Revelations

[The_8th_Person]

Hey Im new to these threads and a pretty new devoted christian so Im not any bible expert. But I think(just my personal theory)the end times have already began the Bible makes the end times seem like they will take a long time 100s 1000s of years maybe everything doesnt have to happen in one year. I think it has already began and it will slowly start gettin worse and worse as the years pass. Remember there already are alot of signs in there youth out in the world right now. Please respond Im open to any civil speculation

[Shammu]

Hey Im new to these threads and a pretty new devoted christian so Im not any bible expert. But I think(just my personal theory)the end times have already began the Bible makes the end times seem like they will take a long time 100s 1000s of years maybe everything doesnt have to happen in one year. I think it has already began and it will slowly start gettin worse and worse as the years pass. Remember there already are alot of signs in there youth out in the world right now. Please respond Im open to any civil speculation

The "end times," we are nearing (in my opinion.) Here is what I posted on another thread.

The Bible gives many examples of signs that should warn us of the coming end of the age.  Six such signs are given by Jesus, two characteristics are given by Paul, and eleven other occurrences are given by the prophets to occur prior to or soon after the end of the age.  While we are also told we will not know the time of the End, God obviously wanted us to know when that time was getting closer.  As the Christian church is increasingly drawn into the interfaith movement, and as more and more churches go into isolation, preparing to sleep through the growing attacks on their faith, perhaps God knew it would take a few signs to wake us up and remind us that we have work to do.

Unfortunately, many Christians take the verses that tell us we won't know the time of His coming to mean they should ignore any and all scripture that might warn us of this time of tribulation.  Others have fallen into the trap of fearing being labeled a "conspiracy theorist" should they display an interest in the Biblical prophecies about our future on Earth.  My philosophy is simple.  God included it in the Bible and, since God is all knowing, we should trust that it is something we should know and study along with the rest of His Word.

It is increasingly obvious that the time of our Lord's coming is drawing near.  Prophecy is being fulfilled daily, and at a faster pace than ever before.  Whether you believe in a pre-tribulation rapture, or believe Christians will be witness to the full tribulation, wrath, and final judgments, matters not.  The beginning of birth pains and the signs of the times should have the same effect on all of us.  It should motivate us to save as many souls as we can in the time that we have left.  The Great Commission tells us to be disciples to all nations, bringing the message of salvation through Christ to all people.  If the Church is raptured before the tribulation, it is important that we leave behind an explanation for the trials and judgments those left behind will face.  How else will they recognize the deception of the anti-Christ and seek instead the truth of the Bible?  If we are to endure the tribulation along side them, we will need to be prepared to not only share the message of salvation, but share with them the reasons for God's judgment and hold it up as further proof of their need to be saved.

Below is a study of the prophetic signs God gave us as a warning of the approaching end of the age.  Many of them are being fulfilled now and many will be fulfilled in the near future.  I would encourage you to study prophecy, know what is coming and be prepared to share it with others.

Six signs given by Jesus Christ, indicating his coming and the end times.

Matthew 24:3
Jesus was asked, "Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming, and of the end of the age?"  Jesus told his apostles to look for  the following signs prior to his second coming and the end of the age.

[Shammu]

1. False Prophets and Christs
Matthew 24:5 "For many will come in my name, saying, I am Christ, and will mislead many."
Matthew 24:11 "And many false prophets will arise, and will mislead many."

In the last several years many have claimed to be the Messiah.  Jim Jones and David Koresh are examples of these false christs as well as countless others who are not as newsworthy.  These false prophets are a prelude to the ultimate false christ, the antichrist.  Many New Age groups, some even NGO's working for the United Nations, are anxiously awaiting the antichrist, preparing the way for his acceptance as the head of the hierarchy of gods and the one who will usher in world peace.


2.  WARS
Matthew 24:6  "And you will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end."

Rumors of wars in all areas of the world now occur frequently thanks to instant media coverage and the availability of a multitude of 24-hour news sources.

Matthew 24:7 "For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes."

More people have been killed in warfare in this century than at any other time in history.  As the death toll rises in the Middle East, more and more countries work feverishly to develop devastating weapons of mass destruction.  Add to that the expanding threat of terrorism and unpredictable dictators such as Saddam Hussein, and the potential for the outbreak of war exists in nations, kingdoms and places across the globe.


