The Little Book of Prophecy and Truth

Copyright 2006 - 2010

Today's news was written 2500 years ago

Book 1

Biblical Prophecy

The antichrist and the false prophet.  Modern nations in the bible.
Understanding Revelation.  The coming war.  When is the Rapture?
 

Book 2

The Truth of Gods Word

What does being born again mean?  What church is teaching truth?
What is a false religion?  How many God's are there?
 

Book 3

Is evolution a scientific fact?

The scientific evidence - what does it prove?  What about the Dinosaurs?
Is the earth really billions of years old?  Global Warming?

Table of Contents

Introduction

To introduce myself, my name is Dan.  I'm a Born Again Christian who loves truth and I have spent many hours and days studying the Word of God.  I have no "credentials" given me by men, I am just a sinner saved by the grace of God who has been given a love for the truth.  I have studied the works of many other men and I've taken what I've found to follow the Word and discarded that which I've found does not follow precisely with the Bible.  I wrote this book by compiling my notes into a readable format in order to share what I have learned with anyone who will read it.  I am a family man, with a wonderful wife, who I can only say is a precious gift from God, and we are blessed with four children.

Since I love prophecy and how it all ties into the current times and events of the world, and most people seem to be as interested as I am, I’m writing this book to summarize all I’ve learned about biblical prophecy and help others understand the truth of God’s Word.  I don’t take the credit for anything in this book.  I have studied a few different people’s ideas on prophecy and biblical theology, and many of the words in this book are taken right out of other men’s mouths, but the bible is the ultimate authority on truth so we’ll be studying the words of God more than anything.

I must stress, right at the start here, that fulfilled prophecy cannot be fully realized for what it is until it has happened.  There are many biblical prophecies that have already come to pass, but there are many that are coming to pass right now.  We cannot know for sure what we’re seeing until the events have come to conclusion.  That being said, there is so much compelling evidence and so many clues that it’s almost impossible not to see it for what it is today.  Prophecy is coming to pass right before our eyes and today we are living in the times that God spent about 25% of the words in the bible to tell us about.  He wanted us to know when the time was right, at the time of the end, and we are there!

The second book of this book, however, is taken directly from the bible and there is no guesswork involved at all.  God is very specific about truth and has written His Word for us to understand fully if we love the truth and seek it with all our heart.  And, the most important thing to remember is: Understanding prophecy is not important to your salvation, but understanding the truth is the most important thing in the world!

The second book of this little book is the book I wish I had when I began my journey with God.  There are so many religions out there and they all teach something different, even the “Christian” churches can teach some significant differences even though they profess to believe the same thing.  What is the truth?  We will explore that in this little book.

Much of the text in this book will be direct quotes from the Bible with explanations and commentary to help the reader understand the meaning.  The Bible is the only real truth, so we should never stray from its pages.  While I research with several versions of the Bible and use Greek/Hebrew dictionaries, I use the King James Version of the Bible for accuracy and truth.  Some people don’t realize just how many changes are made in the translations of some of the different Bible versions that completely change the meaning of God’s Word and even though they may be easier to understand, they are not accurate.  The King James Bible is the most accurate translation we have, period.   Many people think that the King James Bible is so far from the original text that it cannot be accurate, but the opposite is the reality.  It is only two steps from the original text.  The original Old Testament Hebrew was translated into what is called the Masoretic Text by a group of Jews known as the Masoretes and that text was used to create the English translation.  The New Testament is translated into English based on the Textus Receptus which was compiled by Dutch Catholic scholar Desiderius Erasmus.  While some people argue that this is still not good enough, the important thing to remember is that God preserved His word for us and He didn't give us a book that we cannot understand.  2 Tim 3:16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:

I hope that this little book will inspire readers to do what I did when I had so many questions and got so many different answers.  I started reading the Bible for myself!  I began by reading the entire New Testament from front to back, then moving to the Old Testament.  I definitely don’t want you to take my word for anything said in this little book.  But I don’t want you to go out and take another man’s word for it either!  Trust in the Word and ONLY in the Word of God!  Finding a minister or pastor who knows God is very important, but make sure he is teaching the truth!  I only say this because I trusted a pastor who misled me and did not teach the truth.  I’m just grateful that God showed me His truth!  It could have meant terrible consequences for me if I had not sought out God and His truth on my own.

My recommendation for reading this little book is to have your Bible out and read the passages that I quote from as you read through these pages.

For the best reading experience, please read this book in order.  There are some subjects that are built upon from previous chapters, so if you skip around it might not make as much sense to you as it would otherwise.  Enjoy!

Book 1

1 - Biblical Prophecy

This book will explore the prophecies of the bible in short summaries.  It is not intended to be a full prophecy study but is only intended to be a quick guide through some of the major prophecies.

Can prophecy really be understood?

Contrary to popular belief, the bible says that some of us will know and understand the end time!

Dan 11:33 And they that understand among the people shall instruct many…

Dan 12:10 Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly: and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand.

Matt 24:33 So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors. 34 Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.

1 Thess 5:4 But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. 5 Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.

God gave understanding to His chosen people and they will instruct many with this knowledge!

The bible contains about 30% prophecy and about 90% of that prophecy is about the end times!  God wanted us to know when the time was near…

Dan 12:9 And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.

People have tried for centuries to interpret the prophecies of the bible, but they just couldn’t understand.  Now that it’s the time of the end we can understand them.  It’s not because we’re smarter or more spiritual than people in the past, it’s simply because God sealed them up until the time of the end, which is the time we’re living right now!

2 - Prophecies fulfilled in Jesus Christ

Only a few of the prophecies concerning Jesus have been listed here.  There are many more, hundreds in fact; not even including the ones (mostly from the book of Revelation) that have not been fulfilled yet.  The prophecies fulfilled in Christ are too numerous to fully discuss them all in a short book such as this.  I am listing some of them with scriptural references so that you may study them in detail if you wish.

The major categories of Messianic prophecy (prophecy concerning Jesus Christ) can be described as:

• .The lineage of Jesus  

• .The Godlike attributes of Jesus  

• .Things Jesus did  

• .Things that were done to Jesus  

I have listed a few from all these categories here.

3 - Other prophecies that have been fulfilled

Again, these are only a few of the prophecies fulfilled.  There are many others that I have not listed here in order to keep this book fairly small.  These should be enough to prove the point though.

The temple in Jerusalem was destroyed as predicted by Jesus

Matt 24:1 And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple. 2 And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.

In 70 AD, the Romans destroyed Jerusalem.  During the destruction, fire was set to the Temple. The fire caused the gold inlay on the Temple ceiling and walls to melt. The melting gold flowed into crevices within the stones. The Romans pried apart the stones to remove the gold. This fulfilled Jesus' prophecy that not one stone would be left standing on another.

The destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple is prophesied in Daniel

Dan 9:26 And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.

Daniel predicted that the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary.  This means that before the Antichrist takes power in the end time, the people (his ancestors) will destroy Jerusalem and the temple.  This was predicted sometime around 500 BC and was fulfilled in 70 AD.  This prophecy is part of Daniels “70 weeks”, and the portion of the prophecy up to this event is 483 years.

Israel would become a wasteland

Deut 29:23 And that the whole land thereof is brimstone, and salt, and burning, that it is not sown, nor beareth, nor any grass groweth therein, like the overthrow of Sodom, and Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboim, which the LORD overthrew in his anger, and in his wrath:

Since the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans, the land of Israel has been described many times as having been a sparsely populated wasteland. In 1867, Mark Twain wrote this about the land of Israel, which at the time was called Palestine, "Palestine sits in sackcloth and ashes… the spell of a curse that has withered its fields and fettered its energies… Palestine is desolate and unlovely… It is a hopeless, dreary, heartbroken land." - from Mark Twain's Innocents Abroad.

The exiled people of Israel would return to Israel

Ezek 38:8 After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.

This passage is talking about the Battle of Armageddon when Russia and Iran come down against Israel into the land that is brought back from the sword and gathered out of many people.  In recent years, millions of Jews have returned to Israel.  After the holocaust at the end of World War 2, Jews clamored to return to Israel, even at the cost of many lives.  They flocked onto boats that would be attacked by the Palestinians when they reached shore and seemed driven by some unknown force to return home.  Today, the nation of Israel is recognized as a sovereign nation!

If you’re skeptical and don’t really know if you believe this prophecy mumbo jumbo, I have to ask if you really understand the importance and magnitude of this prophecy.  Israel was scattered to the wind for 1900 years.  Their land was a wasteland for that time.  They didn’t die off or become assimilated into the other nations and peoples in almost 2000 years!  It wasn’t until the middle of the last century that they returned to Israel and today they are once again a Jewish nation!  How is that possible?  Never in the history of the world has anything like that happened.

The rise of Alexander the Great was predicted 200 years before he overran the Medes and the Persians in 331 BC

In Daniel chapter 8 we see the rise of the Media/Persian empire, the conquering of them by Alexander the Great, the fall of the Grecian Empire into it's four parts and then a leap to the end time and the rise of the Antichrist and his subsequent defeat by Jesus.

Dan 8:20 The ram which thou sawest having two horns are the kings of Media and Persia. 21 And the rough goat is the king of Grecia: and the great horn that is between his eyes is the first king. 22 Now that being broken, whereas four stood up for it, four kingdoms shall stand up out of the nation, but not in his power. 23 And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up. 24 And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practise, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people. 25 And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand.

Daniel 11 goes on to explain a lot more about the historical past leading up to the antichrist as well.  If it were possible to trace the lines we could know exactly where the antichrist will rise from, but the four kingdoms following Alexander's reign went through too much chaos for us to be able to figure it out.  Maybe the information is out there somewhere and someone will unearth it for us.

Do you think the bible is truth?  God gave us prophecy so we could know He is real and believe in Him.

4 - Modern nations in the bible

The United States, Britain, Russia and Germany are in the bible!  Believe it?

God chose to use symbols to represent many things concerning prophecy in the bible.  He did this to “seal up” the prophecy until the time that he wished us to know; the time of the end.

Dan 12:9 And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.

The symbols are easily understood now that we can recognize them for what they are.

Daniel 7 speaks of four beasts that rose up out of the sea.

Dan 7:1 In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon Daniel had a dream and visions of his head upon his bed: then he wrote the dream, and told the sum of the matters. 2 Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea. 3 And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another. 4 The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man's heart was given to it. 5 And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised up itself on one side, and it had three ribs in the mouth of it between the teeth of it: and they said thus unto it, Arise, devour much flesh. 6 After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, which had upon the back of it four wings of a fowl; the beast had also four heads; and dominion was given to it. 7 After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns. 8 I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things.

The beasts symbolize kings, or nations along with the rulers of the nations as we know them today.  When we see a beast in prophecy it is almost always referring to a nation and/or the ruler of that nation.  Sometimes it will refer to the nation itself and sometimes it will be referring to the ruler.  In order to understand this prophecy, we have to first understand that the beasts are referring to modern nations.

Dan 7:17 These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth.

We’re told when these nations will exist.

Dan 7:9 I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire.

The event in Daniel 7:9 is the return of Jesus Christ.  He will return to put down all government and establish the kingdom of God where He will reign for 1000 years.  This means that these kings (nations) will exist at the time of Christ’s return.

The first beast is a lion, and had eagles wings coming out of it.  What nation today has the official symbol of the lion?  Great Britain, or the United Kingdom as we know it today.  (Webster’s Third International Dictionary, Indianapolis Star Jan 4, 1980, Encyclopedia online (Wikipedia))  What current nation came out of the lion?  The United States came out of Britain.  The amazing thing about this prophecy is; God predicted the US declaration of independence 2400 years before it happened!  “I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man's heart was given to it.”  The Bald Eagle is the official symbol of the United States!  But, the US also has another symbol.  A man: Uncle Sam.  God wanted us to know when the time was right, so He gave us so many clues that we could hardly miss!  The wings were plucked from the lion and a man’s heart was given to it.  Hello USA!

The second beast is a bear.  Ever heard of the Russian bear?  The bear is the official animal symbol of Russia.  (Indianapolis Star Jan 4, 1980, Encyclopedia online (Wikipedia))  And Russia has and is playing a very prominent role in world affairs.

The third beast is a leopard with four heads and four wings of a fowl.  The leopard is the unofficial symbol of Germany (Encyclopedia online (Wikipedia)).  “…and dominion was given to it.”  Germany has been the dominant nation in Europe for the last 100 years and Germany was the prominent leader of the Holy Roman Empire (AKA the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation) for the last 1200 years.  Multiple heads on a beast portray the number of times that nation will rise and fall.  Germany’s Third Reich fell with the defeat of Hitler in World War 2, and they are now in the Fourth Reich.  It’s interesting that the German Leopard Tank has become one of the world’s foremost tanks.  The four wings of a fowl very likely refer to the Franco-German alliance.  The official animal symbol of France is a rooster.

Another very interesting piece of information about this is that one of the heads was wounded unto death; and his deadly wound was healed.  In Revelation we see the beasts again, but now they are all in one beast (the end time one world government).

Rev 13:1 And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. 2 And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority. 3 And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.

When Germany was defeated for the third time in less than 100 years (Franco-German War, WW1 and WW2), she was cut in half with the Berlin wall to ensure she would not ever again be strong enough to start another world war.  It was declared at that time, “Germany is dead.  She will never rise again.”  This wound was healed on November 9, 1989 when the wall came down and Germany is once again dominating Europe.  Germany and its 4th Reich was dead but now it is alive and thriving once again.  The European Union has become the world’s number one economic power, and Germany is by far the strongest country among the nations of the European Union.

The fourth beast is different than the first three, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly.  And it had ten horns.  The ten horns are ten kings.

Dan 7:23 Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces. 24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.

We don’t know yet which union of nations or states and/or leaders this will represent.  We do know that a world leader (the little horn from Daniel 7:8 above) will arise from this union and will take power by “plucking” or “subduing” three kings, and he will, “speak great things”, and he will “devour  (conquer) the whole earth”.  He will rule until Jesus Christ Himself, who is the Ancient of Days, comes back to the earth.  This man will be what we call the Antichrist.  He will be the leader of the one world government that controls the nations of the earth in the end time.  He will be an evil man who deceives the world with promises of peace and security.  There is a possibility that I will mention here but I want you to know that I am not saying that this is for sure, only that it’s a possibility.  The Western European Union, the military wing of the EU, is a group of ten nations that Javier Solana heads up.  So far he does not meet all the requirements that would fulfill the prophecies concerning the Antichrist, but he could in the very near future.

So, what have we learned so far?  The United States, Britain, Russia and Germany will be on the earth when it is, “the time of the end”.  A ten “king” union will produce the world leader known as the Antichrist, and he will rule until Jesus returns.  We also know how long this man will rule the world, shown in the following passages:

Rev 13:5 And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.

Dan 7:25 And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.

In Old Testament verbiage, “a time and times and the dividing of time” means; a year and two years and half a year, or three and a half years.  Forty two months also equals three and a half years.  So we know that this period of time will be three and a half years.  This period of time will be the second half of the final seven years as discussed further in other chapters of this book.

5 - The four horsemen

There are a lot of popular theories about the four horsemen.  Most don’t make much sense at all.  I’ve only heard one that makes perfect sense.

There are two passages that deal with horsemen and chariots with horses.  Just as Daniel and Revelation both talk about the same beasts, Revelation 6:1-8 and Zechariah 6:1-8 both deal with the same prophecy.

Rev 6:1 And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see. 2 And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer. 3 And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see. 4 And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword. 5 And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand. 6 And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine. 7 And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see. 8 And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.

Zech 6:1 And I turned, and lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came four chariots out from between two mountains; and the mountains were mountains of brass. 2 In the first chariot were red horses; and in the second chariot black horses; 3 And in the third chariot white horses; and in the fourth chariot grisled and bay horses. 4 Then I answered and said unto the angel that talked with me, What are these, my lord? 5 And the angel answered and said unto me, These are the four spirits of the heavens, which go forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth. 6 The black horses which are therein go forth into the north country; and the white go forth after them; and the grisled go forth toward the south country. 7 And the bay went forth, and sought to go that they might walk to and fro through the earth: and he said, Get you hence, walk to and fro through the earth. So they walked to and fro through the earth. 8 Then cried he upon me, and spake unto me, saying, Behold, these that go toward the north country have quieted my spirit in the north country.

The horses represent spirits in the world, as it says in Zech 6:5.

Let’s take a look at each type of horse.

The black horses go forth into the north country and the rider had a pair of balances in his hand, saying, “A measure of wheat for a penny…”  Does the northern hemisphere contain most of the capitalistic nations?  What is capitalism?  Free trade!  Black represents capitalism like red represents communism in political and news circles.  Can you find the pair of balances on a US dollar bill?

The white horse went forth after the black and the rider had a bow, and a crown, and it went forth to conquer.  White is the symbol of peace.  The Catholic church brings a message of peace.  This is not proof of anything, but it's interesting that the Roman Catholic pope wears white, rides in white (his limo, helicopter, etc).  If the pope were to ride a horse, what color would it be?  The pope wears a crown.  The rider has a bow but no arrows.  Although the Vatican has no standing army, Catholicism is certainly a conquering power.  When the majority of the people of a nation becomes Catholic; that nation is referred to as a “Catholic” nation, and the Vatican believes it has the right to make political decisions and command the leaders of a nation that is “Catholic”.  One of the Vatican’s major goals is to conquer America.

The red horse was given power to take peace; that they should kill one another, and he had a great sword.  What greater military might exists in the world than the combined power of Russia and China?  A very great sword!  Red is the color of communism.  It’s estimated that over 80 million Chinese have been killed in political purges in China since the Communists took over in 1948.  The government of the USSR killed 67 million of its own people and Russia is still very much a socialist (communist) nation.  Do they kill one another?

The pale horse went south and Death sat on him and Hell followed him and he was given power to kill with the sword and hunger and the beasts of the world.  The southern hemisphere contains most of the poverty stricken nations.  War, crime, revolution, hunger and beasts of the earth are more prominent in the more backward nations of the third world.  The last 100 years have seen more death than the entire history of man (wars, abortions, etc.)  The passage in Zechariah splits the pale/green horse in two; into the grisled and bay horses.  That makes this prophecy easier to understand in that it has two components: Islam and Death.  A very interesting thing about this horse is that the meaning of the original Greek word is interpreted as “pale” in the King James Bible, but the word chloros (khlo-ros'); also means greenish, or pale green.  This word (chloros) is also used in 3 other places in the bible: Mark 6:39, Revelation 8:7 and Revelation 9:4.  In all three of these other places it was interpreted correctly as green.  This horse was also given power over the fourth part of the earth.  Since we know these horses are spirits, it is very, very interesting that the color of Islam is green (their flags, etc.), and that there are 1.48 billion Muslims (Islam followers) in the world today.  That’s almost exactly one fourth of the world population.  This horse went south; and 96.5% of the world’s Muslims are in the southern hemisphere, in Africa and Southern Asia.  Can Islam be defined as “Death”?  I’ve seen arguments that the terrorists are only the “radicals” and poor Muslims being recruited, but if you look at the history of the men that hijacked the planes on 9/11, they came from middle class and wealthy families.  The attacks that are happening everywhere, the suicide bombings, the masses of Muslims chanting, “Death to Israel, death to America”, are not only the poor and radical, it is the mindset of Islam as a whole.  Look at what happened recently in Palestine.  They knowingly elected a terrorist organization into their government!

The four horsemen and the horses in the chariots most likely represent the spirits of Catholicism, Capitalism, Communism, and Islam.  These spirits are in the world today and have been here for a long time.  If you think about it, I’ll wager you’ll notice how the spirit of the people living under these forces have different attitudes, ways of thinking, etc; that fit the spirit governing their lives.

The four horsemen of Revelation are also the first four seals, of which there are a total of seven.

There are four groups of sevens in the book of Revelation.  Seven seals, seven trumpets, seven vials and seven thunders.  John was told not to write what the seven thunders said.  The seven trumpets are discussed in the next chapter.  The seven vials are all “poured out” at the end of the final seven years before the return of Christ, and are discussed further in chapter 10 of this little book.

The remaining seals are: Seal 5 – The saints of God that are already dead are told to rest yet for a little season.  Seal 6 – there is much happening here and this seal appears to be the same prophecy as the 7th trumpet and the 7th vial.  There’s a definite correlation here with the seven trumpets.  As you will see in the next chapter, the first 4 trumpets have very likely sounded and we’re right on the heels of the Three Woes.  We’ve already seen that the first four seals have been opened and it’s very likely that we’re in that “waiting period” of the fifth seal, right on the heels of the sixth.  Seal 7 – There is silence in heaven for the space of about a half hour.  (see Chapter 10 for more information)

Most people are taught that the book of Revelation is a chronological record of the end time events, but there is no real rhyme or reason for thinking that.  The 6th seal, the 7th trumpet, the 7th vial, Matthew 24:29, and Ezekiel 38:18-22 all talk about the same things and are representing the same period of time that immediately follows the great tribulation at the end of the final seven years, discussed more in Chapter 10 - Understanding Revelation and the Timeline of Events.

6 - The seven trumpets

Many people think that the seven trumpets must sound during the final seven years, but there is absolutely no proof of that in the bible.  I believe we are on the brink of the first two of the “three woes”, the 5th and 6th Trumpets, and I’ll explain why in this chapter.

What are the seven trumpets?

I encourage you to read Revelation 8 through 11 at this point.  Each of the seven trumpets is an event or series of events that will take place.

One thing we have to remember; John was shown these in visions and he wrote what he saw, but he had never in his life seen a mushroom cloud from a nuclear bomb, a helicopter, high caliber guns firing from tanks or attack vehicles or ships, scorch earth weapons dropped from airplanes, or anything remotely like the weapons and technology we have today.  He’d never even heard of these things.  He knew oxen and fishing and chariots pulled with armored horses, swords, etc.  So we’ll try to follow what he saw with an eye for what we know today.  Have you ever been in an art class where they had you try to explain a picture or an object in words only, and then someone else tried to draw what you wrote or said?  If you have, you know what I’m saying.  If not, let’s just say that it’s very, very difficult to get the real picture painted using only words.  There’s some strange language used in Revelation and it’s difficult to get a true picture, but I think you’ll agree that there’s just too much coincidence for it to be coincidence.  Take a look…

The first trumpet

Rev 8:7 The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up.

There’s not a lot to go on with this short picture.  There’s a high likelihood that this is either World War 1 or another war or something that happened that we don’t know about.  What does make sense about WW1 is that they had a “scorched earth” policy where they would drop napalm and burn everything up.  8.3 million people were killed in this war.  More than any war ever, in the previous history of man.  A significant event I would say.

The second trumpet

Rev 8:8 And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood; 9 And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed.

Have you ever seen a mushroom cloud from a nuclear bomb?  Kind of looks like a burning mountain?  Hiroshima, Japan was nuked by the US at the end of WW2.  Japan is an island out in the sea, so the mountain would appear to be burning out in the middle of the ocean.  Nobody has any idea how many sea creatures were killed from that explosion and the resulting radiation, but the really interesting part about this trumpet is, “the third part of the ships were destroyed.”  In World War 2, there was a total of 105,127 ships used in the war.  36,387 were destroyed.  That is incredibly close to exactly one third.  52 million people were killed in this war.

The third trumpet

Rev 8:10 And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters; 11 And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter.

If you research the name Wormwood in the Russian or Ukraine language, you’ll find that Wormwood actually means Chernobyl, and if you read verse 11 in Ukrainian, you’d read, “And the name of the star is called Chernobyl.”  There was a nuclear reactor in Russia called Chernobyl that blew up in 1986.  I would bet that most of us remember either hearing or reading about it.  The first explosion blew the 2 million pound lid off the reactor, and the second explosion sent nuclear radiation up one mile into the atmosphere.  It burned in a full nuclear fire for the next three weeks.  If you were looking at that fire from a couple miles away, would it look a little like a big lamp?  10 times as much radiation was released as the Hiroshima bombing.  It rained incessantly for 5 days.  The radiation cloud moved across Sweden, Italy, Germany, Great Britain and even in a very diluted form all the way to the east coast of America.  It’s estimated that 125,000 people have died due to that accident, but the most deadly thing about this was that it rained so hard that the water flowed into the rivers and the water was contaminated all the way into Europe.  They estimate that 2 million are infected by the radiation but they don’t even really know how many were affected by this and how many diseases and deaths occurred because of it, much less how it’s affecting the next generation.  The main theme in this prophecy is the waters.  Many men died of the waters because they were made bitter.

The fourth trumpet

Rev 8:12 And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise.

There’s another place in the bible where Jesus talks about this same prophecy.

Matt 24:22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.

Is it the number of days or the length of the days that is shortened?

Since a third part of the sun and moon and stars were darkened and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise, it must mean that somehow the whole day is shorter, including the night.  It can’t mean that the number of days is shortened because there are very specific timetables (number of days, number of months) about the end times mentioned in the bible and that cannot change or God’s Word would be wrong, which we know it is not!  So, God can’t change the number of days since He already told us the numbers of days, this means that somehow time is shortened.  God has somehow speeded everything up.  One possible explanation for this is Einstein’s theory of relativity.  But that may be reaching.   There is no real explanation for this prophecy except conjecture, and I haven’t heard any good ideas beyond what I’ve already written.

The three woe’s

Rev 8:13 And I beheld, and heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the earth by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, which are yet to sound!

The fifth, sixth and seventh trumpets are known in prophecy as the three woe’s.

The fifth trumpet

Rev 9:1 And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit. 2 And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit. 3 And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power. 4 And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads. 5 And to them it was given that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a man. 6 And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them. 7 And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle; and on their heads were as it were crowns like gold, and their faces were as the faces of men. 8 And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions. 9 And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle. 10 And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months. 11 And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon. 12 One woe is past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter.

This trumpet is questionable. If we leave certain parts we don't understand out it sounds a lot like the Gulf War.

Saddam set 700 oil wells in Kuwait on fire during the Gulf war.  Because of the smoke from those fires the sky was dark for 3 months.  Even at noon the sun was not visible.

The shapes of the locusts were like horses prepared for battle, they had breastplates of iron and they sounded like many chariots running to battle, and there were stings in their tails.  Sounds just like a military helicopter to me.

Abaddon and Apollyon both mean, “destroyer” or “destroying angel”.  Saddam’s mother had difficulties with her pregnancy and her doctors recommended an abortion.  She suffered the whole pregnancy and named her baby Saddam, which means, “the destroyer”.

The picture he drew for us fits the events of the Gulf if we leave out some of the depictions we can't understand about the locust. However, when we look at the whole thing with the gulf war in mind, there is a lot about the “locust” that doesn't fit. For prophecy to be realized, there can't be anything that doesn't fit or it is not prophecy being fulfilled. There is a possibility that this could be the Gulf War, but I think it is mostly coincidence and there is too much that doesn't make sense.

And, the angel who is given the key doesn't appear to be the same as the beast who comes out of the pit. The bottomless pit is opened and the sun and air are darkened because of the smoke from the pit, the locusts are told not to hurt those with the seal of God in their foreheads, and the angel who opens the pit is called the “destroying angel”, which is the meaning of the names “Abaddon” and “Apollyon”. The angel is mentioned again in Revelation 20:1-3. Notice that the angel is given the key to the bottomless pit in Revelation 9:1, opens the pit in 9:2, is named as the “king” over the locusts in 9:11, then comes down from heaven again to bind Satan in the bottomless pit for 1000 years in Revelation 20:1-3.

In Revelation 11:7 we see that the beast comes out of the bottomless pit, becomes or possesses a man to become the Antichrist shown in Revelation 17:8-11, kills the two witnesses at the end of the final 3.5 years (Rev 11:7), and then in Revelation 20:1-3 we see that the “angel” who was given the key locks up the devil in the bottomless pit for 1000 years.

For this reason, I do not think the 5th trumpet was the Gulf War.

Joel 2:1-11 also gives us some information on what appears to be the same events.

Joel 2:1 Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand; 2 A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations. 3 A fire devoureth before them; and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them. 4 The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses; and as horsemen, so shall they run. 5 Like the noise of chariots on the tops of mountains shall they leap, like the noise of a flame of fire that devoureth the stubble, as a strong people set in battle array. 6 Before their face the people shall be much pained: all faces shall gather blackness. 7 They shall run like mighty men; they shall climb the wall like men of war; and they shall march every one on his ways, and they shall not break their ranks: 8 Neither shall one thrust another; they shall walk every one in his path: and when they fall upon the sword, they shall not be wounded. 9 They shall run to and fro in the city; they shall run upon the wall, they shall climb up upon the houses; they shall enter in at the windows like a thief. 10 The earth shall quake before them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining: 11 And the LORD shall utter his voice before his army: for his camp is very great: for he is strong that executeth his word: for the day of the LORD is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?

As I said above, it’s likely that the trumpets are “eras”.  Each era precedes the other and each will lead into the other.  In the days… when he shall begin to sound…

Rev 10:7 But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound...

And the final three woes lead into each other.

Rev 9:12 One woe is past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter.

Rev 11:14 The second woe is past; and, behold, the third woe cometh quickly.

As of mid 2010, we are still waiting to see if the fifth trumpet has sounded or if it will be another event. With the war in Iraq, and the mounting troubles with China, Iran, Syria and Palestinians, we are likely seeing the next trumpet era beginning now.

The sixth trumpet

Rev 9:13 And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God, 14 Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates. 15 And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men. 16 And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them.

The Euphrates river runs through Turkey, Syria, and mostly Iraq.  The US happens to have many thousands of troops stationed along the Euphrates river right now in Iraq and the situation in the Middle East is going red hot, with Israel and the Palestinians, and Iran enriching uranium which everyone knows is to build a bomb to make their wish of blowing Israel off the map come true.  China boasts the ability to field an army of over 200 million.  This is the first time in the history of man that this has even been a possibility.  China buys millions and millions of barrels of oil from Iran, and both Russia and China are sympathetic with Iran.  Today things look quite like a war could start very soon that could kill one third of mankind.  The world currently holds about 6 billion people.  To kill 2 billion people most likely means nuclear war and will likely involve the United States.  I say this because the US has the firepower for that magnitude of destruction, and because there are only about 300 million in the US so it’s likely China and other countries will take the brunt of the destruction.  China has a population of 1.3 billion, and India (just south of China) has another billion.  China is also a little touchy about the Taiwan issue.  If you’ve been reading the news, you might remember Chinese officials saying that, “American leaders care more about Los Angeles than they do about Taiwan”, and “China would sacrifice millions of men and entire cities to ensure unity”, and said that the US would not make comparable sacrifices.  Chinese officials have also said that they would not hesitate to use nuclear technology against the US if necessary.  No one can say for sure how the war will start or what will happen, but it sure looks like we’re right on the brink of this trumpet.

What better way for the Antichrist to come to power than when the world wakes up to 2 billion dead?  The world will be clamoring for disarmament, world unity and peace.  The Antichrist will use peace as a weapon to gain his power.  This is discussed later in this book.

The seventh trumpet

Rev 11:14 The second woe is past; and, behold, the third woe cometh quickly. 15 And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever. 16 And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God, 17 Saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned. 18 And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth. 19 And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.

This is the second coming of Jesus Christ!  This trumpet brings the battle of Armageddon where Israel is saved by God, the rapture, the destruction of the Antichrist and the false prophet, and the binding of Satan for 1000 years.  This Trumpet, the sixth Seal and all of the Vials bring the Wrath of God down on the earth.  Jesus will wipe out the armies coming down against Israel at Armageddon and there will be an earthquake that is felt around the world, plagues and many terrible things because of mankind’s denial of God.  Fortunately God’s people will not have to endure this wrath as we will be taken up at the sound of the Trumpet before God’s wrath is poured out on the earth.  And then it ushers in the millennium reign of Christ and the end of worldly governments.  Imagine a world ruled by a loving King such as Jesus Christ for 1000 years, with no wars or strife at all.  Wow.

