Peace and grace to you in Jesus name!
This week I will discuss Matthew 24: 5-7 beginning with the history of false Christ's. Remember that God placed things into His Holy Word IN ORDER so we would be able to discern the "signs of the times".
Well surprise surprise!!! Last weeks article spoke of the unemployment rate in the US as being just under 10% and some of the States as high as 14%. I also discussed the fact that we cannot depend much upon what our Government tells us these days (if ever)? Naturally the figures I gave you were those published by Uncle Sam's bureaucrats! When will I ever learn?
I receive news letters from a variety of sources including those of investment houses. Not that I have any money to invest----trust me! But I find that tracking these things gives me a better idea of what is happening and I came across an interesting set of figures the other day that may well be closer to the truth where unemployment in the US is concerned.
The claim was that unemployment is really at about 22.7% Nationwide because the Government figures do not include several classes of people. People working part time and those who's companies have severely cut their wages and benefits or cut back their hours are not included. Also, conveniently the Government figures somehow delete those that have become so discouraged (who's search for work has become futile) that they have given up altogether. This particular source claims that we are not only NOT recovering from the recession but that the Nation is in fact in DEPRESSION rivaling that which "broke the bank" during the 1930's.
It goes on to remind us that Government figures are averages for the entire Nation but that there are actually some areas such as Los Angeles, Allentown, PA and Detroit who are hovering at about 40% unemployment. THAT is scary if it is true because a place like Liberia West Africa, after 15 continuous years of horrible civil war, has just over 50 % unemployed. Our domestic scene is beginning to look like that of a third world country!
Last weeks headlines stated boldly that 500,000 more Americans applied for unemployment benefits in the last month alone. TODAY'S headlines say, HOME SALES PLUNGE!!! This in spite of enormous stimulus funds being injected into the US economy. Of course our Government wisely ended the tax credits incentive program while simultaneously announcing massive new taxes. Apparently all those Federal attorneys, Doctors and Masters degree holders (of whatever), really do have the whole thing figured out correctly??? Then of course the stock markets both here and across the globe are fluctuating violently and seemingly no one can figure out why. Could those be the reasons why so many citizens are afraid to purchase a new home? One way or another, sales of previously occupied homes in the United States fell a full 27 % during July which is the worst in the last 15 years according to the National Association of Realtors.
I am an American! I am proud to be one (although there are very many fine Nations in the world today), but I am increasingly disturbed by what is happening to my Nation. I remember the 1950's and 1960's. Well, ok so if you are going to be picky, I actually also remember the 1940's---ouch! I remember when the United States was the greatest Nation the world had ever known. I remember when crooked politicians were rare! I remember when people were proud to be Christians. I remember when the church was the CENTER of our social activity. I remember when people were proud to have a job and the idea of being on welfare was an abomination.
I remember when MEN and WOMEN were married to each other and wanted to stay that way for life. I remember when the idea of abortion drew a collective gasp! I remember when (and still do) I honored our flag and thought people who desecrate it should be thrown directly into the "cross bar hotel". In short, I am a throw back to a time in which GOD, marriage, mom, apple pie and Old Glory were time honored institutions!!! I REMEMBER WHEN ISRAEL WAS OUR BEST FRIEND.
Well, I guess that makes me a relic of history. Maybe if I (and my values) were buried in the desert sand for a thousand years, someone would dig me up and think I was valuable!
???????? What happened to us in roughly 50 short years? As I have explained before, I do not publish this blog with a political agenda. I have my own likes and dislikes like everyone else and I am proud to exercise my vote---for the best man OR woman for a particular job regardless of race of political party. Also, I am not the kind of person to find "boogie" men under every rock and see plots and plans behind every tree. Oh, yes I do know and fully realize that when dealing with the world of politics, everything is not exactly as it may seem on the surface.
Sooo, the question really amounts to this? Who to believe? Is the Government playing fast and loose with the statistics because we are close to mid term elections? Or, is the information from other sources stilted in some way for economic gain? Are the real figures for the national unemployment fiasco somewhere in the middle of all these reports? OR?
It could drive a person crazy! Still the fact remains that another 151,000 jobs were lost in July alone AND THOSE ARE GOVERNMENT FIGURES! All those folks plus the remainder of the 500,000 jobless applicants for unemployment benefits are drawing down even more on an economy that has been decimated with no end in site! Can anyone deny that not only the USA but the entire world is in a very real heap of trouble right now? Have you heard of ANYONE who has the answers?
