Allegiance - Setting the Stage for the Great Tribulation

A Reminder: We Win!

I want to discuss the Beast and the Great Tribulation by starting with Daniel 7.

In chapter 7: 1-15 Daniel sees a vision of four beasts with various characteristics. The fourth and final one being terrifying, dreadful, and exceedingly strong. This beast overcame all the others.

Yet, in verse 9, we see that the Ancient of Days (God), took His seat, pronounced judgement on this beast, it was killed and its body turned over to be burned. The dominion was also taken away from all the other beasts.

Verses 13 and 14 show that the Ancient of Days gave dominion to "one like a son of man", that everyone would serve Him, and His dominion will never be taken away.

So a quick interpretation: here on the earth, worldly kings will rise and fall. One king will overtake another. Governments will grow in strength, handing over their power one to the next until a final earthly king who is exceedingly strong will have dominion over all the earth. This king it says elsewhere will even prevail against the saints, but God comes, takes His seat, pronounces judgement, destroys the enemy, and hands us the victory.

So lets unpack that and I'll show you how I got there. Lets start with a discussion of the enemy over whom we'll eventually have victory.

Interpretation of the Beasts

Daniel had the vision of chapter 7 interpreted for him by an angel starting in verse 15. The angel plainly tells him in vs 17 that:

These four great beasts are four great kings that will arise out of the earth.

The beast is symbolic of earthly kingdoms, or earthly governments. More pointedly: governments of men. The number 666 that we see in Revelation 13:18 is interpreted for us as the number of a man. In Daniel 7:8, it says the fourth beast has the "eyes of a man".

The Counterfeit Messiah

The beasts of Daniel and Revelation are human based earthly governments. Further, they are a counterfeit Messiah. The lost, who have been deceived because they see with their eyes rather than with eyes of faith, can only put their trust in that which they see. They cannot see God. But they can see government. They can see kings. So they ask the king to care for them, to protect them, to provide for them. They ask earthly kings for that which they should be asking of Christ - namely, salvation.

The Israelites asked Samuel for a king (1 Samuel 8:6). At the time they were completely free. God had merely placed judges in their land to resolve disputes. But they were not ruled by the Judges, God Himself was their only King. When Israel pressed Samuel for a king, God said that it was a rejection of Him (vs 7). He also warned them that a king would cost them their freedom and their wealth (vs 11-18). An an aside, America was the first nation on earth founded deliberately on the notion that human beings should be free, and that when too much authority is given to government, it will consume the people. The founders of this nation purposely tried to limit government, but warned posterity that only through their personal relationships with God would they be able to keep it limited.

Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other (John Adams)

But many people, those who have no love or trust for God, want a king/government they can see, and are willing to give all that they have to get the security that they believe a king will provide. Unfortunately, what they will receive instead is the ultimate insecurity.

We will bankrupt ourselves in the vain search for absolute security. (Dwight Eisenhower)

Human history is a story of allegiance. A story of our choice, made as individuals and collectively, about whom we will follow, love, and serve.

It is human choice that empowers either the Kingdom of God or the Kingdom of Hell. Jesus said in Luke 17:21 that "The Kingdom of God is within you." Simply put - the Word of God shapes us from the inside out. When Jesus "comes to live in our hearts" it means that we believe the Word in our hearts (Rom 10:8) and are changed on the inside.  That change starts to take effect in the things we do and say. The things that we do and say shape our environment and our relationships. Rejecting the Word of God has the opposite, but same kind of effect. Individuals produce in the world around them either the Kingdom of God or the Kingdom of Hell by what they agree with and act upon.

Taken together (those that believe and those that reject the Word of God), our beliefs shape the entire world. The world we live in is a product of what its inhabitants believe - a product of what every human being, taken as a whole, says and does.

The Great Tribulation

The Great Tribulation is the final playing out of the misplacement of human allegiance. It is the final culmination of human trust in a physical government rather than a trust in God.

Revelation 13 has many parallels to Daniel 7. Revelation 13:3-4 says that humanity "marveled as they followed the beast." God has given each human being the freedom to choose. That freedom gives us authority. Trusting in man gives that authority over to Satan.

It is the dragon that gives the beast power. Revelation 13:4 says:

And they worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, "Who is like the beast, and who can fight against, it?

