Though the trends of the events that are now
coming to pass in this
first decade of the Twenty-first Century were
certainly in the making
for a considerably longer period of time, it has
still amazed me just
how profound they have been in recent years. Let's
take a look at a few
prominent examples.
In the natural world we have seen:
1) A profound increase of moderate to severe
earthquakes beginning
in 2002 and escalating ever since. Already by June
of 2010 we have
surpassed last year's count.
2) A similar increase in extremes of weather across
the planet
with old records being regularly being shattered.
In the world of human events we have:
1) The increasing and perplexing hostility toward
the nation of
Israel by the world community. Even the United
States which was its best
ally has become markedly less supportive.
2) The almost universal inability or perhaps even
deliberate
unwillingness of the nations to recognize the
growing militancy of Islam
and the threat it poses to the world despite the
repeated actions and
openly hostile statements made by its own adherents.
3) The sweeping acceptance of heretical and even
blasphemous
doctrines by much of the Western Church in direct
opposition to Biblical
principles.
4) The increasing denial of Christian origins and
principles by
both
European Union's and United States' governing
bodies.
5) Worldwide negative trends toward Christians and
Jews up
to and including active persecution.
6) A rapidly deteriorating morality which embraces
all
manner of "alternate" lifestyles and the
glorification of sensuality
with the attendant rejection of traditional
marriage, family, and
fidelity.
Now I am certain that you can add many more examples
to the
ones I've just listed, But I think that we can agree
that not only is
there something VERY WRONG with the path our world
is taking. But what
seems most inexplicable is that most of humanity
seems oblivious to this
very thing. In the essay which follows, I offer a
possible explanation
from the pages of the Bible itself as to why our
civilization seems
incapable of seeing the danger lurking at its very
doorstep.
Let's begin with the prophet Isaiah who lived back
in the
8th Century
B.C.
Isaiah 29:9-10 Stay yourselves, and wonder; cry ye
out
and cry: they are drunken, but not with wine; they
stagger, but not with
strong drink. For the Lord hath poured out upon you
a spirit of deep
sleep, and hath close your eyes: the prophets and
your rulers, the seers
hath he covered.
Jesus said:
Matthew 13:12-15 For whosoever hath, to him shall be
given,
and he shall have more abundance; but whosoever hath
not, from him shall
be taken even that he hath. Therefore I speak to
them in parables:
because the seeing see not; and hearing they hear
not, neither do they
understand. And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of
Esaias [Isaiah],
which saith, By hearing ye shall hear and not
understand; and seeing ye
shall see, and shall not perceive: For this people's
heart is waxed
gross, and their ears dull of hearing, and their
eyes have closed; lest
at any time they should see with their eyes, and
hear it their ears, and
should understand with their heart, and should be
converted, and I
should heal them. [Note: Here and throughout,
bracketed sections are
added for clarification.]
Paul, who lived in the First Century A.D. said:
Romans 11:8
(According as it is written, God hath given them the
spirit of slumber,
eyes that they should not see, and ears that they
should not hear) unto
this day.
In the first passage, Isaiah is addressing the
spiritual
blindness of the inhabitants of "Ariel,' otherwise
known as
Jerusalem.
Despite the mighty acts God had performed for the
children of Israel
ranging from their miraculous delivery from slavery
in Egypt to their
arrival and prospering in the
Promised Land, they had over time turned
away from God and his ways. Their minds were
increasingly clouded to
their error and it was only a matter of time before
the northern part of
the divided kingdom (Israel)
was systematically dismantled by the
Assyrians. A little over a century later during the
time of Jeremiah,
the southern kingdom (Judah) would follow Israel's
path away from God
into idolatry and would itself be carried away in
three exiles to
Babylon by
King
Nebuchadnezzar.
In the second passage, Jesus relates that the same
spiritual
blindness of which Isaiah spoke was still present in
the now
Roman-occupied region of what was once Israel and
Judah in his own time.
In fact it would prove to be this very thing that
would bring him to his
end at Calvary by the religious authorities who even
with their
extensive knowledge of the Hebrew Scriptures were
still unable to
recognize that the Messiah they had sought was
actually standing in
their very midst.
In the third passage from
Paul's letter to the Romans, he
again addresses the matter of spiritual blindness
amongst his own
countrymen.
But lest we point fingers of blame toward the Hebrew
people of those long-ago times, we should remember
that even with the
advantage of now having the testimony recorded in
the
New Testament
which those who did not recognize Jesus lacked 2000
years ago, there are
now BILLIONS of people from all nationalities who
still don't recognize
this same Jesus for whom he really is today!
