Knowledge Shall be Increased

Daniel 12:4, “But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.”

There is no mistaking that this Bible prophecy concerns the end times, because it says so in black and white, “even to the time of the end.” The inspired Word of God tells us that in the end times (which we are undeniably living in today according to Nebuchadnezzar's image in Daniel chapter 2), “KNOWLEDGE SHALL BE INCREASED.”

Scientists tell us that the whole of man's knowledge on average doubles every eight years. I read that 20 years ago. With the amazing development of new Artificial Intelligence (A.I.), I believe we are on the precipice of discovering astonishing new technologies and inventions. I saw robots walking just like humans. Technology companies are already producing robots that can  (and I believe will) replace teachers in classrooms. Can you imagine having a robot teacher that has unlimited knowledge to teach students, and never had a bad day or a crabby mood. I have read some articles by naysayers where they say robots will never replace human teachers, but I don't believe that for one moment! And robots won't have sex with the students!

With the advancement of technology in one field of science, it carries over to influence, help and impact every other field as well. This is called the “cross pollination effect.” It is my humble opinion that A.I. will lead mankind into new heights over the next 10 to 25 years that our grandparents couldn't have even imagined possible. There will always be naysayers and doubters. In fact, ChatGPT is one of the worst offenders...lol. I'm not kidding. I was asking ChatGPT today about how A.I. will exponentially lead to man's knowledge increasing, but it kept downplaying the idea, telling me that I have a Pipe Dream and am wearing Rose Colored Glasses. ChatGPT didn't use those exact terms, but the implication was clear.

When God gave His inspired Word to the prophet Daniel in the Old Testament, Daniel didn't understand what he was writing. Daniel 12:8-9, “And I heard, but I understood not: then said I, O my Lord, what shall be the end of these things? And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.” The LORD simply told Daniel not to concern himself about it, because these words weren't for him, they were for a future generation in the end times. By saying that the word are “closed” and “sealed up,” I think that was God's way of simply saying that the interpretation wasn't meant for Daniel or his generation.

I think another good example of a Bible prophecy being “closed” and “sealed up” is Revelation 13:18 regarding the number “666.” For millenniums people have tried to figure out who the Antichrist is from the Scriptural challenge set forth to “him that hath understanding” to “count the number of the beast.” But we also know from 2nd Thessalonians 2:7-8 that the identity of the Man of Sin (Antichrist) will not be revealed until after “he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way” and “then shall that Wicked be revealed.”

So, there is absolutely no way that anyone will be able to figure out the identity of the Antichrist until he arrives during the 7-year Tribulation period. So, in my humble opinion this prophecy is also “closed” and “sealed up” until the future Tribulation comes. Some people claim that we are presently in the Tribulation, but I reject that theory, simply because the Rapture must happen first. I am a strong proponent of a pretribulation Rapture.

I think it is clear that we are now witnessing the fulfillment of Daniel 12:4, “But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.” And as we draw nearer each day to the Rapture and the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, knowledge will only continue to increase.

I heard President Trump and his White House team today announcing a new military Space Station that is being built in Huntsville, Alabama. That is exciting. Every military man knows that he who holds the high ground in a military conflict has the strategic advantage. So, the United States is working hard to catch up with China to control outer space around the earth. China already has jamming (or spoofing) satellite communications and GPS signals in space.

I wouldn't be surprised if they also have laser weaponry in space. China is a formidable enemy to the United States! If we are not careful China will surpass our technology quickly. In fact, in some ways I believe they already have! Our U.S. military until President Trump came along was a disgrace and a laughing stock to the entire world. Thank God President Trump took out the homosexuals! Dear reader, in case you haven't noticed, the Democratic party in the U.S. has gone to the dark side, like in the 1977 movie 'Star Wars.'

Only a wicked ungodly person would vote for the Democrats, after the blatant evil and incompetence we saw from presidents' Barack Obama and Joe Biden. Those men are utterly incompetent! God pity this doomed nation if an incompetent clown like Kamala Harris gets into the White House. She will undo everything great that president Trump has done. The very fact that someone like Kamala could even get into the election process shows how rigged and corrupt the entire voting system is in our country. With all the competent businessmen, honorable decorated veterans, and highly qualified men who could (and should) be leading our country, how do we keep ending up with Hollywood actors like Ronald Reagan, Vietnam draft dodgers like Bill Clinton, and illiterate fools like George W. Bush? I digress.

This is an amazing time to be alive dear reader. Count yourself blessed. Daniel 12:4, “But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.” I thank God for putting my spirit into this body at this time in history. God could have put my spirit into a body in communist North Korea! Think about that. I thank God that I didn't have to go fight and die like my uncle did in the early 1950's in the Korean War. Despite my constant neck pain and burning nerves from an old injury, I have no complaints to God.

In the years ahead, if the LORD tarries His return, we are going to see astounding new advancements in robotics, genetic science, space exploration, drugs, surgery and all the sciences. I foresee robots performing most major surgeries in the future. I heard this week on ABC news that by 2035, it is projected that 170,000 self-driving trucks could be on U.S. roads, representing about 15% of the trucking market. These autonomous trucks are expected to significantly impact the freight industry and improve efficiency. I don't know about you, but that scares me! I guarantee you that those driverless trucks will cause many deaths during ice storms and difficult situations. I will always be a big advocate for humans doing work, not technology. By 2050, half of all American jobs could be automated.

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

Civil Court Versus Criminal Court

Ecclesiastes 12:13-14, “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.”

I have never heard anyone teach this, but I liken these TWO different future judgment to Civil Court versus Criminal Court. Interestingly, whether you are saved or lost, we will all be judged according to our works. The difference is whether someone will be tried in court as a safe redeemed child of God, or as an accursed criminal.

The Judgment Seat of Christ: Civil Court

2nd Corinthians 5:9-11, “Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; but we are made manifest unto God; and I trust also are made manifest in your consciences.”

At the coming Judgment Seat of Christ only for the saints, which I humbly believe will take place immediately following the Pretribulation Rapture (1st Corinthians 15:51-58), it will be a CIVIL COURT for all of the redeemed throughout history. Some professed believers such as Evangelist Sam Gipp and Pastor J. Vernon McGee (1904-1988) teach that there will be a split Rapture, and that Old Testament saints won't be resurrected and judged until after the 7-year Tribulation period. I reject that theory. I do not find any such teaching in the Scripture. The aforementioned men base their speculative theory upon Daniel 12:3. 

The Bible is very clear in 1st Thessalonians 4:16b-17 that “the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.” We shall be CHANGED in the twinkling of an eye (1st Corinthians 15:52), given immortal glorified bodies fashioned like unto the LORD's resurrected body (Philippians 3:21). Oh, what a glorious day that will be. No more neck pain! Amen!

In Civil Court you're sole risk is monetary (loss of rewards); but in Criminal Court you are at risk of losing your freedom and going to prison. We read about the saint's Civil Court in 1st Corinthians 3:11-15, “For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is. If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.” I cherish this popular poem...

