Nations rise and fall - often the effect of prolonged moral decline. Will our Western civilization follow?
Bill Faith: God's word tells us that the Day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night. It will take the world by surprise. Yet, we are also told that Christians will not be surprised as will others. Wrote the apostle Paul: "But you, brethren, are not in darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief. You are all sons of light, and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober" (I Thessalonians 5:4-6).
Many are not concerned about the things of God, nor do they understand the many prophecies about the end time or the return of Christ. So it is understandable that many will be taken by surprise. In fact, the Bible also forewarns about this very thing happening. Said Jesus:"...As the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be" (Matthew 24:37-39).
Very little in our world changes. Yet if we look at past history, we can see that kingdoms came and went. In fact, ancient Rome - once the greatest nation on earth - fell because it decayed from within. Could it be that the same thing might happen to the United States, Great Britain and kindred nations?
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The Israel Connection There's a centuries-old tradition (shared by many readers of New Horizons) that the Anglo-saxon peoples are descended from the northern Ten Tribes of ancient Israel, from 'the House of Israel' - specifically the Tribe of Joseph. (The Jewish people are from 'The House of Judah'.) This helps to clarify the apparent puzzling absence of reference in the end-time Biblical prophecies to two important modern powers - Britain and her Commonwealth, and the United States of America - the latter arguably the most powerful nation in the last hundred years. Our readers will find it enlightening to substitute these modern nations for Biblical references to 'Israel' and 'Ephraim' in those prophecies which refer to the time just prior to the return of Jesus. On this basis it is clear that our nations will experience severe tribulation - even near destruction - in the years ahead, as described in the article on this page: Nations in Decline. |
Rise and Fall of Nations
God, speaking to Ephraim and Israel through the prophet Hosea said, "I know Ephraim, and Israel is not hidden from Me; For now, O Ephraim, you commit harlotry; Israel is defiled. They did not direct their deeds toward turning to their God, For the spirit of harlotry is in their midst, And they do not know the Lord. The pride of Israel testifies to his face; Therefore Israel and Ephraim stumble in their iniquity; Judah also stumbles with them" (Hosea 5:3-5).
To understand the seriousness of the matter, God states that because of her sins, "Ephraim shall be desolate in the day of rebuke" (v. 9). That's the day of God's judgment against the people of the world because of their sins.
Obviously, God takes our nations immorality quite seriously. God continues in verse 11, "Ephraim is oppressed and broken in judgment, Because he willingly walked by human precept". In other words, Ephraim leaned toward his own understanding and what seemed right to him instead of following God's instructions. This reminds us of what is written in Proverbs 14:12 where it is written, "There is a way which seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death".
Immorality is everywhere. In the United States and the other western democracies h**lity is accepted as just another life style. Some companies are offering insurance to their employee's same-sex partner, just as they do to an employee's married spouse. Catholic priests are accused of child molesting. Ministers of various faiths are caught up in immorality - even child pornography. The former President of the United States conducted immoral acts in the White House. Teachers have sexual relationships with their students. Prayer is being removed from schools, the Ten Commandments from public places. Our country is filled with the spirit of harlotry as mentioned in the prophecies of Hosea.
God seems to be out of favor now, being replaced by what seems right in our heart and perhaps, politically correct. The government of the United States seems to be trying to appease the various religious beliefs within her gates. But by doing so, it is violating the first commandment.
As our nations drift farther and farther away from the principles that God expects from us, we must ask ourselves, "How much longer will God allow our nation to be the most powerful nation in the world?" After all, Bible prophecies reveal that Europe will be the ruling power at the end of this age. This ruling power is called "The Beast" and this time in history is referred to as 'Jacob's trouble'. Take the time to look around and you will see cracks appearing in our nation's foundation. After all, God will not continue to bless a nation that has rejected Him and His ways.
Bill Groce who manages $235 billion in total assets within the PIMCO funds and who the New York Times named, 'The nation's most prominent bond investor' wrote the following about the United States:
While the United States rules the waves as well as turf and sky, I'm not sure that we are, or perhaps will be the economic powerhouse we once were. Three years of stock market declines, a 20% devaluation of the dollar over ten months, and an inability to serve as the global economy's locomotive despite massive monetary and fiscal stimulation suggests America's 'shining city on a hill' may have lost some of its sheen of late. The US of A, it seems, is becoming less wealthy by the minute, as foreign investment is withheld and in some cases redirected to Chinese and other more attractive ports of call. Economically, we may have begun a process of hegemonic decay.....Hegemonic decay will impose costs unimagined just sixteen months ago during the innocent hours of September 10th, 2001
In addition to what Mr. Groce said in his article, the Daily Reckoning email investment letter followed up with the following comments:
Over the past fifty years America's net foreign trade position has gone from nearly 3% surplus to nearly 6% deficit. These are big numbers. The current deficit runs about $500 billion-that is the amount of foreign capital required to keep Americans living beyond their means.
And now comes the Bush Administration with a $2.2 trillion budget. The central government proposes to seize (tax) and spend about one out of every four dollars its citizens make. It also proposes to run the biggest deficits in the history of organized government - more than $300 billion in 2003 - and a total of about a trillion dollars over the next five years.
This may not be the end of the world.....but there's a whiff of decay in the air.....
Also of note is the fact that Great Britain just had the worst trade deficit in three hundred years!
The Daily Reckoning continued by saying that last year the dollar fell 15% against the euro and asked the question as to whether the people of the world will get tired of holding dollars and convert to another currency. If they do, the damage could be severe.
Time Closes In
Although no one knows the exact prophetic time frame, we do know that the time of 'Jacob's trouble' (Jeremiah 30:7) is approaching. It will be a time when the United States and Great Britain along with some other English speaking nations will have calamity as never before.
It will be a time when God will place our nations into the hands of the "Beast" power mentioned in the book of Revelation to be chastised. Daniel recorded that this will be 'a time of trouble such as never was since there was a nation' (Daniel 12:1). Yet, shortly thereafter our Savior will come and will gather His people. Israel and Judah will be once again united as one nation in the 'holy land' (Ezekiel 37:16-19).
Peter, an apostle of God, wrote: "...The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth, and the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness" (II Peter 3:10-11).
It is certainly a sobering thought to realize that the world's only super-power could be destroyed economically and replaced by a government that God calls 'The Beast'. But God is not to be mocked. If we turn away from God, He will turn away from us. And the truth is, that our nation is getting farther and farther away from God and His laws. It's time that we repent and turn to God and find favor with Him.
So let us do as the Apostle Paul instructs us to do. "Let us not sleep as others do, but let us watch and be sober, so that this day will not overtake us as a thief in the night". ?
To comment on this article or request more information, please contact James McBride by e-mail at the comment form below.
For PDF or mailed copy, see CGOM. Excerpt from New Horizons Issue 39, 7:3 May/June 2003. Edited by James McBride of the Churches of God, United Kingdom.
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