“Never let a crisis go to waste” is the tactic by globalists who desire to take away more and more freedoms and erode the Constitution in the US. This same evil cabal wants to take down national sovereignty in all nations to wipe out any civilian freedoms remaining. The “never let a crisis go to waste” tactic is actually from the 1971 Saul Alinsky book, “Rules for Radicals” [1]. It’s the one and same book in which an epitaph to Lucifer is included under the “Personal Acknowledgments” section, giving honor to Lucifer, who Alinsky notes is “the first radical known to man.”
 
Alinsky continues on in his open worship of the devil by stating that Lucifer “did it so effectively that he at least won his own kingdom.” Sickening! Open luciferian worship.
 
This same book was Hillary Clinton’s college thesis; so too did Barack Hussein Obama give reverence to Alinsky’s book on numerous occasions, as Obama was a “community organizer” in the same radical style as Alinsky before becoming a politician. No matter your political affiliation, you need to be aware of the tactics they use and the plan in store.
 
The book full of luciferian, evil agendas is reluctantly sourced at the bottom of this article [1]. One must know the enemies tactics, and they’ve made no attempt to hide them. This is a spiritual battle (Eph. 6:12), and they have overtly chosen the side of Lucifer—the losing side.
 
The far left have adopted the globalist vision of culling the masses, bringing populations under control under one global government. One particular political party used to tolerate this far-leftist extremism as a fringe group, yet years back the left claimed not to be involved with the far left. However, the far leftists have taken control of the entire party now—not just here in the US, but in other nations as well.
 
The globalist cabal is well-funded financially. Destruction of all things Christian is their most fervent desire, as to be expected in a spiritual war. They used to pretend to be in favor of free speech for all (including Christians); but, as their numbers have grown, they no longer feel the need to hide their true agenda—squashing both the free speech of Christians as well as eradicating the world of Christians altogether.
 
We all witnessed how quickly the leftist-controlled media hopped on board the “gun control” issue after a school shooting. But when the recent Texas bombings began near Austin, I couldn’t imagine how the controlled MSM (MainStream Media) was going to spin this. Since we no longer have a free media, and they no longer devote much (if any) time on actual, factual news unless they can spin it for a specific globalist cause, I was surprised to see them reporting on it. I knew they had to have an angle (otherwise all truth is censored nowadays).
 
So what is the angle? What did the leftist media accomplish? They sure couldn’t use it for bomb confiscation, as bombs are already unlawful. They couldn’t stage mass protests of easily herded young folks in opposition, as they do any time a gun is used in a crime. So again, what’s for them to gain by reporting it?
 
Then the mass bomber was both caught and killed. The nation breathed a collective sigh of relief.  Yet again, I couldn’t find the angle immediately (and I knew there had to be one). Why would MSM continue to cover this nonstop?  After sifting through numerous reports about this event, I finally found the answer in a FOX news article as well as in other articles. There isn’t just one agenda they are using this tragedy for, but multiple agendas.
 
Mark Conditt (24-year-old serial bomber) was found by the help of …. (drumroll)…. Google! Surveillance cameras and cell phone triangulation also helped. Why is this so important a fact to know about? The authorities used the Google search history of Mr. Conditt to find relevant details of his actions and thoughts prior to, and during, his bomb spree. Well, that sounds handy, doesn’t it? Not so fast.
 
In the FOX article [2], we read where a Google representative stated the following: “Google accepts subpoenas for search data and reviews the request to make sure it satisfies legal requirements and Google’s policies.” Another interesting tidbit of information was supplied by the Google representative (who is unnamed in the article): “Google can also look to narrow the request if it believes it is overly broad.”
 
How very interesting… so Google (a non-government and unregulated monopoly) can now deem for themselves if a request is “overly broad” or if they even want to supply the information to law enforcement agencies? And I wonder if they would have supplied such information if the alleged perp was (for instance) an illegal alien? Or a far-leftist radical? One can only guess, but my guess (going by past incidents) is NO; Google wouldn’t have supplied the requested information if it didn’t align with Google’s globalist-cabal agenda.
 
Then there was also the use of cell phone triangulation. (Funny we never hear about these things when it’s a known illegal alien committing crimes, isn’t it? How coincidental!) With the use of 4G technology they can now track a phone to within 4 to 5 feet of the subject. Imagine how handy this will be for the antichrist global government once the mark of the beast is rolled out fully in the last half of the tribulation, as described in Revelation chapter 13). And this is 4G technology; the globalist cabal wants 5G technology implemented around the globe as soon as possible.
Time doesn’t permit going into detail of the evils of 5G. Maybe we will revisit that subject in a later article (God willing and should the Lord tarry).
 
But this wicked agenda to track and control society isn’t enough for the globalist cabal. They have a multi-pronged strategy to use this crisis to the full extent of maximum damage they can possibly squeeze out of it. Never let a crisis go to waste… get the maximum damage possible out of it, as does the globalist MSM, using the Alinsky tactics.
 