“Only one life, yes only one, Now let me say, “Thy will be done”; And when at last I’ll hear the call, I know I’ll say ’twas worth it all”; Only one life,’ twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.” —Missionary C. T. Studd

All of our earthly hobbies, shallow pursuits, secular affairs and things done for self (wood, hay and stubble) won't be rewarded in eternity. Only that which we have done in Jesus' name for the Gospel's sake and the Kingdom of God (gold, silver and precious stones) will be rewarded. Christ is extremely ethical and I believe will reward even the least efforts done for His sake and the Gospel's. Matthew 10:42, “And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward.” So, even if you share my website articles with others to help them in the LORD, you will be rewarded in eternity. The reason why is because I am a servant of God. And if you help me as a fundamentalist Bible preacher, you are indirectly helping the cause of Jesus Christ. Even if you give a cup of water on a hot day, or a cup of hot chocolate on a cold winter's day, to a soulwinning Christian, it is the same as if you gave it to Jesus (Matthew 25:40).

Only Christians will be tried in Civil Court, and their total risk is rewards. There will be tears, shame and regret at the Judgment Seat of Christ for our sin failures on earth as saints, but there is no condemnation to those who have faith in Jesus (John 3:18; Romans 8:1).

The Great White Throne of Judgment: Criminal Court

Revelation 20:11-20, “And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.”

In sharp contrast to the Judgment Seat of Christ, at the Great White Throne of Judgment (which takes place at the end of the 1,000 year Millennial reign of Jesus Christ from the throne of David in Jerusalem), it will be a judgment only for the damned (the unsaved) of human civilization. Jesus Himself will be the believer's Attorney (1st John 2:1) and Judge at the Judgment Seat of Christ (2nd Corinthians 5:10); but God the Father will judge the dead at the Great White Throne of Judgment (Revelation 20:11-12). We must face the 'TERROR OF THE LORD' (Psalm 6:1).

We learn in Revelation 20:12 that death and Hell, and the bottom of the oceans, shall give up their dead. That is, the deceased remains of everyone's physical bodies will be retrieved by God to appear at this last judgment. This will be a CRIMINAL COURT, not civil court. It's not a matter of “if” someone is guilty, but what will be their eternal sentence in the horrific Lake of Fire.

Only unsaved sinners will be tried in Criminal Court, and their plight is to spend eternity burning in fire and brimstone (sulfur) forever. There will be tears, shame and regret at the Great White Throne of Judgment for our sin failures on earth as saints, but there is no condemnation to those who have faith in Jesus (John 3:18; Romans 8:1).

The Choice Is Yours Alone To Make Dear Reader

Which judgment will you appear at dear reader? If you are reading this, it is still not too late for you to settle with God out of court. God is freely offering you a full pardon and eternal life, just for the taking, literally, but only if you will accept His only begotten Son's sacrificial death on Calvary's cross as full payment for your sins, believing that Jesus was buried, but physically resurrected from the dead three days later. This is “the gospel” by which all who BELIEVE IT are immediately, irrevocably and forever saved (1st Corinthians 15:1-6; Romans 1:16). 1st Thessalonians 4:14, “For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.”

I admit that I spend a lot of time thinking about where the deceased have gone in the afterlife. Lately, I've been thinking about rock star Eddie Van Halen (1955-2020). Tragically, Eddie and his family are staunch Roman Catholics, the dead man's religion! I can tell you with all biblical authority that there is no salvation in the Roman Catholic prisonhouse of religion. Catholics trust in their false church. They trust in Sacramental Salvation, confessing sins to their sins priests and their wicked demonic Catechisms.

According to this toxic article from the Catholic Answers website, salvation is a gift that you obtain by keeping the Seven Sacraments of the Catholic church. That's equivalent to saying that I am going to give you a birthday gift through you washing my car, mowing my lawn and washing my dirty underwear. Happy Birthday! The Catholic church is so full of Bologna! Mark 7:9b, “Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.”

Psalm 7:11 warns that God's anger rests upon the wicked every day. John 3:36 warns that God's wrath rests upon the head of every Christ rejecter. But there is no condemnation to he that believeth on the only begotten Son of God, apart from all human works. ...

John 3:16-19, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.”

Friend, if you have not yet received Jesus as your personal Savior, you are already condemned by God's law to spend eternity burning in the fires and brimstone of Hell forever.

2nd Peter 3:9 plainly teaches that it is God's will for ALL MEN (i.e., all humans) to repent (change your mind) to be saved. Since the only sin that can hinder you from entering into Heaven is unbelief, then logically that is the only sin which you must change your mind about to be saved. Repentance concerning the new birth NEVER means to forsake your sinning, nor even to be willing top forsake your sinful ways. To do so would be works, not grace (Romans 4:4). To get to Heaven we repent TO believe; not repent AND believe. There is only one step to being born again, which is to “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ...” (Acts 16:31b).

Heaven Is A Place

John 14:1-3, “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. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.”

Listen to the wonderful Gospel hymn, “Heaven Came Down.” The word “heaven” is mentioned 582 times in the inspired King James Bible. The word “hell” is only mentioned 54 times!

Heaven is the final abode of the saints. While the term may be used to describe the dwelling place of the righteous during the intermediate state, the term more properly denotes the eternal state of the righteous after the resurrection, the Judgment Seat of Christ and the Millennium. All redeemed saints will spend eternity with Jesus. John 16:22, “And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you.” What a glorious day it will be, when my Jesus I shall see!

Heaven Is A Real Place

Heaven is a real place. In the Scripture it is called “a place” (John 14:2), a country (Hebrews 11:14-16), a city (Hebrews 11:10, 16; 12:22; 13:14; Revelation 21:10-27), and a house or mansion (John 14:23). Heaven is more than a condition of the soul, more than a state of mind, more than mere thoughts and ideas. It is a literal dwelling place consisting of material reality. Colossians 3:1 tells us that God the Father and His Son sit on two separate literal thrones.

In addition to the biblical descriptions of Heaven, there are two other biblical truths of the Christian faith which demand that Heaven be a real place. The first is the bodily resurrection and ascension of Christ, and the other is the bodily resurrection of the believers. The nature of Heaven must correspond to these two facts. It is inconsistent, on the one hand, to believe in the bodily resurrection of flesh and bones with the capacity to eat and drink (Luke 24:39-43; Acts 10:41); and, on the other hand, to think of Heaven as only symbolic and allegorical.

Since Jesus ascended into the clouds in a literal physical body, seen visibly leaving by His disciples (Acts 1:11), He must have physically entered into Heaven in the universe.

Heaven Is A Glorious Life

What kind of life will we have in Heaven? Many things could be said at this point, but we can only mention a few selected statements.

First, it will be a life of individual perfection. We will have new, perfect bodies (1st Corinthians 15:42-58); our minds will be renewed (1st Corinthians 13:12); we will have moral perfection, for sin will be completely abolished from our nature and practice (1st John 3:2; Ephesians 5:27; Revelation 21:27). Imperfection is such a part of our experience now that it is almost impossible for us to conceive what our future life in Heaven will be like.

