just how the "great quake" fits.
Certainly
the Disciples lived His words, seeing the destruction of the Temple (we know
John did, any of the others?). Over 2000 years later we can check our Savior's
words against history and see how accurate they prove to be. There is something
missing however, and that is the "end". His words are not finished,
so we have the historical proof of these prophetic words and from this we
cannot deny the remaining events, not yet having occurred, will be just as
accurate when they come. Bear with me, as we move through Matthew 24, heading
for that moment when He speaks of the "great quake". We need to
follow these events in order to see the plain truth of the "timing"
of the events to come.
Let's
Begin
-- Verse
by Verse Comments on Matthew 24 --
(Mat
24:1) YaHshua left the temple and was walking away when his disciples came up
to him to call his attention to its buildings.
Comment: Notice the
disciples were admiring the “buildings”. The Temple itself,
being a separate feature, surrounded by several other buildings, and walls,
many having nothing to do with the Temple itself. King Herod was
admittedly a wicked king but he spent 40 years of his life building this
monument to himself and to keep the Jewish leadership happy, an, perhaps, to
buy favor with the God of Israel. He would not be the first to think to buy his
salvation.
(Mat
24:2) Do you see all
these things? he asked. "I tell you the truth,
not one stone here will be left on another; everyone will be thrown down."
Comment: Our Messiah
said this and it happened, but not as many teach. It
is really quite simple, really, as our Messiah is obviously speaking of the
“buildings” the disciples were admiring. Some of the stones used in the
construction of the surrounding buildings were approximately 42’ x 11’ x 20’
and weighted several tons. The Romans tore the Temple down to the ground in
68AD – 70AD but the complete destruction of the buildings has not, to this day,
really been finished. Everyone knows of the “wailing wall” and it is yet to be
thrown down making a complete fulfillment of YaHshua’s words. Also, it was not
until 138AD – 140AD that the whole of Jerusalem was flattened, but still
portions of the wall of the Temple area (the wailing wall)
were left standing, covered perhaps, but standing and today stands as a grim
reminder of Israel’s punishment. Perhaps we are waiting for the final
fulfillment of this prophecy -- from the lips or our Savior.
A small historical note: Titus
Caesar order everything torn down (70 AD) and ground to dust except for the
west wall and three massive towers to serve a garrison for soldiers left there
to proclaim the victory of Caesar. This information can be found in,
"Josephus War of the Jew". A second rebellion in 138 AD led to the
complete leveling of all of Jerusalem, being finished in 140 AD.
(Mat
24:3) As Jesus was
sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. "Tell
us," they said, "when will this happen, and what will be the sign of
your coming and of the end of the age?"
Comment: Imagine, if
you will, Yahshua and His disciples are sitting on the mount of Olives, the
very mountain He will return to and they are looking across the valley of
Kidron, a deep gorge, to a full view of the Temple, the wall, the towers, all
gleaming bright white and gold in the sun light.
(Mat
24:4) Jesus answered:
"Watch out that no one deceives you.
(Mat
24:5) For many will
come in my name, claiming, 'I am the Christ, ' and will deceive many.
Comment: What a
warning, wow! “Many will come in My Name” -- and do we see that today? Not
really, not quite yet -- they did see it in their day, "many coming in His
Name, false prophets, teaching in His Name, a Name given Him by His Father, our
Father (John 17:12). History shows us His Name was abandoned soon after the
last disciple died.
Today,
however, the revealed birth name of our Savior is becoming ever more present.
As knowledge increases and the errors of past scholars these last few hundred
years, knowingly and unknowingly, is uncovered, the knowledge of His real
Identity and that of the Father is growing. Even in times past you can find
reverence to the Holy Name of God, the God of Israel mention in writings, but
never in the Scriptures -- like a secret well kept.
The
Biblical scholars and translators joined with the Jewish scholars in following
a "custom of men" in regards to the Holy Identity of our Savior and
Creator. They purposely used the method of substitution when it came to the use
of the Holy Name of our Creator and Savior. The term “lord” being the favored
word substituted for the Heavenly Name of the God of Israel, the God of the
Holy Bible.
The
prophetic sense of verse 5 is that many will again begin use of His true
Identity. He does not say they will call Him by another Name but by His Name
and His Name is YaHshua, not Jesus. With this knowledge we must take care we
are not deceived by someone because they use His true identity, for "many will come acknowledging
this true name and deceive many". Once again, our standard,
our guide for determining the truth is the Scriptures, our only protection
against these false teachers.
In
Acts 12:4 we see that there is salvation in only one name and eventually everyone
will be given the chance to accept or reject that Name. Believe me, the
knowledge of His true Identity is a relevant truth for those called, but it is
not the deciding factor. A false teacher can have this knowledge and be using
it to deceive those coming to this truth for the first time -- the verses
warning of false teachers apply to those with this knowledge just as it does to
those who reject this truth, perhaps even more so.
When
you read in the book of Revelation those things concerning the Beast and the
False Prophet you can see that it is truly a battle of names (Rev 13:17,
13:6-8; 14:1, 14:11; 7:3; 9:4). It is a battle of names and you need this
knowledge if you are to endure the coming "times of trouble". Some
will reject His Name for another, a name of the Beast, or the number of his
name (Rev 13:16-18). The mark or "seal" of our Father's Name in those
terrible days will be of great importance to those living (Rev 7:3, 9:4). You
need the "seal" of His Name while rejecting the "mark" of
the beast and his name.
We
have yet to see "many" preaching this truth, or preaching in His
Name, but it is becoming more and more prevalent everyday as many begin to see
the name “Jesus” is a bogus name and does not belong to our Savior. Jesus is a name dreamed up, a name that is
really hard to pin to any past language in a clear connection -- contrary to
what some try to suppose, the name JESUS, is not backward transposable, to
Greek, period!
Sooner
or later those of us that make a habit of studying the Scriptures will have put
enough pressure on the false teachers and those living in this error to finally
abandon this “other Christ” and attempt to reconcile the false name “Jesus”
with the true Name of Our Savior. In this day we see many more teachers using the
birth name of our Savior alongside the false name attempting to blend the two.
We are seeing this, just as the first century Church saw it, but in
"reverse", this pattern of deceit. Another thing you should watch
for, in association with this new knowledge, is a warning found in Revelation
3:9. There are those that claim to be
Jews and are not, they obviously will have knowledge of our Savior's true
Identity, and we see some attempting to restore the Old covenant, and in doing
this they are claiming, in effect, that they are Jews -- be forewarned. They
are few in number but growing. Then there are those Christians that teach the
British and the Americans are Israelites (Jews), some know this teaching as
"British Israelism". They ignore the warnings concerning Names and
taking on titles that do not belong to them. This, of course, all fits into the
“end age” pattern of what our Messiah tells us and of the relevance of the book
of Revelation. These things, about identity, will come into play at an
intensified rate, after the 6th seal of Revelation 6 is opened and the
"great quake" occurs.
(Mat
24:6) 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.
Comment: This is very
interesting -- a warning for all ages -- notice, the disciples were asking
about the “end age” (verse 3). YaHshua give a caution -- "not to be
troubled", or too concerned about world events concerning "wars and
rumors of wars”. Certainly these things should get our attention but we are not
to become overly concerned.
(Mat
24:7) Nation will
rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places.
Comment: We can read
about these things today and in every generation from the time of the Roman
Empires. “Earthquakes in various places”, what kind of warning or caution is
that? You see, Yahshua knew full well that we, the believers, those called to
Him, would, or should understand the basic events to unfold prior to His
return. This caution is that there will be earthquakes and that not to assume
that every earthquake that comes along has anything to do with the Great Earth
announcing His return. The other earthquakes we will discuss later are not to
be confused with the many earthquakes happening in “various” places, as we
approach the Great Quake of the 6th seal. The "great quake" will be a
worldwide event, not quakes in diverse place but in one place, the whole of
earth, shaken, perhaps even tipped, rolling from side to side like a drunk
trying to find his footing.
(Mat
24:8) All these are
the beginning of birth pains.
Comment: The things
our Savior mentions -- actually covers 2000 plus years, as we see, unlike his
disciples sitting at his feet on the Mount of Olives, the “end age” is not yet
– these things are but the “beginning of birth pains”. The early Disciples
would never have dreamed a continuation of 2000 or more years. They thought
they were living in those "end days" and down through the ages generations
after generation has believed this very same thing -- we have the teachers of
today teaching this very thing, -- "we are the end time generation, they
say. These false teachers even deceive themselves (2 Titus 3:13) by their “end
time” doctrines. One thing is sure, we, you and I, are living in OUR end days.
How is this? You are not immortal and you will die sometime within the
generation you live, so, the "end time" is the end of your life.
