Biblically Optimistic and Gospel-Based
"For these are the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled." (Luke 21:22)
Posted on 12/23/2009 5:25:26 PM PST by topcat54
I’m working on a new prophecy book. The tentative title is The Christian Prophetic Calendar under the Microscope. I know; it’s not a very good title. That’s why I’m sponsoring a contest. Submit your title suggestion, and if I use it, I’ll give you credit in the book when it’s published plus a $250 gift certificate to purchase anything from American Vision’s store. Email your suggestions to mail@AmericanVision.org. Let me tell you what I have in mind so you can get an idea of what I’m after in a title.
I went to our local Barnes & Noble bookstore to pick up Mark Hitchcock’s 2012: The Bible and the End of the World. Hitchcock debunks 2012ologists as he calls them. But Hitchcock and his fellow prophecy writers have their own prophetic calendar problems. How many of you remember a famous Christian prophecy writer who sold millions of books in the 1970s claiming that the calendar was about to run out for his generation? Israel had become a nation again in 1948. Within a generation—40 years from that date—we were all going to be raptured to heaven! As you know, at least I hope you know, it didn’t happen.
Then there was the famous prophecy related to the so-called Jupiter Effect. This was used by the same prophecy writer as “evidence” that the rapture was near. Astronomers John Gribben and Setphen Plagemann predicted the Jupiter Effect in 1974 in their book of the same name. Supposedly it was a “scientific exploration of the planets as triggers of major earthquakes.” They argued that when various planets were aligned on the same side of the sun in 1982, tidal forces would create solar flares, radio interruptions, rainfall and temperature disturbances, and massive earthquakes. The planets did align, as they do regularly. Nothing unusual happened. While Gribbin wrote that he was sorry he “ever had anything to do with it,” the above unnamed prophecy writer just moved on to another set of predictions.
While cleaning up my office (a never ending task), I came across a cassette tape of a sermon a prominent West Coast prophecy expert preached on December 31, 1979. He told his very accepting and excited audience that the rapture would take place in 1981. The former Soviet Republic going into Afghanistan in August of 1978 was the prelude to what he claimed would be a full-force invasion of the Middle East. It would not be long before “Russia” would invade Israel, he told his audience. All of this was said to have been “predicted” by Ezekiel 2600 years ago.
In the same year-end sermon preached 30 years ago, he went on to claim that because of ozone depletion Revelation 16:8 would be fulfilled during the soon-coming Great Tribulation: “And the fourth angel poured out his bowl upon the sun; and it was given to it to scorch men with fire.” He argued that Halley’s Comet would pass near the Earth in 1986 and would wreck atmospheric havoc for those left behind as debris from its million-mile tail pummeled the earth. Halley’s Comet did appear in 1986 with no damage done to our planet.
A lesser known prophecy writer was certain that the end of the world would come in 1985. The title of the book was, I Predict 1985. In 1986, he published a new book entitled, . There were other books with similar millennium-ending titles: A.D. 2000...The End? and Planet Earth—2000.
Jerry Falwell (1933–2007) stated on a December 27, 1992, television broadcast, “I do not believe there will be another millennium . . . or another century.” John F. Walvoord, described as “the world’s foremost interpreter of biblical prophecy . . . [expected] the Rapture to occur in his own lifetime.’” It didn’t. Walvoord died in 2002 at the age of 92.
It’s easy for Christian prophecy writers to take pot shots at New Age eccentrics, 2012ologists, secular prognosticators, and environmental doomsayers, but there aren’t many who are willing to evaluate the evangelical prediction market, and it’s a big market. They have their own calendar problem, and they need to be held accountable. The credibility of the Bible and the gospel message are at stake.
Since the reestablishment of Israel in 1948, prophetic speculation by Christians has been on the rise. Of course, there is a long history of date setting, but the past 62 years have seen an exponential increase in the number of books proclaiming that the end is near. It’s time that the “Boy who cried wolf” syndrome be dealt with in a biblical way. This book will deal with the following prophecy topics that find their way into every modern-day prophecy book:
1. How do Christian date-setters compare with their secular and New Age counterparts?
2. Is Israel’s 1948 nationhood biblically significant?
3. Is Russia the end-time bad guy in Ezekiel 38 and 39?
4. Is there any biblical evidence that the temple needs to be rebuilt?
5. Was Jesus really predicting the end of the world in the Olivet Discourse?
6. Should we expect an end-time antichrist?
7. Is the European Union a fulfillment of Bible prophecy?
8. Is modern-day technology making the “mark of the beast” a reality?
9. Are an “increase in earthquakes” and environmental changes signs of the end?
10. Is prophetic speculation really prophetic inevitability?
11. Why are non-Christians worried about prophetic speculation?
12. And probably some other topics once I begin to research and write.
There isn’t another book on the market like this one. A seismic shift in prophetic beliefs is taking place around the world. A film based on the premise of this book is being developed by filmmaker and music video director Darren Doane (director of numerous commercials for Nike and Toyota, music concerts for Van Morrison and Zac Brown, and the film Collision) and me. Filming will start sometime next year.
"For these are the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled." (Luke 21:22)
Just name the movie ‘’ZOT’’ and be done with it.
When liberals see Sarah sworn in on Jan. 20, 2013, they are going to wish the world had come to an end.
The Sky is NOT Falling
The world has already come to an end. It ended on election day November 2008...
Sarah Palin would be my first choice.....or Lt. Col. Allen West if he could even run that soon.
Are you going to spend any time discussing the different types of millennialism (pre-, post-, and a-millennialism)?
