On that day.............................. Isaiah 24:21-23

Isaiah 24:21-23

New Century Version (NCV)

 ²¹ At that time the Lord will punish
       the powers in the sky above

       and the rulers on earth below.                                   
 ²² They will be gathered together
       like prisoners thrown into a dungeon;
    they will be shut up in prison.
       After much time they will be punished.
 ²³ The moon will be embarrassed,
       and the sun will be ashamed,
    because the Lord All-Powerful will rule as king
       on Mount Zion in Jerusalem.
       Jerusalem's leaders will see his greatness.

     I came across these verses in the Book of Isaiah during my reading and research on further teachings for my series, "The Alternative End Times Scenario".  They do not have anything in particular to deal directly with my thesis that the end of days gathering of nations against Israel, the last days judgement of the earth, the assembling of a conglomeration (caliphate) of Islamic nations, and the long foretold Antichrist arising from within them, is soon.  But, I found these verses really peaked my interest!

     When you read this section of the Prophet Isaiah's book in King James english you can come away a little befuddled.  But there are more contemporary versions that shed some light on this rather striking text.  For teachers and students like myself, you almost get a little giddy at such a find, because within these simple verses, when read with understanding, we find the real backdrop of the End of Days.  

     I will not take the time to go into any real depth as to what God shared with my heart as I read the text.  That is really up to each person to find these truths, and make them both applicable, and active in one's own heart and being.  You may judge them to be old and worthless in our modern 21st Century world.  Or, you may find renewed hope in the coming of that final day when all will be made right in God's sight.

     What I mean for the uninitiated is that what the Word is saying to us here, is what it says continually over, and over again.  That there will come a day when the earth and all of it's inhabitants both human and spiritual will be held accountable and judged.  That a generation will come during a time of great tribulation and the LORD, Jesus, will come to rule the world from Jerusalem.  Just a brief reminder, this was spoken some 500 years before Jesus appeared in earthly form, and some 2500 years from or present time.  

     Now those facts alone, can afford some their own personal attitude of scoffing, at what for others, is truth foretold in advance.  A sort of Missourian mental gymnastics, of "show me, and then I'll believe it!". Whereas logic itself would dictate that faith is believing in something that you cannot yet see...  So there will always be believers, and those who need to see to believe, but when push comes to shove, last minute faith conversions could be either pushing the envelope, or just pointedly, cutting it way too close when it comes down to events of such gargantuan purportions . Either way,  your faith should be the filter in which you see the world and world events on a daily basis.

     The particular aspect of these verses that i would like to point out, is  that when He comes again, it will not be just to judge mankind.  In Isaiah 24:21, it says," and at that time the LORD will punish the powers in the sky above".  This is not the prophet just speaking poetically or in hyberboley.  These words are to be given the same weight, as if you believe that Jesus is coming again to rule from Jerusalem.  And IF you don't accept or believe that, I would humbly suggest that you re-read your bible and examine your faith.

     These verses are like the Cliff Notes for the New Testaments' Book of Revelation by John.  Simple, and compact, they tell us what to expect,  what the outcome of time will be, and what we have to look forward to, if we happen to be alive during those events.  I guess what got me excited the most was the aspect that those heavenly (not God's heaven) powers of the sky will be getting their due in due time.  In the New testament, Paul shares with us, "

Ephesians 6:12

New International Version (NIV)

¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 

     Might I bring this all full circle to today ?  If you are finding yourself in some area that seems to be just too "powerful" to overcome.  Might I suggest that you revisit Ephesians 6:12 ?  That you ask for understanding, and wisdom for your situation, and God's grace and power to be the victor and not the vanquished.     That if so long ago, in Isaiah and in John's revelation, that they saw a day of overall victory over the " powers of the sky above".  That when HE comes again to execute that judgement in total, you will have come to the full knowledge like Paul that we battle both the seen, and the unseen until that day!

The Middle East: It's all back to the future, again!

