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each day on our A MESSAGE OF HOPE FROM DR. JACK VAN IMPE First seal Verse 1: And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the voice of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see. At this command, the apostle sees the One who is worthy to take the book and open the seals thereof, the blessed Lamb of God, the Lord Jesus, beginning the work of judgment. Immediately John hears the noise of thunder-a sign of impending catastrophe- as well as one of the living creatures (angels) saying, Come and see. The words, and see, are not in the original, just the word Come. It is a command given to the rider on the white horse, the infamous Antichrist. His time has arrived! Verse 2: And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer. Satan has always tried to duplicate the works of God. Back in the day of Moses, the demon-possessed magicians of Pharaoh were able to accomplish the same miracles as Aaron. This has always been Satan's ploy. He is not the creator-God is. All he can do is imitate or fake the works of the Almighty. This rider appears at the outset, or beginning, of the Tribulation period. There can be no such hour without him. Since he is the master counterfeiter, who is he imitating? The answer is found in chapter 19, verses 11 through 16, which describe Christ's return at the conclusion of the Tribulation. The fake begins it and the Saviour ends it. John says, And I saw heaven opened. This is the second time an opening appears in heaven (see Revelation 19:11) to provide an exit for Christ and His bride as they return to earth. As heaven is opened, John beholds 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. And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS. This is the coming of the true Christ. Since our Christ is God, the Antichrist also proclaims himself as God. 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 (2 Thessalonians 2:4). We will study this hypocritical creep later. Presently let's just skim the surface. The Antichrist comes to power through an international peace pact (see Daniel 9:27). This is why the horse's rider has a bow but no arrows. The Antichrist conquers through diplomacy as a king, hence, the crown. In fact, when he takes control over the nations via a world government, power [is] given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations (Revelation 13:7). The Antichrist is rapidly followed by three additional riders of judgment. Together, these four horsemen of the apocalypse bring heartache upon the globe such as has never been experienced in the annals of history. The Antichrist is called the Beast because of his character (chapter 13, verses 2 and 3), because he ascends out of the abyss (chapter 17, verse 8) and because he receives his power, his throne, and his authority from Satan (chapter 13, verse 2). The Antichrist's ascendancy to world leadership signals the unleashing of the remaining twenty judgments. The peace that was made by the first rider is broken by the one who mounts the red horse. This, of course, is in harmony with the first rider's-or Antichrist's-program. Daniel 9:27 outlines the peace package as well as its failure: And he [the Antichrist] shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease. When peace is confirmed, the Jews will feel at ease to conduct sacrifices without fear of war. However, in the midst of the week, or literally in the middle of the heptad, the contract is broken. The term heptad in the original means "seven years." As decade means "ten years" in English, so heptad means "seven years" in Hebrew. Now we understand more fully why the Tribulation covers a timetable of seven years-simply because Daniel 9:27 states that the Antichrist will make his proposal for a heptad-seven years-and then break it in the midst of the heptad, or after three and one-half years. Second seal Verse 3: And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see. Verse 4: And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword. One of the nations that marches during this period of time is Red Russia. How interesting that a rider on a red horse takes peace from the earth! Could Red Russia play such a major role during this hour? In Ezekiel 38:2, the terms Magog, Meshech, Tub-al, and Rosh are mentioned in connection with a march to the Middle East for the battle of battles, before Armageddon. Listen to the message God gave Ezekiel: Son of man, set thy face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him (Ezekiel 38:2). Each of these names can be located within the present-day Soviet Union. Tobolsk, the eastern capital of the USSR, is the ancient "Tubal" mentioned in the text. It is southwest of Siberia on modern maps-the place where U-2 pilot Gary Powers was gunned down years ago. Meshech is Moscow. The historical names for Moscow begin with "Meshech," then "Moshoch," then "Moschi," then "Moscoty," then "Moscovy" and finally, Moscow. "Rosh" is Russia herself. This "great bear" invades Israel from the north: And thou shalt come up from thy place of the north parts, thou, and many people with thee, all of them riding upon horses, a great company, and a mighty army: And thou shalt come up against my people of Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days, and I will bring thee against my land, that the heathen may know me, when I shall be sanctified in thee, 0 Gog, before their eyes (Ezekiel 38:15,16). The Soviet Union is directly north of Israel and moves against her in the latter days (see Ezekiel 38:8). The attack centers around the Holy Land. In fact, the name Israel is used eighteen times to identify the nation being invaded in Ezekiel, chapters 38 and 39. Such information attests to the divine inspiration of the Bible, for there was no nation in modern history called Israel until 1948. This war of the future undoubtedly occurs close to or during the Tribulation hour because the facts presented in this Book of Revelation tie in harmoniously with Ezekiel's prophecy. In fact, the eighth and ninth chapters contain two unusual predictions concerning the woes of the Tribulation hour which point to such a mid-East war. Chapter 8, verse 7, mentions the burning of one-third of the earth as the first angel sounded. I quote: The first angel sounded, And there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up. In turn, Revelation 9:18 depicts the extinction of one-third of the world's inhabitants, for, by these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths. The Life Pictorial Atlas, which lists land areas and population figures for every country of the world, contains shocking proof that