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Questions About the End Times

Who, What, Where, Why and When Types of Issues

By John of AllFaith © 03.26.09

A Reader asks...

Questioner: Patrick
Private: No
Subject: eschatology


Question: I have studied end times for many years now and like to get other people's opinions. I think that we are seeing many things going on right now that we see in Eze 38-39, matthew 24 and others. Can you elaborate, is the war between Gog and Magog and Israel the same as Armageddon or are they different wars? Do you believe in a rapture? Please elaborate on that as well

Thank you

My Reply:

Hi Patrick,

This is one of the main topics I post on these days and volumes could be said. Feel free to write back ;-)

I am 110% convinced that these are "the Last Days."

Depending on how one defines the terms, the Last Days can be thought of as beginning November 2, 1917 with the signing of the Balfour declaration (the British guarantee of Israel's establishment within the Palestinian Mandate), or with the 1947 establishment of Israel, or with the 1968 Jewish re-acquisition of Zion (Jerusalem). Others say they will not technically begin until the Antichrist is revealed.

This can rightly be debated in my opinion.

What is certain, as far as I'm concerned, is that the generation that witnessed Israel's rebirth WILL BE the final generation of this present age. This means that there will be people alive at the final war (Armageddon) who were alive in 1968 if not 1947 (I lean toward the 1947 date personally).

At Matt. 24:3 we read,

"And as he [Master Y'shua] sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?"

The "end of the world" in the original is "aion" or age, not world. The "age" that will be ending is "the Times of the Gentiles":

Luke 21:24 And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.

Now that we are living during the conclusion of the Times of the Gentiles the Nicean Church is being 'vomited out of God's mouth' as foretold (Rev. 3:14-10) and 'severed from the tree of Israel' (Rom 11).

But first...

The Jews, Christians and others (as groups -- there will be MANY exceptions including "144,000 Jews" and a "great multitude" of Gentiles), will accept the coming Antichrist or Rex Mundi -- the Global Ruler -- as their Master and Lord. "Babylon the Great" -- a Global Secular Humanist religion dedicated to Rex Mundi as prophet and World Teacher -- will emerge from Rome and become the dominant religion.

Three and a half years after the Rex Mundi signs a specific peace treaty with Israel he will betray them. At that point the Jews, especially those living in Israel, will have a mass conversion to the God of Israel and will beg HaShem to send Moshiach to rescue them. Of this coming event Master Y'shua tells us:

Matt 24:22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.

In other words, to save the JEWS Moshiach will come.

ALL those who bless Israel will be blessed and ALL those who curse Israel will be cursed (Gen 12:3).

In a nutshell, the present move towards world government that has been building since well before the US surrendered its sovereignty to International mainly Aryan (and mainly European) bankers with the PRIVATE BANK known as the Federal Reserve is the establishment of the government over which the Rex Mundi (Antichrist) will rule. It is called the Novus Ordo Seclorum, the New Order of the Ages. Evidence of it is as near as the back of your one dollar Federal Reserve note.

Once the Global Union is declared and the US falls as a major player, the new global leader will arise from Europe. We do not know the day or the hour that this will happen, but the "Watch" is almost up.

Matt 24:42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.
43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.
44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.

We are nearing the end of the "Watch."

So... Rex Mundi will rule for 3 1/2 years, be assassinated, turn viciously on the Jews and their supporters, and then rule for just shy of another 3 1/2.

At that point forces from China, Russia and the Muslim south (al Ikhwan -- the Muslim Brotherhood headquartered in Egypt) will mount an attack on Jerusalem (where the Rex Mundi will be at the time) attempting to unseat him. They will gather in the Valley of Megiddo for their assault on the Rex Mundi.

At this point Moshiach will intervene and destroy all sides of the conflict (and all enemies of Israel) and take up his reign over Israel (restored to its boundaries declared to Abraham and others). The rest of the nations will maintain independence but will submit to Moshiach as "over-king" as we read here:

Zech 8:20 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; It shall yet come to pass, that there shall come people, and the inhabitants of many cities:
21 And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the LORD, and to seek the LORD of hosts: I will go also.
22 Yea, many people and strong nations shall come to seek the LORD of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the LORD.
23 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.

The specific prophecies of Gog of Magog appear to be referencing a second assault on Jerusalem that will take place at the end of the Thousand Year Reign of Moshiach by the same peoples will be involved. "Gog" will be a ruler of "Magog" and Magog is the ancient name of Moscow and the Russian peoples. So, the specific Gog of Magog prophecies do not appear to be speaking of Armageddon in my opinion. This is a point of some debate and I would never strongly disagree with anyone on this point.

As for the Rapture... No, I do not believe it is a biblical doctrine. I have a rather detailed study of this subject here: http://allfaith.com/Religions/Noahide/rapture.html that may be of some interest to you.

