Prophecy Update Newsletter
IN TODAY'S NEWSLETTER...
A World Turned Upside Down - By Jan Markell – www.olivetreeviews.org
Why are we surprised? Prophecy watchers have been warning people for years that end-time events could be shocking, even before the Rapture. We have let people know that Tribulation events would cast a shadow on the Church Age as God gears up to close the Church Age. We have talked about the “birth pangs” of the last days for decades. God doesn’t shake the entire globe very often. He did during the time of Noah and at the Tower of Babel. There was a terrible plague in the 1300s and a pandemic in 1918. Two world wars took a stunning toll. But now an unseen enemy—a virus, no less—has created fear-driven chaos, and some unknown factors are causing people to embrace a worst-case outlook for the world. At this time, we don’t know how this plays out. It certainly has apocalyptic implications. The world is in a set-up mode for the longing of a man-with-a-plan, sort of a Mr. Fix-It. Perhaps he is waiting in the wings. No doubt Satan has always had such a man in the shadows, as the prince of darkness does not know the date when God plans on bringing society to an end, at least as we know it. He does not know the day ordained for the Rapture of the Church. Someone may be needed to calm the storm. Presidential proclamations aren’t doing the trick. There is going to be a mess to clean up since the world is in a meltdown, markets are crashing, economies are tanking, people are losing all stability, and lives are being lost. Still, there is much that is puzzling! The Swine Flu of 2009-2010 affected 61 million Americans yet produced little panic. Neither Barack Obama nor U.S. Governors stopped life as we know it back then. Sporting events went on, schools remained open, as did churches. Disneyland was not affected! Fast-forward to 2020. Have you read the headlines on Drudge Report? Sure, journalism knows that if it bleeds it leads, but to look at various media, the sky is truly falling. It’s the end-of-the-world as we know it, even though most who get this new disease, Covid-19, will recover. So, I have to ask if this is the crisis the globalists have waited for -- or have their hand in -- to make the world as one? Two men mess up their plans: Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu. Recently celebrities lauded John Lennon's song "Imagine" which visualizes the world united with no religions. My prophecy colleague, Todd Hampson, writes, “I believe what we are witnessing with COVID-19 is part of the birth pains Jesus talked about in the Olivet Discourse. In fact, I think it is a major birth pain; as is the locust plague that is ravaging Africa and the Mideast; as is the large number of social uprisings in countries around the world; as is the increase in earthquake activity; as were the record-breaking Australian wild fires; as is—you get the picture. Birth pains increase in frequency and intensity, and they only increase until the moment of delivery.” Todd continues, “This particular birth pain happens to be one that the entire world is feeling. Again, increased intensity. It’s also a birth pain that has shaken all earthly things. Sports, financial markets, distractions, hobbies, concerts, you name it—have all been shut down. “Those things aren’t bad in themselves, but it’s as if God is removing any distractions for a moment in history to plead with the world again, ‘Look up! Look to me! This world is temporary. Think about eternal things. I love you. I died for you. Please don’t ignore me. Turn to me now while there is time.’” Hampson writes, “I should also add that this is a pebble in the ocean compared to a yet-future global event that will rock the world to its core. If one rapidly spreading virus can cause this type of global disruption, can you imagine what the Rapture will do when tens of millions are removed from the world in an instant?” Todd concludes, “That singular event will set all the end-time events of John’s Revelation into motion. There have been condensed periods of major supernatural events in the past—creation, the exodus, and the events surrounding the first coming of Jesus, culminating with the resurrection. Now, after roughly 2,000 years, we await another period of immense supernatural events which will begin with the Rapture.” What we see playing out before our eyes is a part of the predicted scenario. Remember, everything is falling into place. These things must happen. God is shaking the nations. They have been too consumed with pleasure to pay Him the least bit of attention. We keep getting feedback that people who would never listen before are now asking questions. I trust that you are there with answers. Will Coronavirus Tempt Iran To Target Israel? - By Israel Kasnett/JNS.org - https://www.prophecynewswatch.com/article.cfm?recent_news_id=3925 With the chaos of the coronavirus (COVID-19), will Iran take advantage of Israel's perceived weakened state to attack through proxies? Iran may