We reserve a few minutes Sunday morning to suggest news, or trends, that seem to be predicted by a literal, futurist reading of the Bible.
We are careful to use recognized, reliable sources for news. There is a lot of sensationalism surrounding unfulfilled Bible prophecy, and we don’t want to add to it.
We’re not saying the things we report are the fulfillment of prophecy – only that they are the things you’d expect in light of the Bible’s unfulfilled prophecies.
Does COVID19 have anything to do with Bible prophecy? Not directly; and by that I mean, it isn’t a pestilence from the Book of the Revelation. The things you read about in chapters 6-19, describing the Great Tribulation, are after the rapture of the church, and we are still here.
Indirectly, the global response to the pandemic does potentially have a prophetic impact. We’ve been pointing out for decades that, in the last days and then in the Great Tribulation, the world will be united in commerce. There will be some sort of digital and biometric technology by which everyone can be identified, and can conduct all their business.
The technology has been around for some time. COVID19 has necessitated, and therefore accelerated, global reliance upon digital technology, and biometrics in particular, in ways no one could have foreseen.
I read an article titled, COVID19: From Digital Transformation to Digital Revolution.
Excerpts:
Overnight, the world found itself sheltered at home. Digital… became indispensable. Remote work became mandatory. Online customer service became imperative. Cloud became crucial.
In retail, online sales went up 76% (Digital Commerce 360).
In education, over 1.5 billion students were affected (UNESCO), resulting in a global shift toward e-learning, with some learning providers deploying over 100,000 cloud servers in just 2 hours (World Economic Forum).
In the health sector, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services saw 10.1 million beneficiaries receiving telehealth services from mid-March through early July (HHS.gov).In short, companies were faced with a challenge – go digital or die. And the world passed the test.
COVID19 has forced us to be open to change because change gives us a way forward. We know now that digital transformation is the answer, and we demand to go digital fast because we know it’s possible.
https://www.greatreporter.com/content/3891/covid-19-digital-transformation-digital-revolution
Chris Riddell, described as a digital technology guru, said, “Just so everyone knows, we’re all living through a future history class.” Experts are describing the times as “the fourth industrial revolution, saying,
This fourth industrial revolution will merge the physical, digital and biological worlds. In its scale, scope and complexity, the transformation will be unlike anything humankind has experienced before.
One of the fundamental differences of this fourth industrial revolution is that in the previous ones the changes occurred outside of the human body; now they will involve it and even happen within it, possibly redefining us as homosapiens.
https://www.lightreading.com/aiautomation/is-covid-19-pandemic-catalyst-for-fourth-industrial-revolution/a/d-id/763693
Here is another quote:
The COVID19 pandemic is accelerating interest in biometrics and contactless biometrics in particular. But it’s not just about digital. With people being more aware than ever of the dangers of coming into contact with infected surfaces, contactless is the new normal – from pizza delivery to classrooms to medical consultations. When it comes to secured physical access we often can’t avoid interaction with payment systems and ATMs, key cards for building security and so much more. This is another area where biometrics, particularly voice and face, can help.
The World Economic Forum (WEF) says now is the time for businesses everywhere to begin the transition toward a passwordless future and look to biometric authentication as the contactless solution.
https://www.idrnd.ai/why-biometrics-infographic/
On the Island of Patmos, John received the Revelation of Jesus Christ. He saw a time in which human beings would conduct business on a global scale without using money. He saw a contactless solution – a “mark” on or in the body.
It would be eerie except that we know what is going to happen.
We believe the resurrection and rapture of the church is imminent. It could happen any moment; nothing needs to happen before it. It will definitely happen before the Tribulation.
Jesus will return in the clouds. He will raise the dead in Christ. He will transform the bodies of living believers to glorified, resurrection bodies. We will all join Him in Heaven while the earth endures one final seven-year campaign of severe evangelism.
Are you ready for the rapture? If not, Get ready; Stay ready; Keep looking up.
Ready or not, Jesus is coming!