7 - Prophecy and the present times

I’m going to touch lightly on a number of subjects in this chapter.  How will we know who the Antichrist and the False Prophet are?  Who is the Great Whore in Revelation?  What is the New World Order?  Etc...

Revival of the Holy Roman / Ottoman Empire

Dan 2:31 Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was terrible. 32 This image's head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass, 33 His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay. 34 Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. 35 Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth. 36 This is the dream; and we will tell the interpretation thereof before the king. 37 Thou, O king, art a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory. 38 And wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath he given into thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou art this head of gold. 39 And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee, and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth. 40 And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise. 41 And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters' clay, and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay. 42 And as the toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken. 43 And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay. 44 And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever. 45 Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.

Daniel interprets the dream of King Nebuchadnezzar.  He saw an image that had a head of gold, breast and arms of silver, belly and thighs of brass, legs of iron, and feet of iron mixed with clay with ten toes of part iron and part clay.  Each of these sections represents a world dominating power.  Many nations have existed since that time, but the sections represent world domination (of the known world) as stated in Daniel 2:39.  We know for certain that these are consecutive kingdoms and are not the same kingdoms we find in Daniel 7 as some people teach.  But, like other prophecies discussed in this book, the two have a common intersection at the end.  When the stone smote the image and became a great mountain; verses 44 and 45 tell us that it's the same declaration as we found in Daniel 7:9.  It is the end of this age when the Lord returns, casts down the nations and the governments of the world, and sets up His kingdom on the earth.

Gold – Babylon
Babylon ruled until the Medes and the Persians conquered Babylon in 539 BC.

Silver – Media-Persia
The Medes and Persians ruled until Alexander the Great defeated them in 331 BC.

Brass – Greece
The Grecian empire lasted until the Romans defeated them in 197 BC.

Iron – Rome
The Roman empire lasted about 500 years until it decayed from within and was overrun by barbarians around 300 AD.  This was the largest of the empires controlling most of Europe and the Middle East nations.

Iron and Clay – Holy Roman / Ottoman Empire
The iron is mingled with clay because it’s a continuation of the Roman Empire via the Holy Roman Empire but was broken in two parts, co-existing with the Ottoman Empire.  The Holy Roman Empire controlled the nations of the northern Roman Empire (Europe) while the Ottoman Empire controlled the Middle Eastern nations of the Roman Empire.  Both of these Empires together comprised the total area controlled by the Roman Empire.

The language used in this prophecy says that this kingdom is “divided” and “partly strong and partly broken”.  It is divided because it is two kingdoms who controlled the same area.

The Holy Roman Empire was founded when Pope Leo III crowned Charlemagne in 800 AD and proclaimed him to be the first emperor of the Holy Roman Empire.  The Holy Roman Empire has risen and fallen many times since then (partly strong and partly broken) and has always been ruled by both a religious leader and a political leader.  We still have a “Charlemagne prize” which was awarded to Bill Clinton in 2000 and was awarded to Javier Solana in 2007.  This prize is awarded to the person who does the most for the reunification of Europe.

The Ottoman Empire was founded around 1300 AD and continued until 1923.  The Arab League mirrors the EU in that is uniting the Muslim nations in the same type of economic cooperative but membership is based on it's Muslim culture rather than geographic locality.

Both of these Empires still exist in spirit within the nations they controlled.  The EU and the Islamic Nations.

I believe that the Antichrist and the False Prophet of the bible will revive and unite these two kingdoms to create the End Time world government, the New World Order.

The ten toes agree with the ten horns, or ten kingdoms we talked about in the “Modern nations in the Bible” chapter.  Meaning there will be a ten nation, or ten state union in the end time that will produce and give power to the Antichrist as shown to us in Revelation 17:8-14.  It's interesting that Russia has ten "states" today.  It’s also interesting that the Western European Union, the military wing of the EU, is a group of ten nations that Javier Solana heads up.  So far he does not meet all the requirements that would fulfill the prophecies concerning the Antichrist, but he could in the very near future.  It's also possible that the ten nations will emerge from the Islamic nations giving their power to what they will believe is their Mahdi.

Verse 44 predicts that, “in the days of these kings”, in the days of the Holy Roman Empire, will the God of heaven set up His kingdom which shall never be destroyed.

This is the same declaration as the one we saw in Daniel 7 and the seventh trumpet: Rev 11:15 And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.

That means that the Holy Roman / Ottoman Empire will be the last world dominating power and will exist when Jesus returns to set up His kingdom.

New world order – the coming one world government

The four beasts we discussed in the, “Modern nations in the bible” chapter become one beast.

Rev 13:1 And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. 2 And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.

The mouth of the lion is a true representation of the global language adopted as the universal language for the New World Order.  Britain is the lion and English is the language of Britain.

You can’t really live in the world today and not know that the UN is fast becoming the government of the New World Order.  We have a world bank, world court, world economics, world peace keeping force (world military), and a fast materializing world religion referred to as Interfaithism.  Everything is falling into place for the Antichrist to take power.  It is very likely that the Antichrist will be crowned “king” of the Holy Roman Empire by the reigning pope of that time, confirming the revival of Holy Roman Empire, and this same man will likely be considered by the Muslim world to be the Mahdi (the Muslim Messiah) which will reunite the Ottoman Empire.  He will wield the power of the UN, as well as the power of the ten state union that he arose from and will unite the world under the auspices of peace.

Interfaithism and the coming one world religion

The Roman Catholic church is the self proclaimed “mother” of all churches.  And this is actually true for most western faiths.

03 Sep 2000 (AP) VATICAN CITY (AP) - One of Pope John Paul II's closest aides has written to bishops worldwide declaring that the Catholic church is the “mother” of other Christian churches … In the document, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger told the bishops that it was incorrect to refer to Christian churches, ranging from Orthodox to Protestant, as “sister” churches of the Catholic church ... stating that the term “sister” puts them on an equal footing and they are not “sisters” but the Catholic church is the “mother”.

The Vatican is the world’s biggest promoter of interfaithism, promoting the idea that all religions worship the same God and pushing a worldwide unity of religion.  The Vatican has even stated that the Muslims worship the same God that Christians do (Article #841 of the Catechism), and that they will enjoy the same salvation.  This means that they believe it doesn't matter if you're a Christian or a Muslim.

I've wondered in the past how the interfaith movement could include the Muslims, and it would need to since a quarter of the earth is Muslim today.

There is ample evidence that the Islamic religion will be the religion of the End Time.  Here's why I think so:

The Islamic/Muslim prophecies are a parallel but opposite mirror of biblical prophecy concerning the End Time.

Take a look at the following list:

1. 1.Bible: The Antichrist is an unparalleled political, military, and religious leader that will emerge in the last days. 

   1. a.Islam: The Mahdi is an unparalleled political, military, and religious leader that will emerge in the last days. 

2. 2.Bible: the False Prophet is a secondary prominent figure that will emerge in the last days who will support the Antichrist. 

   1. a.Islam: the Muslim Jesus is a secondary prominent figure that will emerge in the last days to support the Mahdi. 

3. 3.Bible: The Antichrist and the False Prophet together will have a powerful army that will do great damage to the earth in an effort to subdue every nation and dominate the world. 

   1. a.Islam: The Mahdi and the Muslim Jesus will have a powerful army that will attempt to control every nation of the earth and dominate the world. 

4. 4.Bible: The False Prophet is described essentially as a dragon in lamb's clothing. 

   1. a.Islam: The Muslim Jesus comes bearing the name of the one that the world knows as 'The Lamb of God, Jesus Christ." Yet the Muslim Jesus comes to murder all those who do not submit to Islam. 

5. 5.Bible: The Antichrist and the False Prophet establish a new world order. 

   1. a.Islam: The Mahdi and the Muslim Jesus establish a new world order. 

6. 6.Bible: The Antichrist and the False Prophet institute new laws for the whole earth. 

   1. a.Islam: The Mahdi and the Muslim Jesus institute Islamic law all over the earth. 

7. 7.Bible: The Antichrist is said to "change the times." 

   1. a.Islam: It is quite certain that if the Mahdi established Islam all over the earth, he would discontinue the use of Saturday and Sunday as the weekend for days of rest but rather Friday, the holy day of Islam. Also, he would most certainly eliminate the Gregorian calendar and replace it with the Islamic calendar used in every Islamic country. 

8. 8.Bible: The Antichrist and the False Prophet will both be powerful religious leaders who will attempt to institute a universal world religion. 

   1. a.Islam: The Mahdi and the Muslim Jesus will institute Islam as the only religion on the earth. 

9. 9.Bible: The Antichrist and the False Prophet will execute anyone who does not submit to their world religion. 

   1. a.Islam: Likewise, the Mahdi and the Muslim Jesus will execute anyone who does not submit to Islam. 

10. 10.Bible: The Antichrist and the False Prophet will specifically use beheading as the primary means of execution for non-conformists. 

    1. a.Islam: The Mahdi and the Muslim Jesus will use the Islamic practice of beheading for executions. 

11. 11.Bible: The Antichrist and the False Prophet will have a specific agenda to kill as many Jews (and Christians) as possible. 

    1. a.Islam: The Mahdi and the Muslim Jesus will kill as many Jews as possible until only a few are left hiding behind rocks and trees. 

12. 12.Bible: The Antichrist and the False Prophet will attack to conquer and seize Jerusalem (the battle of Armageddon). 

    1. a.Islam: The Mahdi and the Muslim Jesus will attack to reconquer and seize Jerusalem for Islam. 

13. 13.Bible: The Antichrist will set himself up in the Jewish Temple as his seat of authority (the abomination of desolation). 

    1. a.Islam: The Mahdi will establish the Islamic caliphate from Jerusalem. 

14. 14.Bible: The False Prophet is said to do many miracles to deceive as many as possible into supporting the Antichrist. 

    1. a.Islam: The Mahdi himself is said to control the weather and the crops. His face is said to glow. We can also assume that since Jesus is viewed as having been empowered by Allah to work miracles when He was here on earth the first time, He will most likely be expected to continue to do so when He returns. 

15. 15.Bible: The belief at the time of Muhammad (and still believed by some people today) was that the Antichrist is described as riding on a white horse in the Book of Revelation. 

    1. a.Islam: The Mahdi is described as riding on a white horse (ironically in the same verse in Revelation). 

16. 16.Bible: The Antichrist is said to make a peace treaty (with many) with Israel for seven years. 

    1. a.Islam: The Mahdi is said to make a peace treaty through a Jew (specifically a Levite) for exactly seven years. 

17. 17.Bible: Jesus the Jewish Messiah will return to defend the Jews in Israel from a military attack from a vast coalition of nations led by the Antichrist and the False Prophet (the battle of Armageddon). 

    1. a.Islam: The Dajjal, the Islamic Antichrist, will gain a great Jewish following and claim to be Jesus Christ and fight against the Mahdi and the Muslim Jesus. 

18. 18.Bible: The antichrist spirit specifically denies the most unique and central doctrines of Christianity, namely the divinity of Jesus, the incarnation of God in the flesh, and the substitutionary death of Jesus on the Cross. 

    1. a.Islam: Islam doctrinally and spiritually specifically denies the most unique and central doctrines of Christianity, namely the divinity of Jesus, the incarnation of God in the flesh, and the substitutionary death of Jesus on the Cross. 

19. 19.Bible: The primary warning of Jesus and the Apostle Paul was to warn Christians of the abundance of deceit and deception in the last days. 

    1. a.Islam: Islam is perhaps the only religion on earth that practices deceit as one of its tools to assist its own ascendancy. It actually has a specific doctrine which allows and even calls for deception to be used to achieve its desired end. 

20. 20.Bible: From the Bible and history we learn that the final Antichrist empire will be a revived version of the empire that succeeds the Roman Empire. 

    1. a.Islam: The empire that succeeded the Roman/Byzantine Empire was the combined Holy Roman Empire in parallel with the Islamic Ottoman Empire. 

21. 21.Bible: When the Antichrist emerges, a system will already exist poised to receive him as a savior and to give allegiance to him. 

    1. a.Islam is already the second largest religion and will at present growth rates become the largest religion within a few decades.  Islam awaits the coming of  the Mahdi with universal anticipation.  The Catholic church and many Christian churches believe that the Muslims will be saved just like Christianity will be, and believe that they worship the same God as Christianity.  It's a very short step to convert to Islam if that is believed to be the truth. 

We can see that the whole world will be fooled by the false prophet and the Antichrist, including the Muslims.  The Muslims will believe it is their Mahdi, while the rest of the world will follow the interfaith movement into believing that being a Muslim is the same as Christianity in that we all worship the same God and therefore will enjoy the same salvation.  As stated, the Catholic church has already included Islam as part of God's people and many Christian churches are following this belief.

Who is the Great Whore?

The beast of the New World Order (Rev 13:1-2) has two meanings.  It’s the one world government and its ruler, but it is also part of an explanation for the coming one world religion.

Rev 13:3 … and all the world wondered after the beast. 4 And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?

All the world will worship the Antichrist.  Chapter 17 of the book of Revelation tells us who the end time religious leader is.

Rev 17:1 And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:

She’s a woman (God's depiction of a church) and she sits on many waters.  Verse 15 explains that the waters are: peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.

15 And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.

What religious organization today has the widest variety of peoples, and nations, and tongues?

3 So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.

The woman sat on the beast.  This is the combined one world government beast, ruled by the Antichrist, shown in Daniel 2 and 7-11 and Revelation 13 and 17.  The false prophet (the end time religious leader) will ride on the power wielded by the Antichrist and will rule with him.  The beast is represented as scarlet color in this passage because it will be a Communist (Socialist) government that rules the world.

4 And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:

She was wearing purple and scarlet.  What religious organization wears purple and scarlet?  The Catholic leadership; cardinals, archbishops, and bishops wear purple and scarlet.

5 And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.

She is the mother of harlots.  God has always used a woman to symbolize the church.  In II Corinthians 11:2 God’s true church is symbolized as a woman, a virgin.  False churches are symbolized as harlots.  The woman is depicted as a “great whore” in verse 1.  Being the mother of harlots means her “daughter” churches are harlots (false churches).

9 And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth.

The seven heads that the woman is sitting on are seven mountains.  Interesting, that the Vatican is in Rome; which is called the City of Seven Hills.  The Catholic Encyclopedia states: "It is within the city of Rome, called the city of seven hills, that the entire area of Vatican State proper is now confined" (The Catholic Encyclopedia, Thomas Nelson, 1976, s.v. "Rome").  The Vatican is virtually sitting on seven mountains.

18 And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.

What city reigns over the “kings of the earth”?  How does the Catholic church “conquer” a nation?  She turns the nation Catholic.  And the Roman Catholic church believes that she has the right to guide the political thinking of any and all of her members.  The Vatican is really the only city that can be said to reign over the kings of the earth.

6 And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.

An estimated 68 million Christians have been put to death over the years for refusing to bow to the false doctrine of the Roman Catholic church.

I must say at this point, that I have nothing personal against Catholics in any way.  I have Catholic friends and I love them very much.  Jesus loves all people and anyone can be saved.  Anyone!  I’m simply pointing out what the scriptures say and what it appears to mean based on the knowledge we have today.  It sure appears that the Roman Catholic church will be what God calls the Great Whore.

The leader of the Great Whore will be the False Prophet of Revelation 13.

The false prophet will look like a lamb (the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ), but will speak as a dragon (the devil).  The Antichrist will use this person to help gain power over the entire world.  The religion of Islam is a false religion, but the Great Whore imitates the one true religion and worship of Jesus Christ as God.  The Muslim beliefs pervert the worship of the one true God by making the world believe that Jesus is not actually His son, the manifestation of God in the flesh.

Muslims believe that Christians are the what they call “The People of the Book” and are regarded as misguided but that they worship the same God that they do even though they are considered blasphemers, infidels, and idolaters and are hated by Muslims for what they believe about Jesus.  When the Muslim Jesus returns he will re-educate Christians to the truth.  Any who will not convert will be killed.

The Antichrist and the False Prophet

Since the prophecies concerning the end time are all coming to pass now, it is certain that the Antichrist and the False Prophet are alive on the earth at this very moment.  Both of them are undoubtedly in power right now or very near the reigns of power.  We probably already know the names of these men, but just don’t know who they are yet.

The bible tells us that we will be able to identify the Antichrist when the time is ripe.  That day shall not come until that man of sin be revealed.

2 Thess 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;

There are fifty-three specific prophecies concerning the Antichrist in the books of Daniel, Revelation and II Thessalonians alone.  We will discuss a few of these in order to develop a profile whereby this man can be identified when we see him rise to power.

The Antichrist is definitely a man

Dan 7:21 I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them; 22 Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom. 23 Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces. 24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings. 25 And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.

Some say that the Antichrist will be a system, not a man.  This passage alone is enough to prove that he is definitely a man.  He shall subdue three kings.  He shall speak great words against the most High.  He shall wear out the saints of the most High and will make war against the saints.  He is definitely a man.  He will be the ruler of the one world government.

He will confirm the covenant with many for seven years

Dan 9:27 And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.

In this Old Testament verbiage, a week means a “week of years”, or seven years (Genesis 29:27).  The confirmation of the covenant is this: there will be an international agreement to confirm the status of Jerusalem and the permanent borders of Israel.  These things are being fought over right now with the Palestinians.  The Antichrist will confirm the covenant along with many others.  It may be hard to identify him at that time.  In the midst of this “week” (three and one half years in), the Antichrist will cause the animal sacrifices being performed in the rebuilt temple to cease, and will cause the “abomination of desolation” by either claiming to be God or acting in the place of God.  That is when we will definitely know who he is.

The Antichrist will arise among a union of ten kings

Dan 7:24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.

We’ve talked about this in previous chapters.  We see that he will arise out of a union of ten nations.  And he will uproot, or subdue, three kings (states or nations).

Rev 17:12 And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast. 13 These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.

The ten kings will give their power and strength to the Antichrist.

When we see a man rise among a ten-nation union subduing three kings (the leaders of states or nations), watch closely and know that the time is near!

His kingdom will be the revived Holy Roman / Ottoman Empire

As discussed in other areas of this book, he will likely be crowned king of the Holy Roman Empire by the reigning Pope and will likely be considered the Muslim Mahdi.

The Antichrist will use peace as a weapon

Dan 8:25 And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand.

He will most likely rise from the horror of World War 3, the sixth trumpet, and will use peace to gain his power and control over the world.  By peace he shall destroy many.  In his arrogance, he will stand up to Jesus Christ at the seventh trumpet, but he will not win, of course.

He will claim to be God and will be the Abomination of Desolation

 Matt 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come. 15 When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) 16 Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:

The event Jesus is referring to in Matthew 24:15 is Daniel 9:27 and Daniel 11:31.  The Antichrist will confirm the covenant for seven years and will be an abomination to God and will make it (the holy place; the Temple) desolate.

Dan 9:27 And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.

Dan 11:31 And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate.

2 Thess 2:4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.

This event Paul is referring to in 2 Thessalonians is also the “abomination of desolation”.  Three and one half years after the confirmation of the covenant, he will sit in the rebuilt temple of Jerusalem and claim to be God.  Most believe that he will claim to be all god’s and all messiahs.  He will probably claim to be the god of Islam, Buddhism, etc.  When you see this happen, you will know without a doubt that he is the Antichrist.

He will be regarded as brilliant

Daniel 7:8 and Revelation 13:5 say that he will have a mouth speaking great things.  Daniel 8:23 describes him as “understanding dark sentences”.

He will persecute God’s people and he will rule the entire world

Rev 13:7 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.

Dan 7:21 I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them;

God’s people will be persecuted.  Since Satan is behind all of this, it’s not surprising.  Power is given to him over all nations...

The number of his name will be 666

Rev 13:18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.

We don’t have any idea at this time what this will mean, but it will become clear when the time comes.

He will be promoted by a miracle-working religious partner

He will most likely be crowned “king” of the Holy Roman Empire by the reigning Roman Catholic pope.  This man will be a false prophet and will get his power from the devil himself.  He will pull fire from the sky and perform miracles to deceive the people of the world.  Many people will be awed and deceived by this power.  Please don’t be one of them!  This man will definitely not be a man of God; he will be this false prophet!

It is almost a certainty that a Roman Catholic pope will be the religious leader that crowns the Antichrist leader of the Holy Roman Empire and rules with him during the Great Tribulation predicted in Revelation.

A religious leader will work side by side with the Antichrist; called the false prophet.

Rev 13:11 And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon. 12 And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. 13 And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men, 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;

The false prophet will most likely come from the end time religious leader, the Roman Catholic church.  He looks like a lamb (like Jesus) but speaks as a dragon (the devil).  It’s very likely going to be the 112th pope (counting from the 11th century on, not the original pope).  The pope today is the 111th pope.  The Catholics have a prophecy of their own that is not biblical; but is very interesting, from Saint Malachi back in the 11th century.  This prophecy says that the 112th pope will be the last pope and that he will be an evil pope, and that Rome will be destroyed during this pope’s reign.  Revelation also tells us that Rome will be destroyed at the time of the battle of Armageddon.

It looks an awful lot like the Antichrist will rise as the Muslim Mahdi and that the False Prophet will ride on his coattails as the Muslim Jesus.  Watch closely what happens with the next Pope.

8 - What’s next?

The final seven years – the road to Armageddon

We’ve already discussed several of the major events that will happen in the final seven years.  I’m not going to go into great detail in this book but I am hoping to help you understand what's coming right now and in the very near future.

The confirmation of the covenant discussed previously is the event that marks the beginning of the final seven years.  This confirmation has not happened yet.  The Quartet, or the Big Four; the EU, UN, US and Russia, have met to confirm the “Roadmap for Peace” in the Middle East several times but can't make it stick yet.  The plan includes all the necessary steps to confirm the covenant.  Today the Arab League and the Quartet along with other entities are doing everything they can to establish a Palestinian state and bring an agreement together between Israel and Palestine.  Israel leaders have even stated that they are willing to share sovereignty of the Temple Mount and give the West Bank (Judea) back to the Palestinians.  There was a meeting in November 2007 of all the powers I just mentioned that could very well lead to this event that God calls the Confirmation of the Covenant.  If they decide on a plan and implement it and make it stick, where the borders of Israel are drawn and the Temple Mount is shared, then it IS that event and that means that from that day there will only be 7 years remaining until the Battle of Armageddon and the return of Jesus Christ!

Everything else necessary for the end time to be upon us has happened or is happening now.  Most people think it cannot happen because the Jewish temple has not been rebuilt, but the temple does not have to be standing until half way through the final seven years (when the abomination of desolation takes place), and you should know that an organization called the Sanhedrin, working with the Temple Institute in Israel, is planning on rebuilding the temple off-site, just as the first temple was built, and when the temple mount is shared (probably placed under UN security control) they will be able to put it together very quickly.  All of the utensils, furniture, clothing, etc., is completely finished and ready for use in the temple, and the blueprints and plans for the temple itself are done.  When I visited Israel in 2007 I stood next to the corner stone they have ready to place as soon as they get permission to build the temple.  Many people also believe that the Muslim mosque will have to be torn down in order to rebuild the temple, but recent discoveries have shown that the actual location for the Jewish Temple is over a place that is currently called the Dome of the Spirits, where there is adequate room to build the temple.  The temple mount will be shared, and we know this because John was told to measure the Temple in Rev 11:1-2 but was told to leave out the outer court because it would be occupied by Gentiles for three and a half years.  It will likely be policed by UN peacekeepers.

The sixth trumpet may happen sometime in the first 3 ½ years of this final seven.  I can’t say that it will positively happen during that time, but it certainly looks like it, and here’s why I think so:  Revelation 9 explains the sixth trumpet, but the seventh trumpet doesn’t sound until the end of the 11th chapter.  Revelation 10 talks about an angel who places his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the earth, and John is instructed to seal up the words of the seven thunders.  In Daniel 12:4, Daniel is also instructed to shut up the words, and when the man in Daniel 12:6 asked, “How long shall it be to the end of these wonders?” he is told by an angel standing on the waters that it will be a time, times and an half, or 3 ½ years.  Revelation 11 goes on to talk about the things that will happen in the final 3 ½ years, like the two witnesses who “shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days”, or 3.45 years.  Then the sounding of the seventh trumpet happens in the end of chapter 11.  This may be an indication that the sixth trumpet will happen before the halfway point of the final seven years.  As I prove to be fact in Chapter 10 of this book, however, just because something is nestled in between something else in Revelation, it does not prove that we're in a sequential time for the events to take place.

If it does happen just before the Antichrist takes over, what better way for the Antichrist to take power than when the world awakes to 2 billion dead?  Since we know he takes power at the half-way point, or 3.5 years into the final seven, and that he uses peace as a weapon, it would be a big stepping stone for his agenda when the world is clamoring for peace after a nuclear war.

The Abomination of Desolation

The Abomination of Desolation will take place at the halfway point of the final seven years.  This event is when the Antichrist will stand in the “holy place”, the rebuilt temple in Jerusalem, and claim to be God.  He may not say it outright.  The deceiver is the Master of Lies!  Don’t be fooled if you don’t hear on the news that he actually said he is God, but he may be arrogant enough to actually say so.  The event will be one that we know about and can recognize for what it is because we know what to look for.  This is when he will take over the world.

 Matt 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come. 15 When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) 16 Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:

The event Jesus is referring to in Matthew 24:15 is Daniel 9:27 and Daniel 11:31.  The Antichrist will confirm the covenant for seven years and will be an abomination to God and will make it (the holy place; the Temple) desolate.

Dan 9:27 And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.

Dan 11:31 And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate.

2 Thess 2:4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.

This event Paul is referring to in 2 Thessalonians is also the “abomination of desolation”.  Three and one half years after the confirmation of the covenant, he will sit in the rebuilt temple of Jerusalem and claim to be God.  Most believe that he will claim to be all god’s and all messiahs.  He will probably claim to be the god of Islam, Buddhism, etc.  When you see this happen, you will know without a doubt that he is the Antichrist.

The Abomination of Desolation marks the beginning of the Great Tribulation.

The Great Tribulation

Daniel 11 and 12 show the Antichrist's reign and specifically states that there will be 1290 days (3.53 years) from the time of the Abomination of Desolation until the “end of these things”. And another specifically stating that there will be “a time (one year), times (two years) and an half (half a year)” (3.5 years) till all things shall be finished. There will be a time of trouble (Dan 12:1) such as never was (the great tribulation), the people that know God will be strong (Dan 11:32), some of those shall fall (Dan 11:35), but the wise shall understand while the wicked will not (Dan 12:10). Blessed is he who waits until 1335 days (Dan 12:12). When we look at all the scriptures describing this period of time, it looks like the 3.5 years will be the time of the wrath of Satan, and the last 45 or 75 days will be the wrath of God (the 7 Vials), sometime between the 1260th day and the 1335th day.

In Revelation 13:5 we see that power is given to the Antichrist for 42 months (3.5 years).

In Revelation 12 we see that the devil will be cast to earth, having great wrath because he knows his time is short, and that it will be for 1260 days in v.6, and a time, times and half a time in v.14, or 3.5 years.

This “time of trouble” that will last 3.5 years, is the time of the wrath of Satan. The Vials, which are the wrath of God, will be poured out in the last 75 days, between the 1260th and 1335th days, possibly just in the last 45 days. The 3.5 years of great tribulation will be for the saints of God, not the world as a whole (Luke 17:26-30, 1 Thess 5:1-4, Rev 7:9-14). Matthew 24:15-21 shows us that when we see this abomination of desolation that then there shall be great tribulation, and then (Matt 24:29) immediately after the tribulation we will see the sixth seal and the seventh trumpet and we will be gathered to the Lord at that time. This also most likely begins the pouring of the vials. I do not believe that the saints will be here for the vials (the wrath of God). The wrath of God will be to “destroy them which destroy the earth” (Rev 11:18).

The Antichrist will rule during this time and will implement the mark of the beast and it will be a terrible time for the people of God.  At the end of this period, Jesus comes back for His faithful at the sounding of the Seventh Trumpet.  This is the second coming of Jesus Christ!  This trumpet brings the battle of Armageddon where Israel is saved by God, the destruction of the Antichrist and the false prophet, and the binding of Satan for 1000 years.  This Trumpet, the sixth Seal and all of the Vials bring the Wrath of God down on the earth.  Jesus will wipe out the armies coming down against Israel at Armageddon and there will be an earthquake that is felt around the world, plagues and many terrible things because of mankind’s denial of God.  Fortunately God’s people will not have to endure this wrath as we will be taken up at the sound of the Trumpet before God’s wrath is poured out on the earth.  And then it ushers in the millennium reign of Christ and the end of worldly governments.  Imagine a world ruled by a loving King such as Jesus Christ for 1000 years, with no wars or strife at all.  Wow.

The bible tells any Jews still in the area of Judea (the West Bank) to flee when they see the Abomination of Desolation!  It tells them not to even get a change of clothes but to flee immediately!  During this final 3 ½ years, Israel will be carried on Eagles Wings.  Many people teach that this is the US, and it could be.  The US is Israel’s only friend today and it looks like the US will continue to be her friend.  This definitely does not mean for sure that the US will be the protective force that the bible is referring to here, however.  There are two reasons for saying this:

1. 1.The combined end time one world government that is ruled by the Antichrist (depicted in Revelation 13:2) does not have the eagles wings we saw in Daniel.  This probably means that the US is not part of that system.  The Antichrist will be fighting wars during his reign and it's possible that the US is one of those battlefronts.  It's also possible that the US will not come out of the 6th Trumpet war unscathed.  The US could be destroyed or hurt so badly that it isn't a major player in the world after that. 

2. 2.The description of the eagles wings in Revelation is very similar to the wording used in Exodus when Israel was brought out of Egypt. 

Exodus 19:4 Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself.

Rev 12:14 And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.

We cannot know for sure that the "wings of a great eagle" in Revelation is definitely referring to the US.  If you live in the US and you're still riding the fence and/or haven't decided if you really believe all this or haven't fully committed to God, I would give it some very serious thought.

The mark of the beast will be implemented.

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: 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.

Today, people are being implanted with RFID chips and a National Id card was required of everyone in the US by 2008, but has been extended, with a similar system being set up in Europe.  Speculation is that the Antichrist will implement a world wide numbering system and most likely will cause everyone to have a chip implanted in the right hand or the forehead with their ID number.  With current technology, this would not be that hard to implement.  And recently people have begun to use a tattoo ink on animals that has the same capacity as a chip for containing RFID information!  Now wouldn't that be considered a “mark”?  I cannot stress enough that you cannot take that mark!  It will most likely come with a “pledge of allegiance” to the New World Order or to the name of the Antichrist or something similar and they will probably accuse you of being a terrorist or a non-conformist and a menace to society if you refuse to take that pledge, and condemn you for refusal.  You will suffer because of that refusal, but you will definitely be lost if you take that mark!

Rev 14:9 And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, 10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: 11 And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. 12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.

Keep the faith as mentioned in verse 12 and be patient!  If you do not, you will suffer infinitely more than a few hunger pangs and persecution, or even death!  Do not take the mark!

The End of Suffering and Death

The battle of Armageddon and the seventh trumpet at the end of the seven years mark the end of suffering and the beginning of the Kingdom of God!

The bible tells us that after the seventh trumpet, when all is said and done, Jesus will set up His kingdom on earth and we will reign with Him for a thousand years.  The bible doesn’t say that all of mankind is destroyed at the last trump, and it’s pretty clear that people will still be alive on earth during that millennium.  One of the scriptures that show this to be true is; Daniel 7:12 As concerning the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away: yet their lives were prolonged for a season and time.  This is talking about what happens after the Antichrist is thrown into hell at the end of the tribulation.  Satan will be bound for the entirety of that time and released only at the end for a while where he will again deceive the people of the earth.  There’s one last battle and apparently there will be people who side with Satan to make war with Jesus.  I, for the life of me, can’t understand this, but I guess I should just be grateful that I don’t understand, because maybe I would be like them if I understood them.  After the end of that millennium, Satan is cast into Hell forever, and God makes a new heaven and a new earth for us to enjoy for eternity!  And there will be no more pain or sorrow… ever…

Rev 20:6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. 7 And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, 8 And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. 9 And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. 10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever. 11 And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. 13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. 14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

Revelation 21:1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.

