Something happened this week that made me go back and read Revelation 13 again. Jacob Coxon, a researcher at Anthropic, the company behind Claude, quit his job and publicly warned that the people building advanced artificial intelligence genuinely believe it could become powerful enough to kill humanity by the end of this decade. One of Anthropic’s own alignment leaders, Evan Hubinger, backed him up and said he personally believes there is greater than a 10 percent chance AI could kill all humans within the next ten years. Read that again. The people building some of the most advanced artificial intelligence on earth are openly admitting they don’t know whether humanity will remain capable of controlling what they are creating. Now read Revelation 13. I’ve always pictured Revelation 13:15 as some kind of statue mysteriously coming to life. Then I looked closely at the language John actually used. The world is deceived into making an εἰκών, eikōn, of the Beast. An image... likeness. A representation. That word takes us straight back to Daniel 3. Nebuchadnezzar erected an image and commanded the nations under his authority to worship it. Refusal meant death. The Aramaic word in Daniel is tselem. When Daniel was translated into Greek, that word became eikōn. The same word John uses. Revelation 13 is Daniel 3 brought forward into the last days, except John adds something Daniel never saw. “And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak...” Revelation 13:15 Here is where this gets fascinating. The Greek word translated “life” there isn’t zōē. It is pneuma. Breath. Spirit. John had already used that language two chapters earlier. The two witnesses are dead in Jerusalem until “the Spirit of life from God” enters them and they stand upon their feet. God gives breath and life returns. Then Revelation 13 presents a counterfeit. Human beings manufacture an eikōn of the Beast and the false prophet is permitted to give pneuma to it. The image speaks. It participates in the enforcement of worship and those who refuse are killed. One verse later, the same Beast system controls whether a human being is permitted to buy or sell. For most of history, people reading that passage had almost no technological frame of reference for something like this. We do now. We are already creating artificial representations of human beings capable of speaking naturally, recognizing faces, hearing voices, processing enormous amounts of information, identifying individuals and making increasingly complex decisions. AI systems are being connected to banking, surveillance, identification, military systems, robotics and critical infrastructure. Meanwhile, some of the people building the most powerful versions of this technology are publicly warning that these systems may eventually become more capable than their creators and increasingly difficult to control. Does Revelation 13 say “artificial intelligence”? No. I’m not putting words into Scripture that God didn’t put there. John never explains the engineering. He explains what he saw. A man made representation of a world ruler receives something described as pneuma, speaks, exercises authority and becomes part of a worldwide worship system. Refusal carries a death sentence. That system is directly connected with economic control over buying and selling. Two thousand years ago that sounded almost impossible. Today it sounds technologically conceivable. Daniel saw the prototype in Babylon. A ruler. An image. Global submission. Forced worship. Death for refusal. John saw the final version. Only this time the image talks back. Maybe artificial intelligence has absolutely nothing to do with Revelation 13. Maybe we are simply watching mankind build the exact kind of technological infrastructure that could eventually make John's description possible. Either way, I find it remarkable that the generation capable of building an artificial likeness that can see, hear, speak, identify people and interact with financial systems is also the generation watching the people who built it warn that they may eventually lose control of it. John never told us how the image worked. He told us what it did. Suddenly that ancient prophecy doesn’t sound nearly as strange as it used to. “And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak...” Revelation 13:15

Millions of words have been written about socialism. Worse yet, millions of lives have been sacrificed to the delusions of socialism and Marxism. While there are so many great quotes to choose from on this topic, the following brief quotes make for a nice sample. “Socialism means slavery.” Lord Acton “The worst form of inequality is to try to make unequal things equal.” Aristotle “When the law is used to take from some and give to others, it ceases to protect liberty and becomes an instrument of plunder. That is not justice, it is legal plunder.” Frédéric Bastiat “The man who is not a socialist at 20 has no heart, but if he is still a socialist at 40 he has no head.” Aristide Briand “Consider the following progression:1. On a dark street, a man draws a knife and demands my money for drugs.2. Instead of demanding my money for drugs, he demands it for the Church.3. Instead of being alone, he is with a bishop of the Church who act as bagman.4. Instead of drawing a knife, he produces a policeman who says I must do as he says.5. Instead of meeting me on the street, he mails me his demand as an official agent of the government. If the first is theft, it is difficult to see why the other four are not also theft. Expropriation is wrong not because its causes are wrong, but because it is a violation of the Eighth Commandment: Thou shalt not