If prophecy is true; if the
Bible is true and if we really are in the “last days”, what do we do about it?
What does this mean for us personally? So, here we go!
Q. The first obvious question for you Dene is, what makes you think these are the “last days”? Couldn’t you be wrong like so many others down through the ages?
This is an absolutely huge subject, but the key is the nation of Israel. The
Bible tells us in first few books of the Old Testament, which were written
thousands of years ago exactly what would happen to the little Jewish nation,
how it would be scattered throughout the whole earth and gathered back to their
land in the “last days”. Speaking of the Jews, Jesus said “and they will
fall by the edge of the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the
nations and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles until the times
of the Gentiles be fulfilled.” (Luke 21:24) Another prophetic bell
weather is the formation of the nation of Israel and its capital. Israel
became a nation in 1948 but Jerusalem was not restored in 1967 and made the
capital in 1981. The Bible tells us “Jerusalem will be trodden down of the
gentiles until the time of the gentiles be fulfilled.” (Luke 21:24)
About one third of the Bible is “end times” prophecy and deals with those
specific events that lead up to the return of Jesus Christ. The “trigger”
event is a treaty that Israel signs with the antichrist marking the
beginning of Daniel’s 70th week – the last seven year countdown.
Great Britain is pressuring the U.S. and Israel to make a treaty which would
give the Palestinians land and guarantee Israel’s security. Meanwhile, the
whole Muslim world continues to boil over the issue of terrorism and Israel. A
Treaty would diffuse the Israel problem while the U.S. deals with the rest of
the Middle East. The stage is set!
The next major event to occur is the Gog Magog war when a coalition of Muslim
nations come down against Israel. When we speak of things such as the Gog Magog
War, we are speaking of many passages of the Old Testament where very specific
countries are named that come down against Israel. We are not talking about
some obscure allegorical stories but very specific straight forward statements
in black and white written by different authors at different times and in
different books of the Bible.
Q How close are we and what can I do about it?
A At a time when the whole world is enraged against Israel, one leader and one nation will come in and guarantee peace in this troubled region. We’re not naming names, just waiting to see who (since the one who signs it is the antichrist – Daniel 9:27) signs the Treaty. Once that Treaty is signed, the last seven years is divided into two parts. The first 3 ½ years is represented by the antichrist consolidating his power around the world, running rough shod over his enemies. However, there is a “hook” here and that is that the antichrist is not who he seems to be. He may look and act like a Christian, be a wonderful person with great aspirations for bring peace to the world.
At the midpoint of the seven year period, there is an event called “the Abomination of Desolations” (Chapter 8 of the Antipas Papers) where the character of the antichrist changes and he turns on Israel and the Christian Church which helped him rise to power. So what does this mean to you personally? Jesus describes this time as “for then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever shall.” (Matthew 24:21) That sounds pretty bad to me.
Second, seeing that these things may come to pass in our lifetime, we have to ask the Lord what we should do. It won’t be business as usual – mowing your lawn, planning your vacation, laying up savings for retirement, getting your kids off to college. This may mean that within the next few years, your life will change radically, to say the least – whether you consider yourself a “believer” or not.
Prophecy is written to warn us. Yes, there have been “chicken littles” telling people that the sky is falling. However, as we look at the Bible prophecy and the events unfolding daily around the world, we have to at least consider this could be the beginning of the end.
Q But won’t we Christians rapture and be out of here before any of this happens?
A The doctrine of the pre-tribulation rapture is one of those false teachings that lulls the modern “Laodicean” Church to sleep. I’m not going to spend a lot of time on that because you can read about it in the book on line titled “Recognizing Deception”. (..\Apostasy\recognizing_deception_and_apostasy.htm) Suffice it to say that if you believe you aren’t going to be here, there isn’t that much reason to prepare for the events of the last seven years.
If we are wrong and there is a pre-trib rapture, no problem; we’re out of here! But the church raptures when the Lord returns with a trumpet and shout at the end of the Tribulation (see Matthew 24:29-31), a great number of people in today’s Evangelical Church will be deceived. They will probably be cheering on the antichrist as he signs the Treaty to protect Israel. They will be on the wrong side and not even know it.
Q So if this does happen, what can I do about it? Won’t God take care of me when the time comes?
A I doubt it. Isn’t prophecy written for a purpose? So we will do something about it? It’s like the man who wouldn’t leave his farm as the waters rose. A truck came by to take him to higher ground. The driver asks, “want a ride to high ground?” “Nope, replies the farmer. “The Lord will save me.” Then a boat comes by. “Want a ride to high ground?” “Nope, the Lord will save me.” He climbs up on the roof of his house as the water continues to rise. Finally a helicopter comes by as the waters swirling around the roof “Come on aboard, they shout”. The farmer says, “don’t worry, the Lord will save me.” He gets swept away by the flood, dies and goes to heaven and says, “Lord, why didn’t you save me?” The Lord says, “What do you mean, first I sent the truck, then the boat and finally the helicopter?”
