A time is coming, according to Bible prophecy, when the world will experience the most powerful leader to have ever lived upon the planet. He will far surpass in military capability any president of the United States of America who has yet held the reins of power.
The people of planet earth will literally become awestruck as they witness his exploits. The prophecy regarding the amazement over this future military man-marvel is seen in the following:
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? (Revelation 13: 4)
We have looked many times at this future tyrant John calls through Holy Spirit Inspiration “the beast.”
He is the first of two beasts that John, through his Revelation vision, sees coming into world history. This beast will make his appearance during the period Daniel the prophet indicated will be the seventieth week that will wrap up premillennial human history. That will be the last seven years leading up to the return of Christ at Armageddon (Revelation 19:11). We know him better, perhaps, as Antichrist.
It is good to think for a bit on that Scripture about this man-beast. The Bible says the question will be asked by the populations of the world–who will actually worship him: Who is able to make war with him?”
In other words, it will look to everyone who witnesses Antichrist’s military exploits and other miraculous accomplishments that he is a god. It will appear, the prophecy says immediately preceding the question, that he is killed by a wound in his head and comes back to life. This is obviously, from our understanding and perspective today, a false resurrection. However, the world at that time of great delusion won’t see it that way.
The question “Who can make war with him?” will be one asked with mesmerized stares of eyes more glazed and glistening than were those as recorded on the black-and-white films of Hitler’s worshipers during the 1930s.
There is no such leader with that kind of power anywhere in view today. There are many, many military leaders and their armies who can and do make war with anyone and everyone in this present geopolitical climate. That future beast will be indeed an animal of unprecedented military capability and authority.
Besides the United States military–still the most feared on the planet despite the Obama Administration’s efforts to, in my view, greatly diminish its strength–Russia and China continue to build tremendous war-making machines. Iran, Turkey, and others constantly aspire to more powerful militaries. There will have to occur massive changes in the military power structures of the world to bring about this singular most monstrous war-making leader, against whom no one is thought to be able to fight.
We often conjecture about what happens to the United States. Why isn’t it in Bible prophecy? If there, it certainly is in a greatly changed configuration, because its military is nowhere in sight, prophetically speaking.
We believe that the militaries of Russia, China, and many others, such as Iran and Turkey, are in prophetic view. We believe we see many of these within the Gog-Magog assault into the Middle East toward Israel as given in Ezekiel chapters 38 and 39.
Our own view within the pre-Trib camp concerning the Rapture holds that the great changes needed to reconfigure things in alignment with end times Bible prophecy will unfold during the post-Rapture era. At least, that is my understanding at this point in time.
After that great Rapture event, the United States might fit into being aligned with those nation-entities that stand on the sideline as the Gog-Magog attack begins and simply make a diplomatic protest.
Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof, shall say unto thee, Art thou come to take a spoil? hast thou gathered thy company to take a prey? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take a great spoil? Have you come to take a great spoil? (Ezekiel 38:13)...
1 comment:
He appeared in Jerusalem on Purim.
Post a Comment