Second, it will be a life of harmonious social relations. People from all walks of life and from all races and nations will be in Heaven (Revelation 7:9), and yet there will be no quarrels, disagreements, crimes, nor wars to taint the fellowship. In Heaven there will be no fear nor mistrust of one another (Revelation 21:24-27). What a glorious day that will be!

Third, it will be a life free from all natural evils. The body will no longer be subject to sickness, decay, hunger, pain, weariness, nor death (1st Corinthians 15:53; Revelation 7:16; 21:4). The ravages of nature will no longer be a threat for there will be a new Heaven and a new earth with these evils taken away (Romans 8:18-22; Revelation 21:1).

During the Millennial reign of Christ, Christians alive today will all have our resurrected bodies (given at the Rapture), free from sin, pain, vulnerabilities, aging and diseases. The waters upon the earth which were poisoned from the asteroid Wormwood shall be healed ( Ezekiel 47:8-9). Wild animals will get along in perfect sweet harmony. The wolf and the lamb will be good friends (Isaiah 65:25).

Finally, we know that Heaven will be a life of unbroken fellowship with God. Our relations with God are so often hindered here on earth because of sin. Sin often hides the LORD's face from us, and our limited understanding causes us to look through a glass darkly. But then we shall see Jesus face to face and behold Him in all His beauty (Isaiah 33:7; Matthew 5:8; Revelation 22:4; 1st John 3:2). This will be one of the greatest joys in Heaven. Oh, happy day it shall be!

Heaven Is An Eternal State

It is sometimes said here on earth, “All good things must come to an end.” However, this is not true of Heaven. Jesus promises treasures in Heaven to those believers who labor for the Kingdom of God that will not dry rot, rust or be ruined by moths. Our clothes won't wear old. Heaven is the eternal state of the righteous. There will be no end to Heaven's blessings and joy. There will be no danger of ever falling from God's grace, nor having Heaven's blessings taken away from us. Heaven will be a world without end. Amen and amen!

A Prepared Heaven

(by Dr. Jack Hyles)

An awesome MP3 sermon series on “HEAVEN” by Pastor James Knox...

1. Heaven 01
2. Heaven 02
3. Heaven 03
4. Heaven 04
5. Heaven 05
6. Heaven 06

Here's some excellent life-changing MP3 sermons by Pastor Jack Hyles about “HEAVEN”...

1. Abel In Heaven
2. Heaven On Earth
3. How To Enjoy Heaven More
4. Heaven Is A Place
5. My Heavenly Body
6. A Prepared Heaven
7. The Heavenly Witnesses
8. What Makes Heaven Happy
9. Heaven Is Jesus
10. What Will We Do In Heaven?
11. The Music Of Heaven
12. As In Heaven
13. The Realities In Heaven
14. What Would Happen If The Lord Would Not Let Me Into Heaven?
15. When The Windows Of Heaven Are Open
16. The Little Boy Who Went To Heaven And Why
17. The Happiest Person In Heaven
18. The Streets Of Heaven Begin On Earth
19. Imperfect People In Heaven
20. How God Tidies Up Heaven
21. Forever Settled In Heaven
22. I Dreamed I Searched For Heaven

The Holy Spirit In Heaven
(Dr. Hyles, chapter 35 from his awesome book, “Meet The Holy Spirit”

Heaven's Door Is Wide Open—Put Down The Pick Axes, The Grappling Hooks, The Shovels & The Jack Hammers!

A Christian Review of The Movie, “Heaven is for Real”

Laying Up Treasures In Heaven

Heaven's Inhabitants (a printed sermon by Pastor Dwight L. Moody)

There Will Be No Need For The Sun In The Future

Revelation 21:23, “And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.”

According to astronomer scientists our sun will not burn out, but will instead transform into a red giant in about 5 billion years, then eventually shrink into a white dwarf. When the Sun becomes a red giant, it will allegedly expand and likely engulf Mercury and Venus, and possibly Earth as well. If Earth survives, it will experience extreme heat, causing the oceans to evaporate and making the planet uninhabitable.

The inspired Holy Bible teaches that God has established the earth on its foundations, indicating it will not be moved forever. Psalms 104:5, “Who laid the foundations of the earth, that it should not be removed for ever.” Ecclesiastes 1:4, “One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh: but the earth abideth for ever.” Although some interpretations of Scripture suggest that “forever” may refer to a long period rather than an absolute eternity, I humbly disagree. Forever means forever!

We know that at the end of the 1,000 year Millennium that God will purge the earth with fire. At that time the LORD will not destroy the earth; but rather, He will renovate it with fire and the earth will be transformed (2nd Peter 3:10). 1st Peter 3:11 says “all these things shall be dissolved.” Verse 13 speaks of a “new earth.” That is, a renovated earth.

Our text verse from Revelation 21:23 teaches that “the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.” Amen and amen! Jesus Himself will be the light of the heavenly city. Jeremiah 32:27, “Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh: is there any thing too hard for me?”

Our very Savior, the precious crucified, buried and risen Lamb of God, will be our shining light in the heavenly city. Malachi 4:2, “But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.” Are you resting in the Son of righteousness dear reader for eternal life?

The Jews Are Looking For Their Messiah, Not A Savior

2nd Thessalonians 2:1-4, “Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.”

Jews traditionally believe in a future messiah, known as the “Mashiach,” who will be a human leader from the line of King David, rather than a divine Savior in Christianity. This False Messiah is expected to bring peace and restore Israel, but the concept does not include the idea of atonement for sin through Jesus' sacrifice. Scripturally, the Jews and Arabs alike will embrace the future Man of Sin, the Antichrist, as their messiah.

Tragically, both Jews and Arabs vehemently reject Jesus as the true Messiah. Consequently they will be woefully deceived and damned. In fact, the whole world will be deceived (Revelation 12:9). I humbly believe that the Rapture could happen at any time. Jesus foretold in mark 13:32-37 that no man, nor even the angels, know the time of His future return. 

Although some good preachers deny that this passage applies to the Rapture, I don't see what else it could refer to if not the Rapture. Mark 13:32-37 cannot refer to Jesus' Second Coming. Here's why. Daniel 12:11, “And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days.” Christ's Second Coming can be calculated down to the exact day from the middle of the Tribulation. It will be 1,290 days (3 ½ years).

The path to Heaven is very narrow, and few there be that find it (Luke 13:23-24). There is only one true Savior and His precious name is Jesus (Acts 4:10-12).

The Mark Of The Beast: 666

Revelation 13:16-18, “And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.”

This prophetic truth about the number “666” from Revelation 13:18 is one of the most well known Scriptures (if not the most) by the heathen world. “Judge not” would be the other passage of Scripture. When Justin Timberlake was arrested for a DUI in 2024 after leaving a hotel where he dined, singer Billy Joel was asked the next morning when he ate at the same place what he thought about Justin's arrest. Considering that Mr. Joel is an avowed atheist, I found it amusing that he quoted from Matthew 7:1, “Judge not, that ye be not judged.”

