Trending toward Tribulation
Trending toward Tribulation
By Terry James
While this year draws near to its end, it is a good idea, I think, to make assessment of where we might stand on God’s prophetic timeline.
Certainly by any measure of a true watcher of God’s Bible prophecy clock, the hour is late. Let’s try to break down exactly how late that hour is.
ISRAEL TRACKING TOWARD TRIBULATION HOUR
The news of late just continues to build toward Israel becoming the “cup of trembling and burdensome stone” of Zechariah chapter 12. The Gog-Magog war of Ezekiel chapters 38-39 is clearly in view.
God’s prophetic clock, as I and many other fundamentalist students of Bible prophecy believe, is, of course, the nation Israel. So to understand what is happening in that Jewish state, chosen by God to be prototype in His dealings with all nations of earth, is a good place to start with our assessment.
Some of the headlines that attest to this fact can be determined by posts in recent Rapture Ready News posts.
– How the Israel-Iran War Might Begin
The missiles will come in low, after being in the air for almost an hour, and when they hit, they will be coming just over the horizon. People who witness the attack will remember later that the missiles didn’t fall from the sky. They flew at their target straight, like a bullet. The drones will hit just a few minutes later. They will have been flying at low altitudes for longer, taking off in Iraq, crossing into Syria, and then across the border into Israel.
– REPORT: Trump and Netanyahu Finalize Pact to Be Military Allies in Gog and Magog
– Israeli Military Says Hezbollah Undeterred Despite Recent Setbacks
A year after uncovering a network of cross-border Hezbollah tunnels, the Israeli military says the Lebanese militant group has beefed up its presence along the volatile frontier. Military officials say that neither the destruction of the tunnels, nor Hezbollah’s recent domestic problems, have weakened the group’s desire to prepare for renewed conflict with Israel.
– Descendants of Gog & Magog Join Russia, Iran in Joint Military Drill
“O mortal, turn your face toward Gog of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal. Prophesy against him” (Ezekiel 38:2). Iran announced last week that they will, for the first time, hold joint war drills with China, and Russia. One rabbi, an end-of-days expert, stated that this will bring together all the elements “to end all of history.”
– Erdoğan’s Top Adviser Calls for “Islamic Army for Palestine”: Threatens to Bomb Israel
A senior adviser to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said last week that it was “not possible” for the Islamic world to give up on Jerusalem, and called for the creation of an Islamic “army for Palestine.”
– Democratically-Controlled Congress Today Passed a Two-State Solution Resolution Calling for Israel to Be Divided and the Land Given to Create a Palestinian state.
CULTURE TRENDING TOWARD SODOM
The cultural and societal degeneration toward Sodom and Gomorrah-like activity is burgeoning.
– Hallmark Channel CEO Says Company Is “Open” to Making LGBTQ-Friendly Christmas Movies
The chief executive of the Hallmark Channel, known for its treasure trove of wholesome and characteristically cheesy Christmas flicks, said in a recent interview the company is “open” to filming movies with lead characters who are gay.
– WATCH: Drag Queen Admits He’s “Grooming” Children at Story Hour Events
Drag queens are deliberately “grooming” the next generation to accept LGBT ideology when they read to children in public libraries at drag queen “story hour” events, a U.S. drag queen admitted.
– * Twitter Changes Terms of Service to Allow Pedophile Content, Including NAKED Children
“Artistic depictions of nude minors in a non-sexualized context or setting may be permitted in a limited number of scenarios e.g., works by internationally renowned artists that feature minors,” states Twitter’s new rule.
– J. J. Abrams: “The Rise of Skywalker” Will Have LGBTQ Representation
Director J.J. Abrams has allegedly delivered on his promise to feature more LGBTQ representation in the Star Wars universe via the upcoming film “Rise of Skywalker.” Though the characters Finn and Poe will not be lovers, Abrams said the representation will still be apparent
– Human trafficking in America among Worst in World: Report
The United States is again ranked as one of the worst countries in the world for human trafficking. According to a recently released report by the State Department, the top three nations of origin for victims of human trafficking in 2018 were the United States, Mexico and the Philippines.
RELIGION ROARING IN REBELLION
The world of religion, led by Pope Francis, is gnashing its teeth toward the God of Heaven.
– *Pope Francis Declares That Christian Fundamentalists Are “A Scourge”
Beware of the fundamentalist groups: everyone has his own. In Argentina too there is a little fundamentalist corner. And let us try, with fraternity, to go forward. Fundamentalism is a scourge and all religions have some kind of fundamentalist first cousin there, which forms a group. Ostensibly, these remarks apply to fundamentalists from all religions. But by mentioning Argentina, the Pope made it exceedingly clear who his real target was. There aren’t any “Muslim fundamentalists” or “Hindu fundamentalists” in Argentina. The fundamentalists that he was referring to are the Christian fundamentalists in Argentina, and in the very next sentence he denounced such people as “a scourge”.
– Ilhan Omar Leads Catholic Church in Muslim Prayer
Ilhan Omar recently posted a bizarre video of herself reciting a Muslim prayer in front of the altar of a Catholic Church. Over 20 congressmen attended the event, as did a Muslim interfaith leader…who also has ties to the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas.
– Army Says Faith-Based Group Can No Longer put Bible Verses on Dog Tags after Complaint
When Army Captain Russell Rippetoe was killed in action on April 2, 2003 — the first combat casualty of Operation Iraqi Freedom — then-President George W. Bush spoke about how Rippetoe had on his dog tags “Joshua 1:9” engraved on it.
– Pope Advances One World Religion Agenda: Presents Buddhist Leader with Manifesto
Pope Francis topped off his three-day visit to Thailand last Saturday with a meeting with Thailand’s supreme Buddhist patriarch Somdej Phra Maha Muneewong at Bangkok’s Ratchabophit Temple. The meeting took place in front of a 150-year-old gold statue of Buddha. The Pope followed Buddhist custom by removing his shoes. During the meeting, the Pope gave the Buddhist Patriarch the Declaration on Human Brotherhood. “You assume that the pope is Catholic but he is certainly not acting like a Catholic,” Rabbi Asore said. “These alliances, his actions, are certainly not what a Catholic would do.”
The above constitute but a scant overview of the hundreds of reports in these and other categories that could be used in our assessment. But suffice it to say that no matter in which direction the prophetic observer looks, one sees the ominous clouds of Tribulation boiling on the horizon.
This all means not gloom and doom for the Christian, rather a glorious prospect beyond description. The Rapture is but a millisecond away at any given moment as we carry out our duties as watchmen on the wall.
–Terry