Who is Mark Conditt, the serial bomber? The Daily Mail (UK) alleges that he was a “homeschooled Christian.” The article goes on to bash both Christians and homeschooling as well [3]. But it doesn’t stop there… the article claims that Conditt was targeting “people of color” (yet doesn’t note that white victims were chosen as well). In this glaring lack of journalism, the Daily Mail claims Conditt “made all the bombs himself.” Huh? What a lack of journalistic integrity! Supposedly, now the Daily Mail is their own source for this information? They didn’t cite a name from which this allegation sprang forth.
 
No sourcing in faux journalism today is a huge problem because they no longer quote a person by name, but can merely claim something as a fact without showing any evidence. It’s possible that Conditt did indeed “make all the bombs himself,” but they don’t note that as a possibility; instead they erroneously tout it as fact before a full investigation has been completed—shoddy journalism meant to obfuscate, muddy the waters, and never quote actual sources or facts.
 
They also claimed the boy was both Christian and homeschooled, yet they don’t source that information either. Apparently faux journalism no longer needs to source information. Apparently, they can claim whatever they want to without any factual evidence to back it up. Back in my day, we had a name for that: “Tabloid trash.” You could find this garbage in the supermarkets with cover stories such as “Elvis seen” (years after his death). No sourcing, just opinion erroneously presented as “factual.”
 
So we see the multi-pronged strategy on full display. First: to paint both Christians and homeschooled children in a negative light. Second: to cause panic in society, so much so that the civilian population would be willing to give up freedoms and rights for the false hope of “peace and safety.”
 
“For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape” (1 Thes. 5:3).
 
Sadly, a large portion of the population still erroneously believes that the mainstream media is an actual journalist venue wherein truth is upheld, standards of journalism are upheld, and ‘journalists’ are held to these high standards. Sadly, some still truly believe this to be the case. In fact, some elderly folks I know very well are still taken in by MSM, one of which regularly watches PBS News hour and claims they are unbiased!
 
I asked this elderly man if he realized that the ‘news’ segment begins with the major donors listed… ALL of which are either far-leftist or globalist organizations (The Rockefeller foundation, for example). “Yes,” he sheepishly admits; he realizes that. I then ask, “Don’t you think it’s a good possibility that those large donors’ ideology will bleed over into the journalism?” His response: “Maybe so, but I don’t see it.”
 
And it’s sad that many people truly do NOT see it. He (like many in the 80+ age-range generation) remembers when both sides of a story were presented. Now it’s a pretense. But sadly, some folks still buy it. It doesn’t work that way anymore.
 
For many of us who read often, keep abreast of current events, and understand where the globalist desires are headed (Revelation 13, for example), we can readily see the agenda on just about any ‘news’ venue today. But sadly, many are still in the dark to these tactics. I’ve heard the phrase “ignorance is bliss” quoted before. Maybe it’s true. Maybe that’s the only way some folks can cope with what’s going on in these perilous last days—shut their eyes, put their heads in the sand, and hope for the best.
 
Sometimes I wish that I could still be so blind. Why? Because with discernment comes responsibility. Those who readily see the antichrist agenda afoot have a responsibility to warn others of the end goal of today’s globalists. Such is the case here, even with this Texas bomber. The agenda is clear… the globalists want to track every man, woman, and child’s movement – every thought, every action, location, and deed. They will use “peace and safety” as the reason to do this.
 
But we Bible believers know exactly where this is headed: complete control over masses… control over all peoples of the world under a one-world government. This insidious plan of the devil has been in the making for a long time now.
 
The US was the last beacon of freedom, of Christian rights, of constitutional rights as well. But we see them being chipped away and eroded day by day. In fact, the far-leftist globalists are going full boar into attack mode on every part of the Constitution with which they can use to cull the masses and take complete control over the civilian population. Both the First and Second Amendments are under full attack from the far-left globalists.
 
Years ago we were called “conspiracy theorists” for even bringing up the terms “new world order” or “globalist.” Back then they tried to hide the agenda, meet in secret, and hash out their plans and goals under the radar. Today? They no longer even bother to try to hide the agenda. Why? Because the indoctrination of globalism has permeated our public schools and colleges so pervasively that the younger generations are sold out to globalism.
 
Just like Hitler’s brown-shirt youth program, many of these young folks blindly follow along.
 
Of course they also want to attack homeschooling, because they want to mandate public school indoctrination for all children. They especially want to paint Christians as the “bad guys.” How can some fellow believers not recognize this?
 
This nation is divided, yet some believe we can just unite and right all the wrongs. Appeasing those who hate Christianity never works; it only leads to more loss of rights and freedoms.
 
They claimed they only wanted “tolerance” for the Darwinistic theories presented to school-age children – an “alternative theory” they wanted presented alongside creationism. Now? They’ve booted out ALL scriptural accounts of biblical creation by God in public schools. The appeasing and tolerance given to the evil ones was not returned. Nor should we have expected it to be. Luciferian radicals have no honor, and they no longer try to hide their wicked agenda at all. They won’t tolerate Christians.
 