That reminds me of Romans 1:18, “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness.” I do not believe there is any such thing as an “atheist,” only wicked unthankful sinners who choose not to glorify God. The vilest sinner knows the truth of God's Word. They know they are sinners. They know there is a holy God who created the universe and all therein, who disproves of sin. They know there is a Judgment Day coming after they die (John 16:8-10).

I read a helpful passage today from Dr. John R. Rice's commentary on “Revelation”...

“Shallow preachers and sensation-mongers have made a great to-do about the number 666. Some have added up the Roman numerals represented by the letters used in the titles and be stretching a point made them come out 666, trying to prove that the pope is the Antichrist, or will be. Others have tried to find the number 666 in the nations of the European Common Market agreement. 

Some sightseeing buses in Israel have the numbers in their license number including 666. Oh, in the minds of some, that must have meaning, that the coming of Christ is near, the Antichrist is about to appear, etc. All this is foolish. It is not good exposition of the Scriptures. 

Note carefully the following facts. 

1. The Man of Sin cannot appear until after the Rapture. If he were alive today, nobody in the world would know it, and he himself would not know it.
2. The Man of Sin must first rise up after the Rapture and assume some power in one of the nations that was in the old Roman Empire. The Bible does not say how long it will be after the Rapture until he appears. It is an indefinite time. 
3. He will not be made known as the Antichrist even at the beginning of the seven years. He will overcome three nations of the old Roman Empire. Which ones we do not know. Then he will form a federation of the other nations of the Roman Empire and come into the world prominence, and only then can he be recognized as having some authority over Palestine and the world; only then can he make a treaty with a remnant that will then be in Palestine, allowing them to have a temple and priesthood and and animal sacrifices and begin the ancient Jewish worship, and Israel will be a nation. Note, it will not simply be that Jews will be allowed in Palestine, but it will be that the Jewish worship of the true God will be begun in Jerusalem in some temple that Jews will then prepare and with the priesthood and sacrifices. Until that covenant of seven years is made with Israel, nobody could possible know who the Man of Sin is. That is the first identifying mark.
4. Even then, he will not begin his awful reign, manifest with the Antichrist and claim to be God on earth, until the midst of the seven years. After three and a half years he will break that covenant. He will have agreed with Jews that they will have seven years of such worship but he will break that treaty and enter into the temple, commit the abomination of desolation, and claim to be God on earth. etc.

Without the Mark of the Beast, no one will be able to sell, trade or buy anything. Also, carefully notice that the Bible doesn't say that the mark will be 666; but rather, the number of the Antichrist (the Beast) himself, “and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.” That is very interesting! I humbly agree with Dr. John R. Rice that it is foolish to read into everything that contains the numbers 666. All store barcodes contain three bars of 6, 6, 6. Coincidence? 

Hey, here's another one to consider. The address of United Nation's headquarters is located at 666 11th Street NW, Suite 450 in Washington DC. I do not think these coincidences mean anything prophetic. People sometimes ask me if I think the Antichrist is alive today. I honestly have no idea. I agree with Dr. Rice that if the Antichrist is alive, he doesn't even know it yet. At the proper time, Satan will enter into him to empower the Antichrist.

Everlasting Consolation

2nd Thessalonians 2:1-12, “Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things? And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.”

In this chapter of his Bible commentary titled, “1st & 2nd Thessalonians,” Pastor Harry Ironside (1876-1951) exegetes this difficult Scripture passage.

The only caveat is that I humbly disagree with Pastor Ironside that “the day of Christ” was a faulty translation in the King James Bible in 2nd Thessalonians 2:2. He says it should have been rendered “the day of the Lord” instead. You don't change the Bible to fit your theology! There are no mistakes in the inspired King James Bible! ...

Everlasting Consolation

Chapter Two
Everlasting Consolation
The Rise of the Antichrist (2nd Thessalonians 2:1-12)

As we begin to consider the special line of truth that is the subject of this passage, we need to remind ourselves that the outstanding theme of the first Epistle to the Thessalonians is the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ to receive His own before the onset of the awful period of judgment that is designated in the Old Testament as the day of the Lord, a time of trouble, or the time of Jacob’s trouble. Our Lord Jesus spoke of the period as the great tribulation.

The Thessalonian believers were looking forward to the appearing of the Lord. They were waiting for Him to return to earth to execute judgment on the wicked and set up His kingdom in this place where He had been rejected and crucified. It was this aspect of His coming that had made the deepest impression on their hearts even though Paul had explained that the Lord will first come in the air for His saints.

Sometimes believers have very poor memories and these Thessalonians seemed to have forgotten this truth, which Paul had endeavored to make so clear in his first letter. So when they encountered bitter persecution and trouble, they began wonder if the day of the Lord had begun; they thought they might already be in the midst of the great tribulation. They completely lost sight of the truth that had been revealed concerning the rapture of the church.

It seems that someone had misled them into believing that they were experiencing the throes of the time of Jehovah’s wrath. Presumably this person had asserted that he had been given a special revelation from God, and many of the brethren had been deceived.

It seems too that someone had forged a letter in the name of the apostle Paul in which he definitely declared that the day of the Lord really had begun and the church was going through the great tribulation.

In order to correct these false beliefs, the apostle wrote his second Epistle to the Thessalonians. In the first chapter of his second letter he declared the truth concerning the Lord’s judgment that will take place when He is “revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Thessalonians 1:7-8). Before this time of vengeance, believers of this church age will have been caught up in the clouds “to meet the Lord in the air” (1 Thessalonians 4:17), but they will appear with Him in great glory when He descends as depicted in 2 Thessalonians 1.

In 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 the apostle emphasized the fact that the day of the Lord cannot begin while the church is still on the earth. He wanted his readers to remember that the hope of believers is that they will be gathered together unto the Lord before judgment falls upon the earth. They were not to give heed to the theory that they were entering the great tribulation era—even though someone had professed to have discovered such teaching in the Word, or to have spoken by the Spirit, or to have received a letter from Paul asserting the theory.

In 2 Thessalonians 2:2 Paul cautioned his readers not to believe “that the day of Christ is at hand” (King James version). Here “the day of Christ” is a faulty translation. The best manuscript authority renders the original as “the day of the Lord.” The two phrases refer to two very different events. The day of Christ is the time when believers receive their rewards at the judgment seat of Christ immediately after the rapture. The day of the Lord, as we have seen, is the period when Jehovah’s judgments will be poured out, culminating in the literal return of the Lord Jesus to this world, where He will set up the kingdom of God.

The day of Christ is always imminent. There are no signs to be looked for; the Son may return from Heaven at any time. It is not to this precious and glorious event that 2 Thessalonians 2:2 refers, but to the next stage of Christ’s second advent and the judgments immediately preceding it.

Almost invariably when the church is called on to go through a time of great suffering, there are those who jump to the conclusion that it must be the beginning of “the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world to try them that dwell upon the earth” (Revelation 3:10). In our own generation we have passed through two world wars; in each of these awful conflicts, a large part of the professing church of Christ endured great suffering, and many teachers began to assert that we were entering the great tribulation.

