Revelation Chapter 20 Revealed

Revelation: Chapter 20

by Dr. David R. Reagan

www.lamblion.us

As Chapter 20 opens, Jesus is ready to begin His reign here on Earth. But, there's one last piece of business He's got to take care of. He has taken care of the Antichrist and the False Prophet. He's defeated them and their armies, and He has thrown them into the Lake of Fire, which is Hell, where they will be tormented forever and ever.

But, there's still one last rebel left, and that's Satan. So, the Lord's first business in Chapter 20 is to bind Satan and put him into a great abyss where he will be confined for the next thousand years. During that time, Satan and his demonic hoards will not be allowed to roam upon the Earth.

Who will reign?

Then, Chapter 20 says that we the Redeemed are going to reign with the Lord Jesus Christ for a thousand years. That reign is not described here in great detail. You will find the detailed description of it in the Old Testament, particularly in the book of Isaiah. We are told that Jesus will rule with a "rod of iron," and we are told that some people will reign with Him, specifically, those to whom judgment has been given.

Now, who specifically will reign with Jesus? According to Daniel 7, Old Testament saints will be included in this group. "The saints of the highest one will receive the kingdom, then the sovereignty, the dominion, and the greatness of all the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be given to the people of the saints of the highest one."

The apostles will also be included. In Matthew 19:28 Jesus promised his apostles that, "In the regeneration when the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne, you shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel."

Those of us who have become saints during the Church Age will certainly be included. That promise is made in several places in the New Testament. For example, in Revelation 2 it states: "and he who overcomes, to him I will give authority over the nations; and He shall rule them with a rod of iron."

Finally, the Tribulation martyrs who die for Jesus will be included, according to Revelation 20. "And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of the testimony of Jesus and they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years."

What will we do?

Some of us will be administrators serving as mayors, governors and kings. Jesus made this point in one of His parables that degrees of reigning authority would be part of the rewards that believers would receive, based upon their faithfulness in this life. Others of us will serve as judges. Most of us will serve as teachers. That's right, we're going to provide the worldwide educational system, serving as shepherds and priests of God. It will be our responsibility to bring each person born during the Millennium to salvation through a saving faith in Jesus.

None of us will be legislators — none of us — because the government of the world will be a theocracy in which Jesus will be both the spiritual and governmental leader. The offices of priest and king will be combined in Him. He will give the law and we will teach it and enforce it.

Who will the Redeemed be ruling over?

Where will the millennial population come from? The people who will be allowed to go into the Millennium in the flesh will be the small number of Jews and Gentiles who live to the end of the Tribulation who have accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. You see, when Jesus returns, we're told that He will judge immediately all those left alive. The Jewish judgment is described in Ezekiel 20 and the Gentile in Matthew 25. Those who have not accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior at the end of that Tribulation period will be consigned to death.

You and I — the Redeemed — will be in glorified bodies, like the body Jesus has now. And, just as He mingled and interacted with His disciples after His resurrection while He was in a glorified body and they were in fleshly bodies, in like manner, we who will be in glorified bodies will live among and rule over those who are in fleshly bodies.

Jesus will reign in His glorified body as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords from Jerusalem. We're told in the Old Testament that David in his glorified body will rule as the king of Israel. And, as I said before, some of us will be administrators and some of us will be judges, and most of us will be teachers. We will be scattered all over the earth reigning over those who are in the flesh.

We're told in the book of Isaiah that life spans will be returned to what they were at the Fall in the Garden of Eden, that is, a thousand years. That means the people who enter the Millennium in the flesh and the children born to them during the Millennium will live the entire time. And, because death will be curtailed and life spans will be extended, the earth will experience a great population explosion. Most likely, by the end of the Millennium, there will be more people on the face of the earth than ever before in the history of mankind. And, it will be the responsibility of the Redeemed to bring those born during that time to salvation in Jesus Christ.

Who will be saved in the Millennial Kingdom?

You may think, "Well, of course everyone will accept Jesus during the Millennial Kingdom. After all, they will be able to see Him in His glorified body, and they will experience first-hand the blessings of His rule." But remember, Jesus was here once before, and all He did was love people and heal them and feed them, and they responded by nailing Him to a cross.

The heart of man is going to be no different during this Millennial period. Sin will be less because Satan and his demonic hoards will be restrained, but there will still be sin and rebellion in people's hearts because we are born with a sin nature. According to Jesus, the evil that is in the world comes from within man. All Satan does is multiply it through temptation. In fact, that's one of the purposes of the Millennium. God is going to use the Millennium to prove that Satan's religion — humanism — is wrong when it says that the way to change the world is to change society. Humanists take that position because they believe that evil is rooted in society. But, the word of God says that evil is rooted in the fallen nature of man and that the only way to change the world is to change people's hearts.

So, God is going to put all of mankind into a perfect environment for a thousand years, and at the end of that time He's going to let Satan loose. Satan will then expose the seed of rebellion that is in people's hearts. He will do this by convincing the nations to rebel against Jesus.

How can man rebel while in a paradise?

At this point you are probably wondering, "Well, why would people rebel after experiencing one thousand years of peace, righteousness and justice?" Well, think for a moment, think what it would be like to live under "the rule of the rod of iron" in the flesh. The flesh would want all the pleasures of the world: drugs, gambling, illicit sex, and pornography. But, these things would not be allowed under Jesus' rule of the rod of iron. Any attempt to indulge the flesh would be met with swift and sure justice. Violators would be tried before judges in glorified bodies, and there would be no appeal, because the judge's decision would be perfect.

And so, people on the surface will say, "We praise you Jesus!" But, there will be seething rebellion in their hearts. Satan is going to expose that rebellious spirit.

We're told in Revelation 20:7 that Satan will be let loose to test mankind, and he will rally the nations of the earth against Jesus. This will be man's last revolt against God, and through it God will prove conclusively that we do not change people by simply changing their environment. It is their hearts that must be changed, and that can be done only through the power of the Holy Spirit.

What is the final judgment?

The Millennium will conclude with God pouring out His wrath upon Satan and those who follow him. Satan will be thrown into the Lake of Fire to join the Antichrist and the False Prophet.