Rev 21:4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

The timeline of the end time events and the layout of the book of Revelation are discussed more in Chapter 10.

9 - What about the Rapture?  When will it happen?

The rapture is the gathering up of God's people when He returns to get those who love Him and take them to be with Him in Heaven.  There are many different ideas regarding the Rapture and when it will happen.  Many people teach that it will happen before the final seven years begins.  Some teach that it will happen before the Great Tribulation, somewhere in the middle of the final seven years.  A few teach that the rapture will take place at the end of the tribulation when Jesus Christ returns at the battle of Armageddon.

Let’s take a look at the scriptures.

Dan 11:31 And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate. 32 And such as do wickedly against the covenant shall he corrupt by flatteries: but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits. 33 And they that understand among the people shall instruct many: yet they shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil, many days.

This scripture is talking about the event that happens at the halfway point of the final seven years.  It says; the people that do know their God shall be strong and do exploits.  And they that understand among the people shall instruct many.  This is a very strong indication that we will be here at that event.  We will be strong and we will instruct many.  We will be able to help people find God at the very last!  Some of us shall fall during this time.  God tells us that those who die in the service of Christ will be blessed!

Dan 7:21 I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them; 22 Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom.

The “same horn” is the horn that symbolizes the Antichrist.  He will make war with the saints (us) and prevail against them until the Ancient of days came.  This is Jesus Christ returning at the seventh trumpet at the end of the seven years.  Again, it looks an awful lot like we will be here, and this time right up to the end.

Dan 7:25 And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.

Again, we see that he (the Antichrist) will wear out the saints, and that we shall be given into his hand for 3.5 years, which is the length of time that the Antichrist will rule the world.  This tells us that the saints of God will definitely be around during the reign of the Antichrist.

Rev 20:4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. 5 But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.

Notice that it says, "this is the first resurrection"?  This event marks the beginning of the thousand year reign of Jesus Christ after the tribulation.  If this is the first resurrection, then it's pretty obvious that there isn't another rapture that happens sometime before this.  And, John saw the souls of them that died for Jesus and did not take the mark of the beast or worship him.  If we aren’t here during the end of the seven years when the mark of the beast is implemented, there would be no one who would fit this description.

Rev 13:7 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. 8 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

He (the Antichrist) will make war with the saints and all that dwell on the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life.  Those who know God have their names written in the book of life.  Again, looks an awful lot like we’re here during the reign of the Antichrist.

2 Thess 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; 4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. 

That day, the day Christ returns, will not come until after the antichrist is revealed.  This event (the abomination of desolation where the antichrist is revealed) does not happen until half way through the final seven years.

1 Cor 15:51 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,  52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

Paul tells us that the dead will be raised and that we will be changed at the sound of the last trumpet.  There isn't anyone who will argue the fact that the last trumpet, the 7th trumpet, is the battle of Armageddon where Jesus returns to put down the governments of man and set up His kingdom at the end of the tribulation.  This passage tells us without a doubt that the rapture will be at the end of the tribulation.

1 Thess 4:16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:  17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

The Lord shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the trumpet of God, and the dead shall rise first and then we that are still alive will be caught up with them together in the clouds.  Is there another trumpet that brings the rapture?  Not that I've ever read in the bible.  This, again, is the 7th trumpet.

Matt 24:15 When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) 16 Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains: 17 Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house: 18 Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes. 19 And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! 20 But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day: 21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. 22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened. 23 Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. 24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. 25 Behold, I have told you before. 26 Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not. 27 For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 28 For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together. 29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: 30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

Except for the elect’s sake (God’s people) those days shall be shortened.  Immediately after the tribulation… they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven… and he shall send his angels to gather together his elect from everywhere.  Those days shall be shortened for our sake and when Christ returns at the sound of a trumpet (the seventh trumpet at the end of the tribulation) we will be gathered to Him!  This passage is definitely telling us that it’s after the tribulation (verses 29 - 31) that we are gathered to the Lord!

Rev 14:9 And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, 10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: 11 And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. 12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.

God tells us to be patient and have faith when the mark of the beast is implemented.  Why would we need this warning if we aren’t here?

As much as I’d like to skip the tribulation, I think we will have to endure it.  Without the Holy Spirit, I imagine it will be impossible.  Thank the Lord for His Spirit that lives within those who follow Him!

John 14:17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you 

18 I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.

Thank Jesus for not leaving us alone!  I think we will need His strength!

Who will be left behind?

There is a fictional book series called Left Behind that has become very popular recently and has even become a movie series.  In this series, some of the people that are left behind realize that they missed the rapture and turn to God.  They begin a crusade called the Tribulation Force to try and win over the other remaining people.  While this is a great story, it is completely fictional and it will not happen.  We know that the rapture will happen at the end of the final seven years and that it happens at the time of the Second Coming of Jesus Christ which is at the time of the Battle of Armageddon.  Shortly after this, God sets up His kingdom on earth and removes all earthly governments.  There will be no second chances.  When God returns he is not coming for everyone, he will gather only His church to Him.  The dead will rise first and those who are alive and remain will be changed in the twinkling of an eye from mortal to immortal and will be caught up to Jesus in the sky.  None of those who remain will be part of the true church.  God will then wipe out the armies coming down on Israel at Armageddon and will unleash His wrath upon the earth.  Many, many people will die during this short period of time.  Remember that this is the first resurrection and that the second resurrection, found in the end of Revelation 20 is the judgment of those who did not have the Holy Spirit, were not part of the true church, and did not follow Christ.

We do not want to be left behind!

Who will suffer Great Tribulation?

Another point I have discovered in my studies, is that the Great Tribulation isn’t going to necessarily be for the “world”, but for the Saints of God.  Take a look at these scriptures:

Luke 17:26 And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man. 27 They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all. 28 Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; 29 But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. 30 Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed.

Jesus said in Luke above that His day, the day He returns, would be as the days of Lot and Noah.  When destruction came on the world at the flood and at Sodom and Gomorrah, the only people that had “tribulation” were the men of God.  Lot was persecuted and so was Noah, by the people who did not believe.  The wrath of God was poured out on the other people after God saved His faithful.  The world today is just like it was before the flood and before Sodom and Gomorrah destruction.  The wrath of God will be poured out only after He has saved His faithful, but the time of trouble called the Great Tribulation will be trouble for the saints, not the rest of the world.  This is discussed in detail in chapter 10 of this book.

1 Thess 5:1 But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. 2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. 3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. 4 But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.

The Lord will come as a thief in the night, but only to those in darkness, not to those who know the Lord.  They shall say, “Peace and Safety”, just as the world was reveling in abandon before the flood and Sodom and Gomorrah.  What is the call of the New World Order?  Peace and Safety!

Rev 7:13 And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? 14 And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation , and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

Those that come out of great tribulation in this passage are the Saints of God.

10 - Understanding Revelation and the time line of events

In order to understand the timeline of events in Revelation, it is important to understand how the book of Revelation is structured.  Many people think that it is a chronological record of events from start to finish and that the entirety of Revelation is prophecy.  In this chapter you will see that there is an order but it's not chronological and we'll see that the first three chapters are not prophetic.  If we read Revelation with the assumption that it's chronological, it is impossible to understand!

To prove this point, let's look at several places in Revelation that show how John writes and explains some things in a circular type of way. Some of these may seem frivolous, but some are major points. I'm including them all just to show the style of writing used in this book.

1. 1.Revelation 13:1-10 Tells us about the “beast” which is the Antichrist and the One World Government he will be leading in the final 42 months (verse 5). The dragon (who is Satan (Rev 12:9 and Rev 20:2)) gives him (the Antichrist) his power, and “all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him” (except for the Saints). Then, in verse 12 John is telling us about the false prophet and how that man “causes them that dwell on the earth” to worship him (the beast). He does miracles and wonders like fire coming down from the sky to cause the people to believe in him. John tells us one thing, and then goes back to explain something else that was happening at the same time. It's not a chronological account, but is somewhat circular in that he goes back to show what is going on in the same time period. 

2. 2.Revelation 13 is showing us events that happen in the same time period (3.5 years) as some of Revelation 12 events and the same time period as Revelation 11 events. This is not some future 3.5 year time period. John explains a particular time and events of a certain level of understanding or viewpoint in chapter 11, then different events of the same time period in parts of chapter 12, and then shows us different events from a different perspective of the same time period in chapter 13. 

3. 3.At the 5th Trumpet (Rev 9:2) an angel opens the Bottomless Pit. Then in Rev 11:7, the beast that ascends out of the Bottomless Pit kills the Two Witnesses who prophesied for 1260 days (3.5 years), which is at the end of the same 3.5 year period that Satan is cast to earth and the Antichrist is reigning (Rev 12 and 13). Then in Rev 17:8 we see an explanation of the same beast (the Antichrist) who ascends out of the Bottomless Pit, and subsequent explanation of where he gets his military power to take over the world. John has told us about this in several places but it's definitely not a chronological order. He goes back to explain things that he's already told us about in previous chapters. 

4. 4.Revelation 7:15-17 shows us the same declarations as Rev 21:3-4. The end of things prophesied in Revelation is the beginning of eternity with God, and is mentioned in both chapters, but is not a chronological timetable. God doesn't conclude all things in chapter 7, and then all the events between chapters 7 and 21 happen after that. It's a statement about the same time period in both places. 

5. 5.In Revelation 8:2, John records 7 trumpets given to 7 angels. Then in Rev 8:3-5, he explains a whole other angel with things that happen with that angel; and then in Rev 8:6, he returns to the 7 angels with the 7 trumpets. He starts a subject, then explains something else that is happening or has happened prior to this, and then goes on with the subject he started on. 

6. 6.Revelation 15:1 states that John saw 7 angels having the 7 last plagues, filled up with the wrath of God. But then in verses 6 and 7 we see the 7 angels come out of the temple and are given the vials full of the wrath of God. John starts the subject stating that they are there, goes to another vision of the saints in heaven, and then returns to the angels and gives more information on how they got the vials. 

7. 7.The 7th trumpet (Revelation 11), 7th vial (Revelation 16), Revelation 7:15-17, Revelation 21:3-6, and Ezekiel 38-39 all show us the same events. First of all, the statement, “It is done”, appears in Revelation 21:6, Ezekiel 39:8, Revelation 16:17, and the same statements about it being “done” and/or how the Kingdom of God is come and what it will be like when all is finished are made in the 7th trumpet, Revelation 7, and Revelation 21. Revelation 15 also shows us those who have gotten the victory of the beast (came out of great tribulation) just as Revelation 7; this is the same group of people who are with God when it's all over. 

8. 8.The Seals, Trumpets and Vials ALL have something explained in between the 6th and 7th. The Seals have the vision of the 144k and the multitude of saints in heaven with the vision of Gods love, mercy and kindness after it's all over. The Trumpets have the vision of the Seven Thunders, the Mystery of God being finished, the little book, measuring of the Temple, the Two Witnesses. The Vials have the gathering of the “kings” for the battle of Armageddon. These are all things explained by John that are not in a consecutive time line, but are explanations of things that have already happened or are happening at the same time, and things that will be after the fact. 

9. 9.Revelation 16 starts the battle of Armageddon, but then chapters 17 and 18 are devoted to explaining the Great Whore, then in chapter 19 he picks up the battle of Armageddon again. 

10. 10.Revelation 16:12 states that the Euphrates river is dried up to make way for the kings of the east, and then verses 13 and 14 state that the three spirits go out to gather the kings of the whole world to battle. Which happens first? Or are they happening at the same time? 

11. 11.Revelation 11:19 and 15:5 both state that the temple in heaven is opened. When we study the events surrounding both statements, we see that it is not that the temple is opened twice, but that we are seeing the same event written about in both places. 

12. 12.In Revelation 14:20 the winepress of the wrath of God is trodden. Then in Revelation 19:15 Jesus treads the winepress of the wrath of God. This is the same event in both places. It's not something that happens in chapter 14 and then again in chapter 19. 

13. 13.Rev 10:7 But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound... Rev 11:14 The second woe is past; and, behold, the third woe cometh quickly. The 7th Trumpet does not sound until after the 6th, but we hear about it in Revelation 10 before the statement that the second woe (6th trumpet) is past in Revelation 11. Definitely not a chronological record. 

When we understand how Revelation is written, we must also understand that we can't make assumptions about the timing of something just because it may be nestled between a couple other statements. Careful study can reveal much, however, when we put it all together and compare with other areas of the bible as well as Revelation.

Here's a few of the other books and chapters we'll be looking at: Zechariah 14, Isaiah 18 – 19, Joel, Daniel, 1 Thess 4 & 5, Matthew 24, Mark 13, Luke 17 and 21, Ezekiel 38 and 39.

In Revelation God gives us three different accounts of the end time.  These are given in the Seals, the Trumpets and the Vials.  These accounts are all different but have a common intersection point.  Just as we have four accounts of the life of Jesus Christ in the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, we have likewise been given different accounts of the end time events through the Seals, Trumpets and Vials.  We will be discussing the common intersection point in this chapter as well as the other records of things that are not part of the Seals, Trumpets and Vials.

In order to understand how these three accounts intersect, we're going to carefully compare 5 scriptures.  In these scriptures we do a comparison of the 6th Seal, the 7th Trumpet and the 7th Vial.  The events of the sixth Seal in Revelation chapter 6, the seventh Trumpet in chapter 11 and the seventh Vial in chapter 16 are all recording the same events!  We will also see that Matthew 24:29 and Ezekiel 38:18-22 are parallel accounts of the same.

Read each of the scriptures and take a look at the following chart:

CHART A

Study the chart and compare what occurs in each scripture.  Each of the passages are describing the same events that occur immediately after the Tribulation at the Battle of Armageddon (same as the Battle of Gog and Magog).

Notice that the Seal, Trumpet and Vial all have an earthquake and the wrath of God is come upon the earth.  Matthew shows the same events that also are shown in the 6th Seal and the events in Matthew happen immediately after the Tribulation, which is when the battle of Armageddon takes place.  The islands and mountains moving, the great hail, God's wrath and the earthquake from Ezekiel are the same as the 7th Vial and except for the hail not mentioned in the Seal, it's also the same.  Likewise the 7th Trumpet has the same events except for mountains moving.  The battle of Gog in Ezekiel is the same event as the battle of Armageddon.

The conclusion is obvious.  All of these events happen at the same time but they are described in several places in the bible.  If this is true, then Revelation is definitely not written in chronological order.

But, before we make any decisions, let's look at a few other things.

If we follow the 7 year chronological order theory does it make sense?

Does Babylon fall once or twice?

Revelation 14:8 and Revelation 18:2 both state that Babylon is fallen.  If it fell in chapter 14, and Revelation is chronological, did it get rebuilt before chapter 18 so it could fall again?  Did it fall twice or are there simply two accounts of this event?

One Earthquake or five?

Revelation 6:12, Revelation 8:5, Revelation 11:13, Revelation 11:19, and Revelation 16:18 all record an earthquake or a great earthquake.  Is there really 5 earthquakes or just one with several accounts of it?

Will there be great darkness twice?

Revelation 6:12 and Revelation 16:10

Will great hail fall twice?

Revelation 11:19 and Revelation 16:21

Will mountains and island move twice?

Revelation 6:14 and Revelation 16:20

When will the wrath of God be poured out?

Revelation 6:17, 11:18, 14:9-10, 14:19, 15:1, 16:1, and 19:5 all speak of the wrath of God.  In Revelation 6, 11, 14, 16 and 19 God's wrath is poured out, and in chapters 14 and 15 God's wrath is presented as a future event.  Will the great day of God's wrath really be poured out 5 separate times?  And why would John, the writer of Revelation, present God's wrath as a future event in the middle of the book?

No, it does not make sense that Revelation is a chronological record of events from start to finish.  We are being told about the end time and what to expect in several different ways.  The Seals are the long story (the spirits have been around a long time), the Trumpets are the median story (approximately the last 100 years), and the Vials are the very last and very short story (all seven of the Vials are poured out at the end of the Tribulation), all ending at the battle of Armageddon.

The Seals are discussed in chapter 5 and the Trumpets are discussed in chapter 6 of this book  There are many other things recorded in between and after the Seals, Trumpets and Vials.  We'll take a look at those, and then we'll put it all together in a time line that we can follow to the last day.

Another thing that trips people up in different areas of the bible is that they take the chapter divisions literally and even take the explanation headers inserted by men literally, but the bible wasn't written with chapter numbers and verse divisions!  The chapter and verse numbers were added centuries ago and was broken up in the way they thought it should be at that time.  An excellent example of a chapter beginning being in a very misleading place is Revelation 8.  Verse 1 is finishing up the vision of the seals, but then verse 2 begins the vision of the trumpets.  This leads people to believe that the seventh seal somehow leads into the first trumpet.  As you will learn in this chapter; that is not the case!

Let's look at what John is seeing and when.  Revelation begins with John on the isle of Patmos, where he had been exiled, and he heard a voice.  The voice is that of Jesus Christ, as we see in verses 8, 11, 17 and 18.  He is the first and the last, and he that lives and was dead but is alive for evermore.  In verse 19 he tells John to write things he has seen, things which are and things that are to come.

Rev 1:19 Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter;

The book of Revelation can be divided into these three distinct categories:

1. 1.Things John has seen.  In chapter one John records having seen Jesus Christ Himself.  The things seen and heard during this experience are the "things which thou hast seen". 

2. 2."Things which are" represent things that are in John's present world.  Chapters 2 and 3 are letters to the seven churches “which are in Asia”. These churches existed at that time in Asia.  Some people, assuming that the entire book of Revelation is prophetic, have put forth a theory that the seven churches must be church "ages" of the future.  That is simply not true.  The truth is that the messages to the seven existing churches of that time are the "things which are". 

3. 3.Revelation 4:1 begins the "things which shall be hereafter". 

Rev 4:1 After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter.

Some people teach that this scripture is a prophecy of the rapture, but there is no scriptural basis for that at all.  Revelation 4:1 simply begins the "things which shall be hereafter" spoken of in Chapter 1 verse 19.  Chapters 1, 2 and 3 are the things which John has seen and the things which are.  Chapter 4 begins the prophetic parts of the book of Revelation.

The following section is going to go very quickly through the entire book of Revelation.  I am not going to go into great detail but we'll walk all the way through the events revealed to John. Then I will put events together in a time line in the following section.

Chapters 1-3

The vision of Jesus Christ and the letters to the 7 churches “which are in Asia”. These are churches that were actually in John's present time.

Verse 1:3 states that the “time is at hand”. In God's time, a thousand years to God is as a day to us (Ps 90:4, 2 Pet 3:8). And, if the first Seal is opened around 325 AD with the founding of the Catholic church, then a couple hundred years after this was written is really “at hand” in God's time.

1:19 states that things “shall be hereafter”. Does this mean that it's going to be a long time in the future, or shall start shortly after this was stated? It certainly doesn't prove that it's going to be a long time.

3:3 says that if we don't watch, He will come as a thief and you'll be surprised. If we succumb to false doctrine we aren't watching, in my opinion, and we'll be surprised. When He comes for us individually with physical death, before He returns for the whole world to see, we will be taken off-guard.

Chapter 4 – The view into Heaven

The four beasts in Heaven are not the same type of “beast” of the Antichrist and his one world government.  The original Greek word used here is different than the word used to describe the one world government beast(s) where they are a "nation" and the ruler of that nation, but here it is a "living thing".  Ezekiel chapters 1 and 10, and Is 6:2, shows us that the "beast" in this passage is a Cherubim (a class of Angel); and we see some further descriptions of other creatures God has created.

Verse 11 says that all things were created for God's pleasure, which means we are as well. God loves us and plans to spend eternity with us, for His good pleasure. Revelation 7:14-17 and Revelation 21:1-7 show us that God will dwell among us and there will be no pain or sorrow ever again. Life with God will be more amazing than we can even imagine.

Matt 13:44 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field. 45 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: 46 Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.

Matt 7:11 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?

1 Cor 2:9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.

Chapters 5 through 7 – The Seals

Jesus is worthy to open the book because He redeemed us by His blood and there is no other worthy to open it. He's the only man who is without sin. It's interesting to note that Jesus, when He was here on the earth, was not a good looking man or a man one would respect or give a second thought by looking at Him. Isaiah 53 says, “Isa 53:2 ...he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. 3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.” God didn't want people to look up to Him because He was beautiful or had physical might.

Verse 5:8 talks about vials filled with the prayers of the saints which is the same as Revelation 8:3-5, where it shows an angel with a censer and incense. The odours in this passage have the same meaning/implication as the incense in chapter 8. These two are similar in that the vision is shown to us at the start the Seals (Rev 5) and the start of the Trumpets (Rev 8). In each case John starts the vision of the Seals and Trumpets, but then describes another vision both containing incense or odours with the prayers of the saints before he continues on with the Seals and the Trumpets.

The first four seals are accompanied by the voice of one of each of the four beasts depicted in Revelation chapter 4.

Notice that the first four seals are distinguishable from the last three in that the four beasts utter their voice separately for each seal, and the first four seals (horsemen) represent four spirits sent into the earth (Zech 6:1-8). Then the fifth seal talks about the souls of them that were slain for the Word of God, and the sixth and seventh are separate events as well. This same pattern appears with the seven trumpets where the first four sound and then an angel warns the people of the earth about the next three; “Rev 8:13 Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the earth by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, which are yet to sound!”

As stated above, the events documented between the sixth and seventh seals do not represent a specific period of time that actually takes place after the sixth seal and before the seventh. Instead, it is more likely that these are events that have already happened during the opening of the seals and other events that happen after all has been concluded. The great multitude is described as “they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb”. Then we see the depiction I mentioned earlier where this is the same description as Revelation 21, describing the beginning of eternity with God, after all things have been finished. The 144 thousand sealed by God are also mentioned in the fifth trumpet (Revelation 9:4), where we see that they are definitely sealed before the final events (sixth seal, seventh trump, seventh vial) and shown to be with God after the tribulation in Revelation 14 where we see they are the “first fruits unto God”. This picture we're seeing is definitely not in a chronological time line, but it's showing us things that happened prior to the sixth seal (the 144 thousand), but also things that do happen after the sixth seal (the great multitude), and we already know that the six seal is the same time frame as the seventh trumpet and seventh vial.

We have another record of the sealing of the 144 thousand in Ezekiel 9:4. In Revelation 14 they are not defiled, have no guile in their mouth; and in Ezekiel they sigh and cry for the abominations being done in Jerusalem.

Read Revelation 6:12-17, Zechariah 14, Joel, Matthew 24, Mark 13 and Luke 17, 21. All of these prophetic passages are referring to the same period of time.

CHART B

Matthew 24 explicitly tells us that it's immediately after the tribulation that the sun is darkened, etc. Since we know that these events all coincide with the same events of the Seventh Trumpet and Seventh Seal, etc., we can know absolutely for sure that this record of the Seals is not chronological within the book of Revelation and that these events are not something that happens prior to any of the other events recorded in Revelation.

Revelation 8:1 - The last Seal is probably opened as the very last thing that happens, immediately before the 1000 year reign of Christ.

The seals are discussed in detail in chapter 5 of this book.

Chapters 8 through 9 – The first six Trumpets

In 8:2 we see that 7 trumpets are given to 7 angels. Then, in verses 3 through 5, there is the description of another angel with a censer who stands at the altar, offers the incense he is given (same as Rev 5:8), fills the censer with fire from the altar and then casts it to earth, and there are voices, thunderings, lightnings, and an earthquake. This depiction does not give us much information and it's impossible to know how much time elapses during this vision. It could be a short time, or it could be a very long time. However, the events at the conclusion are similar to the events of the Seventh Trumpet and the Seventh Vial. This leads to a logical conclusion that it is more likely spanning a long period of time and ends at the return of Christ at the end of the tribulation, as shown in Chart A in the first section of this chapter.

Then we move again to the 7 angels mentioned in verse 8:2, as they “prepare to sound”.

The first four trumpets have a similar theme.

1. 1.A third part of trees and all grass are burnt up. 

2. 2.A third part of the sea becomes blood and a third part of the creatures in the sea die and a third part of the ships are destroyed. 

3. 3.A third part of the rivers and fountains of water become wormwood and many men die. 

4. 4.A third part of the sun, moon and stars are darkened. 

8:13 then warns that the next three trumpets will be very woeful to the inhabiters of the earth.

Then we have the fifth trumpet where it's a very different detailed depiction of the locusts with the power to hurt men and torment them for 5 months. The bottomless pit is opened and the sun and air are darkened because of the smoke from the pit, the locusts are told not to hurt those with the seal of God in their foreheads, and the angel who opens the pit is called the “destroying angel”, which is the meaning of the names “Abaddon” and “Apollyon”. The angel is mentioned again in Revelation 20:1-3. Notice that the angel is given the key to the bottomless pit in Revelation 9:1, opens the pit in 9:2, is named as the “king” over the locusts in 9:11, then comes down from heaven again to bind Satan in the bottomless pit for 1000 years in Revelation 20:1-3.

In Revelation 11:7 we see that the beast comes out of the bottomless pit, becomes or possesses a man to become the Antichrist shown in Revelation 17:8-11, kills the two witnesses at the end of the final 3.5 years (Rev 11:7), and then in Revelation 20:1-3 we see that the “angel” who was given the key locks up the devil in the bottomless pit for 1000 years.

Joel 2 also speaks of things described in the fifth trumpet! If you read the 2nd chapter of Joel verses 1-11, you'll find very similar events described.

In these days, men will seek death... Revelation 10:7 says that “in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound”. Revelation 9:6 says that “in those days shall men seek death”. In Joel, Revelation 6, 9, 11, 16, Matthew 24, Luke 21, and Ezekiel 38 we see that the people of earth will seek death, will be angry, have great fear, will mourn, shake at the presence of God and will blaspheme God. The timing of the events given us in prophecy overlap in many places and sometimes span a long period of time.

The sixth trumpet sounds and a third part of men are killed, with the 4 angels released and the army of 200 million.

Revelation 9:20-21 shows us that people will still not repent even after all these things have come to pass. This is also the same declaration we see during the Vials in Revelation 16:9 and 16:11.

Chapter 10 – The little book and the seven Thunders

The mighty angel has a little book and roars, and the seven Thunders sound but John is told not to write what they said.

Then the angel swears by God that there will be time (delay) no longer, but that the mystery of God will be finished in the days that the seventh trumpet begins to sound.

The mystery of God will be finished because Jesus Christ will be revealed to the whole world at the Seventh Trumpet. There will no longer be any mystery.

Ezekiel 2:9 through 3:4 has a very similar description of a book eaten, which has lamentations, mourning and woe written on it, which is sweet as honey, and then the prophet is sent to prophesy.

Chapter 11 – The measuring of the Temple, the two Witnesses, and the last trump.

John is given a rod to measure the temple and the altar. He's told to leave out the outer court because gentiles will tread there and in Jerusalem (the holy city) for forty two months (3.5 years). This passage, along with Daniel 9 and 11, and Joel talking about the sacrifice being taken away by the Antichrist, and 2 Thess 2:4 and Matt 24:14 showing that the Antichrist will stand in the holy place, and sit in the temple of God showing himself to be god (the abomination of desolation); support the theology that the temple will be rebuilt in Jerusalem before the final 3.5 years.

God's two witnesses prophesy 1260 days (3.45 years) and cannot be killed during that time.

Zec 4 has the same two olive trees (anointed ones) shown to us.

When they have finished their testimony, the beast from bottomless pit, which is opened in the fifth trumpet, kills them; so we can know for sure that the 5th trump has sounded before this event.

Daniel 11 and 12 show the Antichrist's reign and specifically states that there will be 1290 days (3.53 years) from the time of the Abomination of Desolation until the “end of these things”. And another specifically stating that there will be “a time (one year), times (two years) and an half (half a year)” (3.5 years) till all things shall be finished. There will be a time of trouble (Dan 12:1) such as never was (the great tribulation), the people that know God will be strong (Dan 11:32), some of those shall fall (Dan 11:35), but the wise shall understand while the wicked will not (Dan 12:10). Blessed is he who waits until 1335 days (Dan 12:12). When we look at all the scriptures describing this period of time, it looks like the 3.5 years will be the time of the wrath of Satan, and the last 45 or 75 days will be the wrath of God (the 7 Vials), sometime between the 1260th day and the 1335th day.

In Revelation 13:5 we see that power is given to the Antichrist for 42 months (3.5 years).

In Revelation 12 we see that the devil will be cast to earth, having great wrath because he knows his time is short, and that it will be for 1260 days in v.6, and a time, times and half a time in v.14, or 3.5 years.

This “time of trouble” that will last 3.5 years, is the time of the wrath of Satan. The Vials, which are the wrath of God, will be poured out in the last 75 days, between the 1260th and 1335th days, possibly just in the last 45 days. The 3.5 years of great tribulation will be for the saints of God, not the world as a whole (Luke 17:26-30, 1 Thess 5:1-4, Rev 7:9-14). Matthew 24:15-21 shows us that when we see this abomination of desolation that then there shall be great tribulation, and then (Matt 24:29) immediately after the tribulation we will see the sixth seal and the seventh trumpet and we will be gathered to the Lord at that time. This also most likely begins the pouring of the vials. I do not believe that the saints will be here for the vials (the wrath of God). The wrath of God will be to “destroy them which destroy the earth” (Rev 11:18).

The Seventh Trumpet sounds and God's wrath is poured out on the earth.

Gods wrath will be unleashed on the earth in several ways.

1. 1.The sun, moon and stars will be darkened. 

   Rev 6:12, Zech 14, Joel, Matt 24:29, Mark 13:24-25, Luke 17 and 21 

2. 2.There will be great hailstones that weigh as much as a couple hundred pounds! 

   Rev 11:19, Rev 16:21, Ez 38:22 

3. 3.A very great earthquake, bigger than the earth has ever seen and will split the Mount of Olives and go all the way to Europe and destroy Mystery Babylon (I believe this is Rome). 

   Zech 14, Joel, Rev 6:12, Rev 11:19, Ez 38:19-20, Rev 16:18 

4. 4.Mountains and islands moved out of their places (from the huge earthquake). 

   Ez 38:19-20, Rev 16:20, Rev 6:14 

5. 5.Voices, thunders and lightnings. Heavens shaken. 

   Joel, Rev 6:14, Rev 11:19, Rev 16:18, Matt 24:29, Mark 13:25, Luke 17 and 21:26 

6. 6.The plagues of the vials; sores on men, water turned to blood, creatures die, great heat, darkness. 

   Rev 16:2-12 

7. 7.Men will be angry, blaspheming God, trembling in fear and hiding from Gods wrath. 

   Joel, Rev 6:16, Rev 9:4, Rev 11:11-18, Matt 24:30, Luke 21:26, Rev 16:21, Ez 38:20 

The seven trumpets are discussed in detail in chapter 6 of this book.

Chapter 12 – The woman and the dragon

This passage is a 2000 year prophecy.  The woman in this passage is the nation of Israel.  The child born is Jesus Christ.  The dragon (Satan, as we see in Rev 12:9) tried to kill Jesus at the time of His birth but did not succeed.  There is a war in Heaven and the devil and his angels are cast down to earth.  Twice we are given a time frame of 3.5 years here where Israel is "in her place", in the promised land, and is kept safe from the wrath of Satan.  This 3.5 years where the devil is thrown down to earth having great wrath is the Great Tribulation.

The war in heaven looks to take place at the point of the abomination of desolation, where the Antichrist takes power. In Daniel 12:1 Michael stands and at that time there shall be the “time of trouble” mentioned earlier. In Rev 12 we see that Michael and his angels fight the dragon (Satan), and the devil loses and is cast out of heaven; cast to the earth having great wrath. Both of these depictions are the same event covering a 3.5 year period while the devil is on the earth and the saints experience the great tribulation and time of trouble.

