Link
By P. Amsterdam
Over the years, a number of brethren have written to ask Maria and me about world events and their meaning. Some send us articles about potential economic crashes or disasters. Others’ questions are prompted by emails they have received from members warning about imminent events, worldwide conspiracies, and passing on a variety of other theories. A few have chided us for not commenting on current events, as David did in the past.
As I explained on video some years back, Maria and I do not consider ourselves to be endtime prophets or experts. We have a different anointing than David did, and we have not felt called to make predictions or publish interpretations about current world affairs and whether or how they might relate to endtime events. It’s not that Maria and I never think about what’s going on in the world or that we aren’t interested in current events. I follow the news every day, and honestly I find a lot of it disturbing. The world is a volatile place. People do unthinkable things to others, which exposes man’s inhumanity to man. It seems that almost every month potentially world-changing events occur. Sometimes what I read causes me to feel unsettled, and once in a while even fearful. However, we’re told in Scripture not to worry or fear, but rather to trust in God. Based on what Scripture teaches, I’ve chosen to look at world events through the eyes of faith—faith that God loves those who are affected by the specific events I’m reading about, and that He loves me and will be with me in any circumstances.
So when I receive questions from members about predictions they’ve heard people make, such as about how a certain upcoming event is going to bring the collapse of the world economy, or that in such-and-such a month some specific world-changing event is going to happen, I remind myself that no matter what happens, the Lord is with me and with all His children throughout the world. I don’t believe that such predictions are helpful; because historically they generally don’t come true, and because they often bring unwarranted fear and worry into people’s lives.
To clarify, I do believe that the endtime events spoken of in the Bible will happen and that there will be terrible times before Jesus returns. However, none of us can know when these things will happen. I did a little historical research this morning, and just a cursory search showed that between AD 44 and 2015 there have been 242 major predictions that the Lord would return by a certain time, which didn’t come to pass. Different research showed 145 such predictions. There were many made around the year AD 1000, since it was the turn of the millennium. When the barbarians from the north invaded Italy in the 400s, people were convinced it was the beginning of the end. Martin Luther, in the 1500s, was concerned that he wouldn’t be able to finish his translation of the Old Testament before the end came, because the Muslim Ottomans were besieging Vienna. Even the apostle Paul’s writings seem to say that he believed that Jesus could return in his day.
Throughout history, there have been predictions about the time or date of Jesus’ return and the end of the world, and clearly these have been mistaken. I believe Jesus will most definitely return; but when He spoke to His disciples about the end, the tribulation of those days, and the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory, He added: concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.1
Along the same lines, there have been numerous predictions about a worldwide economic crash that will cause the fall of America and set the wheels of the endtime in motion. Is a worldwide economic crash a possibility? Yes, of course. With the globalization of the world’s economy, events which happen in one country’s economy can seriously affect all countries and often do. And yet, just because something is possible doesn’t make it inevitable. Many prognosticators over the past decades have attempted to set a date or declare a month when “the great crash” was to happen, as well as to foresee what would trigger it and what its aftereffects would be. But this worldwide economic demise so often foretold has not yet come to pass. The timing of such an event, if it is to happen, is in the Lord’s hands.
Those who make these predictions often pull from Bible verses, current events, stock market movement, upcoming events, etc., to bolster their case. One idea that has been getting around recently, which a number of people have written to us about, is based on the four “blood moons” that have occurred in 2014 and 2015, along with the Jewish Shmita within the same time period.
A blood moon is a total lunar eclipse which occurs when the sun, moon, and Earth align in a certain way so that Earth casts a shadow on a full moon. Sometimes the moon gets a red glow when this happens. Total lunar eclipses are rare, with only one in three lunar eclipses being total. There are generally four to five total eclipses every ten years. Every once in a while, four total lunar eclipses happen in a row. When this happens, it is called a lunar tetrad. In a lunar tetrad, four total lunar eclipses happen six months apart. It so happens that in 2014–2015 there has been a lunar tetrad, with total eclipses occurring on April 15, 2014; October 8, 2014; April 4, 2015; and September 28, 2015.
