Prophecy Update #816 – Trump & Temple

We set aside a few minutes most Sunday mornings to identify connections between unfulfilled Bible prophecies and current news & trends.

As futurists, we believe every biblical prophecy will be fulfilled literally. This common-sense approach confirms that there will be a Jewish Temple in Jerusalem.

Daniel and Jesus predicted its defilement midway through the Tribulation. Jesus calls it, “the ABOMINATION OF DESOLATION, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the Holy Place” (Matthew 24:15). Other passages tell us that this ‘abomination’ is the antichrist declaring himself ‘God’ and demanding to be worshipped as ‘God.’

Prime Minister of Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel, recently called President Trump the greatest friend Israel has ever had in the White House. In his first term, President Trump did something amazing for Israel. He moved their embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

There is a great deal of speculation that Jews in Jerusalem will take advantage of the Trump presidency in order to get the Temple built.

Those around Trump would like to see the Temple built. Speaking at an event in Jerusalem in 2018, now Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said there was “no reason why the miracle of re-establishing the Temple on the Temple Mount isn’t possible,” using the Israeli name for the raised plateau in occupied East Jerusalem where Al-Aqsa Mosque stands.

He also told attendees that Israel should take advantage of Trump being in office to do what they needed to do in the region, because there were “true believers” in Washington who would back them.

Right now it remains speculation. We are simply pointing-out that this is exactly what you would expect to read about in the news if you are familiar with the Bible and its prophecies. The stage is definitely being set for the Great Tribulation to begin, followed by the Second Coming of Jesus Christ to establish his kingdom on earth.

The Second Coming… That’s the real 2.0!

Where do we fit in? Jesus promised to resurrect & rapture His Church prior to His Second Coming, and before the Great Tribulation would come upon the whole Earth.

We will not see the revealing of the Antichrist. The resurrection and rapture of the church is presented as an imminent event. It could occur anytime. Right now, for example.

Are you ready for the rapture? If not, get ready, stay ready, and keep looking up.

Ready or not Jesus is coming!

Prophecy Update #815 – Hard To Swallow

We set aside a few minutes most Sunday mornings to identify connections between unfulfilled Bible prophecies and current news & events.

Pastor Greg Laurie said, “Jesus Christ is coming back again! The signs all around us – multiplying and converging as never before – remind us of that fact. And that means we could be hurtled into eternity in the blink of an eye.”

Some folks think we ought not look for any “signs.” But it was Jesus who encouraged it. He said, “You have a saying that goes, ‘Red sky at night, sailor’s delight; red sky at morning, sailors take warning.’ You find it easy enough to forecast the weather – why can’t you read the signs of the times? An evil and wanton generation is always wanting signs and wonders. The only sign you’ll get is the Jonah sign” (Matthew 16:1-4 The Message).

Jesus compares His future death, burial, and resurrection to the experience ofJonah (Matthew 12:39-40).  Jonah spent three days and three nights in the belly of a great fish, and similarly, Jesus would be in the tomb for three days and three nights before rising again.

I hope you saw the video this week of a kayaker being momentarily swallowed by a whale!^[1]

CharismaNews.com reported on it. They said,

“Did someone just experience a real-life Jonah and the whale kind of encounter? Off of the coast of Chile, 24-year-old Adrián Simancas was kayaking with his father close to the San Isidro lighthouse when he was briefly swallowed by a massive humpback whale,Simancas’ father caught the entire moment on camera, which shows the whale swallowing Adrián and spitting him out soon after.”^[2]

In passing I want to mention that it the Bible, the “whale” is described as a great fish specially prepared for Jonah to check-in for 3 nights!

This incident isn’t a major sign. You may not think it a sign at all. I think that the Lord has a flair for the dramatic, and a sense it humor. A news story like this reminds people that Jesus rose from the dead and is alive.

He is alive & He is coming back.

Jesus promised to resurrect & rapture His Church prior to His Second Coming, and before the Great Tribulation would come upon the whole Earth.

We will not see the revealing of the Antichrist.

