Christ Will Return

 Christ Will Return – Pete Garcia - https://www.rev310.net/post/christ-will-return A reader reminded me of an article I had written back in 2019. For whatever reason, it did not make the transition from my old website to this one. Here it is. As the old saying goes, the eyes are of no use if the mind is blind. So it is come to this then, that we who live in the most transformative, prophetically active time since the days of Christ, see so little interest in what the Bible has tosay about what will come to pass in these last days. Tragically, this disinterest comes as equally from those who profess Christ, as from those who don’t. The study today is over why this is. “However, we speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. But we speak the wisdom ofGod in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.” – 1 Corinthians 2:6-9 The section of Bible prophecy which speaks to the events of the last days, Eschatology, is not some fringe hobby that people dabble in with the same seriousness as those whofollow UFOs or Big Foot. Eschatology is a major doctrinal study that consumes around 30% of your Bible. John F. Walvoord, the late President of the Dallas Theological Seminary, dubbed it the ‘capstone of Christian doctrine’, because your eschatological viewdetermines how you hold to every other major doctrine…such as Soteriology, Ecclesiology, etc.) If you think about it for a second, your entire Bible, either center around Christ’s first coming, or His second. It only makes sense that a book in which God isrevealing Himself to mankind progressively, (i.e….not all at once), is a book that hinges around His own Incarnation and His return for His people. Yet today more than ever, so-called Evangelicals are increasingly becoming dismissive of Bible prophecy because they believe it is a fool’s errand, that Christ may never return,or that it impedes their ability to enact cultural change through the social gospel. This is promulgated in the Reformed Theology groups as well as thru the Prosperity Gospel and Emergent Church movements. It’s like it has become popular again in Christendom,to no longer care if or when Christ will return as if it is some distraction we needn’t concern ourselves with. “We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one.” – 1 John 5:19 As Christians, we must understand that Satan really exists, and he is a real enemy of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and the nation of Israel. He’s an enemy of the Gospel becauseit represents his ultimate defeat and demise at the Cross of Calvary, and whatever schemes and plans he had prior to the Cross, became null and void when God provided a foolproof way to redeem fallen man through the shed blood of Jesus Christ. He’s an enemyof Israel because she represents the Apple of God’s Eye, (Zech. 2:8) and because of the promises and covenants God made with her. (Romans 11:25-29) If a “Christian” refuses to believe that Satan really exists, then they are in a sense, calling into question,Jesus’s sanity…for whom else did Jesus speak to in the desert when undergoing His forty days of temptation were it not who Scripture says it was? (Luke 4:1-13) Satan and all of his demonic hosts then, HATE Bible prophecy, because it foretells their sure doom. We know the things Satan hates most because these are the things he hasspent most of his time and energy, trying to destroy. Likewise, if the world is under the temporary control of Satan, it makes sense then that these are the same things the world hates. Satan has invested millennia in distorting, perverting, discrediting,dismissing, and silencing true, orthodox, and Scriptural Bible prophecy. Think about it this way; the world and its way of thinking, tolerate pretty much everything to one degree or another…except Biblical Christianity and Israel’s existence. Childmarriages, abortion, Islam, Buddhism, paganism, Satanism, murder, theft, corruption, etc., etc….the world tolerates and forgives. But if you say that Jesus is the only way to salvation, the world will destroy you, or die trying. In regards to Bible prophecythen, ask yourself; 1. Which does the world hate more, Pre-Millennialism or Amillennialism? 2. Which does the world hate more, a Pre-Tribulation Rapture, or no Rapture at all? 3. Why are there so many different views on when the Rapture takes place? Can we not see the satanic attempts to distort and pervert our understanding of the “Blessed Hope”? And be certain, it can only be a “Blessed Hope”, if we are removed beforethe world enters into the 70th Week of Daniel (Daniel 9:24-27). Going in, halfway, or all the way removes any sense of ‘hope’ if we are to be subjected to the horror Christ Himself said would not only be present but be unparalleled in all of history (Matt.24:21-22). What I find interesting, is that those Christian “scholars” and denominations who dismiss Bible prophecy as either unimportant or irrelevant, seemingly do so because it interferesor distracts people away from their earthly agendas. Whether those agendas are soaked in social justice, the environment, or perhaps trying to make themselves