The Future of the Future
(Using ancient calendars to predict the future.)
Time is Short. The signs are evident to any who look. If you don’t see them you don’t want to, haven’t looked at all or have been deceived.Have faith though, for he has conquered death and the world. Don’t be deceived though- no one know the exact time.
Everyone know their part yet?
Merry Christmas. Fear not for he is with you :-)
Matthew 24
Matthew 24
3And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?
4And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.
5For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.
6And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.
7For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.
8All these are the beginning of sorrows.
9Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake.
10And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.
11And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.
12And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.
13But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
14And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.
15When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)
16Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:
17Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house:
18Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.
19And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!
20But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day:
21For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
22And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.
23Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not.
24For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.
25Behold, I have told you before.
26Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not.
27For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
28For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together.
29Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:
30And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
31And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
32Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh:
33So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.
34Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.
35Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
36But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.
37But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
38For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,
39And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
40Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.
41Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left.
42Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.
43But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.
44Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.
45Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season?
46Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.
47Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods.
48But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming;
49And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken;
50The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of,
51And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
How about “Evening, Midnight, Cockcrow or Dawn?” Or “Evening, Midnight, or Dawn?”
This is based on Mk 13:35 (”You do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, at cockcrow or at dawn”), which basically says that it impossible for anyone to foretell the date beforehand.
One of two things happened to the Mayan Calendar:
1.
The old man responsible for hewing this calendar into a piece of stone found himself old and wracked with arthritis. having worked on this thing since his days at Vo-Tech he just one day woke up in disgust, threw down his work tools and told the king “This calendar thing is for young men. These damn rocks are heavy and I have never had a day off since being a teenager” He continued “Listen, Mr. King, I am off to Florida to find the fountain of youth if you need anything send a runner”
2.
The other thing that could have happened is the Calendar man could have, in the 14th century, looked at his work and said “That’s far enough. Won’t be around anyway”. Then he journeyed to Florida.
WE WILL KNOW WHAT DAY JESUS COMES BACK...WHEN
JESUS COMES BACK!
that’s why speculation is so futile!
1. How do Christian date-setters compare with their secular and New Age counterparts?
They're just as wrong. Jesus himself said, in effect, "Don't set dates."
2. Is Israel’s 1948 nationhood biblically significant?
That it happened was necessary, prophetically speaking. That it happened in the time we labelled "1948", not really. And it doesn't really matter how long it's been since.
3. Is Russia the end-time bad guy in Ezekiel 38 and 39?
Yup. Didn't say anything about them being Communist. Or even called "Russia". Just named the people by an ancient name anthropologists associate with people in Russia, and said from what direction they would come.
4. Is there any biblical evidence that the temple needs to be rebuilt?
Yes. Temple sacrifices, including the worship of the Beast, are prophesied; therefore, there must be a Temple.
5. Was Jesus really predicting the end of the world in the Olivet Discourse?
Soitenly.
6. Should we expect an end-time antichrist?
Not only that, but those who have wisdom and understanding will be able to count the number of his name. I'm not sure how that works, either because my wisdom and understanding are insufficient, or the time is not yet.
7. Is the European Union a fulfillment of Bible prophecy?
It doesn't go agin' it.
8. Is modern-day technology making the “mark of the beast” a reality?
I sort of think it needs to be a bit further along, especially with regard to its predicted uses. But yes.
9. Are an “increase in earthquakes” and environmental changes signs of the end?
That's what the Man-- the Son of Man-- said. I don't doubt Him.
10. Is prophetic speculation really prophetic inevitability?
No. Things could go quite a bit differently than has been speculated without doing violence to the truth.
11. Why are non-Christians worried about prophetic speculation?
I think they think we want it to happen so bad that we'll make the worst parts of it happen on purpose.
12. And probably some other topics once I begin to research and write.
Looking forward to it.
It’s time that the “Boy who cried wolf” syndrome be dealt with in a biblical way.
Bob Newhart does it right: "Stop it!"
“Looking forward to it. “
Based on your responses I don’t think you will like DeMar’s book.
His premise is that the prophecies were fulfilled in the fall of Jerusalem in AD 70, exactly as they had been foretold. His website has lots of good info on it.
This subject seems to generate a lot more heat than light her on FR. So many people have an emotional attachment to the idea of being “the chosen generation”.
Meh. It would be nice, but I'll settle for growing old and dying in the usual way if that's the way the Lord wants it; "for I have learned, in whatever condition I am, therewith to be content", as one who believed the Lord could return in his lifetime wrote.
In my favorite version of that story, there really is a wolf, who comes out, scares the boy, and then hides when the townfolk arrive. Then, when the townfolk no longer respond to the alarms, the wolf comes out and eats at his leisure.
One of the greatest of the Devil's successes is in convincing the world that he does not exist.
Don't know if this is a question or not, but the cockcrows before the dawn...Had lots of them on the farm...They'd wake you up and its pit black outside... Dam roosters, they take turns crowing their little bit of territory on the farm and then start all over again...That would sometimes get the turkeys gobbling and the geese honking. Its like living in a zoo when the cockcrows..(not meant to high-jack the thread). There is a difference between cocks crow and dawn...
“as one who believed the Lord could return in his lifetime wrote”
Good point. The writers of the NT believed that Jesus would return in their day (some of YOU standing here will not taste death until you see the Son of Man coming in glory). The later books of the NT show the excitement of the Christians of that era, because they knew that THEY were the chosen generation to see the return of Jesus.
Most of the writers themselves did not see His return, but that generation did. They escaped to the caves, just as they had been told to do, and so escaped the destruction of Jerusalem and the Tribulation that came with it.
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