How tough will it be?
We have been considering reasons why, as Jude asks us to do, we should ascribe dominion and power to God.
We have considered the fact that at present, God, the Almighty, allows others, including spiritual beings to exercise power and authority that rightly belong to Him.
But God has overall control and is step by step implementing a plan that will ultimately restore all power and authority to His son Jesus, Who will in turn hand this complete authority to His Father, God.
1 CORINTHIANS.
CHAPTER 15.
24. Then after Christ has destroyed all powers and forces, the end will come, and he will give the kingdom to God the Father.
We saw that a significant step in this restoration of power to Jesus was the bodily resurrection of those who have trusted in Christ for their salvation. They will be caught up into the clouds and ultimately into heaven where we noted a judgment will take place at the Judgment Seat of Christ. Jesus will sit in the place of authority and make decisions with regard to our service and walk and the quantity and quality of our good deeds for Him. Our salvation is not in question but our works, our labours for God, are. Work designated to be wood, hay and stubble will receive no reward but work deemed to be gold, silver and valuable building materials will
God will also withdraw His spirit from the earth and while all will be joy and peace in heaven on earth it will begin to be a different story.
2 THESSALONIANS.
CHAPTER 2.
6. You already know what is holding this wicked one back until it is time for him to come.
7. His mysterious power is already at work, but someone is holding him back. And the wicked one won’t appear until that someone is out of the way.
Many of the events on earth are described in Old Testament prophecies such as Ezekiel, Jeremiah, Daniel and Isaiah and while the events are true the details are, at times, difficult to interpret and I for one, do not declare any dogmatic understanding of the events on earth at this time.
What I propose to do is merely give a broad brush approach to these happenings.
We look around us here on earth at the present time and we see increasing turmoil and rebelliousness and chaos whether it be in the economic, social, mental and even physical aspects of life. And certainly in many countries there is a decline in allegiance to God and Jesus. There are attempts to eliminate everything of a spiritual nature and to give power and authority to human beings. For most there is no acknowledgement of the dominion and power of God as Jude declares there should be.
Will things improve? Certainly not! The Bible speaks about perilous times. The Greek word is chalepos which means hard to deal with, or grievous
2 TIMOTHY.
CHAPTER 3.
1. Remember that there will be difficult times in the last days.
2. People will be selfish, greedy, boastful, and conceited; they will be insulting, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, and irreligious;
3. they will be unkind, merciless, slanderers, violent, and fierce; they will hate the good;
4. they will be treacherous, reckless, and swollen with pride; they will love pleasure rather than God;
5. they will hold to the outward form of our religion, but reject its real power. Keep away from such people.
The Greek word “chalepos” is the same word used to describe the demon possessed men at Gadara
MATTHEW.
CHAPTER 8.
28. When Jesus came to the territory of Gadara on the other side of the lake, he was met by two men who came out of the burial caves there. These men had demons in them and were so fierce that no one dared travel on that road.
It seems that living conditions will become progressively more difficult as time moves on and the signs of this happening are with us right now.
As we move into the future this is what we can expect.
MARK.
CHAPTER 13.
7. And don’t be troubled when you hear the noise of battles close by and news of battles far away. Such things must happen, but they do not mean that the end has come.
8. Countries will fight each other; kingdoms will attack one another. There will be earthquakes everywhere, and there will be famines. These things are like the first pains of childbirth.
9. “You yourselves must watch out. You will be arrested and taken to court. You will be beaten in the synagogues; you will stand before rulers and kings for my sake to tell them the Good News.
One of the many events to take place in these times of trouble will be an attack on Israel and Jerusalem by Gog from the land of Magog. Other nations will join in the attack. According to Ezekiel it will happen in the last days, and the correct time placement of this event can only be determined by the correct interpretation of the phrase “the last days”.
EZEKIEL.
CHAPTER 38.
8. because in a few years, I will command you to invade Israel, a country that was ruined by war. It was deserted for a long time, but its people have returned from the foreign nations where they once lived. The Israelites now live in peace in the mountains of their own land.
EZEKIEL.
CHAPTER 38.
16. And you will come up against my people Israel, like a cloud covering the land; and it will come about, in the last days, that I will make you come against my land, so that the nations may have knowledge of me when I make myself holy in you, O Gog, before their eyes.
The attack is described in Ezekiel 39. But what I want us to observe this morning is that no matter when it will happen this attack will be under the authority of God, Here are the words of Ezekiel 39.
EZEKIEL.
