The Times We Are Living In

Well, it seems like in these past three weeks, as we travel, so much has happened in the world. As you know, in the Middle East, there is this bombing and everything going on there. Also, different countries are having crises. Venezuela is one that is having political upheaval, and even Cuba now is having political upheaval.

And as we begin to look in the world, it's always good to look at God's word, because about a third of God's word is prophecy. Now, we don't pretend to know every little detail about things. And we have to acknowledge that we only have a biblical outline of the future. We don't have a crystal ball. Just like we can have a skeleton of history as it's developing in front of us, but we don't know what color eyes this body has. We can't go into every detail. And so it takes humility and recognizes we only see it darkly through a glass. So anybody that pretends to say, oh, this is what's going to happen to others, that's not the biblical way. But we do have a broad outline of the future, and it's important on occasions to examine that in light of what's happening today. So let's go to 1 Corinthians 13.

1 Corinthians 13, the proper attitude to view prophecy.

It says in 1 Corinthians 13, verse 12, It says, For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I am also known. And by the way, this word mirror, it's not like the mirrors we have today, which are made out of glass. In those days, a mirror was simply a bronze type of mirror, which is polished. And so you couldn't see very well. Just like if you have a polished brass in your home, maybe a plate or something, you can see the image, but you can't see the details. And also, another scripture to help us have the right attitude is 2 Peter, chapter 1.

2 Peter, chapter 1.

In verse 19, Peter says, And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to take heed as the light that shines in a dark place. And so it talks about this inspired scriptures that we have. But it says it's like a light that shines in a dark place. Now, this light, the term, has to do with a torch or a lamp. But it's not something that if you're walking down a path at night and maybe have a torch or a lamp, whatever it is, you can only see around yourself. But outside of those bounds, it's total darkness. And so again, this is what we have, God's Word. It can show us some of what's going to happen in the future, but we're not in plain day. When is that day going to dawn? It says here.

Until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. This is another analogy because in those days, especially shepherds or fishermen, such as Peter and others, that would work out in their boats at night. That's when they did the main fishing. And so they would look and sure enough, the planet Venus would at that time of a year would rise up and then afterwards would come to dawn.

And so here's the analogy or illustration that Christ is going to come before that kingdom comes. And then we will see, eye to eye. When he tells us, we all sit in the front and God will say, well, talking about Christ, you've heard all these historical things through time. Well, let me give you the straight scoop on this. And boy, we're going to see some whoppers. Oh, we believe this. And he's going to tell us the very truth about everything from the time of Adam and Eve all the way to his coming. Won't that be a history lesson? I want to be there. I'm sure a lot of people are going to ask interesting questions to Jesus Christ.

Why do mosquitoes exist, right? And of course, that has to do with the curse that happened in Eden Adam and Eve sinned and then all of these things happen. All the thorns, the poisonous plants and animals and all of this and our little mosquitoes, they just keep us awake at night. Just one mosquito can do that. They look like kamikaze pilots when they come in. Right? Your ear turns red by the time you never get that little critter.

I remember as Cady and I, when we lived in Chile, of course, they didn't have our conditioning there. So that was just part of it. Didn't have that expenses. And so we would just leave our windows open during the summer with just a little screen. And we had mosquitoes. We lived next to some people that had taken over that property which didn't have a house, but they just took it over, put a Chilean flag and they said, hey, now it's ours.

Now that was the revolution they had at that time. And so they built this little hut, wooden hut. And they had pigs and they had ducks. And all the mosquitoes that thing bred was awful. Got to a point where I would just have a fly swatter and I'd get up on the bed and just be out there killing all of these. And one time my wife looked up and said, honey, this looks like a hospital surgery bed with all the blood.

That was...oh, there. Okay, that's enough stories about that, right? But here we are going to have a lot of questions answered when Christ comes back. But in the meantime, we have to just look at what God tells us. That's interesting, going to the Middle East, that area of the world, that just a hundred years ago, Jerusalem was populated by Arab, Turkish people. There were Muslims. You also had some Jews and Christians there. But it was still a pretty sleepy place. Nothing about geopolitical value that was there. It was quite economically and politically quite backward.