But
this is not the teachings of the false teachers, no they, like those before
them, think to know the mind of God and without reservation use the words of
our Savior to prove we live in the “End Times”, even though our Savior says
plainly, “All these (you know, the things He just mentioned) are the beginning
of birth pains” -- not the beginning of the pregnancy, but of the “birth”. Very
few babies are born at the first sign of birth pain – ask any mother about the
process of birthing -- and you may get a better understanding of what our
Savior was saying. Remember, the news of the earth has always been bad. World news from the beginning has always been
filled with elements of war, and world disturbances of all sorts, just like
today. Look as WWII, if you want to see a time that would have fit the
"end time" scenario as the preachers of end time prophecy teach, but,
no we continue on, awaiting the "great quake", the shaking of the
heavens.
(Mat
24:9) Then you will
be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all
nations because of me.
Comment: You can
actually go back in history and see where the first followers of YaHshua
(remember, the name “Jesus” did not come into being until 1600 years later)
were persecuted for staying loyal to YaHshua as Savior. Later a false church
rose up, a state approved church (church of the government?), and this Church
began its own brand of “Christian” persecution, and not only Christians of the
Word, but the Jews too. In Satan’s hunt to annihilate the Jews many a true
Christian (follower of YaHshua) have been caught up in the same satanic snare,
and the reverse is true also, when the Christian follower of the Messiah,
YaHshua, is persecuted so is the Jew. I think, however, the Messiah is saying
something even bigger, encompassing an even greater area of the earth than that
of the Roman Empire -- this can be seen in His statement, “…hated by all nations,
because of Me”. Certainly we can see,
historically, the trials the believers of the Word have endured but “all
nations”? Remember, YaHshua’s disciples are asking about the “end of the age”.
(Mat
24:10) At that time
many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other,
Comment: Something is
going to happen that will cause many to fall away. It has happened in the past
when the people of YaHshua have been distressed. Many a professing Christian
has stumbled under the stain of physical assault. Here we see, what I believe
to be the "great falling away" (2 Th 2:3). The sense of this
statement is troubling, indeed, to think of brothers and sister in the faith actually
hating each other and betraying one another. What must be the condition of the
world to cause such a “betraying”. Doesn’t this suggest a kind of outing by
your friend? What is it that would begin a search for those that bare His Name
and cause many to turn away and to disclose those of the faith, to identify
them and for what purpose? I shudder to think.
(Mat
24:11) and many false
prophets will appear and deceive many people.
Comment: this, of
course has been going on from the beginning, but it really fits here. As those
turn away from the true faith in YaHshua and begin exposing the true followers
to the authorities, they will need a replacement belief to replace what they
have abandoned – they will be ripe for exploitation by the many false prophets.
(Mat
24:12) Because of the
increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold,
(Mat
24:13) but he who
stands firm to the end will be saved.
Comment: As the days
of Noah, so goes the saying, so we will see it in the end age. How else can you
explain the many traitors of the faith? I am also of the opinion that this
“love” is the “love” professing Christians have or are
supposed to have. Notice, it is the increase in wickedness that the “love”
grows cold. As the climate of the world becomes ever more wicked and violent
the pressure on the follower of the Messiah will increase. As the world
continues to become more wicked it would only be
natural for their love to be cold. Our concern and love for our Savior and our
Heavenly father must be unwavering and our love to “mankind” must be maintained
if for no other reason than men are made in the image of the Creator Himself,
and He so loved the world He sacrificed Himself for it. He wants everyone to be
saved even knowing this will not be the case and we, in our love should be
respecters of His feelings as His Children. You can hate the evil and the
wickedness but pray that those caught up in the wickedness of the world will
change, will repent. That is what the
Book of Revelation and the coming Wrath of the Lamb and the Father is mostly
about – giving the people of the earth the chance to repent. The whole mystery
of God is bringing the repentant soul into the Kingdom by and through YaHshua.
(Mat
24:14) And this gospel
of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all
nations, and then the end will come.
Comment: There is a
parallel found in Mark’s writings to really make this statement stand out in a
meaning few have recognized. Looking at Mark 13:10 we find “must be published
in all the world”. Putting the two together, as many
fail to do, and you have a statement that the Gospel must be “preached” and
“published” in all the world. This preaching of the
message of salvation has been preached in all the
world, no denying that, but published? Even Paul suggested to the Colossians
the gospel had been preached to every creature under heaven (Colossians 1:23).
And yes I know this word for “published” in Mark could also be interchange for
the word “preached” and isn’t it interesting that the subject of “preaching and
publishing” of the word are the same? The publishing of the Word in all the world has only recently occurred. China was the last
holdout and today, in our time the Gospel message, the very Word of God is
being literally published in China. Just a few years ago if you had suggested
such a thing would happen so quickly you would have been laughed at. I
personally believe the political attitude in China, allowing a certain
westernizing for economic gain, came about largely to tear down this last wall
against the Holy Bible and its being published in all nations. My friends, you
have witnessed a prophetic happening not even noticed by the world – the Word
Published in China! There is yet another concern with this “preaching” of the
Gospel to the whole world and this can be found in Revelation 14:6. This might
be considered the absolute final Gospel message – no one will be able to say,
“Well, I never heard that”, and this will be the final and complete fulfillment
of YaHshua’s prophetic statement.
(Mat
24:15) So when you
see standing in the holy place 'the abomination that causes desolation,' spoken
of through the prophet Daniel--let the reader understand--
(Mat
24:16) then let those
who are in Judea flee to the mountains.
Comment: The warning
here I believe concerns a much greater event than the destruction of Jerusalem
by the Roman armies, although one can see a type of fulfillment, but notice,
the warning is not merely for those living in Jerusalem but to all of Judah and
that basically covers the whole of modern Israel today. Most of the history we
get concerning the events and timing of the destruction of the Temple in and
around 68AD comes to us from the writings of Josephus (The Wars of the Jews)
and the book of Maccabees, found in The American Bible.
Let
me say right here, no one, that is no one, has this nailed down. Our Savior
gives us a source, Daniel, and some of what Daniel says is plain and easy to
understand as a prophetic piece of history, but some of the remarks by Daniel
concerning the "abomination of (or causes) desolation" is not so
easily understood. We know from the Messiah's warning it is a specific event He
is thinking of. Don't forget the Savior's follow-up remark, "let the reader
understand". We know from Daniel there is an example of an
abomination taking place concerning Antiochus Epiphanies but this took place
around 168 BC so our Savior obviously knew this event "spoken of by Daniel
the prophet" had already occurred, a fulfilling of historical prophetic
words written centuries before it happened. So, what is He, our Savior,
referring to? It can't be the same event, and so we are left with the fall of
Jerusalem and the destruction of the Temple in 68-70 AD under the Roman command
of Titus. Is this what Daniel spoke of; is this the event our Savior was
speaking of? Consider, Daniel 9:27; 11:31; 12:11
Some
of this you will have to decide for yourself. To me it seems to make sense our
Savior, Yahshua, is speaking of a time further in the future, more into our
time and I get of the feeling for this from something Daniel was told: (read
all of Daniel 12:12-13)
(Dan
12:6-7) One of them said to the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters
of the river, "How long will it be before these astonishing things are
fulfilled?" The man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the
river, lifted his right hand and his left hand toward heaven, and I heard him
swear by him who lives forever, saying, "It will be for a time, times
and half a time. When the power of the holy people has been finally broken, all
these things will be completed."
(Dan
12:8) I heard, but I did not understand. So I asked, "My lord, what will
the outcome of all this be?"
(Dan
12:9-10) He replied, "Go your way, Daniel, because the words are closed
up and sealed until the time of the end. Many will be purified, made
spotless and refined, but the wicked will continue to be wicked. None of
the wicked will understand, but those who are wise will understand.
(Dan
12:11-13)From the time that the daily sacrifice is abolished and the
abomination that causes desolation is set up, there will be 1,290 days.
Blessed is the one who waits for and reaches the end of the 1,335 days. As for
you, go your way till the end. You will rest, and then at the end of the days
you will rise to receive your allotted inheritance.
It
is from these verses many end-time teachers think the Temple is to be rebuilt
and the reason for this is the mention of the 1290 days -- there is no way you
can fit that time into a period coming of the destruction of the Temple under
Titus within the rapture teaching. I admit the 1290 days, even figured at a day
for a year principle does not measure up as a marking of the "end
time" so these days are projected into a future timing after the
rebuilding of the Temple. Notice verses 9-10, Daniel is told the 'words are sealed up until the
end time'. So, what if we are not in the "end time", as
being taught today? Then the words are still "sealed up", right? Now
take a critical look as verse 11-10, and we see many, not all, or millions, but
"many" are made spotless at this time, but see what is said next,
"the wicked will continue to be wicked"?
Does this sound like going into the Kingdom? It sounds more to me like a continuation
of time. Look, we know our Savior put an end to the daily Sacrifice, by His
personal sacrifice. The complete stopping of the daily sacrificing came in
69-70 AD and has not resumed since.
