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Can We Know When Jesus Will Return? - Britt Gillette - https://brittgillette.substack.com
The Answer Might Surprise You… Can we know when Jesus will return? No. When it comes to the exact timing of His return, we can’t know. Jesus Himself said “no man knows the day or the hour of my return, not even myself. Only my Father in heaven knows” (Mark 13:32). Jesus reiterated this concept when He said He would come like a thief in the night “when least expected” (Matthew 24:43-44). This idea, coupled with the statement “no one can know the day or the hour” of His return, has led many Christians to believe they can’t know anything about the timing of His return. After all, if Jesus comes like a thief in the night when least expected, how could you know when He’s coming? That’s a good question. And while it’s true we can’t know the day or the hour, the idea no one has a clue as to whether it’s tomorrow or a 1,000 years from now is just plain wrong. The Bible is clear we can know the general “season” or timeframe of His return. Like a Thief in the Night Many people who believe we can’t know anything about the timing of Christ’s return base their belief on the idea Jesus “will come like a thief in the night.” Jesus did say He would come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night: “Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when a burglar was coming, he would keep watch and not permit his house to be broken into. You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.” Matthew 24:43-44 (NLT) And Paul said the same thing: “For you know quite well that the day of the Lord’s return will come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night.” 1 Thessalonians 5:2 (NLT) But if you read the rest of Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians, you’ll see he said something else as well. Paul said those of us who live in the light will not be surprised. While Jesus will come like a thief in the night when least expected, those who know God’s Word will not be surprised. Here’s the full context of that passage (emphasis mine): “But you aren’t in the dark about these things, dear brothers and sisters, and you won’t be surprised when the day of the Lord comes like a thief. For you are all children of the light and of the day; we don’t belong to darkness and night. So be on your guard, not asleep like the others. Stay alert and be clearheaded. Night is the time when people sleep and drinkers get drunk. But let us who live in the light be clearheaded, protected by the armor of faith and love, and wearing as our helmet the confidence of our salvation.” 1 Thessalonians 5:4-8 (NLT) How can this be? If Jesus comes unexpectedly like a thief in the night, how is it Christians are not surprised? It’s because we know to expect Jesus at any moment, and we obey His command to be alert and ready at all times. We also know the Second Coming of Jesus Christ to establish His Millennial Kingdom comes with many signs. Why Would God Mention Signs? If we can’t know anything about the timing of the Second Coming, then why did Jesus tell us to look for signs? When His disciples asked Him to describe the signs of His return, He told them. He didn’t rebuke them. He didn’t tell them to forget about such things. Instead, He described the signs. Why would Jesus say to look for signs if they don’t exist? Why would He mention them if we can’t know when He’s coming? The answer is clear. We can know the general time frame of His return. We can’t know the day or the hour, but we can know the season. Numerous signs precede the Second Coming. Jesus and the prophets told us what those signs are. And Jesus said when you see them, you’ll know He’s near – right at the door: “In the same way, when you see all these things, you can know his return is very near, right at the door.” Matthew 24:33 (NLT) We see those signs today. So we can know with certainty Jesus is coming soon. A Command to Watch Jesus also commanded us to “Watch!” (Matthew 25:13). This begs the question. Watch for what? Over and over again, Jesus says, “Watch! Don’t let me find you asleep when I come back without warning” (Mark 13:35-37). This is a clear command. But what does it mean? Jesus is telling us to be spiritually alert. If we live a life of faithful service to Him, the day of His return won’t catch us like a trap. Jesus says a faithful servant lives life expecting His return at any moment (Luke 12:35-38). But Jesus is also telling us to watch for signs of the Second Coming. After all, if there are no signs, what are we supposed to “watching” for? Again, it’s clear. Signs will precede the Second Coming. And Jesus expects us to recognize those signs. If He didn’t, why would He command us to watch? He wouldn’t, because we would have nothing to look for. We’re supposed to be watching for the signs. And Jesus says those who are ready and waiting when He returns will be rewarded: “The servants who are ready and waiting for his return will be rewarded. I tell you the truth, he himself will seat them, put on an apron, and serve them as they sit and eat!” Luke 12:37 (NLT) Recognizing the Signs In reference to His first coming, Jesus told the Pharisees: “You can recognize the signs in the sky and know what type of weather is coming, yet you don’t know how to recognize the signs of the times” Matthew 16:3 (NLT) The prophets had written extensively about the coming of the Messiah. The Pharisees knew when the Messiah was supposed to come. They knew the Messiah would perform many miracles. Jesus fulfilled these prophecies right before their eyes. Yet the Pharisees still didn’t recognize who He was. Just as He did with the Pharisees, Jesus expects us to recognize the signs of His Second Coming. He told us what signs to look for. And the same prophets who wrote about His First Coming also wrote about His Second Coming. Like the Pharisees, we’re expected to recognize “the signs of the times.” Those signs tell us the Second Coming is drawing near. The Rapture vs. The Second Coming Now, when I talk about the signs of the Second Coming, I’m talking about the return of Jesus Christ at the end of the seven-year Tribulation. This is different from the rapture of the church. The rapture is a sign-less event. Nothing needs to precede it. It can occur at any moment. That said, if we see