In the Gospel of Luke, while describing the signs which would precede the
destruction of Jerusalem, and His own Return, one of the things which Jesus
said to His Disciples was the following:

"And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and
upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves
roaring;"
Luke 21:25, KJV

As some of you will know, in the Book of Revelation, we are told that
sometimes waters are used to symbolized people and nations. Consider this
verse:

"And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore
sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues."
Revelation 17:15, KJV

Thus, I believe that in the previous verse that is found in the Gospel of
Luke, Jesus may actually be referring to the great unrest which will occur
amongst the peoples of the world in the years preceding His Return. Can
anyone deny that we have already begun to witness this phenomena at our
current time?

While I haven't said much lately in my blog regarding the situation around
the world, anyone who has been keeping abreast of global news can quickly
determine that the sea and the waves -- the masses -- have indeed been
roaring, and roaring quite loudly in protest, as we experience this time of
political and economic uncertainty all around the world.

From the economic downturn in the USA, to serious financial trouble in
Europe, to massive protests against Vladimir Putin in Russia, to Bashar
al-Assad's oppression of his people in Syria, to ongoing unrest in Egypt, to
the rapid deterioration of the situation in Iraq, to political uncertainty
in North Korea, to tensions growing between India and Pakistan, it seems
that one crisis after another is shaking up the world, and this may just be
the beginning of a period of great social upheaval.

Furthermore, while the affluent and the elite of the world enjoy their lives
of luxury in their ivory towers, the gap between the haves and the have nots
continues to grow wider with each passing year, as the poor continue to
become poorer, with no relief in sight.

To add to this atmosphere of uncertainty, scientists have recognized that
during the past few years, the Earth has experienced some record-breaking
meteorological extremes, and Global Warming is being embraced as a reality
by more and more people, including by previously skeptical politicians.

However, with recent events, it seems that we may have reached a point where
the common people are no longer willing to tolerate the excesses of Big
Business, the corruption of politicians, the greed of bankers, and the
oppression of dictatorial leaders. They seem to be saying that enough is
enough, and that they want real change, and not just deceptive, empty
rhetoric. From the so-called Arab Spring, to unrest in Syria, to protests in
Russia, to Occupy Wall Street, to the protests which have recently occurred
in many other cities around the world, the desire for real change appears to
be growing.

The problem is that the old guard -- the current power brokers of the world
-- are very much entrenched in their ways, and they do not easily embrace
change. For some of them, it seems to be easier to oppress their critics and
opponents, rather than to embrace change, and this is worrisome.

While it would be nice to believe that national governments are going to
have a change of heart, and are going to more earnestly dedicate themselves
to the betterment of their people -- particularly the common people --
reality and history suggest a very different scenario. When people rise up
in protest, national governments seem to have a propensity for resorting to
oppression in one form or another, sooner or later. This oppression can
manifest itself in the form of economic oppression -- so that people are
kept busy just trying to figure out how to survive -- in the deterioration
of civil rights and personal freedoms, and in other ways.

So if this current wave of global dissatisfaction continues to grow and
expand, what can we expect? How will national governments react? Perhaps the
real question that should be asked is how the behind-the-scenes power
brokers will react, because they are the true power behind national
governments and leaders who only serve as puppets at their whim.

It seems to me that these power brokers have already formulated their
response, and that they devised a plan of action a long time ago. They have
a vision for the world which can be spelled out in three simple words: One
World Government, or New World Order. As such, I suspect that they will only
allow the current social unrest to go so far, before they will begin to
clamp down and take action. After all, control is the name of their game.

In fact, I believe that they have already begun preparing for that day. If
we consider how much personal data is currently being collected by national
governments, and being stored in databases who-knows-where, it is a bit
unsettling, and we must ponder what they intend to do with all of this
information. Think about it. If they know who you are, where you are, what
you are doing, what your personal habits are, what your personal weaknesses
are, etc., you will be a lot easier to control when the time arrives and it
becomes necessary. Resistance will be futile.

As I explain in a number of my articles, the Bible seems to predict that a
time will arrive when just such an oppressive government will temporarily
take over the world, and everyone -- rich and poor -- will be affected by
it. Everyone will be forced to accede to its demands, if they expect to
survive. Of course, we will be told by our Orwellian Big Brother that such
stringent measures are necessary if we want the world to survive, and not
spin totally out of control. Their reasoning will seem so logical, and many
people will acquiesce to their oppressive system of identification and
economic control, to their own damnation.

So the sea and the waves are indeed roaring now, and there is clearly
"distress of nations", exactly as Jesus predicted would occur, and this
anguish will only continue to grow worse, as God's Judgments begin to fall
more heavily upon a world which has in large part rejected His Son.

While many people are becoming discontent with the current status quo and
are demanding social and political change, the day may arrive when the
situation will become so bad, and so oppressive, that they may actually look
back at this current period of world history as "the good times".

Regardless of what happens here on the Earth in the affairs of men, as
Bible-believing Christians, we need to remember that we are truly not of
this world, and our Kingdom is not of this world. We are pilgrims in a
strange land, and like our spiritual forefathers, we seek a much better
place, a Heavenly Place, "wherein dwelleth righteousness". Consider the
following verses:

"These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen
them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed
that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For they that say such
things declare plainly that they seek a country. And truly, if they had been
mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had
opportunity to have returned. But now they desire a better country, that is,
an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he
hath prepared for them a city."
Hebrews 11:13-16, KJV

"Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new
earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness."
2 Peter 3:13, KJV

"Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In
my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told
you. I go to prepare a place for you."
John 14:1-2, KJV

"But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have
entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them
that love him."
1 Corinthians 2:9, KJV

So keep the Heavenly Vision, and don't become too perturbed by what you see
happening in the world. Everything serves a purpose, and in the end:

". . . we know that all things work together for good to them that love God,
to them who are the called according to his purpose."
Romans 8:28, KJV


Jeff Snyder, SysOp - Armageddon BBS  Visit us at endtimeprophecy.org port 23
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