I’m an old dog, the kind that it’s hard to teach new tricks to. I’ve always wanted to know the “who, what, when, where, and how” in journalism. I’ve watched the supposed free press deteriorate rapidly over the decades. Many of us were warning loud and often of how when a free press is bought out and controlled by just a handful of people (no matter their political affiliation) it’s a bad thing.
 
One can go too far to the right just as one can go too far to the left. There are extremists on both ends.
 
Extremism always leads to loss of freedoms and the desire for more and more control by those who desire complete control over the masses. But what’s worse? Those of us who espouse a conservative viewpoint are now labeled as “extremist.” They throw us into the bucket with KKK members (when we aren’t racists ourselves), and call us “Nazi’s” (when the far leftists are using actual Nazi tactics).
 
When young, easily manipulated Antifa members see conservatives, they think they are doing a good thing to beat, spit on, mace, pepper spray, rob, torment, or even kill conservatives. Why? Because they’ve been indoctrinated into erroneously believing that Christians are “pro-KKK” or “Nazi’s.”
 
When one tries to have a rational conversation with these misguided folks, they don’t want to hear it. They don’t want to hear the factual, historic truth of the KKK, how the Democrats actually funded and supported the KKK – how Robert Byrd (the longest “serving” Senator in US history) was both a Democrat and a KKK member in elite standing. They don’t want to hear about the “Klan Bake” at the 1924 Democratic National Convention, how they held hands openly with KKK members and marched [4].
 
You can’t even discuss with them how Hitler and the Nazi party rose to power by first taking away the guns from citizens, and then massacring millions of Jews, blacks, physically and developmentally handicapped, elderly, gays, and others. They don’t want to hear truth. In fact, they no longer can even recognize truth when they hear it (Romans 1:18-32 and 2 Tim. 3:1-5 explain why in detail).
 
When communication has broken down so far that one side refuses to even hear the other side, it’s an irreconcilable fault line. A gulf too big to bridge. A sore too putrid to heal. Isaiah 1:4-6 comes to mind.
 
The unsaved world has become so corrupt that they openly rebel against God; they avidly reject Christ with a vehemence and violence so fierce that they seek to destroy believers and obliterate God’s word from society altogether. To them we are the ‘bad guys;’ to them God’s word is to be disregarded and squashed, kept from their ears. In this upside-down world of these perilous last days truth is actually offensive to them.
 
“Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” (Isaiah 5:20).
 
Yet we cannot be silenced or bullied into submitting to the antichrist’s agenda. As we see this soon- coming global government forming, we must take comfort in knowing the lateness of the hour. God will not be mocked (Gal. 6:7). His wrath is soon coming upon this world in ways that even Hollywood with all its special effects cannot portray.
 
Revelation (chapters 6-18) gives an overview of the tribulation that is soon to come upon this earth. God’s wrath will not be withheld forever; in fact, we are given many clues in scripture as to when it will commence.
 
As we see these things converge and coalesce, we need to keep in mind that we grace/church-age believers won’t be here for any part of God’s wrath on this evil, God-hating and Christ-rejecting world. Jesus has promised to deliver us (church/grace-age believers) from the wrath to come (1 Thes. 1:10, Rom. 5:9, 1 Thes. 5:9). His word even tells us how He will deliver us (1 Cor. 15:49-53, 1 Thes. 4:16-18) – the rapture!
 
I’ll be the first to admit that witnessing these events leading up to the tribulation are troublesome to watch. It grieves our hearts, mostly because so many are rejecting salvation. Their only hope is Christ; yet they hate Him, His word, and those who believe on Him. Yet we must continue on giving the gospel to the lost as well as comforting fellow believers with His word and promises to us.
 
Let’s not lose sight of how near we are to meeting the Lord. I know it’s very easy to get weighed down with the cares of this world. The ‘news’ today is evil; the agendas are wicked and can be traced down to the wicked one who is itching for his short 3.5-year reign on Earth (the last half of the seven-year tribulation).
 
Yes, we do need to keep abreast of what’s going on. Those with discernment need to warn others of what’s to come. Whether they hear it or not is on their own heads. We are required to warn nonetheless. Don’t get hung up on one person who refuses to hear; move on to the next, and keep going. Even if no one seems to be listening, we know that God’s word will not return void (Isaiah 55:11). Share the gospel until the very last moment!
 
And while we do so, let’s keep in mind what promises we soon have in store for us believers:
 
When the rapture occurs we will immediately be taken up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air (1 Thes. 4:16-17). Those of us alive in human form at the time will meet those who (in Christ) have passed on before us as ALL of our bodies are immediately transformed.
 
We are told even more about this sudden change and resurrection of the dead in Christ in 1 Cor. 15:49-53. There we see that our vile, corruptible bodies of flesh will be changed into heavenly bodies (v.49)! Our mortal bodies will be exchanged for immortal ones (v.53). Even those bodies of our loved ones who have passed on in Christ prior to us will first be resurrected (v.52 and 1 Thes. 4:14-16).
 
