Prophecy and Current Events -4

Major events that will yet occur:

1. Israel Will Be In The Land... Ezekiel 38:8

A long time from now you will be called into action. In the distant future you will swoop down on the land of Israel, which will be lying in peace after her recovery from war and after the return of her people from many lands.

In 1948, when Israel was once again a nation for the first time in nearly 2000 years, students of prophecy recognized the fulfillment of the primary sign that the end of the age was upon us.

Israel has fought six major wars in the last 57 years, each of them an attempt to erase the Jewish Homeland from the face of the Earth. And it's clear that this effort will continue, with the biggest battle of all looming on the horizon, foretold by Ezekiel in chapters 38-39.

2. Jerusalem Will Be In Jewish Hands... Luke 21:24

They will be brutally killed by the sword or sent away as captives to all the nations of the world. And Jerusalem will be conquered and trampled down by the Gentiles until the age of the Gentiles comes to an end.

The Lord prophesied that the reunification of Jerusalem as a Jewish City would be a sign that foreign (gentile) influence over His land, and indeed the world, was about to end. When this happened in 1967, prophecy experts saw it as another major sign fulfilled. The almost world wide effort to take the city apart again is in essence a battle of wills; the Will of God vs. the will of man.

The fulfillment of these two prophecies concerning Israel has caused confusion in the minds of some commentators. It centers around an interpretation of Matthew 24:34, that all end times prophecies are to be fulfilled within a generation, nominally 40 years, of Israel's re-gathering in 1948. That made 1988 seem like the likely time for the End. But when 1988 came and went scholars focused on the Jerusalem date, 1967, and began adding 40 years to that, advancing their predictions to 2007. The rationale for this is that the timing of the First Coming prophecies in Daniel 9:24-27 keyed off the rebuilt city, not off the return to the Land.

But the Lord didn't promise that all end times prophecies would be fulfilled within a generation of their beginning, only that the generation being born at the time of the first of the signs would still be alive to see their completion. According to Psalm 90:10, a Biblical life span is 70 years, so predicting the approximate time of the End possibly requires the addition of 70 years to either 1948 or 1967 rather than 40 resulting in 2018 to 2037 for the fulfillment of all End Time Prophecies. And remember, the culmination of End Times prophecies is the Second Coming, not the Rapture of the Church, which precedes it by at least 7 years.

As the time draws nearer, the exact date of the Second Coming will become more and more obvious. Those people around when a treaty is enforced permitting the Jews to build their Temple in Israel will know that it's seven years away. Those who witness the anti Christ standing in that Temple proclaiming himself to be God will know there are only 1260 days (3.5 years) left.

Israeli Jewish Population Draws Level with US - International Christian Embassy - January 17, 2006 - This year will mark the first time in history that there will be as many Jews living in Israel as in the United States, according to statistics presented at a Jewish Policy Planning Institute conference this week, with the greater Tel Aviv area replacing New York as the city with the most Jews.

There are about 13-14 million Jews in the world. The vast majority of these Jews live in either the United States and Israel, each with approximately 5-6 million Jews. Recent trends of immigration from the U.S. will soon shift the majority to Israel. God said He would bring the Jewish people home to Israel from the West (Isaiah 43:5). He is doing exactly what He promised.

The Sanhedrin has been reestablished: A unique ceremony - probably only the 2nd of its kind in the past 1,600 years - took place October 13, 2004. A group of rabbis claiming to represent varied communities in Israel undertook a ceremony in Tiberias, where the original Sanhedrin was disbanded, which they claim re-establishes the body. Three of these seven are leaders of the Temple Mount Movement, which believe that Jews have an obligation to work towards rebuilding the Temple. Some of them also believe that if the Temple can be rebuilt, it will usher in a Messianic Era of eternal peace. The reestablished Sanhedrin has confirmed some of the policy of the Temple Mount Movement by announcing its intention to form a committee to research the steps necessary to prepare for the rebuilding of the Temple at some time in the future. Some Christians, like evangelist Hal Lindsey, see the reinstated Sanhedrin as good news, believing that the Sanhedrin would be responsible for the rebuilding of the Temple, which would eventually be desecrated by the false Messiah during the end times and inhabited by the true Messiah during the period of the Millenial Reign.