signs of the coming seven-year Tribulation and the Second Coming appearing all around us, that means the rapture of the church is even closer. The Bible says the rapture occurs before the Tribulation (Revelation 3:10). Therefore, all these signs we see tell us Jesus is close – right at the door. The Signs Are Everywhere – Make Sure You Share Them! While we can’t know the day or the hour of His return, we can know the general season. The Bible tells us what signs to look for. And Jesus Himself said when you see all these signs come together, you know His return is near (Luke 21:28). Today, we see those signs. Israel is once again a nation (Isaiah 11:11-12). The Jewish people are back in Jerusalem (Luke 21:24). And the Gospel is being spread to the ends of the earth (Matthew 24:14). These and other signs are out in the open for everyone to see. You can’t miss them. For 1,800+ years of Christianity, these signs didn’t exist. Today, they do. God said He will hold us accountable for letting others know about the signs (Ezekiel 33:1-6). We’re expected to point out these signs to others. We’re expected to tell others Jesus is returning soon. If the world ignores us, so be it. But if anyone tells you we can’t know the timing of His return, tell them what the Bible says. The truth is we can know the general season of His return. And given all the signs we see today, we can be certain we’re living in it. The time is near. Jesus is coming soon! A Beastly Triumphal Entry? - By Stephen Meehan - https://www.raptureready.com/2024/09/07/a-beastly-triumphal-entry-by-stephen-meehan/ “And when He was come nigh, even now at the descent of the mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen; Saying, Blessed be the King that comes in the name of the Lord: peace in Heaven, and glory in the highest” (Luke 19:37-38). Most Christians are aware of the Biblical account of Jesus riding on the foal of a donkey into the city of Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, almost 2,000 years ago. He was presenting Himself to the Jewish citizenry as the Lamb of God, to be inspected by them for the soon-coming Passover celebration. They should have seen that He was without blemish – sinless – and that as the Son of God, the second Person of the Holy Trinity, was the only One qualified to be God’s perfect sacrifice for the atonement of man’s sins. Sadly, most missed the significance of Jesus presenting Himself to them and that He was God’s Messiah prophesied long ago to come to them. Will this event be mimicked in the near future by another coming in his own name? I want to relate to you an event that I witnessed about 5 years ago while I was visiting the state of Israel after flying a trip into the Ben Gurion airport in Israel. Hopefully, you will find the story interesting and thought-provoking at the end of this account. It certainly caught my attention after witnessing such a spectacle in the city of Jerusalem, a scenario that I had not considered before. Up until a few years ago, I was a commercial cargo pilot flying worldwide to various destinations globally, in both the civilian and the military spheres of aviation. It was extremely interesting flying, and I saw a lot of the world. The unique aspect of the type of flying that I was involved in was that we never knew at the beginning of our rotations exactly where we would wind up traveling to during our 18 days on (with 12 days off after our series of flights had concluded). The schedule always changed, as trips were either dropped or new ones added on. It made for a lot of last-minute schedule hiccups, but at the same time, it allowed for some very interesting flying that a regular airline pilot would not be exposed to. I enjoyed that work immensely. One such series of flights led me to the Middle East to drop off military freight at a remote Jordanian airport along the Dead Sea and then to make the short flight over to Tel Aviv, where from there, I was supposed to travel home via a commercial airline to begin my 12 days off for the month. No way was I going home this time after ending in Israel! If the Lord dropped into my lap a second opportunity to tour the Holy Land for a week or so, I was taking advantage of it! It is not every day that someone gets a free ride into the Jewish State; has the first night in a hotel in Tel Aviv paid for by the company; can use Reward Nights to cover the cost of the next 6 nights of hotels in Israel – including the free breakfasts and evening snacks at the hotels – and then only has to pay for a rental car and gasoline. I was totally on board with staying there! Thank you, Lord, for this special surprise! I was like a kid going back to Disney World! I loved touring Israel the first time! All the biblical accounts of the land, the places where Jesus walked and taught, the history of the place, the Bible characters who lived there, the foretold events that will occur there, the whole experience! Where else in the world can a person get such a sensory overload? My wife and I had visited the Holy Land in 1988, while I was a contract pilot with Lufthansa Airlines. How is that for a bit of irony? A German airline – with their history with the Jews 40 or so years earlier – was the means for me to get to the Holy Land to enjoy the sights, sounds, and interactions with the Chosen People in their re-birthed ancient land. 1988 was the 40-year anniversary of the State of Israel getting re-born in a single day. During that first visit to Israel, we did all our touring via arranged bus tour groups. This time around, I wanted to venture out on my own – going to places that the tour groups would not venture to. At least not in the whirlwind fashion that I would be exploring the country. The only kicker was that I could not get 6 straight nights in a hotel in Jerusalem like I would have hoped for. I had to spend the first two nights in Haifa, then only two nights in Jerusalem, then back to Haifa for the final two nights. Using Reward points, there are some limitations on room availability. And since I had no prior knowledge of me even stepping foot back into the Land as quickly as it happened, I could not make advanced reservations. But it was still awesome being there, and the slight inconvenience was not a problem. I just planned my touring around the country on where I started out from – either the Haifa area