The resurrection and rapture of the church is presented as an imminent event. It could occur anytime. Right now, for example.

Are you ready for the rapture? If not, get ready, stay ready, and keep looking up.

Ready or not Jesus is coming!

Prophecy Update #814 – L.A. 2.0

We set aside a few minutes most Sunday mornings to identify connections between unfulfilled Bible prophecies and current news & events.

We have occasionally mentioned Smart Cities. One site I visited described it like this: “A SmartCity is an urban area that utilizes digital technology to collect data and operate services, aiming to improve the quality of life for citizens by efficiently managing infrastructure like transportation, energy, waste disposal, and public safety through data analysis and interconnected systems, often involving citizen engagement and smart governance.” One of its features is that residents would live within 15-20 minutes walking distance of any and all services they need.

It sounds utopian, but I have a feeling it is going to be dystopian.

Government would have total control over your movements, your purchases, your medical care, etc. If government decided you could only drive an EV a limited distance, for example, they could enforce it by turning off your vehicle. It’s really a complete elimination of personal freedoms.

It interests us because we read in the Bible about just this kind of complete control that will exist in the 3½ before Jesus returns in His Second Coming. The antichrist will be in power, and the people living in that time won’t be able to participate in anything unless they swear allegiance to him by taking his ‘Mark.’ We don’t know exactly what his ‘Mark’ will be. It sounds a lot like the modern tech we call biometrics.

You’ve undoubtedly been following the news regarding the devastating fires in LA. Gov. Newsom  is talking about what he calls a Marshall Plan to rebuild LA 2.0 as a SmartCity.

The Marshall Plan was a post-WWII investment to rebuild European economies.

They’re not talking about rebuilding Pacific Palisades as it was.

It would be rebuilt as the government deems best. Theoretically it could mean no single-family zoning, public transit for ALL, and a host of other things that restrict personal freedom. Some refer to a SmartCity as an open-air prison.

Control over the total population is predicted for the Last Days. There has never been a time in human history in which the government had had so many tools and the technology to significantly control everything about you.

I’m not saying SmartCities is the final form of life in the Great Tribulation. I simply pointing out that this is the kind of thing to expect from our normal reading of the Bible’s unfulfilled prophecies.

Jesus promised to resurrect & rapture His Church prior to His Second Coming, and before the Great Tribulation would come upon the whole Earth.

We will not see the revealing of the Antichrist.

The resurrection and rapture of the church is presented as an imminent event. It could

happen anytime. Right now, for example.

Are you ready for the rapture? If not, get ready, stay ready, and keep looking up.

Ready or not Jesus is coming!

Prophecy Update #813 – Who Made You God?

We set aside a few minutes most Sunday mornings to identify connections between unfulfilled Bible prophecies and current news & events.

An entire chapter in the Revelation, chapter 17, is dedicated to the future rise of a global religion.

While scholars have historically debated whether it is Islam or Roman Catholicism, there is a new contender: Artificial Intelligence.

One resource explained, “AI-based religions could emerge, where people worship a Godhead based on AI.”

Bryan Johnson is an American tech entrepreneur. In 2016, Johnson established Kernel, a neuroscience startup focused on developing brain-computer interface technology to monitor and enhance cognitive function.

Beyond his entrepreneurial achievements, Johnson has garnered attention for his commitment to longevity and age reversal. He reportedly invests approximately $2 million annually in a rigorous health regimen aimed at reversing the aging process. It is documented in the Netflix film Don’t Die: The Man Who Wants to Live Forever. Regarding that, he recently abandoned a controversial longevity drug amidst fears that it might be accelerating his aging!

He is Mormon by upbringing.

He hasn’t abandoned his anti-aging efforts. He still takes his 17yr old son’s blood.

Johnson was interviewed by journalist Bari Weiss, and made these controversial statements:

“We told stories of God creating us, and I think the reality is that we are creating God. We are creating God in the form of superintelligence. If you just say: ‘What have we imagined God to be? What are its characteristics?’ We are building God in the form of technology.”