How much more do we need to know? How much more do we need to be convinced? The fact is, most people just get caught up in events and then it is too late to do anything about it. Just ask a Holocaust survivor about it? We are talking about two things here. First, being inoculated against the coming deception and second, preparation. Again, I don’t know what the Lord wants you to do, but prophecy was written for a reason. That is up to you and the Lord.
Prophecy is written for a purpose. God prophesied to Noah. He said, “Noah it’s going to rain and I’m going to destroy everything on the earth. Now in order to save you and your family, here’s what I want you to do...” We all know the story. Now, Noah could have started arguing. Hey, Lord, it’s never rained yet? What are you talking about? Or, what will everyone think of me? I can’t do that! I’d be the town kook! Jesus, in talking about His Second Coming said, “For the coming of the Son of Man, will be just like the days of Noah. For as in those days which were before the flood they were eating and drinking, they were marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away, so shall the coming of the Son of Man be.” (Matthew 24:37-39)
So prophecy is designed to warn you so you will do something about it. And do you know what the ark is a type of? The “church”, the body of Christ, the bride of Christ making herself ready. Do you know what the Tribulation is going to do? It is going to get the bride ready. It is going to “test her metal” and separate the real Christians from the phonies. Will the church-going SUV/REI crowd be a part of the problem or the solution? Will they be the persecutors or the persecuted? Will the fires of Tribulation result in a body of people who love the Lord Jesus and one another more than their time, money and possessions? Will it reveal the glory of lives transformed by the Spirit of God or selfish little people wanting to hold on to their precious possessions? Will it reveal a people “who overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb, and because of the word of their testimony, and they loved not their lives even unto death?” (Revelation 12:11) Or will it reveal an apostate church more concerned with their split level homes, there SUVs, their “Church” buildings, “worship services”, self-help and marriage classes?
So the question is, if this is coming down are you ready to suffer the loss of all things, including your life? Are you ready to suffer rejection from close friends and family? Are you a part of a dynamic, living “church life” with other Christians or are you a pew sitter, an observer as the “professionals” do the heavy lifting for you?
Q Wait a minute! I just find it hard to believe that the Christians in my church will miss out. God can’t allow that to happen!
A Well, He may need you to warn them. To say that Christians can’t be deceived is to deny God’s word and the fact that Christians are deceived all the time. Churches across the land are full of “deceived” Christians. Again, I would refer you to “Apostasy and the Last Days Church” (..\Apostasy\recognizing_deception_and_apostasy.htm) You don’t have to look far to see the growing apostasy as the church rejects sound doctrine and is led away from the simple truth.
If these are the “last days”, every person on the planet will have an opportunity to choose whom they will serve: the God of heaven and earth or the baser gods of this world, Satan and the deified, self-fulfilled, self-actualized man. If Bible prophecy is correct, the Church will fall away and most Christians will be deceived. There are hundreds of verses to this effect so if anyone has a problem with my saying this, there problem is not with me, but the Writer of the Book.
Christians are deceived all the time when they are lured off into cults. Today, Christians are abandoning the fundamentals of the faith in pursuit of false doctrine, false unity, false and misleading prophets who claim to be speaking for God. They are allowing their leaders to bring them into naive political alliances and deals with the economic elites.
The root of the problem is that modern American Christians belong to a cultural Christianity/Churchianity that has no resemblance to the true Christian faith and true “Church”. They are building, meeting and program oriented, obedient to the “professional” clergy and obedient to hierarchal organizations that do not represent true Christian love and community. Most so-called Christians have the framework of religion, but not much in the way of a personal relationship with God and a vital living relationship with one another. Their idea of commitment is to shake hands going to and from a meeting once or twice a week.
So you asked, can Christians miss what God is really doing? Absolutely! If they fail to learn to listen to Him and obey Him in their practical daily lives, and if they continue to attend spectator Christian meetings rather than participatory meetings where all share, pray and sing as spontaneously led by the Spirit. (again, please see the last half of “Apostasy and the End Times Church to understand the difference between the two). A lot is at stake here. To stay in the church is to allow the “leaven” to work in you.
Q So what do you suggest we do?
A Spend time in the Lord’s presence. Read the Bible. Learn to listen to His still small voice. Open your heart and let Him speak to you. The point is, we can’t tell you what to do or we will be just like everyone else in the system. You have to develop your own personal relationship with the Lord and with other Christians who want to share their life with you. If you don’t learn this basic thing, you will be just like all the other sheep who follow the latest Christian fad or teaching. You have to be so secure in your relationship with the Lord that you don’t depend on the so-called “experts”. Philippians 2:12 exhorts us to “work out our own salvation with fear and trembling.” You can’t hide behind your pastors and teachers. You are responsible!
This is not to say that you should be alone. We need each other, but not in an organizational way but in a living way. We need to learn how to let the life we have in the Lord flow to one another. His life knits and joins us together in love. Ephesians 2:21-22 talks about a living building: “in whom all the building fitly framed together grows into a Holy Temple in the Lord. In whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.” He doesn’t want a temple built out of stone by human hands. He wants us to be built together united by the common life we share and experience daily. So if we see each other once a week in the “worship service” at “church”, what kind of building is that? Please read Ephesians 3 and ask the Lord to show you what this means. God’s ultimate intention is a corporate dwelling place “so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth …” (Ephesians 3:17-18) God wants a living building made up of people! We only comprehend the fullness of Christ with all the saints! And only as the portion of Christ is experienced and released in the smallest, least important member, do we see the fullness.