The truth is that since the beginning of
humanity's tenure
on Earth, we've had a difficult time sorting out the
truth from the lie.
Remember what happened in Genesis 3? Even the
initially innocent
Adam
and Eve were tricked by Satan's clever ruse
to make them wish to become
wise like God concerning good and evil. Of course
this problem has
become greatly exacerbated ever since the Fall which
allowed the devil
to become the "prince of this world (John 12:31;
14:30; 16:11).
Satan's biggest tool is that of deceit and
Scripture tells
us that he is a master of it:
John 8:44 [Jesus is addressing those who are arguing
with him] Ye are of
your father the devil, and the lusts of your father
ye will do. He was a
murderer from the beginning , and abode not in the
truth, because there
is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he
speaketh of his own: for
he is a liar, and the father of it.
Since this is so, it is no wonder that the
majority of
humankind has been deceived by the devil across the
ages. We have seen
all to often the tragedy of a lie being repeated
often enough to start
sounding like the truth. Looking back at our earlier
passages it is
apparent that this is all a deliberate plan of the
Adversary to
literally "mess with our heads." Here are a few more
verses which bear
this out:
1 Corinthians 1:18 For the preaching of the cross it
to them that perish
foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the
power of God
1 Corinthians 2:14 But the natural man receiveth not
the
things of the
Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto
him: neither can he know
them, because they are spiritually discerned.
2 Corinthians 4:3 But if our gospel is hid, it is
hid to them that are
lost.
1 John 2:18 Little children, it is the last time:
and as ye have
heard that antichrist shall come, even now there are
many antichrists;
whereby we know that it is the last time.
As you can see, over and over again we are told
what
the problem is and exactly who is causing it. But
there is yet another
passage I want to share with you that not only
confirms this but gives
us a look into a chilling future.
2
Thessalonians 2:6-12 And now ye know what
withholdeth [the
Holy
Spirit which dwells within believers in
Jesus] that he [the Antichrist]
might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of
iniquity doth already
work [see 1 John 2:18 above] only he [the
Holy
Spirit] who now letteth
will let ["let" in Old English means "restrain"]
until he [the Holy
Spirit] be taken out of the way. [At the Rapture,
those indwelt with the
Holy Spirit will meet Jesus in the air (1 Thess.
4:14-18) , literally
taking them out of the way. Of course, since the
Holy Spirit is God he
is still omnipresent as always, but will possibly
operate as he did in
Old
Testament times wherein he would come upon
someone, such as a
prophet, but not take up permanent residence as he
now does in
believers].
And then shall that Wicked [Antichrist] be revealed
[Daniel
9;27; 11:36] whom the Lord shall consume with the
spirit of his mouth,
and shall destroy with the brightness of his [Jesus
Christ's] coming
[Revelation 19:11-21]. Even him [Antichrist] whose
coming is after the
working of Satan with all power and signs and lying
wonders. and with
all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that
perish; because they
received not the love of truth, that they might be
saved. And for this
cause God shall sent them strong delusion, that they
should believe a
lie: that they all might be damned who believe not
the truth, but had
pleasure in unrighteousness.
Paul's insight here is truly inspired and in this
passage there is so much revealed that it is well
worth our time to
re-read it several times and let it sink in. To
summarize we discover:
1) The "antichrist spirit" is already at work RIGHT
NOW working to
deceive people. I think it is safe to say it is
becoming ever more
successful at this task. Those who willingly reject
the truth are more
subject to having their minds further blinded by
Satan.
2) The Holy Spirit which indwells believers has been
acting in some
manner as a restrainer to prevent this spirit's full
power from coming
to bear and allowing the Antichrist ascend to
prominence as well.
3) After the Rapture, the power of darkness will
sweep across this
planet like never before.
The
Antichrist with his access to Satan's
formidable arsenal of dark power will easily deceive
and control most of
the human race. If you think times are bad now, and
in many ways they
certainly are, it will pale in comparison compared
to what's ahead. I
would not be surprised if the Antichrist augments
his supernatural
abilities with technological ones as well. There
might be something like
this operating in his 666 marking system [Revelation
13:16-18].
4) Increasingly over the last seven years of
history, the Antichrist's
grasp on the world will increase, especially in the
concluding three and
a half years.
5) In the end, the Antichrist and his henchman, the
false
prophet, will
be destroyed and sent into the lake of fire after
the Second Coming of
Jesus. Satan will be locked away in the abyss for
1000 years after which
he and all the unrighteous will be released, judged
and sent as well
into the burning lake.
Yes, it is certainly easy to get a feeling of
hopelessness as we
look at both the secular and church world today.