perceive Israel's military as being unable to call up masses of reserves or send large groups of civilians into close quarters in rocket shelters due to coronavirus restrictions. Will Iran attack? This was one of the questions posed in a conference call hosted by the Jewish Institute of National Security for America (JINSA) on the security implications of the coronavirus for Iran and the Middle East. The call featured JINSA Fellow Yaakov Amdiror, Israel's former Israeli National Security Adviser, and also JINSA Fellow Itai Shapira, former deputy head of the Research and Analysis Division (RAD) in the Israel Defense Forces. According to Amidror, the extent of the disease in Iran is not really known. "It is clear the Iranians are not telling the truth and are hiding the real situation," he said. "We know that the numbers are growing and are much greater than those announced by the authorities. As far as can be judged from the outside, without having the real information, everything is out of control." He said Iran made a huge mistake in the beginning, allowing flights between Iran, China and Lebanon. "Iran is the center of spreading the virus around the Middle East because people are flying between Beirut and Tehran," he said. On Tuesday, the spokesperson for the Iranian Health Ministry announced a total of 988 deaths as a result of COVID-19, with nearly 15,000 infected, according to reports. As of Friday, the number of infected had risen to 19,644. In terms of stopping activities in the Middle East, Amidror said this is not going to happen. "Iran will try to continue with the pressure [against the United States], especially in Iraq, where it has Shi'ite militias." "Iran will not stop," he stressed. "There are more questions than answers with regard to Iran. It is very complicated." 'A regional phenomena' Shapira said we should think of the effect of the coronavirus as "a regional phenomena" and predicted the possibility of another wave of instability that could sweep the Middle East, not unlike the "Arab Spring" protests that began in 2010. Regarding Iran specifically, he said, "this is now one of the biggest challenges Iran has faced since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. This could not have come at a worse time for Iran, after the maximum pressure policy placed on it by the U.S., after the sanctions, after the protests a few months ago, after the downing of a Ukrainian airliner, and now the low oil prices. This is a unique challenge for the regime." Shapira said that the so-called "moderate" camp, including President Hassan Rouhani, in Iran is growing weaker as a result of the virus. "We see it in the streets. This is a president who is considered a failure. He is not succeeding in providing economic relief, not succeeding with the JCPOA, not lowering gas prices, and now failing with the coronavirus crisis," he said. "The IRGC and military are becoming stronger and more dominant," he warned. However, Shapira said he does believe that the absence of former IRGC commander Qassem Soleimani, assassinated in a U.S. drone strike in January, "dramatically reduces the capability of the IRGC and the Quds force." "With the absence of Soleimani and his less charismatic and less connected successor [Esmail Ghaani], I wonder if this Iranian 'alliance' with the Shi'ite militias in Iraq and the militias in Syria, Hezbollah in Lebanon and Houthis in Yemen, is still as centralized and controlled by Iran as it was in the days of Soleimani," he posed. Shapira said that with or without the virus, "the issue of a Western presence in the Middle East, specifically in Iraq, is something that bothers [Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali] Khamenei, and the Iranian military and the IRGC, no less than the virus disturbs them at the moment." Whether or not Iran will indeed make any moves against Western forces in the region, he said, "I am not sure they will now be less hesitant or more capable or more willing to act externally, but since they are at such a dramatic strategic crisis, they might consider some actions in the Gulf. They understand the U.S. administration is a red line. They might consider some actions such as cyber warfare or directing proxies, if they are under extreme distress." With regard to Iran's proxies and the possibility of them opening a front against Israel, Amidror said, "for sure, Hezbollah will be very, very cautious. They know the situation in Lebanon," which is $90 billion in debt and just defaulted on a $1.2 billion bond. "The crisis in Lebanon is only the beginning," said Amidror. "Everyone in Lebanon sees Hezbollah as responsible since they decide who is in the government and who has influence in the government. Hezbollah leader Nasrallah will be very cautious." Amidror thinks that Iran will not "push themselves into another corner" when it has such huge internal problems. "The last thing Iran wants to see right now," he said, "is 400 Israeli airplanes above Tehran." Nearing Midnight: Market Meltdown – Todd Strandberg - https://www.raptureready.com/category/nearing-midnight/ It has been absolutely stunning to behold the meltdown on Wall Street. Over the past few weeks, I have witnessed financial events that most economists would have never thought possible. All this activity reminds me of the insanity that occurred in the 2008/2009 Great Recession. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin raised the possibility with Republican senators that U.S. unemployment could rise to 20% without government intervention because of the impact of the coronavirus. The unemployment scenario raised by Mnuchin would be a dramatic turn from February, when U.S. employment surged. The jobless rate fell back to a half-century low of 3.5% as average hourly earnings climbed a steady 3% from a year earlier. “Social distancing,” the now-prevalent practice of maintaining approximately six feet of distance from all persons, has been a death knell for businesses that service large groups of people. Airline bookings are down 70%, sit down restaurant traffic is down 95%, movie ticket sales are down 97%, and the cruise-lines industry is halting operations and mothballing ships as they face the biggest challenge since 9/11. In a growing number of cities, food-serving facilities are only allowed to provide delivery or carry-out services. The economy is like some sharks. If it stops swimming, it dies. I would liken the decision to shut down a vast swath of the economy as airplane pilots announcing he is going to turn off all engines because air traffic control (ATC) announced that the fuel is contaminated with a gritty substance that can damage the engines. The largest drop in oil demand in history is underway due to the coronavirus. When the price of oil crashed after Russia refused to work with OPEC in cutting the supply of oil, US oil producers got slaughtered. The stock price of Occidental Petroleum was cut in half in a single day. Many of the shale oil companies saw 60-70% declines in their stock value. Ford, General Motors (GM), and Fiat Chrysler announced plans to close all factories in the United States to protect workers from possible coronavirus infection. The shutdown will last until the end of the month, but the virus will still be here in April. The closure will have a massive impact on the economy. The downfall of the Boeing Company shows how fast good times can turn bad. The stock price for Boeing was right at $400 per share for several months. The firm repurchased over $100 billion in stock, which helped maintain that high stock price. After the coronavirus triggered dozens of plane cancellations, Boeing’s stock price declined by 75%. Fitch downgraded the company’s debt to BBB, and there are now rumors that Boeing is seeking a “Short-Term” Bailout. A firm that started the year with a $200 billion market cap has now dropped to a modest $57 billion. The White House is working on a $1.3 trillion rescue plan, which includes sending two large checks to many Americans and devoting $300 billion toward helping small businesses avoid mass layoffs. Priorities laid out in a two-page Treasury Department document also include $50 billion to help rescue the airline industry and $150 billion to prop up other sectors, which could include hotels. The coronavirus is going to be an absolute disaster for the federal budget. During a good year of economic growth, we still added $1.4 trillion to the national debt. If the early financial numbers are a reflection of the national economy, we are headed for a major recession. Tax revenue is about to plunge, while demand for unemployment insurance and food stamps are set to soar. It is very likely that we will have a $4- to $5-trillion deficit in the coming year. The U.S. government now owes over $23.5 trillion in debt, or about $71,000 for every man, woman and child living within its borders. It has risen $3 trillion since President Trump took office in 2017 and is almost double what it was just 10 years ago. The real flood of money is taking place behind the scenes. Federal Reserve head Jerome Powell has committed the Fed to loan agreements of a trillion dollars a day. As I’m writing, he has made repo commitments that total $6.45 trillion. The Fed is buying up bonds, stocks, and mortgages at 100% face value even though many of these assets have gone down in value. Powell can hold onto the bad loans forever. There is some early indication that bond traders are starting to realize the impact of all this dollar- printing madness will have on the markets. The 10-Year bond got as low as 0.4% on March 9th. It has now soared back up to 1.26%. My greatest financial fear is that the world will wake up some day and realize they made a huge mistake by making the dollar the world’s reserve currency. It amazes me that every time there is a panic, the greenback is the preferred choice compared to all other major currencies. Common sense tells me that there is no way for us to pull out of this financial