And then, God will resurrect and judge all the unrighteous who have ever lived, whether in Old Testament times, the Church Age, or the Millennium. This judgment is called "The Great White Throne Judgment." It is the judgment of the damned. All those who ever lived and died outside a faith relationship with God will be judged of their works to determine their eternal destiny. And, since no man can be justified before God by his works, all those who come before the Great White Throne Judgment — all of them — will be condemned to the Lake of Fire to experience what the Bible calls the "Second Death."

Jerusalem in the Last Days

O, Jerusalem!

Dave Hunt

www.thebereancall.org

Israel is the major topic of the Bible, occupying most of its pages. The many prophecies concerning its past, present, and future are vital in understanding God’s Word. Sadly, they are ignored, explained away, or simply rejected by the vast majority of professing Christians, a growing number of whom insist that Israel has been replaced by the church.

Yet Jeremiah declares that Israel will never “cease from being a nation” (Jer 31:35-37); in just one sermon Paul refers to Israel as an ongoing entity three times (Acts 13:17, 23, 24); and on the twelve gates of heavenly Jerusalem are written the names of “the twelve tribes of the children of Israel” (Rev 21:12)—so ten tribes were not lost after all!—along with the names of “the twelve apostles of the Lamb” in the foundations (21:14). Unaware that “replacement theology” is one of several Roman Catholic doctrines that clung to Luther, Calvin, and other leading reformers, it is accepted by many as Reformation theology.

Jesus Christ, the Savior and Redeemer of all who believe on Him, is, of course, the most important subject in Scripture—yet without Israel, there would be no Savior. Jesus is a Jew, descended from Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob through King David, giving Him the right to rule Israel and the world. He was born in Israel, lived there all of His days on earth, and (with few exceptions) ministered solely to Jews: “I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Mat 15:24). He commanded His disciples, “Go not into the way of the Gentiles...but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Mat 10:5,6). After the Cross and Resurrection, however, He commanded them to take the gospel “into all the world” (Mat 28:19; Mk 16:15)—but the gospel remains “to the Jew first, and also to the Greek” (Rom 1:16).

Last month we saw that the incredible vastness of space makes it impossible for mankind to penetrate even the fringes of the cosmos either by vehicle or radio. How staggering, then, that the Creator has selected this tiny planet and one small city on it to be eternally the center of the universe. Bypassing thousands of larger cities with greater beauty and natural resources, God chose Jerusalem, saying, “I will put my name [there] for ever” (2 Kings 21:7; 2 Chr 33:7).

God declared that in the last days He would cause Jerusalem to be “a burdensome stone for all people” (Zec 12:3). For that to become true, there had to be a worldwide organization. The United Nations was formed in 1945 in time to vote Israel back into existence after 1,800 years of destruction and dispersion. And Jerusalem has become such a burden that the UN has spent one-third of its time debating and condemning Israel, a miniscule nation that represents merely one one-thousandth of earth’s population. Finally, World War III will be fought over Jerusalem as Antichrist’s armies seek to frustrate God’s plans for her and to accomplish at last Hitler’s “final solution to the Jewish problem” with the destruction of Israel and all Jews worldwide.

Twice in the Bible Jerusalem is called “the city of our God” (Ps 48:1, 8), twice the “city of God” (Ps 46:4; 87:3), eight times “the holy city” (Neh 11:1; Isa 48:2; 52:1; Mat 4:5, etc.), and once “the city of the LORD of hosts” (Ps 48:8). God has decreed that never will there be a city to rival Jerusalem! It is mentioned 811 times in the Bible but not once in the Qur’an, showing the lie that it ever was sacred to Muslims. Only after Israel’s rebirth was this bogus claim invented to justify Muslim attacks against Israel as an “occupying power.” The USA, UN, EU, et al., accept this lie as the basis of a “peace” they intend to force upon Israel with Muslim neighbors determined to destroy her.

Jerusalem’s entire history, including its destruction and ultimate restoration in the “last days,” was pronounced by ancient Hebrew prophets and by Jesus Christ (“There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down”–Mat 24:2; “the city shall be built...it shall not be...thrown down any more for ever”–Jer 31:38-40). Still in process, in the face of fierce opposition from the world and Satan, the ongoing fulfillment of these prophecies (none of which could possibly apply to the church) is the greatest proof God gives of His existence and that the Bible is His infallible Word—a vital proof that replacement theology rejects.

That Christians would deny God’s purposes for Israel is beyond comprehension. Equally incredible, throughout history Israel herself has rejected God and the blessings He would impart. This rebellion has persisted in spite of spectacular displays of God’s power and protection: the parting of the Red Sea, guidance by a pillar of fire by night and of cloud by day, water from a rock, fresh manna daily, hearing God speak with an audible voice, seeing the walls of Jericho come down, and the miraculous defeat of armies far superior to its own, etc.

This inexcusable unbelief continues today on the part of most Jews worldwide, as well as in the church. The vast majority of Jews persist in rejecting Christ as their Messiah in spite of His fulfillment of hundreds of prophecies that prove His identity beyond dispute. As their own Hebrew prophets foretold, the Messiah has come and has been rejected by His people and the world. Moreover, they even join heretical replacement theologians in refusing to acknowledge God’s hand in preserving the Jews as an identifiable ethnic people and bringing them back into their land after 2,500 years of dispersion.

Nothing so exemplifies God’s passionate desire to bless Israel, and her determined rejection of Him and the blessings He wants to bestow, as does Christ’s anguished lament over Jerusalem. Viewing the city of God from the Mount of Olives, He wept over her: “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee; how often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would not!” (Lk 13:34).

The New Testament records only one instance of Christ weeping over Jerusalem. How, then, could He claim to have wept over her countless times? Clearly, He was claiming to be the God of Israel, who sent His prophets repeatedly: “And the LORD hath sent unto you all his servants the prophets, rising early and sending them...yet ye have not hearkened unto me, saith the LORD” (Jer 25:3-7).

As for replacement theology, yes, there are many similarities between Israel and the church: both are called God’s “elect” (Isa 45:4; Mat 24:31; 1 Pt 1:2); both are called to be a “peculiar people” separated from the world (Lev 20:24-26; Deut 14:2; Titus 2:14; 1 Pt 2:9); both were to be hated and persecuted (even to the death) by the world (Ps 119:161; Ps 143:3; Mat 24:9; Jn 15:20; 17:14); and both are called to holiness (Lev 20:7; 1 Pt 1:15).