3.  FAMINES
Matthew 24:7 "For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes."

As white, Christian farmers are driven out of Africa in increasing numbers, and foreigners move in to replace life-sustaining crops with poppies that now supply 25% of the worlds drugs, famine spreads across the African continent.  The undernourished are not limited to Africa, however.  A large portion of the worlds 5 billion people suffers from a shortage of food.


4.  EARTHQUAKES
Matthew 24:7  "For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes."

The number and intensity of earthquakes this century is at a level higher than any other time in history.  A staggering number of seismic events occur around the world daily.

[Shammu]

5.  TRIBULATIONS
Matthew 24:8-9 "But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs.  Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations on account of my name."

Christians are under attack throughout the world today.  In the United States Christians still enjoy freedom to worship God without suffering much more than ridicule, hatred, or discrimination at work and school.  However in many other countries such as China, Sudan, Africa, Saudi Arabia, Korea, Russia, and many Muslim nations, Christian suffer much greater persecution and often times death for their faith.  During the tribulation this suffering will be worldwide and will continue even to the point of martyrdom.  These first 5 signs will increase in intensity and severity as the tribulation approaches, much like the birth pangs or contractions of a pregnant woman worsen as the delivery time approaches.


6.  THE GOSPEL WILL BE PREACHED THROUGHOUT THE WORLD
Matthew 24:14 "And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world for a witness to all the nations, and then the end shall come."

This prophecy has already been fulfilled through television, radio, missionaries, the translation of the Bible into many languages, and the internet.  People all over the world now hear the message of Christ from missionaries who have the means to travel the globe, and via technology that allows us to communicate with people on the other side of the world right from our own homes, churches and offices.


Two characteristics of the end of the ages from the Apostle Paul

1.  GODLESSNESS IN THE LAST DAYS
II Timothy 3:1-5,7 "But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come.  For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of god; holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth."

For anyone who has watched television, read a newspaper, lost a retirement to corporate greed and corruption, or just walked outside their front door, it is obvious this prophecy has been fulfilled by our generation.  Our leaders are often corrupt; our cities are filled with crime, brutality, and neon signs proclaiming our sinful, godless nature.  The New Age Movement brings in increasing numbers of mystics who claim to be the enlightened ones.  They are some of the most educated and influential people in our societies, and yet the most lacking in real truth.


2.  Apostasy (Falling away from the Faith)

I Timothy 4:1-3  "But the spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons.  By means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron, men who forbid marriage and advocate abstaining from foods which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth."

Churches today are becoming more and more ecumenical, embracing the New Age interfaith agenda, and denying Christ as the only way to salvation.  Giving in to the politically correct media and a corrupt society, they have embrace homosexuality as an acceptable alternate lifestyle and preach tolerance and compromise in place of God's truth for the salvation of the world.  The environmentalist movement within the New Age movement lures them into a worship of mother earth, belief in past lives, reincarnation, and Karma while demonizing all those who would eat the meat God gave us as nourishment for our bodies.

[Shammu]

Eleven fulfillments of the Bible Prophecy Required for the  END OF THE AGE
1.  EXISTENCE OF A 200,000,000 MAN ARMY IN THE EAST
Revelation 9:16 "And the number of the armies of the horsemen was two hundred million; I heard the number of them."

An army of that size had never existed until China's army reached that number in the 1960's.

2.  REDEVELOPMENT OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE (EUROPEAN COMMUNITY)
Daniel 2:32-33 "The head of the statue was made of fine gold, its breast and its arms of silver, its belly and its thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay."
Daniel 2:40-43  "Then there will be a fourth kingdom as strong as iron; inasmuch as iron crushes and shatters all things, so like iron that breaks in pieces, it will crush and break all these in pieces.  And in that you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter's clay and partly of iron, it will be a divided kingdom; but it will have the toughness of iron, and partly of pottery, so some of the kingdom will be strong and part of it will be brittle.  And in that you saw the iron mixed with clay, they will combine with one another in the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, even as iron does not combine with pottery."

The fourth kingdom of iron is the Roman empire according to Daniel's interpretation of King Nebuchadnezzar's dream.  The two legs are the division of the Roman empire into an eastern portion called the Byzantine empire which ended in the 1400's and a western portion based in Rome which ended in the 400's.  The nations of Europe since the Roman empire

[Shammu]

1.  The persuasion and performing of miracles by the Antichrist and False Prophet convinces the Islamic world to approve the rebuilding.