Our
Savior's statement in Matthew 24:15, the subject of this lengthy comment, mentions the "holy place" but no mention of the
Temple, which is curious. If we are to understand the Temple He saw, in a
future destruction, being rebuilt, why wouldn't He mention the Temple, a
rebuilt Temple? He had just told His disciples the Temple would be destroyed?
The "holy place" is Mount Moriah itself. So, I am not convinced the
Temple is to be rebuilt. What of the 1290 days, the 1335 Days? There are
certainly a lot of opinions and a lot of differing views taught as fact, but, at
this point I'm not sure. I admit I am not wise enough to sort all of this out
but one thing is certain, when the event of the Great Quake hits this earth we
will all begin to see things and understand things we can only guess at right
now, perhaps that will be when the understanding of the closed portion of the
Book of Daniel will be opened.
The
"abomination that causes desolation" is seen standing in the
"holy place", as YaHshua says, it is then the Jews, or anyone in
Jerusalem, are warned to escape to the hills. Run for the hills, get out of
there, leave, flee. YaHshua's warning and command is
urgent and is a perpetual warning -- He doesn't know the time, the angels don't
know, we don't know the time, Satan doesn't know the time, only our Father in
Heaven (Mat 24:36) and we have not yet seen the "abomination that causes
desolation", that has yet to happen.
What
is this “abomination that causes desolation standing in the Holy place”? I am
not sure, but, if I were to guess I would say it is the “False Prophet”, the
one that stands in the place of the True God, the one speaking mighty things
against the Creator and our Savior YaHshua, perhaps in the assumption they are
speaking for the God of Heaven but instead speak for the “god of this world”
(II Corinthians 4:4). The same individual that will be able to perform
miracles, calling fire from the sky (Rev 13:13), causing the betrayal of the
true followers of YaHshua, causing small and great to worship the Beast system,
and the Beast himself. That
would be my guess. When you see this Destroyer standing in the Holy
Place those in Judah should head for the hills because something is about to
happen on a grand scale. Keep in mind, for this to happen the Temple does not
have to be rebuilt. The Holy Place is still there, the spot of the Holy of
Holies is still there – the building is gone that’s all. A great religious
leader of world renown could take the steps leading to the Holy Mountain where
the Temple once stood and make his way to the Holy of Holies and this abomination
will cause much destruction. Just think about it – I’m only guessing. There is,
of course, the possibility, as in BC 168; an idol will be set up.
There
are some that believe this object is the Dome of the Rock? From the following
verses we see this "abomination" is going to mark the beginning of a
"great distress", and it is this event that thrust the
"abomination" as still future, a time preceding the return of our
Savior. We need His intervention or none will be saved. A
time or an event preceding the Great Quake?
(Mat
24:17) Let no one on the roof of his house go down to take anything out of the
house.
(Mat
24:18) Let no one in the field go back to get his cloak.
(Mat
24:19) How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers!
(Mat
24:20) Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath.
(Mat
24:21) For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of
the world until now-- and never to be equaled again.
Comment: Here we see
this event to come leading to something happening never before seen, something
worthy of a warning to the inhabitant of Judah to head for the mountains. My
guess, again, is that a persecution is about to begin leading to the deaths of
many of the Saviors people, Israelites as well as the Saints. Some have
attempted to say this happened when the Roman Armies killed about 3 million in
the Jerusalem purge of 68-70AD, but look at what the Germans did in WWII, 6
million Jews, and another 6 million, many of whom were Christians, 12 million total in their purge, and this is not counting the 50
million deaths of the war. Nothing on that scale has ever happened before and
there can be no comparison with the smaller scale Roman purge of the Jews. Many
bible teachers of 1939-45 were labeling Mussolini and Hitler as the two horns
of the Beast government and the Pope as the False Prophet, and it all looked
pretty good, but what came of it – Korean War, Cold War, Vietnam War – and not
to forget, Mussolini and Hitler are now long dead. Can it happen again? After
WW I who would have believed WW II could be worse – WW I had been labeled the
war to end all wars – Hitler and Mussolini were on the move as early as 1936.
Considering
modern history I don’t buy the prophecy pitch the Romans are the fulfillment of
this prophetic event. To my understanding, this verse, this prophetic statement
of our Savor, is still future and is going to be brought about by the Great
Quake of Revelation 6 – the 6th Seal in the progression of the 7
Seals of history outlined in seven steps from our Messiah to now. For those
that try to say, what about the destruction of the temple by the Romans, I say,
read the verse again, “never to be equaled again”, has such a thing happened
since? You know the answer to that, just ask any Jew. WW I and WW II have come
and gone and Matthew 24:21 is still waiting the “Great
Distress”.
(Mat
24:22) If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the
sake of the elect those days will be shortened.
Comment: Here is
another clue from these prophetic statements of our Savior. For the sake of the Elect things are going to
be shortened, not prolonged. There seems to be a real danger of losing the
Elect and the as well as everyone else on this planet, as in the days of
Noah. We need this saving
intervention or no one would survive. I believe this may also mean the
spiritual survival of the elect not just a physical survival. If things are
allowed to continue at that end age even the Elect may no longer be able
to withstand the on slot of evil – Satan’s assault on mankind and the
unrepentant hearts of men would lead to the loss of all, just as in the Days of
Noah.
Remember,
we are told that a true believer will not be taken beyond what he, or she, can
endure. I know you don’t what to hear these things but hear you must. If you do
not close your eyes and stuff up your ears you will be better suited in
preparing yourself for the evil times ahead. You do not need to be taken by
surprise for we are not disciples of darkness (1Th 5:4-5). If you understand
the necessity of the coming events, unpleasant as they may be, you will not be
weakened in your faith in our Savior but strengthened. But, if you are not
aware and are not watching and you are caught off guard you may falter. I would
liken it to hitting you thumb with a hammer and the first words out of your
mouth would not be, Praise God. If, however, you were told the next strike of
the hammer you would be hitting your thumb and you should praise God you did
not knock your thumb completely off then your response is more likely to be,
“Praise you YaH”, or, HalleluYaH – thanks for the warning.
(Mat
24:23) At that time if anyone says to you, 'Look, here
is the Christ!' or, 'There he is!' do not believe it.
(Mat
24:24) For false Christs and false prophets will appear and
perform great
signs and miracles to deceive even the elect--if that were
possible.
Comment: These words
should ring in your ears just look at what has happened and continues to happen
as “false Christ” come and go through history. Even today we see demon filled
preachers putting on shows filled with “signs” and “miracles” (1 Th 2:9, 2
Peter 2:3). This should give a believer pause, a warning of the first order.
Signs, miracles, and wonders, and stories made up are the first order the false
teachers and prophets not of the true prophets or teachers of the Creator God.
No wonder Satan and those of his spirit appear as "angels of light",
this is all fitting for the god of this world, Satan (2 Cor 11:13-14). Certainly
this was as true then, as it is now and was in between – but even more so as we
are hurled into the evil days ahead. (I personally do not believe we are in the
end age. Much of what our Savior tells us is present through every age or
generation) Keep in mind this is all to be in a time that is going to be
shortened. With this understanding it is plain the events spoken of do not find
their final fulfillment 2000 years in the past. There is no “gap theory”
either, that is one of the many false doctrines taught by the Rapture people.
The 7 Seals of Revelation 6 make that plain. Each of those Seals brings us
closer to our Savior’s return. Those seals are historical progressions with the
final seal delivering the world into the “Wrath of the Lamb” (Rev 6:12-15).
It
is with a “Great Sign” our Savior will announce His coming and the whole world
will shake. His "sign" will be so stupendous as to scare the life out
of the bravest. The “signs” of the agents of Satan will be very convincing even
if it were possible to deceive the “elect”. The way it is worded it seems these
false prophets will not be able to deceive the elect. I’m thinking this is the
case as the elect are so grounded in the Word that anyone attempting to
convince the religious community “great signs” and "miracles" the
elect will be able to "discern" these things as not from our Creator.
By His word, the written words of God, the elect will be able to see these
things for what they are – deceiving signs -- deceiving miracles. All believers
should be wary of anyone coming with “signs” and “miracles” as these things are
actually a “end time” warning of deception, not of the
Holy Spirit as these fakers of today and tomorrow try to make out. If you are
in a Church that is centered on “sign” and “miracles” then you had better take
a second look. Our Savior has warned us – our Savior has warned you. Read, II
Thessalonians 2:9-10 closely and you will see the use of “signs” and “miracles”
is not the sign of a true man, or woman, of God, far from it. Isn’t it amazing
how many ministries are built around these kinds of things when the plain words of our Messiah warns against these things? Read
Matthew 12:39 and then think twice about searching for, seeking, signs. Protect yourself; take up the serious study and reading
or you Savior's words.
(Mat
24:25) See, I have told you ahead of time.
Comment: This is a
chilling statement. Our Messiah, YaHshua, has warned us well “ahead of time”.
