The Silence of the Lambs

 The Silence of the Lambs – Pete Garcia - https://www.rev310.net/post/the-silence-of-the-lambs In the most mind-boggling, ironies of ironies in the Year of our Lord 2023, is the resounding silence of the American and European Christian pulpits in these last days. Thissilence by the so-called learn-ed theologians, whether over the unfolding war in Israel, the increasingly draconian advancements in technology and finance, or any number of issues that are blatantly frog-marching the world towards Revelation 13, is perplexinggiven the sheer volume of material God provides for us regarding the world at the end of human history. Put another way, we have men (and now women) entering into years of rigorous schooling from “esteemed seminaries” only to come out on the other end moreskeptical then when they went in...and this so-called theological education is the primary metric churches use for hiring their clergy? No wonder the pulpits are silent, and the congregation confused. Author’s note: I’ve even been criticized by some even within ourown prophetic circles for not having a seminary degree which I found humorously ironic considering the source. No thanks, I’d rather take my place amongst the “ignorant fishermen” and be considered a fool than waste time and money only to come out more confusedthan when I went in. Nevertheless, given the state of higher education these days in a civilization drowning in post-modernism, it's not surprising. Now, for the sake of argument, if you wereto ask any mainline or mainstream denominational pastor why churches in the West NO LONGER preach on Bible prophecy anymore, they might give you some sort of lame, milk toast excuse like it is too difficult to understand, too controversial, or too subjective. But the truth isn’t that it’s too difficult, because they’ll teach on other subjects that can be even more challenging. The truth isn’t that it’s too controversial, because,in the day and age of postmodern inclusivity and moral ambiguity, pastors are all too willing to embrace controversial and unbiblical positions so they can maintain their sense of relevance. Lastly, the truth isn’t that prophecy is any more subjective thanany other biblical doctrine. No, if they were brave enough to really reflect on why they don’t teach it, it is because they are TOO EMBARRASSED to believe it, much less take it seriously, or preach on it publicly. After centuries of tolerating the subversion of the Judeo-Christian worldview by liberally progressive postmodernism, it is no wonder that our universities and seminariesare in the mess they are in today. Humanism, materialism, hedonism, nihilism, socialism, Darwinism, and many other “isms” have been cunningly inserted into the curriculum under the guise of “enlightenment.” This so-called enlightenment was supposed to add an air of sophistication to the credentialing process, but what ended up happening is it began producing generation aftergeneration of increasingly skeptical theologians to the point where even today, nearly a third of senior Christian pastors say there is more than one way to heaven. If they can believe something like that, then it is no wonder the supposed learn-ed theologiansare abandoning the beliefs in a literal Adam and Eve, Noahic flood, parting of the Red Sea, or Jonah being swallowed by a great fish. To them, the Bible is like a Choose-Your-Own-Adventure book that you and I can mold into whatever we want it to be. Moreover,to them, Bible Prophecy is a fantastic subject to let alone. Does that attitude remind you of anyone? When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquiredof them where the Christ was to be born. 5 So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet: 6 ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, Are not the least among the rulers of Judah; For out of you shall come a Ruler Who will shepherd My people Israel.’ ” Matthew 2:3-6 Note, this is not what the prophet Micah actually wrote. He said: “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, From everlasting.” Micah 5:2 See how the “experts” watered it down to make it less threatening to an already self-conscious and paranoid King Herod? Nevertheless, by ignoring the growing volumes of propheticsigns of the times, our modern theologians must increasingly do the mental cheetah flips to excuse what their congregants are seeing with their own eyeballs. Churches who don’t teach prophecy, tend to create all sorts of church programs to keep their parishionersentertained, distracted, and busy. Even worse, these pastors begin embracing the ever-evolving social justice mantra that is increasingly being force-fed to the churches by the government, the media, and pop culture. Willful You might be wondering how so many pulpits have gotten away with ignoring the neon signs flashing that we are at the end of the age. For the shepherds, it takes a willfuland rebellious spirit to ignore all the prophetic markers littering the geopolitical, economic, religious, and cultural landscape of our day. For the sheep, it takes being apathetic enough to tolerate a worthless shepherd. And for those, who like me, attenda church that refuses to teach prophecy and cannot leave for good reasons, we are called to be the salt and light in that church. Trust me, I'm not the black sheep of my church for no reason! The leadership knows me and fears mightily when they have to discusstheological matters with me. Satan wants you to ignore Bible Prophecy because he wants you to be ignorant of what it clearly says. He's done a masterful job of getting churches to either adopt (or inherit)one of the three main heretical eschatological positions foisted upon mainline Christianity over the past two thousand years. These are Amillennialism (can be preterist or historocist), Post-Millennialism, or Preterism. Remember, Premillennialism (or Chiliasm) was the original, 