However, there are many distinctions: Israel is promised a country and a city on this earth, the church a home in heaven. Israel will be ruled by Christ; the church will rule Israel and the world with Him. Two-thirds of all Jews on earth will be killed under Antichrist (Zec 13:8-9); but the church will not be on earth at that time, having been married to Christ in heaven (Rev 19:7,8). Israel will recognize Christ for the first time at His Second Coming; the church will arrive with Him from heaven in triumph (Zec 14:4,5; Jude 14) as His bride, never to leave His side.

Israel has always been in almost total unbelief, even in the days of Moses (Ps 81:8-13), but the church was faithful at the beginning and only goes into apostasy in the “last days” (Acts 20:29,30; 2 Thes 2:3). In spite of the complaint that the Israelis don’t deserve to be there because of their rebellion and rejection of Christ, their unbelief is no worse now than when God first brought them into the land under Joshua. Israel constantly rebelled and worshiped idols even under Moses on the way to the Promised Land.

Israel will come out of apostasy in a total transformation and restoration on this earth (Eze 36,37); but the church sinks ever deeper into apostasy until the Rapture (Acts 20:29-31; 2 Thes 2:3; Jude 3,4, etc.) and will only be perfected in heaven. Israel had already fallen away from the very beginning: the church began well but is in the process of falling away as the apostasy worsens in the last days. At my recent meetings in many places throughout England, a large percentage of those attending had fled apostate churches.

As Israel went into idolatry, adopting the gods of the nations around her, so the church, through the growing ecumenical movement, embraces false doctrine. Englishmen, whose forebears stood firmly against Rome’s grievous heresies in spite of flame and sword, now boast of their unity with the whore of Babylon. While there I thought repeatedly of Hugh Latimer and Nicolas Ridley, in 1555, bound to the same stake at Oxford for refusing to accept the alleged “transubstantiation” of a wafer into the literal body of Christ. As the flames mounted, Latimer exclaimed, “Be of good comfort, Master Ridley, and play the man; we shall this day by God’s grace light such a candle in England as I trust shall never be put out.” Tragically, that flame is barely visible. The 16th-century Reformation that transformed England and Europe is now repudiated by the vast majority of Christians and church leaders.

Billy Graham says his beliefs are basically the same as those of orthodox Roman Catholics. He claims that the Mass is “straight and true to the gospel” and boasts that the RCC has welcomed him everywhere. Chuck Colson, an architect of ECT, advocates joining Rome and attends Mass with his Roman Catholic wife. Rick Warren, James Dobson, et al., surely know better, yet work with Catholics and their Church and give no warning that Catholicism is the road to hell. I’d like to see these men visit Lourdes, France (as Ruth and I have just done) without being grieved in their spirits and smitten in their consciences.

Our hearts broke for these poor deceived people arriving at Lourdes in a continual stream by the thousands each day, many in wheel chairs or on pallets. As the long line moves slowly through the grotto, where “Mary” appeared to Bernadette in 1858, hands reach out to caress its walls, hoping to receive a healing or blessing. Some are whispering under their breath the “Prayer to Our Lady of Lourdes: ‘O immaculate Virgin Mary, Mother of Mercy, you are the refuge of sinners, the health of the sick, and the comfort of the afflicted....By your appearance at the Grotto of Lourdes you made it a privileged sanctuary where your favors are given to people streaming to it from the whole world....Therefore I come to you with limitless confidence....Obtain, O loving Mother...my requests...I will endeavor to imitate Your virtues, that I may one day share in your glory.’” Mother of Mercy...refuge of sinners...your glory? What blasphemy!

This Catholic “Mary” is the dominant figure everywhere one turns. Jesus appears only as a babe in her arms (even in heaven!), hanging on the Cross, or lifeless on her lap at the foot of the Cross. In the main cathedral, behind the altar hovers a huge “Mary,” with the words, Par Marie à Jésus [“Through Mary to Jesus”]. Yes, Jesus is the acknowledged mediator with God, but Mary is the only way to Jesus. Any exaltation of Jesus is conspicuously absent. On hundreds of the stones with which the cathedral has been built are inscribed praises of and prayers to “Mary.”

Throngs of deluded souls, bearing candles of many sizes (purchased nearby at varying prices), walk the 100 yards or so past the grotto to two rows of adjoining metal stalls, where candles are put into position and lit with the flame of another to add to the continual conflagration. Thousands of these candles burn simultaneously, day and night, the melting wax dripping down through the grill into metal boxes that are replaced with empty ones and wheeled back to the factory to be recycled into more candles to make more money for the Church. Above and behind the candles in each section are written the words in several languages: in French—Cette lumière prolonge ma prière [“this light extends my prayer”].

The devout followers of “Mary” can also purchase Masses to be said for one’s “intention” somewhere in the world. Outside the fenced grounds, the town streets are lined with shops whose cash registers are ringing up sales of indulgences, crucifixes, and all manner of holy hardware that the Church has devised for passing on blessings from the “Virgin”—at a price. Among the biggest sellers are varying sizes of plastic bottles shaped like the “Virgin Mary” to be filled with water from the sacred spring.

Israel’s apostasy, including idol worship, is no worse than what Rome practices and with which evangelicals have joined in ecumenical partnership. The world is in rebellion against God, but so is the church. Proof of that rebellion is everywhere.

In one Normandy cemetery, I stumbled heartbroken through hundreds of the more than 9,000 stark white marble crosses marking, in perfect rows, the graves of men who died in the June 1944 invasion that freed Europe. Each marker bears the name, rank, outfit, and date of death. Unable to fathom such horror, I sobbed uncontrollably, my chest heaving, crying out, “Lord, why did you make man? You knew all the evil and suffering that would result. What is the point of these crosses? How many of these men believed in the Christ who died for their sins?”

Here and there was a white marble Star of David. A surprising number of these monuments had no names but only the caption, “Here rests in honored glory a comrade in arms known but to God.” I thought of the many who were not resting but were in agony in the flames of hell. And once more, with heaving chest and irrepressible sobs, I gasped again and again, “Why, Lord? Why?”

I knew that God had created man to bestow His love and blessing upon him. This present evil world is not what God made and He cannot be blamed for it. This is the world man has made in defiance of God, by trying to act as his own God.

My sobs were only an echo of the cry of God’s own heart—which should touch ours. The Father grieves over this world, whether for the centuries-long rejection of His love by His chosen ones, the Jews, or for the apostasy of today’s “Christian” church, or for the lost who thumb their noses at His offer of forgiveness for their sins and eternal life in His presence.