We are told to “comfort one another with these words.” Let’s continue to do so regularly as we see the day approaching. We have even more comfort regarding glorified bodies:
 
I John 3:2 tells us that we will see Jesus as He is because we will be like Him! It’s impossible to fully imagine what that means; yet cling to this truth. Just knowing we will see Jesus is wonderful enough a thought… but to know we will be like Him as well? Even more wonderful. Phil. 3:20-21 tells us that He (Jesus) will change our vile (fleshy corruptible) bodies into bodies fashioned like His own glorified body!
 
As if those things weren’t enough comfort, there is more! In Eph. 2:6 we are told we are seated in heavenly places.
 
In 2 Cor. 5:1, we are told of a house “not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.”
 
In Phil. 3:20-21 we are told our “conversation is in heaven.” Our Lord Jesus Christ is taking us there to be with Him! We see this also in 1 Thes.4:17, “so shall we ever be with the Lord.”
 
Again we see this in John 14:2-3 where we are told that Jesus is preparing a place for us in His Father’s house. The KJV calls this place “mansions.” Jesus then said He would receive us unto Himself that “where I am, there ye may be also.”
 
This is something the post-trib camp cannot defend. They would claim a yo-yo event at the end of the tribulation where Jesus takes believers up and then brings them right back down for the millennial kingdom. Yet we know that Jesus has promised to take us UP, first to the clouds in the air to transform our bodies, and then to His Father’s house in heaven. We know we will be there for at least seven years during which those on Earth will be going through the tribulation.
 
During that time we will also attend the BEMA judgment, the judgment seat of Christ (2 Cor. 5:10, 1 Cor. 3:10-15). This believers-only judgment is not about salvation, as we have already believed on Christ for salvation. We are eternally secure in Christ. This is about rewards and/or loss of rewards for the things we’ve done for Christ since we were saved, or otherwise worded: after salvation – how we’ve served Him.
 
If we’ve shared the gospel with the lost and built on the firm foundation in Christ, we will be rewarded (as though “gold, silver, and precious stones”). If we’ve done our service for selfish reason, human accolades, or other wrongful intents, those things will be considered “wood, hay, and stubble.” The rewards will be far more wonderful than we can imagine (Rom. 8:17-18, 1 Cor. 13:12).
 
Many crowns are promised throughout New Testament scripture. One crown in particular is the “crown of righteousness” which He will give each of us who love His appearing!
 
Right now we are groaning inside. His Spirit groans with our own as we await the redemption of our bodies (Rom. 8:22-23). We are eagerly awaiting His appearance, and desire to be taken up with Him to receive our glorified, incorruptible bodies like His own. The rewards to come are more wonderful than we can imagine—not even worthy to compare with anything in this life. Let’s comfort one another with these things.
 
“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13).
 
Maranatha!
 
Sources:
[1] https://archive.org/stream/RulesForRadicals/RulesForRadicals_djvu.txt
[2] http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2018/03/21/how-tech-caught-killer-tech-behind-catching-austin-serial-bomber.html
[3] http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5526159/Austin-bomber-shot-dead-police-try-arrest-him.html
[4] http://armored-column.com/the-democratic-klanbake-1924/

By Ronda Lane - http://www.raptureready.com/2018/03/24/alinsky-crisis-blame-game-ronda-lane/

I leaned back in my chair and watched as my friend carefully lifted out his new stock Remington 700 .308 from its case. He laid the rifle on his lap and fondly caressed its barrel.


“I can take out a bad guy from a quarter mile away with this sucker,” he said. “If I put a Leupold scope on it, it’s a guaranteed kill.”


I was confused. “How do you know they are a ‘bad guy’ if they’re that far away?”


“I’ll know,” he murmured.


I was unconvinced.


“Doesn’t the right to use a gun for self-defense end at the door?” I asked. I wasn’t an expert on these issues, but I’d already checked out my state’s laws on that one.


He curled his lip and looked at me with feigned disgust. “I’m not talking now. When the SHTF in the tribulation, you won’t want to wait till they’re on your doorstep firing at you. That’s too late.”


I took a sip of coffee as I thought about my next words.


“I don’t plan to be around then,” I replied matter-of-factly.


My friend said nothing. He shook his head and continued his public display of affection with his newest acquisition. He knew better than to argue with me.


My friend’s a good guy. I’ve known him a long time and he seems to be a solid Christian. He’s active in his church and he’s passionate about prayer. He also has a heart for ministry, and he’s trying to organize a street outreach team to college students. I can’t fault him there since that group needs all the help they can get these days.


Somewhere along the line however, my friend jumped on the bandwagon of the Reformed movement. I don’t know how or why that happened – but I’ve watched his journey with mounting concern.


A few years ago, he used to devour prophecy-themed books by Arthur W. Pink, J. Dwight Pentecost, and John F. Walvoord. Those were the good old days, and he and I used to have a lot of great discussions. He’s since given most of those books to me as he started reading a bunch of authors I was less familiar with.