steal.” J. Budziszewski “Those of us who study the papers and the parliamentary speeches with proper attention must have by this time a fairly precise idea of the nature of the evil of Socialism. It is a remote Utopian dream impossible of fulfilment and also an overwhelming practical danger that threatens us at every moment.” G. K. Chesterton “What’s worthwhile to point out, first and last, is that Socialism is a tyranny; that it is inevitably, even avowedly and almost justifiably, a tyranny. It’s the pretence that government can prevent all injustice by being directly responsible for practically anything that happens.” G. K. Chesterton “The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of blessings; the inherent virtue of socialism is the equal sharing of miseries.” Winston Churchill “I reject as impracticable the insane Socialist idea that we could have a system whereby the whole national production of the country, with all its infinite ramifications, should be organised and directed by a permanent official, however able, from some central office. The idea is not only impossible, but unthinkable. If it was even attempted it would produce a most terrible shrinkage and destruction of productive energy.” Winston Churchill “Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery.” Winston Churchill “Democracy and socialism have nothing in common but one word: equality. But notice the difference: while democracy seeks equality in liberty, socialism seeks equality in restraint and servitude.” Alexis de Tocqueville “There is nothing in socialism that a little age or a little money will not cure.” Will Durant “The best way of doing good to the poor, is not making them easy in poverty, but leading or driving them out of it.” Benjamin Franklin “If socialists understood economics they wouldn’t be socialists.” Friedrich Hayek “I was guilty of judging capitalism by its operations and socialism by its hopes and aspirations; capitalism by its works and socialism by its literature.” Sidney Hook “In practice, socialism didn’t work. But socialism could never have worked because it is based on false premises about human psychology and society, and gross ignorance of human economy.” David Horowitz “People start to yawn when you warn them about a move toward socialism. It seems abstract. But if you discuss the issues that arise from high taxes, oppressive regulation, seizure of private property, and dictating of individual behaviour, people understand them, and they reject them.” Charlie Kirk “Socialism is the religion people get when they lose their religion.” Richard John Neuhaus “The reason this country continues its drift toward socialism and big nanny government is because too many people vote in the expectation of getting something for nothing, not because they have a concern for what is good for the country.” Lyn Nofziger “Socialism is simply Communism for people without the testosterone to man the barricades.” Gary North “Yet it is as a kind of religion that socialists most often justify their beliefs. Seldom do they claim that the superiority of socialism lies in its works, its practicality, its proven fruits. Nearly always they justify it in terms of its vision… Quite commonly, socialists are prepared to admit that democratic capitalism is more productive, more efficient, and far less vicious in practice than socialist theory would lead one to expect; in short, it works better. They rest the case for socialism on its supposed moral superiority over democratic capitalism.” Michael Novak “There is no virtue in compulsory government charity, and there is no virtue in advocating it. A politician who portrays himself as ‘caring’ and ‘sensitive’ because he wants to expand the government’s charitable programs is merely saying that he’s willing to try to do good with other people’s money. Well, who isn’t? And a voter who takes pride in supporting such programs is telling us that he’ll do good with his own money — if a gun is held to his head.” P. J. O’Rourke “Socialism borrows the compassionate aims of Christianity while rejecting its insistence that kindness not be coerced or forced.” John Piper “Socialism spends the money that capitalism creates.” Dennis Prager “There is no difference between communism and socialism, except in the means of achieving the same ultimate end: communism proposes to enslave men by force, socialism – by vote. It is merely the difference between murder and suicide.” Ayn Rand “A socialist is someone who has read Lenin and Marx. An anti-socialist is someone who understands Lenin and Marx.” Ronald Reagan “Socialism only works in two places: Heaven – where they don’t need it and hell – where they already have it.” Ronald Reagan “Free people are different people, so they earn different incomes. Our talents and abilities are not identical. We don’t all work as hard. And even if we all were made equal in wealth tonight, we’d be unequal in the morning because some of us would spend it and some of us would save it. To make us economically equal, bureaucrats with guns would have to force us to be what we aren’t.” Lawrence Reed “It is a common misconception that socialism is about helping poor people. Actually, what socialism does is create poor people, and keep them poor. And that’s not by accident. Under capitalism, rich people become powerful. But under socialism, powerful people become rich.” Glenn Reynolds “The immorality or absurdity of Socialist doctrines are patent. But one difficulty in arguing with professed Socialists, both sinister and merely dreamy, is that they invariably suffer from great looseness of thought; for if they did not keep their faith nebulous, it would at once become