If we carefully study Rev 13, 16 and 17, along with Daniel 8, and 11, we can learn a lot about where the power of the Antichrist comes from. It comes from the devil himself. Very likely he is possessed by the devil.

1. 1.Rev 13:2 – The beast (the antichrist and his one world government) gets his power and his seat from Satan. 

2. 2.Rev 16:13-14 – Three spirits of devils go out from the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet, working miracles to gather the kings of the earth to battle against Jesus. We have three spirits, from the devil, the antichrist and the false prophet. If the antichrist is possessed by Satan, it makes sense because there are still two entities within a single body. 

3. 3.Rev 17:8-17 – The beast that ascends out of the bottomless pit, opened in the 5th trumpet, who kills the two witnesses, is the antichrist. He “was, and is not”, “is the eighth, and is of the seven”. This strange wording leads me to think that there is another involved, like the devil possessing him, very possibly. 

4. 4.Daniel 11:37-39 – The Antichrist honors a “strange god”, but at the same time does not regard any god because he magnifies himself above all, and will actually claim to be God. Possessed by the devil? 

5. 5.Daniel 8:24 – The Antichrist's power shall be mighty, but not by his own power. 

The devil, through the antichrist, makes war with the saints after he is cast to the earth. (Rev 12:17, Rev 13:7, Daniel 8:24, Daniel 7:21, Daniel 11:33, Daniel 12:7)

Chapter 13 – The one world government ruled by the antichrist and the false prophet (the Great Tribulation)

Revelation 13 describes the Antichrist and the False Prophet.  The four beasts of Daniel 7 become one beast (a single government and it's leader), ruled by the Antichrist, and the dragon (Satan) gives the Antichrist his power for 42 months (3.5 years).  The False Prophet causes the world to worship the Antichrist and actually performs miracles in the sight of men.

2.8 years to gain power...

In Daniel 9:27 we see that “he”, the Antichrist, will confirm the covenant with many for one week (a week of years, or 7 years). In the midst of the week he will cause the sacrifice to cease and will place the abomination that makes it (the temple) desolate, as known as the Abomination of Desolation.

He will be with many at the beginning of that week, confirming the Abrahamic covenant; which means setting borders of Israel and settling the status of Jerusalem as it's capital.

In Daniel 8:13-14 we see that it will be 2300 days for the “vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot” to happen. This part of the vision is Daniel 8:9-12. 2300 days = 6.3 years. The interpretation of this part of the vision is Daniel 8:23-26. What this means is that the Antichrist will “wax great”, or “a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up.” The Antichrist will see his moment and will begin gathering power to himself. The “vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation” is the time period of the Antichrist's rise to power and his rule of the world.

The Antichrist will be a part of a group that will “confirm the covenant” and we won't necessarily know who he is at that point. That event begins the final “week” of years from Daniel 9. Then about 6 months after the confirmation of the covenant the Antichrist will “stand up” (Dan 8:23) and begin gaining the power he needs to take over the world. At the half way point of the week of years, he will be given power by the devil and will have the support of the false prophet to actually claim to be God himself and take over the world. (Matthew 24:15, Daniel 9:27, Daniel 11:31, and 2 Thess 2:4)

3.5 years of the persecuting the saints...

The Antichrist will persecute the saints of God, try to kill the two witnesses (succeeding only at the end when God allows it), implement the “mark”, cause the world to worship him, etc. (Daniel 7:21, Daniel 8:24-25, Daniel 11:33, Daniel 12:1 and 12:7, Matt 24, Mark 13, Luke 17 and 21, Rev 11, Rev 12, Rev 13, Rev 14, Rev 17)

The false prophet will help him gain the world's awe...

The second beast in this chapter is the false prophet. (Rev 20:10, Rev 19:20) He will cause the world to worship the Antichrist as God. He will perform miracles in the eyes of men such as pulling fire from the sky. He will also cause an image of the Antichrist to be made, make it able to speak, and cause any who won't worship to be killed. This is possibly an electronic image like television or on computers, but may not be.

Economic sanctions will be placed on any who won't worship the Antichrist and take his mark. (Rev 13:16-17)

The Antichrist and the False Prophet are discussed in detail in chapter 7 of this book.

Chapter 14 – The last warning and the reaping

The 144 thousand mentioned in Revelation 7 and again in the Fifth Trumpet (Rev 9:4) are depicted here with Jesus as the “first fruits” unto God. In a farmers terms, the first fruits are the fruits of a crop which become ripe early in the season and are gathered prior to the “mother load” harvest.

Three angels give a last warning to the inhabitants of the earth. The hour of judgment is come. Babylon makes all nations drink of the wrath of her fornication. Those who take the mark and worship the beast shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God. This isn't a physical hour of time, it's a figurative statement that a period of time has come. It's the time just before the wrath of God. The “Mystery Babylon”, the “great whore” discussed in Revelation 17 and 18 is the same entity that the false prophet of Revelation 13 comes from and is the force that causes the world to worship the Antichrist as God. As I state in chapter 7 of this book, this entity appears to be the Vatican (the Roman Catholic Church) and the false prophet is most likely the Pope. The Seventh Vial in Revelation 16 shows us that this entity will be destroyed by the great earthquake that rocks the world from Israel outward and destroys Rome.

The Lord reaps His harvest. The “Son of man” in Revelation 14:14 is the same as the Revelation 1:13 “Son of man”. This is Jesus Christ. Jesus is the one sitting on the cloud, and reaps the earth of His elect. Then there is another angel who thrusts in another sickle and casts the vine of the earth into the winepress of the wrath of God. The saints of God will be spared the wrath of God and gathered to Him just before the wrath of God is poured out. The Great Tribulation will be tribulation only to the saints of God and will be during the time of the wrath of Satan shown in Revelation 12, but this passage helps us to understand that God's people will not have to endure the wrath of God, but only those who do take the mark of the beast and worship the Antichrist.

In Revelation 19 we see the battle of Armageddon, with the saints in heaven with Jesus, and the winepress of the wrath of God being tread by the Lord at that time. This passage is showing us events of the same time period.

Joel 3:13 also talks about the reaping. Shown in Chart B above, we see that it's the same event, which takes place immediately after the tribulation.

Chapter 15 and 16 – The seven Vials

The wrath of God is poured out on the earth. One thing to note is that the first Vial (Revelation 16:2) states that the mark of the Beast has already been implemented. This is a great point on the timing since we can know from this scripture that none of the Vials are poured out until after the mark of the Beast in the later part of the final seven years. We also know that some of the Seals and some of the Trumpets have already come to pass. This is another point that helps us to understand that the book of Revelation is not chronological from start to finish.

Again, like both the Seals and the Trumpets, we see the beginning of the Vials and then John tells of another vision. This time it is not the odours or vials with the prayers of the saints, but now it is a sea of glass mingled with fire and all the saints that had gotten the victory over the Antichrist and they are singing a song praising God, stating: “all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest.” This song is about to come true, just after the Vials are poured out, the Lord returns and sets up His kingdom on earth.

It's very important to note that in Revelation 15:8 it states that no man will be able to enter the Temple until the seven plagues are finished. I believe that this means that no man can be saved while the wrath of God is being poured out. I would hate to see anyone caught in this time who has not repented. But, as it states in Revelation 16:9 and 11, people will not repent and will blaspheme God during this time.

As stated in Revelation 15:1 and 16:1, the Vials are the wrath of God. We saw in Revelation 12 that the last 3.5 years are the wrath of Satan while he is confined to the earth. The wrath of Satan is the Great Tribulation where he persecutes God's people. The wrath of God is vengeance on those who hate God. The saints will be caught up in the air to meet the Lord in the air at the sound of the Seventh Trumpet (1 Thess 4:16-17, 1 Cor 15:52), when it shall begin to sound (Rev 10:7). I do not believe the saints will have to endure the wrath of God. Jesus will catch us up to meet Him in the air, and then shall rain down His wrath upon the earth, and then He will finish His descent to destroy those who destroy the earth (Rev 11:18) as we will see in Revelation 19.

Zech 14:1-4 shows us that the Lord will stand on the Mount of Olives and it will cleave in half, which is the earthquake of Revelation 16:18. The whole world will feel this earthquake. Zech 14 is another depiction of the battle of Armageddon. He will have all His saints with Him and will fight the nations.

As discussed earlier, this period of time between the gathering of the saints and the touching down on the Mount of Olives is probably the 75 to 45 days we see between the 1260th or 1290th days, to the 1335th day.

God's two witnesses prophesy 1260 days (Rev 11:3), power is given to the Antichrist for 42 months (Rev 13:5), the devil is cast to the earth having great wrath for 3.5 years and the woman (Israel) is protected for 1260 days (Rev 12), Daniel 11 and 12 show the Antichrist's reign and specifically states that there will be 1290 days (Dan 12:11) from the time of the Abomination of Desolation until the “end of these things”. And another specifically stating that there will be “a time (one year), times (two years) and an half (half a year)” (3.5 years) till all things shall be finished. Blessed is he who waits until 1335 days (Dan 12:12). When we look at all the scriptures describing this period of time, it looks like the 3.5 years will be the time of the wrath of Satan, and the last 45 or 75 days will be the wrath of God (the 7 Vials), sometime between the 1260th day and the 1335th day.

The saints of God will be with the Lord, and will have the “marriage supper of the Lamb” (Rev 19). When the Lord comes down and stands on the Mount of Olives and destroys those coming against Israel, He will set up His kingdom at that time. This is the 7th Vial where they are gathered at Armageddon to battle against Israel. The same is recorded in Joel, Zech 14 and Ezekiel 38, as shown in the charts above (both A and B).

The Vials are the wrath of God (Revelation 16:1).

1. 1. 1.A very nasty sore falls on those who have taken the mark of the beast and worship him. 

   2. 2.The sea becomes blood and all creatures in the sea die. 

   3. 3.The rivers and fountains of water become blood. 

   4. 4.Men are scorched with great heat. This vial is poured upon the sun so it appears that the “global warming” men say is happening will appear to really accelerate at this time, and men will blaspheme God because of it. 

   5. 5.The seat of the beast (probably the place where the Antichrist calls home, or possibly the whole world since it says “his kingdom”) will be full of darkness and pain. 

   6. 6.The Euphrates river is dried up to make way for the kings of the east to gather at Armageddon. It's interesting to note that there are many dams on this river and some very large ones that could be used to stop the flow of the river to “dry it up” when the Antichrist leads the world against Israel. Russia and Iran will be the major forces in this attack and will descend on Israel from the north and east. 

Three spirits of devils, working miracles, will go to gather the kings of the earth to do battle.

The 7th Vial is the end. Revelation 21:6, Ezekiel 39:8, Revelation 7:15-17 and Revelation 21:3-6 all speak of this same time when it is “done”. The 7th Trumpet sounds at this time as well and we see the earthquake that shakes the whole world all the way to Rome (Mystery Babylon) as Jesus Himself touches down on the mount of Olives (Zech 14). The kingdom of God is established at this time and the 1000 year reign begins (Rev 20:1-7).

Chapters 17 and 18 – The judgment of the Great Whore and the fall of Babylon

Who is the Great Whore?  This is discussed in Chapter 7 of this book.

Revelation 17 and 18 are devoted to explaining the Great Whore and are not in a sequential time line within Revelation.

Many people teach that chapter 18 is not talking about the same entity as chapter 17, but if we compare the two we see that it indeed is the same. There are quite a few references that say the same thing in both chapters.

Rev 17:8-14 gives us more information on the Antichrist and how he gets his power from 10 kings (Same as Dan 7 (10 horns) and Dan 2 (10 toes)) to take over the world militarily when he gains his power in the middle years of the final seven. This is the same beast that ascends out of the bottomless pit when it is opened in the 5th Trumpet, and as shown in Revelation 11:3 where he kills the two witnesses.

When the Antichrist gains his power and takes over the world, it may be in the aftermath of the devastation of the 6th Trumpet war where the world will be clamoring for peace and safety after 2 billion people die in that war. But, we see in Revelation 17:17 that it is God who puts it in their hearts to fulfill His will. I find this very interesting because there are a lot of people who teach that God no longer takes part in the events of the world like He did in the old testament, but we see that He is still very much in control.

Chapter 19 - The return of Jesus and the Battle of Armageddon

Jesus returns to earth, destroys the armies of the nations at Armageddon, and throws the Antichrist and the False Prophet into the lake of fire.  Rev 19:11-21 is the actual battle of Armageddon. This isn't much of a "battle" since it's simply a word spoken by Jesus that destroys the enemy.

In Ez 39:17-20 and Rev 19:17-21 we see declarations that the fowl of the air and beasts of the earth come to eat flesh of kings and mighty men. This is a good point to show that the two events are the same event.

If we compare scripture where God returns:

• •.Rev 11:14-19 (7th trumpet); Rev 6:12-17 (6th seal); Rev 16:17-21 (7th vial) 

  • ◦.The coming of the Lord will be a very big and calamitous event. 

  • ◦.Wrath of God, great shaking or earthquake, etc. 

• •.Daniel 2, 7, 8, 11, 12 

  • ◦.2:34-35 – The last world dominating power is the iron mingled with clay and will be in power when Jesus returns. 

  • ◦.7:8-12 – The four kings will be on the earth when Jesus returns. 

  • ◦.8:25 – The Antichrist will cause craft to prosper, by peace will destroy many of Gods people, will stand up to Christ when He returns, but shall be broken without hand. 

  • ◦.11:21 through 12:1 – The antichrist will establish himself but shall come to his end, and at that time there will be a time of trouble such as never was, and at that time the people of God will be delivered. 

• •.Matthew 24:30, Mark 13, Luke 17:30 

  • ◦.Immediately after the tribulation - 

  • ◦.Sun, moon, stars darkened. 

  • ◦.Wrath of God, great shaking or earthquake, etc. 

  • ◦.Jesus will come with power and glory as the lightning comes from the east to the west. The whole world will see him. 

  • ◦.The angels will be sent with the sound of the trumpet and gather His elect. 

• •.2 Thess 2:1-8 

  • ◦.The coming of the Lord and our gathering to Him will not come until the Antichrist is revealed by the Abomination of Desolation. 

  • ◦.The Lord will consume him with a word. 

  • ◦.His coming will be bright. 

• •.1 Thess 4:16-17 

  • ◦.Descends with a shout. 

  • ◦.Will catch up the elect to meet Him in the clouds. 

• •.Revelation 1:7 

  • ◦.He comes with clouds. 

  • ◦.Every eye shall see him. 

• •.Rev 19:11-16 

  • ◦.Marriage supper of the Lamb. 

  • ◦.Battle of Armageddon. 

  • ◦.Jesus treads the wine press of the wrath of God as depicted also in Rev 14:20. 

  • ◦.The Antichrist and the False Prophet are cast into the lake of fire. 

• •.1 Thess 5:1-4 

  • ◦.Lord will come as a thief in the night, but only to those in darkness. 

  • ◦.They (those who are in darkness) will say, “Peace and safety”, and then sudden destruction will come upon them. 

• •.Zech 14 

  • ◦.Mount of Olives will cleave in half. 

  • ◦.Lord will come with all saints. 

  • ◦.All nations gathered against Jerusalem (Battle of Armageddon). 

  • ◦.The Lord shall fight against the nations (Battle of Armageddon). 

• •.Joel 

  • ◦.The Lord shall roar out of Zion. 

  • ◦.Harvest is ripe, day of Lord at hand. 

  • ◦.Wrath of God, great shaking or earthquake, etc. 

  • ◦.All nations gathered in valley of Jehoshaphat to war (Battle of Armageddon). 

• •.Ez 38 - 39 

  • ◦.Verses 38:15-16; The Lord will bring the nations against Israel as a cloud to cover the land (Battle of Armageddon). 

  • ◦.This is the day of the Lord. 

  • ◦.Wrath of God, great shaking or earthquake, etc. 

All of these scriptures tell us the same things:

1. 1.When the Lord returns it will be as the lighting flashes across the sky.  It will be with a shout, with the sound of the trumpet, with power and glory.  Every eye shall see Him. 

2. 2.It will be a surprise to the world as the Antichrist is ruling a one world government and proclaiming peace and safety, then the Lord will come. 

3. 3.When He comes, the saints will be gathered to Him in the air, in the clouds. 

4. 4.Then we will see the wrath of God poured out on the world. 

5. 5.Then He will descend on the nations gathered against Israel and will wipe them out and destroy the Antichrist. 

6. 6.When He touches down on the Mount of Olives, there will be an earthquake bigger than the world has ever seen. 

7. 7.He will set up His kingdom and destroy the leading nations (the kings of Daniel 7) and the last ruling one world government that the Antichrist is using to rule the world (the iron mingled with clay of Daniel 2). 

It is done... Rev 21:6, Rev 16:17, Ez 39:8

Chapter 20 – The binding of Satan for 1000 years

An Angel from Heaven lays hold of Satan and binds him for 1000 years.

• •.The 1000 year reign (the first resurrection) 

Those who did not worship the beast or take his mark and/or died for Jesus will live and reign with Jesus on the earth for the 1000 years, but the rest of the dead did not live again until the 1000 years were finished.

• •.Satan loosed and the last battle 

Another mention of Gog and Magog but definitely a different battle.  And again it's not much of a "battle" since once again God just destroys them out of hand, with fire from Heaven.  The devil is cast into the lake of fire forever.

• •.Judgment day (the second resurrection) 

The dead are resurrected and judged according to their works.

Chapter 21 – New Heavens and a New Earth

Rev 21:1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.

Rev 21:4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

God creates a new heaven and new earth and there will be no more sorrow or pain of any kind!  We will drink freely of the water of life and will dwell with God forever!

The timeline: from the Seals to the Vials

The birth of the Roman Catholic church was approximately 325 AD.  The Seals are the long story (the spirits have been around a long time), the Trumpets are the median story (approximately the last 100 years), and the Vials are the very last and very short story (all seven of the Vials are poured out at the end of the Tribulation), all ending at the battle of Armageddon and the return of Jesus Christ.  The seventh Seal ends the worldly governments and begins the Kingdom of God and the 1000 year reign.

1. 1.The first four Seals – Revelation 6:1-8 

2. 2.The first four Trumpets – Revelation 8:7-12 

3. 3.The Confirmation of the Covenant -  Daniel 9:27 

4. 4.Antichrist begins gaining his power to take over the world – Daniel 7, 8 and Revelation 17 

5. 5.Jerusalem compassed with armies and the desolation is nigh -  Luke 21:20 

6. 6.The fifth and maybe sixth trumpet and the 144k sealed – Revelation 7 and 9 

   1. a.The fifth trumpet comes before the Abomination of Desolation, I think, because it is the same beast that ascends out of the bottomless pit who gains the power of the 10 kings to take over the world (Revelation 17), and the same beast that ascends out of the bottomless pit who kills the two witnesses at the end of the tribulation (Revelation 11), so it looks like it will happen some time before the Abomination of Desolation while the Antichrist is gaining his power, and it's possible that it could happen before the Confirmation of the Covenant. 

   2. b.The sixth trumpet could also happen before the Abomination of Desolation but there's not as much evidence for this, as discussed previously. 

   3. c.It looks like the 144 thousand are likely sealed before the Abomination of Desolation as well.  They are the “first fruits” and are redeemed before the reaping of the saints (Revelation 14), and they are spoken of at the fifth trumpet where the locusts are not allowed to hurt those that have the seal of God in their forehead (Revelation 9). 

7. 7.Jewish temple rebuilt – Daniel 9 and 11, 2 Thessalonians 2:4, Matthew 24:14, Revelation 11 

8. 8.The Antichrist and the False Prophet team up, reviving the Holy Roman Empire and creating the one world government of Revelation 13. 

   1. a.The False Prophet does miracles like pulling fire from the sky in the sight of men. 

   2. b.The False Prophet causes the world to worship the Antichrist. 

9. 9.The final 3.5 years begins. 

   1. a.The Antichrist becomes the Abomination of Desolation by claiming to be god and will stop the sacrifice from being performed at the temple. 

   2. b.The devil is cast to the earth having great wrath. 

   3. c.Daniel 12 “time of trouble” and Matthew 24 “tribulation” begins. 

   4. d.Israel protected 3.5 years. 

   5. e.The Two Witnesses begin their prophecy that will last 1260 days. 

10. 10.The Antichrist reigns for 3.5 years. 

    1. a.Causes craft to prosper. 

    2. b.Implements the mark of the beast. 

    3. c.By peace shall destroy many – comes in the name of peace to gain his power – they shall say, “peace and safety”. 

11. 11.The Antichrist kills the two witnesses – Revelation 11 

12. 12.The last warning – Revelation 14 

13. 13.Jesus returns in the clouds and reaps his own – the rapture. 

14. 14.The Battle of Armageddon and the wrath of God – The seven Vials. 

15. 15.Jesus touches down on the mount of Olives and treads the winepress of the wrath of God.  The earthquake splits the mount of Olives and destroys Rome. 

16. 16.The seventh Trumpet / seventh Vial / sixth Seal. 

17. 17.The Antichrist and the False Prophet are thrown in the Lake of Fire. 

18. 18.The devil is bound for 1000 years. 

19. 19.It is done. 

20. 20.The kingdom of God and the 1000 year reign begin. 

21. 21.After 1000 years Satan is loosed and again deceives the people of the earth and comes against God only to be wiped out with fire from heaven. 

22. 22.Judgment day. 

23. 23.New heavens and new earth. 

24. 24.The chosen saints will dwell with Jesus forever. 

     

    The timeline: the final seven years 

Book 2

11 - The Truth of God’s Word

Now that we've seen how close we are to the return of Jesus Christ, maybe we're interested in knowing how to make sure we get to go with Him when that day comes?

I don't know about you, but it sure motivated me!

The following book is not an all-inclusive bible study by any stretch of the imagination, but it contains the basic truth you need to know to walk with God and ensure your place with God in heaven!  There are so many contradictory types of doctrine (teaching) out there and there's only one bible.  What is the truth?  It's right there in black and white for those who really want to know it!

12 - Theology vs. Philosophy

While the technical definition of these words can be expressed in different ways, the widely accepted meaning of these terms when dealing with biblical doctrine is this:

Theology is the compiling of two or more facts found in the scriptures, and putting those facts together to reveal a specific truth.

Philosophy is a search for understanding of doctrine by chiefly speculative rather than observational means, or an analysis of the grounds of and concepts expressing fundamental beliefs where a specific fact is not stated in the scriptures.  This practice is applied to many obscure passages in the bible where a fact is not stated, but a statement is made that does not give us a full understanding of what it means.

There are many theological concepts that are based on a philosophical interpretation of an obscure or hard to understand passage.  This practice severely taints and corrupts the true practice of theology and can lead to beliefs that are far from the truth.  If a theological concept is based on a root of philosophy, that theology is corrupted by speculation from the very beginning and cannot be trusted as a complete truth.

There are many obscure passages in the bible that can be understood by finding places where the same topic is mentioned and a fuller understanding is given.

Most of the doctrinal statements in the bible are repeated in many places.  That makes it very easy for us to understand some of the points that God wants us to understand as important to Him.  We can read and study the bible and apply true theology to gain a full understanding even if the way it is written based on the culture of the time it was written, or the difference in wording in separate passages makes it hard to understand when we only read one passage concerning that topic.

It’s very important that we don’t take an obscure passage alone, and try to understand it based on a speculative idea.  We must dismiss entirely any concept based on speculation if we find another place in the bible where there is a conflict with that philosophical concept.  And, if an idea cannot be proved by careful study of the scripture, then we should not trust that as a truthful doctrine because it is still a philosophical idea, rather than a theological truth.

Col 2:8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.

The mystery of God?

Lot’s of people will try to say the bible cannot be understood unless you have someone to explain and interpret every word and every thought because they say it’s so deeply obscured by the miss-interpretation of words made by the translators, and the hidden meanings they say exist all over the bible  They use this concept to fool others into believing their philosophical doctrines.  I have to ask, why would God do that?  Why would He hide the truth from those who truly seek it when He promised that we would find the truth if we seek it?  I know that the mystery of God is used as the reason by most people, but I do not believe that the mystery of God is for the saints of God.  The mystery is for those that don’t want to believe in God, or those that have doctrines they choose to believe for whatever reason, rather than seeking the truth whether they like that truth or not.

There are several places in the bible where God shows us that His people will understand, but others will not.

2 Cor 4:3 But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: 4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

Col 1:26 Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints:

The mystery of Christ was made manifest to the saints by the gospel; the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.

1 Thess 5:1 But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. 2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. 3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. 4 But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.

Paul says that the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, but only for those who are in darkness, not the saints of God.  We will know and expect it.

Rev 10:7 But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.

The mystery of God will be finished at the sounding of the seventh angel because the Lord will return and will set up the kingdom of God.  There will no longer be any mystery at that time.

Mark 4:11 And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables:  12 That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them.

Those that do not love God and do not have a love for the truth will not be given understanding of the mystery of the kingdom of God.  It will be a mystery to them, but only a mystery to them, not a mystery to us.

Dan 12:10 Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly: and none of the wicked shall understand ; but the wise shall understand .

In the final days before the return of the Lord, the wicked will not understand, but the wise, the saints of God, will understand.

Eph 3:4 Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ

We can understand that which is a mystery to unbelievers, by reading the bible.

God also gave us His word for doctrine, reproof, correction, instruction…

2 Tim 3:16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:

If that’s true, then why would God make it impossible for someone searching for these things to understand?  No way.  He did not.  He gave us His word so we could understand if we sought it out.

When we have the Holy Spirit in us, we gain understanding through Him, and do not need another person to tell us what it means.

1 John 2:27  But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.

BUT!  Here's the key!  You must have a love for the truth and be willing to let the Holy Spirit lead you to it.  If you search for proof of the doctrine you want to believe, you'll probably find it.

2 Thessalonians 2:10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:

We must love the truth so much that we're always looking for instruction and correction, not proof of our beliefs, when we study the scripture.  We have to keep our desires and opinions out of it entirely!  We have to push away what we think we know, and earnestly search for the truth whether we like what we find or not.

This isn't to say we shouldn't study the works of other people.  But, we can't allow ourselves get sucked into a false doctrine.  There are quite a lot of false doctrines that make so much sense if we allow the philosophical theologies to mingle with truth.  We need to know the Word by reading and studying it and study the scriptures quoted by the author of any work in great detail to check it for speculative ideas and discard them.  I use other peoples works to get ideas on new paths of study.  But, I don't simply believe anything they say unless I study it out myself and prove it one way or the other with the scriptures.

One thing we need other people for, is to keep us in check to make sure we’re not following our own interpretation out of our own will and desires.  It’s easy to convince ourselves that what we’re doing is of God sometimes when it’s really our own desire for it to be so.  We have to make sure we don’t fall into that trap.  We have to be careful we aren’t deceived by ourselves and that we truly listen to God and hear His voice and not our own.  There is great deception in the world today.  Read the bible yourself.  Don’t rely on someone to tell you what it says.  If we think something is of God, we can check against the Word of God and if it’s not in line with the Word, we can be certain it’s not of God.

God gave us His word that we might know and understand Him.  We must stay away from philosophy and deceit.  We need to read the bible enough, and study it enough that the theologies we learn are true and irrefutable.

13 - The Deception

First things first:  We can never forget who our enemy is.  He’s the master of lies.  He can deceive the smartest and wisest of us with tricks he’s used and refined time and time again.  He’s been working hard to deceive the human race for six thousand years or so.  He wants everyone who believes in God, whether they believe in the one true God or not, to believe that they are saved, when they’re not.  If we believe in Allah and are comfortable that we’ll go to heaven when we die, he’s done with his work and can focus more attention on someone who’s searching for the one true God.  Of course, our enemy would prefer that we don’t believe in God at all.  He’s called Satan, Lucifer, the devil, the dragon, the father of lies, etc.  He uses people to help him deceive others by convincing people that a lie is truth so those people will teach that lie to others.  Here’s a great lie that has stumped many a Muslim.  Muslims will admit that Jesus Christ was a true prophet, but deny that He was the Messiah (although some Western Muslims will say He was anointed), they will deny that He was God manifested in the flesh as of the Son of God (John 1:14), and they will deny that He died on the cross and rose again.  Does that make sense?  Absolutely not; but most Muslims have never even thought of this because they believe the lie so deeply that they don’t question their faith.  That belief cannot be truth because Jesus Christ Himself said He was the Messiah!  John 4:26 Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he.  That would make Him a false prophet according to the Muslim beliefs!  How twisted is that?  But it’s a lie believed by one and a half billion people.  We absolutely must believe that Jesus Christ was manifest in the flesh, was crucified for our sins and rose again.  This is the gospel!

Second:  If something is spelled out in the bible in one place, but there’s a passage elsewhere that seems like it might say something different but isn’t very clear, believe the thing that is spelled out!  So many people try to lead others down a false path of “interpretation” by showing them things that aren’t specifically pointing out an exact truth and giving them their “definition” of that mysterious passage.  This is the mystery of God.  He did it on purpose to give those who don’t love the truth the excuses they seek.  Don’t listen to those people, or read those commentaries and explanations of the bible without examining the rest of the bible.  The bible is full of hard to understand phrases and passages, and it’s mostly due to the cultural differences of the time and people.  The bible almost always specifically points out the truth, usually in more than one place, and the bible cannot lie!  The bible cannot contradict itself, and anyone who tries to convince you that it can is telling you that God is a liar!  Don’t listen to them!  Read the bible for yourself!  And never forget; there is great danger in taking scripture verses out of context and misinterpreting them!

There are many, many warnings of false teaching.

For example:

Col 2:8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.

2 Cor 11:3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.

In the end time, the time we’re living in right now, Jesus says that there will be many false prophets (men who don’t teach the truth but pretend to come in the name of Jesus) and they will deceive many.

Matt 24:11 And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.

Please don’t allow someone you trust to bend your mind.  Seek God’s truth with your whole heart and He will lead you to it!  If you already have ideas or things that you’ve believed for years, try to have an open mind and forget those things for a while and really search for the truth!  I’m not saying you can’t go back to that thinking, because for all I know you could be right, but try to make a way for new truths to come into your mind without immediately discarding them.  If it’s truth, God will reveal it to you through His word.

Most people won’t get it though.

For the Scriptures to mesh and comply completely, totally, and exactly with each other requires a very narrow, restrictive and precise interpretation that produces an exact truth that "only a few" understand and comply with.

Matt 7:13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: 14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

The sinful self-will of man desires a wide, broad, vague, ambiguous and confusing interpretation that does not focus on the sin in his life.

2 Tim 4:3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; 4 And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

Have you ever heard someone talk about the mystery of God?  God couched things in mystery and wrote the bible in such a way that you won’t understand it unless you love the truth and seek Him with all your heart!  Some will say it’s a matter of interpretation, but there is only one truth, and no “interpretation” can change that.  Don’t allow the people that have been fooled to fool you with their fables and lies!

And God gives them the excuses they want, so they feel comfortable with the lie!

2 Thessalonians 2:10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:

You must love the truth and seek God with all your heart or God will send a strong delusion so that you will believe the lies!

Matt 13:10 And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? 11 He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. 12 For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. 13 Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. 14 And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: 15 For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.

Some people refuse to believe the truth because then they would have to change their life, and God gives them all the excuses they want with the mystery He wove into in the bible!  The mystery of God separates the truth seekers from the excuse seekers.

2 Cor 4:3 But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: 4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

The bible teaches that we will be persecuted.

2 Tim 3:12 Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.

Nobody likes to be made fun of or be the minority, but if you’re in the mainstream of “religion”; if you believe what most people believe, I would seriously start reading the bible for yourself and asking God to show you his truth!