It is said that a picture is worth a thousand words.  I believe that old adage to be very true.  Our minds work on many levels, and just relying on the written word is the level on which our brains remember the least.  Imagine that!  That is why I do think that we need words and pictures together, and why television and movies are some of the most powerful mediums of communication on the planet.  But, I am not here to give you a thesis on communication, but on Israel and it's significance in the end of time.
     No, I am not going into a lengthy diatribe on the subject.  There are far too many books out there that you could read on the subject.  In fact, I realize that if you continually follow my Blog you will read and see pertinent information regarding that subject over time. So, this is more like a pictorial Tweet. I am going to show you some pictures, and give you  scriptures, and then let you decide.  After all, that is what most teaching ,and if you like, preaching should do for you.  Bring to to a decision in your heart and mind, upon which you can base all future decisions.  It either, reinforces what you already believe, or causes you to change course.  It's that simple!
     So, here it goes. Ezekiel 38:1-     " And the word of the Lord came to me saying, Son of man set your face toward Gog of that land of Magog, prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal, and prophesy against him and say, "Thus says the Lord God, " behold  I am against you O Gog, prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal.  I will turn you about and put hooks into your jaws and I will bring you out, and all your army,horses, and horsemen, all of them splendidly attired, a great company with buckler, and shield, all wielding swords; Persia( modern day Iran), Ethiopia ( Modern day Ethiopia, and southern Eygpt), and Put( Modern day Libya, and North Africa), all of them with shield and helmet; Gomer ( South Central Europe/Armenia area), with all it's troops: Beth-Togarmah ( Areas of modern Turkey), from the remote parts of the north with all of it's troops - many peoples with you.    
   " Be prepared, and prepare yourself, you and all of your companies that are assembled about you, and be a guard fro them.  After many days you will be summoned; in the latter years you will come into the land that is restored from the sword, whose inhabitants have been gathered from many nations to the mountians of Israel which had been a continual waste; but it's people were brought out from the nations, and they are living securely, all of them..." I would suggest that you read the rest of verses 10 through 23 to get the big picture.
     The following pictures are of 2 categories that I hope will help add another dimension to the words above, and give you that visual that you need to be impressed by the written words.  The Black and White pictures are of the land of Israel prior to it's founding in 1948.  They span about a 100 year period at the most.  But, please keep in mind that the scenes were the same when Napoleon was there in 1800 and were pretty similar when the Crusaders came in the Middle Ages.  I guess what I am trying to say is the land didn't change a whole heck of alot in the almost 2000 years since the Romans evicted the Jewish people in the year 70.

     The second set of pictures are from our modern era.  They show Israel in the late 20th century.  All taken within the relatively short time from which Israel became a state, and Jews from around the world immigrated there for freedom and security.  I know that if you have an open mind, you possibly see things in a different light? 

   

Signs of Our Times

     We live in uncertian times.  Wait, let me re-phrase that statement.  More accurately, we live in very uncertian times! The stock market gyrates like a top on steriods.  The Middle East is seemingly remaking itself geopolitically before our eyes.  Jobs, Pensions, Home Ownership, cannot be taken for granted anymore.  Peace, stability, and things being
"solid as a rock", seem to have lost their meaning in these times.  It just seems to go on, and on, and on.

     Now, let me throw some gasoline on the fire.  All over the internet we see, hear, and read about how we are now even approaching the end of days.  That the end is maybe coming sooner than we may think!  Actually that sounds like a rephrasing of a statement by St. Paul from the Book of Romans.  He said, " the hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed". (Romans 13:11)  So, whether it be 2012, an asteriod, climate change ( formerly known as Global Warming), WWIII, economic armageddon, any and or all of which, could usher in extremely uncertian times;  we just seem to have an inner sense that mankind is living things out on a cosmic linear scale having a set appointment with destiny.
     Yet, within Paul's statement he paints a curious and reassuring twist on all of our doom and gloom.  Let's read it, again.  " The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation nearer", Stop there!  In the midst of what some may see as global demise, Paul sees hope!  He sees real hope and change, not just some cheap political gimic.  At a time when we least expect it, yet may have a gut level instinct that "something's up!", there it will be.  Our hope, the world's ONLY hope, Jesus.  Now, let's remember the world as it was from which Pauls words eminate.  He lived in the glory, depravity, and brutality of ancient Rome.  Yet, he preached hope and change.
     For the believer, the Second Coming of Jesus is the salvation of which he speaks.  It is salvation for the world and the material universe.  It may not be a bed of roses getting to that point.  But, He is coming back to reclaim all that was stolen from Him, and to seperate good from evil.  That is hope that you can believe in!  And, make no mistake about it, He is coming back.
     Jesus stated, referenced, and inferred; this policy position enough in His Word to call you to either accept it by faith as a future truth, or to make Him out to be a liar.  He leaves you no alternative.  He didn't want to have it any other way.
     Well, my original intent was to simply ask you, as I have recently been asking myself, still being cognizant of our times; Where is your heart at?  I mean your spiritual heart.  If, and I say If, we are "closer to (that day) than when we first believed", do you not think that that is a very valid question for all of us?  Would you be overcome with joyful anticipation if you knew His appearing was in say, 6 hours?  Or, would you be in regret and angst over the parting and loss of the pleasures, riches, and wonders of this earthly world?  Honestly, would you have a hard time seperating yourself from the entanglements of life on earth?  These may be hard questions, but I think that they are ones that we should be periodically be asking ourselves on a regualr basis.  Because He is coming back to reclaim what is rightfully His in the first place.
     I hope that you've been challenged, I have been challenged.  And with each passing day of our current era, my antenna perks up, to see if it could be tommorrow?  How's your antenna?  Is it out of tune and alittle rusty?  Or is it always ringing with joyful anticipation of that Day?