culturally relevant, Bible prophecy definitively takes people's gaze from looking down to lookingup. What I also find interesting, is that even our enemies, those spiritual forces who are opposed to God, believe and understand Bible prophecy. “When He had come to the other side, to the country of the Gergesenes, there met Him two demon-possessed men, coming out of the tombs, exceedingly fierce, so that no one couldpass that way. And suddenly they cried out, saying, “What have we to do with You, Jesus, You Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?” Matthew 8:28-29 The demonic hosts, tremble at the thought of God (James 2:19). They tremble at the name of Jesus Christ. Not only do they know He (Christ) exists, but they also know thatthere is coming a day of reckoning when they will be judged and cast into eternal punishment. They know the seriousness of this coming judgment, as some of their demonic ‘brethren’ were already cast into the Abyss, under chains of darkness, until that Dayof Judgment when they are to be cast into the Lake of Fire forever. They will suffer this for their sins of mixing sexually with humans in an attempt to corrupt the genetic gene pool prior to the Noahic Flood (See Gen. 6:1-4, 2 Peter 2:4, Jude 1:6-7). Yet,as wicked and depraved as these fallen angels are, they at least, have the common sense to fear and tremble at the very mention of God…whereas defiant and rebellious man does not. “…and especially those who walk according to the flesh in the lust of uncleanness and despise authority. They are presumptuous, self-willed. They are not afraid to speak evilof dignitaries, whereas angels, who are greater in power and might, do not bring a reviling accusation against them before the Lord.” – 2 Peter 2:10-11 Assessment Perhaps this increased skepticism about Christ and His return ties back into the whole normalcy bias that our world has succumbed to. People do not understand the supernaturalrealm and are rarely exposed to it, therefore, they dismiss it, because they can’t physically put their hands on it or see it with their eyes. This idea that the supernatural either doesn’t exist or is so ethereal that it’s irrelevant, has become the dominantview in academia and government and is very pagan in origin. Naturalism, secular humanism, realism, and materialism have become the only acceptable platforms in the ‘public arena of ideas for the last half of the 20th century and have had devastating resultsin our education system, culture, and the Judeo-Christian way of life. Not only are these views the mainstay in our secular culture, but has effectively infiltrated and infected our theological institutions as well. In fact, the overwhelming number of seminaries today, are largely liberal. Yet, what’s frustrating is that we have lived through arguably the most transformative, dynamic,technologically advanced, and blood-stained century the world has EVER seen…yet, we act as if things have always been this way. Just think about the major events which have radically changed the world in just the last 100 years or so; 1. World War 1 (1914-1918) reshaped and redrew the boundaries of much of Europe and the Middle East. 2. Bolshevik Revolution (1917-1922) created a communist superpower through the formation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), which would enable the Cold Warto be waged for almost 50 years. 3. World War II (1939-1945) again drew the whole world into conflict. Out of its ashes, gave reason for the world to create a global governing body (United Nations), and Europe'scause to come together economically (European Coal and Steel Community) and militarily (NATO). 4. The rebirth of the nation of Israel in 1948, after almost two millennia of diaspora, would become the very catalyst that would awaken the sleeping giant of orthodox (i.e….radical)Islam. Both Sunni and Shia sects then became bent on destroying Israel. Israel’s rebirth into the table of nations galvanized Islam into a regional nightmare bent on wiping Israel (and all those who support her) off the map. 5. Bretton Woods Agreement (1945) effectively put the world under a single, global, reserve currency…the U.S. Dollar, and linked it to the Gold Standard at $35 an ounce. 6. OPEC (1960) stands for the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, which has come to dominate the petroleum-based energy needs for the last half of the 20th century.The United States worked a deal with OPEC nations from 1973 to 1975 to create what would come to be known as the fiat “Petrol Dollar”, which meant that the US would militarily and economically remain faithful, so long as all oil transactions were made in USCurrency. 