I have to tell you a little story here, and I’ll try to keep it short… I was raised in a Baptist church when I was young and my family moved to a more liberal Protestant belief in my early teens.  My little brother died when I was 11 and I started turning away from God at that point in my life, blaming Him and hating Him for what I thought He did.  I thought God caused my little brother to die, and I also blamed myself for not being there to save him.  Today, I know that this wasn’t the truth.  It wasn’t God who killed him and it certainly wasn’t up to me to be there to save him.  But I didn’t understand that as a boy.  Today, I understand that things changed because of sin, and that the evil in people’s hearts and the deceit of Satan is enough to create the horrible and awful things that happen in the world today.  I spent about 30 years turning away from God.  I did many things I'm not proud of during that time.  I don't want anyone to think badly of me, but I'll be honest with you and tell you that I did drugs, alcohol, crime, etc...  I followed the world and the ways of man down the wrong path.  I should be dead many times over, but God kept me alive all that time and brought me to where I am today, and I cannot praise His name or thank Him enough!  If I had died back then, I do not believe I would have gone to be with Jesus.  That's a very sobering thought.  When I finally returned and began seeking God, I found myself in a church very similar to the liberal protestant churches I went to as a child.  I believed I was in the right place and could trust the men who led the church to teach the truth.  I went to bible studies and regular services and began seeking the truth, wanting to know God and understand His Word.  After a while, I began noticing a lot of discrepancy between the things that were said and what I was reading in the bible.  I knew nothing different, but I kept feeling a nagging tug and felt something wasn’t quite right.  So, I started reading the bible myself and searching for understanding.  After a while, I began asking my pastor about the things that I’d found in the bible and I simply could not believe the lame excuses he gave me for the reasons he taught the way he did!  Don’t get me wrong here, I’m not slamming anyone or saying that your pastor or minister is wrong or that you’re not being taught the truth, I’m simply relating my story as it happened to me.  I was totally amazed at how he manipulated scripture to make what he wanted to be true, seem like truth; but the truth was easy to see when I read what he quoted and read the entire book or chapter to see what it really meant.  I especially gained a much greater understanding of God’s Word the first time I read the New Testament in its entirety.  My point is, that I thought I was truly saved and thought I knew the truth because I didn’t know any better, but when I started really searching for Gods truth, he led me right to it!  The whole point of this book is to hopefully inspire others, like yourself, to do the same!

What we need to do is read the bible ourselves and read it so much that we know it well enough to know when a pastor is not teaching the truth.  We definitely want to find a church where the truth is being taught, but what’s most important is that we understand Gods truth in our own heart and mind.  If you find yourself in a church that is not teaching truth; walk away and find one that is.

So, let’s take a look at what Gods Word says; the truth of it.

14 - How do I know the truth?

Is my church teaching truth?

The Roman Catholic Church is the self proclaimed “mother” of all churches.  In western society this is true for a lot of churches.  Protestants, Lutherans, Episcopalians, Methodists, etc. were born of the Roman Catholic Church, and most still have very similar beliefs to the Catholic Church.  The Bible calls the end time religious leader the Great Whore, and her daughters are harlots (false churches), as discussed in previous chapters.  The Catholic Church is one of the driving forces behind Interfaithism and is promoting the lie that all religions worship the same God.  This is so not true!  For example: Did you know that Allah was a pagan deity?  In fact, he was the moon god who was married to the sun goddess and the stars were his daughters.  The Muslims want us to believe Allah is the God of Israel!?  I don’t think they’re worshiping the same God I do, or any Jew or Christian, by any stretch of the imagination.  The Roman Catholic leaders today are even saying that you don’t really need to believe in Jesus Christ to be saved!  (Article #841 of the Catechism). This is a direct contradiction to the words of Jesus Christ himself!

John 8:24 I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.

John 3:18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

We absolutely must believe that Jesus Christ was manifest in the flesh, was crucified for our sins and rose again.  This is the gospel!

Acts 4:12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

There is no salvation in any other name but Jesus!  Not Mohammed, not Buddha; no other name…

Please don’t get me wrong.  I’m not slamming Catholics.  I have friends that are Catholic who are very loving, kind people, and I love them very much!  I don’t have anything against Catholics or Muslims or anyone who practices other religions, but I do want to stress that the leaders of those religions are teaching false doctrine!  If you’re Catholic, Muslim or any other faith at all, please don’t be offended by my comments, and please pick up a Bible and read it for yourself!  It’s the false teachers and false prophets that we need to see and expose for what they are.

If your church’s theology is "wide," or "broad," and understood and complied with by the many, which way are they teaching?  The broad way, or the narrow way?  Which way did Jesus say we should go?  Matt 7:14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

Most Christian churches are founded on the same verses of scripture:

John 3:16 For God so loved the world…

John 3:3 Ye must be born again.

Ephesians 2:8 For by grace are ye saved.

Romans 10:9 That is thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

These passages are truth, yes, but that’s not all that the Bible teaches us!  We cannot take a few truths out of the Bible and ignore the rest of it.  Many people like to justify themselves by hanging on the fact that God saved us by His grace.  It is by grace that we are saved, but God expects us to obey Him and love Him with all our heart, mind and strength.  If we’re looking for excuses, God sees our inner hearts and we can’t hide from Him.  We can fool other people and can even fool ourselves if we really want to, but do we really want to do that?  Do we really want to justify ourselves instead of pleasing our God and trying to do His will?  The meaning of these verses goes much deeper than that!  I repeat; there is great danger in taking scripture verses out of context and misinterpreting them!

For example:  John 6:54 Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.  Basically what some people teach is that the Bible says that if we believe, we are saved.  That's true!  It does say that.  Here in John it says that if we eat and drink of the body of Jesus, we're saved.  Does this mean that all we have to do is take communion (symbolically eat and drink of his body) to be saved?  If we wanted to take this verse and make a doctrine of it, we could.  But that would be silly, wouldn't it?  So why do we allow people to deceive us with similar types of doctrine?  We have to take the Bible as a whole and obey God in every thing He says, not just pieces of it.

We are saved by grace and belief in Jesus Christ is salvation, but as Jesus said, why would we call Him Lord and do not the things He says?  Why wouldn't we obey Him if we truly love Him?  The thing I'm arguing here is that many people don't really give their life to God and truly repent.  Many people are taught that saying a prayer saves their soul, but aren't told that they must absolutely mean that prayer, or that it's not saying the words that saves you, it's changing your heart, admitting you're a sinner, repenting of those sins, and turning to follow and obey the Lord that saves you.

We have to be very careful that we don't follow the watered down "Christianity" that is very prevalent in the world today.  We can't do anything to save ourselves, Jesus did it all on the cross, but we also can't listen to people who are so adamant about "doing nothing" that you don't even repent!  If we change our mind, we're doing something. If we repent, we're doing something.

The bible teaches that repentance is necessary

Acts 2:38  Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

Acts 3:19  Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;

Acts 17:30  And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:

Acts 26:20  But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judaea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.

Jesus taught repentance and the Apostles taught repentance in many places in the bible.  To repent is a conscious decision to turn away from your sinful nature.

Would you agree that even repenting is doing something?  It's not physical, and nothing physical is required for salvation, but if we don't turn away from our sinful life to follow the Lord are we saved?

Matt 10:38  And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me. 39 He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.

Matt 16:24  Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

Luke 18:22  Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me.

Jesus said that the way to be saved (to see the kingdom of God) is to be, “Born Again”.  Surprisingly, most people can't tell you what that means

John 3:3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

Belief alone does not mean you are born again.  The devil believes, but he will be cast into the lake of fire for ever and ever (Rev. 20:10).  There are many people that believe, but will be turned away, that will fully expect to get into Heaven.

Matt 7:21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord , shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord , have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? 23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven!  Be careful that you aren't deceived by those who don't know the truth!  Simply believing and confessing with my mouth is not enough!

Acts 8 contains the story of Simon, who believed, and was even baptized, but: as Peter said, in Acts 8:21, “Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God.”

If I truly believe, I will follow Christ.  If I don’t follow Christ’s teaching, do I truly believe, or am I just trying to get there with the least possible affect to my life?  Am I saying I believe just because I want to cover all the bases?  That won’t work.  I must repent and give my life to Jesus Christ without any reservation at all!

The Bible teaches us to “obey the Gospel”.

1 Peter 4:17 For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?

2 Thess 1:8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:

Paul teaches us what the Gospel is:

1 Cor 15:1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:

Paul declares the gospel; how that Christ died for our sins, and was buried, and rose again.  That is the gospel.

The Gospel is the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.  Being born again is the death, burial and resurrection of our spirit.  To obey the Gospel is to be born again.

How do we do that?

Death:

We die to self by repenting and giving our lives to Jesus Christ totally and completely.  Don’t gloss over this.  This, is salvation.  If you haven’t truly repented, you can get baptized all you want, but God is not going to fill you with His Spirit and save your soul if you don’t truly give your life to Him and repent of your sins.  You must give all of yourself totally and completely!

Burial:

Burial is the act of emersion in water; baptism in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins.  The original Greek word for baptize: baptizo (bap-tid'-zo) means to immerse, submerge; to make overwhelmed (i.e. fully wet).

Jesus was baptized, taught baptism, supervised His apostles doing it, and the apostles commanded it of everyone after Christ rose up into glory!

John 3:22 After these things came Jesus and his disciples into the land of Judaea; and there he tarried with them, and baptized.

People might argue that Jesus did not baptize Himself (John 4:2), which is true, but why would He teach and supervise his disciples doing it if it was not necessary?  And, Jesus actually said it was necessary.

Mark 16:16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.

He didn’t say, “and is baptized if he wants to be, but it’s not really necessary.”  We must be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, and we must truly believe with all our heart!

The apostles all taught and commanded both Jew and Gentile to be baptized with water.

Acts 2:38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

We are buried with Jesus by baptism into death, to walk in the newness of life with Him!

Rom 6:3 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? 4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: 6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. 7 For he that is dead is freed from sin.

Does this mean that baptism is absolutely necessary for salvation? No, it does not, but it is part of being obedient to God, and obeying the gospel. What I mean by this is, like the thief who was hung on a cross next to Jesus, Luke 23:43 And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with me in paradise. This man did not get baptised but Jesus clearly said he would be with Him in paradise. If you don't have the ability to get baptised, and you die before you get a chance are you damned to hell? No way. But should you be baptised if you have the opportunity? Absolutely! True faith and repentance will always cause a person to be obedient to the plan of God for salvation. Always.

Resurrection:

We are resurrected by receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Both Jew:

Acts 19:1 And it came to pass, that, while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul having passed through the upper coasts came to Ephesus: and finding certain disciples, 2 He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost. 3 And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John's baptism. 4 Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. 5 When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 6 And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues , and prophesied.

and Gentile:

Acts 10:44 While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word.45 And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost.46 For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter,47 Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we?48 And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then prayed they him to tarry certain days.

Some churches teach that baptism is the “baptism of the Holy Ghost”, and that water baptism is not necessary.  But you’ll notice that Paul re-baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, and that Peter commanded them to be baptized with water after they were filled with the Holy Ghost.  The baptism Jesus and His Apostles are talking about isn’t the baptism of the Holy Ghost.  It is one part of being obedient to the Gospel, and receipt of the Holy Ghost is a promise of God, not something we can earn or do for ourselves.  Receiving the Holy Ghost isn’t something we go get; God gives it to us when our heart is right and we’re ready to accept Him.  It is God’s promise.  God cannot lie.

So, the question remains: What does God expect? What does it really mean to be born again? What must a person do to be saved?

Faith in Jesus Christ and repentance do save a person. However, true faith and repentance will always cause a person to be obedient to the plan of God for salvation. This has always been the case through history (see Hebrews 11).  Faith always produces obedience.

Is water baptism in Jesus' name essential?  Jesus said so in Mark 16:16--"He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved."  It is part of being obedient to the Gospel and obedient to God.  While some argue that this is the baptism of the Holy Ghost, it’s evidenced very clearly in the book of Acts that the Apostles knew the meaning of this to be water baptism.  And if baptism really isn’t necessary, why did Jesus get baptized in water followed by the Holy Ghost landing on Him like a dove as an example for us to follow?  Matthew 16:19 shows us that Peter was given the keys to Heaven and whatever he bound on earth would be bound in Heaven, and Peter said that baptism was for the remission (Greek aphesis - forgiveness) of our sins (Acts 2:38). Paul said that it was our burial with Christ (Romans 6).  And, why did God send Phillip to baptize and teach the Eunuch in Acts 8 if baptism doesn't really matter?

Is the gift of the Holy Ghost essential? Yes it is. According to Romans 8:9, if we don't have the Spirit of God dwelling in us, we don't belong to Christ.  It is the Spirit of God that seals us until the day of redemption (Eph 1:13, Eph 4:30).

The Lord Jesus Christ is loving and merciful.  It is His love and mercy that has given us this great plan of salvation.  However, the scriptures clearly teach that those who reject His plan will be lost (2 Thess 1:8, 2 Cor. 4:3).  We need to be careful, lest we start down the path of thinking that God's mercy will justify people that do not obey God's plan.  The same argument can be used to say that those who live in India, who have been surrounded by Hinduism all of their life, could not be lost simply because they don't believe in Jesus.  There are many that would claim that God would never be so unmerciful as to damn those people, even though they haven't believed in Christ.  At that point, we're at a place of "universal salvation"--i.e., everybody will be saved.  As much as I'd love to say that is true, we know that it isn't.  God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah because they were evil (sexually deviate) and did not obey Him.  He destroyed the whole planet and millions of people with a flood, only saving one family, because they were evil and would not acknowledge, love and obey Him.  God is an awesome loving creator, but He is also a God of wrath against those who refuse to obey Him.

We are obedient to our faith by following the plan of salvation taught to us by Jesus and the Apostles; by obeying the gospel.

We must continually seek God’s face!  We can never get to a place where we think we know it all and get complacent.  We know the truth and what the plan of salvation is by reading the Word, but we cannot ever stop reaching for Jesus.  The Holy Spirit in us gives us the discernment to understand the Word of God and we continually learn by reading and searching the scriptures and allowing the Spirit to guide us.

The devil will always try to lure every one of us away from the truth.  It's a common occurrence.  All the way back in the garden we see it.  The devil's first question to Eve was - "Hath God said?"  He hasn't changed his tactics much in 6000 years.  That's why it is so essential that we are continually and prayerfully digging into the Word of God.  Our offensive weapon to the devil's "hath God said" will always be "It is written."

What have we learned so far?

We’ve learned that God loved the world so much that he saved us by His grace, that we must be born again, and that we must truly believe, and that if we do we will obey the gospel and have a love for His truth.

When Peter and the apostles were asked, “What shall we do?” (to be saved), Peter answered them by saying:  Acts 2:38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. 39 For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.

The promise is to any and all who believe and obey the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ!  Thank you Jesus!  Without His sacrifice we would be lost!

Do not be deceived by the false prophets and false teachings.  The Bible is very clear about the Great Whore and her daughters.  We must not be part of that or we will be punished with her.

Rev 18:4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.

The best advice:  Read the Bible yourself!  Don’t take another man’s word for it.  I can’t say it enough times; read the Bible!  God gave us His word so that we could know Him!  It’s the only way we can really know God and know His truth.

Ps 119:11 Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.

We need God’s word in our heart!  We have to actually read it before we can have it in our heart!

15 - How many Gods are there?

There are many scriptures teaching that there’s only one God:

2 Sam 7:22 Wherefore thou art great, O LORD God: for there is none like thee, neither is there any God beside thee, according to all that we have heard with our ears.

Isaiah 43:10 Ye are my witnesses, saith the LORD, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he: before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me. 11 I, even I, am the LORD; and beside me there is no saviour.

Deut 6:4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:

Deut 4:35 Unto thee it was shewed, that thou mightest know that the LORD he is God; there is none else beside him.

Deut 32:39 See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god with me: I kill, and I make alive; I wound, and I heal: neither is there any that can deliver out of my hand.

1 Cor 8:4 As concerning therefore the eating of those things that are offered in sacrifice unto idols, we know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is none other God but one.

James 2:19 Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.

No God with Him, before Him, after Him, beside Him, like Him, no savior beside Him.  There is none but Him.  Period.  God is one and only one.

Who is Jesus?

1 Tim 3:16 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.

John 8:58 Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.

John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God; … 14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

Isaiah 9:6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

Matt 1:23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.

Rev 1:8 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty. … 18 I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.

John 14:9 Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?

John 10:30 I and my Father are one.

A child will be born (Jesus) and he will be called “the mighty God”, “the everlasting Father”, “God with us”.  God was manifest in the flesh (Jesus).  The Word was God and became flesh (Jesus).  Who lives and was dead?  Jesus.  Jesus said, “Before Abraham was, I am.”  Now there’s a powerful statement!  Jesus is God!  He that has seen Jesus, has seen the Father.  Jesus said, “I and my Father are one.”  They are one and the same.

We’ve proven two things so far:  There is only one God, and that Jesus is God.  That means that Jesus is that one God!

I would like to point out a very important scripture that most people do not understand.  In John 1:1 it says that in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  The word “Word” was interpreted from the original Greek word logos, which means “Divine Expression”.  We know that several times in the Old Testament, God manifested Himself as an angelic being.  He ate with Abraham, he wrestled with Jacob, etc.  This was the Divine Expression of God before He actually became flesh.  This Divine Expression was in existence before the foundation of the earth (1 Pet 1:20).  John 1:14 says that the Word, or the Divine Expression, was made flesh and dwelt among us.  We know that the Divine Expression was God and was with God before the foundation of the earth.  It’s important to understand that the Divine Expression always was and always is God.  It was His angelic form before He made it actual flesh with the birth of Jesus Christ.  God is amazing!

Please take a look at the following two scriptures very carefully:

Isaiah 44:6 Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God.

Rev 1:17 And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last: 18 I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.

God is speaking in Isaiah, proclaiming that He is the first and the last, that He is God and there is no God beside Him.  In Revelation, Jesus is speaking to John, proclaiming that He is the first and the last, that He lives and was dead, but is alive forever.  Take a minute to really digest this truth...

Why does Jesus "pray to the Father"?

This can be very confusing if we don't understand that the flesh and blood man, Jesus, was a human being just like you and me.  He was the "seed of a woman"; a man born of a woman just like all humans.  God planted the seed in Mary and/or fertilized it, but it grew in the womb and was born a baby and grew into a man.  It was God's way to live among us as a man to fulfill His plan of redemption and save us by shedding His blood and dying for us.  He was every bit a human being who experienced the same things we do, like pain, hunger, etc.  When he was mocked and beaten and hung on the cross, he felt every bit of it just as you and I would.  Here's the thing; in order for God to be tempted in all points (Heb 4:15) as we are, He had to be a man in all points as we are!

Jesus did many things by example and led by example.  He did things as a man so we would know by His example what we should do.  He prayed, was baptized, fasted; but He did all these things for us, not for Himself.  In John 12, Jesus prays to God and a voice is heard from heaven.  Then Jesus tells them that it was for them, not Himself.

John 12:30 Jesus answered and said, This voice came not because of me, but for your sakes.

In order to understand, we must remember that many things were done so we could understand in human terms.  Jesus sometimes spoke and did things as God with the authority of God and other times spoke and did things as a man to bring things to our level of understanding and to be an example of what is pleasing to Him.  It's hard to understand, but we have to remember that we cannot understand God and that we might get ourselves into trouble by trying to make it fit in our minds with philosophy.  The man, Jesus, was totally submitted to the Spirit of God.  He wasn’t an ordinary man as you and I are, but He was God manifest in the flesh as it says in the bible.  He was a very special man.  He wasn’t a puppet in the true sense of the word, but He was totally submitted to God so much so that the Spirit guided everything He did and as such He was really just speaking and acting the will of God.  John 3:34 For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him.  He is the body of God, the human flesh that God manifested Himself into.

This tends to lend credibility to the "trinity" concept if you don't understand it.  It definitely does not mean that there are three distinct persons or entities that make up God.  One cannot ignore the point blank statements of God to create theological concepts that are based on supposition because there are things we don't understand.

For example: Gen 1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness:  Does that mean that God is three beings???  No, it does not.  God very specifically states that He is one and only one over and over and over in the bible.  Just because we don't understand what He said doesn't mean we should make up something to make it fit in our minds.  Maybe it's as simple a thing as that God was including those that were with Him (the angels) when He said it?  Take a look at Genesis 18 and 19.  In 18:1 we see that the Lord appeared to Abraham.  In verse 2 we see that there were 3 men who appeared to Abraham.  During the passage of events we find that one of them was the Lord (verse 18:22), and two were angels that the Lord sent to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah (verses 19:1 and 19:13).  In verse 19:13, one of the angels says, "we will destroy this place" and then that the Lord sent them to do it, but then the Lord Himself (verse 19:24) made the rain fall out of heaven.  God included the angels with Him during these events, but they weren't God, and He's the one who's power did the work.  In the creation He says, "Let us make man in our image", and then God goes on to create man in His image, not in "their images".  Gen 1:27 So God created man in his own image...  Is it too much of a stretch to simply take God at His word and understand that He is one, and that He simply includes His angels in the things He does?

We also need to understand that things have been intentionally inserted into the bible we read today in order to make the ideas men created seem more credible.  Here's a couple examples:

Isaiah 41:4 Who hath wrought and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? I the LORD, the first, and with the last ; I am he.

The word "with" was inserted and never existed in the original text.  It should read just as it does in Isaiah 44:6 quoted above.  It really says, "I the LORD, the first, and the last; I am he."  Why did they insert the word "with"?  The Hebrew words in Isaiah 41:4 are identical to the words used in Isaiah 44:6.

Here's another one where they inserted so many words it just amazes me:

1 John 5:7 For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. 8 And there are three that bear witness in earth, the spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.

This text sure sounds like there's three Gods, right!?  But if we look at the original Greek text, there's an entire section that was inserted by the men who translated it!  In the original Greek it reads, "For there are three that bear record; the spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one."  All of the other words were inserted by men.  Why?  Did they believe in a "trinity"?

Who is the Holy Ghost?

Luke 1:35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.

Matt 1:18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.

The Holy Ghost is the father of Jesus?  Then who is “God the Father”?  Obviously they are one and the same.

In Acts, on the day of Pentecost, when the Holy Ghost was given, Peter tells the crowd that this was the prophesy from Joel, where God pours out His Spirit on all flesh.

Acts 2:16 But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; 17 And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh:

Joel 2:28 And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh;

God is a Spirit.  The Holy Ghost is that Spirit.  It's that simple.

John 4:24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

In Genesis we also see that the Spirit of God (the Holy Ghost) is the Creator, the Father.

Gen 1:2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

I took the liberty of looking up the original Greek and Hebrew words for the words "spirit" and "ghost", in both the Old and New Testaments, to understand it in my own mind.  I found that the exact same Greek word is used where they have translated it into both Spirit and Ghost in the New Testament (IE: Holy Spirit and Holy Ghost), and that the Hebrew word when used to speak of the Spirit of God in the Old Testament, as in Gen 1:2, has the same meaning as the Greek word used in the New Testament.  This is positive proof that there is no difference and no separation of any kind, it is just simply the Spirit of God - that is God - in all cases.

Jesus says that He will come as the comforter; the Holy Ghost.  This can mean nothing other than that Jesus is also the Holy Ghost.  Jesus is that one God!

John 14:16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; 17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. 18 I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.

If the Spirit of God dwell in you, the Spirit of Christ is in you.  The Spirit of Christ is the Holy Ghost.

Rom 8:9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. 10 And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.

God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts.  The spirit of the Son is the same spirit as the Holy Ghost.  Jesus, God, the Holy Ghost, the Father, the Son are all one and the same.

Gal 4:6 And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.

The prophets from the Old Testament prophesied of Christ by the Spirit of Christ.  These words are all used interchangeably.  The Spirit of God, the Holy Ghost, the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Christ are all simply the Spirit which is God.

1 Peter 1:10-12 Of which salvation the prophets have inquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: 11 Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow. 12 Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.

How can this be?

It’s very difficult for us to understand as finite beings but here’s a thought that might help you:  The body of Jesus is the limit of the unlimited, the visible of the invisible, the finite of the infinite.  We have both a spirit and a body, but we are one person.  God is a spirit (John 4:24).  Jesus is simply the body of God manifested in the flesh, so He could walk among us as a man to fulfill His purpose (to rescue us).

Col 1:15 (Jesus) is the image of the invisible God...

What is the name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost?

The Father, Son and Holy Ghost are all titles, not names.

Matt 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:

Jesus was speaking a truth that He knew the apostles understood.  He said “the name”, not “the names”.  And what is the name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost?  There is only one who has all these titles.  Jesus is His name.  Every record of baptism in the book of Acts shows that the Apostles obeyed this command by baptizing in the name of Jesus, or in the name of the Lord (Jesus).

Acts 4:12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

There is no other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

If you’re still not convinced, here’s a very important question:  Is Jesus in the Godhead or is the Godhead in Jesus?

Col 2:9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.

We have a measure of the spirit of God when the Holy Ghost lives within us; the difference is that the entirety of God is in Jesus Christ.  That's what it means when it says ALL the fullness of the Godhead dwells within Jesus Christ.

John 3:34 For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him.

That doesn't mean that God only existed within that flesh, not at all.  We don't worship the flesh of Jesus, we worship the Spirit which is God.  God is spirit, not flesh.  Jesus was the son of God, but He was the Word manifested in the flesh "as of" the only begotten of the father (John 1:14), who is also our father.  The Holy Spirit is the "father" of the flesh of Jesus in the way we understand physical things.  He impregnated Mary to produce the flesh to fulfill His great plan.  The flesh of Jesus was the "son" of God in the way we know how to understand it.

God is one and only one.  His name is Jesus.

Is there such a thing as a “trinity” or a "triune"?

Many people are taught that there are three distinct beings that make up what we know to be one and only one God.  Some people that teach this doctrine will admit that God is one and only one, but in the same sentence will say that there are three separate and distinct entities that make up this one God.  This does not comply with scripture at all.  Yes, God has several offices or titles, and three of them are listed in the bible as the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost.  I am a father, a son, a brother, a husband, and many other things, but I am just one person.  These offices of God; the Father, the Son, the Holy Ghost are just titles and do not in any way make God into three distinct beings.  There is no "trinity" taught anywhere in the bible.  It’s never mentioned in the Old or New Testaments, it’s never taught by Jesus and it’s never taught by the Apostles.  It is actually a concept that was invented back around 200 AD and indoctrinated by the Roman Catholic church when the church was founded in approximately 325 AD.  God did not teach this, so why would we teach it?  We should not.

16 - What’s next?  What do I do now?

The first thing I would recommend to anyone reading this book and wanting to know the truth is to read the bible.  Start with the New Testament and read it from Matthew thru Revelation, and then move to the old, or start over at Matthew and read it through again.  Sit down every day and read God’s Word.  Give praises to God and ask Him for understanding before you read.  When you thank Jesus for saving you and are truly grateful for His sacrifice, He will bless you and lead you to His truth!  Don’t rely on any man or woman to teach you God’s truth, read it for yourself so you know you’re getting the real truth!  Remember the deception!  Most people are caught up in it and don’t even know they are believing a lie!  If you love the truth, God will bless you and give you understanding.

Remember that God loves everyone and doesn’t want a single soul to be lost, but He will not force anyone to do anything.  We have the choice to do whatever we want.  God did not make the things happen that we’ve talked about in the prophecy chapters of this book, he simply knew that they would happen.

I know that I can't convince anyone of anything they don’t want to believe, and I don't need to.  If someone is seeking God they will find Him and trying to convince someone who isn’t will just be an exercise in futility.  If you don’t love the truth and don’t truly want to walk with God, you might as well stop reading now if you haven’t already.  If you love the world and what you can gain from it for your own personal desires, enjoy it while you can…

Mark 8:36 For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?

If we love the world and the things in it, the love of God is not in us.

1 John 2:15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.  17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

Jesus loves us so much and it's evident in His willingness to come to us as a man and die for us.  He just wants us to love Him back!  And if we love Jesus, it’s easy to do what He commanded.  If you do, you will not fall; if you don’t, you will fall.

Luke 6:46 And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say? 47 Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like: 48 He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock. 49 But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great.

Have confidence toward God and don’t condemn yourself, because God knows your heart and loves you!  If you keep His commandments, you are in God and He is in you.  We know He is in us by the evidence of His Spirit!  This doesn’t mean we will never sin.  We are flesh and weak in the spirit.  With God in us we will change; and that change is usually slow, but steady, if you simply trust in God and praise Him every day, practicing living in the spirit and not in the flesh.  Sounds weird, yes, but we are both spirit and flesh.  Most of us have only ever known the flesh.  The Holy Spirit lives within us and gives us life in the spirit!

1 John 3:18 My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth. 19 And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him. 20 For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. 21 Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God. 22 And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight. 23 And this is his commandment , That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment . 24 And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.

Love the Lord our God with all your heart, and all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength, and love your neighbor (fellow man) as yourself:

Mark 12:30 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment . 31 And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.

Jesus will send the comforter, His Holy Spirit, to live within us and guide us.  Nothing in the world compares to the joy of the Holy Spirit in your heart!  Nothing!

John 15:26 But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:

If we love Jesus and love the truth, we will obey the gospel and do what Jesus told us!  As the Holy Spirit guides us and we learn to submit to Him, we will learn to forget about our selfish desires and learn to love others as ourselves.  God will not leave us alone but will give us His Spirit to comfort us and lead us to His truth.  All we have to do is obey the gospel and truly seek Him with all our heart!  We are all sinners and nobody is worthy, but by the grace of God we are saved.  Believe me, I know that I’m not worthy of God’s love and forgiveness, but He loves me so much that he does forgive me!  He loves all of us that much.  For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten son.  He gave what is most precious to man, to save man.

Rom 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:

Jesus loves you.  He just wants you to love Him back.

17 - What does the bible teach about the structure of a home and a family?  

The biggest problem with our society today, as most of us know, is the disintegration of the family.  Without a loving, wholesome, structured family life, people grow up lonely and afraid.  They learn to rely only on self and learn to ignore feelings of compassion and decency because, more often than not, they get hurt when they reach out to someone.  They don’t really know what love is but they crave it.  They sometimes think that puppy love and infatuation is real love.  If you’re an adult, you probably know that once the newness wears off, these feelings of “love” also fade if there is no real love in the relationship.  Sometimes people just give up on love altogether and spiral into a black hole of misery and constant searching for something they can never seem to find.  Some use drugs and/or alcohol to fill the empty space, while others find different ways to fill the void.  Some people try to find love over and over and over again; always falling into the same lonely place at the end of each relationship.  What many of us don’t realize is that God is love.  Without Him, how can we truly love anyone, or even love ourselves?  The more we love Jesus and submit to the Holy Spirit, the more we are able to love one another and truly experience what God intended for us!

And we can’t forget that there’s always the Liar (Satan) waiting to deceive us, wanting us to think we’re not worthy of love.  It’s too easy for him when many of us come from a broken family, thinking no one can love us… we fall right into his trap.  God’s word tells us that God loves every single one of us and doesn’t want to lose even one soul.  Don’t let the Liar convince you that you’ve gone too far.  There is no sin so black that God cannot forgive you for it.  If God is calling you, he wants you.  You are worthy of His love!

When I met my wife, one of the first things she told me was that if I didn't love the Lord more than her, she could not be with me.  This is such a good example of what all relationships should be like.  We should always put God first, and our spouse second, always putting His will and guidance before our own.

I got an email the other day, forwarded from a friend, and it just hit me right in the heart because it’s so, so true.  I have no idea who wrote this, but I just have to include it here because it says so much.

Dancing With God

When I meditated on the word Guidance, I kept seeing "dance" at the end of the word.  I remember reading that doing God's will is a lot like dancing.  When two people try to lead, nothing feels right.  The movement doesn't flow with the music, and everything is quite uncomfortable and jerky.  When one person realizes that, and lets the other lead, both bodies begin to flow with the music. One gives gentle cues, perhaps with a nudge to the back or by pressing lightly in one direction or another.  It's as if two become one body, moving beautifully.  The dance takes surrender, willingness, and attentiveness from one person and gentle guidance and skill from the other.

This is so beautiful and so meaningful to what a relationship with God should really be like.  When you get it right, there is absolutely nothing like it!