abhorrent in the eyes of any upright and sensible man.” Teddy Roosevelt “While I would not argue that capitalism as an economic system is inherently more Christian than socialism … it does seem to me that capitalism is more dependent on Christianity than socialism is. For in order for capitalism to work — in order for it to produce a good and a stable society — the traditional Christian virtues are essential.” Antonin Scalia “The transformation of charity into legal entitlement has produced donors without love and recipients without gratitude.” Antonin Scalia “The problem with capitalism is capitalists. The problem with socialism is socialism.” Willi Schlamm “The great intellectual advantage of socialism is obvious. Through its ability to align itself with ideals that everyone can recognise, socialism has been able to perpetuate the belief in its moral purity, despite crime upon crime committed in its name. That a socialist revolution may cost millions of lives, that it may involve the wilful murder of an entire class, the destruction of a culture, the elimination of learning and the desecration of art, will leave not the slightest stigma on the doctrines with which it glorifies its actions.” Roger Scruton “Socialism violates at least three of the Ten Commandments: It turns government into God, it legalises thievery and it elevates covetousness. Discussions of income inequality, after all, aren’t about prosperity but about petty spite. Why should you care how much money I make, so long as you are happy?” Ben Shapiro “Socialism states that you owe me something simply because I exist. Capitalism, by contrast, results in a sort of reality-forced altruism: I may not want to help you, I may dislike you, but if I don’t give you a product or service you want, I will starve. Voluntary exchange is more moral than forced redistribution.” Ben Shapiro “A socialist is somebody who doesn’t have anything, and is ready to divide it up equally among everybody.” George Bernard Shaw “Socialism always attacks three basic social institutions: religion, the family, and private property. Religion, because it offers a rival authority to the state; the family, because it means a rival loyalty to the state; and property, because it means material independence of the state.” Joseph Sobran “The history of the 20th century is full of examples of countries that set out to redistribute wealth and ended up redistributing poverty.” Thomas Sowell “Socialism in general has a record of failure so blatant that only an intellectual could ignore or evade it. Even countries that were once more prosperous than their neighbours have found themselves much poorer than their neighbors after just one generation of socialistic policies.” Thomas Sowell “What do you call it when someone steals someone else’s money secretly? Theft. What do you call it when someone takes someone else’s money openly by force? Robbery. What do you call it when a politician takes someone else’s money in taxes and gives it to someone who is more likely to vote for him? Social Justice.” Thomas Sowell “America is now a land that rewards failure – at the personal, corporate, and state level. If you reward it, you get more of it. If you reward it as lavishly as the federal government does, you’ll get the Radio City Christmas Special of Failure, on ice and with full supporting orchestra. The problem is that, in abolishing failure, you abolish the possibility of success, and guarantee only a huge sucking statist swamp.” Mark Steyn “No theory of government was ever given a fairer test or more prolonged experiment in a democratic country than democratic socialism received in Britain. Yet it was a miserable failure in every aspect.” Margaret Thatcher “For the socialist, each new discovery revealed a ‘problem’ for which the repression of human activity by the state was the only ‘solution’.” Margaret Thatcher “Socialists have always spent much of their time seeking new titles for their beliefs, because the old versions so quickly become outdated and discredited.” Margaret Thatcher “The worst enemy of socialism is not capitalism. It is reality.” Margaret Thatcher “Tyranny is the political corollary of socialism, as representative government is the political corollary of the market economy.” Ludwig von Mises “Socialism is not an alternative to capitalism; it is an alternative to any system under which men can live as human beings.” Ludwig von Mises “The act of reaching into one’s own pockets to help a fellow man in need is praiseworthy and laudable. Reaching into someone else’s pocket is despicable and worthy of condemnation.” Walter Williams “Many who claim to love Jesus with their theology hate the poor with their economics.” Douglas Wilson

Having lived & worked in communist countries & done my army service to defend Western Europe during the "Cold War" period, I am baffled how many "educated" & ignorant people want to return to this or embrace this. I will put all the links in red for obvious reasons: Communism / Marxism caused the death of millions directly & indirectly. Socialism has the same goals but the Socialists gain control through more subtle ways, but in the end they still end up controlling you. https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/the-emergence-of-socialism-control https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/is-socialism-a-sign-of-the-end-times https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/wokism-and-marxism-combined-with-islamism-will-destroy-western-civilization https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/as-the-false-gospel-of-marxism-gains-steam-christians-must-stand-on-the-truth https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/it-is-all-about-control https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/i-have-my-guts-full-of https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/islam-lefties https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/the-unholy-alliance https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/the-murder-of-henry-nowak-will-the-world-finally-wake-up-to-the-danger-of-cultural-marxism https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/50-quotes-on-socialism