nose-dive. Since God is in complete control, a miracle cure for the coronavirus could suddenly appear and, within a year’s time, traders on Wall Street would dust off their Dow 30,000 hats. “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7). Biblical Objectivity in a Fallen World of Subjective Delusion – David Pepe - https://www.theignorantfishermen.com/2011/07/biblical-objectivity-in-fallen-world-of.html?m=0 Try to stand back and objectively look at the span of time here on earth; from the Tower of Babel with its global catalyst of godlessness and passion to live an existence without Almighty God, to the worldly brilliance and idolatrous society of Egypt. From the autocratic power of the Babylonians, to the strength of the Media Persians Empire. From the conquering speed and philosophy of Greece, to the decadent and oppressive Roman Empire. From the genus and barbarity of the Aztec, Mayans and Incas, to the godless vacuum of the European nations and lust for war. All of these civilizations have been one GODLESS, violent, decadent and oppressive cesspool of death and horror to the world's inhabitants (Rom. 1:18-32). Almighty God describes some of these global empires as ferocious wild beasts void of ANY Divine RIGHTEOUSNESS to help us better understand them from a heavenly perspective (Dan 7, Rev 13:1-2). My friend what is most astounding is that we haven’t evened peaked as a fallen race until we reached the 20th century. There has NEVER been a more violent, murderous, oppressive, narcissistic and decadent century in the history of mankind. All of our world’s EXPONENTIAL technological advances made in this last century has given the world more power at their finger tips to show forth the fallen godless passions and violence of the human heart (Jer. 17:9). Of course we have had some noble occasions and humanitarian exploits throughout this time, but these are but a faded blip and pale EXPONENTIALLY in comparison to mankind’s history of violence, lust and decadence (Rom 3:3-23). The out working and horrific consequences from the billions that have inhabited planet earth since Babel has completely ravished and laid waste this world's lands and inhabitants. The godless Babelology that first raised its head 4200 years ago (Gen 11:1-9), has thoroughly engulfed and saturated the world of today. This fallen world's Babelology has made its billions of inhabitants spiritually stinking drunk to the crucial realities of time and ETERNITY and thus will they be swept away in the Day which fastly approaches (Eph. 2:1-3, Rev 17:1-2, 18:24). Dear friends, now that we are here in the twenty first century do you think it will get any better mankind? Oh what delusion and fantasy the lawless globalist utopians of this hour hold onto! For with the EXPONENTIAL technological advances of this century will bring about the most HORRIFIC TIME of EXPONENTIAL violence, barbarity, casualties of death , geographical devastation and expression of the fallen heart of man this world has EVER known (Isa. 24, Dan. 12:1, Matt 24:21, Rev. 6-19). Indeed the Day of the Wrath of the Lamb is at hand and who shall abide (Rev. 6:15-17)! Even America, which was founded during the Philadelphia Church Age (from about 1700 to about 1900 – the church of the “open door” – Rev 3:7-13), was established on the bedrock of natural and moral laws and foremost acknowledged the Person of Almighty God at its founding. America was founded at the end of the world’s time line which spans about 4200 years. Just in these brief 241 years of our nation's history we have reached socially and culturally the point of no return. There has been no other nation in the world's history that has sent out the Biblical Gospel light as America has. America has been a beacon of freedom to the world's oppressed and has been a global dam holding back the world’s anti-Semitism, oppressive tyrannies and the unbridled passions of fallen despots, especially in this last century. Let me ask you this very sobering question, “What do you think will become of the world once America restraining influence has been removed from the scene?” The very sobering answer is... GREAT tribulation and global anti -Semitism (Zech 14:2, Rev 6-16). America in these last 60 years has given herself full over to lawlessness, lewdness, godless pleasure seeking, immorality, vice, abortion, anti family values, godless ambitions and to the hatred of biblical TRUTH and REALITIES and to the absolute hatred of Jesus Christ the Savior of the world! Dear friends, when the dam (America) which is holding back Satan and this world's evil designs is its self inflicting herself with lawlessness at every level what is to stop the Day of the Lord and ALL its EXPONENTIAL devastation to follow? Dear friends, indeed the Day of the Lord is at hand but there is hope in the Savior of the world! If you personally know the Lord as your Savior, may you pray that He will give you the ETERNAL PERSPECTIVE for our day that you might have eyes to see the reality