Part 1
by Robert R. Barney
One of the most important topics that anyone should understand about world events, the Bible and their future is the answer to this question: ARE WE LIVING IN THE LAST DAYS.. Unfortunately the average Jane or Joe is bombarded with views of this event from either Hollywood or even worse modern Christian evangelism looking to line their pockets much more than trying to explain the word of GOD!
Everyone has heard “the Gospel.” Many love Gospel music, Gospel names and even “sharing the Gospel”, but most of us don’t know what the word GOSPEL actually means! Gospel is an old English word that just means “good news.” The Gospel is the Good News of God’s plan for mankind and YOU! Jesus was a newscaster! So too was John the Baptist, Peter, Paul and John the Apostle. Daniel, Jeremiah and even Moses were newscaster! Unlike Dan Rather, they got their news from God Almighty! One third of the Bible is prophecy, or FUTURE NEWS of what is going to happen in the world and when GOD returns to this world to establish a GOVERNMENT on Earth! Yes, Heaven is coming to you, you are not going to Heaven! Remember these words, “Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” ON EARTH! God’s Kingdom is coming to Earth after the reign of man is over with. The exact order of this is given by Christ himself in Mathew 24.
Jesus is plain about the end times. One, nobody knows the exact hour or time of the return of Christ. No man, no Angel and especiallynot a single Demon. So the next time you hear your favorite preacher tell you the rapture may come tonight realize that he is either: A) A fraud or B) Just ignorant! The truth is that since the time of Paul, we have been living in “the last days!” (Heb 1:2). Even the Apostles of God did not know when Jesus would return, why should a TV preacher know?
Part 2
We do have from Jesus signs that must happen before the time of his return. It is found in Matthew 24: In the Living Translation:
Mat 24:1
As Jesus was leaving the Temple grounds, his disciples pointed out to him the various Temple buildings.
Mat 24:2
But he told them, “Do you see all these buildings? I assure you, they will be so completely demolished that not one stone will be left on top of another!”
Mat 24:3
Later, Jesus sat on the slopes of the Mount of Olives. His disciples came to him privately and asked, “When will all this take place? And will there be any sign ahead of time to signal your return and the end of the world?”
Mat 24:4
Jesus told them, “Don’t let anyone mislead you.
Mat 24:5
For many will come in my name, saying, `I am the Messiah.’ They will lead many astray.
Mat 24:6
And wars will break out near and far, but don’t panic. Yes, these things must come, but the end won’t follow immediately.
Mat 24:7
The nations and kingdoms will proclaim war against each other, and there will be famines and earthquakes in many parts of the world.
Mat 24:8
But all this will be only the beginning of the horrors to come.
Mat 24:9
“Then you will be arrested, persecuted, and killed. You will be hated all over the world because of your allegiance to me.
Mat 24:10
And many will turn away from me and betray and hate each other.
Mat 24:11
And many false prophets will appear and will lead many people astray.
Mat 24:12
Sin will be rampant everywhere, and the love of many will grow cold.
Mat 24:13
But those who endure to the end will be saved.
Mat 24:14
And the Good News about the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, so that all nations will hear it; and then, finally, the end will come
Mat 24:15 “The time will come when you will see what Daniel the prophet spoke about: the sacrilegious object that causes desecration standing in the Holy Place”-reader, pay attention!
Mat 24:16 “Then those in Judea must flee to the hills.
Mat 24:17 A person outside the house must not go inside to pack.
Mat 24:18 A person in the field must not return even to get a coat.
Mat 24:19 How terrible it will be for pregnant women and for mothers nursing their babies in those days.
Mat 24:20 And pray that your flight will not be in winter or on the Sabbath.
Mat 24:21 For that will be a time of greater horror than anything the world has ever seen or will ever see again.
Mat 24:22 In fact, unless that time of calamity is shortened, the entire human race will be destroyed. But it will be shortened for the sake of God’s chosen ones.
Mat 24:23 “Then if anyone tells you, `Look, here is the Messiah,’ or `There he is,’ don’t pay any attention.
Mat 24:24 For false messiahs and false prophets will rise up and perform great miraculous signs and wonders so as to deceive, if possible, even God’s chosen ones.
Mat 24:25 See, I have warned you.
Mat 24:26 “So if someone tells you, `Look, the Messiah is out in the desert,’ don’t bother to go and look. Or, `Look, he is hiding here,’ don’t believe it!
Mat 24:27 For as the lightning lights up the entire sky, so it will be when the Son of Man comes.
Mat 24:28 Just as the gathering of vultures shows there is a carcass nearby, so these signs indicate that the end is near.