This post is a continuation on some on my recent posts: https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/christians-in-australia-who-do-you-vote-for https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/is-socialism-a-sign-of-the-end-times https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/how-to-destroy-a-society https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/forgiveness-redemption-does-not-exclude-justice-in-regards-to-authorities-who-mandated-un-scientif https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/climate-change-is-an-unscientific-fear-based-religion-and-it-s-all-about-control https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/climate-change-is-an-unscientific-fear-based-religion-and-it-s-all-about-control-1 https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/the-new-targets-are-insane-and-built-on-lies https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/you-can-not-trust-the-media https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/men-shall-run-to-and-fro https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/faith-family-and-freedom-in-the-age-of-collapse https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/i-have-my-guts-full-of TOP SECRET INTELLIGENCE LEAK OPERATION GREEN HARVEST THE COMPLETE PLAN TO DESTROY THE FARMING INDUSTRY FOREVER: https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=10164580993419511&set=a.10150498520234511 As I started my day, again have I a strong sense of urgency to continue warning people against the dangers, we are facing "Downunder" & the Western nations in general. There are many people waking up now, but I have been warning about this for many years, having had the privilege & opportunity to live & minister in Eastern Europe & former Soviet Union before the fall of the Berlin Wall, observing the horrors & oppression of Communism. You might think that is not the same as Socialism, but trust me they are close cousins & have the same end goal in mind. It is basically similar to calling Jew hatred, Anti-Semitism, which is the same thing, just makes it sound maybe less hateful & a bit like is just a different political view. Quite some years ago now the New Zealand Christian Author & Bible teacher Barry Smith, who foresaw all this & was his time way ahead, warned against many of those things. He foresaw that New Zealand ( but I believe this also includes Australia) was going to be the "test case" for the Elites & all sorts of other unelected Powerbrokers, NGO's, Multi National Companies, CEO's & Billionaires like Bill Gates etc , influencing National Governments so much, that we end up with endless Government Control through Red & Green tape, Election Interference, 15 Minute Cities, Controlled Demise, Covid Mandates that are motivated by control not real healthcare, "Renewable" Energy that will destroy economies & the landscape & fish & birdlife, Uncontrolled Immigration from 3d World & Islamic nations which leads to the "Great Replacement" & changing the national culture & identity, Uncontrolled spending from the Government which increases inflation, taxes, interest rates & the overall cost of living, ultimately leading to: "You own nothing and be happy" Why New Zealand & Australia? I am not saying this as criticism nor sarcasm. Being Dutch-born, but now a NZ & AU citizen, I love both nations & don't want to see the demise of either. But the Aussies & Kiwis have both one thing in common & hopefully that continues to change: They are carefree (It will be all right mate), politically uninterested & uninvolved, overly dependent in & trusting of government, to do everything for them. Also they have always been relatively prosperous & well provided for & never had foreign enemies actually invade their country; so they don't see or understand the potential dangers. As result they panic & don't know how to respond or deal with a crises or consider it to be a crises. For example compare how Sweden & Australia handled COVID. At least Trump is trying to counteract & resist all this, and he is doing quite a good job, but don't underestimate the "Demo(n)crats, they hate their own country & weird enough, their goal is to destroy America & the West in General. Downunder we have the equivalent of the Democrats under different names: labour, Greens & Liberals. By the way, the so-called centre-right works together with the left. They only want people to give the impression that they have a choice at the ballot box. But they mostly all stand for the same goal & policies, even though they might sound a bit different. In Australia the only good common sense option for the benefit of Australia & its citizens is: Pauline Hanson & One Nation! Yes I definitely looking forward to the Blessed Hope, the Rapture and the Second Coming and The Millennial Reign of Christ and A New Heaven & Earth, but in the meanwhile we still have a task to do & stand up against unrighteousness, injustice, being the salt of the earth, wanting the best for our nation, children & grand-children. As under this godless government I can only foresee moral, spiritual & economical decline and even destruction!