Some have taught that the church must go through the entire tribulation period which, according to the book of Daniel, is to take place in the last and unfulfilled seventieth week of the great prophecy of chapter 9. This seven-week period is all a time of tribulation, but it is divided in Scripture into two parts: the first three-and-one-half years is a time of preliminary and largely providential judgment; the last three-and-one-half years cover the great tribulation proper when the wrath of the Lamb and the wrath of God will be poured out on the world, and Satan will be cast down from the heavens.

Some who realize that the church is to be saved from the wrath, and therefore cannot agree with the idea that it will go through the entire seven-week period of judgment, have taught that the church will go through at least the first half of the week. If this teaching were true, two companies of saints would be on earth at the same time: the heavenly company (the church, which is the body of Christ) and the earthly company (the remnant of Israel, who are to be gathered out of the apostate nation at the beginning of the tribulation).

To conclude that both companies will be on earth at the same time is unthinkable if one considers the Scriptures relating to each company. God has both a heavenly and an earthly election. In our Lord’s great prophetic discourse recorded in Matthew 24, the elect to be gathered out of all nations when He descends to set up His kingdom are Israel and those Gentiles who, having “washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb” (Revelation 7:14), will come out of great tribulation. The elect of the Epistles are a heavenly company, the “church of the firstborn” whose names are written in Heaven (Hebrews 12:23).

As Christians we ought to realize that ours is indeed a heavenly hope. We are not to be occupied with events and conditions down here; we should be looking for our blessed Lord to snatch us away from the wrath to come. The day of the Lord cannot begin until after this has taken place.

Paul said, “That day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition” (2 Thessalonians 2:3). The “man of sin” is undoubtedly the same as the personal antichrist of whom the apostle John spoke in his Epistles and the king who “shall do according to his own will” in Daniel’s great prophecy. The day of the Lord cannot come until the “man of sin” has been revealed and he will not be revealed prior to the rapture. We therefore arc never instructed to look for the rising up of this sinister personage who occupies such a large place in prophecies that relate to the last days.

After the church has been caught up, the apostasy of Christendom and Judaism will be complete. Among the vast throng of people left on earth will be many who, though unconverted, have professed faith; these will throw off all pretension of allegiance to Christ and to God. That complete “falling away,” or apostasy, will be the preparation for the reception of the antichrist. When the Jews are gathered back to their own land in unbelief, these words of the Lord Jesus will be fulfilled: “I am come in my Father’s name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive” (John 5:43). The one who will “come in his own name” is the “man of sin… the son of perdition.”

The “man of sin” will proclaim himself to be the incarnation of God; he will exalt himself “above all that is called God, or that is worshipped” (2 Thessalonians 2:4). This antichrist will sit in the temple that the returning Jews will build in the land of Palestine and to him will be rendered the worship that belongs to God alone. As Daniel prophesied in 11:36-37:

The king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done. Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all.

We know that this mysterious king will be a Jew because he is said not to “regard the God of his fathers.” In Scripture “the God of his fathers” refers invariably to the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. “The desire of women” undoubtedly refers to the Messiah, since every Jewish woman hoped to be the mother of the Deliverer of Israel. So the “man of sin” will be the son of Jewish parents and he will present himself to Israel as God manifest in the flesh, the Messiah for whom they have waited.

It is evident that Paul had taught his readers about the antichrist when he was in Thessalonica, for he said, “Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?” (2 Thessalonians 2:5) Of course in the short time that he was in that city he could not have made everything clear, and even if he had, much would have been forgotten. So when circumstances arose that filled the Thessalonians with fear and dread, they became so focused on these conditions that they lost the hope of the return of Christ to take His people away before the judgments begin.

In 2 Thessalonians 2:6-7 the apostle explained something that every believer ought to understand and many students and teachers of prophecy have misunderstood: “Ye know what withholdeth that he [the antichrist] might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.” Some of the words in these verses have changed their meaning in the course of the centuries. For example when the King James version of the Bible was published, the word “let” meant “hinder”; now it means “permit.” What the apostle was really saying in these verses is this: “Ye know what restraineth that he might be revealed in his own time. For the mystery of lawlessness doth already work: only there is One who now hindereth, until He be taken out of the way.”

Observe that Paul suggested that his readers should know what “hindereth.” Some have supposed that the apostle was referring to the Roman empire, whose downfall he had told the Thessalonians privately would take place before the second coming of Christ. It has been said that he spoke in a cryptic way because if he had spoken more clearly, he would have endangered both himself and other Christians and subjected them to the suspicions of the ruling powers.

Others have thought that Paul was referring to orderly government. In other words, a state of anarchy must prevail throughout the world before the antichrist is revealed and the Lord returns from Heaven.

But all such speculation seems needless in view of the fact that Paul was writing not merely for the Thessalonians or other believers living at that time, but also for future generations of Christians; his words would be read until the end of the dispensation. He spoke to us all when he said, “Ye know what restraineth.”

My reader, if you are a Christian, you ought to know what restrains the full demonstration of evil. Do you know? I have asked Christian audiences this question many times, and they have never failed to answer correctly. Yes, it is the Holy Spirit who restrains. Isaiah 59:19 tells us, “When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him.” This verse has also been translated, “The Spirit of the Lord shall restrain him.”

The Holy Spirit is in the world, where He is working in and through the church of God. He indwells every believer individually and the church collectively; therefore as long as the church is in the world, the antichrist will not be revealed.

Of course as 1 John 2:18 tells us, “Even now are there many antichrists.” Everyone who denies the Father and the Son is an antichrist. But we are speaking here of the “man of sin,” “the son of perdition,” the one who will “come in his own name,” the archdeceiver who will appear at the end of the age. This antichrist will not be revealed as long as the Spirit of God is in the world.

The Holy Spirit came to abide with the church forever, so as long as the church is here, He will be here. But when the church is caught up to be with the Lord, the Spirit of God will no longer be in the world in the sense in which He has been here during the Christian era.

We sometimes sing, “The Holy Ghost is leading / Home to the Lamb His Bride.” Like Abraham’s servant, the Spirit of God has come down to this far country to find a bride for the Son. It is the Holy Spirit who works in the hearts of men and women, leading them to Christ. When His work is completed, He will go up with the church “and then shall that Wicked be revealed” (2 Thessalonians 2:8).

This lawless one, who will set himself up as God incarnate, will be the special object of divine judgment; he will be destroyed by the Lord Himself when He returns in power and glory. We learn from Revelation 19:20 that he will be cast alive into the lake of fire.

During his brief time of power on earth the antichrist will deceive the nations with all kinds of false miracles and “lying wonders” (2 Thessalonians 2:9). Jesus said that if it were possible, the very elect would be deceived by him (Matthew 24:24). But, thank God, it is not possible, “for they know not the voice of strangers” (John 10:5); they will hear the voice of the Good Shepherd. The propaganda of the antichrist will carry away those who “received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved” (2 Thessalonians 2:10). In fact it is God Himself who in righteous judgment will give them up to be deluded. We read in 2:11, “God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie.” Instead of “a lie,” we might read, “the lie”: the lie that the “man of sin” is the Christ of God.