these prophecies and astronomical figures are capable of being fulfilled at the present time. According to this statistical survey, Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America, and South America incorporate a total of 56,889,581 square miles. Dividing this figure by three, one arrives at the sum of 18,963,194 square miles-the amount of land area that will burn during the Tribulation period according to Revelation 8:7. Comparing this figure with the combined land areas of the nations predicted to align themselves for the Middle East confrontations (Daniel 2:7 and 11 and Ezekiel 38 and 39), one discovers that the two sums are identical-one-third of the globe to the exact mile, believe it or not! Is this startling? Let's go one step further. The Atlas also lists the population figures for the nations of earth. The same alignment of pro- and anti-Russian nations for the war of wars totals one-third of earth's inhabitants! Revelation 8:7 and 9:18 could become factual events, fulfilling verse 4 very, very soon! Third seal Verse 5: And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand. Verse 6: And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and wine. Famine and inflation usually follow war. The rider on the black horse produces these tragic twin sorrows upon earth. Ezekiel prophesied this hour: And thy meat which thou shalt eat shall be by weight, twenty shekels a day: from time to time thou shalt eat it. Thou shalt drink also water by measure...behold, I will break the staff of bread in Jerusalem: and they shall eat bread by weight, and with care (Ezekiel 4:10,11,16). Leviticus 26:26 states: Ye shall eat, and not be satisfied. This is pictured by the pair of balances in our text. The angel in Revelation 6:6 also cries, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny. In Bible times laborers received a denarious, or one penny, as an entire day's wages (see Matthew 20:2). A measure would be sixteen of our American ounces. Think of it! An entire day's wages for a loaf of bread! No wonder Moses said, Ye shall eat, and not be satisfied. A man will have to spend everything he has just for the necessities of life. What about the oil and wine? These items were luxuries in Bible times, and we find that there are those who still possess them during the Tribulation. Nevertheless, the general picture is that of hunger stalking the world. Why? Inflation, the leading economic culprit, becomes so bad during the Tribulation that precious metals actually become worthless. Those who think that it will help to hoard diamonds, gold, or silver should beware! During this period of time, inflation will skyrocket and the Antichrist's numerical program, 666, will replace gold, silver, and paper money. Because of the situation, they shall cast their silver in the streets, and their gold shall be removed: their silver and their gold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the Lord (Ezekiel 7:19). James adds in chapter 5, verses 1 and 3, Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you...your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days. Earthly treasure, then as now, brings nothing but sorrow and tears in the last days. One had better do what he can for the Lord while he can. Why leave it behind for the Tribulation hour or keep it until it becomes valueless? Every Christian should serve God with material blessings, winning souls to Him for all eternity. Jesus said, Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also (Matthew 6:19-21). One can either let go-give it to God and store it up on the other side-or hang on, keep it, and let greedy, unsaved relatives share it, losing it both here and forever. One must make his choice-either for the here and now, or for eternity. CHANGED LIVES-one at a time I am a twenty-six year old male and I have watched your show for the past three or four years. You have helped me better myself as a speaker of the Bible when conversing or debating with friends. Yet, as many times as I have heard you go over Bible passages I still find much of the end times confusing and difficult to understand. But equally you make it clear that the truly important thing one should grasp in understanding is the message of our Savior. We know not the hour of His return and we cannot control the future, but we can believe with our hearts and minds that Jesus died for our sins. I thank you both, Jack and Rexella, as well as all those who aid you in your mission to bring the good message to all. You have and will always will be a great inspiration in my life. Thanks
God is great! I was saved at a JVI crusade at the age of ten years old. I am not forty-one years old and continue to serve the Lord. I can remember how your knowledge of the Bible amazed me and how I knew that I did not want to spend eternity in Hell. Your knowledge of God's Word still continues to warm my heart as we listen to your TV programs... Marilyn HIGHLIGHTED PRODUCT OFFERS Why did the Lord take 6 days to create the world when He could have done it instantaneously? In this inspiring prophecy drama, a college student named Scott discovers the shocking truth that the 6 days of creation are a picture of how the course of life on earth would run leading up to the return of Christ ... and that today could be the "final day" of that picture! A thought-provoking film which will inspire Christians, End of the Harvest will also force non-believers to consider the claims of the Bible.
The Everlasting Hatred: The Roots of Jihad On September 11, 2001, an ancient fight-to-the-death conflict exploded on the shores of the United States. Though most Americans didn't realize it, we were already involved in this struggle that is driven by a hatred that goes back 4,000 years. In the aftermath of 9/11 most Americans are asking:
Islamic Fundamentalism's purpose is to replace the Judeo-Christian world order with an Islamic world order. Every American needs to understand the enormity of the threat we face and why. This book will answer these questions with evidence from both Biblical and secular history. It will also bring new hope for the coming "perilous times." WE ACCEPT PRAYER REQUESTS HERE We receive prayer requests from far and wide via the mail, fax, phone, email and now through the prayer section of our website. FEEDBACK: Please help us with your valuable input. Let us know if you enjoyed this electronic newsletter. Thank you!!!!!!!!!!! CONTACT INFORMATION: E-MAIL: jvimi@jvim.com PHONE: (248) 852-5225 (8am-4:30pm Eastern Time) FAX: (248) 852-2692 MAIL: Jack Van Impe Ministries JVIM FAMILY OF WEBSITES: JVIM PROPHECY
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