Nobody paid much attention to that place. And just a hundred years later, in 2026, Jerusalem is the Jewish capital. It has about one million inhabitants. When they had only a century before, they had about 50,000. Israel has become a great military power. It's the only true democracy in that whole area of the Middle East. It's an economic powerhouse. And it's the only one in the region which has nuclear bombs. And Iran got very close to being the second. Why did the dramatic change? Because it had to fulfill the end-time prophetic role. In 1948, Israel became a Jewish nation. Almost 2,000 years had passed, where basically it was either, first of all, Roman part of the empire after 70 AD, the Jews lost possession of that area.

And it was only almost 2,000 years that they regained it. But this is something that it had to fulfill that end-time role. Notice in Matthew chapter 24 verse 3. Matthew 24 verse 3. The disciples asked Jesus Christ about here in verse 3. It says, Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age? The end of society as we know it.

And Jesus started giving them certain signs. It says, Take heed that no one deceives you, because there are all kinds of ideas out there. But one thing he mentions in verse 15. It says, Therefore, when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place, that's in Jerusalem, Whoever reads, let him understand. Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.

So Israel eventually will be invaded. Jerusalem will be taken captive. And notice that at that time in Jerusalem the Sabbath is being kept. This was not the case back in the Muslim period. Prior to 1948, the Muslims had their holy day. Do you know what day is the Muslim Sabbath? Their holy day? Friday. So it's the sixth day of the week that they say is holy, not the seventh.

And then the Christians say it's the first day of the week and not the seventh. So you see, Satan always figured out some way to substitute the truth with another type of day.

In Luke 21, 20, you don't have to turn there, but it says, When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then no, its desolation is near. So this couldn't have happened before 1948. But now it can happen. And God said it would be a focal point in the news. Zechariah chapter 12. Let's go to Zechariah chapter 12 in verses 2 and 3. Again, this is something that couldn't have taken place before 1948. It says verse 2, Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of drunkenness to all surrounding peoples when they lay siege against Judah and Jerusalem. And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples. All who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it. So Christ is going to come. He's going to rescue at that time. But this is something that's still in the future that we have to look at. Now, of course, what has happened in these past three weeks has been a great humiliation, not only for Iran, but for the rest of the Islamic nations. And believe me, they're going to be on the warpath one day to avenge some of these things. They're defeats. I have an article here that was about two weeks ago in the Orange County Register. It says, Iran's Islamic ideology makes victory much tougher. So, as you know, Iran is a type of religious Islamic nation. And it says, Iran's 1979 revolution created an Islamic regime led by a clerical, quote, supreme leader. Its founder, Ayatollah Khomeini, established a religious dictatorship that subjugates the Iranian people under Sharia law, while zealously exporting its dogma by force. The Constitution in Iran embraces, quote, the ideological mission of jihad, which is holy war, in God's way, that is extending the sovereignty or dominion of God's law throughout the world. And so, this is a fanatical group of people since 1979. They've been just fanatical. It mentions here in this article, Iran's Islamic ideology makes victory much tougher. It says, consider the lesson from 1945 with the defeat of martyrdom extolling Imperial Japan, which offered, quote, an unconditional surrender only after the dropping of two atomic bombs. And basically, these are types of death cults. They want to conquer the world. Japan wanted to do that. The Nazis wanted to do that. And also, the Muslims have wanted to do the same thing, as well as the Russians under the USSR and the Chinese under Mao. So, these have all been these cults of world domination and also, they've been death cults. In other words, we're willing to die for this cause. We should be very thankful that God has intervened through time and has not allowed the world conquest. And believe me, it's gotten pretty close at times. For instance, in the year 732 AD, the Muslim soldiers invaded France. They had already conquered Spain, and they were going to come right through, and they wanted Europe to become Muslim. And it was only in 732 at the Battle of Tours in France. A member of France is mostly originating from the tribe of Reuben, one of the modern tribes of Israel, that they stopped the Arab invasion with Charles Martel. They stopped the advance, and so Europe was spared at that time. And so thanks principally to the United States, Great Britain, France, Holland, and others, we should be thankful we're not speaking German, as the Nazis wanted the world to become. Neither Japanese, with the Emperor worship cult, they wanted to. They thought they were a superior race, that we don't have Russians, which under communism, their declared purpose was to conquer the world. And by the way, the Chinese still have that idea. They're still communist, although they now have more open economic system. But they still want to conquer the world, if they could.

