Connection to the Bible and Today’s Events: Do You See It?
By Matthew Maher
“Ignorance is bliss” until it knocks on your front door or worse yet, you are left behind in a world taken over by deception.
And since the Bible is our guidebook and the revelatory word of God, this should be the book to which we look when we observe the world spinning off its axis and quickly being covered by a foreboding darkness. I sadly can’t tell you how many people I encounter (Pastors included) who refuse to connect today’s events with what the Bible has so accurately revealed to us and all roads lead back to the Nation of Israel.
Are you up for it? Here we go…
Photo by Vitaly Manzuk
There is a perfect and prophetic program assigned by God to the Nation of Israel. And while nothing can stop it, at a certain point in history, God put a pause on it. This took place in 70 AD when the Roman Empire destroyed the Temple and sieged Jerusalem. After this sudden tragedy, the Jews were dispersed and scattered worldwide, just as the Word of God predicted (Ezekiel 22). This dispersion served as judgment for missing the arrival of the Messiah. Up to that point, the 69 weeks (equivalent to 483 years) of the 70 Weeks prophecy from the book of Daniel (Daniel 9) had been completely and meticulously fulfilled. However, this left a remaining 7-year period yet to be realized; the 70th week. More on that in a minute.
The prophetic clock was not only paused for the dispersion of the Jews but also for the birth of the church, the period we currently find ourselves in. It is a time of spreading the gospel to the ends of the earth, where both Jews and Gentiles are included in God's family, as epitomized by the Great Commission. This is the noble mission we are to engage in until the Lord's return.
Nevertheless, biblical prophecy indicates that His return will center around Israel and Jerusalem. However, for nearly 2,000 years, this didn't make sense, as Israel didn't exist in their homeland. This discrepancy led some to erroneously apply these prophecies to the Church, resulting in a misguided doctrine known as Replacement Theology. This interpretation lacks coherence and here is why.
Remember the 70 Weeks prophecy recorded in Daniel 9? Well, there is still the unfulfilled 7 years, the 70th week, which is known as the Time of Jacob's Trouble or the Great Tribulation. And if the Church had no connection to the first 69 weeks (or 483 years), it makes no sense for it to have any involvement in the 70th week, the final 7 years.
Translation: God's program and plan for Israel was un-paused on May 14th, 1948, when the Nation of Israel was birthed in a day, just as Isaiah 66:8 states. Couple that with the imagery of dry bones being called back to life and placed back in the homeland of Israel with Ezekiel 37. Thus, seventy-five years later, the fig tree has indeed budded, as foretold in Matthew 24:32-35. "Now learn this parable from the fig tree: When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near—at the doors! Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away." (I personally believe that a biblical generation is approximately 80 years; do the math!)
It's crucial to understand that being God's chosen people doesn't imply that everything Israel does is acceptable to the Lord. Their history is marred by rebellion, and God has allowed judgment to fall upon them, serving both as punishment for the defiant and a means of refinement for the remnant. This is the ongoing process and regardless of the current secular conditions of Israel, the stage is being set for prophetic events such as Ezekiel 38 and Zechariah 12. In these passages, the world will turn against Israel, but God will employ these events to fulfill His purposes, ultimately saving many during "Jacob's Trouble," with one-third being delivered and two-thirds perishing (Zechariah 13).
As we consider the end game, it is wise to reverse engineer it and see how the present war in the Middle East can steer all of this. You see, the recent invasion from Hamas has only served to accelerate the eventual fulfillment of such prophecies.
And although the final 7 years remain uncertain, with the world embroiled in conflict and lawlessness, it is being primed to embrace the Man of Lawlessness. What transpires in the upcoming weeks, months, or years will draw the world closer to its ultimate climax and final act. The Antichrist will emerge and bring a deceptive peace to the Middle East. Here's where it becomes intriguing – will he be a Jew, a Gentile, or an Arab? Apostate Jews may be inclined to accept the Antichrist, believing him to be the long-awaited Messiah they've anticipated. Perhaps he will facilitate the reconstruction of their temple, the third one, and the resumption of sacrifices, which could take 3 ½ years to complete before the False Messiah turns against them, ushering in a tumultuous final 3 ½ years and the mark of the beast system. Antichrist!
Another possibility is that the Antichrist could be linked to the Islamic State, aligning with the eschatological beliefs of many Muslims who anticipate the arrival of their Messiah, the Mahdi, to lead their final Jihad and establish a one-world Caliphate. This scenario would explain the escalating global persecution that Christians and Jews are likely to face.
Presently, we can observe the rise of an antichrist and antisemitic attitude on a global scale, and this trend is expected to intensify. Why? Because what heaven chooses, hell opposes (see Revelation 12).
Do you have eyes to see it and are you willing to rise to the occasion that demands it? “But rise and stand on your feet; for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to make you a minister and a witness both of the things which you have seen and of the things which I will yet reveal to you. 17 I will deliver you from the Jewish people, as well as from the Gentiles, to whom I now send you, 18 to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.’” (Acts 26:16-18)
Matthew Maher is an author, speaker, and pastor. He is a contributing writer for Think Eternity. Go to www.TruthOverTrend.com to discover more about Maher’s ministry.