or from Jerusalem. From Haifa, I went as far north as I could possibly drive, right up along the border with Lebanon. I was feeling quite adventurous and wanted to see everything. I saw IDF patrol boats right up along the northern border, keeping a watch on the activities of any undesirables within the Hezbollah region, that, like always, were planning for some future actions against the Jews. From there, I hugged the border as close as possible to get up close to Syria, then made my way into the Golan Heights. Extremely interesting relics are out among the Golan Heights area: damaged tanks – from Israel and Syria – where they stopped operating back in the 1973 Yom Kippur War and other war materials purposely left where they saw action. What a scene! Plaques, statues, all kinds of memorabilia set up to commemorate the soldiers and equipment that fought along that strip during that war. Very interesting to see all of it strewn about the entire Golan Heights and how the existence of the Jewish State was threatened back then – not unlike how they are continually threatened every single day now by the Iranian proxies, as well as Iran, who want to vanquish the Chosen People. Some things never change, and never will, until the return of the Prince of Peace. What a time that will be when Israel will be the preeminent nation! I toured all over the Sea of Galilee, Capernaum, Nazareth, the Mount of Transfiguration, Megiddo, then eventually ventured down to the Gaza region, close to the Rafah gate leading into Egypt. I wanted to see it all! Get as close as I could to where the action was, and now is. Good thing that I was not there on Oct. 7th of last year! I am not that adventurous…or crazy. I also drove down along the Dead Sea area. I passed a road sign that read “Lot’s Wife but kept driving, as I figured that it was just some touristy thing. Perhaps I should have stopped and taken a look. It probably was some weathered pillar of salt, but the real thing!?? Highly unlikely, but it could have been interesting to see it nonetheless. The hike in the area and the view of the Dead Sea from there could have been worth it. Sodom and Gomorrah disappeared from view nearby. I drove by the Dimona area, hoping to see something of their nuclear sites. Nothing was visible, but I still had to take a look. In the 7 days, I covered a lot of land. But in the hopes of not making this too lengthy, I’ll skip to the Jerusalem visit. What more needs to be said about the ancient City of Jerusalem? That is the central point of all Israel. That is the central focus of most of Scripture. Bible prophecy squarely points to Jerusalem and many yet unfulfilled events that will happen there in the near future. A Christian who has studied prophecy and the history of the Jews and the accounts of Jesus wants to be there, walking upon that unique place on Earth. It is a supreme thrill to walk along its streets, alleys, passageways, and to experience life there from that vantage point. Nothing and nowhere compares to the level of excitement of just being in the midst of that place, soaking in the ambiance of that ancient city. It is very cool to try to absorb it all in. Unparalleled excitement. Palm Sunday and Passover were approaching. The evening meals that I was enjoying mentioned in the hotels where I stayed were offering less and less food as Passover neared. Kosher dietary restrictions associated with the Feast required less and less leavened items to be included with the food service. I could still grab a bite to eat out on the streets. So, again, not a problem. I love how the Lord coincided this unforeseen trip to Israel with the coming event of Palm Sunday. Maybe he knew that sometime in the future, the Palm Sunday celebration and what transpired would be an article topic of a neophyte part-time writer. What I observed was an eye-opener for me, and maybe there is something to the conclusions that I drew as a result of it. Having spent two days in the Jewish capital and visiting all the sights – Yad Vashem, the Holocaust museum; the Garden Tomb; Golgotha (and yes, it does look like a skull!); the Old City; the Mount of Olives; the Temple Mount; and all of the other highlights of Jerusalem, it was certainly a blessing to be there on Palm Sunday, when throngs of people were retracing the steps of Jesus coming down from the Mount of Olives and into the Old City. There were thousands of folks from all over the world taking part in this long procession. They were smiling, singing, waving palm branches, enjoying the beautiful sunshine – all in honor of Our Lord. I wanted to jump in and join them, but I stayed on the sidelines, capturing it all on video on my iPhone. It actually did not dawn on me to jump in line till after, but I’m glad that I didn’t. Had I done that, I would not have seen what was coming at the end. So, in all, I think that the procession lasted close to an hour and a half. There were that many people being a part of it. Again, a very cool thing to watch and enjoy. But then, at the very end of the line of people, came a smiling and waving Roman Catholic bishop or prelate – or whatever his role was in the Catholic Church to the City of Jerusalem – acting like we were all there to see him. He was like a Santa Claus at the end of a Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade, waving at all the people like we couldn’t wait for his presence. I was starting to grind my teeth. All these beautiful people are there to celebrate what our Lord and Savior had done there two millennia ago, and this guy is acting like we were there celebrating his arrival. Man, was I fuming. Even a guy directly in front of him in the procession kept turning back to him, showing his displeasure, and confronted this “priest.” Two or three times, he turned to rush him and yell at him. I kept thinking, “I’m right there with you, buddy. I’m not happy with his actions either.” Why ruin an otherwise awesome display of love toward the Redeemer? Who does this guy think that he is? Does this occur at every Palm Sunday celebration there, and I’m just not aware of it? It was completely upsetting to watch this guy give a parade wave to all of us on the sidelines. Like he is trying to soak in some pretense of adoration that no one on the sidelines was directing toward him. It was buffoonish. I’m surprised that more of the procession