WORLD WAR III HAS STARTED

Is this how World War III begins? Religion, end times, terror and the frightening new Middle East tinderbox

Apocalyptic worldviews and non-state actors make the wars in Syria and on terror all the more dangerous

Phil Torres

world leaders and journalists seem to think so. For example, Jordan’s King Abdullah recently said at a news conference that “we are facing a Third World War against humanity,” and that we must “act fast to tackle the response to interconnected threats.” Similarly, Roger Cohen at the New York Times wrote a poignant article in which he draws a number of parallels between the Syrian war and the beginning of World War I. And last September, Pope Francis visited a military cemetery in Italy and warned that “perhaps one can speak of a third war, one fought piecemeal, with crimes, massacres, destruction.”

The idea that World War III has started isn’t crazy — although neither is it obviously true. The fact is that the Syrian conflict is an international tangle of competing interests and strange alliances. Russia and Iran, for example, both support the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria. Meanwhile, the U.S. supports the Kurds and Syrian rebels fighting against al-Assad’s forces. The U.S. is also leading a coalition of over 60 countries, and France recently started its own coalition to fight the Islamic State, as did Russia. Making matters even more complicated, Turkey is fighting against the Kurds, and the Syrian rebels are receiving additional help from Jordan, Turkey and the Gulf states.

These are just the state actors — there’s also a number of nonstate entities engaged in this conflict. For example, the Lebanese terrorist organization Hezbollah is on the side of Syria, Russia, and Iran, while the al-Qaeda affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra is fighting to topple Assad’s regime and replace it with an Islamic government. There have also been numerous Shia militia roaming around Iraq since the 2003 U.S.-led preemptive invasion, including the Mahdi Army and the Promised Day Brigade. According to the former director of the CIA, David Petraeus, such militias constitute an even greater longterm threat to the region than the Islamic State.

And then, of course, pretty much everyone is at war with the Islamic State, which has grown into the largest and best-funded terrorist organization in human history. It now controls a huge area of real estate in Iraq and Syria (on which some 5 million people live), and has affiliates in countries like Pakistan, Afghanistan, Libya, and Nigeria. This juggernaut of terrorism has also attracted foreign fighters from countries as geographically distant as Denmark, Ireland, Australia, and the US. While its initial aim, after rising to prominence in 2014, was to establish a strong caliphate in Iraq and Syria, it recently expanded its strategy by bombing a Russian commercial plane over the Sinai Peninsula and perpetrating the Paris attacks that left 130 people dead.

So, this is clearly an international war — and a messy one at that. But it’s not the first conflict of the sort since World War II. The Cold War involved countries from around the globe, divided into the Eastern and Western blocs, and the Korean War can be seen as a proxy war between the U.S. and China, backed by the UN and Soviet Union, respectively. Furthermore, the Second Congo War, which is sometimes dubbed the African World War, involved nine African nations and roughly twenty different militias. Our global village has witnessed multiple international confrontations in the seven decades since 1945. The Syrian war is just another in this series.

But there is something that makes the Syrian war unique. Whereas many of the conflicts after World War I were driven by differences in political and economic ideologies — think fascism, communism, and liberal democracy — the war in Syria involves several actors that appear to hold genuinely apocalyptic worldviews.

The Islamic State is perhaps the most obvious example. As the U.S. General Martin Dempsey noted during a 2014 press conference, the Islamic State is motivated by “an apocalyptic, end-of-days strategic vision” according to which its current leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, is the eighth of 12 caliphs in total before the world ends. It also believes that a grand battle — essentially Armageddon — between the Muslims and “Romans,” i.e., the Western forces, will soon occur in the small Syrian town of Dabiq. This is why the Islamic State “fought ferociously” for control of Dabiq in 2014, despite its military insignificance, and it’s why the Islamic State named its online propaganda magazine Dabiq. Each issue of this magazine opens with the quote: “The spark has been lit here in Iraq, and its heat will continue to intensify — by Allah’s permission — until it burns the crusader armies in Dabiq.” For the Islamic State, the Syrian war is one stage in an apocalyptic narrative that’s unfolding before our very eyes.

The reason such beliefs matter is that movements driven by “active apocalyptic” worldviews aren’t “rational actors” in the normal sense of the term. The Islamic State, for example, wants the world to declare war against it. According to a prophetic hadith, it’s expecting a total of 80 countries to descent upon its territories — roughly 20 more than the number of countries in the U.S.-led coalition. Furthermore, the conviction that “This is the war [Muhammad] promised — it is the Grand Battle,” as a Sunni fighter told Reuters in 2014, can produce a sense of moral urgency that true believers can use to justify virtually any act of barbarism or violence, no matter how catastrophic. Consequently, apocalyptic movements like the Islamic State can be far more brutal than state or nonstate actors motivated by the ideologies behind World War II, the Cold War, and other conflicts. The Islamic State wants not just a fight, but a fight to the death.