The dance can be just as beautiful in the home.

We know this is how to have a perfect relationship with God, and God tells us how to have a perfect relationship with our husband or wife.  With a good parental team the chances for our children are also greatly increased.  The society we live in, what Jesus calls the “world” has twisted and perverted the ways of God in many ways.  Don’t forget our true enemy.  He deceives even the smartest and wisest of man.  God’s way in the home is really the same dance as the one we should all have with God.  The hardest part is getting a man to surrender and submit to anything.  Well, if you’re a hardheaded man like me anyway.  It’s not so hard when you’re submitting to the creator of the universe though.  I think He knows a whole lot more than I do.  He never makes mistakes and He does everything perfectly, even though we usually don’t understand what He’s doing or why.  We just have to trust that in His infinite wisdom, He knows best.  It may be harder for women to submit to God’s will, on this particular subject, in Western societies.  He’s not telling women to do what the world is giving them so many rewards for!  The world teaches to be a strong woman; to be independent and be the leader of the home.  This has been forced on many women when the man has left them to raise their children on their own.  Women’s lib has also brought massive change to western society in the last century.  You don’t even hear about women’s lib any more because it’s just par for the course now.  God’s way is different though.  With God’s way, a woman wouldn’t be left to raise her children on her own, but before anyone starts pointing a finger let's be sure we understand that both the man and the woman need to submit to God's will in order for it to work the way God intended it to.  With God’s way, a man should love his wife as Christ loves the church, and as he loves himself and his own body.  He should take care of her like he cares for his own body.  He should cherish her and lift her up in adoration.  With God’s way, a wife should submit herself in every thing to her husband, honoring, loving, and respecting him in all things.  With God’s way, a man should submit himself in every thing to God.

Before we look at the scriptures I want to say one more thing.  I had to ask myself, why did God set it up this way?  I adore women and I find them to be compassionate, smart, and as beautiful on the inside as they are on the outside.  Why in the world did God make these rules?  Weren't men and women created equal?  The answer is yes, and here's what I found.  It is the penalty for sin.  When Eve ate of the apple and gave it to her husband, God made changes to the earth and assigned punishment to men and women.

Genesis 3:16 Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee. 17 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; 18 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; 19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

It's because of the original sin.  It's our punishment.  Pain in childbirth, having to submit to another's rule, thorns and thistles, the ground is cursed and there will be sorrow for both men and women.  It really doesn't pay to sin.  We can see that very clearly!  When all is said and done, God will return things to the way they should be.  We were all created equal and we will also be equal when we are in Heaven with God.  It's not a fun subject to talk about but it's important to understand what God is doing for us.  Rather than destroying us and moving on to something else, God has given us a chance for life!  Praise His endless love!

Ok, now let's look at the scriptures and see what God wants us to do.

Jesus Christ said that he came, not to be served, but to serve, and to sacrifice Himself for us!

Mark 10:45 For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.

A mans place in his home is as Christ is to the Church.  Not to be served, but to serve and to sacrifice himself for his family in the service of God.

Eph 5:22 Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body. 24 Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing. 25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; 26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, 27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. 28 So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself. 29 For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church: 30 For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. 31 For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh. 32 This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church. 33 Nevertheless let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself; and the wife see that she reverence her husband.

The man should love his wife as he loves his own body even as the Lord loves the church.  The man and woman become one flesh, but the man is the head.  The woman should submit to her husband in every thing, honoring and respecting him.

1 Cor 11:1 Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ. 2 Now I praise you, brethren, that ye remember me in all things, and keep the ordinances, as I delivered them to you. 3 But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God. 4 Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonoureth his head. 5 But every woman that prayeth or prophesieth with her head uncovered dishonoureth her head: for that is even all one as if she were shaven. 6 For if the woman be not covered, let her also be shorn: but if it be a shame for a woman to be shorn or shaven, let her be covered. 7 For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, forasmuch as he is the image and glory of God: but the woman is the glory of the man. 8 For the man is not of the woman; but the woman of the man. 9 Neither was the man created for the woman; but the woman for the man. 10 For this cause ought the woman to have power on her head because of the angels. 11 Nevertheless neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord. 12 For as the woman is of the man, even so is the man also by the woman; but all things of God.

The man is equal with his wife in the eyes of God as all in the church are equal in the eyes of God because all things are created by God, both men and women.  The head of the man is Christ and the head of the woman is the man.  God gave us these guidelines and we must remember that there is a proper order in the church (Christ is the leader), and in the home (the man is the leader), with one leader who follows the ultimate authority of God.

1 Tim 2:9 In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array; 10 But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works. 11 Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. 12 But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. 13 For Adam was first formed, then Eve. 14 And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression. 15 Notwithstanding she shall be saved in childbearing, if they continue in faith and charity and holiness with sobriety.

The woman should not usurp authority over her husband any more than a church member would usurp authority over the pastor.  Women should adorn themselves modestly and with “good works”.  She should be holy, faithful, loving and sober.

1 Peter 3:1 Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation (conduct) of the wives; 2 While they behold your chaste conversation coupled with fear. 3 Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel; 4 But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price. 5 For after this manner in the old time the holy women also, who trusted in God, adorned themselves, being in subjection unto their own husbands: 6 Even as Sara obeyed Abraham, calling him lord: whose daughters ye are, as long as ye do well, and are not afraid with any amazement. 7 Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered.

Women should be in subjection to their husband even if the husband is not following Christ, letting her actions speak for her faith that he may also be won to Christ!  She should enhance her appearance and/or decorate herself with a meek and quiet spirit, which God loves.  Husbands should love and honor their wives, lifting them up and protecting them.

Titus 2:2 That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience. 3 The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things; 4 That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, 5 To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed. 6 Young men likewise exhort to be sober minded.

Older men and women should be examples to younger, and teach good things.  They should not be drunks or liars, but should be loving, faithful to God, patient and obedient.

Col 3:18 Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is fit in the Lord. 19 Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them.

The Lord loves when a wife is submissive to her husband.  Husbands should love their wife and should not be harsh with them.

1 Tim 3:4 One that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity; 5(For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?) 6 Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil. 7 Moreover he must have a good report of them which are without; lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil. 8 Likewise must the deacons be grave, not doubletongued, not given to much wine, not greedy of filthy lucre; 9 Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience. 10 And let these also first be proved; then let them use the office of a deacon, being found blameless. 11 Even so must their wives be grave, not slanderers, sober, faithful in all things.

A man should rule his house well and good in the sight of God.  The passage above is speaking about a man desiring to become a bishop of the church, but can be applied to anyone who wishes to be a witness, teacher, pastor, or to be in any service of Christ.  If you don’t rule your own house well, how can you handle a ministry?

Heb 13:5 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. 6 So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me. 7 Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation. 8 Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever. 9 Be not carried about with divers and strange doctrines. For it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace; not with meats, which have not profited them that have been occupied therein.
… 
15 By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name. 16 But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased. 17 Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you.

Do not covet things not of God and be content with what you have.  Do not fear what other people will do, but trust in the Lord.  Obey and submit to those who lead you.  Husbands; understand the responsibility that comes with leadership.  Remember that Christ led by example and never forced His way on anyone.  He led with love and kindness.

I truly believe that if men and women both submit themselves to the will of God, they would experience unity and love like never before.  The family would be restored to what God intended it to be and children would benefit even more than the parents.

For the men who are reading this chapter, I want you to know that my wife cried tears of joy when she read this.  I am blessed with a woman who loves me and shows me that love every day because I follow the guidance of God's word and not the ways of the world.  I strive to give her what she needs, act the way God tells me to in my marriage, and she gives it all back to me, and then some, in return.

The dance can be just as beautiful in the home.

Give praises to God constantly!  He deserves it!

18 - The wonderful creation of God and eternity with Him!

One of the deceiver’s tricks is the one that makes us think that somehow heaven isn’t going to be that great.  Satan even convinces people that Hell is going to be a big party.  I know that because I’ve actually heard people say that they will know all their friends in Hell and how fun it will be.  The Hell explained in the bible isn’t anything like a party.  And the heaven explained in the bible is beyond what we can even imagine!  I mean, really, do you think we have a better imagination than God?  We have written stories that have a better ending than the one God is writing?  We dream better dreams than God can dream?

I ask you to take a look outside.  If you live in a city, I’m not talking about the concrete and glass buildings and streets.  I’m talking about the wonders of the world, the beaches in the tropics, the canyons of majesty, the mountains that reach up to the sky, the forests and the water falls in the midst of them, the tropical fish, the breathtaking beauty of a landscape seen from a high vantage point in the middle of a jungle, and all the myriads of things that make us goggle at the beauty of it.  Do you really think that the God that created the human form in such a way that a kiss is so delicious would give us a place called “heaven” and it would be less wonderful than what we already experience here in this life?  Have you seen any of the photos taken from the hubble or another telescope?  The evidence of the majesty of God is the beauty and scope of His amazing, marvelous and incomprehensibly awesome creation!

When God created man, the heavens rejoiced!  The angels jumped for joy at His marvelous creation!

Imagine how God felt when His creation turned on Him.  The pain of a jilted lover probably doesn’t even compare.  Imagine how in love with us our Lord is when we come back to Him!  Imagine the tears of joy He will shed when we stand face to face with Him!  Do you think we won’t have anything we want or that we’ll be at all even capable of sadness?

Rev 7:15 Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. 16 They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. 17 For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.

God created man is His image.  Besides food, water and air, what is the one thing human beings can’t live without?  Other people.  When people are isolated completely they go crazy and will eventually die.  Solitary confinement is used as a form of punishment because it wreaks terrible on the soul.  If we are made in God’s image, then we are like God.  To me, that means that God wants our companionship!  He doesn't need anything, but He wants to be with us and spend eternity with us!  He wants to walk and talk with us and dwell among us just as He says that He will in Rev 7:15.  He wants us to love Him and worship Him.  When you think about how much He loves us and what He’s done to rescue us, it’s actually hard not to love Him.  I can’t wait to start the rest of eternity with God!  He is, after all, the creator of all things.  Imagine the things He will show us!

Gal 4:7 Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.

We are the heirs of God!  Not servants, not peons, but sons (and daughters) and heirs of God through Jesus Christ!

Matt 13:44 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field. 45 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: 46 Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.

The kingdom of heaven is like a great treasure of tremendous value and beauty!

Matt 7:11 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?

1 Cor 2:9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.

How much will our loving God give us?  I can’t even imagine!

Thank you, Jesus, for dying for me, for that sacrifice, for the mercy and compassion you have for us, for the life you give us!  I love you, Jesus, because you first loved me!

19 - What is a false religion?

I believe it is very important that we understand this question.  A false religion is one that comes to you in the name of Jesus but does not teach you the whole truth as taught in the bible, or one that comes to you in the name of God even though that "God" is not the one true God.  Let's take a look a few of the major religions and explore the real doctrine that they teach and see if we think they are part of the true church of Jesus Christ.  I think you will agree with me that not all religions worship the same God as the promoters of Interfaithism are trying to make us believe.

But, let me say one thing before we start.  I do realize and am very glad that there are many people in the religions listed below that truly love and truly want to please God.  And I realize that some "churches" or factions or affiliates of these religions don't necessarily teach the same doctrine that was originally taught by these religions and may even approach the truth in some ways.  Some, like the Mormon church, have broken into different pieces that teach different doctrines, and some, like Islam, have many factions that vary substantially in beliefs and doctrines.  The Catholic church also has some variations within it's organization, although it does have a leader, the Pope, and doctrinal guidance from that leadership.  What I am stressing most in this study is that the root of these religions and their beginnings are what you are buying into by being part of that organization.  If it did not begin with truth and/or began with a false prophet or false God, it is not of God.  If it is not of God, we should not be a part of it even if our particular church or organization teaches doctrine that differs from the original teachings of that faith.  We should come out of that and give ourselves to the one true God and follow Him and seek His truth with all our heart.

Rev 18:4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.

This passage is speaking of the Great Whore, the false church of the end time, and God is telling his people to come out of her!  This is a good indication that there are indeed those who truly love Him within those religions, but it's also clear that if you do not come out of them that you will be considered a part of the whole and will be a partaker of the sins it has committed.  Please remember this!

What about Islam (the Muslims)?

I had to ask myself this question:  who is the God of Islam?  Is it really the same God that Abraham worshipped as they want us to believe?

It is asserted by Muslims that the Meccan Arabs are descendents of Ishmael, the son of Abraham. They also claim that Ishmael settled in Mecca where he, along with Abraham, built the Kabah and passed on the religion of the true God to his offspring. It is believed that throughout time the Ishmaelites perverted the worship of the true God, not by abandoning their belief in him, but by adding other gods in their worship, thus perverting the religion of the God of their father Ishmael.  It is actually provable that this is not true, as I will show you.

In the Old Testament, near Israel's beginnings, worship of a false God called Baal began, and consisted of worshipping the heavenly bodies, of which the moon is the largest in the sky.  The Biblical and historical evidence shows that the Moabites worshiped Baal. The pre-Islamic and Muslim sources show (a) that the Meccans took over the idol Hubal from the Moabites and (b) that Allah and Hubal are actually identical.  Thus, whether the Meccans are Ishmaelites or not, the evidence is still strong and sufficient to conclude that Muhammad's Allah is actually Hubal, i.e., the Baal of the Moabites and thus not the God of the Bible. Muhammad incorporated the characteristics and names of various other gods into his new monotheistic message about Allah, but he apparently started the construction of Allah with Hubal, the chief god of the Meccans.

The pre-Islam pagan Arabs worshipped the Moon-god Allah by praying toward Mecca several times a day; making a pilgrimage to Mecca; running around the temple of the Moon-god called the Kabah; kissing the black stone; killing an animal in sacrifice to the Moon-god; throwing stones at the devil; fasting for the month which begins and ends with the crescent moon; giving alms to the poor, etc.

If you have read the news in recent months, you know that modern day Muslims practice these very rituals.

The Muslims are worshipping the same false god that people have been worshipping since early times as far back as Israel's beginnings.

Most importantly, Muslims say you don’t need to believe in Jesus Christ to be saved!  Muslims will admit that Jesus Christ was a true prophet, but deny that He was the Messiah (although some Western Muslims will say He was anointed), they will deny that He was God manifested in the flesh as of the Son of God (John 1:14), and they will deny that He died on the cross and rose again.  Does that make sense?  Absolutely not.  That belief cannot be truth because Jesus Christ Himself said He was the Messiah!  John 4:26 Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he.  That would make Him a false prophet according to the Muslim beliefs!  We absolutely must believe that Jesus Christ was manifest in the flesh, was crucified for our sins and rose again.  This is the gospel!

John 8:24 I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.

John 3:18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

Acts 4:12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

There is no salvation in any other name but Jesus!  Not Mohammed, not Buddha; no other name…

The word Islam means "submission".  Not in the sense of submission to God, but in the sense of making everyone submit to the rule of Islam.  Islam is about subduing the world and making it submit.  The Muslims believe that Mohammed is the exemplar of right conduct.  They aspire to be like him in the same manner that Christians aspire to be like Jesus.  Mohammed said to spread, through warfare, the rules of Islam.  Mohammed became increasingly violent during his career and spent 10 years in Medina creating an army to overthrow his homeland, Mecca, after he was ran off by the pagans in 622 AD.  He killed thousands of people and subdued Arabia through war.  Muslims are encouraged to commit acts of heroism in combat.  They are promised that those who kill and are killed will be rewarded with paradise.  This is the basis for suicide bombers.  They believe that since they are killing while they are killed that the sin of suicide is covered by the martyrdom of their action and, as such, they will be rewarded in heaven.  Islam is a religion of political rule, a system of government.  It is not about a personal relationship with Allah, it is about bringing the world under submission to its rule.

The Quran (Koran) was written over time during the life of Mohammed.  He started as a peaceful man, but as time went on he changed many of his values.  As he became increasingly violent, his writings matched his attitude.  The correct interpretation of the Quran is to take any conflict in doctrine, of which there is a whole lot, and replace an older verse with the latest one, supplanting it's meaning with the more recent version in a process called abrogation.  The problem is that the Quran is compiled from the longest Sura to the shortest, so it's nearly impossible to know which conflicting verse to believe or obey.  The Muslims have a whole committee of scholars to interpret the Quran and decide which verses were written first and the succession of them to the last.  Sounds very confusing to me...

If you think Islam is a religion of peace, as they claim, just look at all the wars they are involved in today, in Europe, China, Africa, etc., and the mindset of Muslims as a whole as they chant "Death to Israel, Death to America", while they are working toward their goal of subduing the world.  Islam is a religion of peace only when they have conquered the world and subjected it to the rule of Islam.

Do they really expect us to believe they worship the same God that we do?

What about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (the Mormons)?

I always thought that the Mormon religion was a little off from my beliefs, but wasn't really sure what really went on inside.  It's a very enlightening study, to say the least.  Here's a quick summary that will blow your mind.  If you want more information, I recommend a DVD by Jeremiah Films (www.jeremiahfilms.com) called "The Secret World of Mormonism".

The Mormon Church originated in the early 1800's.  A boy named Joseph Smith claimed he was visited by celestial beings when he was 14 years old.  His story changed a few times but finally settled on it being two beings who ordered him to organize a new religion.  The Mormon Church today claims over 10 million members world wide and is currently the largest business corporation in the western United States.  It is very rich and very powerful with billions in revenues from tithes and from business profits, and many members in high offices of the US government, the CIA, FBI, and other entities.

The Mormon Church presents itself as a "Christian" religion, but it violates nearly all of the tenets of true Christianity.  They have vast door to door missions as most of us have experienced, and they have many adds on TV, radio, etc. that promote "family values" and other heart warming messages.  They say they are preaching the gospel, but don't teach the gospel as taught by Jesus and the Apostles of the early church by any stretch of the imagination.  They talk about Jesus when they are trying to convert you, but they have a completely different view of our Lord than we know from the pages of the Bible and they don't tell you that up front.

Here's the story:

There are trillions of planets ruled by countless Gods who used to be humans.  Long ago an unknown God and one of his many wives had a spirit child named Elohim.  This child eventually was elevated to Godhood.  Mormons believe that Elohim is "God the Father" and that he has many wives who have lots of spirit children who await to inhabit a physical body so that they may one day be elevated to Gods as well.

Jesus and Lucifer are Elohims first born sons.  Mormonism teaches that Jesus and Lucifer were involved in planning mankind's eternal destiny. In order to attain godhood like their heavenly parents, the spirit children needed to leave the presence of their heavenly father, inhabit a physical body, and live a worthy life. Elohim knew that mankind would sin and thus require a savior to pay for sin and show us how to return to our heavenly father. At the heavenly council, Jesus and Lucifer proposed their plans. Lucifer offered to go to earth and be the savior but he wanted to force everyone to be saved and do everything himself. Jesus desired to give man the freedom of choice. The Father chose Jesus' plan. Angered by the decision, Lucifer persuaded one third of the spirit children to rebel and a war in heaven took place between Satan's forces and Jesus and His followers. Lucifer was defeated, cast out of heaven, and denied the right to inhabit mortal bodies. Without the ability to attain physical bodies, exaltation to the Celestial kingdom is impossible. He became known as Satan and his followers became the demons who now exist on earth as spirits opposing God's work.  Those who remained neutral in the battle were cursed to be born with black skin.  The faithful spirit children who fought most valiantly for Elohim are born into the light skinned peoples in the Mormon Church.

Elohim came to the earth and had sex with Mary to provide the physical body for Jesus.  Jesus had 3 or more wives and birthed many children of whom many people claim to be "descendants" today.  After the resurrection of Jesus, he came to America and preached to the Indians who are really Israelites.  There was a race called the Nephites who fought the Indians but were defeated by them in 421 AD.  They left their history inscribed on golden plates that were buried and later "found" by Joseph Smith.  The book of Mormon is supposed to be this historical record translated by Joseph Smith.

Joseph Smith calls the book of Mormon "Another Testament of Jesus Christ".  We know for a fact that it is false and entirely not true.  It contradicts and conflicts with the words of Jesus Himself, and we're taught in the Bible that there is no other truth and that if someone tries to preach another besides what is taught in the Bible, that he is accursed.  Gal 1:8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. 9 As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.  There is no other gospel but what we read in the Holy Bible.  Not the book of Mormon or any of the other works of Joseph Smith.

The book of Mormon alone has over 4000 changes since its original writing to cover the doctrinal contradictions, the historical and archeological errors, and to hide the prophecies that have been proven false.  No archeological evidence has ever been found to corroborate any of the supposed places or races described in the book.  In stark contrast, the Bible has been proven with more than 25,000 archeological digs to be accurate history.

The Mormon religion has a very rigid code of both financial and moral laws.  If you keep those laws, they teach that you can become a god and will be rewarded with endless celestial sex with thousands of wives and a planet of your own to rule.  This is exactly what Satan used to tempt Eve in Genesis 3:5, promising her that she could be as gods.  If you fail to keep those laws you will be castrated upon your entrance to heaven.  There are only a few actual Mormon temples and to enter one you must be a devout Mormon, go through elaborate rituals, and wear the "sacred" underwear (that you are donned with in one of the rituals) all day, every day.  You have to swear an oath that if you reveal any of the secret words and/or gestures used in the temple that you agree to be killed by the priesthood.  The highest satanic symbol, the inverted pentagram, is displayed in Mormon churches and temples, but nowhere will you see a cross.  They claim to be Christians, but the testimonies of ex-Mormons reveal that they practice sorcery and witchcraft in the temples and have had actual apparitions appear in the temples.  Joseph Smith was a crystal ball gazer and was arrested for the practice at one time.

Again, the Bible tells us that this is an abomination.  Deut 18:10 There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, 11 Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. 12 For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD:

The Mormons use baptism for the dead as a recruitment tool, but that practice is totally against what the Bible teaches and is another lie.  We cannot get baptized for a dead person to save their soul.  Orthodox Mormons practice Polygamy, arrange the marriages of the their daughters for their own personal gain, and believe that some sins are not covered by the blood of Jesus and teach that you must die to shed your own blood for forgiveness of some sin, committing "charitable" murder in order to save your soul, and many other abominations.  Of course, when they come to your door they don't tell you any of this, and many Mormons don't even know the whole truth.

Joseph Smith says that he will be the one sitting on the throne to judge you come judgment day.  He claims that he has done more for you than Jesus Christ himself by dying a martyr and shedding his blood for you.

Mormons have a higher rate of sex crimes, adultery, and teen suicide than the national average.

All of the above information can be proven in the books that Mormons use every day (Book of Mormon, D&C, etc.), and by studying the facts, but most Mormons have never read all their books and don’t even know what their religion really teaches and what they are subscribing to when they join that organization.  Here are some proofs of just a few of my statements.  All of them can be proven, but I am not including all of them because it would take a lot of room in this little book.  It’s not that hard to find and you can certainly research it yourself if you are interested.

On the subject of Mormons believing they can become Gods:  D&C 132:20 Then shall they be gods, because they have no end; therefore shall they be from everlasting to everlasting, because they continue; then shall they be above all, because all things are subject unto them. Then shall they be gods, because they have all power, and the angels are subject unto them. 21 Verily, verily, I say unto you, except ye abide my law ye cannot attain to this glory.

Lorenzo Snow, a famous Mormon prophet gave this famous quote: "...as God is, man can become."

On the subject of polygamy:  D&C 132 deals with this subject and the teaching is very plain. Some Mormons are taught that polygamy was introduced many years after the founding of Mormonism, but Joseph Smith wrote this section in 1843.

Descendants of Jesus:  D&C 113:1-6 shows that Joseph Smith himself claimed to be a descendant of Jesus. Ask any LDS missionary unto which descendant of Joseph does the priesthood and the keys of the kingdom rightly belong? Joseph also blessed several of his close associates and told them that they were descendants as well. This is where the notion of people being descendants came from.

God had sex with Mary:  Orson Pratt wrote this in The Seer. Page 158.

Joseph Smith will be our judge:  This is clearly LDS doctrine. Brigham Young taught that: ...no man or women in this dispensation will ever enter into the celestial kingdom of God without the consent of Joseph Smith. From the day that the priesthood was taken from the earth to winding-up scene of all things, every man and woman must have the certificate of Joseph Smith as a passport to their entrance into the mansion above where God and Christ are—I with you and you with me. I cannot go there without his consent.- Journal of Discourses, v.7, p.289

LDS "prophet" Joseph Fielding Smith taught: [There is] no salvation without accepting Joseph Smith...No man can reject that testimony without incurring the most dreadful consequences, for he cannot enter the kingdom of God.- Joseph Fielding Smith, DOCTRINES OF SALVATION, v.1, p.189-90

In the official Melchizedek Priesthood Manual, we are told: If we get our salvation, we shall have to pass by him [Joseph Smith]; if we enter into our glory, it will be through the authority that he has received. We cannot get around him.- 1984 Melchizedek Priesthood Manual, pp.126-132

Joseph Smith was a false prophet:  According to Deuteronomy 18:20-22, it only takes one false prophecy to make a prophet false, just as it only takes one murder to make a person a murderer. As proven by what is now history, Joseph Smith made over 50 false prophecies.

The Lamanites and the Nephites: There has never been found one single piece of evidence that the peoples or places that Joseph Smith wrote about ever existed. The fact is obvious given this knowledge. They never did exist.

Doctrine has changed in the Mormon Church as many Mormons will point out. Is this a good thing? The bible has not changed and does not change. Only false religions change. Even many "Christian" religions have changed because they are false and do not teach what was taught by Jesus and the Apostles in the early church.

What about the Roman Catholic religion and her daughters?

I asked myself this question when I learned who the Great Whore was (See Chapter 7). What could possibly be so bad that a term like that is used to describe her?

And didn't the "daughters" (Protestant, Methodist, Lutheran, etc.) actually drop away from the Catholic church because they disagreed with the Vatican?

The Roman Catholic church was founded around 325 AD.  They taught (falsely), and still do, that the Bishops of the church were "spiritual successors" to the original 12 apostles, in particular the Apostle Peter, and that they had the right to discern true or false doctrine.  At that time, they changed the baptism taught by Jesus and His apostles, including Peter, and they indoctrinated a false concept called the "trinity" that had been invented around 200 AD but was never taught by Jesus or the Apostles, or taught anywhere in the bible.  They even attempt to deify the mother of Jesus.  It's true that Mary was blessed to carry and give birth to Jesus, but she was simply a Jewish woman, not a God.  They made it a crime punishable by death to attempt to actually read the bible for yourself and/or contradict the Roman Catholic church during the Dark Ages, and they have killed an estimated 68 million Christians over the years for refusing to bow to the false doctrine of the Roman Catholic church.

The following is a quote from a man who was raised in the Catholic church but left the church as an adult to pursue the real Truth.

On the question of salvation; "Unfortunately most Roman Catholics really don't know for sure what Rome's answers are. Most have a vague idea of a place called 'Purgatory.' They wander through life with an unfounded belief that, if their 'good works' outweigh their 'sins' then they get a ticket to heaven. Others believe that just being a Roman Catholic is all that is required to get to Heaven. Well, not directly to Heaven, but by way of an untold period of time in unmentionable pain and suffering in Purgatory. Its not a pretty picture of salvation. Not at all. One of the saddest laments of a priest friend (Novus Ordo type) is that Catholics no longer know their own faith!"

Let's take a look at what the Catholic believer has to do today in order to "receive" salvation.

The Vatican teaches that salvation is through the church.

According to the Catholic church you must do all of the following in order to receive salvation:

• •.Confess your sins to a Roman Catholic priest.  

• •."Receive" all appropriate Roman Catholic sacraments.  

• •.Believe that Grace comes only via Rome's sacraments, and only through Mary.  

• •.Buy or earn as many indulgences as possible so as to avoid Purgatory.  

• •.Believe that Grace can only be distributed to you by Mary.  

• •.Attend the Roman Catholic Mass on all Sundays and holy days.  

• •.Obey all of Rome's rules (i.e., precepts of the Church).  

• •.Be a member of the Roman Catholic Church.  

• •.Submit yourself to the Pope.  

The bible teaches that you must believe in Jesus and obey the Gospel for salvation, and that it's by the grace of God, not Mary or Rome, that we are saved.  All of the above only make you subservient to the Roman Catholic church and do not ensure your place with God at all.

But, the Roman Catholic leaders today are even saying that you don’t really need to believe in Jesus Christ to be saved!

Article #841 of the Catechism says: "The Church's relationship with the Muslims. 'The plan of salvation also includes those who acknowledge the Creator, in the first place amongst whom are the Muslims; these profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, mankind's judge on the last day.'"  This means that the Catholic church believes that the Muslims will be saved just like anyone else even though Muslims don't believe in Jesus, and that they worship the same God that we all do even though Allah was originally a pagan moon god.

Muslims say you don’t need to believe in Jesus Christ to be saved!  Muslims will admit that Jesus Christ was a true prophet, but deny that He was the Messiah (although some Western Muslims will say He was anointed), they will deny that He was God manifested in the flesh as of the Son of God (John 1:14), and they will deny that He died on the cross and rose again.  That belief cannot be truth because Jesus Christ himself said He was the Messiah!  John 4:26 Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he.  That would make Him a false prophet according to the Muslim beliefs!  And, Jesus Christ himself said we have to believe in Him!  John 8:24 I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.  We absolutely must believe that Jesus Christ was manifest in the flesh, was crucified for our sins and rose again.  This is the gospel!  Acts 4:12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.  There is no salvation in any other name but Jesus!  Not Mohammed, not Buddha; no other name...

Does the Catholic leadership read the same bible I do???  Sure doesn't look like it!  No wonder God is angry with her...

And what about the "daughters"?

The Roman Catholic church is the self proclaimed “mother” of all churches.  And this is actually true for most western faiths.

03 Sep 2000 (AP) VATICAN CITY (AP) - One of Pope John Paul II's closest aides has written to bishops worldwide declaring that the Catholic church is the “mother” of other Christian churches … In the document, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger told the bishops that it was incorrect to refer to Christian churches, ranging from Orthodox to Protestant, as “sister” churches of the Catholic church ... stating that the term “sister” puts them on an equal footing and they are not “sisters” but the Catholic church is the “mother”.

Most of the churches of western faiths broke away from the Catholic church because they knew the error of the Vatican.  The problem is that most of them did not return completely to the truth as taught by Jesus and the Apostles.

As stated above, the Roman Catholic church teaches that salvation comes through the church, changed baptism from in the name of Jesus for the remission of sins (done throughout the book of Acts), to be "in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost" (because they want you to believe your sins are forgiven through the church), and they indoctrinated the false concept of the "trinity" long before the churches broke away.  These two points are discussed in detail in Book 2.

The Catholic church also teaches that sin can be indulged and promotes the mindset that you can pretty much do anything you want as long as you obey all the precepts and confess to a priest.  This mentality has unfortunately come away with many churches.  While most do teach salvation through Jesus Christ, they do not baptize in the name of Jesus for the remission of sins, some teaching that baptism isn't necessary for obedience to the Gospel.  And some even teach that we are saved by belief alone and that only the really bad stuff in our life needs to be changed because we are saved by grace, so that's somehow supposed to mean that it doesn't really matter what we do after "accepting Jesus".  This is so wrong!  That is NOT what the bible teaches us!

Rom 6:15 What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.

The bible teaches us to obey the Gospel by being Born Again, which is a truth that many churches miss the entire meaning of and teach falsely (also discussed in Book 2), but when we read the bible we find that it goes even beyond that.  We should not have bitterness in our hearts toward any man or woman, we should be peacemakers and should strive for Holiness (purity)!  Heb 12:14 Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:  How can we profess to have God in us if we do not love others!?  The bible teaches us that we will not make it unless we're willing to follow Jesus and give up the things of the world that we desire.  This means that we will begin to love even our enemies, we won't have hatred in our hearts, or pride.  We won't make our "goals" of life in this world our Gods by making those things more important than God.  The world teaches us to have a burning desire for the things we want and to go after them with passion and determination.  That is not what God teaches us.  If we love the world and the things in it, the love of God is not in us.