And we could also be speaking Arabic, because that has been one of the drives of Islamic forces to conquer the entire world. Now, we don't know what's going to happen here in the future. We know when wars start. We never know when they end. Yet it seems like God has not determined yet to punish Israel for all their sins. So let's go to 2 Kings chapter 14.

2 Kings chapter 14. To see in some cases that God has not determined to punish Israel as modern Israel now, I'm talking about. Yet it says in 2 Kings chapter 14 verse 23, this is Jeroboam II, because there were two kings named Jeroboam in the ten tribes of Israel. It says in the fifteenth year of Emmausiah, the son of Joash, king of Judah. This is going in the southern part as Emmausiah was a king. Then Jeroboam, the son of Joash, king of Israel, became king in Samaria. That was the capital and reigned 41 years. And he did evil in the sight of the Lord.

He did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebul, who had made Israel sin. So you see here, this is a man that did not return to God in his ways. They still had idols. They still had wrong religion in the country at that time. It says that verse 25, he restored the territory of Israel from the entrance of Hamath to the sea of Arabia, Araba, according to the word of the Lord of Israel, which he had spoken through his servant Jonah. This is the author of the book of Jonah, the son of Amittai, the prophet who was from Gath, Heifer. It says, For the Lord saw that the affliction of Israel was very bitter, and whether bond or free, there was no helper for Israel.

Pretty isolated in the world. And he says, And the Lord did not say that he would blot out the name of Israel from under heaven, but he saved them by the hand of Jeroboam, the son of Joash. Now the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, and all that he did, his might, how he made war, and how he recaptured for Israel from Damascus and Hamath, what had belonged to Judah, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel. This is just to show that God sometimes uses very fallible men, and it still gives Israel time, time to get the true gospel out to the world, give people a chance to repent of their sins in time.

And so we'll have to see in the future if this is just another one of these historical manifestations of God intervening, not willing to let the U.S. and others be completely defeated at this time. Now we'll follow...let's go to Daniel chapter 11. And again, we don't know. It can turn out to be a disaster in the end. So, like I said, we don't have a crystal ball. But right now it just seems like there's a stopping of the aggression from some of these Islamic radical states that threaten the world. Daniel chapter 11, verse 40, it says, At the time of the end, the king of the south, this is the area in south of Israel, and this is now mainly the Middle East area with Muslim dominance.

It says, The king of the south shall attack him, and the king of the north, and this is talking about over here, north of Israel, and that whole area of Europe, shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, horsemen, and with many ships. And he shall enter the countries, overwhelm them, and pass through them. He shall also enter the glorious land, talking about Israel. And many countries shall be overthrown, but these shall escape from his hand Edom, Moab, and the prominent people of Ammon.

This is the country of Jordan. For some reason, God is going to spare that area. That could be important, where God's people can be taken one day and protected during that great tribulation period. He says, He shall stretch out his hand against the countries, and the land of Egypt shall not escape. That's next to Israel. He shall have power over the treasures of gold and silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt. Also the Libyans and Ethiopians shall follow at his heels. These are all the area of northern Africa, a lot of rich oil countries there. But news from the east and the north shall trouble him. So basically, that term in Hebrew is northeast, but there's not a word like we have which combines it to.

But it's talking about northern and eastern area shall trouble him. So this has to do with the areas northeast, talking about Asiatic countries, basically Russia, China, and others, as well as we can understand. It says, therefore he shall go out with great fury. This European leader that will arise, described in Revelation chapter 13. The beast and the false prophet will be heading that group to destroy and annihilate many. And this, the beast, which is the head of this European conglomerate, he shall plant the tents of his palace between the sea and the glorious holy mountain.

Talking about the Mediterranean and the Dead Sea.