This is a solemn word indeed for those who hear the gospel in our day and definitely reject it. If they are still rejecting the truth when the rapture of the church takes place, there will be no hope of their turning to Christ during the period of tribulation. Having believed the lie, they will be judged with all those who have apostatized from the truth.

If you have not yet received Christ, the following words are for you. No doubt many of you who are unsaved are children of Christian parents. You have heard the name of Christ all your lives, yet you have never definitely accepted Him. If Jesus should come today, you would be among the number who will receive the antichrist. You will probably say, “Impossible! I have been too well-taught for that; I have heard the gospel too many times. I have learned the great outlines of prophecy, and I know something of the divine program. I would not be deceived in that way. I would turn immediately to the Lord after He had taken His church out of the world, and thus I would be prepared to welcome Him at His glorious appearing.” But according to the Word of God, that will not happen. If you reject Christ now, you will have no desire to accept Him in the coming day of tribulation. You are in the most dangerous position anyone could be in. The Word of the Lord says, “He, that being often reproved hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy” (Proverbs 29:1).

Some of the saddest funerals I have had to conduct have been for unsaved young people who were members of Christian families. These young men and women had often been urged to come to Christ, but they had gone on in carelessness, hoping that everything would come out all right in the end. Then suddenly they were struck down, perhaps by accident, and they went out into eternity leaving no testimony.

If you are unsaved, I plead with you not to allow another day to pass without coming to Christ, lest the near future find you forever beyond all hope of mercy. God has given you the opportunity to believe the truth; He has presented His Word. But if you turn away from that truth and refuse to believe the gospel, then God Himself may give you up to delusion so that you will believe the lie of the “man of sin” and so be eternally lost.

No One Will Ever Hurt Our Feelings Again

John 16:22-27, “And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you. And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full. These things have I spoken unto you in proverbs: but the time cometh, when I shall no more speak unto you in proverbs, but I shall shew you plainly of the Father. At that day ye shall ask in my name: and I say not unto you, that I will pray the Father for you: For the Father himself loveth you, because ye have loved me, and have believed that I came out from God.”

John 16:22 is perhaps my favorite Bible prophecy, “And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you.” A blessed glorious day is coming in the afterlife (if you are a born again believer), when NO ONE will ever hurt our feelings again because Christ will take control over every facet of our lives. NO ONE will ever deprive us of our joy again.

All my life, I have heard well-meaning preachers say that you can lose your happiness (i.e., what happens to you), but no one could ever take away your inner joy of soul. Yet, the inspired Scriptures teach otherwise. Jesus plainly acknowledged that, in fact, ungodly people can rob us of our joy if we are weak in the faith, “...and your joy no man taketh from you” (John 16:22b). Someone once emailed my ministry and said: “People equal pain.” I am compelled to fully agree with the dear fella. I dare say less than 1% of Christians walk in the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-25).

In Matthew 11:1-11, we find John the Baptist down and discouraged in prison. In sharp contrast, in Acts 16:25 we see the Apostle Paul and Silas singing hymns while incarcerated in prison. Why did John succumb to his dire circumstances while Paul and Silas rejoiced in it? I cannot say for certain, but my guess would be their individual responses to the crisis. John, Paul and Silas were all facing execution in prison. Herod had just executed the Apostle James in Acts 12:2-3, which pleased the wicked Jews.

John focused on his dire circumstances, whereas Paul and Silas by faith prayed and sang hymns to the LORD. Herod successfully took away John's joy. The story of John the Baptist being discouraged in prison encouraged me. because I admittedly tend to be more like John the Baptist than Paul and Silas. I humbly think I wouldn't have been discouraged like John. In Matthew 11:11, Jesus complimented John the Baptist by calling him the greatest ever born among women. ...

Matthew 11:11, “Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.”

If the greatest man who ever lived could be broken down to become discouraged in prison, then it can happen to anybody. By the way, I believe the reason why John was the greatest man was simply because he prepared the way of the greatest of all, the God-man, Jesus Christ (Malachi 3:1).

The truth is that among people (all of which are sinners) you'll encounter everything from soup to nuts, from A to Z. Some people are sweet and kind. Others are irritating and some rotten dogs. All humans are sinners by nature (Romans 5:12).

To combat hurt feelings, I carry Gospel tracts with me at all times. I put a rubber band around them and attached it to my mobile phone, which hangs around my neck at all times while on-the-go. When people run their stupid wicked mouths, I kindly hand them a Gospel tract, taking things to a higher spiritual level. It matters not if they refuse the tract, because at least I tried to share the Gospel with them, and that always brightens my day. Presently, I am giving people the tract titled: “Nothing But The Truth,” by military chaplain David Rutkin.

The inspired Holy Bible tells us that Satan is “the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience.” (Ephesians 2:2). I believe the Devil inspires his children to speak evil things to hurt God's children. An unsaved sinner doesn't realize that Satan is their father. So, they unknowingly do according to their father's will. That is what Jesus taught (John 8:44).

I have to go through a personal self-counselling process quite often, when people hurt my feelings. This process has been quite effective for me over the years. I think about all the suffering people in this world, compared to my hurt feelings. Tens of thousands of Iraqi people have been murdered in recent weeks. How does my hurt feelings compare? God sees our hurt feelings (Psalms 139:2-6; Hebrews 4:13). Jesus promised in John 16:22 that when He returns in the future, we will rejoice as saints, and NO MAN will ever take away our joy again.

The Antichrist Will Appear AFTER The Rapture

2nd Thessalonians 2:1-10, “Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things? And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.”

Taken by itself the preceding passage of Scripture seems to teach that the Man of Sin must appear before the Rapture of the Church. However, if we rightly divide the Scripture and consider the whole counsel of God, we can only conclude a pre-Trib Rapture. I am fully confident dear reader that if you diligently study God's Word, you will come to the same conclusion that without the pre-Trib Rapture doctrine, Bible prophecy has no context. No other position fits the puzzle of Bible prophecy, which is history (His-Story) written in reverse.

My ministry friend B.J. Houser wrote these prolific words (I didn't edit anything)...

I believe that the Bible clearly teaches a pre-trib Rapture, not because it holds out the promise of a 'great escape', or because somebody convinced me in a high-pressure sales job, or because it is my opinion and I am sticking to it.

I believe the Bible teaches a pre-trib Rapture because a pre-Trib Rapture puts the last days and the Tribulation into a context consistent with the overall flow of Bible prophecy. 

That is the only reason that I teach a pre-trib Rapture. It makes no difference to me if other, sincere born-again believers embrace a different view; the timing of the Rapture plays no role in our salvation.

Saving faith is faith in Who is coming, that He is coming again, as promised, and that He will keep all His other promises, including standing as our Advocate before the Righteous Judge. 

Our faith is that "God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life."

But the timing of the Rapture is CENTRAL to the understanding of the overall Big Picture in the last days.

The 'last days' is a different era than the Tribulation Period. The 'last days' is used throughout Scripture in the context of the Church Age.