Let us pray that true repentance will yet come to the church and to the world to gladden the Father’s heart and that Christ will see of the travail of His soul and be satisfied.

We hear the lament O Jerusalem! echoing through the centuries undiminished, though Jew and Gentile crucified Him there. Now He weeps for the entire world. May we as envoys of His compassion do all we can to rescue as many as possible before it is forever too late.

Global Warming or End Time Catastrophic Climatic Imbalance?

Global Warming's True Believers 

Jack Kinsella 

Omega Letter Editor 

www.omegaletter.com 

Despite the realities of the situation, not the least of which is the sudden and total lack of evidence, the faith that True Believers have in anthropomorphic global warming is truly inspiring.

'Anthropomorphic' means 'man-caused' and that is a key element to the entire global warming swindle. If it is man-made, then an argument can be made that man should do something about it.

In such a case, some of the various schemes being advanced, like cap-and-trade, carbon credits and carbon-neutral footprints would make sense. (Almost).

The True Believers don't just have to have faith that the earth continues to warm even as the temperature falls. True Believers must not only have have faith that global warming causes falling temperatures, they have to be willing to make the argument in public.

True Believers must have faith that, despite all that is known about historical weather patterns, this time it is going to be catastrophic unless "something" is done to prevent it.

And more than anything else, True Believers must have faith that global warming is the direct result of human activity. That faith must be unshakeable, otherwise they wouldn't be True Believers. Indeed, one could argue that it is at this point that global warming passes from the realm of science into that of religion.

First off, the earth is carbon-based, so it shouldn't come as a surprise that the earth emits carbons into the atmosphere. What would one expect a carbon-based planet to emit?

The planet's atmosphere is designed to function as a greenhouse. Were it not for the canopy of greenhouse gases surrounding our earth, water would boil in the noonday sun, and freeze solid every night. (If water could exist at all).

Let's consider the greenhouse gases themselves, for a second. The big one is carbon dioxide (82%). Carbon dioxide is what you breathe out after you've extracted all the oxygen. Plants breathe in the carbon dioxide and breathe out oxygen. Without carbon dioxide, plants would suffocate and we would suffocate soon afterwards.

Nitrogen is another pollutant, say the True Believers. Nothing on this earth that grows, a cornfield to a baby nursery, can grow without nitrogen. Carbon dioxide and nitrogen together account for about 90% of greenhouse gases.

According even to Al Gore, ninety-six percent of all the global-warming causing greenhouse gases are emitted by the oceans. That leaves four percent. Two percent of the remaining total is caused by land-locked natural events outside of human control.

That leaves about two percent of the global-warming causing greenhouse gases that one might argue are 'optional' -- that is to say, that can be affected by human behavior, or 'anthropomorphic'. Two percent.

The True Believers claim that human activity is responsible for 14% of global warming gases is almost true. It is actually fourteen percent of the two percent of the whole greenhouse gas cycle. (Cow flatulence accounts for eighteen percent -- so humans aren't even the worst offenders.)

Anthropomorphic greenhouse gases account for a tiny percent of a tinier percent of the whole picture. One can have fun with numbers and demonstrate how greenhouse gases have increased over certain periods of time and then point to rising temperatures.

But that doesn't change the equation. If man-made activity accounts for 14% of 2% of the total greenhouse gas emissions, if we doubled our emission levels and temperature fluctuations today, it would still account for just 28% of 2%.

If we totally eliminated man-made emissions, it would reduce greenhouse gases by 14% of 2% of the total.

No matter how one spins the numbers, in reality, human activity is just a drop in the proverbial bucket.

Here's a news flash from 1755: "Scientists Link Sun To Global Warming!"

Scientists have been tracking solar activity since 1755 when astronomers noted a relationship between sunspots and the climate, so they began recording their findings. sunspots come and go in roughly eleven-year cycles, but during the 17th century, they had all but disappeared.

That period of solar inactivity is called the "Maunder Minimum" after the astronomer who discovered it. Since then, science has noted that when the sun’s activity is high and low are related to warm and cool climatic periods.

The weak sun in the 17th century coincided with the so-called Little Ice Age. Coincidence? Sunspot activiy took a dip between 1790 and 1830 and the earth also cooled a little. It was weak during the cold Iron Age, and active during the warm Bronze Age.

During the 20th century the sun was unusually active, peaking in the 1950s and the late 1980s. Dean Pensell of NASA, says that, “since the Space Age began in the 1950s, solar activity has been generally high. Five of the ten most intense solar cycles on record have occurred in the last 50 years.”

Mysteriously, (from the perspective of the True Believers) the sun became increasingly active at the same time that the Earth warmed. And since the turn of the century, sunspot activity has all but disappeared. And mysteriously, so has any evidence of global warming.

The UK Independent recently quoted Marc Hairston of the University of Texas saying of solar activity, "This is the lowest we’ve ever seen. We thought we’d be out of it by now, but we’re not.”

In a recent speech, Hillary Clinton announced: "The science is unambiguous, and the logic that flows from it is inescapable: climate change is a clear and present danger to our world that demands immediate attention."

Here's a clue (from a Fox News report): "A greenhouse gases trading system funded with the support of then-Illinois State Sen. Barack Obama, which is likely to play a major role in his $650 million cap-and-trade initiative, lists five present or former top-ranking U.N. officials on its advisory board who've had enormous influence over climate change matters -- including one who received $1 million from a convicted South Korean lobbyist.

The most controversial figure of the five, Maurice Strong, was one of former Secretary General Kofi Annan's key aides at the U.N. for years until the Iraq Oil-for-Food scandal forced him to leave. Since then Strong has lived mostly in China. Calls to the exchange for comment about Strong's role, and that of other U.N. figures, were not returned."

Why is it, do you think, that belief in anthropomorphic global warming is primarily a liberal religion? The Bible says, "by their fruits, ye shall know them."

Maurice Strong is serves as Special Advisor to the Secretary-General of the United Nations and as Senior Advisor to the President of the World Bank.

He is also, among many other things Chairman of Strovest Holdings, Chairman and Director of Technology Development Corp, Director of the Foundation Board of the World Economic Forum and Chairman of the Earth Council. Strong's former appointments include Secretary General of the World Bank and Director of the Rockefeller Foundation. He is a leading Bilderberger, and member of the Trilateral Commission, the Council on Foreign Relations and Club of Rome.

