Bible Prophecy and Inspiration

In studying Bible Prophecy for over 20 years I used to believe that the war of Gog and Magog was a war that preceded Armageddon. Many of the teachers I read taught that. I still very much love to learn under those teachers. Even the Left Behind series refers to the War of Gog and Magog that took place a short time prior to the rapture in that book. Love the series by the way. However about six years ago I noticed that two teachers I like also very much saw it differently. Both Dave Hunt and Hal Lindsay, which are very close to the other teacher’s I like, were saying that the Gog and Magog war had to be at the end.

Why?

Well, if you don’t pay close enough to the literal wordage it’s easy to want to move the war as a precursor that will set up the final stage. Here’s where the problem lies with that.

Ezekiel 39:21-22 – ²¹ “I will display my glory among the nations, and all the nations will see the punishment I inflict and the hand I lay on them. ²² From that day forward the people of Israel will know that I am the Lord their God.

This is at the end of the Gog and Magog war. Israel cannot make a 7 year peace treaty with the antichrist (thinking he’s their Messiah) after this war, if they know the Lord their God. It has to be at the end before his return.

Now to share the simple thing I have overlooked for many years. This is the way it usually works. Simple and right in front our face.

Because Israel has not seen peace since they have been back in the land (and now is as a good a reminder than ever of that) this verse popped out to me today. The first part of Ezekiel 38 explains those who will gather to make war. Chuck Missler does a good study and breakdown on that. Starting in verse seven we read this:

Ezekiel 38:7-10-   ⁷ “‘Get ready; be prepared, you and all the hordes gathered about you, and take command of them. ⁸ After many days you will be called to arms. In future years you will invade a land that has recovered from war, whose people were gathered from many nations to the mountains of Israel, which had long been desolate. They had been brought out from the nations, and now all of them live in safety. ⁹ You and all your troops and the many nations with you will go up, advancing like a storm; you will be like a cloud covering the land. ¹⁰ “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: On that day thoughts will come into your mind and you will devise an evil scheme.

And then here comes the easy verse I read over a hundred plus times.

Ezekiel 38:11 – ¹¹ You will say, “I will invade a land of unwalled villages; I will attack a peaceful and unsuspecting people—all of them living without walls and without gates and bars.

When has Israel since they became a nation again felt like they have been at peace or unsuspecting of an attack? ????

Then because I realized six years ago this had to be around the time of Armageddon it finally dawned on me. When will Israel feel safe? When they sign a peace treaty with who they think is the Messiah. Unfortunately it is really the antichrist. We know he breaks the treaty half way into it (Daniel 9:27).

For some who read this, they’re thinking way to go Einstein. If you’re like me though, some the most elementary things are the ones that come to life. I never seem to miss it because it’s harder to understand. No I usually miss it when it was literally easier.

Now that I don’t see a warning precursor war, I believe we are closer than ever to our Lord snatching away His Church. Live for Him daily. Make Him Lord. If you don’t know how to, I have put a page on the front of my website to the right. As always shoot me a line if you have made that commitment. I’d love to hear about it.

When you see movies about the antichrist and people speak of him, you get a pretty evil demonic image.  However, when he first comes on the scene, who are most people going to think he is?

People are not going to look at the antichrist when he first comes on the scene as the devil.  They are going to look at him as dynamic, charming, diplomatic, and successful.  He is going to have fantastic worldly things to say that will make those on earth ooo and ahhh.

He’s going to have the answer for peace with Israel and the Islamic nations.  Therefore Israel is going to see him as the messiah and Islam is going to view him as their leader that is to come, whom they are waiting for.

Once again the Jews are going to think he is their messiah because he is going to bring peace.  That’s why they rejected Jesus.  They feel He couldn’t have been the Messiah because He didn’t bring peace and then He died.

Many of those who call themselves Christians and do not go in the rapture will believe the antichrist is divine.

So why is he portrayed as being so evil?

Daniel 9:27 – ²⁷ He will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’ In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him.

Half way through the 7 year peace treaty with Israel, we have a change of behavior.

Revelation 12:9 – ⁹ The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.

Revelation 12:12-13 –  ¹² Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them!
But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you!
He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short.”
¹³ When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child.

So Satan is cast down to the earth and is filled with fury because he knows his time is short.  What’s next?

Revelation 13:2-3 – ² The beast I saw resembled a leopard, but had feet like those of a bear and a mouth like that of a lion. The dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority. ³ One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed. The whole world was filled with wonder and followed the beast.