At Pentecost, the Apostles, newly-indwelt by the Holy Spirit, rushed from the Upper Room to the street, giddy from the experience. So giddy, in fact, that some bystanders thought they were drunk.

"Others mocking said, These men are full of new wine. But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words: For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day. But THIS IS THAT WHICH was spoken by the prophet Joel; And it shall come to pass IN THE LAST DAYS saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:" (Acts 2:13-17).

The 'last days' is the Church Age, whereas the Tribulation is the 'Time of Jacob's Trouble'. They are two different Dispensations of God. That is central to understanding the times in which we now live.

We are currently in the "dispensation of the grace of God" (Ephesians 3:2). Paul calls the conclusion of this present dispensation the 'dispensation of the fullness of times.' (Ephesians 1:10)

During this dispensation, believers are indwelt by the Holy Spirit.

"And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world."

But John reminds us:
"Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world." (1John 4:3-4)

Note the context. John is speaking of the 'spirit of antichrist' which he says is 'already in the world.' He says that the spirit of antichrist cannot overcome the Church saints; because He Who indwells us (the Holy Spirit) is greater than the spirit of antichrist.

But this SAME PROPHET, writing of the SAME antichrist, (once antichrist comes in the flesh), says; "And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to OVERCOME them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations." (Revelation 13:7)

Since John penned both passages, and they cannot both be simultaneously true, the flow of Bible prophecy is interrupted, if the Church Age runs concurrent with the Tribulation.

During the Tribulation, the antichrist is 'given' power to overcome the saints. Is he 'given' power over the Holy Spirit? Jesus said, in the context of devils driving out devils, 'a house divided cannot stand'. (Matthew 12:25)

Clearly, God isn't giving power over Himself to the antichrist. That leaves two possibilities, apart from a pre-trib Rapture.

The first is that the Holy Spirit indwells the Church until the onset of the Tribulation, at which point He is withdrawn from the vessels he indwells, leaving believers on their own. 

The Apostle Paul says He is 'withdrawn' BEFORE 'that Wicked' is revealed. (2nd Thessalonians 2:7-8)

For a pre-Trib Rapture to be a false doctrine means our generation was chosen out of all others in Church history to face the greatest spiritual trial the world has ever known — without the Comforter that Jesus promised would indwell us until He comes.

The second possibility is that John was either lying or mistaken when he said the spirit of antichrist cannot overcome indwelt believers.

In either case, the promises of Scripture are broken.

Assessment:
Over the last thirty years, I've listened to explanation after explanation of why the pre-trib Rapture is a 'false doctrine'. It usually revolves around the concept of a 'great escape' or some other misunderstanding of the flow of Bible prophecy.

Its opponents will spare no effort to 'prove' that it is a false doctrine, as if the timing of the Rapture were somehow of eternal significance. It is not.

The eternal significance of the Rapture is this:
"The Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout . . . and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together WITH them in the clouds, to meet the Lord IN THE AIR. . ." (1st Thessalonians 4:16-17)

Now let's try and pull it all together.
"And as He sat upon the Mount of Olives, His 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?"

Note the first thing Jesus says in reply to that question.
"And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in My Name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many." (Matthew 24:3-4)

Jesus said the one who comes in His Name would deceive 'many' - not all. Initially, most of Israel will be fooled.

"I am come in My Father's name, and ye receive Me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive." (John 5:43)

Paul identifies the one who Israel eventually (and temporarily) receives as their messiah as the antichrist.

And so, if the one claiming to be Jesus is standing on the ground, instead of meeting me in the air, then I will know that he is an imposter, no matter what tricks he is able to perform.

The doctrine of a pre-Trib Rapture isn't a 'great escape' for the Church; it is a necessary evacuation of the Holy Spirit's restraining influence as part of the overall Big Picture for the last days.

Remove it, and the chronology of Bible prophecy is thrown into chaos.

The pre-trib Rapture doctrine has no saving value. It is of no eternal consequence to anyone that they believe in a pre-Trib Rapture. I feel no particular need to convert someone to my understanding of the last days.

One is saved by God's grace through faith in the finished Work of His Son on the Cross as payment in full as our pardon for sin.

But without the pre-Trib Rapture doctrine, Bible prophecy has no context. That is why I teach it as doctrine. It is my obligation as a minister of Christ.

"Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." (2nd Timothy 2:15)

And our insurance against end-times deception.

Bravo my Brother in Christ. That being said, I humbly disagree with B.J. Houser on two minor issues: 

1. Dispensationalism - I have never liked dispensational doctrine, simply because the Bible doesn't teach it. You have to really imaginatively stretch the four mentions of the word “dispensation” (which means to administer) in the New Testament to fabricate a whole system of dispensationalism. It is bad scholarship in my opinion.
2. Manmade Israel - Kindly said, B.J. Houser believes present-day Israel is the fulfillment of Bible prophecy to rebirth Israel, but I don't. Present-day manmade Israel was created in May of 1948 by the ungodly United Nations, who drove out the Arabs by using deadly military aggression against them. Hosea 3:4-5 prophecies that God won't restore the true nation of Israel until the Jews repent toward God. That still hasn't happened as of 2026. Of the seven million Jews inhabiting Israel today, only about 2% profess faith in Jesus Christ (and that includes all the pseudo-Christian cults like Roman Catholicism, Church of Christ, Jehovah's Witnesses and Mormons). Jeremiah 23:7-8 teaches that when Jesus returns at His Second Coming, the LORD will return born again Jews to their own Promised Land. No unsaved Jew will ever enter into the Promised Land or Heaven.

Brother Houser continues exegeting the Word of God...

The Rapture of the church is the future, imminent event in which Jesus Christ descends from heaven to gather all believers of the present church age to Himself, transforming the living and resurrecting the dead in Christ, and removing the church from the earth prior to divine judgment. Scripture presents this as a blessed hope grounded in Christ’s promise and accomplished by His power.

Jesus first promised this event to His disciples. He said, “Do not let your heart be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many dwelling places. If it were not so, I would have told you. For I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:1–3). Christ comes for His own and takes them to the place He has prepared, not to the earth but to the Father’s house.

Paul provides the most detailed description, saying, “For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore, comfort one another with these words” (1 Th. 4:15–18). The verb “caught up” translates harpazō (ἁρπάζω), meaning to seize or snatch suddenly. The meeting place is “in the air,” not on the earth. This is presented as comfort, not warning.

Paul explains the transformation that accompanies this event, saying, “Behold, I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality” (1 Cor. 15:51–53). A mystery is truth previously unrevealed. This instantaneous change applies to both resurrected and living believers.

Other passages reinforce this expectation. Paul wrote, “For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself” (Phil. 3:20–21). As Christians, we are “Looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus” (Tit. 2:13). The posture of the church is expectancy, not timetable calculation.

Scripture also distinguishes the rapture from the later return of Christ to the earth in judgment. At the rapture, Christ comes for His saints and meets them in the air. At His return, He comes with His saints to the earth in visible judgment and rule. The church is promised deliverance from the coming outpouring of divine wrath. Paul states, “For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Th. 5:9; cf. Rev. 3:10).