Mat 24:29 “Immediately after those horrible days end, the sun will be darkened, the moon will not give light, the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of heaven will be shaken
Mat 24:30 And then at last, the sign of the coming of the Son of Man will appear in the heavens, and there will be deep mourning among all the nations of the earth. And they will see the Son of Man arrive on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
Mat 24:31 And he will send forth his angels with the sound of a mighty trumpet blast, and they will gather together his chosen ones from the farthest ends of the earth and heaven.
Mat 24:32 “Now learn a lesson from the fig tree. When its buds become tender and its leaves begin to sprout, you know without being told that summer is near.
Mat 24:33 Just so, when you see the events I’ve described beginning to happen, you can know his return is very near, right at the door.
Mat 24:34 I assure you, this generation will not pass from the scene before all these things take place.
Mat 24:35 Heaven andearth will disappear, but my words will remain forever.
Mat 24:36 “However, no one knows the day or the hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows.
Mat 24:37 “When the Son of Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah’s day.
Mat 24:38 In those days before the Flood, the people were enjoying banquets and parties and weddings right up to the time Noah entered his boat.
Mat 24:39 People didn’t realize what was going to happen until the Flood came and swept them all away. That is the way it will be when the Son of Man comes.
Mat 24:40 “Two men will be working together in the field; one will be taken, the other left.
Mat 24:41 Two women will be grinding flour at the mill; one will be taken, the other left.
Mat 24:42 So be prepared, because you don’t know what day your Lord is coming….
Part 3
To understand time the end times we must study these words of Jesus and then compare these events to times in Daniel and Revelation. For example in Revelation Chapter 6. Remember this if you remember ANYTHING today. Revelation chapter 6 equals the same time as Mathew 24: Let’s read it.
Rev 6:1 As I watched, the Lamb broke the first of the seven seals on the scroll. Then one of the four living beings called out with a voice that sounded like thunder, “Come!”
Rev 6:2 I looked up and saw a white horse. Its rider carried a bow, and a crown was placed on his head. He rode out to win many battles and gain the victory.
Rev 6:3 When the Lamb broke the second seal, I heard the second living being say, “Come!”
Rev 6:4 And another horse appeared, a red one. Its rider was given a mighty sword and the authority to remove peace from the earth. And there was war and slaughter everywhere.
Rev 6:5 When the Lamb broke the third seal, I heard the third living being say, “Come!” And I looked up and saw a black horse, and its rider was holding a pair of scales in his hand.
Rev 6:6 And a voice from among the four living beings said, “A loaf of wheat bread or three loaves of barley for a day’s pay. And don’t waste the olive oil and wine.”
Rev 6:7 And when the Lamb broke the fourth seal, I heard the fourth living being say, “Come!”
Rev 6:8 And I looked up and saw a horse whose color was pale green like a corpse. And Death was the name of its rider, who was followed around by the Grave. They were given authority over one-fourth of the earth, to kill with the sword and famine and disease and wild animals.
Part 4
Herein is the mystery solved. The first Horseman. “I looked up and saw a white horse. Its rider carried a bow, and a crown was placed on his head. He rode out to win many battles and gain the victory.” Compare this to the first warning that Jesus gives us. “”Don’t let anyone mislead you. For many will come in my name, saying, `I am the Messiah.’ They will lead many astray” Clearly the first White horse represents FALSE religion and not just any false religion! Read carefully what Jesus says! “Many will come in MY NAME!” Muslims don’t come in Jesus’ name, communist don’t, neither do atheist! Christians come in Jesus’ name and he says to watch out for them! The reason why is simple…. Not all “Christians” are to be believed. Jesus also said “many will come in MY NAME performing many miracles, casting out demons and I will tell them “away from me, all of you who practice lawlessness!” Jesus’ definition of fake Christianity are those who practice lawlessness. What does that mean? 1 John gives us the only Biblical definition of lawlessness. It is Sin. Better said, SIN is the breaking of the LAW! Any Christian Church that tells you that the Law is abolished is not of God! Read Matthew chapter 5. “Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to fulfill them” and I assure you, until heaven and earth disappear, even the smallest detail of God’s law will remain until its purpose is achieved.
Has Heaven and Earth passed away? If not, then all of the Law of God is still in force! Jesus did not come to abolish God’s Law; after all it was Jesus who wrote the Law to Moses with his own very finger! Read John chapter 8. “The truth is, before Abraham was ever born “I AM”. “I AM” is the personal name for the LORD in Exodus. It’s in Exodus chapter 3. Look it up for yourself. Moses wants to know the name of the God that he is speaking to. God says “I AM who I AM, Tell the people I AM has sent you to them.” Is anything any clearer who Jesus claimed to be?