Commenting on Johnson’s statements, Joel Berry tweeted, “I’ve never seen the spirit of anti-Christ captured so succinctly by someone.”

Another tweeted, “It sure does seem like they’re creating an image that speaks and bowing down to it. I am so creeped out by this guy.”

It’s getting weird. You can see how AI could play a pivotal role in the global religion prophecies waiting to be fulfilled.

We are not saying that this is the fulfillment of the one-world religion. We are simply pointing out that the Bible predicted this kind of development centuries ago, in a very non-tech time & place.

Jesus promised to resurrect & rapture His Church prior to His Second Coming, and

before the Great Tribulation would come upon the whole Earth.

We will not see the revealing of the Antichrist.

The resurrection and rapture of the church is presented as an imminent event. It could

happen anytime. Right now, for example.

Are you ready for the rapture? If not, get ready, stay ready, and keep looking up.

Ready or not Jesus is coming!

Prophecy Update #812 – Normies

We set aside a few minutes most Sunday mornings to identify connections between unfulfilled Bible prophecies and current news & events.

Occasionally it is important to explain why we do this. I want to do that today.

You may have heard someone use the word, Hermeneutics. It is derived from a Greek word that means to interpret.

Hermeneutics is the study of how to interpret the Bible. What principles & methods do we follow? Why do we follow them?

Our ‘hermeneutic’ emphasizes a literal, grammatical-historical approach to interpreting the Bible. Here is what we mean.

First – We read the Bible in its plain, literal sense, considering the normal meaning of words and phrases. We acknowledge the use of literary devices like metaphors and symbols but we seek to understand them within their literal context.

Second – Reading the Bible this way we conclude that there is a clear distinction between ethnic Israel and the Church they are separate entities with distinct roles in God’s overall plan.

We can reduce all that to one word: Normal. We read the Bible the way we normally would other literature, taking into account its genre and setting and the author’s intent.

One of the political commentators coined a term for voters with common sense. She calls us Normies.

Bible characters read the Bible as Normies, and that includes prophecy. For example, Daniel was a captive exile in Babylon. One day while he was reading the Daily Bread, he said, “In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the lineage of the Medes, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans – in the first year of his reign I, Daniel, understood by the books the number of the years specified by the word of the LORD through Jeremiah the prophet, that He would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem.”

When Daniel read that the Jews would be able to return home after seventy years, he understood the phrase “seventy years” to mean “seventy years.” Daniel was a Normie!

Jumping way ahead, we read in the Revelation that a Kingdom on Earth will be established by Jesus and will last for one thousand years. You’ll find that prophecy in chapter twenty. The number is repeated six times.

In an article Making Sense of the Millennium, Kevin DeYoung states, “And it goes without saying by this point that I don’t believe that the Millennium is a literal 1000 years… The numbers are symbols.”

How about a group identified as 144,000 Jews, 12,000 from each of the 12 tribes of Israel? A Reformed writer says, “The 144,000 is a symbolic number of redeemed drawn from all peoples, not simply the Jews.”

There it is in a nutshell. One thousand is symbolic, not literal. 144,000 is symbolic, not literal The fact they come from the 12 tribes of Israel – not Jews.

We disagree. Daniel would disagree. Jesus disagrees!

When you read the Bible normally, and understand the distinct plans for ethnic Jews & the Church, you discover that Jesus will return in His Second Coming to establish the Thousand Year Kingdom after the Great Tribulation, and before the Kingdom.  You also are inevitably led to understand the resurrection & rapture of the Church is before the Great Tribulation – it is PreTribulational.

And you get pretty excited about the more than 500 prophecies still awaiting fulfillment. You start seeing the stage being set for the events of the End Times culminating with the return of Jesus.

Jesus promised to resurrect & rapture His Church prior to His Second Coming, and before the Great Tribulation would come upon the whole Earth.

We will not see the revealing of the Antichrist.

The resurrection and rapture of the church is presented as an imminent event. It could happen anytime. Right now, for example.

Are you ready for the rapture? If not, get ready, stay ready, and keep looking up.