He talks constantly about “the importance of the church,” and he’s frustrated with any discussion that holds it’s different than Israel. He throws out Romans 10:12 and Galatians 3:28 as his primary defenses for seeing “no difference between Jew and Gentile,” and he believes this settles the matter. He claims he doesn’t subscribe to replacement theology, but his newer notions seem to suggest otherwise.


I’m not sure where in his journey my friend became obsessed with The Gospel Coalition, but he’s all about it now. He’s convinced himself that every passage of Scripture somehow divulges the person and work of Jesus Christ – and I do mean every! He goes to elaborate lengths to explain the “gospel meaning” within verses that are plainly speaking to unrelated matters.


All said, my friend is not the same person he used to be. He’s made choices to believe things he once didn’t.


I still remember the day we met for lunch and he told me he’d decided he was a “post-millenialist.”  I knew what that was, but I wanted him to explain his position to me.


In short, he believes we are in the Millennial Kingdom now. He does not believe it’s a literal 1,000 years, but “a very long time” instead. He believes the church will grow in its ministry and effectiveness to eventually transform entire cultures around the world, infusing them with prosperity, goodwill, and “kingdom peace.” He’s sure the Second Coming of Jesus Christ will occur only after this all takes place.


He’s got one big problem here: the Bible doesn’t support any of that.


Actually, my friend has several big problems, and they each begin with his decision to doubt that God says what He means and means what He says. His doctrinal gaffes are the offspring of willfully mishandling the Bible.


He doesn’t believe in a literal Millennial Kingdom (Rev. 20:2-7; Luke 1:32-33; Micah 4:2-4, et al) because he sees no Biblical significance in national Israel, and he dismisses God’s unconditional and unilateral promises to the Jews. He’s convinced himself that there’s a better meaning within these Scriptures, and he feels self-righteous for discerning their “spiritual application.”


Because he feels the church will continue to have a greater and more positive impact on the world as time goes on, my friend sidesteps discussions about the rapture. Why remove from the earth the very institution that’s – obviously! – making our world a much better place to live?


He’s lumped the rapture into being one and the same with the physical Second Coming of Christ. He argues that Christ doesn’t come back to earth two more times. I agree with him. I’ve pointed out all the ways Scripture defines these two events differently, but he’s quick to spiritualize those details which call his own persuasions into question.


It’s not hard to see that my friend generally discounts the prophetic Scriptures. Though he once had an appetite to study them, he now claims they are the “nonessential” parts of God’s Word. He’s condescending to folks like me that would challenge him on that, and he feels “we should be focused on the gospel” instead.


I’ve pondered my friend’s belief that the person and work of Jesus Christ is somehow revealed in every verse of the Bible – and the way he disregards the importance and intent of the prophetic Scriptures. Is there a connection?


Besides the fact that certain prominent Christian leaders appear to align with my friend’s errant views – and it’s always easier to tout one’s position if “so and so” supports them too – I’ve come to an unsettling conclusion. There is absolutely a strong connection!


If one believes something is there within a particular portion of God’s Word when it’s really not, then it’s no big deal to claim something is not there when it really is! It’s the same reckless mishandling of the Bible either way. Neither decision submits one’s will to God since both choices engage in an intentional remodeling of His divine truth.


And both choices are guilty of dismissing the greater body of God’s Word in favor of an “easy-believe-ism” which justifies one’s right to rank the importance of Scripture. It all tends to lead to mindless chant-like slogans like “It’s all about Jesus” that sound true on the surface but which overlook the proper regard and handling of the entire Word of God (2 Tim. 2:15; 3:16).


Let me make one thing clear about the gospel message. While I believe the greater picture of the Scriptures point to Jesus and His redemptive plan, the granular approach may not tell that same story every time. The gospel message is not always inherent in each verse or even in some passages of Scripture.
One is therefore required to take in the complete counsel of God’s Word, and that includes all of the prophetic Scriptures. In Rev. 19:10 it says, “For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” The bottom line is: prophecy is designed to reveal the full person and divinity of our Lord Jesus, and as such, we should not discount it.  We miss something important if we do.


My friend’s decision to approach God’s Word on his own terms precipitates a conundrum for him: his rationale is not required to follow a consistent logic. He can say in one moment that the church is making everything better in this world, while claiming in the next breath that he can “take out bad guys in the tribulation” with his new, bolt-action boom stick.


Are things going to get better, or are they going to get worse? He’s saying two different things.


It’s convenient for him to have it both ways – and in that, he’s not alone. Plenty of Christians pick and choose their way through the Scriptures like they’re at a buffet. This permits them to hold to whatever beliefs best serve their preferred positions, but it’s not right, responsible, or even remotely reverent.


And that brings up my earlier conversation with my friend. There are some issues I want to address for those believers like him who are prepping now to go through the tribulation.