Maurice Strong is to the New Age and environmental movement what George Soros is to the Fascist Far Left. Strong is a Rockefeller socialist proponent of a one world government and one world religion (New Age) with links to the Lucis Trust (formerly Lucifer Trust) founded by Alice Bailey.

One of his more famous quotes sounds a lot like what is now unfolding before us: "We may get to the point where the only way of saving the world will be for industrial civilization to collapse."

There are several things I want you to take note of before we move on. The first is the actual science, to wit: the sudden and inexplicable collapse of solar activity. The second is the corresponding collapse of any evidence pointing to global warming.

The third is the refusal by the fascists, socialists, New Agers and US 'progressives' like Obama, Gore or Clinton to consider the obvious connection between the sun and the weather. (That one never ceases to amaze me).

The fourth is the religious nature of the debate. Scientists who question the global warming 'consensus' are dismissed using the distinctly religious epithet, 'heretic'. Global warming champions revel in the label 'true believers'. Evidence is irrelevant.

Finally, note the way the fear of global warming has reshaped the debate. The fear-mongering is almost cartoonish. The stakes are enormous. Nobody on either side of the debate knows what to do next. Those who advocate doing nothing are even worse than heretics -- it is surreal.

Until one considers it from the perspective of Bible prophecy.

"And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring: Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken. . . . "

"And when these things BEGIN TO COME TO PASS, then look up, and lift up your heads, for your redemption draweth nigh." (Luke 21:25-26, 28)

The No 1 Super Sign of the End Times

Israel: The Super Sign of the End-Times, Parts 2 & 3 

By Dr. Todd Baker 

www.raptureready.com

Secular historians generally write history from an anthropocentric view; that is, how it relates and centers on Man and his development and various achievements in a closed universe. But the Bible concentrates on the historical fulfillment of God's covenantal relationship with the nation of Israel leading up to the first coming of the Messiah and His second coming to Israel in a supernatural fashion whereby God freely and arbitrarily intervenes in the affairs of man. In fact, the Bible says God determines the national boundaries and demographic habitations of humanity with the intent that the children of Israel could live in the land of Canaan in an area that would perfectly accommodate their numbers and allow for this. For Deuteronomy 32:8 says: "When the Most High divided their inheritance to the nations, when He separated the sons of Adam, He set the boundaries of the peoples according to the number of the children of Israel." And all that the Bible has predicted about Israel's divine history thus far has literally come to pass.

So then it is only reasonable and natural to conclude that the prophecies about Israel's future will also literally be fulfilled. Bible Prophecy predicted as a super sign and precondition for the return of Christ the regathering of the Jewish people to their ancient homeland as the nation of Israel. That took place on May 14, 1948. The rest of this article will explore and explain how the modern nation of Israel is fulfilling this role as the super-sign to indicate the coming of Christ is close at hand and could very well happen in our generation.

The Bible predicts in Deuteronomy 30:1-3 that the return of the Lord Jesus Christ will occur sometime after the regathering and return of the Jews from world wide dispersion into the land of Israel. God gave this prophecy through Moses and the Jews just before God brought them into the land of Canaan. The Authorized Version of these verses is most telling:

"And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call them to mind among all the nations whither the Lord thy God hath driven thee, And shalt return unto the Lord thy God, and shalt obey His voice. According to all that I commanded thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soul; That then the Lord thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations, whither the Lord thy God hath scattered thee."

Notice the chronology or sequence of prophetic events here:

(1) God will bring the Jews back to the land of Israel from the nations of the world where they were scattered abroad by Him for their disobedience.

(2) During this regathering the Lord Himself "will return" and complete the restoration of all Israel back into the land.

In others words, when God begins to bring the Jews back into their land He gave them, Christ will return! The phrase "will return" is omitted from most modern translations of the Bible since the Masoretic text (upon which the majority of modern translations of the Old Testament are based upon) and the Septuagint (Greek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament) do not include it. But the Dead Sea Scrolls copied some 150 years before the birth of Christ and over 1,000 years older than any previously discovered manuscript of the Bible includes this very phrase! The passage reads as follows: "Then the Lord your God will restore you from captivity, and have compassion on you, and will return and gather you from the peoples, [from] where the Lord your God has scattered you." (Martin Abegg, Jr., Peter Flint, and Eugene Ulrich, The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible, p. 187). Thus, the phrase has good precedent for being included as from the original. And the prophecy given in Deuteronomy 30:3 foretells that when the Jews return to their ancient homeland from the Diaspora (the scattering of the Jews to all Gentile nations of the world after the Babylonian exile in 586 B.C. and the Roman destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D.), the Lord Jesus Christ will return. If we just had this prophecy alone in Scripture concerning the return of the Jews to Israel and the return of the Lord following it, this would be adequate alone to believe in His word that He would regather the Jews back to Israel and subsequently return at the second Coming. This unquestionably means in the words of author Homer Duncan that:

"For centuries, the prophecies concerning the regathering of Israel lay dormant in the Word of God. There was no outward indication that they would be fulfilled, but they are now being fulfilled before our eyes, and this can mean but one thing: THE COMING OF THE LORD DRAWS NEAR." (Homer Duncan, Israel: Past, Present, Future, p. 16)

There have been two dispersions in Israel’s history collectively referred to as the Diaspora. The first dispersion of Jews from the land of Israel began in 721 B.C. when the Assyrians invaded the Northern kingdom of Israel and led them away into captivity for their gross idolatry and disobedience to the Law of Moses (Isaiah 10:5-7; 2 Kings 17:5-23). The last stage of this dispersion occurred in 586 B.C. At that time the Babylonians armies led by King Nebuchadnezzar laid siege against Jerusalem at conquered the Southern Kingdom and took the Jews of Judea and Jerusalem captive into Babylon for seventy years (Jeremiah 25:4-12; Daniel 9:1-2; 2 Chronicles 36:14-20). In 539 B.C. the Persian king Cyrus issued a decree allowing 50,000 Jews to return to the land of Israel under the leadership of Ezra, Zerubbabel, and Nehemiah (Ezra 1:1-6:22; Nehemiah 11:1-13:31). Both the Assyrian and Babylonian invasions are considered a single dispersion instead of two since half of the nation went into exile in 721 B.C. and the other half going into exile in 586 B.C. But before God scattered them in the first dispersion He gave them warning after warning to forsake their disobedient and wicked ways through His servants the prophets. Israel did not heed their warnings of divine judgment and calls for repentance. Because He knew they were reprobate and unwilling to return Him, the Lord displaced and scattered them from the Land (Jeremiah 5-6; 8:7-17; 2 Chronicles 36:14-17).