and truth, not just from your position in Christ (Eph. 2:6, Col. 3:1-4, Rev 4-5), but also to comprehend our day and hour in which we live (Prov. 2:6, Matt. 7:7, James 1:5). The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand! Daily Jot: The COVID-19 propaganda machine – Bill Wilson – www.dailyjot.com It won't be long, maybe a few days, that you will not be getting the raw, candid, unedited live version of President Trump's COVID-19 news briefings. These are too much for the very biased news media to handle, especially when they cannot put their own spin on the President's words. The free press is making decisions to bind up the raw material and do their own "fact checking" on everything the President says about COVID-19 recovery. When this decision is made, you will be hearing a lot more from Democratic Presidential candidate Joe Biden showing his brand of leadership by cowering in his home in a makeshift studio taking pot shots at everything the President says. Now that's real news coverage, right? At a time in our nation when good news is difficult to find, the news media wants to do its part in bringing the darkest, gloomiest account of how America is no more. The great American ideal of being able to meet any and all challenges with a spirit of hope, creative ingenuity, and undeniable courage is cast aside by a news media that wants to show all the bad things that happen because their darling socialist is not in leadership. Instead of finding the stories of victory over this virus, they brood over how any glimmer of hope is just a fleeting misfire. Instead of telling the many stories of how people of all races, ethnicities, and social strata are working together and caring for one another, they show the dark side of humanity. Oh, I guess that's news. Somehow the news media has determined that Trump is using the COVID-19 news briefings as campaign rallies. So they are wanting to quit covering them live and edit down the content so they can fix the Trump narrative of how America can defeat this virus. They are so bent on the idea that Trump's actions are resulting in more deaths than necessary, that they can't even begin to fathom that there might just be some truth in hope. I've watched many of these briefings, and the questions asked by these young socialists are disrespectful, sarcastic and misleading. Yet, Trump and his team have exercised great patience in answering all of them, no matter how ridiculous they are. The news media has the chance to grill the President every day, essentially have an interview with him on a daily basis. Good journalists would thirst for such a chance. These politically intolerant, ideological bigots are so eager to hear their own opinions that they want to shut down a very rare chance to provide insight on the President's thinking during a time of historic crisis. The media's ignorant group think, its collective bias, laziness, and arrogance is a disservice to the First Amendment. They are a propaganda machine for ignorance, while selling themselves as enlightenment. You will not find much truth in the media. As 1 Thessalonians 5:21 says, "Prove all things; hold fast that which is good." Discernment is key to your mental health and survival. Be careful what and how much news you watch. Even more careful what you believe. Daily Devotion: A Reason Not to Fear - by Greg Laurie – www.harvest.org People are born for trouble as readily as sparks fly up from a fire. —Job 5:7 These days, people are afraid. You can see the fear on their faces. They’re alarmed and feel as though they don’t have control because the truth is; they don’t. John 14 tells us of a time when the disciples were afraid. Jesus had dropped a bombshell on them. He said something that turned their world, as they knew it, upside down. Then He went on to share some words to bring calm to their troubled hearts: “Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me” (John 14:1 NLT). He didn’t say, “Mull over your problems.” Rather, He said, “Don’t be troubled.” Life is filled with trouble. It seems as though once you have one problem resolved, three more take its place. As Job 5:7 says, “People are born for trouble as readily as sparks fly up from a fire” (NLT). From the moment we come into this life, there are all kinds of troubles. While there are reasons to be troubled, there is a greater reason not to be: We know Jesus. He said to His disciples, “Trust in God, and trust also in me” (John 14:1 NLT). In other words, “I haven’t brought you this far to abandon you now. I know what I’m doing. Believe.” There are times in our lives when things happen that we just don’t understand. When I don’t understand something about God, I try to always fall back on what I do understand: I do understand that God loves me. I do understand that He is looking out for me with my best interests in mind. And I do understand that no matter what happens, He will get me through. 
FROM THE HEART
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