A Christian is a person who has received God’s free gift of eternal life by believing in Jesus Christ as Savior. At the moment of faith, the believer is placed into the church, the body of Christ, and therefore shares in its future destiny to be caught up to be with the Lord forever. Scripture states, “for whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16b). The gospel of grace proclaims that salvation is entirely the work of God, accomplished through the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross and offered freely to sinners.

Scripture states, “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Eph. 2:8–9). Faith alone in Christ alone is the sole condition, because eternal life is received by believing, not by reforming, committing, or persevering. As Jesus said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life” (John 6:47). Salvation rests on Christ’s sufficiency, not human performance, and the one who believes in Him “has passed out of death into life” (John 5:24).

Brother Houser further writes...

The Antichrist will appear after the Rapture of the Church. At present, Satan operates an antichrist system that has functioned since the fall of man and permeates the world. John writes, “every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God; this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world” (1 John 4:3). According to Ronald Sauer, “the spirit of the antichrist is in the world now, to be followed by the physical presence of the antichrist later.” (Ronald Sauer, “1 John,” in The Moody Bible Commentary, p. 1981).

This system is active, hostile to God, and oriented toward rebellion, preparing the world for Satan’s future ruler. Paul states, “For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way” (2 Th. 2:7). Lawlessness is present now in principle, not yet in person. The system exists; the man does not. Its full manifestation awaits the removal of restraint and the unveiling of the Antichrist.

Ed Hindson states, “The spirit of Antichrist is alive and well—it is the Satan-inspired expression of lawlessness and rebellion against God, the things of God, and the people of God. It has been alive since Satan slithered his way around the Garden of Eden. It has been the driving force behind the whole terrible history of the human race—wars, murders, thefts, rapes, and the like. It is the ugly expression of the destructive nature of the great deceiver himself.” (Ed Hindson, “Antichrist,” in The Harvest Handbook of Bible Prophecy, p. 34).

After the Rapture of the Church, when revealed, the Antichrist will rule a unified global government. Daniel foresaw a final kingdom that “will devour the whole earth and tread it down and crush it” (Dan. 7:23). John describes a beast to whom authority is given “over every tribe and people and tongue and nation” (Rev. 13:7). This is worldwide political dominance. National sovereignty collapses under centralized authority. Law and power are concentrated in one man energized by Satan himself. John states, “The dragon gave him his power and his throne and great authority” (Rev. 13:2).

This political dominance is reinforced by global economic control. No buying. No selling. No exceptions. “He causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free men and the slaves, to be given a mark… and he provides that no one will be able to buy or to sell, except the one who has the mark” (Rev. 13:16–17). Economic participation becomes a tool of worship and allegiance. Commerce is weaponized. Survival is tied to submission to the Antichrist. Scripture is explicit that economic pressure enforces loyalty to the system.

The system is also religious. The Antichrist does not begin as an openly atheistic tyrant but as a deceiver. Paul calls him “the man of lawlessness” who “takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God” (2 Th. 2:3–4). Revelation describes a false prophet who enforces worship of the beast and performs signs to deceive the world (Rev. 13:11–15). This is religious devotion. Satan’s long ambition to be worshiped finally finds its human instrument (Isa. 14:12–14; Matt. 4:8–9).

Behind this future system stands Satan’s longstanding counterfeit kingdom. Scripture states that “the whole world lies in the power of the evil one” (1 John 5:19). Satan is called “the god of this world” who blinds unbelievers (2 Cor. 4:4). He has always sought centralized control, uniform thinking, and coerced unity apart from God. Babel was the prototype: “Come, let us build for ourselves a city… and let us make for ourselves a name” (Gen. 11:4). God descended upon their rebellion and wrecked that early system. In the future, He permits a final version to run its course under judgment.

The timing of these events is important. The Antichrist cannot be revealed until the restraining force is removed. Paul states, “You know what restrains him now… only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way. Then that lawless one will be revealed” (2 Th. 2:6–8). The Church, indwelt by the Spirit, functions as that restraint. Once removed, restraint ends. Lawlessness accelerates. Deception spreads like wildfire. Authority rapidly becomes centralized. The world does not suddenly become evil. It simply loses restraint.

Scripture also predicts a growing global appetite for deception and control. Scripture states, “Evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived” (2 Tim. 3:13). “They did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved. For this reason, God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false” (2 Th. 2:10–11). Humanity does not stumble into this system unwillingly. They willingly welcome it. They exchange truth for security, freedom for safety, and worship for convenience.

What we see today is preparation for the full expression of Satan’s coming kingdom. Global institutions that bypass national accountability. Cultural hostility to biblical truth. Technology that enables surveillance. Economic systems capable of total centralization. Moral relativism. Rejection of absolute authority except when it promises protection. Scripture identifies this as “the mystery of lawlessness” already at work (2 Th. 2:7). Satan’s structure exists. The final ruler does not.

It follows logically that those who promote globalism and a centralized world economy are, whether knowingly or unknowingly, aligned with Satan’s antichrist system in its present, preparatory form. Scripture presents Satan’s system as one that seeks centralized authority, economic control, uniform allegiance, and unity apart from God. When individuals or institutions advocate structures that dissolve national sovereignty, concentrate power, and subordinate truth to collective security, they advance the same patterns Scripture identifies with the mystery of lawlessness already at work (2 Th. 2:7). This alignment is ideological and functional and it contributes to the stage setting for the future reign of the Antichrist.

For the believer, this truth produces confidence rather than fear. Christ promised deliverance before divine wrath, for “God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Th. 5:9; cf. Rev. 3:10). The next event on the prophetic calendar is not the Antichrist, but the gathering of the Church to Christ. “For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord” (1 Th. 4:16–17). The Rapture occurs first. This is followed by the seven-year Tribulation, the final week decreed for Israel and the nations (Dan. 9:27; Matt. 24; Rev. 6–18). After that comes the Second Coming of Christ in power and glory to judge and to reign (Matt. 24:29–30; Rev. 19:11–21). The sequence culminates in Christ’s kingdom on earth, where He rules for a thousand years in fulfillment of God’s promises (Rev. 20:1–6).

In summary, Scripture clearly teaches a coming satanic global system under the Antichrist. It also teaches a present preparatory phase already at work. What we observe today aligns precisely with biblical stage setting. The Church waits, watches, and works, confident that God’s plan is on schedule and that Christ will remove His people before judgment falls. “Even so, come, Lord Jesus” (Rev. 22:20).

I enjoyed reading his commentary. I told Houser that I think he's a prolific writer. He has a good understanding of the Scripture, which is rare in this generation. Any time that I read something that helps broaden my understanding of the Holy Bible, I like to share it with others for your edification too. To God alone be the glory.

Do you believe the Gospel friend? Have you been born again? We here unsaved people make all kinds of excuses for being atheists and rejecting Jesus Christ, but the Holy Bible says the simple truth why they won't believe is a rejection of God's Word. John 5:38, “And ye have not his word abiding in you: for whom he hath sent, him ye believe not.”