participants didn’t voice their anger at him. In a joyous celebration of Jesus Christ, it was totally uncalled for. After I left Israel, I got to thinking about that occurrence. And especially how a scene such as that could be an indicator of what might eventually take place in Jerusalem in the near future. We know from Bible Prophecy that the Antichrist will enter the Holy of Holies in the rebuilt Temple midway through the Tribulation Period to declare himself to be God. Lucifer and his fallen horde of angels have been permanently kicked out of Heaven; they go on a devilish rampage against the inhabitants of Earth, and Lucifer enters into his antichrist figure. We read that the False Prophet will force everyone to worship the image of the Beast. Could it be that the actual Antichrist will sit in the Holy of Holies to make his declaration, but the rest of the world will see his image via a worldwide satellite system, beamed to everyone’s TV screens? That would certainly qualify as his image, and the author of Revelation had no idea 2,000 years ago of television imagery or how to describe it. But how will the Antichrist or the Beast make his way to the Temple Mount? Will he be part of a Palm Sunday Triumphal procession into the Old City from the Mount of Olives? Will he try to mimic what Jesus Christ did 2,000 years ago? To present himself as their long-awaited Messiah? Just like that Roman Catholic priest did when I was there to witness such a farce? We know how Satan likes to deceive and discredit Jesus Christ at every opportunity. Why wouldn’t he use such an occasion to get his man of sin into the city and make his declaration of Godhood? It would fit his M.O. perfectly. Do what the real Christ did, but put his personal flavor onto that entrance. I think that it could certainly happen that way. Never gave it much thought before my Palm Sunday visit to Jerusalem. We know that the Roman Catholic Church has ambitions for the Holy Land. They had their series of Crusades to wrest control away from the Islamic hordes that held the city. They put up their Catholic shrines at various key locations throughout the city that traditionally marked spots where Jesus supposedly was birthed and died. They want control of the affairs of that place. Roman Catholicism does not recognize God’s covenant with Israel, in that all the land is for the Jewish people. They want it to be an “international city” but governed over by a Roman Pontiff, very much like their predecessors, the Roman Caesars. It begs the question then: will it be a Roman Pontiff who enters into the Holy of Holies? Will a pope eventually be at the tail end of a Palm Sunday march into the city? Will he be the one smiling and waving at ALL on the sidelines, throughout the world via TV, as he makes his way to declare himself God? The popes already call themselves “Holy Father,” a title reserved ONLY for God the Father in Heaven. They call themselves “Vicarious Christi,” meaning ‘in the place of Christ.’ Can a better name be applied to who or what the Antichrist will be? A person both opposed to and operating in the place of Christ? Those titles must mean a lot more than appears just on the surface. They have to have a more latent intent than just window dressing for their faithful. Otherwise, why defy God and name mere men titles reserved for God the Father and the Holy Spirit? The titles, the similarities, and the way the popes operate seem like more than a coincidence to how the Antichrist will perform when he is unleashed upon the world. A Roman Catholic priest at the end of a Palm Sunday parade seems also like more than just a random happenstance or nothing worthy of consideration. It may be nothing at all, but it could also portend what is to come. History will provide the answer. And that history could happen in the very near future. I’m just retelling what I saw and offering up a possible scenario. I also think that it could be an omen. Perhaps a Pope Damien is waiting in the wings. “And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven” (Matthew 23:9). “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sits in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God” (2Thessalonians 2:3-4). [email protected] PROPHECY UPDATE VIDEOS
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DONATE HERE Your can also mail your support to: Prophecy Update PO Box 40516 Bakersfield, CA 93384 Exposing The Lies: Socialism Is Not Only Destructive To Societies, It Is Entirely UnBiblical – Alex McFarland - https://harbingersdaily.com/socialism-is-not-only-destructive-to-societies-it-is-entirely-unbiblical/ Maybe it all began with the “participation trophies.” A couple of decades ago, youth sports leagues in many communities began to disallow “winning” or “losing,” and all players on both teams received a trophy simply for having played. Bestowing the so-called “participation trophy” became common throughout many childhood activities. The unintended consequence has been that we devalued achievement: Hard work, sacrifice and dedication to a cause –these time-honored virtues are not prized as they once were. And now, well into the 21st century, elected officials, educators and celebrity pundits say that all people deserve free healthcare, guaranteed income and free college tuition (resulting in degrees received without any pass or fail grading). I have even read a couple of online posts in which the writers opine (I am assuming with a straight face) that, “Access to WIFI is a human right.” These and other unrealistic ideas have been pumped into the minds of several generations of Americans. In many a locality, policies that amount to “forced utopianism” and pipe dream “equity” have resulted in 1) An exodus of individuals and businesses who are able to leave and seek saner pastures; 2) diminished standards of life and safety for those unfortunate enough to remain; and 3) unfounded “blame” that America is “structurally racist,” and in need of reinvention. Nothing is wrong with America that a thorough return to Constitutional principles won’t fix. We’ve become a lawless people, restlessly demanding things that we feel we’re “owed.” False promises and lies of socialism In the summer of 2024, I debated a very liberal pastor on FOX News, a clergyman who prided himself on operating a couple of non-profits that help underprivileged