“When you understand who [Karl Marx] was and what he believed, you will be able to trace a lot that’s going on in our world today right back to him.” . Having lived & worked myself in Eastern Europe & the Soviet Union, before the fall of the Berlin Wall, I couldn't warn about this enough! So please see below 2 good resources to help you to get a better insight in dangers of this phenomana. https://www.facebook.com/reel/811837195269289 https://youtu.be/S2wFCjEu0GI?si=M8Y3Iuv9OwWo3NVQ

A tragic development of "Christian" schools in Australia I am writing this article pertaining to Christian Schools specifically, but this will apply in general to Christian Organisations & Churches as well. https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/why-so-many-young-people-fall-away-from-the-faithhttps://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/why-the-church-lost-the-next-generation One of the most tragic examples is the Salvation Army. Salvation Army still has great people & does great works in helping people, so not criticizing them only pointing this out as an example to make my point. Even those part of this organisation will have to admit they do not have the same spiritual goal, zeal & power that was imparted by their founder. Back to "Christian" schools. First of all I want to praise & thank Christian teachers, teacher-aids & Principals who do the best they can in Christian & Private & State Schools, being a light & making the difference in a very challenging environment. I basing this article on my own experience with our own children attending a "Christian" School & other parents & teachers & observation of present trends & statistics. If you are a godly parent, you will realize they are only 2 options left, since the State Schools have turned into woke, ungodly gateways to hell. Of course not only Christian families are realising this & that is why they don't want to send their children to State schools & I can't blame them. So these 2 options left are expensive private "Christian" schools or home-schooling. The reason I put the word Christian regarding schools in brackets, is that with the present influx of children from families who are far from Christian or at best are nominal Christians or in name & religious background only. I have often heard the argument that the "Christian" schools can reach out to those who are not Christians & evangelise the nation this way, it might sound good in theory, but the natural & spiritual laws & the outcome we observe today proves the opposite. In advance I apologise to Christian Schools, Principals, teachers, parents & volunteers who do the best they can in the given situation they are in. But it is an undeniable trend, that requires a good look & see if we can reverse this trend. Government money in grants & subsidies given to "Christian" schools comes with conditions & a "price", I think we should all be aware of this. What the natural & spiritual laws teach: Natural laws: Entropy: The thermodynamic principle that systems naturally progress from a state of order (good) to a state of disorder or randomness (bad). Decomposition: The breakdown of complex organic substances into simpler matter, usually by bacteria or fungi. Degradation: A decline in quality, character, or condition, often used in materials science, biology, and environmental studies. Corrosion: The gradual destruction of materials (usually metals) by chemical or electrochemical reaction with their environment. Obsolescence: The state of a product or process occurring when it falls out of use or becomes outdated, even if it is still physically functioning. Spiritual laws: The principle that the unclean and unholy negatively affects or defiles the clean and holy is a major theme in the Bible. It highlights that defilement is contagious, whereas holiness is not transferred by simple proximity. The following scriptures outline this concept: 1. The Contagion of Uncleanness Haggai 2:12-13: The prophet Haggai asks the priests a test of the Old Testament Law. If someone carries holy meat and that garment touches bread, the bread does not become holy. However, if an unclean person (such as one who touched a dead body) touches the bread, the food becomes defiled. This illustrates that defilement easily spreads, while holiness requires deliberate consecration. Leviticus 22:6: The Law states that anyone who touches an unclean thing remains ceremonially unclean until evening, and they are restricted from partaking in holy offerings. 2. Failure to Distinguish and the Consequences Ezekiel 22:26: God condemns the priests of Israel because they violated His law and failed to distinguish between the sacred and the profane. By not showing the people the difference between the clean and the unclean, the unholiness of the nation spread and profaned God's name. Leviticus 10:10: God specifically commands His leaders to separate and distinguish between "the holy and the common, and between the unclean and the clean". 3. Spiritual and Moral Separation in the New Testament 2 Corinthians 6:14-17: The Apostle Paul questions how righteousness and lawlessness can partner, or how light can share fellowship with darkness. He uses the imagery of the Old Testament, quoting Isaiah 52:11, to command believers: "Therefore come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you". 2 Corinthians 7:1: Building on this separation, Paul encourages the church to cleanse themselves from "every defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God" Conclusion: The present influx of children in "Christian" schools from families who are far from Christian or at best are nominal Christians or in name & religious background only, are negatively affecting the children from Christian families. The standard argument that the "Christian" schools can reach out to those who are not Christians & evangelise the nation this way, sounds good but as explained above in the natural & spiritual laws & the outcome we observe today proves the opposite. Are those who are making some form of commitment to Christ at the school chapel meetings really turning to Christ? I sincerely hope so, but long term results prove the opposite. Also I have interacted & worked with many colleagues in the past who attended a "Christian" school, but they were as "pagan" as anybody else for that matter. And what about the children from Christian families? Does it really benefit their faith? How do they feel when in some schools up to 80% of the children do not not come from real Christian families & even from Atheist, Mormon, JW, Hindu & Muslim backgrounds? 1 Corinthians 15:33 Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character.” Matthew 13:32 Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.” ("Birds of the Air" are almost always referring to stealing, robbing or the demonic in the Scriptures: think & ponder on this) Genesis 15:11 Then birds of prey came down on the carcasses, but Abram drove them away.