1st-3rd century early church position Churches held from the Apostles to the time of Augustine. However, when EmperorConstantine publicly converted to Christianity in 313 AD, the majority of former pagan priests and their devotees followed his lead by also converting to Christianity. Thus, fulfilling the Mystery Kingdom parables of the leaven and the mustard seed. Satan had previously used numerous groups to try and destroy Christianity in its infancy. From the crucifixion of Christ, Satan attempted to merge the law back into New Testamentteachings with the Judaizers, to the infusion of confusing and unbiblical teachings with the gnostics, Christianity was assaulted by both the Jews and the Greeks. But he didn't stop there. He began using the global authority of that day (the Roman Empire)to begin crushing the fledgling church. As Jesus stated in His letter to the church of Smyrna, Satan used ten emperors to attempt to stamp out Christianity with great zealousness. 1. First persecution: 67AD- Nero 2. Second persecution: 81AD- Domitian 3. Third persecution: 108AD- Trajan 4. Fourth persecution: 162AD- Marcus Aurelius 5. Fifth persecution: 192AD- Severus 6. Sixth persecution: 235AD- Maximus 7. Seventh persecution: 249AD- Decius 8. Eighth persecution: 257AD- Valerian 9. Ninth persecution: 274AD- Aurelian 10. Tenth persecution: 303AD- Diocletian With Emperor Constantine being the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity, he eased and reversed decades of persecution against the fledgling church. For the Christians,this was a welcomed change. This made the thought of continuing to champion the idea that Christ would one day return and set up His kingdom increasingly awkward and began to fall into disfavor. This was especially true amongst the rising class of Christianclergy (and educated elite) who saw their political capital rising with a newly Christened emperor. Constantine converted well into the decline of the Roman Empire, signaling he might have been trying to revive Rome's former greatness by capitalizing on this idea that theRoman Empire was in fact, "the Kingdom". By that time, the nation of Israel had already been gathering dust in the history books for nearly three centuries, and the increasingly Gentile-converted churches increasingly believed they had replaced Israel as God'schosen. However, each time Satan did, it only caused Christianity to spread like wildfire. This is why he changed tactics in the third century. Instead of trying to wipe out Christianitywrit large, he directed all of his energies into corrupting it. He began to use men like Origen and Augustine to promote non-literal interpretations of the Holy Bible, which opened the doors for all manners of perversions to be thrust upon the Church by corruptingits hermeneutics. Since then, this corruption has allowed for three major, heretical, eschatological positions to emerge, simply due to their departure from the literal interpretation. Given the fact they go back centuries, these three are now viewed as "historic,"which belies the fact that simply because something is old, doesn't make it Biblical or true. Also note how "man-centric" these eschatological positions are: •Amillennialism: The Church is the spiritual kingdom now, therewill be no literal kingdom on the earth with Christ at the head ruling from Jerusalem •Post-Millennialism: The Church must reclaim the earth first beforeChrist can return to establish His kingdom on it. •Preterism: Almost all prophecies were finished/fulfilled in 70ADwith the Roman destruction of Jerusalem and the temple, except for the Second Coming (Partial Preterism). Those who believe the Second Coming also occurred in 70AD, are called "Full Preterists." Conclusion One of the most infamous and ill-fated proclamations in all of modern history was the ignominious declaration by the British PM Neville Chamberlain, who after signing a peacetreaty with Nazi Germany in 1938, declared, "peace in our time,". This of course was right before the Third Reich began conquering all of Europe. As we would say in our day, "That didn't age well." Fast forwarding to the 21st century, we must ask the question of why churches and denominations continue to embrace such demonstrably false and equally vapid eschatologiesthat have no more substance or comfort than Chamberlain's declaration of "peace in our time." One might wonder why I would equate the two, but both ignorantly ignored the growing danger on the horizon in favor of an illusionary promise of peace. Whether these eschatological views are simply inherited denominational positions (such as is the case with Roman Catholicism, Presbyterianism, Episcopalian, or Lutheran),or they are stark changes in direction from previously held positions (i.e., eschatological departures within certain Methodist, Baptist, and other Evangelical churches), churches in the West are increasingly embracing these positions because they offer somethingPre-Millennialism can't, which is more time. Churches and pastors are increasingly invested in "kicking the eschatological can down the road" so as not to deal with the difficulties it supposedly brings forth. This is because Pre-Millennial, Pre-Tribulationalism differentiates itself from all the other views by subscribing to the doctrine of imminency, which means, not that Christis coming back imminently, but that He could...and nothing is stopping Him should the Father decide to send Him. The Rapture of the Church is not dependent upon a Feast of the Lord, a Christian holy day, or even world events. The Rapture of the Church couldhappen at any time. The Bible lists the most definitive, yet unknowable reasons for when the Rapture will happen and these are: 1. The Fullness of the Gentiles has come in (Rom 11:25) 2. At a time we think not (Luke 12:40) 3. When the world is crying out for Peace & Safety (1 Thess. 