Where are we on God's Prophetic Agenda
Introduction
In today's world there is a growing interest in Biblical Prophecy among God's people, especially in light of current world events with Israel in particular, the rise of the European Union, Iran, Russia, the move to Globalization in the areas of finance, religion, increase of natural disasters, the increase of apostasy and deception within the professing Christian church and societal violence.
Unfortunately biblical teaching about prophecy is another one of those areas that is typically not taught today in a number of churches.
Yet the Bible says the following in 2 Tim 3:16-17:
16 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness;
17 so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.
The Purpose of Prophecy
Prophecy provides objective demonstrable historical proof of the inspiration, inerrancy, and authority of God’s Word.
Fulfilled prophecy authenticates the Word of
God.
It reveals the mind and plans of
God.
Prophecy increases
faith and perpetuate hope for the believer.
Why Should We Stay Alert Concerning Prophetic Events
| Christ instructs us to be on the alert, to be vigilant, just as one would in watching over his house, due to the imminent threat of burglary. Its out of this alertness the head of the house would not be caught unawares when the burglar may strike. So it is with Christ's coming, we are to be alert and always prepared for that moment |
We In Matt 24:42-44 The Bible says the following concerning Christ's return for his Church:
42 “Therefore be on alert , for you do not know which day your Lord is coming .
43 “But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into.44 “For this reason you also must be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will.
In
1Thess 5:4-6
the apostle Paul mentions
the following:
4: But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that the day would overtake you like a thief;
5: for you are all sons of light and sons of day. We are not of night nor of darkness;
6: so then let us not sleep as others do, but let us be alert and sober.
| In
verse 4
Paul's readers are said to have an awareness and a
understanding of the times concerning the "The Day of The
Lord". As a result this day will not overtake Christians who
are versed in the scriptures and whose
understanding of the times are guided by
the scriptures. This is in stark contrast to the ungodly, notice what Christ said about those who had no understanding or perception of the times in Matt 24:38-39. They were busy going about the normal pursuits of life, without awareness or regard to the imminent judgment that was near to overtaking them. Matt 24:38-39 In verse 5 this awareness is govern by who we are in Christ (you are all sons of light and sons of day...) in contrast to those who are in darkness In verse 6 we are told not to sleep (katheudo /kath·yoo·do) that is a spiritual indifference or insensitivity but instead we should be:
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So that no one misunderstands, this is by no means an attempt to set any dates only to show in a general way of where we are on God's prophetic agenda based on his prophetic word.
God announces his prophetic plans in advance and gives us the surety of its fulfillment through already fulfilled prophecies
I don't believe we need to try and equate
every news headline as the fulfillment of a particular Biblical verse or
start setting dates as to when certain Biblical events will occur. We may very well experience more volatile times such as what we are
experiencing today, only time will tell.
Like all passed prophetic events there
were "foreshadowing events"
that where directly tied to specific Biblical prophecies, indicating
approaching fulfillment. It is my opinion that we are approaching the
most significant time in the history of our world.
This belief is founded upon the prophetic study of God's word.
In the following I will convey a panoramic Biblical view in the categories of (1) geo political history, (2) globalization of the political, financial and religious systems and (3) "The Apostasy and deception within Christendom" (4) culture/ society conditions ( A study in these areas will indicate the general time "frame" and provide a panoramic view of where we are on God's prophetic time table in relationship to the return of the Lord Jesus Christ.
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(
The LORD of hosts hath sworn, saying, Surely as I have thought,
so shall it come to pass; and as I have purposed, so shall it
stand: .... 26. This is the purpose that is purposed upon the
whole earth: and this is the hand that is stretched out upon all
the nations. 27. For the LORD of hosts hath purposed, and who
shall disannul it? and his hand is stretched out, and who shall
turn it back? |
(
Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the
things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand,
and I will do all my pleasure: 11. ... I have spoken it, I will
also bring it to pass; I have purposed it, I will also do it. |
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(
I have declared the former things from the beginning; and they
went forth out of my mouth, and I shewed them; I did them
suddenly, and they came to pass. |
(
The anger of the LORD shall not return, until he have executed,
and till he have performed the thoughts of his heart: in the
latter days ye shall consider it perfectly. |
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(
Then said the LORD unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I will
hasten my word to perform it. |
(
For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot
or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be
fulfilled. |
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(
Therefore say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; There shall
none of my words be prolonged any more, but the word which I
have spoken shall be done, saith the Lord GOD. |
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Establishing our place in Prophetic History from a Geo Political view
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King Nebuchadnezzar Dream
¨
31 “You,
O king, were looking and behold, there was a single great
statue; that statue, which was large and of
extraordinary
splendor, was standing in front of you, and its appearance was
awesome.
