By Pastor Hal Mayer
Dear Friends,
Welcome to Keep the Faith. Thank you for joining me today as we look at scripture to explain the demise of western society and the crumbling ruins we will see all around us. Thank you for your gifts and prayer support. They mean much as we enter the period of time just before Jesus comes, when society will collapse and everything we come to know and take for granted will be turned upside down. We need to have a faith that will not flinch, though everything seems to be against it. We have some serious things to think about today as we study. This month we break from our series on the Exodus as we study the irrevocable change in society that is about to take place. We will experience enormous stress if we don’t understand our times and have our anchor in Christ. We’ll get back to our study on the Exodus next month.
As we begin our study today, let us pray. Our Father in heaven, we come to You as little children, seeking to understand the chaotic world we find ourselves living in. Through the scriptures we hope to find the answers to the nagging questions as to why these things are happening and where are we in the stream of time. Please show us things from Your word that will inspire us with hope in the solid rock of scripture and in the unchangeable principles of Your law. Thank You for Your angels that protect Your people. And thank You for the Holy Spirit who promises to be with us as we study. In Jesus’ name, amen
Turn with me in your Bibles to Luke 21:25, 26. These verses tell us with pinpoint accuracy, some events that fulfilled prophecy, and link us to what is happening now, and shows us what will be happening in the very near future.
“And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.
What does perplexity mean? It means a person is baffled with uncertainty and confusion. But it means more than that. It is the inability to deal with or understand something complicated or unaccountable. Do you think most people have the capability to understand current events in their true setting, or the unaccountable things that lead the nations to senseless wars? Can they really understand the strife and commotion in the streets of the big cities? Do they comprehend the pressure that is coming upon society that will tear it apart?
Our society is on the verge of collapse, and most people are dead asleep, buried in selfish pleasure and drowning out the voices that are screaming at them from every side. They keep themselves drunk with entertainment, music, alcohol and drugs, and much more subtle influences to which they are oblivious. They want to be left alone, and they vainly hope the government will bail them out. They try to bury themselves and drown out the unwelcome noise. And anybody that disturbs their peace is viewed as an enemy. The virus disturbed them. It was an invisible plague that scared them, somewhat. And most people were ready to do anything, including social distance, accelerate virtual everything, wear masks and gladly take a vaccine. But will that bring back normalcy? Like travel, large conventions, normal gatherings in church services? Can families have birthday gatherings together? Can they be with their loved ones when a personal crisis strikes?
We are told by hundreds of pundits that everything will get back to normal soon. But I’ve got some difficult news for you. The chaotic world we live in is not returning to normal. It is the new normal. Oh, we might lose the masks and the social distancing. But will the “good times” ever return? Not likely.
But that is not the end of it, I’m sorry to tell you. The world is going to become more chaotic, more violent and more dangerous. If you live in a big city, you will see unprecedented upheaval and violence. And you are trapped. Just try to get out and live in the country. It’s essentially too late. Millions of people have bought homes in the country or small towns in the last year alone, and it shows no signs of slowing down. They moved out of the city to where they believe it is safer, and where they feel not so crowded and vulnerable. And it isn’t going to stop just yet. People who can afford it are still trying to move to the country, even if they have to build. Now homes in small towns and in the country are expensive, as the prices have been driven up by relentless hordes of people looking for a safe haven for their families from the disease, chaos and violence concentrated in the cities. They are quietly panicking and, like buying toilet paper, the shelf-life for a mid-range or lower priced home is just a few days until it’s under contract, sometimes sight unseen. The average time on the market for the typical home is down to a record of 16 days from 28 days. The saying of Christ is true. People are perplexed. They don’t know exactly what’s coming but they sense it’s not going to be good. They are feeling a certain underlying foreboding and uncertainty about the times and that things have changed and changed forever. They don’t know what to make of it. And they can’t grasp it. They just want to be safe. So, they’re getting themselves and their families where they think they will be secure and more protected.