So, the biggest worry about the Syrian war isn’t that it’s World War III in the making, but that involves an apocalyptic component that raises the stakes considerably. The possibility of a catastrophe is perhaps much greater today than in past wars. In fact, the Islamic State has secretly explored the possibility of weaponizing the bubonic plague, as well as infecting its own members with Ebola and then flying them around the world. It’s also fantasized about purchasing a nuclear bomb from Pakistan, transporting it to South America, and sneaking it through “porous borders” into the U.S.” While this scenario may sound “far-fetched,” the Islamic State notes in a Dabiq article that it’s “infinitely more possible today than it was just one year ago.”

If such a device were to be detonated in New York City or Los Angeles and the U.S. were to respond by “bomb[ing] the sh*t out of them,” to quote a presidential candidate still trying to figure out the difference between the Quds Force and the Kurds, the result would probably only reinforce Islamic extremism in the region. As Graeme Wood correctly observes in an interview with the atheist Sam Harris, more bombs in Syria and Iraq would only confirm a “clash of civilizations” narrative, thereby leading “a particular type” of Muslim who’s “already inclined to believe that the West is at war with Islam” to adopt even more radical beliefs. The war between “civilizations” would thus escalate even further.

What’s the solution to the Syrian conflict — or World War III, if you’d prefer to call it that? There isn’t a good one. The U.S.-led preemptive invasion of Iraq started this mess by destabilizing the region and leading a whole generation of Sunnis and Shi’ites to believe that the end is nigh. And now we’re reaping the consequences of this foreign policy blunder, with no end in sight.

Phil Torres is an Affiliate Scholar at the Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies, and founder of the X-Risks Institute. He is the author of the forthcoming book The End: What Science and Religion Tell Us About the Apocalypse.

Source:  http://www.salon.com/2015/12/20/is_this_how_world_war_iii_begins_religion_end_times_terror_
and_the_frightening_new_middle_east_tinderbox/

Angola Bans Islam and Shuts Down All Mosques Across The Country

Angola has reportedly declared Islam illegal and ordered for all of the country’s mosques to be closed down.
Minister of culture Rosa Cruz e Silva said that mosques in the largely Christian country would be closed until further notice.
She described Islam as a ‘sect’ that would be banned as counter to Angolan customs and culture.
There are unconfirmed reports that mosques across the African country are being destroyed, according to the International Business Times.
President Jose Edurado dos Santos reportedly told the Osun Defence daily: ‘This is the final end of Islamic influence in our country.’
Along with Islam, which is a religion associated with less than 1 per cent of the population of 19 million, 194 other ‘sects’ have been banned in the nation, where more than half the population is Christian.



Source:  http://community.vanguardngr.com/forum/topics/angola-bans-islam-and-shuts-down-all-mosques-across-the-country

BREATHING EARTH DISCOVERED IN CANADA

'Breathing' Earth Filmed In Canadian Forest

Watch the mossy ground of a forest rise and fall under the feet of a walker who captured the phenomenon on his mobile phone

Amazing footage has emerged of a forest carpet appearing to breathe like a sleeping giant.

The video was captured by Brian Nuttall at Apple River in Nova Scotia, Canada, on his mobile phone.
It shows the ground rising and falling.
What in fact is happening is explained by Mr Nuttall in a Facebook post.
"I believe the larger trees are doomed to blow down but are currently spared, the smaller trees around them help hold each other up, as the wind pushes the trees into one another," he said.

"The punishing prevailing winds have taken their toll on the side hill, the roots have loosened and the mossy ground from the once shaded forest floor are giving way, soon to be toppled over."
Shot by Mr Nuttall on October 31, the video has been viewed more than three million times online and his Facebook post has been liked by more than 13,500 people with over 100 comments.
One person describes it as "creepy and scary", while others refer to it as "Mother Earth breathing" and a "floating forest".

Source:  http://news.sky.com/story/1585693/breathing-earth-filmed-in-canadian-forest

ENDTIME PROPHECY: NIGERIA TO SPLIT INTO 5 COUNTRIES

Prophet says Nigeria will divide into 5 countries

His visioned countries includes, Biafra, Óodua, Niger Delta, Federal of Central Nigeria, Islamic Caliphate of Nigeria.

Prophet Ignis Iribhogbe has several dreams, one involving an era of peace, end of Boko Haram and one that involves Federal Republic of Nigeria dividing into 5 different countries.

His visioned countries includes, Biafra, Óodua, Niger Delta, Federal of Central Nigeria, Islamic Caliphate of Nigeria.

Read his statement below;

“I have a dream that the ongoing blood letting by Islamist terrorist group, Boko Haram, will come to an end and will surprisingly usher in, an era of peace, tranquility and progress for all parts of the present contraption called ‘Nigeria’.

I have a dream that a Nigerian Goberchev will arise and break the fraudulent/imposed geographical contraption into 5 (five) viable countries as follows:

1. Biafra (present Southeast zone) comprising the core Ndigbo,
2. O’odua (present Southwest plus Yoruba speaking areas of Kwara and Kogi)
3. Niger Delta (present South South),
4. Federation of Central Nigeria (present Plateau, Benue, some parts of Nasarawa, and Southern Kaduna),
5.Islamic Caliphate of Nigeria (the remaining parts of present Northern Nigeria).

