In my last blog, we saw that the white horseman went forth as the deceiver disguising himself as Christ (2 Cor 11: 13-15) and went out 'conquering and to conquer'. This leads to the red horseman (Rev 6:4) who went on to wage wars in the name of religion throughout the history of mankind. Man cannot gain salvation by following a false Christ. Similarly, man cannot solve the mounting problems of mankind through religious wars. In fact, false religions will inevitably led to wars. This was prophesied to continue until the true Christ returns to end all wars and bloodshed and bring in everlasting peace and prosperity!
Since the first murder of Abel by his brother Cain (Genesis 4:8), the history of mankind has been chronicled by conflicts and wars, with increasing intensity as time marches towards the 'midnight hour'. History records that some of the worst brutality against human beings were committed in the name of religion - most were innocent victims and martyrs killed in the name of 'Christianity', their only 'sin' was because they refused to obey men but were obedient to the Word of God even to the point of death. These martyrs had the faith of Jesus and believe God for a better resurrection and rewards!
However, the red horseman in Revelation 6:4 is no ordinary war or world war. It is what Christ says in Matthew 24:7, 'For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.' It is going to be a world war worse than the catastrophes of World Wars I and II combined! For in Matthew 24:22, Christ warns , 'And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect's sake those days will be shortened.' What this means is that it will be cataclysmic in nature that only through the direct intervention of Jesus Christ will humanity be saved from total annihilation! The fact that he has a 'great sword' means that probably billions of people the world over will perish. Personally, I have no doubt it will be a nuclear World War III.
The national and international psyche of today's generations and populace is one of pride and arrogance, permissiveness, rebelliousness and contempt of all kinds of authority to want to hear the Word of God, let alone believe and obey Him. This is evident in the West where all forms of indulgences and pervertions exist in the name of personal freedom and democracy. And it is fast encroaching into the Eastern strata of societies due to the internet and mass media. Hence, any message and warning coming from the Word of God will be viewed with skepticism and deemed distasteful. What they want is political correctness and freedom to say and do what they like that please their senses. According to Bible prophecy, only the minority will heed the message and warning. The large majority is like the titanic heading towards destruction!
Today, the world has the capability to wipe out the entire human race in a short span of time. Just one hydrogen bomb has more power to wreck havoc than all of World Wars I and II combined! Recently, I read that the United Nations predicted that in the not too distant future, we will be living in a nuclear world as more and more countries with nuclear capabilities to develop nuclear warheads. It is unimaginable what is going to happen if the nuclear weapons of mass destruction falls into the wrong hands! But for those who understand Bible prophecy, this is no surprise. Revelation 6:4 clearly prophesied that ' the one who sat on it to take peace from the earth, and that people should kill one another.' The time to fulfill the prophecy as given by Jesus Christ in Matthew 24:22 and Revelation 6:4 could only be from this present generation forward.
Satan is clearly the master strategist behind most of man's warfare and conflicts. He knows his time is short as the ruler and god of this world (Rev 12:12; 2 Cor 4:4) before Christ's return to set up His government on earth. Satan had challenged Christ at His first advent in the wilderness and lost (Matthew 4:1-10). He will challenge the King of kings and Lord of lords one last time before his destiny is sealed in incarceration and Christ installed as the new King and Ruler by God the Father.
True to Biblical prophecy in Daniel chapter 11, the current trend of political, religious, military and economic blocs of nations polarizing into the northern, southern and eastern alliances are taking shape behind the scenes, away from the unsuspecting world. Destruction during the Great tribulation will be so catastrophic that many cities will be laid waste, without inhabitant (Jeremiah 4:7). According to Revelation 9:18, one-third of mankind will perish - that is some 2 billion lives - much more than both World Wars I and II combined! The Lord Jesus Christ had warned us way ahead of time - it will be unprecedented in all the history of mankind (Matthew 24:21). These are words that no sane person will take lightly. The only reason most Christians are ignorant is because the churches are talking about God all the time but few really believe Him (most merely believe IN Him as the Supreme Being Who is the Creator of all things, including human beings), let alone obey Him! This is the root of all the problems the world is facing today.
The armies of the world will gather at the valley of Megiddo - known as Armageddon - to descend upon Jerusalem. When Christ returns, touching down at Mount Olives -the same mountain where He first delivered the Olivet prophecy - the opposing armies will turn to fight Christ and will be utterly destroyed by Him! This is prophesied in Zechariah 14:2-12, where the Lord will smite all peoples who turned against Jerusalem. 'Their flesh shall dissolve while they stand on their feet, Their eyes shall disslove in their sockets, And their tongue shall disslove in their mouths.' (Zechariah 14:12). No wonder the very knowledge of what is to come made prophet Habakkuk trembled and sick (Habakkuk 3:16).
But all is not lost. After Christ had put down all enemies and all lawlessness, there will be great peace and prosperity in a new world order. As prophesied in Isaiah 2:2-4, all nations and peoples that remain after the Great Tribulation and The Day of the Lord will go up to Jerusalem to worship the King - the Lord Jesus Christ - and the Word of God will go forth from Jerusalem. There will be no more war as swords are turned into plowshares, and neither will nations learn war anymore (Isaiah 2:4). The resurrrected born again spirit god-beings who are the sons of God will be revealed in glory to help Christ govern and rule the whole earth, turning it into a paradise during His Millennial Reign. His kingdom will come AFTER His appearing (Second Coming of Christ) - 2 Timothy 4:1
When Jesus Christ walked the earth, He rebuked the Pharisees for failing to read the signs of the times (Luke 12:54-56) - the coming destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70 by the Roman army - despite His many warnings. We have now come full circle to such a time when the Lord Jesus Christ is again pleading with the lukewarm Laodicean church to heed His warnings or face destruction! Matthew 24:41 states, 'Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left.' In the Bible, a woman is a type of the church. Two kind of churches - the one who believe and obey Him, God will protect (taken to a place of safety) and the other left behind to undergo the Great Tribulation. Only those faithful and wise servants of God who do His will by teaching His message of truth to warn this end-time generation will be amply rewarded (Matthew 24:45-47). Those servants who lose patience as they see the 'Lord delays His coming' and lose faith by breaking His law and commandments will be severely punished(Matt 24:48-51). However, we have to learn to develop character through obedience in keeping His law and commandments. Otherwise, God's universe will again be wrecked like what Satan and his demons had done! We are commanded to watch and pray, look up to Him as our redemption (first resurrection) draws near.
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