3. A Moslem Coalition Armed And Led By Russia Will Attack The Holy Land... Ezekiel 38:2-6

"Son of man, prophesy against Gog of the land of Magog, the prince who rules over the nations of Meshech and Tubal. Give him this message from the Sovereign LORD: Gog, I am your enemy! I will turn you around and put hooks into your jaws to lead you out to your destruction. I will mobilize your troops and cavalry and make you a vast and mighty horde, all fully armed. Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya will join you, too, with all their weapons. Gomer and all its hordes will also join you, along with the armies of Beth-togarmah from the distant north and many others.

Over 130 historical references make it plain that Magog stands for modern Russia, and that the other countries named here form a coalition based on their common religion, Islam. Among them are Iran, several North African countries, Eastern European countries along the Danube, and the Turkic nations of Asia Minor. A quick look at a world map will reveal that these areas are home to the most violent of Islamic terrorist groups.

It appears that the Russians will be a major supplier of arms for the Moslem coalition, and will be drawn into joining in this battle against their better judgment. Iran and Russia are well into implementation of a $50 billion deal to provide Iran with nuclear power. The 10 reactors called for in the deal are supposedly for electrical power generation. But most western leaders suspect they'll be used to build bombs, too. Israel has vowed to prevent that from happening.

Russia has formed commercial and military alliances with Turkey and Syria, becoming Turkey's 2nd largest trading partner after Germany. They've also agreed to sell Damascus a state of the art anti-air defense system along with their latest generation missiles. Iran has taken delivery of a Russian air defense system too, to protect its Bushier reactor site.

Hamas leaders to be invited to Russia - Jerusalem Post - February 9, 2006 - Russian President Vladimir Putin, in a joint press conference with Spain's Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero on Thursday, stressed that Russia does not consider the Palestinian group Hamas a terrorist organization, and urged the global community to work with a Hamas-led Palestinian government. Ezekiel 38 & 39 make it clear that Russia is a hostile nation to Israel in the last days. This latest development makes this prophecy even more interesting now that Hamas has taken up residence inside Israel winning seats in the Palestinian Authority. Russia is now a political ally to a sworn enemy to Israel not outside, but inside Israel.

Russia Says It Will Be More Active in Middle East Affairs - Israel National News - Feb 02, '06 - Russia will take on a greater role in the Middle East, said Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Thursday. Lavrov said his country will build closer ties with Islamic countries, which he said would help resolve major international problems. This is definitely in keeping with what God says. Ezekiel 38:1-6 makes a list of allied countries that include Russia, many of which are Middle-Eastern. Russia being allied with these anti-Israel countries makes it more understandable why she would come against Israel in the last days and lead the charge as is called for in Ezekiel 38 & 39.

Feb. 28 - 2006 - Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz says the agreement between Russia and Iran for uranium enrichment is just a cover for Iran's intention to finish development of nuclear weapons. He claims that Israel is preparing for possible conflict. "As for the possibility of an Israeli attack (on Iran), I think it is not at all right to address this question publicly, but it can be said that Israel has the right and the obligation to do all that is necessary to defend itself," Mofaz told students at a Tel Aviv-area high school.

Iran seems to be preparing its people for war with Israel, saying the most outrageous things in recent months in an effort to whip their people into a frenzy not seen since the days of the US embassy kidnapping of the 70's. This inflammatory ranting has reportedly convinced the US that Iran would not back down from a nuclear confrontation.

Iranian Leader: Israel Will Be Destroyed - Associated Press - Oct. 25, 2005 - Iran's hard-line president called for Israel to be "wiped off the map" and said a new wave of Palestinian attacks will destroy the Jewish state, state-run media reported Wednesday. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad also denounced attempts to recognize Israel or normalize relations with it. Iran removes seals from nuke facilities - Jerusalem Post - Jan. 10, 2006 - Iran risks losing influential friends and giving foes long-sought leverage to haul it before the UN Security Council. But it seems ready to defy the world in its drive to master technology that could be used to make nuclear weapons. Iran's continuing to press for nuclear ability and calling for Israel to be wiped off the map is very sobering! We move closer to the fulfillment of the Ezekiel 38 & 39 battle! Will Iran back down for now? Will Israel be moved to act militarily?

The major obstacle to an early fulfillment of this prophecy is the reference to its occurrence at a time when Israel is "peaceful and unsuspecting" (Ezekiel 38:11). But the winds of political change are blowing in Israel, and Prime Minister Olmert's Kadima party has pledged to bring peace to Israel even at the cost of giving up parts of Jerusalem.

Having recently taken His church to Heaven, the Lord will now use this battle to orchestrate His reconciliation with Israel, and on its heels the anti Christ will emerge with a peace plan that includes a Jewish Temple. So once this battle takes place, end times prophecy will go on fast forward.