Thenceforth, there will be no more religious riots nor senseless bloodshed of the present type typified by Boko Haram. Rather, the present northern elders will coalesce into the ruling oligarchy of the caliphate and their topmost emirs will be called Ayatollahs.

Meanwhile, the present contraption will metamorphose into an economic subregion rivalling ECOWAS, and with healthy economic rivalry between the emerging component nations

I have a dream.”

Source:  http://pulse.ng/religion/ignis-iribhogbe-prophet-says-nigeria-will-divide-into-5-countries-id4303292.html

A Must Read! Mysterious City Appears in the Sky in China

CHINESE TV news reports have told how thousands of residents in TWO areas reported separately seeing a huge city form in the skies.
Onlookers, some who are said to have videoed the bizarre event, were said to be mesmerised as a towering city of sky scrapers appeared from the clouds.
First thousands reportedly saw a ghostly alien city floating over Foshan in the Guangdong province of China.
A few days later people in the province of Jiangxi, China, also reported seeing a similar cloud city.
Weather experts have explained the phenomena as natural mirage, an optical illusion called Fata Morgana.
Fata Morgana can be seen on land or sea and involves the optical distortion and inversion of distant objects such as boats, which can appears as skyscrapers because the images become stacked, when rays of light bend as they pass through air of different temperatures such as in a heat haze

Source:   http://beforeitsnews.com/strange/2015/10/mysterious-city-appears-in-sky-above-china-2462052.html

STEP BY STEP TIME-TABLE OF END-TIME HAPPENINGS

End-Time Timeline 

By Terry James
This generation stands upon the precipice of the wrap-up of human history. We can say this upon a platform of certainty. Our end-time stage is built upon a solid structure of knowledge. It provides strength of understanding from which no other generation of human beings could have spoken. The prophet Daniel predicted precisely this time on God's prophetic timeline, I am convinced: "But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased" (Dan. 12:4). The Book Opened Those who studied Bible prophecy throughout the decades since the close of the second century did so in the dark, from the point of history not shedding much illumination on how God's prophetic Word would unfold. The angel had told Daniel the prophet that this would be the case--that the book (the understanding of end things) would remained closed until the time of the very end was reached. Bible prophecy was then put on the back burner, for the most part, as far as any endeavors into understanding end-times matters was concerned. The Catholic Church in its various manifestations, then the Reformation church derivatives of Martin Luther and the others, drifted far from the early church fathers' devotion to studying the part of the Scriptures that dealt with prophecy yet future. It was, in my view, intellectual and spiritual laziness, as much as luciferian influence, that caused this callous disregard for prophecy to infect the Body of Christ. Some would say that this must have been the way God wanted it. He must have desired for believers to not have understanding, so doused the light of understanding during this long period -longer even than the 400-plus year drought of prophetic activity just prior to Christ's first advent. That's one way of looking at the dearth of prophetic enlightenment during the almost 2,000 years since Christ's resurrection. However, I believe the words of the angel to Daniel telling the old prophet to "shut up the book" was more akin to the Bible's telling about Abraham, David, and Solomon having multiple wives, and even concubines. God reported these things, but He did not cause them to happen. Nor did God approve of these goings on. The Lord used reports of these sins to show His children down through the ages the folly, even deadly consequences, of disobeying their heavenly Father. The lessons of these sinful activities of even the greatest of the Bible heroes is that we are fallen, and without staying close to the Creator "our Father" we, too, can and will slip into egregious activities that push us away from God's loving, directing hand. This disobedience, He is telling us through such reportage, causes severe repercussions and ramifications. There is no better example of those repercussions and ramifications than what has happened since Abraham and Sarah decided to get ahead of God's will when Sarah sent her handmaid, Hagar, into her husband to produce an heir. And, this is where that disobedience and prophecy yet future converge and merge. The whole world faces the consequences of that sin today in the hate-filled conflict between Arabs and Jews that is gushing humanity toward man's final conflagration - Armageddon. So, the angel's instruction to Daniel to "close up the book" (of understanding end-time things) was God's reporting, in my view, the deliberate intellectual and spiritual slothfulness - even callous disregard - that would clutch the minds of even God's best Bible students until the very end of days. God was reporting this dearth of His people being able to ascertain end-time matters. God did not cause the book of understanding to be closed so they would't comprehend. The vital, glorious thing to see is that now that book has, I'm convinced it is overwhelmingly obvious, been open, and each and every hour seems to bring increased understanding. Knowledge is indeed increasing, and at an exponential rate!   Timeline Issues and Events  