people. The man denigrates “greedy capitalism” and the “lack of compassion” inherent in a free-market system that promises no guarantees except opportunity. But I asked him how his charities were funded. “By compassionate donors,” he said. “People who actually care about the welfare of other human beings,” he went on. As if those of us against socialism necessarily don’t care about other human beings. Whether or not this minister’s charitable endeavors are worthwhile, I don’t know. But I pointed out that his “donors” have the money to subsidize his efforts, because they are not socialists. Here is the contradiction: Socialism needs the fruits of capitalism to fund their anti-capitalist, proposed solutions. Capitalism does not need socialism in order to work. Would the implementation of socialist policies and (ultimately) a Marxist government be compassionate to citizens? Consider two things that pro-socialist voices want: “Free” college tuition and “free healthcare.” The math behind such socialist goals does not compute. A Gospel Truth Conference attendee, in Phoenix AZ, once said, “This type of teaching is exactly what is needed in the church today; the videos and workbook are so helpful and instructive.” If our government taxed 100% of the earnings of the wealthiest Americans (about one trillion dollars, annually) even this would not wipe out all student loan debt (over 1.3 trillion dollars). What about Medicare? Every penny the wealthiest Americans will make over the next 12 months (again, roughly one trillion dollars) wouldn’t keep Medicare going even for three years. And still, nothing is left to fund “guaranteed basic income for all,” and other seemingly endless government programs socialists demand must be started. Socialism/communism? Not in the Bible Younger Christians today have been told that early Christians practiced socialism. This is false; the charity practiced by first-century believers was voluntary. It was based on the love of God, whereas socialist/Marxist regimes are inherently godless and generally suppress religious freedom. Further, regarding the largesse (groups of people who won’t work, which in socialist societies is well documented), God’s Word warns that “if any would not work, neither should he eat” (2 Thessalonians 3:10). For those who try and argue that Christianity is somehow compatible with socialism, hard economic facts, history, and the Bible say differently. The ideas of socialism have been planted into the consciousness of many Americans — even some Christians. Shocking numbers of young adults now indicate a favorable view of Marxist ideas. The dehumanizing, false promises of Marxist economics must not go unchallenged. It is imperative that such indoctrination be answered, and our publishing and broadcasting efforts critique socialism factually and effectively. In addition to the saving of souls, I believe that the church today must engage in the changing of minds and empower people to effectively respond to this destructive philosophy. Escape Artist! – John Bellam - https://www.rev310.net/post/escape-artist “Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.” -Luke 21:36 Harry Houdini lived from 1874 to 1926 and has been considered by many to be the greatest escape artist who ever lived. He was a famous magician known for being able to escape from any entrapment that could be rigged up to stop him. Handcuffs, straight jackets, submerged water tanks, and even underground coffins proved to be no match for the “Great Houdini” who found a way to escape them all as part of his famous act. But while the world marveled and cheered at Houdini’s exploits, there was one final adversary from which he was not able to escape. Death took Houdini in Detroit Michigan on Halloween night 1926 of Peritonitis. He was 52 years old. And thus once again proved that only one man has been able to truly defeat the grave and escape its clutches: Jesus Christ! But because of His victory over the grave, our Lord has paved the way for all of those who believe in Him to accomplish something unthinkable to the unbelieving world. A mass evacuation from the earth prior to the wrath that is coming on the whole unsuspecting world very soon. That escape is known as “The Rapture” and it is the greatest escape plan of all time! Those who like to deny that a “Rapture” event is coming love to refer to Christians who believe in it as “escapists”! This would include both the world of lost souls who deny Christ as well as the A-millennialists and post-millennialists and others who believe in Jesus but claim we must build the kingdom on earth first before the Second Coming. They are like those Peter warned us about in his second Epistle: 2 Peter 3:3-7 “knowing this first: that scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts, and saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.” For this they willfully forget: that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of water and in the water, by which the world that then existed perished, being flooded with water. But the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same word, are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.” The mindset of these “Pre-Mill Rapture” haters is that we are worthless to society (because we aren’t helping make the world a better place by conforming to their cultural advancements ) and worthless to the church's growth (because we are not advancing the kingdom fervently due to our supposed defeatist ideology). The antagonists sadly come from both outside and inside the Christian camp and often the so-called “friendly fire” from other Christians is even more venomous than from the non-believing world. Now it is understandable that those outside proper Christendom would believe we are out of our heads expecting a sudden escape from the planet in the twinkling of an eye! They don’t believe in our Lord and His promises so we should expect them to revile us and reject our hope. But… those within true Christendom who adhere to a different eschatology normally do so because they claim there is no biblical support for our theory. They claim there are no verses that support our position and that it is the creation of John Darby in the late 1800s. Now I’m not going to go into detail about all the common points we make about verses such as: 1 Corinthians 15:52 which says : “51 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed” Or John 11:23-26 Jesus saith unto her, Thy brother shall rise again. Martha saith unto him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day. Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this? (Jesus is speaking of the dead who will rise at the rapture and the living who will be translated to an eternal state without dying ) Or John 14:2-3 “In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” Or Rev 3:10 Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth. Or 1 Thess 5:9-11 For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him. Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do. And 1 Thess 4:13-18 “Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words.” And there are many more such passages in the New Testament that we can point to as proof of our imminent calling to be with the Lord at the rapture. Those have been discussed by many writers on this site and throughout the watcher community so I won’t hash over those same points here again although they are tremendous proof of our position. But what I will delve into here are the possibilities of hidden proofs in the Old Testament. Were there any typologies or foreshadowings we can lean on from the Old Testament to confirm that the mystery of the “Rapture” revealed in the New was also concealed in the Old? I believe the answer is yes and that the keyword Jesus used in Luke 21:36 to give us a clue was the word "Escape"! The rapture is truly an ESCAPE and it’s not something to be ashamed of as the world and the post-millennial church want to accuse us of but is in fact part of the “Blessed Hope" we are to cling to in this late hour. “Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;” Titus 2:12-13 In researching the notion of an “escape” I feel God was very generous in giving us OT examples of “Rapture” typologies. Escapes that, while not always prefiguring a “snatching up “ of the Church, at least symbolized an incredible escape provided by God that revealed God’s protection and provision of safety for His people. ENOCH’S DEPARTURE The first two are pretty obvious. Enoch and Elijah. Both men were taken to Heaven by God supernaturally without tasting death. Enoch was Noah’s grandfather and was “snatched up” to Heaven prior to the Great Flood. The timing may have been a picture of how God would rapture His Church prior to the next worldwide judgment. Gen 5:22-24 “After he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked faithfully with God 300 years and had other sons and daughters. Altogether, Enoch lived a total of 365 years. Enoch walked faithfully with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.” We know this was not indicating a mere death because of the passage in Hebrews that says : 11:5 “By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.” And Jude tells us of ancient Enoch having a great understanding of the coming of Christ to judge when He states in the following verses : “14 And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, 15 To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him. 16 These are murmurers, complainers, walking after their own lusts; and their mouth speaketh great swelling words, having men's persons in admiration because of advantage.” Enoch was a perfect example of a pre-judgment “Rapture” foreshadowing an end-times rapture of the church BEFORE the Great Tribulation! ELIJAH FLIES AWAY Although Enoch was certainly a rapture-before-judgment example For us in the Old Testament… Elijah wasn’t so much. His translation to Heaven in a whirlwind was not truly an escape but instead was more of a situation of God choosing a time when people are unaware that snatching away is coming except the true watchers. Elijah was taken to Heaven in a whirlwind and His protege Elisha and a small group of prophets were following his every move to see what was about to happen. Elijah gave Elisha a sign to look for and Elisha was faithful to watch and obey. From 2 Kings 2:9-14 “9 When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, “Tell me, what can I do for you before I am taken from you?” “Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit,” Elisha replied. 10 “You have asked a difficult thing,” Elijah said, “yet if you see me when I am taken from you, it will be yours—otherwise, it will not.” 11 As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind. 12 Elisha saw this and cried out, “My father! My father! The chariots and horsemen of Israel!” And Elisha saw him no more. Then he took hold of his garment and tore it in two. 13 Elisha then picked up Elijah’s cloak that had fallen from him and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan. 14 He took the cloak that had fallen from Elijah and struck the water with it. “Where now is the Lord, the God of Elijah?” he asked. When he struck the water, it divided to the right and to the left, and he crossed over.” Elijah is certainly a type of snatching away, but not so much in the “escape the coming wrath” style that other examples bring. Let’s look further for other examples. NOAH AND LOT Noah and his seven family members certainly could be considered. They knew the judgment was coming, faithfully built the ark, and obeyed all the Lord commanded to be ready. Faithfully God preserves them in the Ark as the rest of the world perished. Now they were not snatched away so this example may be more akin to the sealed 144,000 Jews in Revelation who are protected by God through the Great Tribulation. Many have equated Enoch to the Church leaving earth before the judgment and the family of Noah being preserved through the flood like the sealed Jews. The order is correct as well. Enoch raptured, and then the Family of Noah preserved through the flood. The Church will be raptured, then the remnant Jews preserved through the Tribulation. The symmetry is perfect. Lot is another example of someone who was evacuated before judgment when His family and He were escorted out of Sodom before God's destruction fell upon that city. It was not a true rapture parallel because They were not translated to Heaven but it was nonetheless an "Escape" from judgment and shows God’s faithfulness to His remnant by them being removed before He pours out His judgment. Lot and Noah may have been the two examples Jesus used in His description of His coming (Luke 