The second dispersion of the nation came in 70 A.D. when Titus and his Roman legions burned and razed Jerusalem and razed the Temple literally not leaving one stone upon another, thus fulfilling the prophecies of Micah and Jesus found in Micah 3:12 and Matthew 24:2. In fact in the early 1990’s archaeologists doing excavations along the southern part of the Western Wall unearthed a pile of those original Temple stones that were dismantled stone by massive stone in 70 A.D.—an ancient testament to the veracity of Jesus’ prophecy and the historical accuracy of the New Testament. The Bible not only predicted the fact of Israel’s dispersion but also the condition the Jews would be in during it. The Jews would not have a king to sit on David’s throne, nor would they have a Temple in Jerusalem or priesthood to offer sacrifices; and finally they would no longer worship idols. Hosea foresaw this dispersed state after 70 A.D. and predicted this to be Israel’s scattered condition “for many days.” Hosea 3:4-5 reads: “For the children of Israel shall abide many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or sacred pillar, without ephod or teraphim.” In this prophecy as with several others found in the Old Testament, Israel’s state and condition is accurately described during the long world-wide dispersion of their nation that has existed between the First and Second Advent of the Messiah Jesus! A closer look at the text in Hosea 3 provides a very detailed corroboration of how this prophecy is being fulfilled from the time off the first century A.D. until now. This period of Jewish history, (which has already lasted for almost two thousand years) has been formally called by Jewish and secular historians “the Diaspora”; and it was foretold in the prophetic word in Hosea some 750 years before Christ! 

In this dispersed state Israel would no longer have a “prince or king.” The throne of David has been vacant of a lineal successor (a prince) and broken down since 586 B.C. to this very day. This will remain so until the return of Jesus the Son of David who will sit on the Davidic throne after a long period of absence (see Ezekiel 21:25-27; Luke 1:32-33; Acts 15:14-17). With the destruction of the Temple in 70 A.D. and the subsequent dissolution of the Levitical priesthood Israel was left without the appropriate animal sacrifices or a Temple to sacrifice them in. They would no longer worship false gods in temples built with “Sacred Pillar” commonly used to worship the false gods of Canaan (Ex 34:13-14; Deut. 7:5). The “Ephod” was a part of the special dress the High Priest of Israel wore and also gave divine guidance and direction (Lev. 8:7; 1 Sam. 23:9-11; 30:7-8). Thus Israel would be scattered throughout the world without centralized spiritual leadership and guidance the High Priest provided for the nation. In addition to that the Jews would be free from idolatry and the worship of idols or the “Teraphim.” while in a scattered state. The teraphim images in ancient Israel were household idols used for objects of worship and the forbidden practice of divination (see Genesis. 31:19, 30, 32; Judges. 18:17, 24; 1 Samuel 15:23; 2 Kings. 23:24). When one closely examines the Prophecy of Hosea about the condition of Israel’s dispersion in their past, present and future, one cannot help but agree with the comments of C. I. Scofield on this same passage of prophetic Scripture:

“This prediction has been remarkably fulfilled in the condition of Israel since the time of Christ. Scattered, without political entity under a king or a prince, and performing no sacrifices since the destruction of the Temple by the Romans in A.D. 70, they have yet retained their identity and avoided idolatrous worship of sacred stones or idols. Chapter 3 is one of the classic O.T. passages describing Israel’s past, present, and future.” (The New Scofield Study Bible, p. 894).

Israel: The Super Sign of the End-Times, (Part 3)

The scattering of the Jewish people from the land of Israel throughout the nations of the world was a result of their disobedience to God’s law and their rejection of the Messiah. The first dispersion as mentioned in a prior article was the Assyrian and Babylonian captivity (721 and 586 B.C., respectively). The reason for this as unanimously witnessed by both the pre-exilic and exilic prophets was Israel’s gross idolatry and apostasy from the Lord (Jeremiah 7, 9; Isaiah 1-6; Ezekiel 8-11, et al.). The second dispersion occurred for Israel rejection and mistreatment of the Messiah who came to redeem them and offer the Messianic kingdom (Luke 19:41-44). But in the beginning of their national history God foretold all these things would happen as a warning to the nation through Moses right before the people of Israel were to enter the Promised Land. In Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28-32 Israel’s covenantal obligations as the Chosen Nation of God are spelled out by the Lord. The blessings that would accrue to their obedience are given and conversely the curses that would fall on them if they chose to walk contrary to the Lord and not obey him were clearly spelled out to the nation. A cursory reading of these pivotal chapters at once reveals a precise and accurate prophetic portrait of the history of the Jewish people that has been fulfilled to the letter for the last 3,500 years! “I will scatter you among the nations and draw out a sword after you” (Leviticus 26:33-39; Deuteronomy 28:64-67). This scattering of Israel to all the Gentile nations of the world would serve as a sign for all to see God’s reproach and displeasure for their disobedience to Him. “And they shall be upon you for a sign and a wonder, and on your descendants forever” (Deut. 28:46).