¨
32 “The head of that statue was made of fine gold,
its breast and its arms of silver, its belly and its thighs of
bronze,
¨
33 its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of
clay.
¨
34 “You continued looking until a stone was cut out
without hands, and it struck the statue on its feet of iron and
clay and crushed them.
¨ 35 “Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver and the gold were crushed all at the same time and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away so that not a trace of them was found. But the stone that struck the statue became a great mountain and filled the whole earth. |
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Symbol |
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Nation Represented |
Time of Existence as a World Power |
Commentary |
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36 “This
was the dream; now we will tell its interpretation
before the king.
37 “You,
O king, are the king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has
given the kingdom, the power, the strength and the glory;
38 and wherever the sons of men dwell, or the
beasts of the field, or the birds of the sky, He has given
them into your hand and has caused you to rule over them
all. You are the head of gold. |
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626-539 BC |
There is no doubt as to who the head of gold is, for Daniel
tells the then Babylonian king, Nebuchadnezzar "...You are
the head of gold. ". |
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39
“After you there will arise another kingdom inferior to
you, ...
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Medo - Persa
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539 330 B.C.
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The Medo-Persians conquered the Babylonians in 539
b.c. The arms of
silver evidently represent the two nations of Media and |
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39
...then another third kingdom of bronze, which will rule
over all the earth. |
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330 63 B.C.
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Alexander the Great conquered the Medo-Persians between 334 and
330 b.c. and
assumed authority over its peoples and territory. By Alexander’s
conquests he extended the Greek Empire as far east as the
northwestern portion of |
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40 “Then
there will be a fourth kingdom as strong as iron; in as
much as iron crushes and shatters all things, so, like iron that
breaks in pieces, it will crush and break all these in pieces.
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2 Legs
Leg
1-
146 B.C. To A.D. 476
Leg 2
- 1461 A.D. Eastern Kingdom
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This fourth kingdom conquered the Greek Empire in 63
b.c. Though the
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Four of the 5 Kingdoms mentioned by Daniel have come and gone
from the world stage, in the exact order that's mentioned in
Daniel. Secular world history bears this same fact out. The next
and last government of man is the 10 Nation confederacy which
will come about during the Great Tribulation. |
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41 “In
that you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and
partly of iron, it will be a divided kingdom; but it will have
in it the toughness of iron, inasmuch as you saw the iron mixed
with common clay.
42 “As
the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly
of pottery, so some of the kingdom will be strong and
part of it will be brittle.
43 “And
in that you saw the iron mixed with common clay, they will
combine with one another in the seed of men; but they will not
adhere to one another, even as iron does not combine with
pottery. |
Ultimately a 10 Nation Confederacy that will voluntarily give
their allegiance to the
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?
- ?
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44 “In
the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a
kingdom which will never be destroyed, and that kingdom
will not be left for another people; it will crush and put an
end to all these kingdoms, but it will itself endure forever.
45 “In
as much as you saw that a stone was cut out of the mountain
without hands and that it crushed the iron, the bronze, the
clay, the silver and the gold, the great God has made known to
the king what will take place in the future; so the dream is
true and its interpretation is trustworthy.” |
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?- Millennium
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Ezk 37:21-22
Jerusalem a cup of trembling
Zech 12:28
jer 29:18
Deu 37:28
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Gog
is described as being “of the
Most Bible scholars
believe Gog is not a name but a title, like Pharaoh or Czar. He
is a dictator who will hatch an “evil plan” ( |
Magog
= Leading Bible scholars say this is |
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Rosh
=
Meshech
= Some Bible scholars say this is |
Tubal
= Some Bible scholars say this refers to the city/region of
Tobolsk in |
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Put
= |
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Gomer
= |
Beth-togarmah
= |
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“Many peoples
with you” who will
attack along “the mountains of |
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The World Moving to Globalization
Globalization of World's Financial Systems
The world's goal is to consolidate it's financial systems by doing so it will lay the foundation for what John wrote about in Revelation where he stated:
16 And he causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free men
and the slaves, to be given a mark on their right hand or on
their forehead,
17 and he provides that no one will be able to buy or to sell, except the one who has the mark, either the name of the beast or the number of
his name.