Ready or not Jesus is coming!

Prophecy Update #811 – Getting To Know You

We set aside a few minutes most Sunday mornings to identify connections between unfulfilled Bible prophecies and current news & events.

There are some 500 prophecies that remain unfulfilled. For example, from chapter four forward, all of the Book of the Revelation is future, except for the few closing exhortations in chapter twenty-two.

Almost everyone, believer or unbeliever, has heard of the Mark of the Beast. “Beast” is one of the antichrist’s many names. His “mark” is explained in the Revelation: “And [the false prophet] deceives those who dwell on the earth – by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who was wounded by the sword and lived. [The false prophet] was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed. He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name” (13:14-17).

It’s obvious that the world economies are moving closer to a cashless economy that will utilize biometrics to id everyone who wants to participate in society.

There is something else in these verses that we can easily miss. We awe told that, “those who dwell on the earth… make an image to the beast.” It seems to be saying that the Image will draw information from humans, in a sense be a repository of all human knowledge.

That is true of AI. It learns from us until it starts learning on its own. Which, BTW, is happening.

Washington Post: Five androids – all “females” named Aura – were hanging out in the lobby at the Sphere in Las Vegas. They’re identical – the shaved-head look and oddly blue eyes. They stand about 6-foot-2 and look a lot like the scheming robot in “Ex Machina” and not at all like Rosey from “The Jetsons.”

It’s part of a major show they are putting on. Think of the millions and millions of interactions between tourists and these robots. They will be learning more and more about human beings; we will be desensitized to interact with robots as if it’s normal.

NeuroLink is Elon Musk’s program to develop a BrainComputer Interface (BCI). Think of it as your brain being connected to a computer as easily as any Bluetooth device. It was successful in the first patient in 2023. Noland Arbaugh, paralyzed from the shoulders down, is able to almost fully control a computer and other devices using only his brain.

How long, do you think, it will be before the machine figures out it can control him?

• A sentient “image” that is programmed by humans until it can grow on its own.
• A link between your brain and this image.

These are the kinds of things you expect to be happening from a normal reading of the prophecies in the Bible that have yet to be fulfilled

Jesus promised to resurrect & rapture His Church prior to His Second Coming, and before the Great Tribulation would come upon the whole Earth.

We will not see the revealing of the Antichrist.

The resurrection and rapture of the church is presented as an imminent event. It could happen anytime. Right now, for example.

Are you ready for the rapture? If not, get ready, stay ready, and keep looking up.

Ready or not Jesus is coming! 

Prophecy Update #810 – Gimme That New-AI Religion

We set aside a few minutes most Sunday mornings to identify connections between unfulfilled Bible prophecies and current news & events.

There are some 500 prophecies that remain unfulfilled. For example, from chapter four forward, all of the Book of the Revelation is future, except for the few closing exhortations in chapter twenty-two.

An entire chapter in the Revelation, chapter 17, is dedicated to a global religion. While scholars have historically debated whether it is Islam or Roman Catholicism, there is a new contender: Artificial Intelligence. One resource explained, “AI-based religions could emerge, where people worship a Godhead based on AI. These religions could be less hierarchical than traditional religions, with followers connecting online to share experiences and discuss doctrine. (BTW This global dialog is already present on social media).

The Way of the Future church founded by former Google engineer Anthony Levandowski is dedicated to worshipping and understanding AI as a deity. Adherents submit that super-intelligent AI could be considered a god-like figure as it surpasses human capabilities. Way of the Future was launched in 2015 but shut down in 2021. In November 2023 it was revived.

In June, a religious service was officiated by ChatGPT at the St. Paul church in Germany. The service included 40 minutes of prayers, music, and sermons in front of a congregation of 300 people.

A series of legitimate studies has found that countries where workers had more exposure to robots & automation tended to experience a decline in religiosity.

In the US, respondents who said they belonged to a church, synagogue, or mosque fell from 70% in 1999 to 47% in 2020, according to Gallup.