4. The Ancient Roman Empire Will Re-Emerge As A Political Force... Revelation 17:9-10

And now understand this: The seven heads of the beast represent the seven hills of the city where this woman rules. They also represent seven kings. Five kings have already fallen, the sixth now reigns, and the seventh is yet to come, but his reign will be brief.

When John was writing this, about 95 AD, there had been five great world powers; Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Persia, and Greece. All were conquered and absorbed. The current power was Rome, which was never really conquered and will re-emerge at the end of the age, according to Daniel 9:26.

Daniel 2:36-45 describes Gentile Dominion from Daniel's time forward (Egypt and Assyria had already fallen) in the form of a giant statue. Read it carefully and you'll find some interesting things in the description of the feet of iron mixed with clay, representing the revived Roman Empire of our time. In the first place the two don't mix. We can imagine sticky clay serving as glue sticking pieces of iron together, but the language describes a clay that's made of dust and already baked... hard and brittle like shards of pottery. You can't make random pieces of iron and pottery adhere. They'll keep falling apart.

Merkel Will Strive for Revival of EU Constitution (Update1)

May 11, 2006 (Bloomberg) -- Chancellor Angela Merkel pledged to strive for revival of the European Union constitution, ensuring the treaty is dragged back on to the political agenda across Europe following its defeat last year in two referendums. Merkel said the government will push for renewed discussion of the constitution during the German presidency of the European Union in the first half of 2007, if discussion hasn't started sooner. ``I absolutely want this constitutional treaty,'' said Merkel in a speech to the lower house of parliament in Berlin today. ``We need a constitution to have a Europe that has the power to act.''

The European Commission, the EU's executive body, last year proposed a ``period of reflection'' after the people of France and the Netherlands voted against the introduction of the EU constitution in separate referendums. Still, the process of ratification continues, with Estonia on May 9 becoming the 15th country to complete the parliamentary stage of ratification and Finland expected to follow suit later this year.

The European Union also has to define its borders, Merkel said. It has to allow those countries already in accession discussions to join, though tell new countries striving for membership that they can't enter. Instead the EU should think about a new form of working closely with neighboring countries, she said.

One day soon the EU will assume its destiny as a leading world power for the End of the Age.

5. The World Will Embrace A Single Religion... Revelation 13:8

And all the people who belong to this world worshiped the beast. They are the ones whose names were not written in the Book of Life, which belongs to the Lamb who was killed before the world was made.

The one world religion idea has been around for most of our generation, often under the guise of ecumenism. As the liberal denominations continue watering down their theology, there are fewer things keeping them apart. The flirtation between certain Evangelical groups and the Catholic Church is interesting, as is the dialog between the Pope and Leaders of Islam. The Catholic Church is one of the richest organizations on the planet with over 1 billion members on 6 continents, and clearly thinks of itself as the world's dominant religious group. It's no secret that the church is posturing itself to be a major player in End times events.

But make no mistake about it. The rise of radical Islam is the chief threat to world peace today and their goal is nothing less than world domination. Their god is not the God of the Bible, and their fight with Jews and Christians actually began in the 7th Century AD when the Jews rejected Mohammed's offer of consolidation. Prior to that time he had counseled his followers to respect and befriend the Jewish people, but when they refused to join his religion, he declared jihad (holy war) against them. Christians were included 400 years later as a result of the Crusades.

Currently nearly one out of five inhabitants of the world is Moslem. It will soon be the world's most popular religion, and after the removal of Evangelical Christians in the Rapture could easily be the foundation on which the one world religion is built.

In 2 Thessalonians. 2:7 Paul wrote that the secret power of lawlessness was already at work in the world but that the One who holds it back would continue to do so until He is taken out of the way (out of the midst). Paul wasn't referring to man's disregard for the law here, but rather to his refusal to accept the truth. In New Testament Greek, the word for unbelief is also translated disobedience. God's view is that there's just too much clear evidence of His existence for anyone not to believe in Him. Therefore, so-called unbelievers are really disobeying by refusing to believe.

In 1 Timothy 4:1, Paul warned us of the doctrines of demons and in 2 Timothy 4:3-4, of the growing popularity of mythology as being part and parcel of this end times religion. This is the lawlessness Paul was writing about. Having rejected the truth, those left after the Rapture will be ripe for the Great Lie of 2 Thessalonians 2:9 to fill the need every man has to believe in something greater than himself. All it will take is for a charismatic religious leader to emerge, a leader powerful enough to bring all those who are left behind into one counterfeit religion.