Christians are often told that belief in God requires too much faith. But look at what the atheistic worldview asks people to believe: that a universe, life, consciousness, morality, and genetic information all arose without an intelligent Creator. Biblical creation gives these effects a cause powerful and intelligent enough to produce them. Atheism asks you to believe that mindless matter somehow accomplished all of it by itself. Which worldview really requires more faith?

Josiah Queen has a song called “Dusty Bibles,” and I haven’t been able to get the thought behind it out of my head. We have Bibles everywhere. They’re on our shelves, beside our beds, on our phones. You can buy one for a few dollars, download one for free, or walk into almost any motel in America and find one sitting in the nightstand. The Word of God has become so available that I think we’ve forgotten what a privilege it is to have it. Many of us never heard the audible voice of God. Yet God has spoken through the Bible many times in our life's. He’s corrects us, warns us, comforts us, teaches us who He is, shows us who we are, and shows is what happened in this world, indicating where history is going. Treasure your Bible, the Word of God, the Holy Scriptures at all times Chuck Missler called the Bible an “integrated message from outside our time domain.” That’s exactly what it is. Sixty six books written by more than forty men across generations, yet from Genesis to Revelation it tells one continuous story. Creation. The fall. Redemption. Restoration. Right through the middle of it stands Jesus Christ. “All scripture is given by inspiration of God...” 2 Timothy 3:16 The Greek word is theopneustos. God breathed. Think about what we’ve been given. Men died translating this Book. Believers have risked their lives just to own pieces of it. There are places in this world where possessing a Bible can still cost you dearly. Meanwhile, we have ten of them sitting around the house collecting dust. We’ll spend hours staring at a phone, and somehow convince ourselves we don’t have twenty minutes to open the Word of God. Maybe God isn’t as silent as we think. Maybe the Bible is just closed. “Your word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” Psalm 119:105 The God who made the stars gave us His Word. The God who knows the end from the beginning told us His plan. The God we sinned against told us how to be reconciled to Him through Jesus Christ. What a privilege it is to own a Bible. Open it. There’s no reason for it to be dusty.

We’re watching it become normal: Paul didn’t leave us guessing what people would look like as the world moved deeper into the last days. "But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come": 2 Timothy 3:1 Then he gives the list. 1. Lovers of themselves Self first. Self worship. Everything revolves around me. 2. Lovers of money Never satisfied. Always wanting more. 3. Boasters Everybody needs to know what they have, what they did, and how important they are. 4. Proud Too proud to repent. Too proud to admit they’re wrong. 5. Blasphemers God mocked openly. His name used as a punchline. 6. Disobedient to parents Authority rejected even inside the home. 7. Unthankful Blessed beyond measure and still complaining. 8. Unholy Sin celebrated. Holiness mocked. 9. Without natural affection / unloving Even the most basic bonds of family and human compassion begin breaking down. 10. Trucebreakers / unforgiving People who won’t keep their word, honour agreements, or make peace. 11. False accusers / slanderers Lies, slander, gossip, character assassination. 12. Incontinent / without self-control No self control. Every appetite has to be fed immediately. 13. Fierce Cruelty, rage, violence, and brutality. 14. Despisers of those that are good Good becomes offensive simply because it’s good. 15. Traitors Loyalty means nothing when personal advantage is on the line. 16. Headstrong Reckless. Rash. Acting without wisdom or restraint. 17. High-minded / haughty Arrogant, conceited, convinced nobody can tell them anything. 18. Lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God Entertainment, sex, money, comfort, sports, phones, hobbies. Anything gets more time than God. 19. Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof Religion on the outside with no real submission to God underneath it. Then Paul says something people love to skip. “From such turn away.” 2 Timothy 3:5 Read that list again and look around. Paul wrote this nearly 2,000 years ago.