Signals that we are in the end times are so ubiquitous, and at the same time proliferating at such a profound pace, that it is sometimes difficult even for those of us who watch diligently to fully gather within our eschatological radar scopes all that is occurring. But Jesus, right after giving those signals that would be prevalent leading up to His second coming, concluded, as reported in the book of Mark: "And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch" (Mk. 13:37). It is therefore incumbent upon us "all Christians" to discern the signs of the times. We will look at them, trying to put them in the order given us by Jesus and the prophets as they foretold these end-time things. Those who consider such things calculate that about 27 percent of God's Word is given to prophecy. Roughly half, those who figure these things believe, has been fulfilled. Therefore about 14 percent of Bible prophecy is yet to be fulfilled. Careful study of the historical record validates Bible prophets as 100 percent accurate, in considering prophecies already fulfilled. We can, through application of human rationale, therefore, think the rest of prophecy will likely be fulfilled. Christians should trust, without reservation, that their Lord, the "Word" (John 1:1-2), will accomplish fulfillment of the remaining prophecies - those yet future. Those who read this article following the disappearance of millions of people, the rapture of all believers in Jesus Christ, are urged to examine the history of these matters. Those who read this post-rapture will have considerable, and quite recent, history to look to and consider whether God's Word is true, about end-times matters. As this is written, the world stands on God's prophetic timeline facing the apocalyptic storm in the distance while it approaches. If you are reading this following the rapture, you are likely actually in the early stages of that prophesied storm of evil - the last seven years of human history that lead to the second coming of Jesus Christ to Planet Earth. There are no prophecies yet to be fulfilled before the rapture of Christ's Church. That is not to say prophecies yet future will NOT be fulfilled before the rapture, just that none are given that MUST BE fulfilled before that stunning event. We will not address here all of the many geophysical and even societal and cultural "perilous times" signals we see all around us in this generation. We will look at specific major events scheduled to unfold. However, it is unavoidable to think of the birth-pang like convulsions of earthquakes, record hurricanes, and the upheavals of violence that seems to fill the whole earth, while thinking on the following. Israel: Prophecy Fulfilled Many of us who carefully study these matters believe that Israel's once again being a nation in its ancient homeland, and with its ancient language, Hebrew, is a fulfillment of prophecy. I don't see how it can be otherwise. Israel has to be back in the land for the final prophecies to roll out as foretold. That nation is at the very heart of end-times things to come. The most profound prophecy in that regard is the fact that the Messiah - the returning Lord of Lords and King of Kings will set His throne atop Zion once He returns. That will be a dramatic topographically changed Mt. Moriah, with Christ's millennial temple set high above the city of Jerusalem. But, before that happens, Israel will have to endure the time of "Jacob's trouble" (Jer. 30:7). It will be the worst time ever in history for that people, according to Jesus, himself. As a matter of fact, His prophecy indicates the same degree of horror for the whole world at that time. He said: "For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be" (Matt. 24:21). Zechariah the prophet foretold there would be an Israel and a Jerusalem during that period of tribulation. God spoke the following through His prophet: "And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it" (Zech. 12:3). Israel today is already the center of attention, and of much scorn from its neighbors and the rest of the world. As I often say when interviewed, no matter which way the news microphones and cameras turn to capture other stories, they always swing right back to Israel, Jerusalem, and the surrounding areas. That is because that region offers the greatest threat to spark thermonuclear conflagration. The Bible foretells that it WILL host the most horrific conflict of human history - Armageddon! End-Times Order of Things To Come With that framework --that Israel is back in the land, which is surely a fulfilling of prophecy-- let us look at where things unfold from here on God's end-Times timeline. Rapture - While the storm clouds of apocalypse gather and approach, Christians attuned to God's whole word should watch, according to the Lord Jesus Christ. They should be aware of the elements of that approaching storm of tribulation. Things of society, cultures, in every endeavor of life, will, at the same time, seem to be business as usual. Times will be like the days of Noah and Lot at the moment of His next intervention into the affairs of humanity, according to Jesus. (Read Luke 17: 26-30.) It will be a catastrophic intervention. Jesus will step out on the clouds of glory and shout "Come up here!" (Rev. 4:1-2). All Christians - those who accept Christ's blood atonement for salvation (born-again believers) will instantly be with Jesus above the earth. (Read 1 Cor. 15: 51-55 and 1 Thes. 4:13-18.) Millions of people (those raptured) will vanish, will disappear from the planet before the astonished eyes of those left behind. Those who have gone to be with the Lord will be taken back to heaven, where He has prepared a place of eternal dwelling for them (Jn. 14:1-3). The bema judgment (to give rewards for service to the Lord while on earth) will take place. Crowns will be handed out to God's family. The marriage supper of the Lamb will occur (Christ's Bride made ready for the wedding), then the Wedding Feast (Revelation 19:9). Things on Planet Earth will be gearing up for the great end-time storm. God, the Holy Spirit, according to 2 Thessalonians, chapter 2, will remove as restrainer during the times following the rapture.