There are various passages in the Bible that speak to the matter of “saints” during the tribulation. The larger counsel of the Scriptures makes it clear this is a group which comes to saving faith after the rapture and not before it. The reality check that emerges for these people is not a pretty one, and several points are made evident:


They are not protected from the impact of God’s judgments.


In Revelation 7:9-17, John sees a vast multitude in heaven, and the text says they are martyred believers from all parts of the globe. The scene is explained to John, and he learns this crowd came “out of the great tribulation.”


This underscores a plain fact: people will come to genuine saving faith during this terrible time. The convicting ministry of the Holy Spirit (John 16:8-10) will continue then as it does now.


But John learns something else about this group – these saints will not suffer “any more.” Specifically, they will not face any more extreme hunger or thirst, nor will they need to further endure the scorching sun and heat. Their severe physical, emotional, and mental strain on earth has come to an end.


It’s clear that the closing years of these martyrs’ lives on earth will be desperate times. It will be hard for them to acquire their basic needs of food, water, and shelter. They will live their lives on the run, looking over their shoulders, and doing whatever they can do to survive.


The larger Biblical narrative of the tribulation describes God’s judgments as far-reaching. Specific texts like Revelation 7:9-17 clarify that it will be a very difficult time for believers too.


They are not victorious over the ambitions of the world religion.


My friend believes Christians will eventually overcome the corruption of this world and lead it into a glorious spiritual age. He believes the institution of the church is playing this role even now.


In fact, quite the opposite is true. The world ahead of us is going to descend into depths of chaos, barbarism, and depravity the likes of which history has never seen (Matt. 24:21; Rev. 11:9-10). There’s no sound, Biblical indication that Christians will deter these developments, and that’s a much different scenario than my friend anticipates.


Organized religion will indeed play a role, but it’ll be part of the problem and not part of the solution.  Christians will be viciously targeted by a corrupt world religion during the tribulation (Rev. 17:6), and they are not likely to survive this pogrom as the fifth seal judgment of Revelation 6:9-11 makes very clear.


The tribulation Scriptures repeatedly emphasize the theme of persecuted Christians during the tribulation. They are murdered “….because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained” (Rev. 6:9). The post-rapture saints are not “victors” by relevant earthly definitions – “victims” is much closer to the truth.


They are not insulated against the effect of the global economy.


I know a few preppers well – and they’re obsessed with being “ready for anything.” They are stocking up now so they can sail through the challenges of refusing the mark of the beast.


Beans, band aids, bullets, and batteries may be their cliché staples, but are they really ready for what’s coming? It’s easy to read Revelation 13:16-17 and oversimplify the situation.


This passage says those who refuse the mark cannot “buy or sell,” but the implications of this are far greater than one’s inability to score a Big Mac or sell a bike.


The real picture is one of complete economic control. It’s an entirely different system one cannot easily avoid and it will own those who are part of it. It will affect everything: taxes, mortgage and car payments, utilities, medical services, school loans, credit cards, and myriad other basic transactional elements we take for granted today. It will be a radical and invasive concept through which a comprehensive new economic structure will flow.


Hunkering down with a basement full of goodies might work for a couple weeks, but when bills aren’t being paid, mail isn’t getting picked up, or other folks get desperate and put “two and two together,” it’ll be nearly impossible to go unnoticed. And trust me – when the first bullet flies in either direction, the gig is up!


And that leads to my last – and most sobering – point about believers in the tribulation.


They are not successful against the campaign of the antichrist.


Read that again and let it sink in. It’s not my conclusion; it’s the Bible’s.


According to the Scriptures, God gives the antichrist “authority” (Rev. 13:5-7). This apocalyptic despot is entitled to his role because God will arrange it. This enables the antichrist to “wear down” the saints and “overcome” them according to Daniel 7:25. Revelation 13:5-7 adds the antichrist is given power to “….wage war with the saints and conquer them.” He’ll be extremely effective!


Satan gets in on the deal too. While God grants authority and power to the antichrist to fulfill His divine sovereign plan, Satan actually gives the antichrist HIS power and “HIS great authority” (Revelation 13:2). Satan’s role is a subset of God’s intentions. Satan’s personally invested – but ironically, he’s assisting God’s plan!


The result is the antichrist is unstoppable. Nothing – and nobody – on earth will be able to stand against him. Everyone will know it and everybody will be talking about it (Rev. 13:4).


That’s why masses of Christian martyrs in the Great Tribulation are killed for their faith and for their refusal to bow to the antichrist’s terms (Rev. 20:4). These believers do not gain the right to reign with Christ because they set up a perimeter and fought off intruders while living on rice and pond water. They will reign because they chose a right relationship with their Lord and Savior over everything else.


So let’s just cut to the chase here. The antichrist is a tool in God’s hands, and Satan – duped by his own pride and ambition – plays right into God’s plan. While nothing is out of God’s control, the net effect is the tribulation saints will die in innumerable numbers (Revelation 7:9). Their desperate conditions will be the result of facing unparalleled injustices on earth (Rev. 6:10-11).