I AM actually going to talk about Biblical prophecy in this article but first I wanted to share with you something that was written by a pastor friend of mine for last months 4th of July celebration. A bit late but I think it pretty well sums up the mess we are in. But there is hope (if) you look closely at the message cited in 2 Chronicles 7:13-14. Could there be a way out??? Is God trying to tell us something that we as the church should be listening to? You decide!
Welcome Pastor Gary Boggs. He wears several hats including being the Senior Pastor of Calvary Chapel Coronado, Vice President of IDT (the missions organization I retired from last year) and Chaplain of the Coronado Yacht club. It was in his capacity as Chaplain of the Yacht club that this article was written.
It's July already and the biggest day of the year is upon us! I know you're all looking forward to a jam packed parking lot and wristbands, barbecue, and everything that goes along with the 4th of July Weekend at Coronado Yacht Club! I love to see the club dressed and polished with Red, White and Blue for the holiday that commemorates our freedom as a nation. Many things have changed in the course of history. Leaders have come and gone, wars have come and gone, fads have come and gone and come back again. (What's up with the plaid shorts?) One thing that hasn't changed is the fact that once every year we take time to remember that once upon a time, two hundred and thirty-four years ago some brave, forward thinking, God fearing men forged a document that declared our freedom from oppressive government and excessive taxation without representation. I shudder to think that those same souls, who literally prayed this country into existence, have to look down from their place in eternity and see what's happening to our beloved land.
I don't use this space or the privilege to write this column to push any agenda but the Truth. I hope each one of you who has loyally supported me over the past five years can hear and understand as I say I'm heart-broken to see what's happening around us. Two hundred and forty/ fifty years ago, the call to freedom and justice came from the pulpits of congregations led by men who loved the Lord and were willing to die for freedom and the right to make our own way. Today we're being led down a path that takes us further and further from our Godly heritage; further from the principles that this country was founded on. But after all is said and done, I'm an optimist. I don't think its too late to change the course we're on.
In the Old Testament, when King Solomon was about to dedicate the magnificent Temple in Jerusalem, he prayed to God Almighty for wisdom to lead the people and God heard and answered. This quote comes from II Chronicles 7:13-14. God said: "When I shut up heaven and there is no rain, or command the locusts to devour the land, or send pestilence among My people, if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, than I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sins and heal their land." Some strong words to consider as we celebrate Two Hundred and Thirty-Four years of freedom that could come to a screeching halt if we don't turn our hearts back to where we came from. Patrick Henry said: "Give me liberty or give me death." He was sold out to the idea of: "One nation under God with Liberty and Justice for all." So am I! God bless America! Chaplain Out!
Ok, back to pastor Rance: Humble ourselves? Pray and seek HIS face?, Turn from our wicked ways? Gosh, that sounds like something the Bible would say. Hmmmmmmm! Unfortunately men like pastor Gary and myself (and lots of you as well) are not the only ones that find ourselves relegated (by the world) to positions of outdated, antiquated relics. They have done the same to the Ten Commandments, the Bible as the true WORD of GOD and-------to GOD Himself! We could change all that you know! It only takes ONE sold out person like Patrick Henry to start that ball rolling.
Need I say more? I have found in life that the word NO, is extremely valuable. Perhaps the remaining believers of this world should learn to use it and forcefully so. NO we will not allow you to take GOD out of this Country. NO we will not allow you to take our freedom away. NO, we will not allow you to denigrate traditional Biblical family values. No we will not allow you to give condoms to our children. No we will not allow you to tell us what we can purchase and what we cannot. NO we will not honor moral degenerates with another term of public office. Oh, and by the way, plan on seeing us at the ballot box!!!!!!!
So much for the CURRENT important stuff. Now lets look at FUTURE important stuff.
Matthew 24:5-7 is so incredibly important because those verses were uttered by King Jesus Himself. They actually begin in verse #4 with the admonition "TAKE HEED THAT NO ONE DECEIVES YOU"! What do you suppose the Lord means by that? Well I suspect that He really wants us to know what will be coming upon us in the future---and the order in which it will happen!