We have been warned – given a heads up, so to speak – are we listening? I hope
so but what I see in the Evangelical community is not good it is downright
scary. The deceivers have infiltrated the Evangelical community and they are
deceiving even
themselves. If you are seeking signs and wonders you will get them, all you can
take, you will see what you want to see. When the ultimate sign hits this world
it will be something beyond man, it will be heavenly, and it will be global,
but will it be recognized for what it is -- the sign of His coming?
(Mat
24:26) So if anyone tells you, 'There he is, out in the desert,' do not go out;
or, 'Here he is, in the inner rooms,' do not believe it.
Comment: If you, as a
Believer, have to be told where the Messiah is then you have missed out. This
also demonstrates your ignorance toward the Word of God. The true believer, in
word and deed, called of the Father to the Son, will see the Great events to
strike this world for what they are, not the “end” but only the beginning
culminating into something glorious – the Return of our Savior and the end of
all war, well, almost. HalleluYah.
(Mat
24:27) For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west,
so will be the coming of the Son of Man.
Comment: I love this
verse; it is so simple yet so difficult for the world to understand. For one
thing lightening does not travel from east to west (as the KJV has it – the
NIV, quoted here has actually tried to make sense of it, but the wrong sense).
Lightening is not only seen from the east, but the west, the north and south.
In reality lightening comes from above to the ground and sometimes from the
ground up to the clouds, this of course is what our Savior will do, coming with
the clouds to the ground. Here, however, is a better understanding and meaning
of this verse. What is it that travels from east to west and is as bright as
lightening and is seen by everyone the world over? The sun, of course, we see
it move across the earth from east to west. Is it the sun that is moving? No,
of course not, it is the rotation of the earth -- the sun is stationary. When
we see the Savior coming He will be as a bright sun approaching the earth and
the earth, all of the earth, every eye, will see him just as they see the sun
appearing to move from east to west so will be the coming of our Savior and the
people of earth, small and great will shake with fear and dread.
(Mat
24:28) Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather.
Comment: This is a
hard one, no one seems to know exactly what this means and from this it may not
be a point to worry about but I will take a crack at it anyway. I have heard of
the possible interpretation, not supported by any of the original wording, but
much more suitable to the Christian mind and that is this: Wherever the Body is
there the chicks will gather. This makes sense in the fact our Savior is
discussing His return. Like I said, however, there is no support for this other
than a Christian sense of being gathered to the Messiah. Another suggestion
involves the dead bodies that result from our Savior’s deliverance of Israel
and the Elect. It either means something happy, or something very sad, or both.
(Mat
24:29) Immediately after the distress of those days 'the sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the
heavenly bodies will be shaken.'
(Mat
24:30) At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all
the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the
clouds of the sky, with power and great glory.
Comment: Now we can
really get down to business. This is all about the 6th Seal of
Revelation 6. Everything mentioned here is mirrored in the vision of revelation
given to John. There cannot be any mistaking this. More proof that the return
of our Savior is anything but secret or silent, as the Rapture teachers would
have you believe. Notice, it is "immediately
after the distress of those days", what days? The days of "abomination that causes desolation". We
will see a great persecution taking place in Israel and then the intervention
of our Savior by a mighty, "great quake", that will reset the world
political systems.
(Mat
24:31) And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will
gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.
Comment: Here we are
launched into the sounding of the Trumpets and the gathering of the Elect from
every corner of the earth. Imagine. But prior to this we have to deal with the
6th Seal, and the 7th Seal launching the 7 Trumpet sounds
and these Trumpets take us into the Resurrection. Read Revelation 10:7, when
the 7th Trumpet is ABOUT to sound, “the
Mystery of God is accomplished”. From here and into Revelation 11 where you see
the resurrection of the Two Witnesses and, I believe, the Elect of the earth,
dead and living. Then in verse 15 we see the 7th Trumpet sound and
it is highlighted by the declaration of all the kingdoms becoming the Kingdoms
of God punctuated with another “earthquake and a Great Hail Storm”. From here
our Messiah, in His “end of age” lesson, gave His disciples a lesson in
observation and this lesson is for those living toward and eventually into the
“end age”.
(Mat
24:32) Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender
and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near.
(Mat
24:33) Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it is near, right
at the door.
Comment: When we see
these things, like forecasting the weather, we should know we are near, and has
anyone seen these things? No, they have not because they have not occurred yet.
So, why are the many Evangelical teachers speaking things with such a positive
attitude, could it be they really think they are to escape the days coming? An
interesting side light to this warning of observation is that modern man leaves
the reading of the skies, the heavens to others. Today most have their nose so
close to the ground (myself included) they seldom look up to the heavens other
than to admire its beauty in a romantic mood but seldom to tell what the
weather is going to be like. If not for the TV weather man people would be lost
in reading the signs of the seasons. We, as a people, have lost that talent and
perhaps it is a sign of modern man’s inability to read the “end age” weather
signs, modern Christian’s inability to study and understand the scriptures for
themselves. Here is an interesting point in the lesson of the "fig
tree". Our Savior gives the example of a fig tree breaking from spring
into summer. Revelation 6:13 also speaks of the fig tree but in this case it
seems to be a reference to an untimely event. The fruit is shaken from the tree
before its time! The fig tree is seen as a symbol for Israel
and apply the remarks concerning the "fig tree" to Israel and
its possession of the area of land they now sit on. But look, they do not
control the Temple Mount, they do not control the land mass given them by God
and they keep trying to make deals with their belligerent neighbors. Perhaps
this is the "fig tree" of untimely fruit? At any rate our Savior
speaks of determining the times by and action not unlike watching conditions of
the earth in determining the time of season we live in. the Fig tree of the 6th
seal is translated by some works as and over ripe condition while others, like
the KJV see it as unripe fruit. So, there you have it, your choice, before the
fruit is ready or after. One thing is sure, when the fruit is shaken to the
ground is it there to rot, no mention of a harvest at that point in time.
(Mat
24:34) I tell you the truth, this generation will
certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.
(Mat
24:35) Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
(Mat
24:36) No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor
the Son, but only the Father.
Comment: How often are
these verses quoted and then almost immediately broken? I have heard it all.
Okay, we can’t know the day or the hour, but we can know the season, they say,
and then begins the speculation on the day and the hour. After all, they say,
He didn’t say we couldn’t know the year, only the day and the hour, right? I
personally am not against weather watching, meaning world event watching, and
looking for the season of His coming, as the Messiah told us to learn the
lesson of the “fig tree”, right? On one hand we see when summer approaches and
on the other we see and untimely shaking. Listen, my friends, when the fruit
falls and hits the ground and is bruised it will rot. So, I’m seeing that
warning as being observant not so much in world political events but as events
out of man’s control -- beyond man's control. We do not control the weather,
nor do we control earthquakes, the wind blows where it will and it is our
Creator and only our Creator that can control the heaven and the earth as
described in the 6th Seal. The natural events of the earth are controlled by
its Creator so it is these events we are to see, to watch for and then we can
tell when the fruit is about to fall.
(Mat
24:37) As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of
Man.
(Mat
24:38) For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking,
marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark;
(Mat
24:39) and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and
took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.
Comment: “The Days of
Noah”, how often have we heard those words? Verse 38 is a favorite, “they were
eating and drinking, and marrying and giving in marriage”. This all sounds
almost ideal but the days of Noah were anything but ideal. Violence filled the
earth in those days and the wickedness of man reached to the heavens – sound
familiar? Even in all of the current turmoil people are going about their
business, especially here in the United States, as if nothing is happening.
Fighting a war on terror, collapsing economy and what is the average citizen
doing? Going to the movies, taking vacations, flying here and
there, not a care, not a worry. Even the unemployed are living pretty good. Sure some of the newly unemployed have had to downsize
from their 3000 square foot home but by and large life is really good when
compared to the average citizen of Pakistan, or India, or Mexico, or South
America, or just about anywhere else. Even in those impoverished nations they
still are marrying and giving in marriage as if all things continue,
the level of poverty or wealth does not stop this event.
Look,
I’m not saying we should give up living because there are Wars and Rumors of
Wars but we should be paying more attention than we are. In the times of Noah
he was found to be blameless before YHWH and some have suggested this could
well mean that he was the last of the line of Adam not to having crossbred with
other races (Gen 7:1, some see this verse as "prefect in his generation).
I’m not so sure of this as he had three sons and this
would make them pure, genetically, also. The fact of the scripture is found in
Genesis 6:9, Noah, a righteous man, a man walking with the Creator and this
fact is mentioned right after we see the men of God mingling with the daughters
of other men, so you can see the natural connection. We see this in the world
today the barrier of interracial marriage has been brought down. God originally
confused the languages of men dividing the races by tongue and then by area.
Men, however, enjoy doing just the opposite of what the Creator wants.