2.  The United Nations will negotiate the rebuilding of the temple following a war with the armies from the North (Russia and Islamic forces).  This assumes that the war with the armies from the North is not the battle of Armageddon as some feel and that this attack occurs before the rapture or tribulation period begins.  The supernatural destruction of the Russian army and Islamic forces will cause an outpouring of Christian worship and zeal amongst the Jewish people who will reconstruct the temple.

3.  It is determined that the site of the first two temples is actually south of the Dome of the Rock, and the court of the gentiles (Dome of the Rock) will be left out of the 3rd temple.

A group in Israel called the Temple Mount Faithful have obtained most of the clothing, instruments and other equipment required for temple worship and are actively preparing for the laying of the third temple's cornerstone.

5.  APPEARANCE OF THE RED HEIFER AFTER 2000 YEARS
Numbers 19:2-7 "This is the statute of the law which the Lord has commanded, saying, "Speak to the sons of Israel that they bring you an unblemished red heifer in which is no defect and on which a yoke has never been placed.  "You shall give it to Eleazar the priest, and it shall be brought outside the camp and be slaughtered in his presence.  Next Eleazar the priest shall take some of its blood with his finger and sprinkle some of its blood toward the front of the tent of meeting seven times.  "Then the heifer shall be burned in his sight; its hide and its flesh and its blood, with its refuse, shall be burned.  "The priest shall then wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward come into the camp, but the priest shall be unclean until evening."

A red heifer will be required to be used in the process of purification described in the book of Numbers.  In May 1997 the first Red Heifer was born in 2000 years.  Another red Heifer was born in Israel in March of 2002. Still one more red Heifer was born this year.

6.  INCREASE IN KNOWLEDGE AND TRAVEL
Daniel 12:4  "But as for you, Daniel, conceal these words and seal up the book until the end of time; many will go back and forth, and knowledge will increase."

Billy Graham was quoted as saying, "ninety percent of all the engineers and scientists who have ever lived are alive today."  Air travel, space travel, DNA research and human cloning are all examples of the rapid increase in knowledge in our generation.  

7.  RETURN OF THE ETHIOPIAN JEWS TO ISRAEL
Zephaniah 3:10-11 "From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia My worshipers, My dispersed ones, will bring My offerings.  In that day you will feel no shame because of all your deeds by which you have rebelled against Me; For then I will remove from your midst your proud, exulting ones, and you will never again be haughty on My holy mountain."

In 1984, Operation Moses saw the airlift of 15,000 Jews who had already fled to refugee camps in Sudan to escape starvation.  In 1991, Operation Solomon flew 20,000 Jews to Israel from Ethiopia itself.  A further airlift began in June of 1999, aimed at transporting the last 3,000 members of the Quara Jewish community from northeastern Ethiopia to Israel.

8.  THE RISE OF RUSSIA
Ezekiel 38:2,4,8 "Son of man, set your face toward Gog of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him.  I will turn you about and put hooks into your jaws, and I will bring you out, and all your army, horses and horsemen, all of them splendidly attired, a great company with buckler and shield, all of them wielding swords.  After many days you will be summoned; in the latter years you will come into the land that is restored from the sword, whose inhabitants have been gathered from many nations to the mountains of Israel which had been a continual waste; but its people were brought out from the nations, and they are living securely, all of them."

In order for some end time events to occur Russia will have to be a strong nation with a strong military.  

9.  RETURN OF RUSSIAN JEWS TO ISRAEL
Jeremiah 23:7-8  "Therefore behold, the days are coming declares the Lord, when they will no longer say, as the Lord lives, who brought up the sons of Israel from the land of Egypt, but as the Lord lives, who brought up and led back the descendants of the household of Israel from the north land and from all the countries where I have driven them.  Then they will live on their own soil."

In the 1970's and 1980's there was a mass exodus of Russian Jews out of Communist Russia.  In 1999 the Associated Press reported a dramatic increase in the number of Jewish immigrants from Russia, bringing the largest number of Russian Jews to Israel since the early 1990's.

[Shammu]

10.  TECHNOLOGY FOR THE MARK OF THE BEAST
Revelation 13:16-17  "And he causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free men and the slaves to be given a mark on their right hand or on their forehead, and he provides that no one will be able to buy or to sell, except the one who has the mark, either the name of the beast or the number of his name."