6. The World Will Accept A Single Government... Revelation 13:3

I saw that one of the heads of the beast seemed wounded beyond recovery--but the fatal wound was healed! All the world marveled at this miracle and followed the beast in awe.

Along with a decline in US strength, a one world government will also need such a leader to crystallize things.

The emergence of Evangelical Christianity as a political power in the last presidential election presents a major impediment to America's acceptance of a single world government. America's heritage as an independent Christian nation is simply too deeply ingrained in our national psyche.

The Rapture of the Church has to precede the demise of America. Only the elimination of Evangelicals from the electorate will permit the rest of the country to sink into the cesspool of amoral liberal politics, and create the conditions necessary for America to subordinate its sovereignty to any international body.

Other Signs

And wars will break out near and far, but don't panic. Yes, these things must come, but the end won't follow immediately. The nations and kingdoms will proclaim war against each other, and there will be famines and earthquakes in many parts of the world. But all this will be only the beginning of the horrors to come. "Then you will be arrested, persecuted, and killed. You will be hated all over the world because of your allegiance to me. And many will turn away from me and betray and hate each other. And many false prophets will appear and will lead many people astray. Sin will be rampant everywhere, and the love of many will grow cold. But those who endure to the end will be saved. And the Good News about the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, so that all nations will hear it; and then, finally, the end will come. (Matthew 24:6-14)

The World Health Organization estimates that one-third of the world is well-fed, one-third is under-fed and one-third is starving!

Then he added, "Nations and kingdoms will proclaim war against each other. There will be great earthquakes, and there will be famines and epidemics in many lands, and there will be terrifying things and great miraculous signs in the heavens. (Luke 21:10-11)

"And there will be strange events in the skies--signs in the sun, moon, and stars. And down here on earth the nations will be in turmoil, perplexed by the roaring seas and strange tides. The courage of many people will falter because of the fearful fate they see coming upon the earth, because the stability of the very heavens will be broken up. Then everyone will see the Son of Man arrive on the clouds with power and great glory. So when all these things begin to happen, stand straight and look up, for your salvation is near!" (Luke 21:25-28)

WARS AND RUMORS OF WARS ... Depending upon whose intelligence reports you read somewhere between 30 and 50 wars are currently being fought around the world, with a substantial number of additional disputes threatening to erupt into war at any time.

The Red Cross has estimated that over 100 million people have been killed in wars since the 20th Century began. Up until 1914, war had never been universal, but in both World War 1 & 2, total war was waged.

Since World War II, there have been numerous major wars & hundreds of rebellions & revolutions. The death toll in conflicts since the end of World War II has now topped 23 million.

THE INCREASE OF NATURAL DISASTERS ... More frequent and more severe hurricanes, more frequent and more intense earthquakes. 2005 will go into the record books as the most costly ever due to storm caused damage. There were so many hurricanes that year that the national weather service ran out of names and had to resort to its back-up plan of using letters in the Greek alphabet.

SIGNS IN THE SUN, MOON, AND STARS ...

PESTILENCE... HIV and SARS and Bird Flu.

The HIV virus, which causes AIDS, has currently infected at least 13 to 14 million people around the globe. In 1993 AIDS became the leading cause of death of U.S. males between the ages of 20 and 45.

Harvard University scientists estimate that by the year 2000 over 24 million people worldwide will have full-blown AIDS, and an additional 100 million people will be infected with the HIV virus.

THE LOVE OF MOST WILL GROW COLD ... Run away crime, children being abused and murdered by their parents, children killing children. Ethnic cleansing, rape and forced pregnancy, pedophilia, random shootings.

THIS GOSPEL WILL BE PREACHED IN ALL NATIONS As many as 175,000 new believers are born again every day, mostly in Africa, China, and India.

As you know most of the signs in the Olivet Discourse are progressive and all are described as happening well before the end. Their main interest to us is found in the phrase "beginning of birth pangs." Natural disasters, the tendency toward war as a tool of diplomacy, famine amidst plenty (35,000 children die each day of starvation and related diseases) and pestilence are described as being common to the era but increasing in frequency and intensity as the end approaches.

Because we can't know the future, the Bible instructs us to learn from the past. If the events of the 2nd Coming are a mirror image of the First, the Church must disappear, and then the Battle of Ezekiel, the 70th week, the new Temple, the Great Tribulation, and the 2nd Coming all happen within the lifetimes of the generation born between the rebirth of Israel in 1948 and the recovery of Jerusalem in 1967.