  World Leader Comes Forth - The nations of earth will be in chaos. The turmoil will cause severe ramifications while governments seek to restore civil order and regain governmental and economic equilibrium. Profound shifts of power will likely take place, with the EU becoming the new superpower, absorbing America's power and authority, the U.S. having lost the most people in key places, thus having suffered the most loss of control. According to prophecy, one man will step forward to proffer a plan to quell the fears of war in the Middle East (Daniel 9:27). This prophecy correlates to Revelation 6: 2, with the rider on the white horse riding forth. Peace Covenant Confirmed - The great world leader will arrive just in time to look to be the shining knight on the white horse. He will have the answer to the looming all-out war in the Middle East. He will be able to sell a seven-year peace plan that is already available, apparently. Israel will agree to the covenant, as will her enemies, and, in effect, the whole world will accept the European leader's masterful sales pitch. But Israel's acceptance will fly in the face of God. This "covenant made with death and Hell," as it is called in Isaiah, chapter 28, will cause God's judgmental wrath to begin to fall. Attack upon Israel - The Gog-Magog attack prophesied by Ezekiel is one that is controversial, so far as to where it will fit into the end-times timeline is concerned. Some has the event just before or in conjunction with the rapture, while others believe it will happen right after the rapture or nearer the mid-point of the seven-year tribulation period. Russia is destined to present some of the most fearsome trials and tribulations for Israel. Gog, "chief prince of Rosh," is the leader of Russia described in Ezekiel 38 and 39. In ancient language, Gog means "leader." "Rosh" is the ancient name for the land of Russia. In the last days, Russia will be the leading nation of the Gog-Magog coalition of nations that will make a move against Israel and be defeated by a supernatural act of God. Persia (Iran) comes right along beside Russia, in prophetic parlance. According to Ezekiel 38:5, Iran will aid Russia in attacking Israel before or during the tribulation. Even now, Iran acts as a destabilizing force in the world. 144,000 Evangelists - The Lord will not allow the dark, satanic realm to go unchallenged. God will seal (protect from Satan and his minions) 144,000 Jewish men with the gospel message of Jesus Christ, the only way to salvation, redemption, and reconciliation to God, the Father. (Read Rev. 7: 3-8.) These will proclaim the gospel message throughout the world. Millions upon millions of people will hear the message and become Christians of the tribulation period. Two Old Testament-Type Prophets Preach - Two Jewish men will be placed during this period for preaching then Gospel, and for pointing the finger of judgment if repentance isn't forthcoming. No one knows for sure who these men will be, but there seems good evidence that at least one of them will be Elijah, the Old Testament prophet whom God took up from earth in a fiery whirlwind. The Satanic governmental regime will seek to kill these men, but will not be able to do so until God allows. Anyone who tries to kill them will, in like manner, be killed, according to the prophetic Word. Finally, the regime will be able to kill them. There dead bodies will lie in the streets of Jerusalem for three days, then they will be resurrected to life, and will lift into the sky before the astonished eyes of their murderers and of the whole world.