Lest the reader think this too harsh the Kiddush (the standard daily prayer book used by religious Jews in synagogues all over the world) offers the following penitential prayer: “Cause us to return with perfect repentance to Thy presence. Pardon and forgive all our iniquities. Blot out and remove our transgressions and sins from Thy sight. Nullify the evil of the sentence decreed against us.” Now in our day with the recent partial restoration and regathering of the Jewish people back to Israel God is in the process of answering this very prayer. Throughout the long Diaspora God promised that He would preserve the Jewish people as a distinct people among the Gentile nations so that by and large they would not be assimilated or be expunged by them. “For I am with you says the Lord, to save you. Though I make a full end of all nations where I have scattered you, yet I will not make a complete end of you. But I will correct you in justice, and will not let you go altogether unpunished. Yet I will leave a remnant, so that you may have some who escape the sword among the nations, when you are scattered through the countries” (Jeremiah 30:11; Ezekiel 6:8). The Assyrians, Babylonians, and the Romans all invaded Israel and conquered the Jews and subsequently led them captive away from the land to be scattered throughout the nations. After the dispersion of 70 A.D. the Jewish people were to live without a homeland for almost 2,000 years. All throughout that time they only survived in small numbers in isolated scattered communities. Their numbers greatly dwindled when they were hunted down and killed by the scores during the Crusades, the Inquisition, the Russian Pogroms, and the greatest of all numbers killed in the horrific Holocaust. This is precisely why most Jewish people do not accept Jesus as the Messiah because those very people who claimed to follow Him instigated and carried out these violent campaigns and atrocities against the Chosen People. Sadly the tragic prophecy of Jesus in John 16:2 has been fulfilled in one way through the form of ‘Christian’ anti-Semitism when He foretold to His Jewish disciples: “The time is coming that whoever kills you will think he offers God’s service.” The enemies of the Jews slanderously did so in the name of Jesus Christ—a sin the Christian Church has all been too guilty of throughout the centuries. On this point Messianic Jewish author Barry Rubin explains what the Gentile name “Jesus Christ” means to the average Jew. “To a Jewish person, Christ conducted the Crusades, invoked the Inquisition, and prompted persecution of Jews over the last twenty centuries. To a Jewish person, Christ is the first part of the term used by those who accuse Jews of deicide: “Christ-killers” (“You Bring the Bagels, I’ll Bring the Gospel,” p. 94). This brings us to our next point that we will take up in the next issue: Universal Anti-Semitism as one of the signs of the End-Times and for the return of Jesus the Messiah.

Thus far, we have looked at prophecies dealing with Israel's history up to the nation's worldwide dispersion in unbelief. The whole history of the Jewish people was foretold beforehand to them through Moses, the prophets, and the Messiah Jesus of Nazareth. While in that dispersed state, the Jewish people would be without land, kingly ruler, free from the idolatry of the past, and wandering from place to place throughout the nations of the world. This last condition aforementioned was popularized in Europe by the pejorative term "the wandering Jew" in the thirteenth century. The ugly and brutal fact of Anti-Semitism is a darker side of Jewish history, and along with the doctrine of hell is one of the most somber and grave subjects of Bible prophecy. Nevertheless, the God of Israel did indeed predict from the outset of their national history that the Jewish people would be hated, harmed, and persecuted by the Gentile nations of the world during the long period of the Diaspora. Deuteronomy 28:15-68 outlines this terrible time. A simple comparison between this passage of Scripture and the history of the Jewish people for the last two thousand years will unquestionably verify these prophecies have been fulfilled as exactly foretold and that the Bible is indeed inspired by the Omniscient God who foretells history before it comes to pass. What we have described and predicted in the above passage in Deuteronomy and other related passages found throughout Scripture is the prediction of the rise of anti-Semitism. The term anti-Semitism was coined by Wilhelm Marr in 1878 who himself was a virulent anti-Semite. Anti-Semitism simply defined is the racial and religious hatred of the Jewish people. The ugly phenomenon of Anti-Semitism began the moment God chose Abraham to father a new people through which the redeemer of the world would come and was the response of Satan himself to destroy the means by which in the "seed of the woman" he would meet his final end and defeat (Genesis 3:15).

The devil's simple strategy was thus: "Destroy the Jewish people and there will be no Savior to defeat me." After the first advent, his strategy is still in place as he has sought throughout the centuries following Christ to do the same so that this same Messiah will not come back to a restored Israel and fulfill those promises made to Israel that still await fulfillment at the Second Advent. Furthermore, God made a promise and oath in Jeremiah 31:35-37 that the Jewish people would continue as a nation in perpetuity - that is, forever. Satan's strategy for creating the inimical reality of anti-Semitism is nothing less than the complete annihilation and obliteration of the Jewish people so that this divine eternal promise of their permanent existence as the distinct chosen nation are nullified and God's integrity and Word are proven unreliable, false, and wrong. Indeed, when Yahweh chose Israel as the human channel for the Savior to come into the world and redeem humanity from sin and death, Satan targeted and chose them also for destruction knowing that they would be God's instrumental means by which he was to suffer ultimate defeat. 

Revelation 12 uses symbolic images of a woman clothed with the son (Israel) and the fiery red dragon (Satan) to prophetically narrate the conflict between Satan has with Israel and how it will come to a head in the future seven-year tribulation period. Scripture explains that the ultimate cause and origin for anti-Semitism is supernatural and found in the perfidious design and person of Satan. Men like Haman, Hitler, and Pharaoh are human pawns to carry out "the final solution" against the Jewish people. But in the end, all people who attempt to harm and destroy the Chosen People, God will curse and overthrow with damnation in the end according to the solemn and eternal oath He swore to Abraham, the father of the Jewish people, in Genesis 12:3; "I will curse those who curse you."

In spite of all the terrible atrocities the Jewish people have suffered for the last 2,000 years, the God of Israel has kept them distinct and preserved as a separate people (for a chronological listing of Anti-Semitism attitudes and practices from 70 A.D. to 1970, see the book The Causes and Effects of Anti-Semitism by Paul E. Grosser and Edwin G. Halperin). One with a discerning mind can even see the subtle side of anti-Semitism by the condescending and accusatory manner in which Modern Israel is constantly spoken of by the news media (which in itself is a considerable subject to document and rightly comment upon; but presently, our study will stay within the perimeters of the Scripture and those Bible prophecies dealing with the Jewish people).

God foretold that during the long period of dispersion, the Jewish people would have no rest from the Gentile nations. They would be maligned, persecuted, and killed in large numbers wherever they sojourned due to the pervasive and perennial presence of anti-Semitism (see the prophecy of Leviticus 26:36-39). But in spite of this, the Lord has triumphantly preserved them and brought them back to their ancient homeland against all adverse odds. History has indisputably confirmed the aforementioned prophecy given some 3,400 years ago true and fulfilled in the history of the Jewish people, so much so that the summative observation from Paul Grosser and Edwin Halperin definitely applies here and underscores what God foretold would be their condition in the Diaspora:

"No people in history has been hated, maligned and persecuted so continuously and systematically as the Jews. In light of the history of anti-Semitism, the continued survival of the Jews and Judaism is a major historical triumph.... The continuity and persistence of anti-Semitism over the past nineteen centuries indicated that it is an integral part of Western culture. It has existed in slave, feudal, capitalist and socialist economic systems. It has existed in monarchies, aristocracies, theocracies, democracies, dictatorships, police states, and authoritarian and totalitarian regimes. It has existed in religious, secular, and atheistic societies. It has existed in rural and urban populations, in small towns and suburbs. It has existed even in places where there were no Jews. No matter what the Jews did, there has been no sure escape (The Causes and Effects of Anti-Semitism, pp. 339, 353)."

