Hello all,
I'm new here, but have a few things to share with you all.
Watch the world around you - we are close to the return of Christ.
1) War in Iraq shows we are close to the end in a particulary clear way. In the Book of Revelation it talks about Babylon being a weathly and corrupt city that God destroys, "fallen is Babylon the great". God will judge and destroy Babylon - which is modern day Iraq. The war in Iraq has now opened the door to enable Iraq to become a wealthy and corrupt nation, it has the oil to become this way and other westernised arab countires such as the UAE are already fattened with excessive wealth and corruption. Keep your eyes on Iraq - it will become a great and central city iin the world - but it will also see the worst judgement of all.
2) The middle east peace efforts are another warning sign . In the Book of Daniel it states that the Anti-Christ Leader to come will succeed in creating peace in the Middle East. So watch this area on the news. The Leader who succeeds in achieving peace in the middle East is that all deceptive man of all time, the Anti-Christ. The Book of Daniel says "He will confirm a covenant with many for one week". This means a peace deal will be made and it will be a 7 year (one week) peace treaty. Ths signing of the peace treaty marks the beginning of the tribulation period.
3) Also note how there has been great division between the US and Europe, particulary France and Germany. I believe Europe will become the next dominating force in the world and the US will fall behind. The recent differences between the US and Europe show how the two are different and in opposition. I do not support this future dominence of Europe but I beleive its spelt out pretty clearly in Revelation and we are seeing the beginning of it now, they are certainly hungry for power. This final Empire of Iron and Clay will also be the area of the world that gives birth to the Anti-Christ Leader. Tony Blair? I don't know.
Basically we are pretty close brothers and sisters and its good to keep watch and make our lives count for something in these last days. We also need to keep ourselves awake and aware of what's going on in the world. I am not yet convinced we will all be reptured away and be able to avoid the great tribulation - to me it just seems a little too easy. So if I were you I would hope for the best, but be wise and be prepared for the worst. This is not a time to stuff around and waste your lives (I'm speaking to myself here a lot too), there is much to be done and time is short.
Here's something to think about. What is faith? Isn't it belief in something? Ok, do we truly believe the tribulation is going to come? Do we truly believe we will be separated out by the Anti-Christ Leader and put in prison, even killed, because we refuse His Mark? Why is this written in the Bible - is it only for those living in the tribulation period? Is it not also for us to prepare ourselves for the coming time of suffering?
Are you certain Christ is going to suddenly rapture you before the tribulation begins? Could you seriously imagine that would take place in full view of the world and not cause any great revival or change in the world? How could we even have a tribulation if millions of people suddenly dissappeared - or drifted up to heaven with the whole world witnessing it. Wouldn't that shock the world into repentance then and there?
I just think its unwise to assume rapture will come before the tribulation, I see it as wishfull thinking. Maybe I'm wrong, but I guess we'll see, God knows. As for me I am preparing myself to endure the tribulation and thinking of practical ways to survive and support others during it. I do not want to be one of the 5 foolish virgins that did not bring enough oil to last the journey.