Prepping to go through the tribulation may sound appealing to the mercenary types (“Oh man – I can’t wait to waste all the zombies!”), but that’s a passion which finds its inspiration more in The Walking Dead than in The Living Word. It’s not based in sobriety, and it’s certainly not based in a proper interpretation of the Bible.


I think it goes without saying that one must choose to have this errant view. If one mocks the prophetic Scriptures (2 Peter 3:3-4), shuns solid teaching in favor of right-sounding pabulum (2 Tim. 4:3), extracts meanings from the Bible that are not there, or refuses to act on the divine truth that is there, then one naturally puts themselves at risk for doctrinal drift.


Believers today are reminded that they “….are not destined for wrath” (1 Thessalonians 1:10; 5:9; Revelation 3:10), and the Scriptures teach that the Tribulation timeframe is not about the church. God has different intentions for those seven years, and they do not involve His Bride.


Those of us that are part of the church right now are misled if we are prepping to “take out the bad guys from a quarter mile away.” Instead, we should be “prepping” our hearts to hear the voice of the archangel and “….to meet the Lord in the air” (1 Thess. 4:15-17).

By Steve Schmutzer - http://www.omegaletter.com/articles/articles.asp?ArticleID=8613​ 

Then I stood on the sand of the sea. And I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and on his horns ten crowns, and on his heads a blasphemous name. Now the beast which I saw was like a leopard, his feet were like the feet of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. The dragon gave him his power, his throne, and great authority. And I saw one of his heads as if it had been mortally wounded, and his deadly wound was healed. And all the world marveled and followed the beast. Revelation 13:1-3


For everyone alive in the world today, this is all we have ever known. Wars, rumors of wars, crime, violence, plagues, diseases, natural disasters, and growing lawlessness (anarchism) and economic disparity are par for the course of everyday life here on planet earth. In fact, for most of human history (and to paraphrase Thomas Hobbes), life was nasty, brutish, and short.


In the last 70 years or so, modern technology and advancements in medicine have alleviated a lot of the brutality of everyday life. This has enabled the world’s population to more than quadruple in just one century. However, even with our advancements in technology, political machinations have proven to be the most significant threat to humanity in the 20th century. As Marxism, Socialism, and Communism took hold in various places, the total dead in their wake has been in excess of 100 million. In fact, more people died in the 20th century due to these ideas then all the wars for the past twenty centuries combined.


Assessment
All things considered, we here in the West live in a generation that thinks that the way things are now, are the way they will always be. This view is known as uniformitarianism. Similarly, every age has thought that way until something came along that revolutionized either how they lived, or completely disrupted their world they lived in; wars, famines, plagues, automobiles, airplanes, the atom bomb, computers, Internet, etc.


But since we live in an age where technology keeps evolving so quickly (flying cars, trans-humanism, artificial intelligence, 5 and 6G networks, crypto-currency, quantum computers, hypersonic travel, genetic modifications and all the rest), the expectation amongst “the experts” is that we will continue to evolve as a race until humans and machines are virtually indistinguishable. In an era of perpetual modernization, we tend to think that mankind will continue upward on a trajectory that achieves a Star Trek paradigm of a humanistic utopia.
Speaking of Thomas Hobbes, he is most famous for his treatise on the social-political contract titled Leviathan. Below is a short summation of that text.


In 1649, a civil war broke out over who would rule England—Parliament or King Charles I. The war ended with the beheading of the king. Shortly after Charles was executed, an English philosopher, Thomas Hobbes (1588–1679), wrote Leviathan, a defense of the absolute power of kings. The title of the book referred to a leviathan, a mythological, whale-like sea monster that devoured whole ships. Hobbes likened the leviathan to government, a powerful state created to impose order.


Hobbes believed that a government headed by a king was the best form that the sovereign could take. Placing all power in the hands of a king would mean more resolute and consistent exercise of political authority, Hobbes argued. Hobbes also maintained that the social contract was an agreement only among the people and not between them and their king. Once the people had given absolute power to the king, they had no right to revolt against him.


Hobbes warned against the church meddling with the king’s government. He feared religion could become a source of civil war. Thus, he advised that the church become a department of the king’s government, which would closely control all religious affairs. In any conflict between divine and royal law, Hobbes wrote, the individual should obey the king or choose death. (Source) Emphasis mine


Hobbes political-philosophical theories have greatly influenced many (including America’s Founding Fathers) throughout the ages. Having recently experienced firsthand the tyranny of a king, the Founding Fathers rightly rejected his ideas on assigning all power to an individual or group, which is how we ended up with a government that operates under a separation of powers.


In retrospect, Leviathan can hardly been seen as intentionally prophetic, there is embedded within it an ages-long desire to ultimately consolidate power into the hands of one person. This desire for replacing anarchy for “peace and security” can be traced all the way back to a man named Nimrod and the Tower of Babel.