The rider of the white horse is the great deceiver leading millions away from the truth of the Gospel. Jesus says that this rider will lead MANY ASTRAY! Christians can be lead astray!
The Second Horseman
“And another horse appeared, a red one. Its rider was given a mighty sword and the authority to remove peace from the earth. And there was war and slaughter everywhere.” Revelation chapter 6
Compare this to Jesus second warning… “And wars will break out near and far, but don’t panic. Yes, these things must come, but the end won’t follow immediately. The nations and kingdoms will proclaim war against each other, and there will be famines and earthquakes in many parts of the world.”
The second Red horse is the horse of war! We are to watch for false Christianity and World War… A time like WWII, but wait there is more.
The Third Horseman
“When the Lamb broke the third seal, I heard the third living being say, “Come!” And I looked up and saw a black horse, and its rider was holding a pair of scales in his hand.” Revelation 6.
Compare to Jesus next warning “and there will be famines and earthquakes in many parts of the world.” World famine is the third Black horse. A time is coming when famine will reach the whole world, not just Africa, we all will be in famine, even in those in our modern world!
The fourth Horseman
The fourth horseman is death. “Then you will be arrested, persecuted, and killed. You will be hated all over the world because of your allegiance to me.”
My friends, we ARE NOT YET living in these times! We are to watch for them. We are to be watching the news daily for false Christianity, war, large scale famine and death to Christians. I am sorry to tell you that Christians are not going to escape through a “rapture”, that is only another form of the deception we are warned against. We will, in the Last days face down the terror and OVERCOME by the strength of our Lord Jesus Christ. Many will die, suffer and almost give up to the Devil, but “For that will be a time of greater horror than anything the world has ever seen or will ever see again. In fact, unless that time of calamity is shortened, the entire human race will be destroyed. But it will be shortened for the sake of God’s chosen ones.” Jesus is going to come back just at the exact second when even his Chosen One’s are going to “lose it” and save them and the world from total alienation!
Notice these words by the way… “And pray that your flight will not be in winter or on the Sabbath.” Why are those Christians still following The Sabbath Day at the time of the end and not Sunday?
The Bible’s Prediction:
In summary these are the events that will occur right before the end time. Daniel Chapter 11 and Revelation Chapter 11-12 are the same time frame. A great King of the North will arise, which I believe is Europe when you understand other Bible versus. This King of the North will also have authority granted to him by the world’s greatest spiritual leader located in Rome. The North is a rebirth of the Holy Roman Empire, under Germany. The King of the South, AGAIN in my opinion, will be a united Arab league under a dictator like Hussein or Bin Laden.
Two witnesses will appear, and at this same time God’s Church will go underground. “And the woman fled into the wilderness, where Godhad prepared a place to giveher care for 1,260 days” Rev 12:6 The two witnesses will be like Moses and Aaron before Pharaoh and their message of the Gospel will be preached to the whole world thus fulfilling Jesus’ prophecy that this Gospel will be preached to the whole world, then the end shall come. They will be publicly killed live on TV (Revel 11:9) and the whole world will see their dead bodies. I believe this time will be Christmas! Christmas is not a Biblical Holiday! Read Revelation 11:10 “All the people who belong to this world will give presents to each other to celebrate the death of the two prophets who had tormented them.” When do people give gifts to one another???? Remember, the majority Christian world at the time of the end will be deceived!
At this time, this King of the North will proclaim himself to be God. He will, according to Jesus, “The time will come when you will see what Daniel the prophet spoke about: the sacrilegious object that causes desecration standing in the Holy Place”-reader, pay attention!” This man will sit on the Holy Seat in a NEW TEMPLE which will be rebuilt in Jerusalem and proclaim himself as GOD and go to war with God’s Church. Then, and only then will “And then at last, the sign of the coming of the Son ofMan will appear in the heavens, and there will be deep mourning among all the nations of the earth. And they willsee the Son of Man arrive on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.” At this very moment, at the blasting of the last trumpet The dead in Christ will awake from their graves (1 Cor 15) and join with those who are still alive in immortal spirit life-filled heavenly bodies, never to be able to die again. This is the first resurrection talked about in Revelation. (Revel 20:6). The rest of those who died do not awake until after a 1,000 year reign of Christ and his Christians ON EARTH as it is IN HEAVEN!
We may be living in the last years, but we know Christ’s return is not immanent. We are not to know when his return is, we are to ready ourselves for that return and live life accordingly. God is coming back… In 10 years, 100 years or 1,000 years. That, you can bet on.