A
day is coming when everyone will return to their own land, or place of origin
--”like sheep without a shepherd”. (Isaiah 13:13-14, the timing of this verse
is seen in the statement, “Wrath of YHWH”, in the day of His burning anger and
the day He shakes the earth – Rev 6:12-15) This, of course, is not politically
correct but still does not change what our Creator had in mind for us. As in
the days of Noah, not only had they become wicked in everything they did but
the line of the men of God was being lost, as we see in Genesis 6, by
intermarriage leading them away from the true god. Anyone knowing the story of
Solomon can see this very same thing as he took to himself wives of every race
and in doing so he began to cave into their demands for religious
representation in Israel. In his later years Solomon had returned Israel to a
pagan worship second only to the Canaanites before them. This time of Noah is
more than marrying and giving in marriage, it is a time of losing the true
worship, a true gospel being lost. This makes the remark of our Savior even
more pointed concerning His return, “Will He find faith on earth?” (Luke 18:8).
In Noah’s day it was only Noah, only Noah while his three sons their families
went along for the ride. So, as the days of Noah? Will
He find faith when He returns? It may well be that the true follower of YaHshua
may number in a few thousand (the 144,000 for sure), not the millions mentioned
in today’s census.
(Mat
24:40) Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left.
(Mat
24:41) Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the
other left.
(Mat
24:42) Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will
come.
Comment: The Rapturist
like to quote this verse giving no heed to the lesson of the “parable of the
Weeds” (Matthew 13:24-30), “first collect the weeds and then tie them in
bundles to be burned”. Those taken first, in the parable, are not the followers
but the weeds, and they are thrown into the fire. This is a witness against the
false Rapture teaching as they teach just the opposite of this lesson from the
Messiah.
(Mat
24:43) But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of
night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his
house be broken into.
(Mat
24:44) So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour
when you do not expect him.
Comment: 1
Thessalonians 5:4-5 is the answer to this – we are not children of the darkness
that this day should take us by surprise. I am afraid, however, that that may
be just the case, as we have seen, few escaped in the days of Noah -- we must
pray for our brothers and sisters to have courage, to be able to stand in the
day of His Wrath that we might glorify His Name. Will He find faith, we should
shout, yes! Look, here am I, Oh Lord, here am I.
(Mat
24:45) Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in
charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper
time?
Comment: I pray this
is food for you at the proper time. I know this is a selfish endeavor on my
part but I seem driven to it.
(Mat
24:46) It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he
returns.
(Mat
24:47) I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge
of all his possessions.
(Mat
24:48) But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, 'My master is
staying away a long time,'
(Mat
24:49) and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with
drunkards.
(Mat
24:50) The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him
and at an hour he is not aware of.
Comment: Of course I
do not want to be that servant. These verses speak for themselves and anyone
attempting to teach the Word or to care for the people within the Body of the
Christ should take them seriously. The day of reckoning is approaching, be
gentle with those you are feeding, never compromise the Word of truth and most
certainly never use the Word to punish those you are supposed to encourage by
the Word. There is more than one way in the art of beating the children of God
and to their shame many false teachers desiring to be adored as leaders use the
Word itself as a club to keep the deceived in line. Constantly being threatened
not to judge, and you will be judged as you judge.
These are true sayings of Scripture being misused and abused. The understanding
is not given in judging, not by your words but by the Word and words of our God
and our Savior, YaHshua. When you use the Word of God as your instrument of
judgment it is not you that judge but the Word -- do you see? It is not for us
to "condemn" but we must judge by the written word. It is by the
written word we are able to defend ourselves against the deceivers, and we must
make a judgment constantly concerning our belief and knowledge as opposed to
the false teachers threaten us with the "judgment
club" to beat the weak back into line. This is a perfect example of how
the misuse of the word is used to silence the timid, and in some cases, to
drive a brother or sister from the group.
(Mat
24:51) He
will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the
hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Comment: Sounds like
hell to me – outside of the Kingdom, do doubt. It is appropriate our Savior
would end with this warning to the servants of the household as He began with a
warning about “deceivers”. He has a lot to say without giving away all the
details. Why else the Book of Revelation?
Now The Great Quake
Recap From Part 1 (Link to Part 1 of 3 on
full article)
The
Great Quake that is to hit the whole world, a worldwide event, an event that
has never happened in the recorded history of mankind. People of all races and
social position, rich, poor, everyone, kings, presidents, everyone will think
the “end” has come. Scientist have speculated on the demise of the earth not
realizing how tantalizingly close they have come to giving a prophecy of
Biblical proportions, and they love it. The “end” of their tale, however, is one
of no hope but of utter destruction and the end of all mankind -- much like the
dinosaurs of a previous age, or so science tells us. If you watch the National
Geographic channel you will have had your fill of the Total Destruction
documentaries, either by a fire ball from space, or the ultimate burn out of
the sun, or the eventual destruction of humanity at the hands of humanity, and,
of course there is a galaxy heading our way, not to mention the asteroid and
comet assaults that could strike at any “moment”. They don’t say, “if”, but “when”, and they offer no hope whatsoever, nothing
– oh, wait, they do say we could escape to another planet? They have become the
prophets of these modern days, but is anyone listening, really listening?
Hardly, but it does make for good movie entertainment.
I
am not a prophet but I do believe what the Holy Bible says. No, I do not have
all the answers and some of the things written in the Scriptures concerning the
future of this Earth will only be seen clearly after the event or events occur.
That’s right, all of these modern day prophets are only guessing, educated
guesses, to be sure, and in a roundabout way they are, unknowingly, agreeing
with the Scriptures. What about the religious prophets? Certainly men of the
cloth, so to speak, have the answer. After all, they study the Scriptures all
day long, right? Mostly, however, they prefer to give the feel good news, you
know, all the bad things are going to happen to the bad people, but you will
escape. They spend a lot of time telling people what they want to hear,
preaching a good-news doctrine that goes to the opposite extreme of what
science tells us. Certainly no one wants to suffer but sometimes there is no
other way, as the history of man has been proving. As the Christ Himself has
demonstrated – by His suffering He was made more perfect (Hebrews 2:10)
I
need to make a small correction: In Part
1 I said I did not know of anyone teaching this plain word of God
concerning this coming Great Quake. With a little more investigation I
discovered there is a few that mention the Great Quake but then they promptly
skip over the next events – the 7th Seal -- rushing forward with quotes from
Revelation and Ezekiel about the 10 Nation United Europe, the Beast, the
invasion of Israel by Russia and some speculation on where the USA fits into
all of this. Some say we are bombed out of existence by the Beast and this
explains why such a great nation as the USA is not mention. Others work at
fitting the USA in with other nations referred to as the “Ships of Tarsus”, the
Young Lions, etc., etc. Then there is Isaiah 18:7 where a description of a
people is given – a most unusual chapter – about a smooth skinned people from a
land divided by rivers. This seems to be a reference to the people of Egypt
(verse 1), descendants of Cush. Some, however, suggest this is a
description of the United States.
At any rate, the thing that gets lost is the
Great Quake -- the “sign of the Lamb's Wrath” --followed by another
three events only the Creator would know about – the launch into the 7th
Seal which introduces the world to the 7 Trumpets, each announcing a major
event, events that cannot be and will not be ignored. When we (our
descendants?) witness these events following the Great Quake we should grab
hold of our faith with both hands and hang on. He tells us through His Word
there is going to be a great, massive, worldwide earthquake accompanied by
heavenly signs that cause some to drop dead in fear. It will be after this great worldwide
calamity that the 7th Seal if opened. The world changed, as we know
it, is to be further reshaped by what still is to come. The political system will be changed in a
drastic way and those recognized as world powers today may not be then, or
reduced to self-survival and reconstruction with not time to worry about the
Middle East. An event such as the Great Quake could be the explanation as to
why the United States seems to be absent from major prophetic utterances?
We
are told the 6th Seal is going to happen before our Savior returns,
it is a sign of His coming (so much for the Imminent return doctrine), but that
is not all, the sounding of the 7 Trumpets. These Trumpets announcing events,
again, before the return of our Savior -- falling stars, the mountain
(asteroid) falling into the sea, and the torch (comet) polluting all the fresh
waters of the Earth, but, we are not told the time interval between the 6th
and 7th Seal. They are not events falling one on the other but part
of a progression moving toward the downfall of the powers of the earth.
It
has to be realized that much of what we read in scripture is very direct but is
only a shadow of the things to come. We will not understand the full meaning of
these coming “physical” events, but when we do we will see the pure accuracy of
Scripture. We are called to be witnesses. Certainly you can give witness of how
you were called, how you became a believer but a witness of the Word is more
than that. The Apostles witnessed about the Messiah, they proclaimed YaHshua
was indeed the Savior and they witnessed His death and His life. They were
eyewitnesses of those things and were then able to proclaim that witness. We
also see the witnesses of YaHshua as Savior and having given their lives for
this truth down to the end (Rev 20:4).