  Antichrist Revealed - The great world leader , who confirmed the seven-year peace covenant, convincing Israel and its enemies to rely on him and his regime to keep the peace, will be struck with a deadly head wound. But, he will resurrect, supposedly, from death. He will, following this, in what I believe will be a false resurrection (possibly following the defeat of the Gog-Magog forces), suddenly walk into the Jewish temple atop Mt. Moriah at Jerusalem and declare himself to be God. He will demand worship from all of the world's inhabitants. (Read 2 Thes. Chapter 2 and Revelation, chapter 13.) He is then revealed as Antichrist, the son of perdition, the man of sin. He will cause all to accept his mark or be cut out of the economic system - all buying and selling. He will order all killed, who will not worship him. The chief method of death dealing will be beheading. His partner in the satanic duo will point all worship to the beast - Antichrist. The false prophet will be AntiChrist's John the Baptist figure. Jews Flee - Jesus forewarned the Jews who will occupy Jerusalem at the time of AntiChrist's revelation to flee to the mountains. (Read Matthew chapter 24, and Revelation, chapter 12.) This era, the mid-way point of the seven-year tribulation era, will begin the time of Jacob's trouble (Jer. 30: 7) - a time Jesus says will be the worst time of all history (Matt 24: 21). Antichrist will begin the greatest genocide ever to be visited upon the planet. Antichrist Institutes Regime - AntiChrist's regime will cause all to give worship to the beast, the Revelation 13 term for Antichrist. He will apparently set up some sort of idol, before which all must bow. This will likely be done by the image of himself being telecast in some way to all the world. (Read Revelation chapter 13.) His regime will consist of 10 kingdoms, whose newly crowned kings (political leaders of the region) will give all of their authority and power to Antichrist. We might be seeing the formative months and years of the formation of this 10-kingdom development with the various trading blocs beginning to form. The European Union seems to be the prototype for those that will follow. The North American Union (NAU) that seems to be underway in development, bringing America, Canada, and Mexico together in an economic trading bloc, appears to be one such "kingdom" in the making. Antichrist will bring together one world government, one world economy, and one world religion, to some extent - for a brief time, at least. This is a Babylonian-type system that will all but enslave the entire world. Babylon System of Religion, Economy, Government Rules - The Babylonian system will actually be an extension of the revived Roman Empire. This was prophesied in Daniel, chapters 2, 7, 9, and 11, as well as in Revelation, chapter 13. Ancient Babylon's and the ancient Roman Empire's influence upon this end-time regime of hell on earth are described in Revelation, chapters 17 and 18. God will completely destroy the chief city of the end time Babylon in one hour, the Bible prophesies in Revelation, chapter 18. Kings of East Threaten, then Move - China, today, is a growing economic and military behemoth. It exerts hegemony over its neighbors of the Orient. The Bible predicts a day during the tribulation when the "kings of the east" will march across the dried-up Euphrates River to do battle at Armageddon.This juggernaut will consist of 200 million troops, all, prophecy seems to indicate, demon possessed, while they cross the area of the Euphrates. (Read Revelation, Chapters 9 and 16.) All Meet at Armageddon - The kings of the east march toward a rendezvous with all other nations of the world. God says this about this meeting: "For, behold, in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem, I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land" (Joel 3: 10-2). (Also, read Rev. 16:16, and Rev. 19: 17-18.) Christ Returns - Just as the battle is becoming so violent that it threatens the end of all people and animals on earth, the black clouds of apocalypse unroll like a scroll, and brilliant light from heaven's core breaks through, revealing the King of kings and His armies and myriads of angelic hosts. "And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God" (Rev. 19:11-15). Christ Judges Nations - The conquering Creator of all things will establish His earthly throne atop Mt. Moriah, which will be supernaturally reconfigured from topographical renovations made for the millennium. All the nations of the world will come before the Lord Jesus Christ. (Read about the sheep-goats judgment in Matthew, chapter 25.) Those people who have made it alive through the seven-year tribulation will either be believers or unbelievers. Believers will be ushered into Christ's 1,000-year reign on earth, while unbelievers will be cast into everlasting darkness, the Scripture prophesies. Christ Sets Up Millennial Kingdom - The millennial reign of Christ will begin, a time during which the false prophet and the beast (Antichrist), the first to be thrown into the lake of fire, will begin to serve their eternal sentences. Satan will be confined in the bottomless pit, and there will be none of his minions to torment and tempt the millennial earth-dwellers. It will be a time much like the times of Eden, with the earth restored to its pristine beauty. (Read Rev. 20-10.) After the 1,000 years, the devil will be released from the pit for a short space of time. He will lead millions of those who have been born during the millennium in an assault on Christ at Jerusalem. God will send down fire and consume them all. Satan will be cast into the lake of fire. The lost dead will be resurrected (their eternal bodies joined to their souls), and all will stand before the great white throne of Christ to be judged. All will be cast into the lake of fire for eternity. (Read Rev. 20:10-15.) God "Jesus Christ" will remake the heavens and the earth in preparation for everlasting, ever-growing ecstasy in God's presence. (Read Rev. 20:16-22: 16.)

Source: https://www.raptureready.com/rr-end-time.html

It has started: The Hand of God appeared in the sky

NASA recently photographed a situation in "the Heavens", amidst the stars, a true sign and wonder that even the godless secular have been calling "the hand of God".
Jesus gave us end times warnings many years ago. They are documented in the Holy Bible. All of his end times prophecies help to prove his divine powers, for they are being fulfilled as truth in these end times we are struggling in.
Jesus says about the end times: "And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven." (Luke 21:11 KJV).
"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;" (Luke 21:25 KJV).

Regardless of how the "science" heads try to explain this image: THE FACT IS, the image can clearly be connected to Christianity and the end times prophecies. Jesus Christ said there will be signs in the Heavens and the Stars in the end times. Now we see in the stars and Heavens what looks like his very own hand, with his nail hole wound, and white pouring out of the wound, and fire around the fingers.
Along with all the other signs, this hand of God sign, the signs in the sun, the stars falling from Heaven... people all over the world are also hearing blasting loud (Jewish shofar style) horn sounds coming from the skies, and growling demon noises coming from the earth. These noises are being heard worldwide and recorded on a regular basis. The end is near. Many Biblical end times prophecies have been fulfilled, the others will soon. Time to get right with GOD: HERE IS HOW.

Source: http://www.onechristianministry.com/truth-648.html

Global weird things you need to know

These Very WEIRD Things Are Happening RIGHT NOW! You May Want To Change Your Travel Plans…

The world can sometimes be a very weird place. But guess what? It’s about to get weirder. Science has a way of surprising us with all kinds of crazy phenomenons that make little no no sense to people without fancy schmancy degrees (e.g. me). I do my best to understand and my go-to favourite explanation is “Photoshopped!” But alas, these aren’t the works of creative pixel-pushers. These are actually real. 
1. Underwater Waterfall: A drastic dip in the ocean’s depth near Mauritius creates the illusion of this waterfall.

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd23.jpg

2. Blue Lava: Sulfuric gases combust at such high temperatures that this volcano in Indonesia erupts with blue lava.

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd4.jpg

3. White Rainbows: This is what arched fog looks like!

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd25.jpg

4. Volcanic Lightning: During a volcanic explosion, electrical and static charges are released and can result in this scary electrical storm. This is also more or less what it looks like during MetaSpoon.com brainstorming sessions.