7. The creation of the Internet (the 1980s) is a system of systems, which links electronic devices together via the World Wide Web (www). It’s hard to imagine life beforethe Internet, because it has really been the biggest revolutionary change to communication, ever. It has rapidly increased information availability, communications, and technological advancements in every sector, and has become instrumental in media, government,and the military. I wish people could step back to see the big picture, and then ask themselves one fundamental question; “Is the world growing towards, or further away from, global government?” We know that according to Scripture, the world will eventually come under the control of ten regional rulers. (Daniel 7:23-25; 8:23-25, Rev. 13:1-4; 17:9-14) From this regionalconsortium, will arise one man who is given power by three of these regions/kingdoms. From here, the man (who we believe to be the antichrist/rider on the white horse) will come to singularly and authoritatively rule the entire world. But changing from the world as it is today, to what the world will look like then, will not happen overnight. Infrastructure and legislation have to be put in place, technologyhas to be developed which would allow for the implementation of global control mechanisms, which would mean that the conditions are such that independent countries would willingly set aside their national borders and sovereignty, in order to come togetherfor the common good. Change like that only happens in the face of a massive, global, crisis. Now, we’ve all been witness to the current, unsuccessful attempts by globalists today to try and generate panic on a worldwide scale, through the false alarms of “Global Cooling”. When that didn’t pan out, they called it “Global Warming”. When the scientific data didn’t support the AlGorian hyperbolic warnings of impending destruction, the crisis HAD to be rebranded again, to “Climate Change”. So why the hard push for something thatclearly at the present, isn’t a crisis? Since the world already has a global government called the United Nations, it has the mechanism, but not the authority to pull all the nations together under its protectiveumbrella. In fact, the UN is quite impotent in its ability to do much of anything. What it lacks though, is a means to fund its initiatives through global taxation. It needs a crisis and this crisis would potentially be used to create a standing army/navy/airforce to enforce peace, and security, and serve as a way to enforce taxation compliance. Currently, the United Nations currently receives the bulk of its funding through the United States, where it is also headquartered. The “Climate Change” crisis was absolutelynecessary in order to drum up funding for enhanced global governance through “carbon taxes”, which would then achieve two goals; punish the rich, western nations through heavy taxes for benefitting from industrialization (wealth redistribution), and createbureaucratic overreach which is necessary to implement Agenda 21 and 2030 programs which remove sovereignty nations have over their own territories. Imagine the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) on a global scale. Conclusion So let’s be clear on this then, that Satan’s schemes and maneuverings in these regards are neither random nor arbitrary. He is in the process of putting his affairs in order,in short order…because he knows he has but a little time left before all this comes apart at the seams. He knows the Bible and knows what God told Noah after the Flood (Genesis 8:20-22), that He will keep the seasons and natural order going until He deemsfit, so all this talk of global cooling, warming, and climate change crisis, is simply machinations of something more sinister he has in store…which is, to bring the world together under one man, antichrist, who will then take that last stand against Christat His Second Coming. Satan knows perfectly well, that Christ will return for His bride, the Church before all this goes down…which is why he has invested so much time and energy in confusing thechurches about the subject. He knows that this is THE crisis he will use to bring all the governments of the world together into his already well-laid plans. He just doesn’t know when this will all go down. So the overwhelming lack of interest, the skepticism,and outright scoffing of the Bible, and Bible prophecy that we see today, is in keeping with the two thousand-plus years’ worth of deception and corruption that Satan has invested in keeping people in the dark. “And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them? I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, whenthe Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?” Luke 17:7-8 We need only look back at Christ’s first coming, and the scarce knowledge and awareness of the people then knew that their Messiah had come, to see how Satan works in keepingthe world blinded to God’s future prophetic timeline. As we near His Second Coming, do we not see the exact same thing taking place, even in the churches? On one hand, the Church has come under intense persecution throughout much of the world. On the other,the churches have largely fallen asleep and no longer know where we are on God’s divine timeline, nor do they know where they are going. Believers are starting to give up on God’s promise of returning for His own. Rest assured… He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming quickly.” Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus! The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen. Rev. 22:20-21