Most,
today, witness about a man called Jesus, Iesus, Isus, Iss (Jss?) but have
little knowledge of the Savior the Apostles knew personally, face to face. In
many ways the prophecy preachers of Christianity today make the Creator and His
words of less value by their continued speculations turned into fact. They turn
their speculations, their theories, visions and dreams into fact and they write
books of fiction mixed with their visions and biblical fact – made up truth, is
a lie. Some have even gone so far as to call their evil writings “faction”, a
combining of the word "fiction" and the word "fact". Now
let me think, isn’t that what Satan did in the Garden, and continues to do,
mixing some truth with lies? A popular writer of adult fiction said once,
"writing fiction is telling lies for fun and profit", later he wrote
a book on writing with that title. Now, he was being truthful, his day dreams
were for entertainment, not for deception in promoting a false idea. These
ministers and writers of “faction”, however, follow the principle of Satan
himself and in their ignorance claim the conversion of millions to their
deceitful books of fact mixed with fiction. On close examination one can see
the so called facts of their works are anything but fact, mostly all made up
stories attempting to support their visions of how they think things should go.
When compared to the truth of the Scriptures their "faction" books
and movies seem really stupid.
We
should all take care in handling the Word in our studies and in our own
speculations. We should never step over the line and begin teaching our
theories as fact. Yes, it is fun to speculate and to exchange ideas but the big
prophecy preachers of today have begun to agree with one another in a common
view, these speculations, and in some cases, theories of the mind (real
fiction). This has been going on for years. They quote each other in a circular
fashion making their daydreams appear as fact, each supporting the other as a
source, quoting one another, around and around making fiction fact. You will
notice all of the most popular prophecy teachers and writers of today have been
in this business for the last forty years, they are running to the end or their
proclamations and a kind of frenzy surfaces every few years with great
declarations of being in the End Times. they have no idea of what they are
talking about, and when the Great Quake hits this earth they will all wish they
were dead -- Hum, I think that is just what the 6th Seal says.
I
was once a member of a church that used to teach the 10 Nation United States of
Europe and all of the other religious groups called that nuts, well today
nearly all of the teachers are teaching just that, and guess what? I now think
they are wrong. I’m always suspicious when a majority of prophets get on the
same bandwagon. Listen, the whole Bible has around 40 some authors, that is 40
over a period of 6,000 years – there are at least twice that many in these
modern times alone – this last 40 years. Go figure that one. What does the book
of Revelations say about this, or better yet, not say! In Revelation 11, there
is an account of an event occurring at the very time leading up to our Saviors
return. Two prophets of the Living God, 2, only 2 are mentioned. That, of
course, is within keeping of previous biblical examples, the real prophets of
YHWH, the real prophets of YaHshua you can count on two hands and they are and
have never been wrong -- PERIOD. Modern day prophets are constantly adjusting
and readjusting their visions.
We
have the writings of true prophets put down under inspiration of the Holy
Spirit. This we can be sure of, the prophets mentioned in the Scriptures and
their writings are uncontestable. In other word, they are the prophets we can
trust. No one, since the Apostles of YaHshua has legally added to the words we
have today. There have been no true prophets of YHWH of YaHshua since the death
of John (not counting our Savior). The book of Revelation finishes it and there
will be no new Prophets of the Living god until the two witnesses appear and
they will have power like Moses and Aaron demonstrated. Please notice, prophets
of old were usually held in contempt and had a message to deliver and in most
cases they did it reluctantly – never do you see where a prophet said, pick me,
pick me, it was mostly, I’m not worthy. Much of what they did was in words a
record of words, of things told to them directly by the Creator Himself – thus
-- inspired words. Moses and Aaron exhibited miraculous power as will the
coming Witnesses. Yes, I know the New Testament makes mention of the office of
prophet but it is obvious the Apostles, especially Paul played this down.
The
term “prophet” in the New Testament is found in its abundance referencing the
Prophets of the Old Testament and the mention of New Testament prophets as
“false prophets” far outnumber any mention of Christian Prophet. Let’s have a
quick look – I know, this will lead to the Great Quake and you will soon see
why I felt it necessary to side track here a little – in the book of
Revelation, remember, the book written by John after all of the other Apostles
had died or been killed and after the destruction of the Temple by the Romans,
speaks only of “false prophets”, save the 2 Witnesses of Chapter 11. There is
the record of a prophet coming to meet Paul before he goes to Jerusalem, to
warn him that if he goes there the Jews will take him and bind him (Acts 21:10-11)
Paul refuses to take him seriously. So, what happened? Paul went to Jerusalem
and was taken captive and was bound, briefly, not by the Jews but by the Roman
soldiers. Not only that -- if Paul had listened to this prophet – a prophet
that had some influence, respected in his community as is witnessed by the fear
of those trying to get Paul not to go to Jerusalem.
What
happens next is an event you would have thought this prophet would have seen,
after all he claims to be receiving his message from the Holy Spirit – Paul
gives one of his most passionate and moving account of his conversion, of his
life as a tormentor of the Church, stopped in his tracks by the Messiah
Himself. Not only that we have an account of Paul, while being held, for his
protection, by the Roman authorities, is being talked to by YaHshua and is
informed he need not fear as this is all part of His plan for Paul to take the
Gospel message to the Romans (Acts 21:37 through Acts 22:20, and Acts 23:11).
Not only did the prophet Agabus get it wrong but he was actually going contrary
to what the Messiah had planned for Paul. Unless a prophet speaks within the
framework of Scripture then he must be considered and examined very carefully,
perhaps, even ignored. My understanding is the office of prophet, within the
New Testament, would better be rendered “preacher”, and inspired speaker, not
necessarily a seer of the future, not like those of the Old Testament (Hebrew
Scriptures) through whom men spoke as they heard -- YHWH speaking to them.
Isn’t it odd that the only real prophets
and true seers of the New Testament are the Apostles themselves and the
revelation of Revelation is from the Apostle John via the LORD’s Angel speaking
directly to him. Yahshua speaks to the Apostle John by His Angel (angel can
also mean messenger) and He also speaks to him directly between visions and
other spiritual experiences. What are we to make of all this? Compared with today’s Pentecostal style
churches there is a real lack of prophetic utterances recorded. If the body of believers had so much to say
in prophecy, as some assume today, then why is this type of revelation
missing? Nothing written into the New
Testament writings by any of the of the local Church
prophets? Perhaps they did not matter that much and should not matter that much
today. Here is the final word on this, right from the pages of your own Bible,
look it up.
In
the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in
various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son,
whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom He made the universe.
(Hebrews 1:1-2, NIV)
Our
Father in Heaven speaks to us now by His Son YaHshua – not one mention of any
other prophets in comparison to those that spoke to God’s people in the past,
only the Son. Even though the Apostle John is given credit for the book of
Revelation by many, it is not -- read its introduction and you will see it is
from YaHshua to John, not John’s prophecy at all.
(Rev 1:1-2)
The revelation of YaHshua the Christ, which God (the Father) gave Him to
show His servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending His
angel to his servant John, who testifies to everything he saw--that is, the
word of God and the testimony of YaHshua the Christ.
The
position of prophet in the Church is not what some suppose. This should put us
on notice; the prophets of the first century Church were not meant to be of the
same caliber as those of the Old Testament. Also, the Scripture is finished, no
more revealed writing from prophets. We have all been told what we need to
know. Hold to this one thought and you will not fall prey to those false
prophets that would have you go hide in the desert or in the mountains or drop
out of society escaping to some Island, or some enclosed compound. It is from
those claiming to be brothers and sisters and teachers, claiming to be
something they are not, that we are to withdraw. Read it for yourself,
it is not from the world we are to withdraw, that would be impossible, but those
claiming to be Christians, those following a false Christ, those continuing in
the way of sin, continuing in their sin.
Read the list Paul gives and examine this for yourself --
(1Co 5:9-11)
I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral
people-- not at all meaning the sexually immoral of this world, or the
greedy and swindlers, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the
world. But now I am writing to you not
to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of
sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler,
drunkard, or swindler--not even to eat with such a one. NIV
Stay on guard with your Bible in hand and you
will keep you and your family from becoming a victim of the likes of David
Koresh, or Jim Jones (dead prophets) or Benny Hinn and others like him. Look at
the Mormons, they hold prophets in high esteem, and look at the damage they do
to themselves and their children. What has the benefit been for them? None
whatsoever, the office of prophet has been used as a method of enslaving people
to a personality and these personalities are nothing like the Prophets of the
Old Testament and they certainly are not Christ like. Still, today, we have
many self-proclaimed prophets but none equal to EliYaH, or IsaYaH,
or JeremYaH, or Zechariah, or Moses and certainly not
the Messiah, our Savior, YaHshua. We
need to listen to them – what is written has been written and is all we need to
know. With that warning out of the way
let’s go further into the Word of prophecy, your Bible, and see if there is
more than this one Great Quake.
The Great Quake -- Plus 5 Others?
Let’s
start with a brief of what Our Savior told his disciples, a message for them
and us. I know we covered this earlier but I want to get to a certain place in
his prophetic discussion concerning the 6th Seal and the Great
Quake.