The dragon, which is the devil comes down and brings back the beast to life that appears to have died from a fatal wound.

Revelation 13:4-7 – ⁴ People worshiped the dragon because he had given authority to the beast, and they also worshiped the beast and asked, “Who is like the beast? Who can wage war against it?”  ⁵ The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise its authority for forty-two months. ⁶ It opened its mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander his name and his dwelling place and those who live in heaven. ⁷ It was given power to wage war against God’s holy people and to conquer them. And it was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation.

The floodgates now open and Mr. Charisma and the peace monger is no longer in charge but Satan himself.  Daniels speaks much about this.

Daniel 11:31-32 – ³¹ “His armed forces will rise up to desecrate the temple fortress and will abolish the daily sacrifice. Then they will set up the abomination that causes desolation. ³² With flattery he will corrupt those who have violated the covenant, but the people who know their God will firmly resist him.

Daniel 11:36 -37 – ³⁶ “The king will do as he pleases. He will exalt and magnify himself above every god and will say unheard-of things against the God of gods. He will be successful until the time of wrath is completed, for what has been determined must take place. ³⁷ He will show no regard for the gods of his ancestors or for the one desired by women, nor will he regard any god, but will exalt himself above them all.

2 Thessalonians 2:3-4 – ³ Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. ⁴ He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God.

2 Thessalonians 2:9 – ⁹ The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with how Satan works. He will use all sorts of displays of power through signs and wonders that serve the lie,

Ultimately we know that the beast of the earth will demand that the beast of the sea be worshipped and take his mark or be killed.  You see Satan has always wanted to be like God.  He wants to sit in the place of God and demands to be worshipped as god.  If you don’t, you will die.

Revelation 13:11-17 – ¹¹ Then I saw a second beast, coming out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb, but it spoke like a dragon. ¹² It exercised all the authority of the first beast on its behalf, and made the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed. ¹³ And it performed great signs, even causing fire to come down from heaven to the earth in full view of the people. ¹⁴ Because of the signs it was given power to perform on behalf of the first beast, it deceived the inhabitants of the earth. It ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived. ¹⁵ The second beast was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that the image could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed. ¹⁶ It also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, ¹⁷ so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of its name.

However, God makes it clear that if you take it, you will perish forever and hell awaits.

Revelation 14:9-10 – ⁹ A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives its mark on their forehead or on their hand, ¹⁰ they, too, will drink the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. They will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb.

If you’re left behind, you can’t take the mark unless you want to end up in hell.  The choice between Christ or antichrist will become a test of your life.  Lose it for serving Christ’s or prolong it, take the mark and enter eternity in torment when you die.

Who will you choose?  Jesus predicted His rejection and the acceptance later on of the antichrist.

John 5:43- ⁴³ I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not accept me; but if someone else comes in his own name, you will accept him.

Choose Jesus as King and make Him your everything now.  However, if you’re reading this after the rapture, choose Him and don’t take the mark.  It will cost 98 percent of those their earthly life who can’t hide, but taking the mark of the beast is giving one’s allegiance to Satan and that is unforgivable.

The antichrist when he comes on the scene will be hailed by the world and those who reject Jesus as their savior.  He will be loved.  Don’t buy it.  Three and a half years into the 7 year peace treaty with Israel, no man in the history of the earth will ever have been, as evil as he will be.

Matthew 24:6-7 – ⁶ You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. ⁷ Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places.

I was just inspired to write a quick note on the above scriptures.  With North Korea threatening, it brings the focus a little closer from our perspective in America.  We have Iran over threatening to annihilate Israel if they get the ability and North Korea threatening to use possible nuclear warheads.

These are your nation against nation.  Let’s not forget though that the scripture is not being redundant.  Kingdom against kingdom is different.  It’s fighting from within, such as Syria.

Wars and rumor’s of wars.  These things are on the main news stations and the world is paying close attention.  If nothing breaks out, it’s still a major rumor of war.

The birth pangs are happening closer together and things for the second coming are all shaping more distinct and faster every day.  The world is going broke more every day.  Every month our government is pumping money into the banks which is making its way into the market, but where does it come from?  Our dollar is losing value more every day.  For those in the new world order this is equalizing things without a devastating bankruptcy that leads to anarchy.

We are closer than ever to our Lords return.  Don’t get wrapped up into this world.  He warns us to keep an eye out for Him.