The Lord was not just sitting around one day on a rock with nothing else to do but speculate. He was answering two very specific questions from his disciples REGARDING THE FUTURE! The setting is the famous Biblical scene called the OLIVET DISCOURSE. Jesus had just come from a visit to the Temple (Herod's by name), and prophesied to His followers. He said, "Do you not see all these things (the temple)? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone (of the Temple) shall be left upon another, that will not be thrown down"!
That was a Biblical prophecy that was very specifically fulfilled and verified through historical records and archeology. The destruction of Herod's Temple was undertaken by the Roman General Titus in 70 AD, less that 40 years after the Lord sacrificed Himself on the cross of Calvary for your sins and mine. I have been to Jerusalem several times and have sat on those very stones with my wife. Those HUGE Temple stones are still imbedded in the very paving stones that they were thrown down upon by the Roman legions nearly 2000 years ago.
Immediately after giving this prophecy, Jesus sat on the Mount of Olives, and His disciples came to him privately, saying "Tell us (1). When will these things be, (2). And what will be the sign of your coming, and of the end of the age?" It was from this perspective and answering these two very specific questions that Jesus Christ gave us the order of things that we should be looking for in the future, that would signify the "END OF THE AGE"!
He identified these future signs as 1). Many coming onto the world scene and claiming the title of Christ. 2). Wars and rumors of wars. 3). Nation rising against Nation. 4). Kingdom against Kingdom. 5). Famines. 6). Pestilences (plagues). 7). Earthquakes in various places.
Did you happen to notice that Jesus identified exactly 7 things that we should be looking for? Not 6 things and not 8 things. No, He gave us a list of exactly 7. In both Bible lore and Bible "speak", the number 7 is identified as the perfect number. An example of this is taken from the opening volley of the book of Genesis. God created the world in 6 days and rested on the seventh day. The 7th day COMPLETED creation including a time of rest. On the 8th day (which is Sunday for our brothers the Jews), something new begins. That something new is a new work week. The last cycle of 7 days is complete and now it is time for us to move into something new.
Back to Matthew chapter 24, it is interesting to note that verse 8 (which follows the 7 future signs identified by Jesus) , says "All these are the beginnings of sorrows". In other words when we have seen these seven things come to pass, they are identified AS A GROUP, as being the beginnings of sorrows.
Now for the scary part!!!~
Verses 9 through 14 is a prophecy given by the Lord Himself and these prophetic events will begin to take place AFTER the beginnings of sorrows. Warning, lots of pastors do not teach these particular scriptures much because the prospect of them happening to "US" (specifically you and I) is most unpleasant. However, that will not change reality!
Verse (9), " Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all Nations for my name's sake".
(10), "And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another".
(11), "Then many false prophets will arise and deceive many".
(12), "And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold".
(13). "But he who endures to the end will be saved".
(14). "And this gospel of the Kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come".
Alrighty now! Lots to think about. You know I get comments from people that like my (not too) subtle sense of humor and some of the "bunny trails" I take you on during my articles. While I do have my own style and I believe in having some fun along the way, Frankly this particular subject matter is not something to jest about. It is literally deadly serious in nature and reality.
There is however some REALLY great news. As you well know, I believe in the PRE-tribulational rapture of the church. I cannot spend time today on this subject even though every ounce of me wants to do so. At some time in the near future I will post my entire scriptural conclusions on this matter on my web site. In the meantime, please know that I believe that the rapture happens in the 4th chapter of the book of Revelation and that means that it occurs sandwiched exactly between verses 8 and 9 of Matthew 24. While I truly respect those with other opinions, I simply cannot find substantive scriptural evidence supporting any other view.
I did recently receive a very nice reply from a friend in Canada and she simply cannot bring herself to accept the possibility of a Pre-tribulational rapture. One of the reasons she cannot is based upon the accepted fact that last years statistics (2009) worldwide, indicate that approximately 176,000 Christians were martyred for their faith. Therefore if these saints were called upon to pay the ultimate sacrifice for their Faith in Christ, who in the world are we to think we would be spared the same fate.