Wars
and rumors of wars, and we are told not to be troubled? We cannot do anything
about it and these things will happen so He tells us not to concern ourselves
with these things. I don’t believe He means to ignore these things as He later
tells those in Jerusalem to flee when they see certain things line up. He
speaks of famines, disease, and earthquakes in different places. We see all of
these things today but every generation since has seen these things. Then He
speaks of the disciples being delivered up and killed and being hated for His
NAME. His next statement, I believe, may have started before all the Apostles
had died, but is primarily addressed to later events leading up to the
Christian religion being hijacked by the Roman government.
We
see the Christian Church in this condition today -- look at how they preach
against one another. The Evangelicals speak as though they hate the Mormons and
the Jehovah’s Witnesses, calling them cults, and then the many modern prophets
preach hate toward the Catholic Church and all other groups calling themselves
Christian, all however, promote the same book the Holy Bible, all of them claim
“JESUS” as their savior and god. He tells us that any that will endure unto the
end will be saved. To the end of what, two thousand years have passed? To the
end of your life – the “endurance” he speaks of is having to live in this world
of sin, of trials and temptations to the very end of our own life, whether it
be short or long, we are to hang in there, not letting our love grow cold, for
this will be the case with many as we enter the days as the “days of Noah”.
So when you see standing in the holy
place 'the abomination that causes desolation, spoken of
through the prophet Daniel--let the reader understand-- then let those who are
in Judea flee to the mountains. Let no one on the roof of his house go down to
take anything out of the house. Let no one in the field go back to get his
cloak. (Mat 24:15-18, NIV) (Note: KJV
says, “the abomination of desolation”—this is
incorrect and is most properly to be translated as “the abomination that lays
waste”, which is a quote from Dan 11:31&12:11)
This
is a hotly debated warning. Some think the “abomination that causes desolation”
is the Dome of the Rock on Mount Moriah (MorYaH, the place where YHWH has
chosen to put His name). Others think this verse is implying the Hebrew Temple
and the “abomination” will be the Antichrist. If it is the Muslim Dome of the
Rock then the admonition warning to flee into the mountains isn’t happening not
to mention the fact the Dome has been there for centuries, even before the
Jew's minor return to their homeland. Also, He does not mention the Temple exactly, in fact He does not mention the Temple at all,
except for when He says, "not
one stone here will be left on another". He does say, “holy
place”, and to me that could be anywhere on Mount Moriah (MorYaH).
There is, of course, a special spot that some say it the Holy of Holy spot, a
place for example, we see the False prophet go up the steps leading to the
place considered holy to take possession of this holy ground. There does not
have to be a Temple. That, however, does not mean there won’t be for as we know
the religious minority in Israel are working toward the taking of the Mount
back from the Muslims and to begin construction of the Temple. Wonder what kind
of destruction that would cause? More on this verse later.
Remember,
the Jews are cut off so long as the Temple and the sacrificial system is not in
place. One other thing to consider is the possibility that the rebuilding of
the Temple may be the very thing that “causes desolation”. That’s right, the
holy place is most likely Mount Moriah and it may be the TEMPLE of the Jews
that is the “abomination”. How can that be? The rebuilding of the Temple is the
ultimate denial that YaHshua is the son of the Living God and that he came in
the flesh – the Temple reconstruction would be a monument of denial and
rejection of the Messiah, YaHshua. This is only my opinion but I’m thinking the
last place you would want to be is Jerusalem.
If they ever do start rebuilding the Temple one might be wise to heed
the warning and get out of there before the thing that “causes desolation”,
cause desolation.
(Mat 24:29-31) Immediately after the
tribulation of those days shall the sun be
darkened,
and the moon
shall not give her light, and the stars shall
fall from heaven, and the powers of the
heavens shall be shaken: And then shall
appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then
shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they
shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great
glory. And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they
shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to
the other. (KJV)
And
what is our Savior saying so emphatically? “Immediately after the distress of
those days” -- our Savior then gives us the description of the 6th
Seal -- the “sign of
His coming”. It should be pointed out that our Savior made it plain
He did not know the time of His coming, that that information had been reserved
for our Heavenly Father (Matthew 24:36), so any time constraints or expansions
between these events are in His, our Father's, hands. It is too easy to put
every event one right after the other.
An example of this is found in the sounding of the Trumpet. When you look
into the book of Revelation concerning the Trumpet blast that signals the
Resurrection you will see there are 6 Trumpets that sound before
the Resurrection Trumpet and the time between the previous events that each
Trumpet announces and this last Trumpet could be substantial, in earth time (Rev
8:6 through Rev 11:15 – all of this follows the Great Quake and heavenly sign
of Rev 6). The Great Earthquake shaking
the whole planet will happen out of season, and before the sounding of the
Trumpets within which we see the Trumpet of Resurrection (Mat 24: 31; 1Cor
15:52)
(Rev
6:12-13) And
I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as
sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; And
the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a
mighty wind. (KJV)
Here
we see the same description with some added detail. Remember, this is The
Revelation of YaHshua, not of John. John is the scribe it is YaHshua that is
delivering the message (Revelation 1:1) Again the “fig tree” is mentioned but
in this case the falling fruit is “untimely”, or before its time. This should
give us cause for alarm, especially if are waiting for the fruit to
ripen.
When
the “great quake” hits and the whole earth is
“shaken”, know that this is the “sign
of His coming”. He is not here yet, it is the beginning of His
return and it follows the “great
distress”. This “great earth quake” puts a stop to the events
brought about by the “abomination”.
This shaking of the earth may well change the political structure of many
nations. The nations as we see them today may not be anything like the
political powers that come out of this earth shaking quake, called the Great
Quake of the 6th Seal. Even then, this earthquake that will change nations will
occur after the "abomination that causes desolation", but the end is
not yet. Even though, those of this world will think the absolute end of the
earth has come as the 6th seal makes plain -- everyone, no matter their social
position will be hiding from the "sign of His coming".
Moving
on -- after the “great
earthquake” and the heavenly signs that cause many, if not all,
mankind to think the world has come to an end, we move into a
calm. There is a space of time called the ½ hour of silence just before
the 7th Seal is opened. How long, in heavenly time, is this ½ hour,
only our Father knows. At this point we have the #1
Great Earthquake, an event that destroys mountains and
Islands, a worldwide earthquake. Imagine the tidal waves generated by the
movement and destruction of these landmasses. The “abomination that causes desolation”
is the trigger for this event. How long is this the duration of the “abomination that causes
desolation” after entering the “Holy Place” is any ones guess but
we know it is a time of “great distress” for those living in Judah, and it
could not be a "time of great distress" unless there were a certain
amount of time involved. Many prophecy teachers try to push all of these events
into a short time period of 3 1/2 years.
7th Seal Opened.
(Rev
8:1) When he opened
the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.
Perhaps
someone knowledgeable in Biblical numbers could shed light on this ½ hour of time.
If it were to be an ½ hour by our standard clock it would be hardly worth
mentioning as no one would notice it, but I’m thinking that by our standard of
time this will be a significant period of time, not Heavenly time but Earthly
time. My meager calculations, taking the “day as a thousand years principle (II
Peter 3:8; Psalm 90:4) I make the ½ hour of silence to be approximately 21
years. This would be the period of time for mankind to regroup after the
devastation of earthquake #1. Almost everyone misses this point of “time”; --
Heavenly time and Earthly time are not quite the same. Please take special
note, the ½ hour of “silence” is Heavenly time and this makes the measurement
of that period, as Peter identified Heavenly time for us.
During
this Heavenly silence men will come out from their hiding places seeing the
world has not come to an end. Now I am guessing here, but I think they will
then join forces in an effort to defend themselves from such an invasion from
Heaven, or outer space, if you prefer, should it happen again. This is when I
see the Beast government coming to life and the False Prophet reconstituting
religion as most will have the feeling their religion has failed them. They
will see this “sign” of the coming of the Lamb’s wrath as a near miss to total
destruction of the earth. I do not really think those hiding in the caves and
rocks really see this as a “sign of His coming”. Here is a time of Heavenly
silence, no more shaking, no more of the sun going black but a seemingly return
to normal. After the ½ hour, or the 20-21 years on earth there is again,
another earthquake.
Skipping ahead we come to a
second “earthquake:
(Rev
8:5) Then the angel
took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it on the earth;
and there came
peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an earthquake.
A
kind of “aftershock” if you will, an aftershock several years later, and this
quake is accompanied by “peals of thunder, rumblings, and flashes of
lightening” and then the 7th Seal is opened and a one two, three
punch is delivered – the first three Trumpets. First, what appears to be stars
falling all over the earth, second an asteroid (“something like a huge
Mountain”) turning a third of the sea into blood and third, a comet (“blazing
like a torch”) polluting all of the fresh waters of the earth. There are four
other trumpets to sound taking you right up to and through the witness of the
Two Witnesses and the Resurrection.
It is
not my purpose to make a verse by verse commentary on the Book of Revelation.