1 John 2:15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

I apologize if I'm insulting your beliefs but if you will take the time to read the bible yourself and really search for the truth, not justification of doctrine, you will find truth!  If you read it with the intent of justifying your doctrine, guess what?  You'll find that too.  I realize this is a bit harsh and may be offensive to some, but I have to ask why did God call the Great Whore the Mother of Harlots?  We know who the Great Whore is, and it's only a small logical step to find the daughters.  I know that some people can read the bible and only find what they want to see.  The mystery of God separates the truth seekers from the excuse seekers.  If you don't love the truth and really want to follow the will of God, if you want to be saved but aren't willing to give up everything that you want and give it all to God, what are you really doing?  I say these things to make you think!  I hope to shock you into thinking really hard about what salvation means, who God is, and if you want to be with Him or not when this is all over!  What, exactly, do you think is too high of a price for eternal life full of joy and peace?

I don't want to make anyone angry or insult your intelligence.  I simply hope that you will seek God and His truth with all your heart and all your soul!  Ensure your own salvation!  Every person who believes there is a God is faced with one inescapable, ultimate question: "What must I do to be saved?!" All other questions pale to insignificance in light of this one. If you have not yet considered it, one day you will! But by then it may be too late for the answer to do you any good.  Do you really know what you must do to be saved, to have assurance of a place in Heaven?  Read the bible and seek the Truth!  Please!

Book 3

20 - Did we evolve?

These questions plague most people:

• .Who am I?  

• .Where did I come from?  

• .Why am I here?  

• .Where am I going when I die?  

• .Is evolution really true?  

• .Is the Bible true?  

• .Are we really just an accident?  

• .Is there any purpose to our lives at all?   

I believe the information in this book will help you to answer those questions.

You will learn about:

• .Global warming? – Is it our fault that the ice caps are melting?  

• .Where did the dinosaurs come from?  

• .What does the fossil record show us?  

• .Is the earth billions of years old?  

• .Is the theory of evolution a science?  

• .Does the Creation account in the Bible have room for evolution?  

I have crammed an awful lot of information in this little book, so take your time and really digest what you read here.  Don’t just take my word for everything either, read and study and research it for yourself so you really understand it and know what it is you believe in! 

I strongly urge anyone who has any interest in studying evolution vs. creation to go to the following web site and get the Creation Seminar series of DVD’s.  

http://www.creationseminar.net/

You will be amazed at what science hides from the world…

21 - Is evolution a science?

The common theory of evolution states that there was matter and energy, already in existence, that exploded 15 billion years ago (the big bang) and has expanded into the present state of the universe.  Hard matter (non-living matter) became biological life over those billions of years of being exposed to energy and has evolved on this planet to the point of life as we know it today.  It started as the simplest form of life and gradually became more complex as time went on.  This is taught as a science fact in our schools today.

Webster’s definition for science is: Knowledge or a system of knowledge covering general truths or the operation of general laws especially as obtained and tested through scientific method.

In order for something to be “science fact” it must follow the scientific method of observation, hypothesis, testing and demonstration.

Evolution has never been shown to exist in any way, shape or form in any living thing or in any remains found in the earth (discussed further in this book) and no scientist has ever been able to observe, test or demonstrate anything that even remotely corroborates the theory of evolution.  No intermediate or transitional stage of evolutionary development of any creature has ever been found.  But wait!  What about Lucy!  What about all the skulls and bones of men in evolutionary stages they’ve found!  Don’t forget this question.  I will talk about that later in this book.  Evolution is not a science, based on the definition of science, and falls entirely into the realm of a faith based system of belief.

The definition of a religion is: A set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature and purpose of the universe.

Evolution cannot be proven and as defined practically and literally, it is a belief, not a science, and certainly not fact.  It’s a belief.  Anyone can believe anything they want, but that doesn’t make it true.

The Law of Science states that “all things left to themselves will tend towards disorder and decay.”  The big bang theory violates this basic law.  Order came out of chaos?  It’s observable that dead animals will decay and rot away.  Dead fish will decay and rot away.  Dead plants will decay and rot away.  Stone buildings from ancient cultures will decay and fall apart.  The bible tells us that things will perish and wax old:  Heb 1:10 And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands: 11 They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment.  We find the same verbiage in Psalms 102:26.  Everything rots away eventually if it is left exposed to the elements.  If it’s buried it can turn to stone in a relatively short time (a year or two is all that’s necessary), but it will not survive if it’s left out in the elements.  We’ll talk more about this later.

People used to believe that a big rock would fall faster than a small rock.  Today we know that they fall at the same speed.  There are many, many examples of old science theories that have been proven wrong.  Today’s science “fact” becomes tomorrows discarded trash.  Belief does not make something true.  Evolution “fact” has many conflicts depending on what book you read.  It is a belief, not a science.  The bible only has one truth.

Even Charles Darwin acknowledged the inadequacy of evolution when he wrote, "To suppose that the eye, with all its inimitable contrivances for adjusting the focus to different distances, for admitting different amounts of light, and for the correction of spherical and chromatic aberration, could have been formed by natural selection, seems, I freely confess, absurd in the highest possible degree." (Darwin 1872)

22 - Is the earth billions of years old?

I’m going to throw some facts your way in the first couple chapters and we’ll discuss it more later when we can pull it all together.

There are stalactites and stalagmites in caves and other rock formations that scientists claim took millions of years to develop.  Stalactites are formed by the deposition of calcium carbonate and other minerals, which is precipitated from mineralized water solutions. The corresponding formation on the floor underneath a stalactite is known as a stalagmite. Given enough time, these formations can meet, resulting in formations known as columns.  In Thermopolis, Wyoming there is a huge formation of stalactite that developed over 100 years where a 1 inch water pipe was left running for 100 years.  Only 100 years!  There are many places where man made tunnels are forming stalactites and stalagmites.  It happens a lot faster than they say.

The Grand Canyon and other canyons supposedly took millions of years to be carved by the rivers running through them.  Mud from the Mississippi river is dumped into the Gulf of Mexico at the rate of 80,000 tons per hour.  Where is the mud from the Colorado River as it carved the Grand Canyon for millions of years?  Also, when does a river that comes back in on itself, changing direction, somehow in the past was a rushing river that carved a canyon so deep?  They have changed their minds about the Grand Canyon many times already.  National Geographic Kids, March 2003; The Grand Canyon is just a baby!  Science News, September 2000; The Grand Canyon is not as old as once thought!  They are realizing it didn’t take millions of years to carve the canyons; it took a lot of water, not a lot of time.  Science News, June 2004; Gorges were carved surprisingly fast!

The Geologic Column is an evolutionary column that you will find in many textbooks.  It doesn’t exist anywhere in the world but it is taught as fact (Earth Science magazine 1989).  The Grand Canyon is supposed to represent the deepest exposed “strata” layers in the world.  It’s interesting that less than half of the strata are actually seen and it’s not in the order science says it is and there are gaps where there are no strata from a presumed era.  All over the earth, depending on where you go, there are strata layers missing, they are in completely different orders from one place to another, and some places have certain layers that others do not.  There are layers, certainly, but the “column” is not evident or complete as it is taught anywhere on the planet.

Another interesting fact is that they have found fossilized trees that are vertical through the layers of strata.  Think about this for a second.  A dead tree stood for millions of years in the same place and fossilized while the world changed and evolved around it and layers of strata were built up around it.  For millions of years???  Some places have trees fallen over, some at an angle, some straight up, all fossilized and extending through several layers of “strata” that took millions of years to lay down.  Hello?  When can a dead tree lay there for millions of years, exposed to the elements, and not rot away?

And what about the layers of Diatoms found in the ocean floors?  These are microscopic life forms that accumulate on the floor of bodies of water and are said to accumulate at one inch per 1000 years as they die and float to the bottom.  They use this accumulation to determine the age of things found.  It’s very interesting that they found an 80 foot whale standing on its tail completely surrounded by Diatom layered around it.  A whale stood on its tail for millions of years while Diatoms died and built up around it?

They’ve also found entire buried forests 200 feet below ground all over the earth, but they have never found a meteorite found below the top layer.  Scientists are baffled by this.

They’ve found 90 foot plumb trees frozen in the ice 600 miles north of the Arctic Circle.  They have ripe plumbs and healthy leaves, all frozen.

They’ve found Mammoths and many other animals frozen in place with food still in their mouths, frozen in stride.

How about the fact that since man has begun recording time, the earth’s rotation slows by one second per year?  The spinning of the earth is slowing down.  A year from today, it will take one second longer for the earth to spin in one complete rotation.  If you do the math, and I did, that means that 30 million years ago there was one revolution about every second.  The sun would flash across the sky every second.  The earth would have been like a strobe light… on, off, on, off, on, off…  300 million years ago there were 10 revolutions per second…  onoffonoffonoff…  3 billion years ago there were 100 revolutions per second.  15 billion years ago (the big bang) earth was spinning at 500 revolutions per second.  The earth would have been spinning so fast that there would be no difference in light at any time.  Gravity would have had no effect and, without proving the physics, I would bet that things literally would be flung from the surface of the planet at that speed of rotation from the centrifugal force.

Science cannot explain these things or many other things.  Is the earth really as old as they want us to believe?  We’ll talk more about this later…

Carbon dating is another interesting study.  Did you know that they base it on totally unproven “facts”?  Yes, today we can see the rate of decay on Radiocarbon or Carbon 14 (known as Carbon dating) and we expound upon the findings of short-term testing to “prove” that things are billions of years old.  We have to assume that scientists know all about the variables involved, that some scientists are wrong in supposing that there was variation in the intensity of cosmic-ray formation and that others were wrong in supposing that there were fluctuations in the original C-14 content.  Carbon dating assumes that the rate of C-14 decay has been a constant and has always been exactly the same rate that we find it to be today.  Funny thing is that they tested an ancient structure at Durrington Walls in England, that they knew was 1500 years old, but the Carbon dating “proved” that it was actually 2500 years old!  I stress that this "proof" was actually provably wrong. Some other examples of abnormal C14 results include testing of recently harvested, live mollusc shells from the Hawaiian coast that showed that they had died 2000 years ago and snail shells just killed in Nevada, USA, dated in at 27,000 years old. A freshly killed seal at McMurdo Sound, Antarctica, yielded a death age of 1300 years ago. A petrified miner’s hat and wooden fence posts were unearthed from an abandoned 19th century gold hunter’s town in Australia’s outback. Results from radiocarbon dating said that they were 6000 years old. So, why does everyone believe such a farce?  If it is so inaccurate on such a relatively new sample, how can we assume that it won't be exponentially deviate on a much older sample?  It is a belief, not a science. 

Here's an interesting page where scientists in the UK are concerned about this very subject: http://www.archaeologyexpert.co.uk/RadioCarbonDating.html. Specifically, I found this statement very interesting: “For radiocarbon dating to be reliable scientists need to make a number of vital assumptions. Firstly, Dr Libby assumed that C14 decays at a constant rate. However, experimental evidence indicates that C14 decay is slowing down and that millennia ago it decayed much faster than is observed today. Secondly, the theory behind C14 dating demands that there is the same rate of cosmic production of radioactive isotopes throughout time. The industrial revolution has belched hundreds of thousands of tons of carbon gases into the atmosphere increasing the C12 ratio and atomic weapons testing have increased neutron levels. Thirdly, the environment in which the artefact lies heavily impacts on the rate of decay. For example, C14 leaches at an accelerated rate from organic material saturated in water, especially saline water. Fourthly, for C14 to test accurately the artefact must have been protected from contamination. Organic matter, being porous, can easily be contaminated by organic carbon in groundwater. This increases the C12 content and interferes with the carbon ratio.”

The flood caused this type of testing to be completely unreliable. Why do the scientists ignore these facts? There are many other things that scientists can't explain which are explained very easily when the flood is considered in the reasoning process.

23 - What about the Dinosaurs?  What are they?

When we talk about dinosaurs, it’s very important to understand what a dinosaur is.  The word dinosaur actually means; Terrible Lizard (Dinosaurus, genus name, from Greek deinos terrifying + sauros lizard).  The word did not even exist until the 1800’s.  Prior to this they were typically called dragons.  In Psalm 148 David refers to a creature called a “Dragon”.  Many cultures have “dragon” legends.  As a side note, it’s interesting how they didn’t even know dinosaurs existed until the 1800’s (they became extinct 65 million years ago so they couldn’t possibly have known about them in the past), but there have been found many cave drawings that date back thousands of years that have pictures of Longnecks and other “dinosaurs”.  How could they have known about them to draw a picture?  At any rate, we know about lizards because we have many species of lizard that are alive and well today.  A “dinosaur” is simply a big lizard.

The first dinosaur bone ever found was an Iguanodon bone.  It looks exactly like an Iguana bone found in Iguanas today.  Thus the name Iguanodon.  The T-Rex skull incidentally looks a lot like a modern day Iguana skull.  The Triceratops they have in the Smithsonian Institute is made out of the bones of 14 different animals (National Geographic Dec 2000).  What???  They used the bones of 14 different animals to make a skeleton and call it a Triceratops and expect us to believe it is a “fact”!?  Sounds to me like they want it to be true so badly that they’re willing to fake it to make it seem real!

An important fact to this discussion is that all reptiles, no matter what species, never stop growing.  Humans and dogs and cats and other animals grow to a certain age and then stop growing.  Reptiles never do.  They grow every day they are alive no matter how old they get.  We’ll talk more about this later.

A not very well known fact is that many of the dinosaurs thought to be extinct by 65 million years are still alive today!  Must really baffle the scientists who say they went extinct as part of the evolutionary process.  Especially since after “65 million years” they exhibit no sign of changing into anything else at all!  Where’s the “evolution”?

For example:

The Coelacanth is thought to have been one of the first creatures to crawl up to dry land and begin living on land instead of water about 70 million years ago.  Current Science magazine, January 8th, 1999 shows that they have found live Coelacanths.  Amazing eh?  And it looks exactly like the fossilized Coelacanths they have found!  Also, they’ve found that the Coelacanths cannot survive even in shallow water.  They must have deep water or they will die.  Makes one wonder how they survived to crawl up on land and become the first land dwelling creature?

A Megamouth shark was caught in Hawaii in 1976.  These also supposedly died off 65 million years ago.  I remind you that these things are taught as science facts!

A Plesiosaur was found washed up on the beach in Santa Cruise in 1925.  This is a giant “sea monster”.  The kind that has a long neck and swims with its head above water.

An elephant with a hump on its head was filmed by a tourist in recent years but was supposed to have died off at the last ice age.

Trilobites and graptolites are what they call an “index fossil”.  They’re supposed to have evolved from bacteria from 4 billion years ago and went extinct 500 million years ago.  They are supposed to be our ancestor.  They call it an index fossil because if they find fossils with trilobites then they “know” that the fossil is approximately 500 million years old and they use that to determine the age of the strata layer it was found in.  The major problem with this is that they’ve found living graptolites!  They’ve also found fossils with known modern materials along with trilobites.  How in the world do you account for that and still say that they can be used to determine the age of anything?

My point here is that the scientists really don’t have a clue what they’re talking about.  They don’t really “know” anything.

In Likovala swamp in Africa the local tribes will look at a picture of a Longneck dinosaur and call it Mokele-mbembe.  They are alive and well in this 55,000 square mile swamp.  They killed one and ate it once but everyone who ate the meat died so they don’t touch them any more.  They aren’t that big, only like a large elephant with a long neck and tail.  We’ll discuss the size of animals further later on.

We’ll talk more about this later, but let’s move on for now…

24 - What does the Bible say about creation?

Understanding of the fossil records and bones and layering and ice caps melting, etc. is all found in the pages of the bible.  Believe it?  It’s there and I’ll show you right now!

There are two events in the bible that most people don’t have a very clear understanding of; the creation and the flood.  We’ll explore both of those events.  In the beginning; God created everything in six days.  At the end of the six days He saw that it was very good.  Some people teach that it was imperfect at the time the Garden of Eden was made and man was placed there, saying the devil had destroyed the planet before man was created.  Some teach that evolution could be the mechanism that God used to “create” everything.  Some teach that there’s a gap of billions of years between verse one and verse two of Genesis 1.  We will explore these theories as well as some others.

Was the earth perfect when God finished creation?

Let’s take a look at the creation record:

Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the Heaven and the earth.

2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.

4 And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.

5 And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.

6 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.

7 And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so.

8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.

9 And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.

10 And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good.

11 And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.

12 And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

13 And the evening and the morning were the third day.

14 And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:

15 And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.

16 And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also.

17 And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth,

18 And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good.

19 And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.

20 And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.

21 And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

22 And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth.

23 And the evening and the morning were the fifth day.

24 And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so.

25 And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.

29 And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.

30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.

31 And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

Notice in verse 31 God saw that is was very good.  Would it have been “very good” at the end of the 6th day if Satan was already fallen and in control here, and the earth had been ruined and there were thorns and thistles and vultures and horrible things going on outside the garden?  It was later on that the thorns and thistles grew and the ground was cursed in Genesis 3:17-19, when punishment was given to the man for his sin.

Another common misconception is the belief that verse 2 actually means that the earth “became” formless and void.  The argument is that God would have made the earth perfect the first time and as such it had to have been corrupted by something.  Take a look at this:  Mark 8:23 And he took the blind man by the hand, and led him out of the town; and when he had spit on his eyes, and put his hands upon him, he asked him if he saw ought. 24 And he looked up, and said, I see men as trees, walking. 25 After that he put his hands again upon his eyes, and made him look up: and he was restored, and saw every man clearly.  Jesus took two steps to heal the blind man.  Why?  Did He need to?  Definitely not; he could have done it instantly!  He chose to do it that way.  He also chose to create the heaven and the earth in 6 days.

We see in verses 4, 10, 12, 18, 21 and 25 that it was good.  Each thing was good all through the creation!  There wasn’t anything evil going on during the creation.  In verse 31 God saw that it was very good!  It was still good at the very end of creation.

Some teach that there were billions of years between verses one and two, and that each “day” took millions of years during the creation.

Notice that plants were created on the 3rd day but the sun was not created until the 4th day?  How did the plants, which need the sun, survive for a million years?

Notice that God created the heaven and the earth, but there was no light until verse 3?

God also called the light “day” and the darkness “night” and then created the sun to divide the day and the night and for seasons and days and years in verse 14.  He made the spinning of our planet and its orbit around the sun and day and a year.  A “day” is a day.  This is all right there in the context of the creation.  God didn’t need millions of years to perform what He did in 6 days.  He did it in a literal 6 days.

Eccl 1:9 The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.

10 times in creation God said that everything reproduces after his kind, after his kind.  There wasn’t anything reproducing a new kind as in evolution.

1 Cor 15:39 All flesh is not the same flesh: but there is one kind of flesh of men, another flesh of beasts, another of fishes, and another of birds.

Cows give birth to cows, humans give birth to humans, birds give birth to birds, etc.  Nothing evolves in God’s creation.  Man did not come from beast.

Mark 10:6 But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female.

God created all things and He did it in six days!  Mankind was created from the beginning, not after billions of years of evolution.

Ex 20:11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day:

God created the dinosaurs too!  He created all things in six days.  All means all!

Evolutionists believe that humans will eventually evolve into all-powerful Gods!  The first thing Satan did when he tempted Eve was to cast doubt on what God said saying, “Hath God said?”  He then said that she could be as Gods if she ate of the fruit!  Satan attacks the bible at the very first verse of the first book of the bible with the belief of evolution.

Some say that since the bible says man was made, it doesn’t mean he was created.  It could have been an evolutionary process that God put in place.  Just to put an end to this argument, here’s some scripture on that.  In Genesis 1:26 it says God made man.  In verse 27 it also says He created man.  Genesis 2:7 says He formed man.  Here, again, we have all three; Isaiah 43:7 Even every one that is called by my name: for I have created him for my glory, I have formed him; yea, I have made him.  The words are used interchangeably in many places.  Gen 2:7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.  It doesn’t matter how you try to shake it up, God created man and breathed life into him.  He didn’t “write the code” and then wait 5 billion years to see how we randomly evolved, He made us in one day, and in His image!

We’re not an accident; we’re made in the image of God.  Gen 1:27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

How old is the earth?

Remember the 80,000 tons of mud per hour that the Mississippi river dumps in the Gulf?  They have measured the delta in the Gulf of Mexico and concluded that it has been doing that for about 4400 years.

Bristlecone Pine trees are thought to be the oldest living trees in the world.  The Redwoods in California are among the biggest and oldest.  They estimate that they are about 4000 years old.

The oil that is under the surface of the planet is pressurized.  That’s why it gushes up into the air like a fountain when it is tapped.  After studying the pressure and the rocks and earth around these fields of oil, they have estimated that the containment can only be expected to last about 5000 years before it will deteriorate and burst followed by collapse.  But wait!  I thought it took 65 million years for it to develop?  How has it maintained the pressure all these years?  Doesn’t make sense at all…

Science data shows that something big happened to the magnetic poles about 4000 years ago.  More on this later…

Guess what happened about 4400 years ago?  An event we call Noah’s flood.  The bible shows through lines of genealogy, telling us the ages of people when they had so and so and then how old that person was when they had so and so all the way to Noah, and then all the way to Jesus.  It was about 1500 years between creation and the flood and then about another 2400 years to Jesus.  This makes the earth about 6000 years old.  But wait!  Isn’t there all kinds of evidence to show that the earth is much older than that?  Don’t we have carbon dating and other things that prove more age than that?  We’ll discuss these questions and answer them later in this book.

25 - What is the firmament?

What most people miss when they read the creation account in the Bible.

Let’s look at what the bible tells us about the earth when it was first made and what changed when the earth was flooded.

Let’s look at Genesis again.  Notice the “firmament” that God made in verse 6?  It was made “in the midst of the waters” to divide the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament, and He called it “heaven”.  In verse 9 He gathers the waters under the heaven (under the firmament) together to make dry land.  In verse 20 it says that the birds fly above the earth in the open firmament.  In verse 17 God set the sun, moon and stars in the firmament.  The question is, what was the firmament in the “midst” for?  The firmament above the earth, but under the firmament in the “midst” was for the birds (our atmosphere), and the firmament that was above the firmament in the “midst” was for the sun, moon and stars (outer space).  So, the firmament in the midst was between the atmosphere of the earth and the cold of space to divide them or separate them from each other!

So what was the stuff in the “midst”?  We know that God doesn’t create anything that’s not perfect.  That’s one of the arguments people use to say there must have been time between initial creation and the creation of man, because there’s imperfection that we see today, or corruption as would be a more accurate term.  I would like to agree, in part, with all those people and say that God indeed did not create an imperfect world!  There are currently 6 layers to our atmosphere.  What is God’s number for perfection?  Did you think of the number 7?  Yes, 7 is definitely perfection for God.  7 is everywhere in the bible.  So, what was the seventh layer that isn’t there any more?  Gen 7:11 In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.  Remember that the firmament God created to divide our atmosphere from space was called “heaven”?  When God caused the earth to flood, He “opened the windows of heaven”.  It had not rained on the earth prior to this.  Gen 2:6 But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground.  When God opened the windows of heaven (the firmament), the 7th layer, the firmament in the “midst”, a layer of water, came raining down on the earth for 40 days in a torrential downpour such as never seen again in history.  There was a layer of water surrounding the earth in the initial creation that is not there today.  This layer of water did many things for the earth that we don’t have any more.  There was increased atmospheric pressure (about double the 14.7 psi today).  Oxygen levels were about 50% higher than they are today (Time Magazine Nov. 9, 1987 - Analysis of air trapped inside fossilized tree sap, Amber, shows an oxygen content of 50% more than we have today, proving this point).  The layer of water would have filtered the suns rays and would have maintained a greenhouse effect on the whole earth.  There would have been a whole lot more vegetation than we have today.  The deserts would have been lush and green as well as the poles.  More plants = more oxygen.  The temperature would have been equalized around the globe and there would have been no ice in the poles or deserts on the equator.  It was a pole to pole tropical planet.

I don't normally like to quote outside of the scriptures we have today, but there is a very, very interesting prophecy in the book of Enoch, a book found with the Dead Sea Scrolls, that talks about this very thing.  It is not confirmed as a part of the bible so I'm just throwing this in here because I find it incredibly interesting.  Enoch is mentioned in the bible in Genesis, Luke, Hebrews and Jude.  He was the great grandfather of Noah and it is possible that Noah had preserved the text of this book.  I don't know for sure and I am definitely not saying that you should believe it to be authentic, so I'll just let you decide.

Enoch LXXXIX.1-9. The Deluge and the Deliverance of Noah.
"89: 1 And one of those four went to that white bull and instructed him in a secret, without his being terrified: he was born a bull and became a man, and built for himself a great vessel and dwelt thereon; 2 and three bulls dwelt with him in that vessel and they were covered in. And again I raised mine eyes towards heaven and saw a lofty roof, with seven water torrents thereon, and those torrents 3 flowed with much water into an enclosure. And I saw again, and behold fountains were opened on the surface of that great enclosure, and that water began to swell and rise upon the surface, 4 and I saw that enclosure till all its surface was covered with water. And the water, the darkness, and mist increased upon it; and as I looked at the height of that water, that water had risen above the height of that enclosure, and was streaming over that enclosure, and it stood upon the earth. 5 And all the cattle of that enclosure were gathered together until I saw how they sank and were 6 swallowed up and perished in that water. But that vessel floated on the water, while all the oxen and elephants and camels and asses sank to the bottom with all the animals, so that I could no longer 7 see them, and they were not able to escape, (but) perished and sank into the depths. And again I saw in the vision till those water torrents were removed from that high roof, and the chasms 8 of the earth were leveled up and other abysses were opened. Then the water began to run down into these, till the earth became visible; but that vessel settled on the earth, and the darkness 9 retired and light appeared. But that white bull which had become a man came out of that vessel, and the three bulls with him, and one of those three was white like that bull, and one of them was red as blood, and one black: and that white bull departed from them."

There are man made machines called Hyperbaric Chambers that are used today to put people with injuries or sickness in, so that the increased atmospheric pressure and oxygen will help healing.  It’s called Pressurized Oxygen Therapy.  Professional sports teams; NFL, NBA, NHL, CFL, etc. use them to put players that are injured in so that they heal twice as fast!  Google it and check it out for yourself!

With higher pressure and more oxygen, you could run for hours and never run out of breath.  You would heal a lot faster.  You would live a lot longer.

In high elevations where the atmospheric pressure is low, wounds will not heal.

The life span of people before the flood was in the hundreds of years!  Some lived over 900 years!

Another interesting fact about the hyperbaric chamber is the amazing growth rate of animals when they are raised inside a chamber.  They have been playing around with them for years and found that small animals will grow much, much larger in a hyperbaric chamber than they normally would.  It makes it even more interesting when we know that they have found fossils of huge wombats, bear size beavers and sloth’s, bison size rodents, 17 foot tall rhino skeletons, 12 foot giant humans, etc.  They’ve pretty much found anything you can think of in the fossil records in an enlarged form.

Understanding this makes everything else just fall into place!

26 - Dinosaurs in the Bible!

Remember that all reptiles never stop growing?  That’s right; they grow every day of their life no matter how long they live.  We grow to a certain age and stop.  Dogs and cats, fish, birds, bears, etc. all stop growing at a certain age, but reptiles never do.  Back before the flood, when things lived for hundreds of years, the reptiles were growing every day of their life.

Remember the Iguanodon I mentioned earlier?  It’s just a big, huge Iguana!  Nothing exotic, I know, but that’s the truth of the matter.  The fossilized eggs of dinosaurs are not very big.  Most of them are pretty small, actually.

Just as the bible tells us about the human giants, in Job 40, God talks to Job about the Behemoth and the Leviathan.

Job 40:15 Behold now behemoth, which I made with thee; he eateth grass as an ox. 16 Lo now, his strength is in his loins, and his force is in the navel of his belly. 17 He moveth his tail like a cedar: the sinews of his stones are wrapped together. 18 His bones are as strong pieces of brass; his bones are like bars of iron. 19 He is the chief of the ways of God: he that made him can make his sword to approach unto him. 20 Surely the mountains bring him forth food, where all the beasts of the field play. 21 He lieth under the shady trees, in the covert of the reed, and fens.

Notice that the behemoth has strength and force in its “body”?  He moves his tail like a cedar.  It’s a big tail, not a scrawny tail, but like a tree!  It is very strong.  It is the chief of the ways of God!  It’s God’s pride!  Notice that He says, “Behold now behemoth, which I made with thee!”  He’s telling Job to look upon something that was within eyesight!  He says that He made it with Job, or He made it when He made men.  It was part of creation, not a thing that died millions of years ago.  The behemoth was the largest of the dinosaurs and had a huge tail.  The longneck dinosaur was the biggest, had a strong body and a big strong tail like a tree.  It says that he lies down in the “fens”.  The word fen means swamp.  Remember the Mokele-mbembe in the swamp in Africa?  They still live, they are just not as big as they were pre-flood.

Job 41:1 Canst thou draw out leviathan with an hook? or his tongue with a cord which thou lettest down?

2 Canst thou put an hook into his nose? or bore his jaw through with a thorn?

3 Will he make many supplications unto thee? will he speak soft words unto thee?

4 Will he make a covenant with thee? wilt thou take him for a servant for ever?

5 Wilt thou play with him as with a bird? or wilt thou bind him for thy maidens?

…

15 His scales are his pride, shut up together as with a close seal.

…

18 By his neesings a light doth shine, and his eyes are like the eyelids of the morning.

19 Out of his mouth go burning lamps, and sparks of fire leap out.

20 Out of his nostrils goeth smoke, as out of a seething pot or caldron.

21 His breath kindleth coals, and a flame goeth out of his mouth.

22 In his neck remaineth strength, and sorrow is turned into joy before him.

…

25 When he raiseth up himself, the mighty are afraid: by reason of breakings they purify themselves.

26 The sword of him that layeth at him cannot hold: the spear, the dart, nor the habergeon.

…

33 Upon earth there is not his like, who is made without fear.

Take a look at the description of the Leviathan.  Can you put a hook in his nose?  Can you play with him as a bird?  He has scales.  He neeses and breathes fire!  The mighty are afraid of him!  He is without fear.  What in the world is this thing!?  He’s a fire breathing dragon!  He is highly feared and fearless!  Sounds a bit like a Tyrannosaurus Rex?  I know, they don’t show him breathing fire in the movies, but let’s look at some facts.

There’s a bug called the bombardier beetle that actually shoots fire out of it’s, um, rear end when it’s in danger.  It has a mixture of chemicals that are in chambers in its body that it mixes and shoots out in a quick stream of fire to dissuade its enemies when it needs to.

There are many head bones of dinosaurs found that have hollow chambers.  We can’t say for sure what they were used for but the T-Rex also has a hollow honeycomb in the head bones.  Remember that I mentioned the T-Rex and the iguana skull looks almost identical?  It’s interesting that when an iguana gets mad or frightened, it neeses.  It doesn’t shoot fire out today, but that doesn’t mean it never did and it’s mighty interesting to say the least.

At any rate, it looks like God is also describing a fire breathing reptile in Job.  Another of the mighty creatures He created.

Why do we have so many legends of fire breathing dragons?  Because they used to walk on the earth with us human beings, that’s why!

There were many huge reptiles before the flood.  The fossils they have found show that the skin on dinosaurs “looks remarkably like modern day lizards” (Discover Magazine Feb. 1999).  And it’s easy to see how Noah got them on the boat.  He took young reptiles, not old giant ones.  Simple when you think about it.  Takes away the mystery of how the ancient peoples moved huge rocks that weigh tons and tons without modern technology.  Using big reptiles that weigh tons and tons as work horses could easily account for that “feat” that scientists can’t explain.

27 - The flood changed a lot more than we think.