Yet many of God’s people remain in the cities. They have invested in their homes and jobs and they just can’t leave them right now anyway because it is too difficult and inconvenient, not to mention expensive. Jesus said in Luke 16:8…
“For the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light.”
Construction prices are up as well. But that hasn’t stopped people from buying land and building. Millions of people saw the “handwriting on the wall” and decided it was time to make their move. And the pundits are prophesying saying; “It is just a temporary thing.” But somehow, I think the reality is far different. We’re at the end of time and the Holy Spirit is being withdrawn.
I think the window of time has largely passed to leave the cities. If you are in the city and not well advanced with your plans to get out, chances are, it is too late. Try just selling your place. God has been warning His people for many years not to establish themselves in the city. Did they pay attention? They disobeyed His voice and stayed in the city anyway for economic advantage, the culture, or the convenience. What makes them think that God will somehow miraculously help them now, when they disobeyed His voice for years? And it will take a miracle of God to find a place to move to now that’s affordable. And a miracle it will be!
This is from Country Living, page 9. It was written in 1909, over a hundred years ago. “The time is fast coming when the controlling power of the labor unions will be very oppressive. Again and again the Lord has instructed that our people are to take their families away from the cities, into the country, where they can raise their own provisions; for in the future the problem of buying and selling will be a very serious one. We should now begin to heed the instruction given us over and over again: Get out of the cities into rural districts, where the houses are not crowded closely together, and where you will be free from the interference of enemies.”
You see my friends, if you own a house in the city; chances are that the price has dived to where you can’t sell it because you have more debt on it than it is worth. That’s called “under water.” If you do sell it, you won’t have enough to buy a house in the country. You may have a home that’s free and clear or that’s not under water in today’s market. Sell it and move out.
God may still have some mercy for you if you repent of not following His instructions and sincerely do what you can to get yourself out of the city. You may have to be dirt poor like Lot was when he left Sodom, but you have made the move. And maybe your salvation will have been secured as well.
From the same page. Listen:
“In harmony with the light given me, I am urging people to come out from the great centers of population. Our cities are increasing in wickedness, and it is becoming more and more evident that those who remain in them unnecessarily do so at the peril of their soul’s salvation.”
Most of God’s people don’t have a necessity to live in the city anymore. Do you think God wasn’t serious when He gave those thoughts to His messenger? Your salvation is involved as well. But whatever you do, you can’t sit down and do nothing. You’ve got to make determined plans now!
I’ve got more bad news for you. You had better brace yourselves. We are in for rough times. We are headed for the most dramatic shift in our standard of living we have ever seen. We are being assured that we don’t have to be concerned about “inflation” because the government has everything under control. Do you believe them?
The U.S. dollar has been steadily declining in value for a long time, and most of us have gotten accustomed to it. But over the past 12 months an enormous change has taken place. Instead of devaluing our currency a little bit at a time, now our leaders are going to make it happen very fast. It’s called “the great reset.” It is what happened before World War II to the Weimar Republic. Our money supply is growing at an exponential rate, and this is becoming a major national crisis for most nations. But you don’t hear about it in the mainstream media. They are in cahoots with the globalist elites.
It took almost two hundred fifty years, all the way to 2020, for America to reach 4 trillion dollars in debt. But then from the start of the pandemic to today, America’s debt has expanded from 4 trillion dollars to 18 trillion dollars. And other countries have done the same thing. The truth is that it was organized by the globalist elites, who don’t have your best interests in mind. We are all going to literally pay a huge price for such intentional loose spending policy.
Sadly, inflation is already starting to take its toll on the economy. And the Biden administration is adding to the pain by buying into the climate change idolatry through bringing America back into the Paris climate agreement, canceling a major oil pipeline project and forcing gasoline prices up dramatically. And this too is a worldwide phenomenon. Have you noticed gasoline or petrol prices lately? Gas prices have been climbing at the pump for the past few weeks.
And so have agricultural commodities. They have risen by 50 percent over the past year. They are increasing because of poor US crop yields, and demand from importing nations to replenish supplies. You are already feeling the pain at the grocery store as those prices are passed along. And over time you will be paying a lot more for groceries at your local supermarket. But authorities assure us that prices will stabilize once the economy returns to “normal.”