5:1-4) Modern Christendom has been under assault for a long time (2K years thus far) but the attacks first began over the primary issues such as the inclusion of New Testament booksinto the canon, the deity of Christ, the nature and position of the Church and Israel, the mixing of the Law into Grace, and the Kingdom Come. These were the issues the Church wrestled with in the early centuries, but by the time the Protestant Reformationcame, the battle tactics changed. Although Satan never relented in attacking the core issues of our faith, he began working more subtle forms of attack by attacking the integrity of the Bible via Lower and Higher Criticisms, adding the liberal-progressiveviews to Christian education, and corrupting the seminaries. Premillennialism: A. Evangelical Free Church of America B. Assemblies of God C. Southern Baptist Convention (some members) D. Calvary Chapels (most members) E. Non-Denominational (hard to gauge) Historic Premillennialism: 1.Orthodox Church 2.Reformed Church in America (some members) Postmillennialism: Partial Preterist Postmillennialism: 1.Some Presbyterian denominations (e.g., Orthodox Presbyterian Church) 2.Kingdom Now Theology 3.New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) organizations Amillennialism: · Realized Amillennialism (Partial Preterism): 1.Roman Catholic Church 2.Eastern Orthodox Church 3.Lutheran Church 4.Anglican 5.Reformed Church in America (some members) 6.Churches of Christ Preterism: ·Full Preterism (Pantelism): 1.Some independent and non-denominational groups 2.Limited representation within mainstream denominations According to our modern experts, if you still believe in Premillennialism, or to an even greater extent, the Pre-Tribulation, Dispensational position of Premillennialism,then you are a rube and should not have any say within the boundaries of Western Civilization about any issue of significance. If you hold to the Pre-Trib Rapture position, you might as well self-identify as a knuckle-dragging troglodyte for all they care,because you will no longer be taken seriously. At least that is the impression I get from listening to all these self-inflated windbags’ drone on and on in their books and television interviews. Nevertheless, imperatively stating that the Lord is not coming back or that we are not in the last days, presumes some grand, cosmic, omnipotent knowledge the person mustprofess if they can judge the future by the past. Furthermore, the longer the Lord tarries, it simply reinforces Peter's description of the rampant heretical attitude that will be prevalent amongst the professing Church in the last days. Knowing this first: that scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts, and saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathersfell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.” For this they willfully forget: that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of water and in the water, by which the world that then existed perished,being flooded with water. But the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same word, are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. 2 Peter 3:3-7 Note, that this willful forgetfulness is akin to saying that they purposefully forget because it is increasingly convenient to do so. This willful (or purposeful) forgetfulnessis broken down into three different subcategories for what we see in this particular passage. 1.The first subcategory of intentional forgetfulness is the foolhardy audacity built up in the mind of the skeptic by doubting God’s word (hath God said…) •that scoffers will come in the last days…saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? What they are really asking, is “where in Scripture” does it promise His coming? This seems awfully reminiscent of the Pharisees and scribes who no longer believed that aMessiah would come after the 400 silent years ultimately rejecting Jesus at His first coming. 2. The second subcategory of intentional forgetfulness is the delusion of normalcy bias. •For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation 3. The last subcategory of intentional forgetfulness is the byproduct of scoffing which leads to bitterness and hostility, which leads to violence (both physical andemotional) because they are... •walking according to their own lusts (see also Luke 12:35-48) But what is the faithful Christian supposed to do? In the same passage, the Apostle Peter tells us: But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earthand the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavenswill be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless; and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord issalvation—as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to theirown destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures. You therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked; but grow in thegrace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen. 2 Peter 3:10-18 We are to be looking, watching, and waiting for our Lord to return with a joyful expectancy (i.e., our blessed hope) all the while being busy with the work the Lord has givenus to do. And how will the sheep know to be on the lookout (or looking up) if the shepherds fail to lead them in this? While we can't know the day or the hour for the day of Christ (i.e., the Rapture), we can already see the foundations already being laid for the final Beast kingdom to come.We can already see the infrastructure going up all around the world, anticipating the prince to come (Dan. 9:26-27). In knowing and trusting Jesus' promise to deliver the Church (body of Christ) BEFORE God's wrath is poured out upon a Christ-rejecting world(all 21 Judgments), means our departure is all the sooner. Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near.” Luke 21:28 Additional Resources: https://vachristian.org/five-reasons-pastors-dont-teach-bible-prophecy/