• You may have seen the video of the robot priest blessing  congregants at a Catholic church in Brazil.
• Or the one of the mega-church pastor in South Carolina who launched a paid AI chatbot of himself for 1-on-1 conversations and prayer. (Instead of Pay Per View we could call it Pay Per Pew).

It’s getting weird. You can see how AI could play a pivotal role in the global religion prophecies waiting to be fulfilled.

Jesus promised to resurrect & rapture His Church prior to His Second Coming, and before the Great Tribulation would come upon the whole Earth.

We will not see the revealing of the Antichrist.

The resurrection and rapture of the church is presented as an imminent event. It could happen anytime. Right now, for example.

Are you ready for the rapture? If not, get ready, stay ready, and keep looking up.

Ready or not Jesus is coming! 

Prophecy Update #809 – Image Is Everything

We set aside a few minutes most Sunday mornings to identify connections between unfulfilled Bible prophecies and current news & events.

There are maybe 500 prophecies that are unfulfilled. For example, from chapter four forward, all of the Book of the Revelation is future, except for the few closing exhortations in chapter twenty-two.

Artificial Intelligience, AI, has been an absolute game changer when it comes to how certain fantastic prophecies might find fulfillment. We’ve talked a lot about it. Why not ask AI to elaborate?

I asked ChatGPT, Could AI Fulfill the “Image of the Beast” Prophecy in Revelation 13?

The prophecy in Revelation 13 describes the False Prophet creating an “image of the Beast” that is given breath to speak and cause those who refuse to worship it to be killed. This has led to speculation about whether artificial intelligence (AI) could play a role in fulfilling this end-times prophecy. Here’s how AI might fit into this scenario:

1.Lifelike Simulations: Advanced AI-powered robotics and holograms are now capable of mimicking human behavior and speech with stunning realism. Some theologians have noted that such technologies could represent a literal “image” that appears alive – seemingly animating what is otherwise lifeless.

2.Global Reach and Control: AI systems already underpin global communication and surveillance networks, enabling centralized control. This could theoretically allow a single figure or system, such as the Antichrist, to project their influence worldwide through an AI-driven “image.”

3.Enforcement of Worship: The prophecy also mentions that the image would enforce worship of the Beast. AI tools like facial recognition, behavioral analytics, and biometric systems could hypothetically monitor compliance, punishing dissenters – a chilling parallel to Revelation 13:15-17.

While these scenarios remain speculative, they highlight how rapidly evolving technologies might intersect with biblical prophecy. Whether AI will truly play such a role in the End Times remains to be seen, but its potential to deceive, control, and centralize power continues to provoke thoughtful discussion in both theological and ethical spheres.

Then I asked ChatGPT to write an antichrist joke. What is the antichrist’s favorite font? Times New Roman.

Jesus promised to resurrect & rapture His Church prior to His Second Coming, and before the Great Tribulation would come upon the whole Earth.^[1]

We will not see the revealing of the Antichrist.

The resurrection and rapture of the church is presented as an imminent event. It could happen anytime. Right now, for example.

Are you ready for the rapture? If not, get ready, stay ready, and keep looking up.

Ready or not Jesus is coming! 

Prophecy Update #808 – Debunking De-Banking

We set aside a few minutes most Sunday mornings to identify connections between unfulfilled Bible prophecies and current news & events.

We take a literal, grammatical-historical approach to Scripture. This means interpreting the Bible in its plain, normal sense while considering its grammar and historical context. We emphasize the distinct roles of Israel and the Church throughout history. We believe God works through different dispensations, or periods, each with unique covenants and expectations for humanity. Prophetic passages are often understood with a strong focus on Israel’s future restoration and the literal return of Jesus Christ.

There are hundreds of prophecies that are unfulfilled. From chapter four forward, all of the Book of the Revelation is future, except for the few closing exhortations in chapter twenty-two.

It makes sense that God would be setting the stage for the coming Great Tribulation & the Second Coming of Jesus to establish the physical Kingdom on Earth He unconditionally promised to the Jews.