In the article "A New World Order Solution to the Economic Collapse?", written by By Kevin D. Denee dated March 8, 2009, stated the following:
"As the world teeters on the brink of financial disaster, leaders are calling for a new world order. Why?
Families, companies, institutions and national governments face tough times. In this interconnected world, as some of the wealthiest nations begin to collapse, others will fall with them.
Many think, A solution that rises above any one nation must be found." |
As part of the new 'Financial New World Order' the industrialize nations are having serious dialogue around a common world currency. According to a Washington Times article title Burning one world currency Wednesday, April 8, 2009 the following was stated:
| "The Group of 20 gave a nod to the idea of a single world currency last week, and other countries such as China are pushing it because they no longer trust the United States to restrain itself from printing too much cash and debasing the dollar." |
The current economic crisis in the US housing and banking industries which have had global repercussions is the straw that broke the camels back in a success of world events that is driving the world to the fulfillment of God's prophetic plan.
No one knows how long we have before the start of the Tribulation period. One thing is for sure we are definitely marching toward this climactic era with gusto.
Pope calls for a "global authority" on economy
In the article "Pope calls for a "global authority", written by Philip Pullella dated Tue Jul 7, 2009, reported the following:
| Pope Benedict called on Tuesday for a "world political authority" to manage the global economy and for more government regulation of national economies to pull the world out of the current crisis and avoid a repeat. |
Establishing our place in
Prophetic History from a Cultural / Society View
A preoccupation with the things of this life:
In keeping with the context of Christ's comparison of the days preceding his second coming to those of Noah and Lot.: Notice the following
37 “For
the coming of the Son of Man will
be just like the
days of
Noah.
38 “For as
in those days before the
flood they
were eating and
drinking, marrying and
giving in
marriage, until the
day that
Noah entered the
ark,
39 and they did not understand until the
flood came and
took them
all away; so will
the coming of
the Son of
Man be.
[1]
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Luke 17:28-30
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Paul's description of the disintegration of society:
1 But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come.
2 For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy,
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V1
Paul warned Timothy about the societal collapse predicted
for the last days,
a term which includes the entire period between the first
century and Christ’s return.
v2- 4 Paul describes a
vivid picture of the degenerate condition of the human
nature which will continue to degenerate into greater depths
of depravity until Christ comes back :
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Globalization
of the World's Religions thru Interfaith Ecumenist
Establishing
our place in Prophetic History from a Religious Interfaith
Religious Ecumenism
The desire and drive to bring about world peace through religious unity is stronger than ever as can be seen in the following video from "The VIII World Assembly of Religions for Peace which was held in Kyoto, Japan from August 25-29, 2006. and Dave Hunt's a "Woman Rides the Beast"
The content within this video is quite amazing in light of bible prophecy concerning a one world religious body. It is truly time for God's people to be "Alert and Sober" considering where we are on God's prophetic time table.
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According to the "World Council of Churches" website the following article dated March 11, 2009 was published
Faith and values organizations form coalition to advance United Nations Decade for Inter-religious Cooperation for Peace
Some forty-five religious, interfaith, and value-based organizations from five continents agreed to form a coalition to advance a "United Nations Decade for Inter-religious and Intercultural Dialogue, Understanding, and Cooperation for Peace." Coalition members expressed the hope that the UN Sixty-Fourth General Assembly, which will begin its deliberations in September 2009, will approve a resolution establishing such a decade from 2011-2020.
The meeting took place at Maryknoll, New York, on 2-4 March. Participants included Baha'i, Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim, Shinto, Sikh, Zoroastrian as well as indigenous traditions.
The Prophetic
Connections of the Ecumenical Movement
Any student of scripture will immediately recognize the prophetic significance of the "pursuit of peace" on a global scale as it relates to the "Day of the Lord". Notice what the apostle Paul says in the following:
1 Thessalonians 5:2-3
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The "day of the Lord" will come upon the
unsuspecting world without warning and suddenly. It will also come at a
time when world conditions
appear as peaceful. It is no doubt
that prior to this time many will be working toward this end.
