Signs Of The Times - Times Of The Signs

The Pharisees and Saducees came to Jesus and tested Him by asking Him to show them a sign from heaven. He replied, "When evening comes you say 'It will be fair weather for the sky is red,' and in the morning, 'Today it will be stormy for the sky is red and overcast.' You know how to interpret the signs of the sky but cannot interpret the signs of the times." (Matt 16:1-3).

Events are moving at such a rapid pace just now that it seems appropriate to stop again and bring you a summary of the week from a prophetic viewpoint. We should closely watch these "signs of the times", because it's becoming more and more obvious that we are living in the "times of the signs".

Run-up To War
Get ready, be prepared, you and all the hordes gathered about you, and take command of them. After many days you will be called to arms. In future years you will invade a land that has recovered from war, whose people have been gathered from many nations to the mountains of Israel, which had long been desolate. (Ezekiel 38:7-38a)

Every person alive on the planet (everyone who doesn't hold a high executive or diplomatic office in Israel or one of the Western Countries, that is) knew exactly what would happen from the day the Israeli government first announced its intention to withdraw from Gaza. And it has.  

Thursday, June 14, 2007, world news and intelligence sources reported that Hamas has gained control of Gaza and all of its border crossings with Israel and Egypt. Palestinian Authority (PA) President Abbas has dissolved the government and declared a state of emergency.

The west's "voice of moderation" among the Palestinians has been dealt a serious blow. Don't get me wrong, the PA is every bit as committed to Israel's demise as Hamas, and its Fatah terrorists are every bit as deadly. But they've convinced western diplomats that they're more open to dialog than Hamas in an effort to keep the money coming in.

And come in it will. In an attempt to put the best face on things, the US has indicated it will now lift the boycott on aid to the PA as a reward for forming a new government without Hamas. And Israel is rejoicing that it has a "peace partner" once again. Nonetheless, Israel now also has a strong neighbor on its southern border publicly committed to its total annihilation by any means possible. Additionally this neighbor has the unqualified support of Iran, a nation with the expressed intention of wiping Israel off the map.

By now it should be clear to everybody that Iran will not stop until it has Israel completely surrounded. Some on site observers believe that Hamas will be ordered into the West Bank next, where they'll continue their fight until they've gained total control of all of the Palestinian Territory.

At the same time Iran, with help from Syria, will obtain similar control on Israel's Northern border by marginalizing the Lebanese government and treating Hizballah as Lebanon's de-facto military. The next step in this process is to have Hizballah confront the UN forces who've been stationed there to keep them away from Israel's borders. They're betting that the UN will back down, again. That will give a revived and strengthened Hizballah free reign in southern Lebanon where 20,000 Russian and Iranian rockets, missiles and tank killing RPG's are stockpiled, many more than before the war last summer.

It's Deja Vu All Over Again
Some days it looks like the run up to WW2 all over again with Iran in the role Germany played then. Just like Germany did, Iran makes its intentions clear, backs them up with action, and the world stands by debating over what the Iranians really mean. Iran has thumbed its nose at the US, the UN, the EU, Israel, the IAEA, and just about every other group you can name, and so far they've all backed down.

And now after a lengthy delay Russian Pres. Putin has decided to deliver nuclear fuel rods to Iran to power up the Bushier reactor. He decided to release them after promising he wouldn't in order to punish the US for announcing plans to build a missile defense system in Eastern Europe. (This week Pres. Putin made a public display of offering the use of an operational Russian radar station in Azerbaijan as an alternative. The problem is, while it could detect any launch by Iran, it couldn't detect one by Russia. Get it?)

And the special incentive Iran had to pay to finally get the fuel rods they contracted for? $765 million more in Russian arms had to be bought and delivered to Syria, for use in the coming war. As you read this, the fuel rods are sitting in a ship off the coast of Iran waiting for the final payment. So Pres. Putin does only something he's contractually obligated to do, but does it in such a way as to embarrass the US and collect a $765 million bonus check from Iran. That's a good day's work. Several international news sources have verified and reported all this but it has yet to hit the mainstream US media.

It's A Done Deal
It's not surprising then to find most official voices in the Middle East talking about war in the Summer of 2007 as a fore gone conclusion. In their minds the only remaining question is how to get it started in such a way that Israel gets the blame.

Now this coming war is not the battle that Ezekiel prophesied 2500 years ago, but I believe it will put the finishing touches on setting the stage for it. Following this war, a time of peace will be forged, but like each one that came before, it will be built on lies and false promises that will serve only to lull Israel into a false sense of security, making Ezekiel's Battle possible.

And then when the time is right, a Moslem coalition led by Iran and armed by Russia, and including countries from Central Asia, North Africa and Eastern Europe, will storm into Israel from the north over the Golan Heights (Exe 38:5,6,8). God will use this event to reveal Himself to the world as Israel's protector by decimating the attackers (Eze 39:2-4). In the process it appears that the unthinkable will happen. Nuclear weaponry will be used not only on the battlefield but also against Russia and at least Europe, and perhaps the US (Eze 39:6, 9-10). And when the dust settles, the world will also be astonished to find that millions of believers, from just about every nation on Earth, have inexplicably gone missing without a trace.

The Man With A Plan
In the aftermath of these twin disasters a charismatic leader will emerge with a 7 year plan to bring peace to the Middle East and indeed to all the world (Dan 9:27). The provisions of this plan will include a Temple for Israel, which the Jewish people will have demanded after realizing that it was the Lord Who defeated their enemies. They will renew their (old) covenant relationship with Him and Jews from all over the world will return to Israel (Eze 39:28-29). Thinking this leader to be their Messiah, unbelievers will accept him as the object of their worship, and those who reject him will be ostracized from society and even hunted as fugitives (Rev 13:15-18). In the middle of this 7 year period, he will stand in the new Jewish Temple and publicly proclaim that he is God (Dan 9:27 & 2 Thes 2:4).

At this point, 3 1/2 years of the most devastating war ever seen will commence, threatening to annihilate mankind completely (Matt 24:15-22). But before that can happen the Lord will return with His Church, (Matt 24:29-31) rid the earth of all unbelievers (Matt 25: 31-46), bind Satan (Rev 20:1-3) and begin His 1000 year reign (Rev 20:6). It's probably not time to note all this in your day timer just yet, but it is time to recall the Words of the Lord, "Therefore keep watch because you do not know the day or hour" (Matt 25:13). These are the times of the signs. You can almost hear the footsteps of the Messiah. 06-17-07