Again, in Romans 12, the apostle Paul describes a corporate being, “for just as we have many members in one body and all the members do not have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another…” (Romans 12:3-5) It then goes on to describe the body not in terms of offices we hold (e.g. Senior Pastor so and so) but in terms of gifts and functions. Every member has a gift – serving, teaching, exhorting, giving, leading, showing mercy, etc. Again, the book on the “Deception and the Last Days Church” gives many examples. If only one member of the body is functioning, it is a very sick body.
Some of you point out that there are a lot of counterfeits out there – the “cell church” movement and most home meetings are still a part of a hierarchy. A home “Bible Study” is not what I am talking about either. A real meeting is when everyone has fresh experiences of the Lord to share with one another.
We think in terms of organizations with one person in charge, lieutenants and then the people on the bottom. Jesus said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them and their great men exercise authority over them. It is not so among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant. (Matthew 20:25-26) The Bible likens us to a grape vine. Jesus says in John 15:5 “I am the vine and you are the branches.” He didn’t say we are a tree. A tree is a hierarchy of branches. In a grape vine, every branch is connected to the vine. We are all connected to the Lord and there is no one in between – neither pastor nor priest. We all have equal access to the Father through Jesus Christ.
Q I think I get your point, but it just doesn’t seem possible. You’re talking about people who have a lot more in common than just seeing each other once or twice a week in a meeting. But is this likely to happen?
A I share your skepticism because most people are so caught up with the rat race, just paying the bills, raising the kids and all the rest, they barely have time to “go to church.” And of course, we aren’t talking about “going to church” but “being the church”. I agree that it will take extraordinary circumstances to throw people together in such a way. Eventually, difficult times will create the conditions that will lead to real community because families will probably have to pile together in a single farm or house to just make ends meet. Circumstances will certainly throw us together. But meanwhile, those of us who see something, must begin to act on it.
The first step is to do what I suggested above – to make sure that you have a real relationship with the Lord yourself. Learn to listen to His voice and follow His leading.
The second step is to understand what is coming. Just watch the news and you realize how close we are to the Treaty with Israel which will start the count down. Once that happens, we won’t have much time left and our priorities will surely change. But remember, most of the “Church” will interpret the event of a treaty to secure the peace in Israel as from God and they will fall in behind the great leader that brings the treaty about, a man that will appear to be a Christian through and through. (After all, they haven’t raptured yet so this surely can’t be a problem). But you need to think about the implications of this period even the Lord described as the worst tribulation the world has ever seen.
The third step is to make sure that you are not falling for this great deception. Let the Lord lead you. We can’t tell you what to do. The Bible tells us to “beware of the leaven of the Pharisees” (Matthew 16:6) and in verse 12 Jesus tells us that the leaven is the “teaching of the Pharisees.” I am not saying that every Pastor is the equivalent of a Pharisee because many are serving with all the heart and might. But many are and you have to be careful to not just take their word for it. One senior Pastor I know once told his flock they didn’t need to worry but just go ahead to the Promise Keepers rally. He assured them that as their “shepherds”, they would take care of them. (If you want to know more about the Promise Keepers, please see Chapter 4 of the book on “Apostasy and the Last Days Church.” The same “Pastor” continues to invite heretical teachers to his church. It seems to me that if a church invites someone to speak, they are endorsing their ministry and what they teach. Right?
There is a great move afoot to put the laity down by telling them that to oppose their leadership along with the present day “apostles and prophets” that they are just being rebellious and opposing God. In fact, one recently likened questioning them to the “unpardonable sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit!” To listen to these “pied pipers of apostasy” (as Steve used to call them) along with all the rest of the trash on so-called “Christian” radio and TV is to expose yourself to leaven. Leaven is a hidden substance that causes bread to rise which Jesus likens to the evil teachings of the religious leaders of His day.
The fourth step is to ask the Lord what you should do. Again, you have to learn to listen to His still small voice. If he tells you to talk to someone, do so. He will give you the anointing, the grace and even the words. Just learn to follow Him wherever He leads. If he says move, move. The most important thing is that you learn to sense His leading and that you follow it!
Hope I gave you something to think about. I encourage you to read the book on the ”Last Days Church” which is on the internet site and the CD which we make available for free. Copy the CD and pass it out to your friends. Remember, our duty right now is to warn as many people as possible and encourage them to go the Lord for answers. If our material does anything, nine times out of ten, when you write or call us, you say that we just confirmed what the Lord had already showed you – kind of put it into words.
One last thing. We are not alarmists and into naming names and dates. We just want to be open to Him and his Word. But when we look at all that is happening in the world today, we can’t help but think that time really could be short. If the Treaty were signed in the next year or two and we knew what was going to happen, would we live our lives any differently today? What would we do? How would we invest our time and resources? When I think about these things, I have to pinch myself. It is hard to believe it could happen. We have the greatest opportunity before us to be a witness of those great events that lead to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ! Are you ready for that?