Food prices rise globally as countries compete to replenish stockpiles, bad weather hits crops [1]
And the price of food is not the only goods that are rising. Lumber prices have increased more than 180 percent since last spring, and this price spike has caused the price of an average new single-family home to increase by $24,386 since April 17, 2020, according to the NAHB standard estimates of lumber used to build the average home.
Soaring lumber prices add $24,000 to new house price since April [2]
That is some serious inflation! But in spite of the actual reality experts at the Fed insist that those that are warning of hyperinflation just have crazy ideas. They have everything under control.
Over the course of the past year, our leaders have pumped trillions and trillions and trillions of dollars into the system, and all of that money devalues the money in the system already. Currencies around the world are being transformed into “toilet paper money” (remember Germany just before World War II), and we are already at the point of no return.
At least if your paychecks were rising as fast as the cost of living, your family would be able to keep up with the escalating prices. But of course, that is not happening, and more of us are falling out of the middle class with each passing day.
In fact, vast numbers of formerly middle-class people no longer have jobs at all. And the government bailouts, known as the paycheck protection plan, or job-keeper payments, or similar names in different countries, are going to stop soon if not already. Just in America alone, there are roughly 10 million fewer jobs than there were last year in February before the crisis began. Other countries face similar numbers.
Home evictions may dominate the news cycle this year. And people won’t be able to pay for higher costing goods. Just getting enough money to buy food will be difficult for some. And people will panic. When that happens, there is no telling what people will do, especially in the cities. There will be dangerous and deadly violence and crime over a loaf of bread. Theft will increase. The truth is that in whatever country you live in, our economies are broken, and the only solution the rulers have is to print, borrow and spend even more money.
As prices soar into the stratosphere, life is going to become increasingly difficult for most people. If your income does not rise as fast as prices are going up, your standard of living will go down dramatically. Of course, you will not be the only one. The vast majority of us are about to experience a dramatic shift in the standard of living, and most of the population doesn’t even realize what is happening. They don’t want to know.
They think more government support is on the way, and most of them are absolutely thrilled about that. But all of this printing, borrowing and spending has put America and other nations on the path to national economic suicide.
And as America continues to recklessly destroy the value of its currency, other nations will begin to realize that a move to a different reserve currency is badly needed. And when that happens investors will dump U.S. dollars, and there will be a crisis like we have never seen before in the dollar dominated fiat currency system. We’re not going back to the “good old days,” my friends. We are so very close to the economic endgame.
Unfortunately, most people have absolutely no idea what is rapidly overtaking us. They don’t see, or understand what is going to happen, or what is just ahead of us. As events spin out of control, they will not be able to cope any more. They will be overwhelmed with their emotions and will do some bizarre things. Some will respond with fear and frustration and could become violent. Others will sink into depression, anxiety and despair.
As their societies are ripped apart and torn from their shallow moorings, God’s people need to have assurance that their fragile ship will make it through the storm. Their only assurance is found in their loyalty to scripture. And what an assurance it is! Psalm 91 is a clear testament to God’s care for His children. Listen to verses 1-4:
“He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.”
And yes, things are really going to get difficult, and if you get absorbed in the things of this world and you can’t let go of your ambitions and dreams and fix them instead on heavenly things, you will be profoundly disappointed.
I thank God for the Bible. It gives us a clear picture of what to expect. Troublous times are rapidly closing in on us. There will be great perplexity for those who are not students of the word. The most chaotic time ever will come just before Jesus returns for His people. There will be war and earthquakes, famines and pestilences. As His Holy Spirit is gradually withdrawn and His restraining hand is no more holding in check the forces of evil, the world will even spin more out of control. But God’s protection will still be on those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. But the world will be one vast caldron of distress and violence.