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd24.jpg

5.  Never-ending Wave: When the Atlantic Ocean meets the Amazon River in Brazil, the resulting wave can travel 500 miles inland without slowing down.

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd1.jpg

6. Monarch Butterfly Migration: Across the US and Mexico, butterflies migrate together in incredible numbers!

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd22.jpg

7. Great Blue Hole: Erosion when sea levels were lower created this sinkhole in Belize.

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd21.jpg

8. Flowering Desert: Deserts in Chile will sprout flowers after exceptionally heavy rainfall.

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd20.jpg

9. Everlasting Storm: Also known as Catatumbo lightning, this lightning storm rages for up to 160 days above Lake Maracaibo in Venezuela.

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd19.jpg

10. Black Sun: The migration of European Starling birds is can be seen every spring in Denmark.

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd18.jpg

11. Steam Towers: Towers of steam and gas from fumaroles create an eerie sight against an auroral display.

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd17.jpg

12. Crab Migration: Nearly 120 million red crabs make their way to the ocean on Christmas Island.

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd16.jpg

13. Rainbow Trees: When these Australian eucalyptus trees are known for their unique, multi-hued bark.

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd15.jpg

14. Maelstroms: These powerful whirlpools can suck in swimmers and boats!

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd14.jpg

15. Horsetail Falls: At certain times of the day in February, the water resembles lava at this waterfall in Yosemite National Park, California.

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd11.jpg

16. Hair Ice: Bacteria causes water to freeze in this manner as the liquid escapes plants in freezing weather.

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd10.jpg

17. Green Flash: At the beginning or end of a sunset, the right conditions may result in this rare phenomenon.

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd9.jpg

18. Frost Flowers: Floral ice forms when there is a difference in temperature between the ocean and atmosphere in arctic areas.

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd8.jpg

19. Danxia Landforms: These colourful sandstone hills and mountains can be found in China.

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd7.jpg

20. Cocooned Trees: Spiders take to the trees and create this incredible sight during flood season in Pakistan.

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd6.jpg

21. Calficying Lake: Animals that become immersed in the waters of Lake Natron die and become calcified.

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd5.jpg

22. Bleeding Glacier: In Antarctica, iron oxide causes the outflowing water to resemble blood. This is also known as “Blood Falls.”

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd3.jpg

23. Underwater Crop Circles: These incredible circles are created by male pufferfish in Japan as part of an elaborate mating ritual.

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd2.jpg

25. Living Rocks: These sea creatures from Chile are not actually rocks, but they are entirely immobile.

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd13.jpg

26. Lenticular Clouds: Moist air streams over mountains and becomes heated, resulting in strange cloud formations that have been mistaken for UFOs.

image: http://www.metaspoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/odd12.jpg

I’m not entirely sure if I’m creeped out or simply amazed. Either way, I clearly don’t know much about this planet.

Read more at http://www.metaspoon.com/m-weird-things-happening-earth/#KV83vLofdpPOwUW4.99

You can't believe this revelation! Is Pope the antichrist?

The Man of Sin

In 2 Thessalonians 2, the apostle Paul speaks of the rise of a "man of sin" who would sit in the "temple of God" showing himself to be like God, and exalting himself into the place of Christ Jesus on earth. This man of sin was already revealed hundreds of years ago during the great Protestant reformation. But because of blindness to the truth and the deceptions of Satan, the mainstream Christian churches have all pretty much rejected the great truths that God revealed during the reformation. So here, we reveal them again for those who have eyes to see.

2 Thessalonians 2:3-4 ...'Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.'

Now what does it mean to sit in the temple of God, showing himself to be like God? Well, we know from Hebrews 8:4-5 and Hebrews 9:24 that the earthly temple (tabernacle), which God instructed Moses to make in the Old Testament was a COPY of the original temple in heaven where Jehovah resides. So let's find out from the temple sanctuary that Moses made what God's throne is like.

Exodus 25:17-19 ...'And thou shalt make a mercy seat of pure gold: two cubits and a half shall be the length thereof, and a cubit and a half the breadth thereof. And thou shalt make two cherubims of gold, of beaten work shalt thou make them, in the two ends of the mercy seat. And make one cherub on the one end, and the other cherub on the other end: even of the mercy seat shall ye make the cherubims on the two ends thereof.'

This is the description of the articles in the most holy place of the sanctuary. We have the mercy seat, which represents the throne of God. And either side of God's throne are two golden cherubim. And remember, this is a COPY of the actual throne of God in heaven. So in heaven, God has two living cherubim either side of His throne. And Ezekiel 28:12-17 confirms that Lucifer (Satan) used to be one of those "covering cherubs".

Psalm 99:1 ...'The Lord reigneth; let the people tremble: he sitteth between the cherubims; let the earth be moved.'

Revelation 20:11 ...'And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.'

What is the "temple" today?

Acts 7:48 ...'Howbeit the most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands; as saith the prophet.'