Here's a brief excerpt:

Is the Rapture a Biblical Doctrine?
By Ben Ruach ha Kodesh (John of AllFaith) © 4.16.08

The Doctrine of the Rapture of the Church is the popular Christian belief that at some point in the future HaShem will extract all true Christians from the earth, "in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye," leaving everyone else here to suffer under the reign of the coming Antichrist or Rex Mundi. The notion gained popular support through the teachings of Dr. Clarence Larkin ("Dispensational Truths"), Rev. Charles Scofield ("the Scofield Bible"), a plethora of "Second and Third Great Awakening" Evangelists (see my study The Great Awakenings for more on these religious developments), and most recently from the unbiblical works of fiction by Tim Lahey known as The Left Behind Series in which the Antichrist is depicted as a Transylvanian Dracula-type Liberal do-gooder gone bad!

In Summary:

• This is a new doctrine, not historically held by any segment of the Church.
• Christians can't agree on the question of timing: Pre, Mid or Post Tribulation, so it's obviously not that clear at best. If this earth shaking event were truly a biblical prophecy it would be made clear.
• The Pre-Tribulation Rapture (currently the most commonly held view) is directly and repeatedly contradicted by the clear teachings about who will be opposing the Rex Mundi and when. According to the prophets, Believers will be present throughout the Seven Years.
• At certain points in the Tribulation, including during the second half, the Great Tribulation, Believers will receive certain protections from certain of the coming plagues and so will obviously still be on the earth.
• A reason often given for why the Rapture must occur is that Holy Spirit must be removed during the reign of the Beast. Were this so, no one post Rapture could be "saved" or have report with God yet the prophets show Divine intervention and inspiration will occur throughout the period and the oft stated presence of Believers on earth.
• Master Y'shua does not discuss or even reference the Rapture in his important Matthew 24 list of signs for, "When will these things be."
• Master Y'shua's Matthew 24 reference to 'those in the field' being "taken" is clearly speaking of the Jews of Jerusalem who will flee the City once the Rex Mundi declares his divinity and the "abomination of desolation spoken of by Prophet Daniel" occurs, and not to a Rapture when read in context.
• Master Y'shua does not discuss or even reference a Rapture in his prophetic presentation to John in the Book Revelations
• Modern Christians do not honor the Sabbath (as commanded in the Bible) and so the Master's concern that this fleeing not take place on the Sabbath has no meaning for modern Christians. Master Y'shua would surely have known the Church would abandon the Sabbath three hundred years after his death.
• 'Those in the field,' 'on the roof tops' etc. are encouraged to run rather than return home for their belongings. Such options would not exist in the Rapture as taught and so the reference can not be to it.
• Believers are advised to stand firm against the Antichrist. To do so they must be present on the earth during his reign.
• The "Last Trump" is blown to announce the establishment of the Kingdom of God on Earth. The reference therefore to Paul in I Cor 15 specifically refers to the time that trumpet is blown. The Rapture, as conceived, would have taken place years before this horn is sounded. It is sounded when the Jews are ALL gathered back to Jerusalem for the inauguration of the global theocracy (i.e. at the end of the Seven Year tribulation period).
• God never granted this type of protection to the Jews, His Elect, even during the Russian Pograms and Nazi Shoah and there is no biblical evidence that He will do so for the Christians who at the time are described as being lukewarm and hypocritical.
• Revelations 6:9 makes it clear that during the entire seven year period those martyred by the Antichrist and his New World Order must patiently wait, "until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled." This clearly shows there will be no Rapture to rescue their fellow Believers from martyrdom.
• The prophetic word about the future of the Church: Through the Seven Church Ages the Church draws progressively farther and farther away from the God of Israel until, in the End Times, it will embrace the Antichrist and God will "vomit it from His mouth" and 'sever the Church from the 'Tree of Israel' and cast it into the 'fire'. If the Church deserves to be vomited out how and why would God rapture it away to safety and bliss?
• The foretold Church of the Last Days is a lukewarm, hypocritical body that has abandoned the teachings of Master Y'shua and become largely irrelevant in the world [surrendering its position to Secular Humanism and eventually to the Rex Mundi as Babylon the Great and her daughters]. Portions of the Church are even now being "vomited out of God's Mouth" as is obvious in the various sex and money scandals, the lack of Christian opposition to the New World Order, the practice of abortion, infanticide, euthanasia, etc. The fallen Church of today will not be raptured away for its protection. The very idea is an insult to God's holiness and justice!

Now let's consider these points in detail:

Continued on my website: http://allfaith.com/Religions/Noahide/rapture.html

I believe the Doctrine of the Rapture, no matter how comforting it may be, is designed to lull Bible Believers into a false sense of security. Believers are commanded to stand against evil, but due in part to this belief, as well as the misapplication of Romans 13, many many Christians have become apathetic... even as the prophets foretold.

As I've said, this is complex and potentially voluminous topic. Do feel free to write back if you wish.

~ John of AllFaith



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