Listen to this description of the end-time just before Jesus comes again. It’s from Last Day Events, page 112:
“God is withdrawing His Spirit from the wicked cities, which have become as the cities of the antediluvian world and as Sodom and Gomorrah…. Costly mansions, marvels of architectural skill, will be destroyed without a moment’s notice when the Lord sees that the owners have passed the boundaries of forgiveness. The destruction by fire of the stately buildings, supposed to be fireproof, is an illustration of how in a short time earth’s architecture will lie in ruins.”
So, toward the end of time, the magnificent buildings of the large cities that seemed so strong and stable and have stood for many years will totter and be destroyed under the judgements of God by fire, flood, earthquake, volcano and war. He will change His dealings with wicked man suddenly. This is from Counsels to Parents, Teachers and Students, page 415:
“‘The Lord hath His way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of His feet.’ Nahum 1:3. O that men might understand the patience and long-suffering of God! He is putting under restraint His own attributes. His omnipotent power is under the control of Omnipotence. O that men would understand that God refuses to be wearied out with the world’s perversity and still holds out the hope of forgiveness even to the most undeserving! But His forbearance will not always continue. Who is prepared for the sudden change that will take place in God’s dealing with sinful men? Who will be prepared to escape the punishment that will certainly fall upon transgressors?”
Last Day Events, page 24 reveals that:
“In the last scenes of this earth’s history war will rage. There will be pestilence, plague and famine. The waters of the deep will overflow their boundaries. Property and life will be destroyed by fire and flood. We should be preparing for the mansions that Christ has gone to prepare for them that love Him.”
Do you think the coronavirus pandemic was bad? You haven’t seen anything yet. That was just a warmup. Much more deadly pandemics will rage and kill many more people than ever before. You can sense that the Holy Spirit’s restraining power is being withdrawn. From Manuscript Releases, Vol. 3, page 312 we are told:
“God has not restrained the powers of darkness from carrying forward their deadly work of vitiating the air, one of the sources of life and nutrition, with a deadly miasma. Not only is vegetable life affected, but man suffers from pestilences.”
And from Testimonies to the Church, Vol. 7, page 83 we read: “The time is near when the large cities will be visited by the judgments of God. In a little while these cities will be terribly shaken. No matter how large or how strong their buildings, no matter how many safeguards against fire may have been provided, let God touch these buildings, and in a few minutes or a few hours they are in ruins.”
Here is what we are told regarding the magnitude of what we see now. From Manuscript Releases, Vol. 4, page 445:
“These things are the result of the drops from the vials of God’s wrath being sprinkled on the earth, and are but faint representations of what will be in the near future.”
So, the things we see now are but drops from the vials of God’s wrath. What will be the destruction when God’s wrath is poured out on the wicked? These are but mere warnings of what is coming.
I’ll read on: “Earthquakes in various places have been felt, but these disturbances have been very limited.”
Very limited? What will an unlimited earthquake look like?
Reading on: “This year we may expect to have more. During the year that has just closed, whole cities have become nearly extinct. Thousands of people have been buried in the bowels of the earth. Premonitory convulsions have been felt in many places, giving warning of what may come as a surprise when the earth shakes and opens. Terrible shocks will come upon the earth, and the lordly palaces erected at great expense will certainly become heaps of ruins. The earth’s crust will be rent by the outbursts of the elements concealed in the bowels of the earth. These elements, once broken loose, will sweep away the treasures of those who for years have been adding to their wealth by securing large possessions at starvation prices from those in their employ. And the religious world, too, is to be terribly shaken; for the end of all things is at hand.”
Friends, this is describing the storm of God’s wrath upon those who have transgressed His law and taught others to do so. And it will fall especially on the great cities. But all the countryside will be affected to one degree or another. While the judgements of God are not universal, they are seen by all.
From Manuscript Releases, Vol. 21, pages 86-87 comes this statement: “Light has been given me that as we near the close of this earth’s history we shall have the scenes of the San Francisco calamity repeated in other places; and I do want to gather strength, that I may be able to stand before the people and bear a clear, decided testimony. The period of time in which we are living is a very solemn one.