CHAPTER 39.
1. Ezekiel, son of man, condemn Gog and tell him: You are the ruler of Meshech and Tubal, but I, the LORD, am your enemy!
2. I will turn you around and drag you from the north until you reach the mountains of Israel.
3. I will knock the bow out of your left hand and the arrows out of your right hand,
4. and you and your army will die on those mountains. Then birds and wild animals will eat the flesh
5, of your dead bodies left lying in open fields. I, the LORD, have spoken.
And it is God who will defeat this invasion.
EZEKIEL.
CHAPTER 38.
18. When you invade Israel, I will become furious,
19. and in my anger I will send a terrible earthquake to shake Israel.
20. Every living thing on earth will tremble in fear of me–every fish and bird, every wild animal and reptile, and every human. Mountains will crumble, cliffs will fall, and cities will collapse.
21. I, the LORD, will make the mountains of Israel turn against you. Your troops will be so terrified that they will attack each other.
22. I will strike you with diseases and punish you with death. You and your army will be pounded with rainstorms, hailstones, and burning sulfur.
23. I will do these things to show the world that I, the LORD, am holy.
It will take seven months to bury the invading soldiers who are killed.
But things will get even more difficult. There will come a seven year period of distress for the world and especially for Israel which among other things is referred to as the time of Jacob’s or Israel’s trouble.
JEREMIAH.
CHAPTER 30.
4. The Lord spoke this message about the people of Israel and Judah.
5.This is what the Lord said:
6. “Ask this question, and consider it: Can a man have a baby? Of course not! Then why do I see every strong man holding his stomach like a woman having labor pains? Why is every person’s face turning white like a dead man? {Why? Because the men are very scared.}
7. “This is a very important time for Jacob. This is a time of great trouble. There will never be another time like this. But Jacob will be saved.
Things will be less difficult in the first half of this time, and in spite of the difficulties many will still give their allegiance to God. And I want us to note this fact. God has His chosen individuals. Their names are written in a book. In spite of all their circumstances they will remain loyal to their Lord and they will be kept safe.
Note, once more, God’s intervention. He will rescue His people.
DANIEL.
CHAPTER 12.
1. The angel wearing linen clothes said, “At that time the great angel Michael, who guards your people, will appear. Then there will be a time of troubles, the worst since nations first came into existence. When that time comes, all the people of your nation whose names are written in God’s book will be saved.
Even Jesus spoke about this time of trouble and distress.
MATTHEW.
CHAPTER 24.
21. This will be the worst time of suffering since the beginning of the world, and nothing this terrible will ever happen again.
22. If God doesn’t make the time shorter, no one will be left alive. But because of God’s chosen ones, he will make the time shorter.
There it is again – God’s chosen ones.
Jesus knew about the wicked times before the flood when God had to intervene and begin civilisation all over again, But He declares that these days will be even worse.
But do you see how God is still in control with the power to shorten the time of suffering?
Things will be extremely difficult. There will be some powerful forces, with supernatural powers.
Listen again to Jesus.
MATTHEW.
CHAPTER 24.
23. “Then, if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or ‘There he is!’—do not believe it.
24. For false Messiahs and false prophets will appear; they will perform great miracles and wonders in order to deceive even God’s chosen people, if possible.
25. Listen! I have told you this ahead of time.
There again is the mention of God’s chosen people.
We learn more about these rulers of darkness and wickedness in the Book of Revelation.
REVELATION.
CHAPTER 13.
4. and they worshiped the dragon who had given its authority to the beast. They also worshiped the beast and said, “No one is like this beast! No one can fight against it.”
5. The beast was allowed to brag and claim to be God, and for forty-two months it was allowed to rule.
6. The beast cursed God, and it cursed the name of God. It even cursed the place where God lives, as well as everyone who lives in heaven with God.
7. It was allowed to fight against God’s people and defeat them. It was also given authority over the people of every tribe, nation, language, and race.
8. The beast was worshiped by everyone whose name wasn’t written before the time of creation in the book of the Lamb who was killed.
Once more we have a reference to saints, God’s chosen ones, and a book filled with names.
And did you notice the words “given” and “allowed” in this passage. And the word “allowed” features in this next passage as well.
REVELATION.
CHAPTER 13.
11. Then I saw another beast rising out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon.
12. It exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence, and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal wound was healed.
13. It performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people,
14. and by the signs that it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast it deceives those who dwell on earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that was wounded by the sword and yet lived.