When mankind trusts government instead of God, they empower the dragon (who is Satan, as interpreted in Rev 20:2). One government may rise and be replaced by another - we see this clearly in Daniel 7 in the four beasts described there. But the authority given away by each individual to the beast (when they trust man rather than God) strengthens the dragon.

Generation after generation of empowering the dragon led to his eventual "release" (Rev 20:3). It has always been the aim of the dragon to control the entire earth through a centralized government. Every "great" ruler throughout world history has attempted to increase the size of their Kingdoms. Even our movies and various stories reveal that the villains' goal was always to "rule the world!"

Fully aware of the threat imposed by that possibility, God decentralized human government when he confused the languages at the Tower of Babel. He said, “If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them." (Gen 11:6) The lost have been trying to centralize it again ever since.

The Great Tribulation is the accomplishment of that perpetual goal of the enemy - total centralization. At that time, the people of the world will have utterly surrendered over their lives, their freedom, their hope, their wealth, and their potential to one final earthly all-powerful government. And they will have done so willingly in their vain search for security.  Once that occurs there will be no human power capable of stopping the dragon and the beast. Anything the enemy chooses to do during the Great Tribulation is possible to him. During that time the enemy will have total and complete control over human beings on the earth. You won't even be able to buy or sell anything unless you are part of his system (Rev 13:7).

In the Great Tribulation the enemy will prevail even against the saints:

As I watched, this horn was waging war against the holy people and defeating them (Daniel 7:21)

It was given power to wage war against God’s holy people and to conquer them. And it was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation. (Revelation 13:7)

And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that rises from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them (Rev 11:7)

And at the latter end of their kingdom, when the transgressors have reached their limit, a king of bold face, one who understands riddles, shall arise. 24 His power shall be great—but not by his own power; and he shall cause fearful destruction and shall succeed in what he does, and destroy mighty men and the people who are the saints. (Daniel 8:23-24)

For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. 22 And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short...29 “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man (Matthew 24:21-30)

But God will end the Great Tribulation and the suffering of the saints by His coming. Don't forget Daniel 7 (reviewed at the start of this article) - God pronounces judgement on the beast and destroys his work with His coming and all dominion is given to the Son of Man. So while there will be a time of great suffering on the earth for the saints due to the world's love for and empowerment of the dragon and the beast, this will be cut short and we will be handed the victory. So take heart Christian - you're on the winning team.


Technorati Tags: The Book of Daniel, The Great Tribulation, The Beast

Before Your Very Eyes

One of the flaws I find with the pre-millennial view is interpretation that is fantastical, much like a hollywood movie, rather than in keeping with the normal course and flow of world events that we already see going on around us. I suspect that the pre-millennial view is interesting to people because it describes a world that seems so much different than the world they currently live in. Like a good movie, people are drawn to stories that take them out of their current circumstance and into an experience that is mythical, or "above" what they are currently living.

I believe that while the actual texts of the major prophecies of Daniel, Ezekiel, Revelation are written in "fantastical" language, a language of visions and dreams, their interpretation is meant to describe things that we can see just by looking around. As we experience the events of the major prophecies, they will look much like the other common events of life going on around us.

Let me give one good example. Revelation 11 introduces us to the "Two Witnesses":

3 And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth.”
4 These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. 5 And if anyone would harm them, fire pours from their mouth and consumes their foes. If anyone would harm them, this is how he is doomed to be killed. 6 They have the power to shut the sky, that no rain may fall during the days of their prophesying, and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague, as often as they desire. 7 And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that rises from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them

Revelation 11:4 tells us who these witnesses are; they are the olive trees and the lampstands. Other scriptures reveal how we should interpret these symbols. Romans 11:16-24 shows us that the olive tree is Israel and that the gentiles (a wild olive tree branch) are grafted in. One of God's witnesses on the earth is the olive tree, symbolizing the spiritual descendants of Abraham. The symbol of the lampstand is interpreted in Rev 1:20 where we are told that the "lampstands" are the "churches".

This should be easy to accept for the believer. Who are the ones witnessing on behalf of Christ? The spiritual descendants of Abraham and the churches throughout the world.