“We had quite a shaking up in our houses here at home. Chimneys were thrown down, but no great damage was done. The printing plant at Mountain View suffered considerably. The side and back walls of the factory were shaken down. The front remained standing. The new post office building, just finished, was a complete wreck, and some large store buildings were also in ruins. Several other buildings in Mountain View were twisted and broken in pieces, more or less. In San Jose, very many of the buildings were ruined, and many chimneys were thrown down.
“These things make me feel very solemn, because I know that the judgment day is right upon us. The judgments that have already come are a warning, but not the finishing, of the punishment that will come on wicked cities. Our cities are most terrible places, wherein are practiced all kinds of sin and iniquity of the most revolting character. The Lord’s name is greatly dishonored…
“San Francisco in ruins is the most complete, thorough, awful calamity I have ever looked upon. In the night season I have had many presentations of the judgments of God coming upon our cities; and now I can understand better the real meaning of these scenes that I have witnessed…
“These scenes will soon be witnessed, just as they are clearly described… The prophecies recorded in the Old Testament are the word of the Lord for the last day, and will be fulfilled as surely as we have seen the desolation of San Francisco.
“Will anybody of men bring upon themselves the displeasure of the Lord by framing a law for the observance of a spurious sabbath, and then compelling obedience to this law? Will they insult God by profaning His holy day, and assuming authority, as gods, to exalt the first day of the week to be observed by all?
“How can men set aside the true Sabbath, when they know that God came to our world and from Sinai’s mount in awful grandeur proclaimed His law to be observed in commemoration of the day He had ordained as a day of rest—a day ever to be kept as a memorial of God as the Creator of the heavens and of the earth? He made the world in six days, and rested on the seventh day, and was refreshed. He sanctified the seventh day because that in it He had rested. He instituted the Sabbath as a memorial pointing to the fact that He was the Creator of the world, the Monarch of the universe. The Lord has given to men the day that He has chosen to be observed by all the world and regarded as a sacred rest day.”
Here is a description of the San Francisco Earthquake in 1906 that explains in a very small way the suffering and destruction that took place in the city. It is from Wikipedia:
“On the morning of April 18, 1906, a massive earthquake shook San Francisco, California. Though the quake lasted less than a minute, its immediate impact was disastrous. The earthquake also ignited several fires around the city that burned for three days and destroyed nearly 500 city blocks.
“Despite a quick response from San Francisco’s large military population, the city was devastated. The earthquake and fires killed an estimated 3,000 people and left half of the city’s 400,000 residents homeless. Aid poured in from around the country and the world, but those who survived faced weeks of difficulty and hardship.
“The survivors slept in tents in city parks and the Presidio, stood in long lines for food, and were required to do their cooking in the street to minimize the threat of additional fires. The San Francisco earthquake is considered one of the worst natural disasters in U.S. history…”
1906 San Francisco earthquake [3]
You may think that today we have better buildings made to withstand earthquakes. But who can know the power of God when he comes out of His place to deal with the wicked? It will happen suddenly and unexpectedly.
Listen to Micah 1:2-7:
“Hear, all ye people; hearken, O earth, and all that therein is: and let the Lord GOD be witness against you, the Lord from his holy temple. For, behold, the LORD cometh forth out of his place, and will come down, and tread upon the high places of the earth. And the mountains shall be molten under him, and the valleys shall be cleft, as wax before the fire, and as the waters that are poured down a steep place. For the transgression of Jacob is all this, and for the sins of the house of Israel. What is the transgression of Jacob? is it not Samaria? and what are the high places of Judah? are they not Jerusalem? Therefore I will make Samaria as an heap of the field, and as plantings of a vineyard: and I will pour down the stones thereof into the valley, and I will discover the foundations thereof. And all the graven images thereof shall be beaten to pieces, and all the hires thereof shall be burned with the fire, and all the idols thereof will I lay desolate: for she gathered it of the hire of an harlot, and they shall return to the hire of an harlot.”