If you read the following verses closely you will see the Resurrection occurs
at a time, a certain, definite time and not as those teaching the Rapture say
(at any moment), certainly it cannot happen at any moment, and the servants of
the Living God and followers of YaHshua will be able to see this and know the
“things to come” from the very words of our Savior by being able to use these
“earthquakes” as bench marks of the events.
Revelation
chapters 8, 9, 10, 11 take you right to through the 7 Trumpet ending with the
Resurrection Trumpet and the proclamation of the “mystery of god” being
finished and the Kingdoms of the world, becoming the Kingdom of the Saints.
Notice especially chapter 10:6-7 and all of chapter 11. But, for now, this is
about the “earthquakes” as a special marking event we, as students of the
bible, can identify, an event accompanied by what may appear as the heavens
collapsing occurring before our Lord returns.
Until this great event YaHshua, our Lord will not come. This should put an end to the Imminent return
doctrine.
The Order of the Quakes
I
am not entirely certain at this point, except for the first two, they certain
are one after the other. There are four more and one of the four to come, after
the first two, is said to be worse, greater, unlike anything to have ever hit
the earth before – not since the recorded history of mankind, so this
earthquake is going to be even greater than the ‘great quake” of the 6th
seal. This is the problem quake, however, for me and its timing. I’m not yet
sure where to place it. It occurs in Revelation 16:17-21 and is obviously a
punishment against the Beast system, but for now I would like to leave its
positioning open to discussion. As it appears the events covered in the book of
Revelation after Chapter 12 contains details of past events and are not
necessarily in prophetic order. Kind of like filling in the blanks and we see
this same procedure used in the Old Testament. An outline is given then it is repeated
with greater detail. A prophetic statement is given followed by more details of
the proclaimed event or events. I believe we see the same thing in the Book of
Revelation. This is why I have yet to decide where this “earthquake” of
Revelation 16 actually occurs.
Earthquake
#2 -- is the opening of the 7th Seal as we can see and this is
the announcement of the 7 Trumpets and the 7 Trumpets take you to the coming of
our Savior and the Resurrection, and this takes us to two additional
earthquakes.
(Rev 8:5)
Then the angel took
the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it on the earth; and
there came
peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an earthquake.
Earthquake
#3 -- this earthquake is obviously centered at Jerusalem, where the Two
Prophets rise to meet their Savior.
(Rev
11:12-13) Then they
heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, "Come up here." And
they went up to heaven in a cloud, while their enemies looked on. At that very
hour there was a severe earthquake and a tenth of the city collapsed. Seven thousand people were
killed in the earthquake,
and the survivors were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.
Earthquake
#4 – a “great hailstorm” accompanies this earthquake.
(Rev
11:18-19) The nations
were angry; and your wrath has come. The time has come for judging the dead, and for rewarding your servants the prophets and your
saints and those who reverence your name, both small and great-- and for
destroying those who destroy the earth." Then God's temple in heaven was
opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came
flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a great hailstorm.
Here
we see this 4th earthquake accompanied by a “great hailstorm”, and for all of
this we do not see mankind repenting. We as followers of the Word need to
recognize these events and not be fooled by false teachers that have themselves
been deceived by the sound of their own voice and writings, into following a
doctrine that would blind us to the warnings coming. These warnings, or
announcements, if you will, are punctuated with earthquakes and events only the
Creator can control. No one will be able to give credit to mankind for this
kind of power. Our Heavenly Father can put a stop, literally, to any plans men
may have by merely shaking the earth to pieces.
Earthquake
#5 – Revelation 16:17-21, describes and earthquake never before seen even
greater than the “great quake” of previous years. This is the punishment to
fall on the Babylonian Beast system and the false Prophet.
(Rev
16:16-17) Then they
gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.
The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and out of the temple came a loud voice from the throne, saying, "It is
done!"
(Rev
16:18-21) 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.
The great city split into three parts, and the cities of the nations
collapsed. God
remembered Babylon the Great and gave her the cup filled with the wine of the
fury of his wrath. Every
island fled away and the mountains could not be found. From the sky huge hailstones of about a hundred pounds each
fell upon men. And they cursed God on account of the plague of hail, because
the plague was so terrible.
This
earthquake seems to have all the attributes of the first four earthquakes. A
final blow to the Babylonian Beast System, a system I believe to be engineered
in all its end time glory after the “Great Quake” of the 6th seal.
So this event could be placed in the 5th spot of things to occur.
This event may well be during the time of or just after the witness of the two
Witnesses and may well be a prelude to YaHshua taking absolute control,
physically and spiritually of the His Holy Mountain and the final deliverance
of His people Israel – this would be a time near to, but after, the
resurrection of the Saint, both of gentile and Israelite origins. The prelude to the restoration of Israel, as we see the judgment
falling on the Beast and the False Prophet.
Earthquake
# 6
– This is an earthquake that should be easy to place but for some reason most
bible prophets and writers don’t seem to be able to place it correctly. The
reason for this is that the proper placement of this earthquake does not fit in
with their prophetic view. I am going to present two quotes from two sources
that should settle this once and for all.
(Ezekiel
38:18-20) This is
what will happen in that day: When Gog attacks the land of Israel, my hot anger
will be aroused, declares the Sovereign LORD. In my zeal and fiery wrath I
declare that at that time there
shall be a great earthquake in the land of Israel. The fish of the sea, the
birds of the air, the beasts of the field, every creature that moves along the
ground, and all the people on the face of the earth will tremble at my
presence. The mountains will be overturned, the cliffs will crumble and every
wall will fall to the ground
This
earthquake is in the land of Israel and it is on the mountains of Israel the
tribes of Gog and Magog will meet their end. The question is, when? Once again,
letting the Bible speak for itself, the Word of God speaks to us from the pages
of the Holy bible.
(Rev
20:7-9) When the
thousand years are over,
Satan will be released from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations
in the four corners of the earth--Gog and Magog--to gather them for battle. In number they are like the
sand on the seashore. They marched across the breadth of the earth and
surrounded the camp of God's people, the city he loves. But fire came down from
heaven and devoured them.
If
this event is to happen before the Messiah returns, as some suppose, how is it there
would be any people of God and Magog left? After all, Ezekiel 38 makes it plain
the end of Gog and Magog is at a particular time and the book of Revelation
plainly states that that time is at the “end of the thousand years”.
You
see, my friends, the misunderstanding of Heaven and Hell and the
misunderstanding of the doctrine concerning the Resurrection keep the false
teachers in a confused state, a state they have convinced themselves is true.
II Peter 2:3; II Timothy 3:13
Please consider
1.
Yahshua gave the visions to John to write down, not Jesus (Hey Zeus).
2.
Yahshua gave the outline of the events leading up to His return, not Jesus (Hey Zeus).
3.
Yahshua is going to return, not
Jesus.
4. II
John 1:10
5. I
John 5:13
The ARK of the New Covenant -- What
must we do?
Staying
the Course – Keeping the Faith
Be a
good witness. Study the word and listen to the prophetic words of His Book.
Believe Him and what His Apostles taught, not what men teach. It is a spiritual
preparation, for us, this time -- consider Noah and the end of his world.
Noah
and his family spent 120 years building a huge boat, a boat designed to support
him and his family along with a large representation of all air breathing
animal kinds. We, the elect of God and house of the Christ, have an Ark
that will contain us also. YaHshua is the ARK of the New Covenant. It is in Him
we have life and He is big enough, powerful enough, to contain us all. Heb
11:7; 1 Pet 2:5 -- (Heb
3:6) But Christ as a son over His own house; whose house are we, if we
hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.
Each
age has its witnesses and today, in this age, we are the witnesses to the truth
of His Word. When the Great Quake happens, and the heavens roll up as if the
end of all things is about to occur, you and me, if we are still alive in the
flesh will be the witnesses to the truth of His prophetic Word. Noah spent
120 years building his saving boat; just imagine the work and labor that went
into that project? Being human, one could suppose Noah had his moments of
doubts and questions, but he continued, in faith, staying the course, believing
the words he was given and he became a witness to the world -- without our
Creator we are all done for, there is no hope. We all know the dramatic,
historical account, of Noah. So, it will be when, once again, the Wrath of the
Living God and the Lamb are released against rebellious man.
This time, however, the survivors will be
saved by the covering blood of YaHshua and by our entering through the DOOR, as
Noah and his family entered through the door of the wooden Ark, we will enter
through YaHshua, the only DOOR by which we can entering into His Rest, and
receive eternal life, not by a boat we built, or we prepared but by Him and
through Him we become His house in whom He lives and we live. He is the Door to
our Ark; He is the Ark of our Salvation. There is a greater purpose behind all
of this. YaHshua is not just coming to take power but to prepare, to make way for
the coming of another, one greater, His and our Heavenly Father -- the Earth is
being prepared.
Peace
to you all, in the Love of YaHshua.
email dan@servantsofyahshua.com