17:26-30) because Lot escaped the judgment just as the Church will while Noah was preserved through the judgment as the Jews will be one day. ISRAEL CORNERED Another great escape was provided as Moses and the Israelites were backed up to the shores of the Red Sea with the hard-charging Egyptian Army coming at them in full force to massacre the pinned Hebrews. Only a slaughter appeared possible until God opened the waters, provided an escape route for the Jews, and then drowned the Egyptian army behind them. (EX 14:21-29) I see this as more of an OT picture of Revelation 12 where the satanic Antichrist is pursuing Israel during the Tribulation and the remnant are led into the wilderness to safely avoid their destruction but it is certainly an escape provided by God that previews the end times. It shows God’s nature as a Savior, a deliverer, and a protector of His chosen ones. DANIEL GOES MISSING One passage I have always been somewhat inquisitive about is Daniel 3. It is a bit surprising to me that although Daniel is present in all the chapters of the book, He is visibly absent and not mentioned in chapter 3. Instead, the entire chapter is about a new form of worship being instituted in the Babylonian kingdom and Daniel’s three friends (Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego) are the focal point of the chapter’s controversy. Everyone in the kingdom is ordered to worship the new statue erected by Nebuchadnezzar in his image and if they don’t, they will be thrown into a furnace and killed. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refuse to worship anyone but their God and consequently are thrown into the fiery blazing furnace to die but instead of being consumed, a fourth person appears who looks like the Son of God and keeps them safe. They survive the ordeal unscathed to God's glory. My interpretation of the typology in this story is that Nebuchadnezzar is a foreshadowing of the Antichrist. The image He sets up to be worshipped is a picture of the Image of the beast that the Antichrist and false prophet set up in the temple in Revelation 13. The three boys represent the sealed Jews in the Trib that can’t be killed and the one like the Son of God in the furnace with the three is of course Jesus Christ and foreshadows the Jews when they believe on Christ during the tribulation and thus will be saved. Because the chapter fails to even mention Daniel, I believe he may represent the pre-trib believers who are absent from the tribulation because they have already been raptured. I certainly could be wrong about this but it makes sense in light of the rest of the chapter lining up so well with the book of Revelation and especially chapter 13. Remember, the Church age is the entire subject of chapters 2 and 3 of Revelation but once the command to “Come up here “ is given to John at the beginning of chapter 4, the church is completely missing through the entire Tribulation period in the next 19 chapters of the book. Daniel's missing during this mini-tribulation preview of chapter 3 may represent the same thing. THE GREAT PREVIEW Perhaps the most vivid preview of the rapture followed by the Tribulation that is tucked away in the Old Testament can be found at the end of Isaiah 26 and the beginning of chapter 27: (Isaiah 26:19-21, 27:1) “Your dead shall live; Together with my dead body they shall arise. Awake and sing, you who dwell in dust; For your dew is like the dew of herbs, And the earth shall cast out the dead. 20 Come, my people, enter your chambers, And shut your doors behind you; Hide yourself, as it were, for a little moment, Until the indignation is past. 21 For behold, the Lord comes out of His place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity; The earth will also disclose her blood, And will no more cover her slain. 27:1- In that day the Lord with His severe sword, great and strong, Will punish Leviathan the fleeing serpent, Leviathan that twisted serpent; And He will slay the reptile that is in the sea.” What an amazing picture in the exact chronological order as we see consistent with Daniel’s Tribulation preview and certainly the book of Revelation. The dead are raised and the people are called to come up to their Heavenly sanctuary (At The Rapture) and wait a little while as the 7-year Tribulation unfolds. After they are called to their ESCAPE, God brings judgment (severe sword) to the Christ-rejecting world, to punish the Beast system (Leviathan which is a sea monster known as a Beast from the sea in Revelation 13) and slay it. This passage DOESN’T SAY to Israel or the mystery Saints of the Church to “win the world for your king and pave a way for righteousness so He may come to you. Destroy Leviathan and restore the earth to its beginnings !” If that was the message we may be able to see the point of the post-millennialists but the passage lays out the end exactly as Pre-Trib believers would expect it to and is consistent with the Pre-Trib position as all other scripture confirms. CONCLUSION There are many more OT pictures, foreshadowing, and typologies of “Escapes” that God provides to His Elect that declare God’s faithfulness and consistency in How He interacts with His people. This is just a small sampling of the ones that have gone before. (Ecclesiastes 1:9) “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” Solomon in all his wisdom declared this almost 3000 years ago and we can gather from this that what the world is about to experience has been foreshadowed before in God's divine playbook. Jesus said that His Second coming would come at the worst time in history : (Matt 24: 21 ) "For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again.” Yet we have many examples of dire wickedness being judged before and how God dealt with it to give us clues what to expect. In the same way, Jesus encouraged us to be “Escapists” when He said: “Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.” -Luke 21:36 So do we get that? We are to pray we are worthy to escape this horrible coming Tribulation and not be ashamed of our hope by a dying scoffing world or by those members of the Church with cling to wrong eschatological beliefs. We have many examples of how God has provided escape routes before. One thing is definitely certain: If we are about to experience the most awful Tribulation in history as Jesus declared, then