The world is rushing on in wickedness and moral corruption. The defiance toward God is astonishing and bold. Scholars, educators, scientists boldly stand on evolution which has no place for God. People live lifestyles that are forbidden in scripture. The popular idea is that God loves everyone and that He will not punish wickedness.
The Enemy is working to bring the chaos of the French Revolution on the whole world. Listen to this familiar statement from Education, page 228:
“At the same time anarchy is seeking to sweep away all law, not only divine, but human. The centralizing of wealth and power; the vast combinations for the enriching of the few at the expense of the many; the combinations of the poorer classes for the defense of their interests and claims; the spirit of unrest, of riot and bloodshed; the world-wide dissemination of the same teachings that led to the French Revolution—all are tending to involve the whole world in a struggle similar to that which convulsed France.”
What was the convulsion? It was the breakdown of society. As the 18th century drew to a close, France’s costly involvement in the American Revolution and extravagant spending by King Louis XVI and his predecessor had left the country on the brink of bankruptcy. Not only were the royal coffers depleted leaving many poor without support, but two decades of poor harvests, drought, cattle disease and skyrocketing bread prices had kindled much unrest among peasants and the urban poor. Many expressed their desperation and resentment toward a regime that imposed heavy taxes—yet failed to provide any relief—by rioting, looting and striking.
People got so upset with the oppressive government that they rioted and began the killing. The bloodshed was enormous as various factions gained power on one day, wreaking their vengeance on a rival faction. Then that faction gaining power the next day, only to avenge the wrongs that had been done to them. Our fiendish enemy delights to see this. Everything broke down; law and order, justice and the courts, and even the military divided into factions. Families turned on each other. Transportation, such as it was, broke down. There were food shortages. And indeed, the welfare state was unable to function, and people were left with nothing. Do you have any idea of what it will be like when the whole world is convulsed like France was?
Like with the French Revolution the violence started in the city of Paris, so it has started in the big cities. In the French Revolution it spread to the countryside, so today when the revolutionary fervor and enthusiasm gains a foothold, it will spread to the countryside as well. Radicals eventually stormed the royal residence and arrested the king and condemned him to death by guillotine. And like the French Revolution, the mantra of today’s popular movement is “equality.” And every pronoun and descriptive word it seems is turned on its head and given a definition that was unknown before. It seems like we are almost at the French Revolution again, as I have been warning it coming for years.
The radicals also gained control of the new national assembly. They instituted a series of radical measures, including the establishment of a new calendar and the eradication of Christianity.
Does that sound familiar, like something happening today?
Radicals also unleashed the bloody Reign of Terror, a 10-month period in which suspected enemies of the revolution were guillotined by the thousands. Many of the killings were carried out under orders from their radical leader Robespierre, who dominated the draconian Committee of Public Safety until his own execution on July 28, 1794.
Over 17,000 French people were tried and executed during this period, many of whom were condemned on frivolous charges or flimsy evidence. An untold number died in prison amid terrible conditions awaiting trial.
Will this be the new norm under woke culture or similar movements? The equality movement of woke culture has zero tolerance for any opposition. If you’re not an ally, you’re the enemy. If you don’t support wokeism, you are cancelled. You have no voice. A second civil war is brewing. It won’t be two armies in uniform, but a conglomeration of people on two sides of the political and social divide. Could they take up arms? Many of them are well equipped.
“Canceling,” as it is called, is a coldly calculated strategy implemented with malice and forethought. The goal isn’t to persuade. Social excommunication, media de-platforming, and the trashing of venerable traditions doesn’t seek to reform institutions or promote societal improvement. Rather, the point is to destroy every traditional religious, social, and political institution judged guilty of constructing Western Civilization, toward the end of rebuilding society in the image of Woke.
