This is a shocking statement, coming from Jewish scholars.  The War of Gog and Magog is described in Ezekiel, chapters 38 and 39.  These chapters follow the amazing prophecy of the rebirth of the nation of Israel in chapters 36 and 37.

 Israel was reborn, just as Ezekiel predicted in 1948.

Many Bible students equate the War of Gog and Magog with the Battle of Armageddon, but we think it is most likely the same as the war of the Second Seal in Revelation 6:3-4.

 This is the great war at the beginning of the Tribulation, while the Battle of Armageddon takes place at the end of the Tribulation.

  The Tribulation is the prophetic period of time predicted by Daniel as the last seven years of Israel’s history.

 It takes place just before Messiah returns to begin the peaceful Millennium (Daniel 9:24-27; Ezekiel chapters 40 through 48). 

The Rabbinical Council is referring to the universal outrage against Israel because of the armed struggle that resulted when they stopped a supposed relief flotilla that was actually a ship-load of terrorists. The event caused a major realignment in the Middle East, with Turkey, recently a close ally of Israel and the U.S., but now siding with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Russia’s Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

Let us remember Jesus’ words in Luke 21:28:

^“When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”

But we were also there at a time that reminds us that the prophecies of the last days are being fulfilled. While we listened to our guide at Bethsaida, we could hear the distant explosions of a full-scale military drill involving all the officials of the country and the children in school. Air-raid preparations were practiced and gas masks were passed out in the cities.

Another day we were on the same cable car taking tourists to the top of Masada with President Obama’s Chief of Staff, Rahm Emanuel. This reminded us of the fragile peace process that was going on at the time and of the deteriorating relationship between Israel and the U.S.

And then, on our last full day in Israel, we visited the Temple Mount. We saw the Islamic holy sites built there where the Jewish Temple once stood, and understood the importance of this most valuable piece of real estate in the world. Within minutes of our visit, while we were still on a walking tour of the Old City of Jerusalem, the Temple Mount was suddenly closed to visitors because of the conflict between Israel and a flotilla of ships bringing aid (and hundreds of activists) to Gaza!

Yes, we were there, and the past came alive for us. And we were there as the ancient prophecies continued to unfold!

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/toronto/story/2010/05/30/netanyahu-canada-visit.html>Israeli PM Rejects UN Nuclear moves.

Dead Sea Scrolls at APU

I wish you all could be with us. At least you can come along on the Internet. We will post our impressions here from day to day (Starting Tuesday, May 25), and you can see pictures on Facebook as we go along.

What a time to be in Israel! There is constant news about the danger of war between Israel and her neighbors. If these aren’t the last days, I can’t imagine how things can get much more dramatic.

I always feel safe in Israel though. Statistically, we are much more likely to face danger in Los Angeles than in Israel. The Lord is in control of our lives isn’t He?

In the meanwhile, if you live near Azusa Pacific University in Southern California, you can treat yourself to an amazing exhibit of the history of the Bible and see their newly acquired fragments of the Dead Sea Scrolls! It is almost as good as going to the Holy Land in person!

Treasures of the Bible: The Dead Sea Scrolls and Beyond!

Tour Pictures on Facebook

Some say we are blessed because of the multiple failures of would-be mass murderers, such as the older case of the shoe bomber and two more recent botched attempts by terrorists.

Times Square bomber Faisal Shahzad was apparently trained by the Taliban in Pakistan to construct a massive car bomb, but his detonation device failed to bring about the desired calamity.

Last Christmas, Abdul Farouk Umar Abdulmutallab, a 23-year old Nigerian, tried to destroy a Northwest Airlines jet over Detroit, but his detonator also failed to ignite the explosives he carried in his underwear.

It certainly is possible that The Lord Himself has intervened in these failures.

On the other hand, some of my fellow prophecy-trackers have pointed out the possible correlation between the many disasters that have plagued our country recently and the weakening of support for Israel by our administration. Unusual floods, hurricanes and tornados have stricken us, sometimes coming right on the heels of disappointments to Israel by President Obama’s policies. Now a major oil spill threatens our ecology and our economy while U.S. negotiators make harsh demands on Israel’s building programs.

Which is it? Is God blessing us or cursing us? Could it be a little of both to remind us of the ancient, unchanging, covenant with Abraham? Let’s all read it again and ponder what it means for our nation in these last days.

1 The LORD had said to Abram, “Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you.
2 “I will make you into a great nation
and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing.
3 I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
will be blessed through you.”
Genesis 12:1-3 – NIV

Some have thought we are mentioned in Ezekiel 38:13 as one of the “young lions” of what might be the old British Empire. But that is not convincing today since Great Britain is not all that powerful and the United States is obviously no longer a British colony.

Others have thought America could be equated directly with Babylon the Great at the point of her future destruction in Revelation 17 and 18. But that is too great a stretch, and there are far better explanations of Babylon in the last days.

So, what happens to the United States between now and the likely near-future unfolding of the end times scenario?

There are several possibilities. One theory is that the war of Gog and Magog will take place before the rise of Antichrist’s final world empire. It could be the war of the Second Seal of Revelation 6:3-4. That series of events, described in Ezekiel 36 through 39, includes the rebirth of the nation of Israel and an attack against her once she is living in peace and safety. Israel was reborn in 1948 in magnificent fulfillment of this prophecy, but she has not yet enjoyed peace. That peace could be achieved any time now, setting the stage for the attack of Russia and an Islamic force against Israel. Ezekiel’s prophecies about this war say that Israel’s enemies will be destroyed by fire and brimstone. This, of course, could describe a nuclear exchange. What if Iran were to use a nuclear weapon against Israel? Wouldn’t the response also threaten to involve the United States in an unwanted nuclear exchange? If that did happen, it is not likely that the United States would still be a powerful world-player after that war.

Another likely scenario would be that America will have suffered a financial collapse by the time of the last days, and would still exist, but not be a super-power. That is exactly what many political and financial analysts are saying about our current course. The unconscionable spending of recent legislation, with its inevitable tax burden on future citizens could easily be the real reason for the demise of America as anything more than another cog in the European socialistic machinery that Antichrist will use for his economic dictatorship (Revelation 13).

In either of these cases, The United States will not be gone in the last days. We will just not be worth mentioning.

Because of His love for us, He provided forgiveness of sins by dying in our place. He promised direction, protection, provision, and much more to those who would follow Him. In normal usage of the word, a “hope” is something one wants to have happen, which may or may not come to pass. In the Bible, a hope is based on the promises of God. It is therefore something that is sure to happen, but its fulfillment is still future. The Bible is full of promises, and each one gives reason for a believer to expect some positive outcome.

One of the greatest promises in the Bible is the return of the Lord Jesus to establish His kingdom on earth. It is known in Evangelical circles as “The Rapture of the Church.”  In Titus 2:13, the Apostle Paul called this “The blessed hope.”

We don’t believe in setting dates, but that great event is certainly getting closer all the time!

Visit the Rapture page on Prophecy Central.