This time of pseudo peace will be mark by a significant change in one particular world event and that's a signing of a middle east peace treaty with the nation Israel at it's core. Judging from the scriptures, this false peace will have 2 primary influences:
The religious and political institutions along with its leaders will be declaring "peace and safety". The peace will be temporary and an instrument of deception (Dan 9:27 cf. Rev 6:1-2) by the world ruler (Anti Christ) at that time and will ultimately lead to destruction (, i.e. ruin as opposed to annihilation) as brought on by God's wrath and Satan's anger during the Great Tribulation. In summation it will be a false peace, because it will be based upon man rather than upon the person of Jesus Christ. |
Global Ecumenism, the One World Church and its relationship to the
Governments
It is clear from
the activities of the world religions, that their goal is to unite
as one under the headship of the
great harlot who sits on many waters
as found in Rev 17. This false religious institution will be
supported by the world governments
Rev 17:1-2
1 Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and spoke with me, saying, “Come here, I will show you the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters,
2 with whom the kings of the earth committed acts of immorality, and those who dwell on the earth were made drunk with the wine of her immorality.”
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17:1-2. One of the seven angels who had one of the seven bowls invited John to witness the punishment of the great prostitute, who sits on many waters. This evil woman symbolizes the religious system of Babylon, and the waters symbolize “peoples, multitudes, nations, and languages”. This religious system spans ethnicity, multitudes, nations, languages and religious systems, including apostate Christianity. The angel informed John that the kings of the earth had committed adultery with the woman; in other words, the political system and its rulers will become a part of the religious system which she symbolized. Religion and government have now merge into a Satanic/ demonic duo. This is now what we are seeing materialize right before our eyes. When one looks at those who are in preparation of a one world religion, it consists of the cooperation of both government and religion. |
Rev 17:3-4
3 And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness; and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast, full of blasphemous names, having seven heads and ten horns.
4 The woman was clothed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, having in her hand a gold cup full of abominations and of the unclean things of her immorality,
5 and on her forehead a name was written, a mystery, “BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.”
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She was sitting on a scarlet beast that was covered with blasphemous names. The beast had 7 heads and 10 horns. The beast is an obvious reference to the world government (13:1). The 10 horns are later defined (17:12) as 10 kings who had “not yet received a kingdom.” The 7 heads seem to refer to prominent rulers of the yet-future Roman Empire. The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones, and pearls. Her adornment is similar to that of religious trappings of ritualistic churches today. While purple, scarlet, gold, precious stones, and pearls can all represent beauty and glory in relation to the true faith, here they reveal a false religion that prostitutes the truth. In her hand the woman held a golden cup filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries the. This confirms previous indications that her character and life are symbolic of false religion, confirmed by the words written on her forehead: mystery babylon the great the mother of prostitutes and of the abominations of the earth. [11] |
Establishing our place in Prophetic History from a
Spiritual Deception View
The Raise of false teachers within the Church
2 Tim.
4:3-4
"For the time will come when they will not
endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will
accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires; and will
turn away their ears from the truth, and will turn aside to myths,".
[1]
2 Pet 2:1
But false prophets also arose among the
people, just as there will also be false teachers among you,
who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even
denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift
destruction upon themselves.
[1]
2 Corinthians
11:13
13 For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ.
14 No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.
15 Therefore it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their deeds.
It may seem like a small thing to disregard a scripture here and there but the disregard never stops where it starts, it degrades into greater depths of biblical rejection and substitution. For some there will be a rationalization for their disregard. They may say the Old Testament is too difficult or it’s not relevant for today’s times. Therefore there is no need to study it or the bible itself as a whole is outdated and modern science has proven it wrong. For others they believe socialization is more important than Bible study or the Bible is not culturally correct therefore parts of it are not to be followed. Some have even brought or allowed teachings from world religions into the church. They claim to represent God but in reality they do not know him.
Following is
a partial list of related articles with examples of apostate teachings currently
within the church. Unfortunately, apostasy as grown to such a large extend that
its not possible to provide a comprehensive list of every teaching and practice
that's come into the church. Therefore the following is a list of those things
that I believe have the most far reaching effects.
What is your Attitude Concerning the Day of The Lord, are you alert; are you sober; are you watching?
Examples of Apostasy in the Christian church
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The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission."
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