On May 10, three members of a family in Florida became the first people to receive the biochip implant.  Each device, made of silicon and called a VeriChip, is a small radio transmitter about the size of a piece of rice that is injected under a person's skin. It transmits a unique personal ID number whenever it is within a few feet of a special receiver unit. VeriChip's maker describes it as "a miniaturized, implantable, radio frequency identification device (RFID) that can be used in a variety of security, emergency and healthcare applications."

Is the biochip the mark of the beast to be used by the antichrist?  We can't really know.  What is significant is that people are being softened to the idea of a mark or an implant as a means of maintaining security, providing medical information, and regulating a more interdependent world.  As attitudes change, fears subside, and people are convinced of the need for such a mark, the true mark of the beast will be easily introduced to the world by the antichrist.

11.  PLANS FOR THE ONE WORLD GOVERNMENT

The United Nations, World Trade Organization, International Criminal Court, UN peacekeeping/police force, numerous UN NGO's, and other agencies are preliminary steps to the formation of a one world government.  We now have the communications technology, transportation, and the pro-globalization media necessary to usher in the one world government headed by the antichrist.  The increasing terrorist threat and the middle east conflict will only speed up the formation of this governing body as fear and promises of better security make more people willing to give up their national sovereignty for global governance.

12.  INSTANT COMMUNICATION AROUND THE WORLD
Revelation 11:3, 7-10  "And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophecy for twelve hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth.  When they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up out of the abyss will make war with them, and overcome them and kill them.  And their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which mystically is called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified.  Those from the peoples and tribes and tongues and nations will look at their dead bodies for three and a half days, and will not permit their dead bodies to be laid in a tomb.  And those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and celebrate; and they will send gifts to one another, because these two prophets tormented those who dwell on the earth."

Television and the 24-hour news networks make it possible for people around the world to see the dead prophets and rejoice at their deaths.

Luke 21:28 "But when these things begin to take place, straighten up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near."
Luke 21:32 "Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all things take place."

[Shammu]

I posted all this material here.

[The_8th_Person]

Thank you many of these things I didnt know of or contimplate about.

[Shammu]

Thank you many of these things I didnt know of or contimplate about.

Your welcome T8P

[FayeC]

10.  TECHNOLOGY FOR THE MARK OF THE BEAST
Revelation 13:16-17  "And he causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free men and the slaves to be given a mark on their right hand or on their forehead, and he provides that no one will be able to buy or to sell, except the one who has the mark, either the name of the beast or the number of his name."

On May 10, three members of a family in Florida became the first people to receive the biochip implant.  Each device, made of silicon and called a VeriChip, is a small radio transmitter about the size of a piece of rice that is injected under a person's skin. It transmits a unique personal ID number whenever it is within a few feet of a special receiver unit. VeriChip's maker describes it as "a miniaturized, implantable, radio frequency identification device (RFID) that can be used in a variety of security, emergency and healthcare applications."

Is the biochip the mark of the beast to be used by the antichrist?  We can't really know.  What is significant is that people are being softened to the idea of a mark or an implant as a means of maintaining security, providing medical information, and regulating a more interdependent world.  As attitudes change, fears subside, and people are convinced of the need for such a mark, the true mark of the beast will be easily introduced to the world by the antichrist.

11.  PLANS FOR THE ONE WORLD GOVERNMENT

The United Nations, World Trade Organization, International Criminal Court, UN peacekeeping/police force, numerous UN NGO's, and other agencies are preliminary steps to the formation of a one world government.  We now have the communications technology, transportation, and the pro-globalization media necessary to usher in the one world government headed by the antichrist.  The increasing terrorist threat and the middle east conflict will only speed up the formation of this governing body as fear and promises of better security make more people willing to give up their national sovereignty for global governance.

12.  INSTANT COMMUNICATION AROUND THE WORLD
Revelation 11:3, 7-10  "And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophecy for twelve hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth.  When they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up out of the abyss will make war with them, and overcome them and kill them.  And their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which mystically is called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified.  Those from the peoples and tribes and tongues and nations will look at their dead bodies for three and a half days, and will not permit their dead bodies to be laid in a tomb.  And those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and celebrate; and they will send gifts to one another, because these two prophets tormented those who dwell on the earth."

Television and the 24-hour news networks make it possible for people around the world to see the dead prophets and rejoice at their deaths.

Luke 21:28 "But when these things begin to take place, straighten up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near."
Luke 21:32 "Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all things take place."