The Lord Jesus predicted that one of the signs indicating the end of this inter-advent age (i.e., the present time between the first and Second Advent of Jesus Christ) would be the universal hatred of the Jewish people by the Gentile nations on account of Him. "You shall be hated of all nations for My name's sake" (Matthew 24:9). World-wide anti-Semitism is thus a sign for Israel and the world that we are living near the period of the Messiah's return as foretold by Jesus almost 2,000 years ago in Matthew 24.

End of the World, How should we respond?

The World is Coming to an End 

By: Bill Muehlenberg 

http://au.christiantoday.com/

Most cultures and religious traditions have as part of their beliefs and overall worldview the idea that the current world will in one fashion or another come to an end. There are various apocalyptic scenarios out there, some more negative than others, and some more alarmist than others.

If the world is indeed going to wind down or come to some cataclysmic end, the interesting question is how do people respond to this realization? How do people cope if they are convinced that life as we know it may not last much longer? I saw just recently one way in which people might respond.

The ads during the American Super Bowl are often just as amazing and entertaining as the game itself. They have to be, given that the screening of just one 30 second ad can cost up to a cool $3 million. Thus some of the most remarkable ads ever seen usually come out during this three hour extravaganza.

Some of these ads were featured in yesterday’s Australian telecast of the event. One of the ads caught my eye. It featured a number of workers in an observatory. A scientist, peering through a telescope, looking at an incoming asteroid, proclaims that it’s going to destroy the earth.

The response? Six-packs of Bud Light beer are passed around as the men and women decide they will have a wild party while they await their doom. Well, that is one way to deal with the end of the world. And it is not a very novel approach. The saying, ‘Eat, drink, and be merry for tomorrow we die’ has been around for quite some time.

But that is not the only way to prepare for the end of the world. Jesus for example had much to say about the topic. Indeed, the Bible as a whole has plenty of discussion about this theme. There is far too much material to cover here, so let me focus on just two passages.

The third chapter of 2 Peter is all about the end of the world, or more accurately, the Day of the Lord. It specifically addresses those who question Christ’s return, and in fact mock the very notion. Says Peter, “in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, ‘Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation’” (vv. 3-4).

Here the idea is that the world will keep going, so why worry? Jesus had mentioned similar things in the Olivet Discourse when he said that when he returns, it will be just like in the days of Noah: people will be carrying on with their normal activities, and will be oblivious to what is about to occur (Matt. 24:36-39).

So too Peter states that most people will be just carrying on with business as usual. They not only do not believe in the Lord’s return, but scoff at the very notion of future judgment as well. But Peter argues quite the opposite: Christ certainly will come in his own time, and he will come as judge.

The fact that he has not yet returned is not an indication of his slowness in keeping his promises, but is in fact a period of grace, allowing more time for more people to repent (vv. 8-9). His advice is the opposite of that given in the Bud Light commercial. He says that given that Christ will one day certainly return, what sort of people ought we to be?

He encourages sober, holy living, in the light of the return of Christ (vv. 11-14). If the end is nigh, that is not a reason to party, but to get our act together, and be prepared to meet our coming Lord and judge. Instead of scoffing at the delay of his return, be grateful that he is allowing us more chance to get right with him.

The second passage is addressed more to believers than non-believers. But its message is desperately needed, because so many believers are in fact using the doctrine of Christ’s second coming as an excuse to opt out of, instead of into, the battles of the day.

That is, many believers are banking on things getting worse, and then Christ coming back, so let’s just forget all about any social or political obligations we might have. Let’s just pluck a few more souls from the fire, and get our bags packed for the Rapture.

The idea is you don’t polish brass on a sinking ship. You don’t rearrange the deck chairs on the Titanic. If everything is going down the tubes, then why get involved in trying to make this a better world?

Now this is quite a complex and hotly debate issue. I have partly discussed it elsewhere, so I will not repeat all my arguments here. See for example, here.

And Christians with strong biblical convictions can and do fall on different sides of the debate over eschatology. Some can be Pre-Mill and some can be Post-Mill and so on. If you don’t have a clue as to what I am referring to here, don’t worry. This just has to do with how we understand the millennium of Rev. 20 and other eschatological and theological issues.

But that big debate is really not what I am interested in here. And I do need to get back to my second passage. It is the Parable of the Ten Talents (Minas) as found in Luke 19:11-26. The relevant bit is the opening three verses:

“While they were listening to this, he went on to tell them a parable, because he was near Jerusalem and the people thought that the kingdom of God was going to appear at once. He said: ‘A man of noble birth went to a distant country to have himself appointed king and then to return. So he called ten of his servants and gave them ten minas, “Put this money to work,” he said, “until I come back”’.”

The KJV renders the last bit, “Occupy till I come”. The point of the parable is to use the gifts God has given us, and be faithful in our stewardship until the king (Christ) returns. As you will recall, the servants who used the money well and put it to good use were commended by their master. But the servant who hid his talents, burying them in the ground, was strongly rebuked.

Part of the message here is that God expects us to wisely use the gifts, talents and callings he has given us, and to use them right up until he returns. There is no thought here of packing our bags, putting up our feet, and waiting for Christ to return. We are to be busy with the work of the Kingdom. We are to be fully engaged in occupying till he comes.

Thus both these passages give us quite different instructions than does the Bud Light ad. Knowledge that this world is soon coming to an end is not to be an excuse for moral laxity and going on a bender with wild parties. Nor is it an excuse to sit back and do nothing.

The Lord’s return is meant to spur us on to both moral living as well as to dedicated activity for the kingdom. Peter wants to impress on us the need for holy living and serious discipleship as we await the Lord’s return. And Jesus reminds us that there is a lot of work to be done before he returns. We need to roll up our sleeves and get busy with the work God has assigned for us to do.

So while the Bud Light ad may have been quite funny (as have been so many of the other expensive Super Bowl ads), it is clearly amiss in terms of the message it is sending. It fits well into a hedonistic, secular and cynical culture. But it does not at all fit in with the real world, and the biblical worldview.