And that's where Jerusalem is located. Yet he shall come to his end, and no one will help him. So, just like it tells us in Daniel and other parts that this beast and false prophet, they're just going to have their little temporary period of reigning over the nations. So those are things that we can look at at the Middle East. I do feel that somehow God is not ready yet to intervene and punish these countries, the modern nations of Israel, until the Great Tribulation comes. So we'll see what kind of a period we have now. But certainly things were looking like it could all spiral out, and the US progressively getting weaker and weaker, as well as the other nations allied to them. And eventually Europe right now is getting stronger. Germany is in a race to build up its armies again, and they don't appreciate what the US have done or others, and they want to take more control of the military and political power there in Europe.

Let's look at the third thread. We talked about the first one in the Middle East, the second, the modern nations of Israel. Now we can go to the third thread. The description of the church at this time. What will the church be doing during this period of time? There are two descriptions that we should look at. Revelation chapter 3, verses 7. Revelation chapter 3. In verse 7, this is talking about the Philadelphia church. And just as these are descriptions John received from Jesus Christ, who had received it from God the Father.

And we believe it's also a progression. Each church is an era of time. Because it starts out with the Apostolic church, talks about the apostles there, doesn't talk about apostles further into the future. It was only that Apostolic church.

And then it moved on. And so we come here to where the end time is very close. It says in verse 7. And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write, These things says, He who is holy, He who is true, He who has the key of David, He who opens, and no one shuts, and shuts, and no one opens. So of course Jesus Christ is the one that has the key of David. And He's the one that's going to open doors at this period of time.

And that in the New Testament deals with getting the gospel out to the world. And no one can shut. And that's what we have been doing for almost a hundred years now. In the first message we talked about 1934. And that was just kind of the beginning of that period of time.

But we're still working, getting that gospel, the same one. And Christ will shut doors and no one opens. That's why we have to pray that God will open the doors that are appropriate for the gospel to get out and shut the doors which are not going to be productive, which He knows are not going to be effective.

And then He goes on to say, verse 8, I know your works. And always when He's talking about works, He's talking about obedience to God's laws and to getting the gospel out. I know your works. I have said before you an open door. And we certainly have had now open doors. Like a century ago, we still didn't have any of this. We didn't have radio, we don't have TV, we don't have internet. So all of the communications means are available. Now even satellites are such and we could get that gospel out so much more powerfully when God lets us know. There are many ways of getting the gospel out now.

It says, and no one can shut it. And certainly that door that started with radio basically almost a century ago, nobody's been able to shut it. For you have little strength and have kept my word and have not denied my name.

So He says I'm going to use you although you don't have much spiritual strength. And that is a condition of the church. We live in a very rich society. Most of the people have prospered and we don't have the same dedication as the first century Christians. And so right now we are a church. We don't have powerful spiritual strength. But He says what you have is sufficient.

He says you have kept my word. Notice what it says in the New Living version. It says here, you have persevered in my word and have not denied my name. So yes, we keep God's name holy. We're not going to deny what He has done in our lives. We had a prayer talking about that. It says in verse 9, Indeed I will make those of the synagogue of Satan. So Satan has his church now too.

Synagogue just means church. Who say they are Jews and are not. In other words, they call themselves true Christians. Oh yes, we have all of this. And he says one day they will recognize you are all breaking God's laws. You will have to come to account for the breaking and teaching, the breaking of God's laws. And that group that's so huge, one day will say we admit we were wrong and this is God's true church.

And he says those who say they are Jews and are not, but lie because salvation comes from the Jewish base. Indeed I will make them come and worship before your feet and to know that I have loved you. That's when we are transformed as spirit beings. Be part of God's family. So that's when the world will know who was right in the end, not now.

He says verse 10, because you have kept my word to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world to test those who dwell on the earth. So he says this little church that has kept his word, was persevered, God's going to protect it from our trial that shall come upon the whole world. That hasn't happened yet. He says, Behold, I am coming quickly.

He tells this church, I am coming quickly. Hold fast what you have that no one may take your crown. God's offering us a crown to be able to reign under Christ for a thousand years. But people fall away, they go someplace else. What is God going to do with that crown that was offered? Well, he'll call someone else. That person will take the crown. He says, He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God and he shall go out no more. He's going to be working there in the headquarters, church, under God the Father Jesus Christ.