The enemy of mankind would like to see that, wouldn’t he? Political tensions are at an all-time high. The intensity of the division has me worried for God’s people. God has some counsel for us. It is found in Christ’s Object Lessons, page 170:
“The time is near when He will say, ‘Come, My people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast. For, behold, the Lord cometh out of His place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity; the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain.’ Isaiah 26:20, 21. Men who claim to be Christians may now defraud and oppress the poor; they may rob the widow and fatherless; they may indulge their Satanic hatred because they cannot control the consciences of God’s people; but for all this God will bring them into judgment. They ‘shall have judgment without mercy’ that have ‘showed no mercy.’ (James 2:13.) Not long hence they will stand before the Judge of all the earth, to render an account for the pain they have caused to the bodies and souls of His heritage. They may now indulge in false accusations, they may deride those whom God has appointed to do His work, they may consign His believing ones to prison, to the chain gang, to banishment, to death; but for every pang of anguish, every tear shed, they must answer. God will reward them double for their sins. Concerning Babylon, the symbol of the apostate church, He says to His ministers of judgment, ‘Her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities. Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double.’” Revelation 18:5, 6.
“From India, from Africa, from China, from the islands of the sea, from the downtrodden millions of so-called Christian lands, the cry of human woe is ascending to God. That cry will not long be unanswered. God will cleanse the earth from its moral corruption, not by a sea of water as in Noah’s day, but by a sea of fire that cannot be quenched by any human devising.
“‘There shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time; and at that time Thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.’” Daniel 12:1.
What do think that time of trouble will look like? How about this? War with no end in sight. Famine with no relief in sight, like the times of Elijah. Distress of nations and no way to solve their financial and social problems. Perplexity and stress. These are the things that the Bible predicts. They’re coming my friends. From Letters and Manuscripts, Vol, 17, Letter 90, 1902 we read:
“The outlook for our world is indeed alarming. God is withdrawing His Spirit from the wicked cities, which have become as the cities of the antediluvian world, and as Sodom and Gomorrah. The inhabitants of these cities have been tested and tried. We have reached a time when God is about to punish the presumptuous wrong doers, who refuse to keep His commandments and disregard His messages of warning. He who bears long with evil doers gives everyone an opportunity to seek Him and humble the heart before Him. Everyone has opportunity to come to Christ and be converted, that He may heal them. But there will come a time when mercy will be no longer offered. Costly mansions, marvels of architectural skill, will be destroyed without a moment’s notice when the Lord sees that the owners have passed the boundaries of forgiveness. The destruction by fire of the stately buildings supposed to be fireproof is an illustration of how in a short time the earth’s architecture will lie in ruins.”
In Habakkuk 2:1-3 we read: “I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved. And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.”
It will not tarry beyond the appointed time. Look at verse 17: “For the violence of Lebanon shall cover thee, and the spoil of beasts, which made them afraid, because of men’s blood, and for the violence of the land, of the city, and of all that dwell therein.”
Friends, this is Habakkuk talking about our time, the end times. We can expect that to come in the near future.
Listen to what the Lord says through the end time prophet Zephaniah about this time, in chapter 1:2-3: “I will utterly consume all things from off the land, saith the LORD. I will consume man and beast; I will consume the fowls of the heaven, and the fishes of the sea, and the stumblingblocks with the wicked; and I will cut off man from off the land, saith the LORD.
Verses 6 and 8: “And them that are turned back from the LORD; and those that have not sought the LORD, nor enquired for him.”
“And it shall come to pass in the day of the LORD’S sacrifice, that I will punish the princes, and the king’s children, and all such as are clothed with strange apparel.”
Verse 10: “And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD, that there shall be the noise of a cry from the fish gate, and an howling from the second, and a great crashing from the hills.”
Friends, we’d better get serious. Jesus is coming soon, and the signs of the times are thickening. Society is being pushed close to the precipice. And God’s people are asleep, sound asleep. May God help us.
Let us pray. Our Father in heaven. We see that the end is near. Society is about to descend to its lowest level. We pray that we will heed the instruction of the Lord. And as we witness these solemn events help us to stay focused on Christ and come into our chambers when it is time. We pray that the Holy Spirit will be allowed full access to our lives. Please make us recipients of the Latter Rain. And may we live every day as though we expect the Lord to come at any moment. Please make us ready, we pray, in Jesus name, amen.