1 Corinthians 3:16 ...'Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?'

2 Corinthians 6:16 ...'And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.'

1 Peter 2:5 ...'Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.'

This simple truth is overlooked by so many today. When we look for that man of sin, we should not be looking for someone to be sitting in a rebuilt temple in Israel. No, the temple of God today, as Paul and Peter confirmed, is THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. So the man of sin we are looking for is someone SITTING IN THE 'PROFESSED' CHRISTIAN CHURCH, showing himself that he is "like God" and exalting himself to a position where he should not be.

So we are looking for someone WITHIN the Professed Church, sitting on a throne, acting like he is "as God"

        

Above are pictures of the last two Roman Catholic Popes, Francis and Benedict, sitting on a "great white throne", BETWEEN TWO GOLDEN CHERUBIM, being called HOLY FATHER, which is reserved for God alone, putting themselves in place of God on earth and exalting themselves to a position where they should never be.

The word "anti" in antichrist also means "IN PLACE OF" Christ. Now look at the following quote from John Paul II:

"The leader of the Catholic church is defined by the faith as the Vicar of Jesus Christ (and is accepted as such by believers). The Pope is considered the man on earth who TAKES THE PLACE of the Second Person of the omnipotent God of the Trinity." (John Paul II, Crossing the Threshold of Hope, p. 3, 1994).

NO ONE can take the place of our Blessed Saviour, no one! But the man of sin 'tries' to take His place!

POPE FRANCIS OFFERS 'ABSOLUTION OF SIN' FOR WOMEN WHO ABORT - Absolution of sin is something that God alone can do. But the pope tries to take the place of God on earth!

So many people are looking in the wrong place for antichrist. We need to look in the professed Christian church. We need to be looking at a religious system that has put itself IN PLACE OF Christ on earth. This is antichrist.
Now what else does Paul say about this man of sin? He calls him the "son of perdition". Did you know there is only one other person in the Bible with that name? JUDAS! (John 17:12). Yes, that DECEIVER FROM WITHIN THE CHURCH! God is letting us know that the man of sin would be just like Judas. Someone who is counted as "one of us", but works for Satan.

Do you have eyes to see?

Look at this amazing picture too. What colours does Revelation say that Babylon the Great is clothed in? Purple and Scarlet (Revelation 17:4). And what are the main colours of the cardinals and bishops of the Roman Church? Purple and Scarlet! For more amazing information about Babylon the Great, see our Whore of Babylon study.
Now are we saying that Popes Francis and Benedict are the man of sin? Yes, but it is not JUST THEM. It involves all previous and future Popes who have exalted themselves into this same position and also the leaders of the Roman Catholic Church. The man of sin involves the whole SYSTEM of the Papacy. Just take a look at some of these quotes from the Papal Church ...

"The Pope is not simply the representative of Jesus Christ. On the contrary, he is Jesus Christ Himself, under the veil of the flesh." (Evangelical Christendom, January 1, 1895, pg. 15, published in London by J. S. Phillips)

"The Pope is of so great dignity, and so exalted that he is not a mere man, but as it were God and the vicar of God." (Ferraris Ecclesiastical dictionary)

"The Pope and God are the same, so he has all power in Heaven and earth." (Pope Pius V, quoted in Barclay, Chapter XXVII, p. 218, Cities Petrus Bertanous)

"The Saviour Himself is the door of the sheepfold: 'I am the door of the sheep.' Into this fold of Jesus Christ, no man may enter unless he be led by the Sovereign Pontiff; and only if they be united to him can men be saved, for the Roman Pontiff is the Vicar of Christ and His personal representative on earth." (Pope John XXIII in his homily to the Bishops and faithful assisting at his coronation on November 4, 1958)

For more pompous and blasphemous quotes from the Roman Church, see this page.

Jesus Christ told us to call no man on earth our "Father" (Spiritual Father) for we have only ONE Father who is in heaven (Matthew 23:9). The Papacy says, call the Pope HOLY FATHER!

Jesus Christ says that salvation is ONLY found through Himself (Acts 4:12). The Papacy says that salvation is ONLY found through the Roman Catholic Church!

Jesus Christ told us through Jeremiah not to make offerings to or worship the "Queen of Heaven". The Papacy ENCOURAGES it's followers to make prayers, offerings and worship to the Queen of Heaven (The Roman Catholic Mary).

The Roman Catholic Church is so clearly an apostate church.

This picture is showing the new Roman Catholic Priests laying prostrate to the Pope, giving their honor and allegiance to him and the Roman church, and not God.
Friends, the Bible reveals the clear truth about who the antichrist is. All of the Protestant reformers knew the truth about the man of sin and the Bible antichrist. Yes, this is an unpopular teaching, but it's the TRUTH. And if we decide to turn away from truth just because it will make us unpopular, then we are in effect turning away from Christ Jesus.

See THIS SHOCKING LIST of Vatican crimes against children!

Satan is setting up a major deception for the last days, and he is using the Vatican and the Roman Catholic Church to implement it. Please seek the truth and live by it. We are living in perilous times.


Source:  http://www.end-times-prophecy.org/man-of-sin-revealed.html