we are also about to witness the “Greatest Escape” in the annals of time as well! “He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.” Rev 22:20 Daily Jot: The debate: American voters lose out - Bill Wilson – www.dailyjot.com The debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump revealed four main takeaways: 1) Harris showed better than anyone expected; 2) Trump spent most of the night countering Harris lies about him; 3) The moderators “fact checked” Trump and helped Harris by not pressing her on her lack of substance and lies; and 4) The candidates clearly have two distinct and opposite visions of America. One has a vision of government subsidies (tax money) solving all the problems that government policy has created. The other’s vision is of a nation in great decline because of failed government policies that must be corrected. Overall, American lost out because the moderators made the debate a sham. The expectations were so low for Kamala Harris that all she had to really do was show up and not cackle after every statement and she would be hailed by the pundits as the winner of the debate. That she accomplished. The media is fawning over her in the aftermath. She came across as well-rehearsed, stayed on point, articulate, but lied and twisted the truth about herself and her opponent throughout the debate. She dodged questions on her record, conjured up false narratives, and mocked Trump through both her words and facial expressions. She claimed that Trump was the candidate of division and she was the candidate of vision. Hers’ was a tremendous showing of projection—accusing others of exactly what she was doing. Trump on the other hand spoke directly about the negative impact the Biden-Harris Administration has had on America. His driving theme was that America is in trouble and Harris and her Marxist policies were to blame. He often spoke in hyperbole, which sparked correction from the moderators. The issues, however, that Trump raised—immigration, crime, inflation, cost of energy, food, housing are among those that Americans are dealing with every day. Trump’s anger at what the Biden-Harris Administration has done to this country was clearly evident. He exposed several times the weaponization of government by Biden-Harris against him and citizens, the incompetence of Harris, and the danger ahead because of her weaknesses. The moderators were clearly biased. They fact-checked Trump no less than seven times and allowed Harris to lie at will. They let Harris off the hook on debunked hoaxes about Trump’s statements on race, very fine people, bloodbath, disparaging the military, etc. They allowed the debate to focus on the scandals conjured up by the Democratic Party against Trump rather than holding Harris accountable to her waffling and lying about abortion, the military, Israel, and a multitude of false narratives about Trump. Harris was clearly aided by the moderators. Who won? The Marxists. Who lost? The American voters. Once again the media could not be trusted to impartiality. They skewed the debate in favor of Harris. Proverbs 11:1 says “A false balance is abomination to the Lord.” It should be detestable to the rest of us, too. Daily Devotion: We Need to Tell Them - by Greg Laurie – www.harvest.org Remember what it says: ‘Today when you hear his voice, don’t harden your hearts as Israel did when they rebelled.’ —Hebrews 3:15 https://harvest.org/resources/devotion/we-need-to-tell-them-2/ - Listen The story is told of an attorney who was trying to deliver an important document to a man who was determined to avoid him. The man reasoned that it was a subpoena of some kind, and he went out of his way to dodge it. Fourteen years passed, and the man found himself lying in a hospital, dying of cancer. Through a strange chain of events, the attorney was sick also, and the two men ended up sharing the same hospital room. The dying man turned to the attorney and said, “Well, you never got me! I escaped you all this time, and now it doesn’t matter. You can go ahead and serve your subpoena. I don’t even care.” “Subpoena?” the attorney replied. “I was trying to give you a document that proved you had inherited 45 million dollars!” People can be the same way when it comes to the Christian faith. They go out of their way to escape a relationship with Jesus Christ. They go out of their way to avoid Christians. As a result, their hearts get harder. And they just might go too far. People reject Jesus because they don’t know of all that He offers. They don’t know of His great promises. That is why we need to tell them. That is why we need to go out of our way to tell people about the love of God. So, let’s keep praying, and let’s keep trying to reach these people. You may even know someone who seems as though they have a hardened heart beyond the point of no return. Take heart. Think of Saul of Tarsus, whose conversion was so radical and unexpected that the first-century Christians thought it was some kind of trap in which he was trying to infiltrate their ranks. They didn’t believe that God could save someone who was as wicked, hostile, and against the church as Saul of Tarsus was. But then Saul of Tarsus became known as Paul the Apostle. You may know someone who seems so hardened and so far gone. Keep praying, because God could reach them. Or maybe there has never come a moment in your life when you’ve personally asked Jesus Christ to forgive your sin. You know about God, but you don’t really know Him. If you know something to be true and don’t respond to it, that can harden your heart. The Bible tells us, “Remember what it says: ‘Today when you hear his voice, don’t harden your hearts as Israel did when they rebelled’” (Hebrews 3:15 NLT). If you don’t yet know Jesus Christ in a personal way, then do something about it immediately. Now is the time. If you keep putting it off, there will come a day when you won’t hear from God anymore because you will have hardened your heart irreparably. Yes, there is a point of no return. Don’t let it happen to you. Don’t live another day outside of God’s will, His purpose, and His blessing for you. PROPHECY UPDATE NEWS HEADLINES Yesterday's Prophecies - Today's Headlines HEADLINES IN PARTNERSHIP WITH TRACKING BIBLE PROPHECY 9/12/24 http://trackingbibleprophecy.org/birthpangs.php
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