15. And it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast might even speak and might cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be slain.
So there will be those who remain loyal to God.
Many will lose their lives because of the stance they take.
The Satanic authorities will delude themselves into thinking that the actions they commit are the result of authority generated by their own efforts. But as we have seen such is not the case.
For those who remain loyal to God and live, just surviving will be a difficult thing.
Not only will they be faced with the prospect of being forced to worship the beast and his image, but they will be denied the right to make financial transactions as well.
REVELATION.
CHAPTER 13.
16. The beast forced all the people, small and great, rich and poor, slave and free, to have a mark placed on their right hands or on their foreheads.
17. No one could buy or sell without this mark, that is, the beast’s name or the number that stands for the name.
But in fact God will be orchestrating the events which transpire. This is what we read in the Book of Daniel.
DANIEL.
CHAPTER 7.
25. He’ll speak out against the Most High and wear down the saints of the Highest One. He’ll attempt to alter times and laws, and they’ll be given into his control for a time, times, and half a time.
26. Nevertheless, the court will convene, and his authority will be removed, annulled, and destroyed forever.
But in spite of these almost insurmountable odds some will successfully resist and somehow manage to survive.
REVELATION.
CHAPTER 15.
1. Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvelous: seven angels having the seven last plagues, because in them the wrath of God has been completed.
2. And I saw something like a glassy sea having been mixed with fire, and those who prevailed over the Beast, and over his image, and over the number of his name, standing on the glassy sea, having the harps of God.
So for those who remain loyal and do lose their lives they too will be ultimately rewarded.
It appears that, at least for some of this time of trouble, the temple will remain and some will continue to worship there,
REVELATION.
CHAPTER 11.
1. Then I was given a measuring rod like a staff, and I was told, “Rise and measure the temple of God and the altar and those who worship there,
2. but do not measure the court outside the temple; leave that out, for it is given over to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for forty-two months.
And again for three and a half years God will have witnesses with two especially noted. They are not named. Many speculate on who they might be, but that is what such interpretation is, speculation.
What we do know about them is that they will have special protection from God and will be given special powers.
REVELATION.
CHAPTER 11.
5. Any enemy who tries to harm them will be destroyed by the fire that comes out of their mouths.
6. They have the power to lock up the sky and to keep rain from falling while they are prophesying. And whenever they want to, they can turn water to blood and cause all kinds of terrible troubles on earth.
But when their work is done they will be killed by the beast and then these extraordinary events will take place.
REVELATION.
CHAPTER 11.
7. When they finish proclaiming their message, the beast that comes up out of the abyss will fight against them. He will defeat them and kill them,
8. and their bodies will lie in the street of the great city, where their Lord was crucified. The symbolic name of that city is Sodom, or Egypt.
9. People from all nations, tribes, languages, and races will look at their bodies for three and a half days and will not allow them to be buried.
10. The people of the earth will be happy because of the death of these two. They will celebrate and send presents to each other, because those two prophets brought much suffering upon the whole human race.
11. After three and a half days a life-giving breath came from God and entered them, and they stood up; and all who saw them were terrified.
12. Then the two prophets heard a loud voice say to them from heaven, “Come up here!” As their enemies watched, they went up into heaven in a cloud.
Did you note the bizarre behaviour of the enemies of these witnesses – the way their dead bodies are treated, the way they celebrated their death by sending each other presents, the way they wrongly blamed these witnesses for the world’s troubles?
Did you also note the great multicultural diversity of the population at that time and that now the Holy City is described by the name Sodom or Egypt?
But what I would also like us to note is that while the beast and other wicked creatures were feared because of their extreme wickedness, authority and cruelty, that God’s actions in resurrecting these witnesses created even greater fear. In fact it is said that these events generated terror.
This terror in response to the actions of God is also evident following the earthquake and great death which occurred after the resurrection of the two witnesses
REVELATION.
CHAPTER 11.
13. At that same moment there was a terrible earthquake that destroyed a tenth of the city. Seven thousand people were killed, and the rest were frightened and praised the God who rules in heaven.
All these circumstances rapidly reach a climax and opposition to the authority of God and Jesus reach a crescendo. The world’s nations with their armies will be summoned to a place called the Hill of Megiddo which is usually called Armageddon.
REVELATION.
CHAPTER 16.
9. They were burned by the fierce heat, and they cursed the name of God, who has authority over these plagues. But they would not turn from their sins and praise his greatness.