But the Lord came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built. And the Lord said, “Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them…So the Lord scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they ceased building the city. Therefore its name is called Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth; and from there the Lord scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth. Genesis 11:5-9


In other words, what God has torn asunder, let not man rejoin. But ever since, man has consistently (and futilely) sought to bring everyone back together. Most have attempted to unify the world under threat of force: The Egyptians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Mongols, Muslims, Napoleon, Adolph Hitler, and various communist dictators all have tried and failed. However, there has never been as serious a movement for a new world order as there has been since the end of World War II. The chartering of the United Nations on 26 June 1945, marked a new era in which world powers would willingly subjugate themselves (in varying degrees) over to a world political and economic body.


There are many, particularly within secretive societies and Marxist groups, which believe consolidating power into a single source, is the only way to solve the world’s problems. But with the ascendancy of the United States after World Wars I and II, this idea of a single-world-order would have to wait. But in their waiting, proponents of this new world order have been quietly laying a foundation of political and economic spider webs so intrinsic, that NO future government or political body would ever escape it. They are busy consolidating as much power, into as few of hands as possible. This is not some nefarious scheme to them, but a way to bring complete and total peace and security to a planet in disarray.


According to Revelation 13, there is coming a world government that will one day control every facet of life on earth with absolute authority. This government is represented symbolically as a beast rising out of the sea. The beast is represented as an amalgamation of many different kinds of animals (kingdoms). The symbolism of the animal (kingdoms) comes from Daniel 7-8. The symbolism for the sea represents the ‘sea of humanity,’ as later explained in Revelation 17:15. Those left behind after the Rapture of the Church will enter into Daniel’s 70th Week (Daniel 9:24-27) and willingly give their authority over to this monstrosity of a government.


In turn, this world government will consolidate all its authority into the hands of one man, the Antichrist. Of course, he will not come out and say he is the Antichrist but rather, will appear as the “rider on the white horse,” bearing a bow with no arrows and wearing a victor’s crown (Rev. 6:1-2). Daniel states that he will go about destroying fearfully through deception and lies (Daniel 8:24-25). Both Daniel and later the Apostle Paul state that his blasphemies against God and Christ, are stacked up to the heavens (Dan. 7:24, 2nd Thessalonians 2:4).


Conclusion


But concerning the times and the seasons, brethren, you have no need that I should write to you. For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. For when they say, “Peace and safety!” then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape. 1st Thess. 5:1-3


Every single past attempt at unifying the world has always lacked the single most important ingredient, the perfect crisis. I believe that the perfect crisis will manifest itself in the form of the Rapture of the Church, which will empty the world of all Spirit-filled believers. This sudden removal will also remove the restraining influence that the Holy Spirit has exercised over the earth for the past 2,000 years (2nd Thess. 2:7; 1st John 2:18). The Holy Spirit (by way of the Church) has kept the spirit of antichrist at bay since Pentecost.


But as we draw nearer to the end, we have seen the churches become more and more apostate, subsequently losing ground in virtually every sector and facet of society they once held. Social norms and values have been corrupted to the point that we (as a society) can no longer can distinguish right from wrong. This is evidenced by the rise in this antichrist spirit that we see sweeping the world.


Along with the perfect crisis, comes a world already primed and ready through these transnational organizations and economies, technology, secular humanism, paganism, and indoctrination to believe the lie that will abound in the aftermath of the Rapture. We do not know what that lie will be at present, but if the world can accept the scientific “truths” of the Big Bang theory, Darwinian evolution, man-made global warming, yet, deny the scientific truth that men and women are biologically different; the world is very much ready to believe anything.


So why crisis by Rapture?


Having read numerous Department of Defense and National Security briefs over the years concerning every possible threat and/or scenario the United States faces, not one of them ever mentions a rapture-type scenario. To the world, a “rapture” is beyond preposterous. To most of the mainline Christian churches, a “rapture” is impossible. To the overwhelming majority in the media and the academic elite, the rapture is the epitome foolishness. In fact, the only time it is ever brought up in the public sense, is only to mock someone who has unwisely (and unbiblically) advocated a particular date they think it will happen.


But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; 1st Corinthians 2:7


If crisis was not the intended effect (for those on the earth) in the Rapture’s wake, why couldn’t God just make all true born-again Christians immortal and immune to both sin and wrath during the 70th Week? However, it is exactly the opposite. We are not promised to be kept through this period of testing, but too be kept from the very time (hour) of it.


Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth. Revelation 3:10


For all intents and purposes, the Rapture was designed the way it was in order to create this perfect vehicle for ushering in an immediate, global crisis. This crisis allows this sea monster (along with the Antichrist) to usher in total, absolute control. This final and terrifying governmental system has the total backing of Satan, that serpent of old. It will crush all underfoot and bring about destruction so severe, that if God does not intervene, no flesh would survive (Matt. 24:20-22). But fear not,


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. Isaiah 27:1
​

Even so, Maranatha!

By -Pete Garcia - 
​http://www.omegaletter.com/articles/articles.asp?ArticleID=8612