So back to my main point - this prophetic image, given to us in Revelation 11, is not talking about some future, almost movie-like event, where 2 super-human Christians terrify the lost by breathing fire. It is instead talking about YOU, and ME, and others from our communities of faith who are actively walking in the power of God to reach the lost that surround us. WE are the witnesses! As the Body of Christ, we DO have the power mentioned in Revelation 11:5. Christ said as a body we would do greater things than He did. This image shows us doing so.

Nearly all of the pictures painted for us through the symbolism found in the major prophecies are "common" - meaning, they find their interpretation in the events of life in a manner that you are already experiencing. Some are in the past, some are yet to come, but it is unfolding all around you. You are living biblical prophecy, you are seeing it, you are participating in it.

Bringing Biblical Prophecy Back to Earth

Today the "Pre-millennial" perspective is almost universally accepted framework for biblical prophecy and the study of end-time events. As that perspective has gained momentum with best-selling books, frequent conferences and seminars, and nearly a pop-culture acceptance of its tenants, I have found myself increasingly aware of the Holy Spirit's leadership away from this view.

Everywhere I look in scripture I see a conflict with the Pre-millennial view. It is my plan in the months to come in this blog to explain what I believe the Bible does say about end-time events and to provide an interpretation of biblical prophecy that is consistent with all of scripture, providing a framework for understanding eschatology that correlates comfortably with history, what we see going on around us now, and all Biblical utterances on the topic.

Fear of the Great Tribulation

I want to start by addressing why I suspect it is that Christians have been drawn to the Pre-millennial view. The great tribulation has haunted believers since it was first introduced in the book of Daniel. As Christians, we can take embarrassment, we can handle ridicule, even some suffering is okay. But "Great" and "Tribulation" are pretty scary, and I believe that our fear of this upcoming time has driven the theologians over the last several decades to try to find a belief system that lets them avoid it. 

Scripture clearly refutes this hope. Jesus says plainly in Matthew 24:21-22

"For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. 22 And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short."

We, the elect, the saints, those of us alive at that time will experience the great tribulation, but it will be cut short on our behalf. Daniel makes the same point in Daniel 7:21-22 by saying:

"As I looked, this horn made war with the saints and prevailed over them, 22 until the Ancient of Days came, and judgment was given for the saints of the Most High, and the time came when the saints possessed the kingdom."

So while we'll be there, God cuts the tribulation of that time short with His coming, and in so doing hands us the Kingdom. This is ultimately great news for us, but yes, scary to consider from our current perspective. 

In order to begin, I must lay out a general framework for my Biblical interpretation. 

Purpose of Biblical Prophecy

The primary purpose of Biblical Prophecy is to give the saints hope by confirming for them their ultimate victory in the midst of the challenges that they are currently enduring or that lay ahead. It's goal is to prepare them for these challenges, and yet provide a basis for faith through them. 

The message is: We win! Our faith is not in vain. Yes, there will be trouble, but be of good cheer, our Savior is victorious. 

Who's Your Daddy?

While there is incredible detail contained in all the scriptures regarding the unfolding of history, at the center of all of them is one primary question - "who is your Father?" Jesus told the pharisees that they were of their father the devil (John 8:44). To the Christian, we are told that we have been adopted as sons and now call Him "Abba Father", essentially, "Daddy" (Rom 8:15).

God's goal is to save His children. The enemy's goal is to prevent that. The events of human history, both past and future, give each individual human being the opportunity to decide who they will love, listen to, follow, and serve. God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, along with all the heavenly host and the saints, work in love to help each human being make this decision. God's enemy works, through his host of fallen angels and deceived human beings to prevent individuals from coming to know God.

Even now, Christians seek the lost, follow the leadership of the Holy Spirit, and move in the power of the Kingdom to accomplish God's redemptive plan. All around us, we are opposed. Opposed by governments, by the media, by popular culture. All politics, all debates, all controversies, have at their heart the central question: "who do you love, who will you follow, who will you serve?"

The Prophecy's of Psalms, Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, many books in the New Testament, and especially Revelation are saying one thing: "have hope! God will be victorious! Your faith and sacrifice are not in vain! You will be greatly rewarded!"

So with these things in mind. Lets dig in. 

Technorati Tags: Book of Revelation, Biblical Eschatology, Great Tribulation, Biblical Prophecy