I believe if you read Revelation 13 carefully, you'll discover that "chip" technology has nothing to do with the "mark of the beast".

The Apostle John was given a vision of Babylon coming out of the sea with "man" from all seven continents of the world; one of which was an emotionally  "wounded" man called the "beast".

John saw how that Babylon healed his wound by creating an "image" of him; an image which all accepted with their minds, and with their right hand, worked to exalt the beast.

The prophet Daniel gives detailed information about this same Babylon whom he refers to as "the little horn" in chapters 8 through 12. So much so that it's like reading American history.

In addition to scriptures which describe the exaltation of "the beast", there are scriptures which resemble the Civil war, the Civil Rights Movement, and that day on June 25, 1962 when America turned from Christ, and took away daily school prayer.

They are scriptures which coincide precisely with what the Apostle Paul wrote in 11Thes 2 when he said, (paraphrasing)
That day (the day of Christ) shall not come except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed; the son of perdition.  Who opposeth, and exalteth himself about all whom are called by God's name, or anyone that's worshipped.  So that he will sit amongst God's people showing himself that he is their God.

And Paul again says in Romans1,
Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an "image" made like to corruptible man..........and worshipped and served the creature (the beast) "more" than Jesus Christ.








 

[Bronzesnake]

FayeC quote...

I believe if you read Revelation 13 carefully, you'll discover that "chip" technology has nothing to do with the "mark of the beast".

The Apostle John was given a vision of Babylon coming out of the sea with "man" from all seven continents of the world; one of which was an emotionally  "wounded" man called the "beast".

John saw how that Babylon healed his wound by creating an "image" of him; an image which all accepted with their minds, and with their right hand, worked to exalt the beast.

 Hello FayeC

I must disagree with your interpretation of the mark.
 If you read the scriptures closely, you'll see specific terminology used which lines up much better with some sort of device which is in the hand or in the forehead, and that without this device (micro-chip) no one can buy or sell. Right now, we need either cash or credit cards to do our purchasing. However, if you follow the evolution of buying and selling, you will find a definite pattern of gradual change implemented by the "powerful" in how we buy and sell.
 At one time, we bartered and traded goods for goods. Here in Canada, the Hudson's Bay company put an end to that system and replaced it with a monetary system...wooden nickles at first, then coinage began to be minted out of coppers, gold, silver and nickle. Eventually we began using paper cash, and more recently plastic has been used. The downfall with coin and paper money, as well as credit cards is the obvious wear and tear, as well as the relative ease of theft, robbery and counterfeiting, not to mention black market and money laundering, etc.

 How outlandish do you think it would be for a cashless system to be implemented - replaced by a system which deploys micro-chip and scanner technology?


Rev 13:16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:

Rev 13:17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.

 Jesus says that whosoever receives this "mark" will be doomed to Hell...there can be no salvation for them. If the mark was simply an acceptance of satan, then that sentence would be out of line with the conditions of salvation as we know them. There are thousands of people the world-wide who have at one time in their lives been satan worshipers, only to have turned away from that evil and received salvation through Jesus Christ.

 As far as your belief in...

an emotionally  "wounded" man called the "beast".

 That doesn't line up with the scriptures my friend. The bible is clear, that he was killed by a sword, and not "emotionally wounded"

Rev 13:14 And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by [the means of] those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.

 Good discussing with you Faye.

 Bronzesnake

[The_8th_Person]

I personaly agree that micro-chips are more then likley going to be the mark. But even if they weren't you cant be 100% sure so I wont go excepting any kind of mark from anyone. Im not willing to wage my salvation on a theory.

[Bronzesnake]

I personaly agree that micro-chips are more then likley going to be the mark. But even if they weren't you cant be 100% sure so I wont go excepting any kind of mark from anyone. Im not willing to wage my salvation on a theory.

 Absolutely! I share your opinion on this one my friend.

Bronzesnake.

[FayeC]

Again....If you read Rev.13 carefully you'll find that "chip technology" or any kind of technology for that matter, has no relationship whatsoever with the end-time "beast".

That chapter says that "the beast"; the ones whom are worshipped, is a "man".  NOT an individual man!, but rather a "type" or race of man.

It is the beast; that race of man, that has the mark/image made of him.  And it is "ALL" whom accept that image.  
Check it out!

Another thing:
If you notice, it is the beast whom is able to "buy and sell", NOT those whom have accepted his image!