I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from my God and I will write on him my new name. That's the first church that during this end time period. The second church, though, is also part of the church but has a different attitude. And verse 14 says, And to the angel of the church of the Laodiceans, write, These things says the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning, the creation of God, in the sense of being the firstborn of all resurrected.

I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of my mouth.

So this is the lackadaisical church. This is the one that is not getting the gospel out, is not zealously carrying out the work. And so it's a tepid, lukewarm attitude. And why did they get that way? It says, verse 17, Because you say, I am rich, I become wealthy, and have need of nothing. And so as prosperity has become the main driving force of the person. Now, they're still part of the church, but their attitude is just like the rich man who says, you know, I'm going to build bigger silos, bigger barns, and then say to myself, oh, just enjoy all of these material, goods and blessings and everything else, and you leave God out of the picture.

Or at least he's way down at the bottom of the list. And he says, And you do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked. That's their true spiritual state. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich. So you see here, he says, you're going to go through a test that's going to purge you like nothing else, just like fire purging gold. You're going to go through such things, and then you will be spiritually rich.

In other words, on the inside, and have white garments that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed, and anoint your eyes with eye salve that you may see. And so we always have to examine ourselves. At least once a year, Passover's coming around, we have to examine ourselves. Not what looks on the outside, but what we see on the outside. It's what's on the inside. Everybody knows what condition, in a sense, and we should pray for God, just like we had that hymn about, know me, O Lord, search me, show me things that I need to work on.

It says, As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. So, for a part of the church, Christ's sacrifice was applied to our sins. We started that path at that time, and he says, Well, you know, I'm not going to let you just become this unconverted Gentile left. No, I still love you. And so trials are going to come. Tests are going to wake us up time and time again, because he loves us.

Therefore be zealous and repent the zeal that we still need. He says, Behold, I stand at the door and knock. So he doesn't tell this church, Oh, I'm coming quickly. No, he's right there. The door is right there.

And he says, If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with me. To him who overcomes, I will grant to sit with me on my throne, as I always also overcame and sat down with my father on his throne. So there's a great reward, but it's going to be a time of testing, a time of purging.

That's coming. Look at the way the world is now, armed to the teeth. Are we ever going to have a reprieve of that? No. China is building a huge army, Navy. They want to get much bigger than the US. Europeans are falling behind. And they're saying, Well, we got to do something now about this.

Then you have the Russians and their arm to the teeth. Look what Ukraine is happening there. And then the Middle East. So if you depend on this world for peace, boy, you are betting on the wrong horse. Things are really getting more and more dangerous. And God says, Look, if you're close to me, if you do things right, I will take care of you during this difficult time ahead. And so as we prepare for this Passover, let's go to 2 Timothy 2 to read about the reality of the church.

2 Timothy 2, verse 15. It says, Be diligent to present yourself, approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. But shun profane and idle babblings, for they will increase to more ungodliness, and their message will spread like cancer. Himineas and Phileas are of this sort, false church members sowing discord, who have strayed concerning the truth, saying that their resurrection is already passed, and they overthrow the faith of some. Nevertheless, the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal.

The Lord knows those who are His, and let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity. But in a great house, just like a church, there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor. Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work.

And so, we know, a very imperfect church, not very strong spiritually, but we're still out there with that same Philadelphian spirit. We're going to be here, getting the gospel out, doing what we can, pushing the borders as far as we can forward, while God gives us breath to breathe. And so, as the Passover is only just a little over a week from now, about 10 days, we should focus on spiritually preparing. Also, if we have offended, or if we are offended, please go to that person, talk, see what can be done to better the relationships.

And that is, of course, the person is willing to do so, because you also need their cooperation. But let's finish in 1 Corinthians 11, verse 25. It says, about the Passover in the same manner, he also took the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new covenant in my blood. It's not talking about the old covenant, it's talking about the new covenant, the one with Jesus Christ in the center.

This do as often as you drink it in remembrance of me. For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, and we do it every year, you proclaim the Lord's death till he comes. Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup.

For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner, in other words, not grateful, not preparing spiritually to appreciate so much what this means, eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord's body, not appreciating. For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep.

For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world. And so let's take this into consideration as we near the Passover and the Days of Unleavened Bread. And that is a little bit of a summary of what we're looking at ahead in these days.