When God broke up the fountains of the great deep and opened the windows of heaven, we had a storm like no other storm!  Have you ever heard of or seen a geyser that spews hot scalding water because of the pressure from the tremendous heat under the surface that causes it to release periodically?  Have you heard about the massive, huge fields of lava flow that scientists can’t explain?  The fountains of the great deep erupted with tremendous heat!  When the windows of heaven were opened, for the first time in the history of the earth, the super cold of space (459.6 degrees below zero) came down into our atmosphere.  You probably know that when a cold front meets a warm front that there’s going to be some stormy weather, right?  Imagine what happened when that super frigid cold met with super heated water, lava and air?  The surface of this planet was caught in a storm that makes a hurricane look like a single little harmless rain cloud.

For an animal to be frozen in place, like they have found, it can’t happen with just a little snow storm.  To be frozen in stride while running, or with food in their mouth, the temperature had to be at least 300 below zero and it had to happen really fast.  The windows of heaven were opened and the layer of water came raining down in a rainstorm like never seen, and the super cold of space froze everything when the cold air met the surface of the planet.

The ice sheets from this event were massive sheets of ice that came all the way down to Kansas City.  There are washouts and objects left behind and all kinds of evidence that scientists haven’t been able to explain that are easily explained when we understand what happened.

For a footprint in the mud to be baked into stone, like we find all over the earth, there has to be some major heat, like when you “fire” a clay pot to make it stone.  The fountains of the great deep created massive scalding water and superheated steam everywhere it came out!  It baked the ground where the giant reptiles were running and baked and hardened the footprints that we see in Texas and many, many other places on the earth.

The evidence of mass extinction that the scientists can’t explain is easy to understand when we understand the magnitude and destruction of the flood waters and the extreme temperatures.  Science can’t explain why we find mammoths in Florida and all types of animals all over the earth.  The earth was the same over the entire surface before this event so the animals were everywhere, that’s why!

Scientific data has proven that the magnetic poles took 6 violent swings about 4000 years ago.  Ice at 300 degrees below zero or colder is magnetic!  When the super cold from space froze the water it became magnetic and aligned itself over the magnetic poles of the planet.  It’s no surprise that the thickest and coldest ice formed at the poles and spread toward the equator.  The sun has been melting away the ice sheets for 4400 years but the poles are still the coldest because the layer of water that stabilized the atmospheric temperature is gone and the sun is warmest at the equator as we know it to be today.

Remember the Geologic Column that doesn’t exist?  The layers of the earth are so easy to understand when we know what the flood waters did to the earth.  It didn’t take millions of years to lay down the layers, it just took a whole lot of water, and the flood explains why the layers have so many bends and twists; they were made while the ground was still soft and pliable.

The ice sheets have been melting ever since then!  Global Warming?

Politicians and scientists today and trying to scare us with “Global Warming”, saying it’s the fault of mankind that the ice is melting and the ozone is going away.  Despite the hundreds of scientists that actually deny that global warming is even a reality, the politicians try to convince us that it’s our fault.  Money and power and a global agenda are the main reasons for this, but let’s just let that go for now.  Ever since the ice sheets were formed, they have been melting away!

Just for your information, the ozone is created by the sun.  When the suns rays hit the O2 molecules in the atmosphere some of them break in two and the resultant oxygen atoms then attach to other O2 molecules turning them into O3, which is ozone.  The sun creates ozone!  The methane gas that’s supposed to be made by man and destroying the ozone is actually found in massive clouds above the jungles of the world (Nature Magazine Jan. 2006).  The plants produce it.  Incidentally, the ozone is thinner at the poles where there is less sun light.  There’s no “hole” that man is creating, it’s just naturally thinner because the sun doesn’t shine there!

The oceans used to be a lot shallower and data shows that the ocean levels have been rising for as long as it has been being recorded.  The ice has been melting for 4400 years and the ocean levels have been rising as the ice melts.  There are entire cities under the ocean waters.  Why?  A few thousand years ago they built the city on the edge of the ocean and over a few hundred years it got buried by rising sea levels.

Scientific American, March 1997, has an article about how there is a whole lot of evidence that huge areas of land, now under water, were exposed in the past.

Nature magazine, December 2004, shows that the arctic was balmy in the past and evidence that the whole planet was covered with vegetation.  Remember the buried forests I mentioned earlier?  There have been many of these discovered all over the earth, including in the arctic!

The ice is definitely melting, but it has nothing to do with human beings.

What do the fossil records show us?

When a flood happens, all the dead tree limbs and garbage floats to the top and gets left up on the high ground when the water recedes.  Ever notice that?  Well, there are fossilized sea shells and all kinds of junk on the tops of mountains.  Yep, you heard me right.  Sea shells are all over the top of Mt Everest and all mountain chains.  There are massive bone yards found around the mountain chains.  Many places have huge amounts of bones all jumbled together, just as if they were mixed up and tossed around and dumped there.  Kind of like they were all killed off in a massive stormy flood that lasted about a year and then receded, leaving all the remains behind in clumps.

Understanding that the world was a different place before the flood and what happened at the time of the flood makes all the difference in the world to our understanding of the fossil records and bones that have been found and why there are giant bones, and why there were animals frozen instantly and how things got so jumbled up and whole buried forests and all of the things science can’t explain!  It’s not so hard to understand when we know what caused it all!

In Glen Rose, Texas, they found the footprint of a human being inside the foot print of a dinosaur.  If dinosaurs died off 65 million years ago and man did not evolve until the last few million years as they say, how in the world do you explain that???

Also, air trapped in the fossilized tree sap (Amber) shows that the atmosphere had 50% more oxygen than we have today.  The problem with that knowledge is that the scientists say that life could not evolve today because the oxygen content today is too high for early forms of bacteria to live.  It would be destroyed by it.  So, if it was even higher content in the past, how could life have evolved at all?

Check this out:  The fossil records contain the ground sloth with the whale, trees with fish, etc., etc.  There are so many different species buried together all over the earth that science can’t explain it at all!  The water buried everything and mixed it all up and dumped it on the mountains when it receded and sloshed around and moved everything.  It’s not surprising what they’ve found when you know what caused it.

Scientists try to convince people that petrifying takes millions of years in order to support their claims of the huge amounts of time involved.  Even though it’s a proven fact that it can happen in as little as a couple years, they still say that “it can also take millions of years”.  So, a prune left in a refrigerator for a year turns to stone, or an axe that got buried and turned to stone before it’s found again a couple years later, but the things we find buried in the earth that have turned to stone are “millions” of years in the making?  Who are they trying to convince?

Here’s another good one:  Have you ever heard that coal takes tens of thousands of years to be created?  Did you know that a piece of wood can turn to coal in as little as one year?  That’s another “science fact” down the tubes…

And how do you get a man made diamond that’s indistinguishable from the real thing if it takes millions of years and tremendous pressure to create a diamond?

28 - Ok, what about Lucy and the human skeletons they’ve found?

Lucy is a 3 foot monkey skeleton that they have declared to be the skeleton of an intermediate stage of evolutionary development; an ancestor to human beings.  They say it’s an ape-man because the femur has an angle to it, while ground dwelling monkeys have a straight femur.  Humans have an angle on the femur to the hip, so they say that Lucy was on the way to becoming a human.  Here are two things they don’t tell you though.  Tree dwelling monkeys have an angle from the femur to the hip.  They found the leg bones of “Lucy” a mile and a half away and in a different stratum layer than the head and other bones.  They put them together anyway and say it’s an ancestor of man.  Umm…  Enough said.

They also have skulls of men that have receding foreheads and different shapes that they say were ape-like.  You only have to look at some tribes that exist today to see that there are people alive today that look just like that.  They aren’t half ape, either.  They’re human beings.

Please allow me to dispel a myth right here about the different “races” of humans.    Just some stuff that “they” don’t like us to know.  Scientific American, February 2003; DNA is 99.9% alike in all human races.  There have been articles published where they are trying to convince us that black people have very different DNA than white people.  This is simply not true.  You can compare two black people and get DNA structure further apart than a white and a black comparison.  It just depends on the people you are comparing.  It’s just genetics and dominant characteristics.  Dominant does not mean exclusive.  There are many, many families with highly diverse skin color within the family tree.  Some are very dark while some are very light, and everything in between.  Chinese people don’t have squinty eyes, there’s just more fat around the eye.  It’s just genetics.  They are not a different evolution of man with totally different DNA.  Remember Esau in the bible?  He had a hairy body much like an animal.  God wrote a very diverse code into our DNA when He created us.

Oh, and get this; they recently found two skeletons from what they thought were humans from millions of years apart in evolutionary development in the same area and the same layer of stratum.  This means that the two humans were both in the same place at the same time.  They couldn’t possibly have been millions of years apart in an evolutionary line.

The theory of evolution is just a theory, and no one can scientifically prove the idea that anything has ever evolved from one particular species into another.  Yes, we do see differences in species in different parts of the world, and mutations can occur.  A mutation is not an adaptation, however, and mutations generally kill the thing that is mutated.  A species can actually adapt to an adverse environment and change to survive, and that adaptation can happen relatively fast (a lot faster than was assumed to support the evolution theory) as shown by experiments conducted by scientists around the world in recent years.  But, no one has ever shown that a species can actually change into another species even in the tiniest way.  Evolution is a belief, not a science.  The previous point (speed of adaptation), however, simply adds to the argument against evolution since there are so many things about human beings that don’t fit into this mold at all.  For instance, if we’ve evolved over billions of years on this planet; why can’t we see at night since we’ve spent half of those billions of years in the dark?  Why are cats and relatively few other species the only one's endowed with this ability?  And why does the sun burn us when we’ve spent half of those billions of years in the sun?  Why haven’t we developed any protection from darkness and the suns rays or even moderate temperature changes?  We haven’t had homes and desk jobs long enough to make the difference.  We spent our time outside in the elements working our fields for food or hunting, etc.  If evolution were a fact, we’d have much more adapted bodies to the environment we live in.  Have our minds have made us so superior to animals that we no longer have the strength of animals or need hairy bodies and thick skin to protect us from cold, or fangs to tear the meat from our prey?  And our natural ability to outsmart everything has made it so we don’t need any of those things?  Hello???  Everything we know about human history is about warfare and competition and being bigger and stronger than our neighbor.  We don’t have weaker muscles than animals because we don’t use them; we have these bodies because this is the way God made us.  He separated us from the animals in many ways.

The common theory states that there was matter and energy, already in existence, that exploded 15 billion years ago and has expanded into the present state of the universe.  That basic science means that if I take the bicycle out in my garage and leave it sitting around and expose it to energy for 15 billion years it could turn into a living, breathing, ferocious tiger!  Pretty stupid, huh?  But that’s really what they’re trying to sell us, minus all the unproven “scientific evidence” that they say they have.  Hard matter and energy somehow turned into biological life?  And how do we explain the fallacy that two co-existing elements that can't live without each other (proteins and nucleic acids) spontaneously came into being at the same time?  How far from logic do we have to turn in order to allow this to slip by our theories?  Evolution is a belief, not a science.

It actually takes more faith to believe in evolution than it does to believe in Creation!

29 - What about the size of the ark!  It’s impossible to get all the animals in it!

Nope, it’s not impossible.  Here’s why.  The ark was big enough to hold 530 railroad cars.  They put 250 sheep in a railroad car these days, so that’s 132500 sheep size animals.  Yea, I know there’s a lot more types of animals than that, but God only needed to preserve one of each kind of animal.  He didn’t need every species of dog, or cow, or giraffe, or cat.  He only needed two of each kind and let the gene’s that He designed do the rest of the work when they left the ark.  Gen 8:19 Every beast, every creeping thing, and every fowl, and whatsoever creepeth upon the earth, after their kinds, went forth out of the ark.  I mean, God is God.  Why would we limit what He can do when He’s the one who spoke them into existence in the first place?  It only sounds impossible if we think about trying to do it without God.  Then I think it would be impossible.

The earth was a much different place then.  The continents were connected because the ocean levels were so low as I mentioned earlier.  The animals migrated around the globe by walking there.

Some say it was just a local flood only in the middle east, but that is not what the bible says.  The whole earth was flooded just as the bible says, and the evidence is everywhere.

Gen 7:19 And the waters prevailed exceedingly upon the earth; and all the high hills, that were under the whole heaven, were covered. 20 Fifteen cubits upward did the waters prevail; and the mountains were covered.

You can’t cover the mountains with water and have the valleys dry…

Also, if it was just a local flood, why didn’t Noah just move away?  He had over 100 years to build the ark.  He could have just moved his family in that amount of time.

People also ask:  How did they take enough food for everything?  Remember the two times in Matthew 14 and 15 where Jesus fed thousands of people with a few fish and loaves of bread?  God can do anything and He simply took care of it.  No mystery or impossibility.  If God weren't involved, yes, it would have been impossible, but God is not limited like we are, He is God.

30 - And what happened to the water?

When God was done with the flood, it says the waters assuaged (or abated).  Psalm 104 has more to say about it.

Ps 104:6 Thou coveredst it with the deep as with a garment: the waters stood above the mountains. 7 At thy rebuke they fled; at the voice of thy thunder they hasted away. 8 They go up by the mountains; they go down by the valleys unto the place which thou hast founded for them.

This phrase, “go up by the mountains, down by the valleys” means to rise up and sink down, into the place where God had founded for them.

Eldridge Moores, a prominent geologist, says that the sea floor sank when the planet was covered by water at some point.  He was not trying to prove the Bible, he was just stating what he had found by studying the earth.

Science News, September 2005 – When the Amazon River floods, it still causes the land in the region to sink down today.

If you leveled off the mountains a little and raised up the valleys under the ocean a bit, you would have enough water to cover the entire planet by a few thousand feet.

Gen 8:3 And the waters returned from off the earth continually: and after the end of the hundred and fifty days the waters were abated.

The waters hasted away and returned from off the earth continually.  The mountains arose and the valleys sunk down.  Whoosh!  And the water returned back and forth continually.  Slosh, slosh… back and forth for 150 days until it abated (decreased in force or intensity).  How about the dinosaur tracks on the sides of mountains on a 90 degree incline?  The mountain was lifted from its original place with tremendous force.

It’s really a no-brainer to understand how the Grand Canyon was carved!

If you look at geological maps of the fault lines and volcanoes, you’ll notice that they follow the mountain ranges and the deep valleys of the oceans.  Right where the mountains arose and the valleys sank, the crust is weak and broken.

Or, if you don’t like the sound of this, maybe God just took a dipper full of water out and dumped it somewhere else.  He is God, after all.

31 - Why do men believe in evolution?

One of the worlds leading atheists finally conceded that there has to be some intelligent design.

Antony Flew, who became an atheist at 15, debated at Oxford in the 1950s. He promoted atheism through prestigious works such as his landmark 1984 book, The Presumption of Atheism.

Over time, Flew became a very successful atheist. Overall, he wrote ten books against belief in God, as well as many other works. His works were among the most widely reprinted in all of philosophy. One thing that helped him was that many people assumed, without really looking into it, that science evidence suggested that God does not exist.

So, why did he change his mind when he was eighty-one years old?  Not because he fears the eternal consequences of a lifetime spent promoting atheism. He insists that he still doesn’t believe in heaven or hell. Rather, Flew was convinced by modern science findings. He was amazed by the language that is written into the DNA of every cell of each of our bodies. He said, “What I think the DNA material has done is show that intelligence must have been involved in getting these extraordinarily diverse elements together. The enormous complexity by which the results were achieved look to me like the work of intelligence.”

Science does not support evolution in any way.  In fact, science does more to prove that evolution is not possible than the other way around.

So, why do people choose to believe what science shows to be fallacy?

It should come as no surprise that adamant devotees of evolution often insist on public assertions and unfounded statements, displays that sometimes hide the real reason for the naturalistic (evolutionary) commitment.  One such unflinching devotee was the great agnostic philosopher, Aldous Huxley.  Late in his life he offered open discussion on this very issue when he wrote:

Does the world as a whole possess the value and meaning that we constantly attribute to certain parts of it (such as human beings and their works): and, if so, what is the nature of that value and meaning?  This is a question which, a few years ago, I should not even have posed.  For, like so many of my contemporaries, I took it for granted that there was no meaning.  This was partly due to the fact that I shared a common belief that the scientific picture of an abstraction from reality was a true picture of reality as a whole; partly also to other, nonintellectual reasons.  I had motives for not wanting the world to have a meaning; consequently assumed that it had none, and was able without any difficulty to find satisfying reasons for this assumption.

...for myself as, no doubt, for most of my contemporaries, the philosophy of meaninglessness was essentially an instrument of liberation.  The liberation we desired was simultaneously liberation from a certain political and economic system and liberation from a certain system of morality.  We objected to the morality because it interfered with our sexual freedom...

...justifying ourselves in our political and erotic revolt: we could deny that the world had any meaning whatsoever.

Men who believe evolution typically do not want to believe in God; don't want the world to have a meaning above the greatness of his own will.  It's that simple.  Some don't want to admit that they are not the most important, significant and intelligent species in the universe.  Others, knowing our own conceit, acknowledge that we probably aren't the most intelligent or powerful but don't want to have to admit that there's something that knows us better than we know ourselves.  It is mans invention; created so we don't have to worry about things like morality or feel guilty for our demented pleasures and self indulgences.  Who in the world wants to feel guilt, of all things?  It feels terrible!  It's much more comfortable to assume there is no meaning, no morals, no reason for guilt.  After all, it is our will that decides how and upon what subjects we shall use our magnificent intelligence!  Right?

Naturalistic evolution concerns itself with no meaningful dignity or future accountability.

Darwinism undermines both the idea that man is made in the image of God and the idea that man is a unique rational being.  Furthermore, if Darwinism is correct, it is unlikely that any other support for the idea of human dignity will be found.

But wait!  There's no way the scientific community as a whole would let the perverse ideas of these people become the basis for the "fact" of evolution we teach our children in our schools!

Consider the admission of Dr. Lynn Margulis, who is recognized as a knowledgeable member of the "establishment":

More and more ... today's universities and professional societies guard their knowledge.  Collusively, the university biology curriculum, the textbook publishers, the National Science Foundation review committees, the Graduate Record examiners, and the various microbiological, evolutionary, and zoological societies map out domains of the known and knowable; they distinguish required from forbidden knowledge, subtly punishing the trespassers with rejection and oblivion; they award the faithful liturgists by granting degrees and dispersing funds and fellowships.

It follows naturally that the only way for evolution to triumph is to remove the alternative!  Look at the activities of organizations like the ACLU and others.  We don't want to confuse our poor children with phrases like "In God we trust" or "Under God" or things as preposterous as the Ten Commandments.  We must acknowledge that we are supreme and that our infallible intelligence and the power of our tremendous will is all that is needed to save us from ourselves!  God forbid we actually acknowledge a need for God!

Anything but God will do!

Nature Magazine, September 1999; “Even if all the data point to an intelligent designer, such a hypothesis is excluded because it is not naturalistic”.  So even if everything we find shows us that there had to be a “maker” and all the data shows that the bible is true, they will simply discard that because is doesn’t fit with their line of thinking.  They care nothing for truth, they simply want to prove their ideas even if they have to fudge the numbers to do so.

What you believe colors your whole life, your world view, your attitude, and how you make moral decisions.  Our view of the world is what guides us in everything we do.  Look at Hitler, Carl Marx, serial killers like Jeffrey Dahmer, etc…  They all believed in evolution and had no moral values so they became truly evil.

Either there is a God, who is what He says He is, and did what He said He did, or there is not.  What do you believe?  If we don't believe in God, something like evolution has to take the place of our faith.  We inherently know the existence of God (Romans 1); there is no excuse!  We are, after all, created beings; created in the image of God.  Deciding we don't believe does not erase the fact that He does exist and that we will one day answer to Him.  We will never find an alternative that fits, either scientifically or philosophically.  There is no substitute for the truth.

The bible tells us that men will essentially become idiots when they refuse to accept the simple truth of Gods word:  Rom 1:22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools.

2 Peter 3:3 Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers , walking after their own lusts, 4 And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. 5 For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water: 6 Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished: 7 But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.

Scoffers in the last days walking after their own lusts, unwilling to acknowledge the supremacy of God, willingly ignorant, and intentionally hiding information about the flood!  They don’t want to give up their lifestyle or hear “thou shalt not”, so they deny that God even exists and use whatever means they can concoct to prove a lie is truth in order to justify themselves.

Scientific American, September 1999; Scientists are more atheistic than ever before.

Be as willing to believe the bible by faith as you are to believe your science text book without proof!

I strongly urge anyone who has any interest in studying evolution vs. creation to go to the following web site and get the Creation Seminar series of DVD’s.  

http://www.creationseminar.net/

You will be amazed at what science hides from the world…

Putting it all together – a short summary of this book

This is a fast, birds eye view of the bible and the events foretold by God.

This is the world we live in today.

This page is a summary of this little book that will hopefully tie it all together and give readers a “big picture” look at what the Word of God tells us. All of the points made here are proven by scripture in detail within the book and should be studied out on your own. I encourage all who read this to study the scriptures on their own and not take any mans word for anything, including me. I would encourage anyone reading this to take the time necessary to read and study every scripture I quote in this book and let the Lord lead you to His truth on your own. As I state in my introduction, this is just my notes that I have put together during my studies and organized in a fashion that I hope is understandable and helps others to learn and grow as I have in the knowledge of the Lord.

Remember, all of these points are discussed in detail and proven with scripture in this book. This is just a quick summary.

Let's start at the beginning

In the beginning, God. Before all things in creation, there was God. He created all things. He is a Spirit and by His unimaginable creativity He made everything we see, hear, touch, feel, taste, wonder about, etc. He made ALL things. His word tells us that all flesh is not the same flesh, but that bird, beasts of the field, fish, and mankind are made differently. He says that everything reproduces after its kind. Nothing reproduces another kind. He made it all just the way it is today. In the beginning it was perfect, it was very good. [see Book 3]

While Jesus told us that God is a Spirit, we also know that the Divine Expression of God (the Word), the image of God, was something that God had imagined and was already there at the very beginning and that all things were made by Him and for Him. Before the birth of Jesus Christ, God manifested His image on the earth several times to people in an angelic form (with Adam and Eve, Abraham, Jacob, Moses, etc.). This image, or Divine Expression, was made flesh in the body of Jesus Christ. God actually became part of His creation by being born into it as we are. He is amazing beyond comprehension! [see Book 2]

He made us in His image, not only of his physical image (the body of Christ), but in His Spiritual image (our soul) as well. He knew that given free will and left to our own devices that we would fall from His intended purpose and that we would sin. His plan was and is to save as many of us as is possible. He gave Himself, as a sacrifice for us, so that we might be saved from our sin and return to the glory He intended for us from the beginning. He's growing His crop, so to speak, and the culmination of His plan is coming to the full and is about to be a finished work! [see Book 2]

Prophecies

While the history of the world is told to us in great detail, study of history is not part of this book, so we will focus mainly on the stages of His grand and epic plan.

He told us many things about His plan in symbolic terms before they happen so that we would know what to expect. Many, many prophecies were given about Christ and about the times after Him all the way to the end of Gods plan and into eternity where He will dwell among us forever. [see Book 1]

I won't go into all of the specific prophecies in this summary but will pull them together to look at the plan as God has stated it in many different ways. There are many prophecies that tie into other prophecies and have common intersection points and common end points. [see Chapter 10]

The big picture starts in the book of Daniel where we are given a time frame of 490 years. The prophecy is split in parts in the scriptures where from the time after the Babylonian captivity from when Jerusalem was restored and rebuilt, to the Messiah is 483 years, and then another 7 year period that has yet to happen. Revelation gives us another look at the birth of Christ, the devils attempt to kill Him at His birth, and then a jump to the last years where the devil is thrown to earth and the time of the Great Tribulation comes upon the world. Daniel and Revelation also give us a lot of information about what the world will look like in terms of the nations of the world and religions of the world that will exist at the end time, and what the antichrist and false prophet will do to deceive the whole world (except for the Saints of God) at the end time. [see Chapters 7, 8, 10 and other parts of Book 1]

A quick look at the prophecies leading up to today

After the time of Jesus, some of the prophecies given by Jesus while He was here on earth came to pass. Like the destruction of the Temple by the Romans. [see Chapters 2 and 3]

After that, the spirits of Catholicism, Capitalism, Communism and Islam are sent into the world (the first four seals). During the last 1700 years or so, these spirits have been working. This is very important to understand. These spirits control the majority of the world today. [see Chapter 5]

Then in the last approximately 100 years we have World War 1, World War 2, the Chernobyl nuclear accident and the shortening of the days (the first four trumpets). There has been more death in the last 100 years than in the entire history of man, since the flood; due to wars, abortions, accidents like Chernobyl, etc. [see Chapter 6]

The next events that may or may not have already happened are the fifth seal and fifth trumpet. The fifth seal is the souls under the altar are told to rest just a little longer. The fifth trumpet could have been the gulf war, but most likely is not. [see Chapters 5 and 6]

What we're waiting for in the near future

The sixth trumpet will also sound at some point, but it's not certain if it will be before or after the Confirmation of the Covenant. This is a war that will kill a third of mankind, very likely to be World War 3. [see Chapter 6, 7 and 8]

The event we're looking for right now, that could happen very soon, is the Confirmation of the Covenant. The confirmation of the covenant is this: there will be an international agreement to confirm the status of Jerusalem and the permanent borders of Israel. These things are being fought over right now with the Palestinians. The bible says that the Antichrist will confirm the covenant along with many others for 7 years. This event will be the beginning of the last 7 years of Daniels 490 years. It may be hard to identify the Antichrist at that time because he will be just one of many. [see Chapters 7 and 8]

Approximately 6 months (.7 years) after the Confirmation of the Covenant, the Antichrist will begin to take over the world. [see Chapters 7, 8 and 10]

The Antichrist and the false prophet will team up around this time. [see Chapters 7, 8 and 10]

The Jewish temple will be rebuilt and animal sacrifices will be resumed by the Jews. [see Chapters 7, 8 and 10]

Jerusalem will be “surrounded by armies”, which is likely a picture of it being policed by UN and/or other forces to force peace in the Middle East. [see Chapters 7, 8 and 10]

In the midst of this last 7 years (three and one half years in), the Antichrist will cause the animal sacrifices being performed in the rebuilt temple to cease, and will cause the “abomination of desolation” by either claiming to be God or acting in the place of God. That is when we will definitely know who he is. [see Chapters 7, 8 and 10]

The false prophet will cause the world to worship the Antichrist. This will be made possible by the power given him by the devil himself. He will perform miracles before the world, like pulling fire from the sky. [see Chapters 7, 8 and 10]

God's two witnesses will begin their prophecy at this time. They will not be able to be killed for the whole 3.5 years but will be killed at the very end. [see Chapters 7, 8 and 10]

The bible tells us that they (the world) shall say, “peace and safety”. This is the call of the New World Order. The Antichrist will come in the name of peace to take over the world, and the bible says that the people of the world will be thinking they've finally made it, reveling and partying, proclaiming that mankind has finally done it and brought peace to the world! [see Chapters 7, 8, 9 and 10]

The Antichrist will implement what's called the mark of the beast. It will very likely be a RFID type of system. They can put a chip under your skin today and they even have a tattoo ink that is RFID capable, so maybe that will be utilized. What's certain is that this will be forced upon all people and you won't be able to get a job, buy food, go to the doctor, have a bank account, or pretty much have any way to “buy or sell” unless you submit. This will undoubtedly come with some sort of oath or pledge of allegiance to the Antichrist and his government. It may even mean conversion to Islam. This will also be a superhighway straight to hell. Any person who takes the mark of the beast is condemned by God. It will be a horrible time for the people who worship the one true God, Jesus Christ. This is what is termed as the Great Tribulation. [see Chapters 7, 8 and 10]

The Antichrist will “cause craft to prosper”. He will “understand dark sentences”. There will very likely be many people who will start to use dark and evil power to perform sorcery and witchcraft. [see Chapters 7, 8 and 10]

What will the world of the end time look like?

The nations of the end time

The empires of the world from Babylon to today were foretold and since we live in a time where history proves what those prophecies were, we have the unique pleasure of seeing prophecy unfold. [see Chapters 4, 7, 8 and 10]

Daniel gives us two symbolic pictures of the end time governments.

1. 1.In one perspective we see that there will be 4 kingdoms in existence at the end time and they will exist when Jesus returns, conquers them, and sets up His kingdom on the earth. These kingdoms mentioned specifically are Britain, Russia, Germany, and the final government of the New World Order that the Antichrist will rule. [see Chapter 4] 

2. 2.In the other perspective we see that the Medes and the Persians rule after Babylon, then the Greek empire, then the Roman, and finally the Holy Roman / Ottoman co-empires. Both of these final empires together comprised the total area controlled by the Roman Empire. From the Bible and history we learn that the final Antichrist empire will be a revived version of the empire that succeeds the Roman Empire. [see Chapter 7] 

The bible tells us that this final (divided, co-empire) will be used as the world government of the Antichrist and his false prophet. The Antichrist will bring the Muslim world together, reviving the Ottoman empire, while the false prophet will bring in Europe, reviving the Holy Roman empire, and the two will unite them as one. The bible tells us that the Antichrist will rule the whole world, but it also says that during this last 3.5 years he will be fighting wars as he conquers more and more nations. Not all nations will fall under his rule in so short a time (the area which is now Jordan is one that is specifically mentioned to “escape out of his hand”, among others), but he will rule the last world dominating empire. [see Chapters 7, 8 and 10]

The religion of the end time

The religion of the end time will be one where the false prophet will deceive the whole world and cause the world to worship the Antichrist by doing miracles such as pulling fire from the sky. This religion already exists but will be made universal by the power given the Antichrist and the false prophet by the devil. The bible doesn't specifically tells us what that religion will be called, but we can determine what it will be by looking at the facts. The world is pretty much dominated by Christianity and Islam. While Hinduism comes in a close third, it doesn't look like it will matter in the end time. [see Chapters 7, 8 and 10]

Christianity today is full of churches proclaiming that all religions worship the same God and therefore we should embrace them. The Catholic church promotes that idea with Interfaith doctrine and goes as far as to state in the Catechism that the Muslims worship the same God as Christianity and therefore will enjoy the same salvation equally. This means that they think it doesn't matter if you're a Christian or a Muslim and that you can find salvation through either religion. [see Chapters 7, 8 and 10]

The Muslims, on the other hand, have no such belief. In fact, Muslim doctrine teaches that Jesus is just a prophet, not the manifestation of God in the flesh, and that He will return at the end time to teach Christians the Muslim way and convert them. The prophecies of the bible and the Muslim prophecies concerning the Antichrist (the Muslim Mahdi) and the false prophet (the Muslim Jesus) mirror each other but the good guys of Islam are the bad guys of the bible. This is a very good indication that the Antichrist will rise as the Mahdi of Islam and will unite the Christian world with him via the false prophet and create a global Islamic religion. The bible tells us that this end time religion will be forced upon people or they will be killed if they refuse. The Muslim prophecies tell us that the Muslims will kill any who won't convert to Islam. [see Chapters 7, 8 and 10]

What then?

Then, “sudden destruction shall come upon them”. With a shout, with the sound of a trumpet, Jesus will come with power and glory as the lightning comes from the east to the west. The whole world will see him. The Lord will return and He will reap His own, gathering them up to Him in the clouds, and then the wrath of God will be poured out on the world. [see Chapters 9 and 10]

When Jesus touches down on the Mount of Olives it will split and the world will shake with the greatest earthquake the world has never seen. It will rock the entire world and Rome will be destroyed. [see Chapter 10]

He will wipe out the armies gathered for the Battle of Armageddon and will set up the Kingdom of God and will reign on the earth with His saints for 1000 years. [see Chapter 10]

There will be unsaved people remaining alive on the earth. [see Chapter 10]

The Antichrist and the false prophet are tossed into the lake of fire. [see Chapter 10]

Satan is bound for the 1000 years. [see Chapter 10]

After 1000 years Satan is loosed and again deceives the people of the earth and comes against God only to be wiped out with fire from heaven. [see Chapter 10]

Judgment day. [see Chapter 10]

New heavens and new earth. [see Chapter 10]

The chosen saints will dwell with Jesus forever. [see Chapter 10]