To me it is not an issue of “thou shall not” The New Testament teachings are clear: We are not under the law, food & drink don't make us unholy or unclean & we are not saved by works. But there are several reasons why I choose not to for the following reasons: 1) When I see the Day approaching I want to be in a good state of readiness & alert 2) An ambulance officer, fireman, Medical Doctor, Policemen should not drink on duty; even more so we as Christians, are we not all on duty? How much more important is our heavenly call, than even those honourable vocations. 3) To many weird additives & chemicals, specially in wine these days. It is not the same pure drink as in the time of the Lord Jesus. 4) What if by accident you drank a little to much & you get stopped & found driving over the limit ? You were not drunk, but still, you broke the law. What kind of testimony is that? 5) So many Christians & people in general struggling with alcohol abuse & trying to overcome or just have overcome. And so many have seen & experienced the violence & damage it has done to families. For those reasons I will abstain, so I am not a stumbling block to anybody. Some more practical & medical reasons: Better Sleep & More Energy: Alcohol disrupts REM sleep, often leaving you groggy. Without it, you wake up with more sustained energy. Mental Clarity: Alcohol is a depressant, which can trigger or worsen feelings of anxiety and sadness. Sobriety helps regulate moods and clear "brain fog". Physical Well-being: Quitting or avoiding alcohol drastically reduces daily calorie intake, lowers the risk of chronic health conditions (including certain cancers), and improves digestion. Financial Savings: Even just cutting back socially can save significant money over the course of a year. Safety & Control: Avoiding hangovers means you can retain full control of your actions and drive safely at all times. Mental Health and Sleep: As a depressant, alcohol can disrupt normal sleeping patterns and exacerbate feelings of sadness, anxiety, and stress. Next-Day Productivity: The dreaded "hangxiety," hangovers, and lack of focus make getting through the following day much harder, which clashes with early routines or career goals. Medication Interactions: Many prescription and over-the-counter medications are unsafe to mix with alcohol, requiring total abstinence.

Get answers & find hope: https://www.prophecyexplained.org/ Watch "The Great Disappearance Interview with Dr. David Jeremiah" https://youtu.be/c2coA6kBZJA?si=qYpJMv8s52izNsVK This Is How the Rapture Will Really Happen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSB_MnL9V-Y Messages: https://youtu.be/7zcbv5gAC9I https://youtu.be/rdh4YxFJarU https://youtu.be/tUcNKHc9Wm8 https://youtu.be/peWTKEOtiSg https://youtu.be/d4j-sop83Uk https://youtu.be/EiFH9Kgc1XQ https://youtu.be/eg2oVSGUn-o https://youtu.be/DLZB3aZ1ero https://youtu.be/DiULhIugdj4 https://youtu.be/nFNssVsmWKc https://youtu.be/sHoDBky27kM Blogs: https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/the-most-persistent-lie-leveled-against-the-rapture https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/fed-up-with-the-rapture-doctrine-being-mocked-attacked https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/the-last-trumpet https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/why-i-am-a-dispensationalist-premillennial-pre-trib https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/why-on-earth-do-you-want-to-go-through-the-great-tribulation https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/roll-your-eyes-all-you-want-the-rapture-is-real https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5I-ODcEV4g&t=1040s https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=1335617241936956&set=a.558238643008157 https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/pastors-please-stop-misusing-no-man-knows-the-day-or-hour https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/50-reasons-the-rapture-is-before-the-tribulation https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/the-only-view-that-interprets-prophecy-literally-and-consistently https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/the-last-trumpet https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/is-left-behind-theology-being-left-behind https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/douglas-murray-destroys-the-gaza-crowd https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/the-most-unlikely-person-coming-to-the-defence-of-israel https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/the-whole-world-will-turn-against-israel https://www.harvestministriesnz.com/post/have-you-noticed-the-increase-in-hostility-toward-the-return-of-jesus-coming-from-the-church

Go to almost any rapture post, scroll the comments, and you’ll undoubtedly see someone parroting the same tired line: “Darby invented the rapture.” Or: “There is no rapture. Prepare to suffer with the rest of us.” No. Every few months someone shows up and says: “John Nelson Darby invented the rapture in the 1800s.” Sounds convincing until you actually study church history. Did Darby popularize the pretribulation rapture? Absolutely. Did he invent it? No. John Nelson Darby was a gifted Bible teacher who helped organize and systematize what became known as dispensational theology. He emphasized a literal interpretation of Scripture, a distinction between Israel and the Church, and a futurist view of prophecy. You don’t have to agree with Darby on everything to recognize he was serious about studying God’s Word. The bigger problem is that critics often attack Darby instead of dealing with the verses. The question isn’t: “What did Darby teach?” The question is: What does the Bible teach? The pretribulation rapture isn’t built on Darby. It’s built on Scripture. Start here: John 14:1–3 Jesus said: “I go to prepare a place for you.” Then He said: “I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” That is not Jesus coming to pour wrath on the nations. That is the Bridegroom receiving His own. Then Paul gives the clearest description of the event. 