10. Then the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast. Darkness fell over the beast’s kingdom, and people bit their tongues because of their pain,
11. and they cursed the God of heaven for their pains and sores. But they did not turn from their evil ways.
12. Then the sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great Euphrates River. The river dried up, to provide a way for the kings who come from the east.
13. Then I saw three unclean spirits that looked like frogs. They were coming out of the mouth of the dragon, the mouth of the beast, and the mouth of the false prophet.
14. They are the spirits of demons that perform miracles. These three spirits go out to all the kings of the world, to bring them together for the battle on the great Day of Almighty God
This is the day when God through Jesus will show who has the dominant power and to whom dominion ought to be given. It is a day when He will demonstrate that all power and might belong to Him, that He is indeed the Almighty One.
REVELATION.
CHAPTER 16.
16. Then the spirits brought the kings together in the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.
17. Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl in the air. A loud voice came from the throne in the temple, saying, “It is done!”
18. There were flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder, and a terrible earthquake. There has never been such an earthquake since the creation of human beings; this was the worst earthquake of all!
19. The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of all countries were destroyed. God remembered great Babylon and made her drink the wine from his cup—the wine of his furious anger.
20. All the islands disappeared, all the mountains vanished.
21. Huge hailstones, each weighing as much as a hundred pounds, fell from the sky on people, who cursed God on account of the plague of hail, because it was such a terrible plague.
And now Jesus appears and for a second time comes to earth. He is depicted as a warrior on a white horse and other warriors come with Him. The rebellious armies of earth are there to oppose Him. Here is what the Bible says will take place.
REVELATION.
CHAPTER 19.
11. I looked and saw that heaven was open, and a white horse was there. Its rider was called Faithful and True, and he is always fair when he judges or goes to war.
12. He had eyes like flames of fire, and he was wearing a lot of crowns. His name was written on him, but he was the only one who knew what the name meant.
13. The rider wore a robe that was covered with blood, and he was known as “The Word of God.”
14. He was followed by armies from heaven that rode on horses and were dressed in pure white linen.
15. From his mouth a sharp sword went out to attack the nations. He will rule them with an iron rod and will show the fierce anger of God All-Powerful by trampling the grapes in the pit where wine is made.
16. On the part of the robe that covered his thigh was written, “KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.”17.
17. I then saw an angel standing on the sun, and he shouted to all the birds flying in the sky, “Come and join in God’s great feast!
18. You can eat the flesh of kings, rulers, leaders, horses, riders, free people, slaves, important people, and everyone else.”
19. I also saw the beast and all kings of the earth come together. They fought against the rider on the white horse and against his army.
20. But the beast was captured and so was the false prophet. This is the same prophet who had worked miracles for the beast, so that he could fool everyone who had the mark of the beast and worshiped the idol. The beast and the false prophet were thrown alive into a lake of burning sulfur.
21. But the rest of their army was killed by the sword that came from the mouth of the rider on the horse. Then birds stuffed themselves on the dead bodies.
The final doom of rebellious humans was sealed.
REVELATION.
CHAPTER 16.
2. And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them which worshipped his image.
REVELATION.
CHAPTER 14.
9. And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand,
10. he also will drink the wine of God’s wrath, poured full strength into the cup of his anger, and he will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb.
11. And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and they have no rest, day or night, these worshipers of the beast and its image, and whoever receives the mark of its name.”
Satan will be locked up for the next thousand years.
REVELATION.
CHAPTER 20.
1. Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain.
2. And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years,
3. and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while.
God’s chosen ones who remained loyal to Jesus through all these events but were killed will be resurrected and share rule and authority with Jesus.
REVELATION.
CHAPTER 20.
4. Then I saw thrones, and those who sat on them were given the power to judge. I also saw the souls of those who had been executed because they had proclaimed the truth that Jesus revealed and the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or its image, nor had they received the mark of the beast on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and ruled as kings with Christ for a thousand years.
There is much more to come but for the moment let us consider these things.
1. Jesus is in control. He is the superior power and authority, the Almighty.
2. He has a plan to reclaim His rightful authority from those who have usurped it.
3. While many oppose the authority of Jesus, in all ages and in all circumstances He has His chosen ones, His saints, those who are written in His book.
4. Ultimately all those who oppose the authority of Jesus will be defeated and punished.
5. The end result is that those who give their allegiance to Jesus and acknowledge His authority will receive rewards. Even though they may be martyred they will be resurrected. One of the rewards will be the sharing of God’s reclaimed authority with Jesus.