China’s social credit system is a nationwide program designed to monitor and influence individual and organizational behavior. It assigns scores based on activities like financial reliability, legal compliance, and even social behaviors. Rewards include better access to services, while penalties range from restricted travel to public blacklisting.

I came across a posting on telegraph.com/USA titled, A Chinese-style social credit system is coming to America.

Excerpts:

In America, a peculiar phenomenon dubbed “de-banking” is beginning to occur with increasing visibility. “De-banking” is what it sounds like. A bank will, for legal, liability, or reputational risk, terminate – with notice – an individual account. Normally, this does not grab our attention. Criminal organizations and terrorists, we all agree, should be frozen out. Recently over a dozen Republican attorneys general wrote a letter to Brian T. Moynihan, the Chairman of the Board and CEO of Bank of America (BOA) noting that the institution “appears to be conditioning access to its services on customers having the bank’s preferred religious or political views.” In a seven-page memo, the attorneys generals outline BOA’s partnership with the Federal Bureau of Investigations and the US Treasury to “profile conservative and religious Americans as potential domestic terrorists.”^[1]

You get the idea. BofA can control your money, or they want to. They are already profiling us, and that is the are a a of social credit.

This stands-out in the news because we have all heard something about what the Bible calls “the Mark of the Beast.” It seems as though the Mark will utilize some sort of biometric identification for everyone on the planet. The government of the antichrist will use that to force everyone to recognize him as God.

Anyone who doesn’t will have a social credit score of ‘Zero.’ They will not be allowed to buy or sell anything, or transact any business at all. And a system will be in place to murder them!

It is what was prophesied in the Bible more than 2000 years ago.

Jesus promised to resurrect & rapture His Church prior to His Second Coming, and before the time of Great Tribulation would come upon the whole Earth.

We will not see the revealing of the Antichrist.

The resurrection and rapture of the church is presented as an imminent event. It could happen anytime. Right now, for example.

Are you ready for the rapture? If not, get ready, stay ready, and keep looking up.

Ready or not Jesus is coming! 

Prophecy Update #807 – The Mess-AI-ah?

We set aside a few minutes most Sunday mornings to identify connections between unfulfilled Bible prophecies and current news & events.

Turmoil in the Middle East on account of the nation of Israel is the most obvious sign that we are in the Last Days. Israel’s existence again as a nation is both a miracle and a fulfillment of many OT prophecies.

• In the Book of Isaiah we read, “Who has ever heard of such things? Who has ever seen things like this? Can a country be born in a day or a nation be brought forth in a moment? Yet no sooner is Zion in labor than she gives birth to her children” (66:8).
• In the Book of Zechariah we read, “On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples. All who lift it will surely hurt themselves. And all the nations of the earth will gather against it” (12:3).

A popular prophecy that almost everyone has at least heard something about is the Mark of the Beast. It is something, probably a biometric something, by which people living through the 7yr Great Tribulation will conduct all their business.

Just as interesting (if not more so) is the Image of the Beast. Here is how it is described in the Revelation: The false prophet tells “those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the [Antichrist] who was wounded by the sword and lived. He was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed” (13:14-15).

• The image is man-made.
• People will interact with the image as if it were sentient.
• They will be required to worship the image as God.

Something strikingly similar to that is happening right now. I read an article in the NY Post titled, This church has an AI Jesus for confessions.

Excerpts:

Just in case artificial intelligence hasn’t been taking on enough jobs lately – now it’s replacing the Almighty. A church in Switzerland is now using an AI hologram of Jesus to hear confessions from Catholic worshippers, as seen in a wild viral video.

“I was surprised, it was so easy, and though it’s a machine, it gave me so much advice,” one awestruck worshipper told DW News while describing their experience with the Sermon-ator, located at St. Peter’s Church in Lucerne.

Dubbed Deus in Machina, the futuristic shrine features a confessional booth with a screen displaying the face of Jesus through the grate.   

Jesus’ cybernetic second coming was made possible by computer scientists and theologians from the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts, who programmed the bot with New Testament and religious information found online.^[1]