Having ultimate respect for those that have suffered martyrdom, the fact remains however that some Christians in every single generation since the cross have paid that price, not the least of which was Stephen in acts chapter 7, which of course happened in the first century. In the intervening 2000 years there have also been multiple millions (if not billions) of believers that have lived and died a normal life without being called to martyrdom. In fact, although the killing of 176,000 Christians in a single year is a terrible thing, I am also quick to realize that statistics also tell us there are approximately 2 BILLION professing believers on earth today. Simple math tells us that 176,000 people equals .0088 of 2 BILLION or less than 100th of 1 %. That is about the same number of folks killed in vehicle accidents in the United States in a three year period. Actually it is less per capita than in a single year.
That pails in comparison to the numbers of people that will be killed worldwide during the 7 years of the great tribulation which I believe will happen AFTER the rapture of the church.
The 4th seal of Revelation (chapter 6:7-8) alone will account for the slaying of a full 1/4 of the total population of this planet of which the population is now approaching 7 BILLION people. That means in two short paragraphs Out of 22 chapters in the book of Revelation, a minimum of 500 MILLION people will perish and most probably that figure will be much higher.
I cannot speak for every pre-tribber but for those of you who believe that this position is based solely on a recent concept and is a reflection of "an escapist mentality", please do NOT hang those indictments on me. I have spent my entire church life devoted to accomplishing the great commission ( Matthew 28:18-20) and I fully intend to be found by the Lord with my boots on and pushing just as hard as I can to fulfill that command when my time is up. Whether that is through either the rapture or my natural death is up to the Lord.
And for those who say the rapture itself and particularly a pre-trib rapture is a recent invention. I believe a bit more time in study of early church history is called for; Not to mention the fact that both 1 Thessalonians chapter 4:13-18 and 2 Thessalonians chapter 2:1-12 were penned by the Apostle Paul himself in 51 AD. That is not very recent by my calculations.
Now, the study of people in history who claim to be the Christ or who were proclaimed by others to be so, is extensive. All but the true Christ, represent the antichrist. The Apostle John is speaking in 1st John 2:18 "Little children, it is the last hour; And as you have heard, that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour". He goes on in 1 John 4:3 "And every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has not come in the flesh, is not of God. And this is the spirit of the antichrist which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world"!
The list spans every single generation and is far more extensive than I can give you in this article. On the Jewish side of the house the SHORT list begins at least in the year 4 BC with a guy by the name of Simon Bar Kokba. It even includes the (non Jewish) Roman Emperor Vespasian (I would argue with that one but after all what do I know in comparison to Google plus he was labeled that by the Jewish Historian Josephus). It also includes a guy by the name of MOSES of Crete and roughly 22 others from History.
On the Christian side of the house, beginning in the mid first century a minimum of 28 well known men have claimed the title. Most recently these include people like Jim Jones and David Koresh and even Charles Manson. The best know false Christ in today's world is Dr. Jose Luis Jesus Miranda of Columbia. This man blatantly claims to be Jesus Christ and that he is the "PRESIDENT OF GOD'S GOVERNMENT ON EARTH"! He sports a Presidential like seal reminiscent of the Great Seal of the United States and next to it are emblazoned the letters 666 and the word "prosperity". If you think this is silly, please know that he has managed to bamboozle hundreds and thousands of people.
Even Sun Myung Moon (of Moony fame) has been hung with the title "CHRIST". Then there was the late Emperor Haile Salassie of Ethiopia, who was head of the Rastafarians and claimed the titles of KING of KINGS" and "THE LION OF THE TRIBE OF JUDAH", not to mention that he was the direct descendant of King Menelik who sprang from King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba.
Andre Matsoua of Congolese fame, Billy Meir or Switzerland, and Benjamin Creme who claims that the coming "Maitreya" is the promised one. And we are not done because there are also various New Age candidates, Buddhists and at least 7 from within the ranks of the Muslims, the most notable being "Isa", their version of Jesus and of course we all know about the coming Mahdi who is the current leading candidate by the President of Persia (woops, Iran)!
Matthew 24:5, "for many will come in My name, saying, I am the Christ, and will deceive many".
Next time we will tackle wars and rumors of wars as we work our way down the Biblical prophetic list to verse 8, "All these are the beginnings of sorrows"!
God bless you all in Jesus name,
Pastor Rance.
P.S. Here is a home work assignment for you. Look up Nehemiah chapter 8 verse 10. "Do not sorrow for the Joy of the Lord is your strength"!