When we see much of the
church also accepting active homosexuality, turning
a blind eye to
abortion, rejecting Jesus Christ as the ONLY means
of salvation, and
refusing to stand against civil laws which are
totally against
Scripture, it's getting pretty hard to tell them
apart.
In the face of this reality is there anything we can
do as
individuals to arm ourselves with the spiritual
weapons we need so as
not to be deceived? The hopeful answers are all
found in the Bible.
John 8:31-32 Then said Jesus to those Jews which
believed on him, If
ye continue in my word, then ye are my disciples
indeed: And ye shall
know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
[Though Jesus was
speaking at that time to the people around him which
happened to be
Jews, no doubt this principle applies to ALL
people.]
John 14:25-26 [Jesus said] These things have I
spoken unto you,
begin yet present with you. But the Comforter, which
is the
Holy
Ghost,
whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach
you all things, and
bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I
have said unto you.
[In other words, we have the Holy Spirit available
right now to give us
clarity of thought, along with his other gifts. All
we have to do is to
accept Jesus for the Spirit to live within us.]
Ephesians 6;12-18 For we wrestle not against flesh
and blood, but
against the principalities. against powers, against
the rulers of the
darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness
in high places.
wherefore take unto you the whole
armour of God, that ye may be able to
withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to
stand. Stand
therefore having your loins girt about with truth,
and having on the
breastplate of righteousness; and having your
feet shop with the
preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all,
taking the shield of
faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the
fiery darts of the
wicked. And take the
helmet of salvation, and the
sword
of the spirit,
and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of
God: Praying always
with all power and supplication
in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all
perseverance and
supplication for all saints.
[What we see in this world is merely the tip of the
iceberg of the
spiritual warfare raging just out of our
sight. There is no way we can
prevail on our own or unequipped.]
James 1:5-7 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask
of God, that giveth
to all men freely, and upbraideth not; and it shall
be given him. But
let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that
wavereth is like a
wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For
let not that man
think that he shall receive anything of the Lord.
I cannot recommend anything more strongly to all who
read this
than to get into the habit of reading
God's
Word DAILY, if you are
already not doing so. For those of you just starting
out, I suggest the
Gospel of John,
Gospel of Luke, and Luke's second work which
is the Book
of Acts. All are clear and concise and will furnish
you with a solid
foundation on which to build your continuing
explorations of the Bible.
I personally have discovered to my delight that if
you ask God to help
you understand what you are reading, I guarantee
that he will. Over the
years I have been amazed how new insights have come
to me even in long
familiar passages.
Furthermore, it has been my experience that God will
use
Scripture to speak to you, bringing to mind a
particular verse of even
an entire section applicable to a question you might
have or a situation
you might encounter in your everyday life. Bible
Study will give you
increasing discernment regarding what is right and
what is wrong. It
will let GOD control your mind instead of the dark
forces currently at
large in our world that have been so successful in
literally deceiving
billions!
Remember, Satan's big "modus operandi" is to try to
fool you into
believing a lie. Here is a passage that helps to
further explain his
approach:
2 Corinthians 11:12-15 But what I do, that I will do
that I may cut off
occasion from them that desire occasion; that
wherein they glory, they
may be found even as we. For such are false
apostles, deceitful workers
transforming themselves into the
apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for
Satan himself is transformed into and angel of
light. [Paul is telling
us that he will continue to be a true apostle and in
so doing false ones
will be revealed as such. They may appear genuine,
but are not. Satan
and his minions often present themselves as
benevolent and as such draw
people in. So . . . WATCH OUT!]
Remember that God will always be there for you
despite what
is happening on Earth today, as frightening as it
can often be -
PROVIDED that you allow him into your life. Though
he is all-powerful,
God will not operate against the free will have gave
you. If you choose
to reject him, as most of this sad world has done,
then Satan will begin
his dark work against you and cloud your mind to the
truth.
There was a time you could find a church which had
the
Bible as its foundation, but I unfortunately there
are fewer of these
with each day, and a lot of counterfeits out there
which may give lip
service to respecting the authority of Scripture but
in actual practice
do not.
This is just one more reason to become
familiar with the Bible
yourself so you'll be able to tell the difference.
If you believe you
found one, by all means join up with it. But by all
means "Be a Berean." (Acts 17:10-11) and check everything you
hear against
Scripture.
Now I cannot emphasize strongly enough that time is
of the
essence because tomorrow is promised to none of us.
As Paul said:
2 Corinthians 6:2 For he [God] saith, I have heard
thee in a time
accepted, and in the day of salvation have I
succoured thee: behold, now
is the accepted time; behold now is the day of
salvation.
This means that the next move is up to you!