1 Thessalonians 4:16–17 “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout... and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air...” That is the catching away. The word “rapture” comes from the Latin idea of being caught up. The Bible word in English is “caught up.” So don’t let someone play word games and say: “The word rapture isn’t in the Bible.” Neither is the word Trinity, but the doctrine is all over Scripture. Then Paul calls it a mystery. 1 Corinthians 15:51–52 “Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye...” Not all believers die. Some are changed instantly. Then Jesus says to the church in Philadelphia: Revelation 3:10 “Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world...” Not kept through the hour. Kept from the hour. Then Paul writes: 1 Thessalonians 1:10 “And to wait for his Son from heaven... even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.” And again: 1 Thessalonians 5:9 “For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ.” That matters because the Tribulation is not just bad men doing bad things. Revelation 6 says the wrath of the Lamb has come. Revelation 6:16–17 “Hide us from the face of him that sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: For the great day of his wrath is come...” The Church is not appointed to that. Now connect that to prophecy. The coming Tribulation is called Jacob’s Trouble. Jeremiah 30:7 says: “Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble...” Jacob is Israel. It doesn’t say the Church’s trouble. Then we come to Daniel’s prophecy. Daniel 9 tells us seventy weeks were determined upon Israel and Jerusalem. Not the Church. Israel and Jerusalem. Sixty-nine weeks were fulfilled leading up to Messiah. One week remains. That final seven-year period is still future. And what starts it? Daniel 9:27. “And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week...” The Antichrist confirms a covenant. The prophetic clock starts. The seventieth week begins. Jacob’s Trouble unfolds. So the pretribulation position teaches: Rapture - Covenant Confirmed - Tribulation Begins Not halfway through. Not at the end. Before it begins. Now here are more passages that need to be dealt with honestly: Philippians 3:20–21 says our conversation is in heaven, and from there we look for the Saviour, who shall change our vile body. Titus 2:13 calls it the blessed hope. Romans 5:9 says we are justified by His blood and shall be saved from wrath through Him. Romans 8:23 says we wait for the adoption, the redemption of our body. Ephesians 1:13–14 says the Holy Spirit seals us until the redemption of the purchased possession. Ephesians 4:30 says believers are sealed unto the day of redemption. Colossians 3:4 says when Christ appears, then shall we also appear with Him in glory. 1 John 3:2 says when He appears, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. Hebrews 9:28 says Christ shall appear the second time unto them that look for Him. Luke 21:36 says to watch and pray that we may be accounted worthy to escape all these things and stand before the Son of man. Isaiah 26:19–21 speaks of resurrection, then God’s people entering chambers and being hidden until the indignation is past. Zephaniah 2:3 says it may be that you shall be hid in the day of the LORD’s anger. Revelation 4 shows John caught up into heaven before the seals begin. Revelation 5 shows the redeemed in heaven before the judgments are opened. Revelation 19 shows the Bride already in heaven, clothed in fine linen, before Christ returns to earth in judgment. That is why pretribulation believers keep saying: The Church is seen in heaven before the wrath is poured out. Now here’s what many people never hear. Long before Darby was born, Christians were already teaching a future Antichrist, a future Tribulation, and a future gathering of believers. Irenaeus taught a future Antichrist. Hippolytus taught a future Antichrist and future fulfilment of Daniel’s prophecies. Victorinus taught a future Tribulation. Ephraem the Syrian is often quoted as saying: “All the saints and elect of God are gathered before the tribulation that is to come.” Scholars debate details of the manuscript, but the point remains: People were discussing believers being gathered before tribulation centuries before Darby ever took his first breath. No, the early church fathers didn’t lay out modern dispensational theology exactly the way Darby did. Nobody serious claims they did. What they do show is that Darby didn’t invent the idea out of thin air. The truth is, most attacks on Darby are attempts to avoid dealing with Scripture. Because once you stop screaming “Darby” and actually open the Bible, you have to answer some serious questions. If Jesus promised to receive believers unto Himself... If Paul said the dead in Christ rise first... If living believers are caught up together with them... If some believers will never die but will be changed in a moment... If the Church is told to wait for the Son from heaven... If we are promised deliverance from the wrath to come... If God has not appointed us to wrath... If the Tribulation is Jacob’s Trouble... If Daniel’s seventieth week is determined upon Israel and Jerusalem... If the Antichrist’s covenant starts that final seven years... If Revelation shows the redeemed in heaven before the judgments fall... Then why would the Church be present for a period of prophecy specifically directed toward Israel? That’s the discussion worth having. Not the tired myth that Darby invented the rapture. Darby may have helped systematize it. He didn’t invent it. The Bible teaches it.