This last eclipse is occurring in the same month as the end of the Jewish Shmita, which ended with Rosh Hashanah, the beginning of the next Jewish lunar new year. If you are unfamiliar with Shmita, the background is that in the Old Testament, God told Moses that once the people of Israel entered the Promised Land, they should allow their land to rest every seventh year.2 This Sabbath rest every seventh year is referred to as Shmita. During this time, agricultural land belonging to observant Jews within Israel is supposed to be left fallow. The latestShmita was from September 25, 2014, to September 13, 2015. The fourth blood moon of the latest lunar tetrad is within the same month as the close of theShmita. Some prognosticators are saying that this proximity foretells a massive economic collapse.
Around the same time that Maria and I received a few letters asking about this possible crash, a friend of mine brought up these latest predictions in conversation. I asked him to send me some of the material that is circulating on the Internet on the topic and which some members are passing around, and I read and watched portions of it. Those promoting this theory emphasize the fact that the eclipses in this lunar tetrad occurred at the same time as the Jewish holidays of Passover (Pesach) and the Feast of the Tabernacles (Sukkot). A point of interest is that eight of the tetrads since the first century have coincided with Jewish holidays (which would naturally be expected to happen on occasion, since Jewish holidays are based on the lunar calendar), without any major effect on the world of their time. There is no evidence, biblical or otherwise, to support the claim that the 2014–2015 tetrad will be any different.3
Perhaps those who develop these theories truly believe that the moon going through its normal, natural courses, which overlaps with some of the Jewish lunar-based holidays including the Shmita year (as it has for thousands of years), predicts the fall of the dollar and a worldwide economic collapse. However, in looking at the material, it seems to me that there are also instances in which some people make or promote such predictions as a means to sell their newsletters, videos, books, etc.
Is it possible that there will be a worldwide economic crash in September of this year? Possibly. We’ll soon see. But as I said earlier, there have been abundant predictions of a total economic crash over the past decades, which didn’t happen.
What’s my point? I believe the wise thing to do, when faced with such predictions—whether you come across them on the Internet or a family member or friend emails them to you—is to bring the matter to the Lord in prayer rather than getting worried, concerned, and fearful. You might also want to do some research to discern whether what is being predicted makes sense, has a factual basis, and comes to a logical conclusion; or whether it tends toward the sensational. And even if someday someone’s predictions come true, the important thing is not the prediction; it’s knowing that in any and every circumstance, God is with you, and will comfort and care for you. You are His child. He is your Father.
It’s also helpful to realize that some Christians (and others) enjoy theorizing about current world events, their meaning, and how they fit into the biblical endtime events. They spend time researching and reading what others have to say about it. In a sense it’s their hobby. Some folks are very into it, some may even be obsessive, and others just dabble in it. I don’t wish to put a damper on the enthusiasm some have for reading today’s news in light of the endtime, much less to diminish what Scripture teaches about it; my intent is to give some perspective to those who are negatively affected when they receive predictions of disasters, economic crashes, government takeovers, worldwide conspiracies, and other alarming happenings. Keep in mind that this is what some people are extremely interested in, and it’s exciting for them to theorize in this way. Don’t let someone else’s interest or hobby project fear and worry onto you. Remember, generally speaking, these types of specific predictions have seldom come true.
For those of you who are keenly interested in endtime events and predictions, I want to remind you that when you send emails to others about your take on the latest warnings of earthquakes, economic crashes, and other messages of coming doom and destruction, it’s important to be prayerful about what you write. Many of these articles and emails cause unwarranted fear and can stumble others.
No one knows the exact details of what the future holds. Scripture gives a general picture of endtime events, but current events have been overlaid on Scripture for the purpose of foretelling the end for millennia, and thus far, definitive predictions of major events leading up to Jesus’ return have been inaccurate. As Christians, we believe that Jesus will return and that there will be certain events that signal and precede His return (though not all Christians agree on the events or the timing). However, the specifics of how it will all play out for those who are alive at the time will only be known when it happens. Anyone who claims to know exactly what will happen or when it will happen is only speculating. Such speculation should not rattle us, make us worry about ourselves or our children, or cause us to fear.
As mature believers, we should take predictions of the future we hear about for what they are—at best, an individual’s personal speculation; and in some cases, that individual putting out theories to prey on people’s fears for financial or other gain, as is the case with many subjects on the Internet. Most importantly, take these matters to the Lord and let Him comfort you. Remember that God loves you, and by this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.4
1 Matthew 24:29–36.
2 Exodus 23:10–11, Leviticus 25:1–7, 20–22.
3 All of the above information about the lunar tetrads was quoted from "What is a Blood Moon?"
4 1 John 4:17–18.
0 Comments:
Post a Comment