“Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this”  (Revelation 4:1).

This past week’s headline news presents more evidence that we are in the end-times.

•  Extreme weather
•  Malaysia becoming a cashless society
•  Facial recognition instead of passports in Australia
•  Germany’s Post Office now scans their citizen’s personal mail

We are not to be alarmed but understand that these events are meant to prepare us for what lies ahead.

As Jesus said, “When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near”  (Luke 21:28).

Extreme Weather

This past week, our planet has been churning and burning with severe weather in both hemispheres.

While some are calling it a sign of Divine judgment, we might also think of it as preparation — a type of picture of what will happen as prophesied in the Book of Revelation.

Indeed, God has used extreme weather as judgment in the Bible and promises to use it again.

The Prophet Isaiah describes an end-time judgment on the people for breaking God’s laws and everlasting covenant.  At that time “a curse devours the earth, and those who live in it are held guilty.  Therefore, the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men are left”  (Isaiah 24:5–6).

In the Southern Hemisphere:

Australia has been experiencing a preview of this scorching heat with melting pavement and thousands of fish, wild horses, and other animal carcasses strewn about.

January was Australia’s hottest month ever with temperatures up to 49.5 C (121.1 F) in the southern town of Port Augusta.

When our internal temperature rises above 40.5 C (105 F), the body begins to shut down.  Organ failure, seizures, and death can and do result.

Meanwhile, flooding rains in the tropical north of Queensland put the Daintree River at a 118-year high!

Thankfully, God promised Noah that He would never again destroy the earth with a flood (Genesis 9:11).  However, it will be ravaged by fire.

“The fourth angel poured out his bowl upon the sun, and it was given to it to scorch men with fire.  Men were scorched with fierce heat;  and they blasphemed the name of God who has the power over these plagues, and they did not repent so as to give Him glory”  (Revelation 16:8–9).

In the Northern Hemisphere:

At the same time, the United States and England have been experiencing a polar vortex. 

Hypothermia sets in when our bodies’ internal temperature dips to 39 C (95 F), which can happen even in temperatures of 30 to 50 F (minus 1 to 10 C).  At minus 30 F (minus 34 C), hypothermia can occur in as little as 10 minutes, if someone is not properly dressed for this kind of cold.  This causes organs to go into state of shock because the heart cannot process blood flow properly.

Over 20 deaths have occured in the US so far in temperatures (including windchill factor) that plummeted to -40 to -65 (F)!

That’s severe cold!  But it’s only a taste of the most extreme of extreme weather events that will hit earth during the Great Tribulation to come:

“Huge hailstones, about one hundred pounds each, came down from heaven upon men;  and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, which was extremely severe.”  (Revelation 16:21)

Government Surveillance

The jury is still out if there will be one “anti-Christ” as a single person or if it will be a spirit of anti-Christ that pervades a governmental body such as the United Nations.

However, if one world leader or a one-world government wanted to control the world, what would they have to do?

That’s right, monitor and control our lives.

One of the most effective ways to do that is through your bank account.

Some private payment processors like PayPal, Mastercard, and Patreon are already monitoring activity of customers and banning those who hold to different political views than they do.

Governments can, likewise, easily restrict their citizens’ digital bank accounts.

Last year, Malaysia began implementing a cashless society and time will tell how they use such power over their citizens.

Today, few of us go into a bank.  We use our computer or phone to check our bank accounts, and we pay for most things with our debit or credit cards.  Besides Malaysia, it won’t be long before all countries are fully digital.

The Prophet Daniel describes that in the end times, a ruler, a “king”  “will exalt and magnify himself above every god and will say unheard-of things against the God of gods.

“He will be successful until the time of wrath is completed, …  he will greatly honor those who acknowledge him.  He will make them rulers over many people and will distribute the land at a price.

“He will extend his power over many countries …  and he will set out in a great rage to destroy and annihilate many”  (Daniel 11:36-44).

In the final book of the Bible, we find a similar description about a beast, perhaps a man, who controls the world:

“The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise its authority for forty-two months.  It opened its mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander His name and His dwelling place and those who live in heaven.

“It was given power to wage war against God’s holy people and to conquer them. And it was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation.” (Revelation 13:5–8)

This beast will give unprecedented power to a second beast that will force “all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads”  (Revelation 13:16).

Whoever does not have that mark will not be able to buy or sell anything through their digital accounts.

Some theorize that this second beast is technology itself.

Today, most homes are becoming networked with the IOT (Internet of Things).  Our home security systems, laptops, phones, and TVs have cameras connected to the internet.

Imagine a system that controls not only our bank accounts, but everything we have:  our phones, homes, cars, computers, TVs, refrigerators, air conditioning, heating, and implanted microchips, all through the internet.

And whoever controls this technology (even by hacking it) has great power.  This is why the US government is banning the Chinese-owned Huawei’s 5G (Internet) infrastructure, which many countries are purchasing.

However, US companies have been given access to high-frequency airwaves for 5G service in the US.

It’s inevitable.  The world is now moving from 4G to the super-high frequency 5G network that will connect both consumer and industrial devices in real time.  It will also be able to track, surveil, and control every technology item we have.

No tests have been done on potential health risks. And some believe the 5G cells, which will be very close to us everywhere we go, will be used at some point in time to emit various kinds of microwave frequencies that interact with our organs and cells for various reasons, such as reducing fertility rates.

Also in the news this week, Germany has enacted one more way of government surveillance over its people.  The German post office is now offering to scan their personal mail (letters and postcards), which will be emailed to them.

Imagine, your government opening your personal mail to scan and archive it!  And people are actually paying a monthly fee for this!  Yes, paying to have your private and personal mail digitalized for the government or hackers to have access.

That’s not all.  Many governments already have our fingerprints in a national database.  And most of us are okay with that.  But soon, they will also have our unique voice sound waves as well as facial and iris identification data stored, too.

We see facial recognition technology already implemented at the Sydney, Australia airport, where passengers now only need to have their face scanned to ensure their identity.

They no longer need to use their passport!

The future of the world is heading toward no more cash and no more passports.

Imagine, again, what one man or system can do with such data.

“This calls for wisdom”  (Revelation 13:18).

Russian and Iranian Nuclear Threats

In the final end-time war, the Prophet Zechariah describes a nuclear blast.

In the Book of Zechariah, the Lord said that He (YHVH) “will gather all the nations to Jerusalem to fight against it.”  (14:2)

God will inflict a plague on the nations who fight against Jerusalem, a plague that is described as the effect of the Hiroshima nuclear blast:

“Their flesh will rot while they are still standing on their feet, their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongues will rot in their mouths.  On that day people will be stricken by the Lord with great panic.  They will seize each other by the hand and attack one another.”  (14:12–13)

Russia and Iran both have nuclear capabilities, and both are likely involved in the end-time war of Gog and Magog.

The Prophet Ezekiel describes a leader from the far north of Israel (likely Russia) who will rally several other nations in the region, including Persia (Iran) to invade Jerusalem.  (Ezekiel chapters 38–39)

So, when we hear in the news how both Iran and Russia are violating the terms of their nuclear arms treaties, we should take notice.

This week, on Saturday, February 2, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced the suspension of a key nuclear treaty with Russia, saying that Russia “remains in material breach of its obligations not to produce, possess, or flight-test a ground-launched, intermediate-range cruise missile system with a range between 500 and 5,500 kilometers [310–3,417 miles].”

Russian President Vladimir Putin said he’ll start making new weapons!

Putin said:  “The American partners have declared that they suspend their participation in the deal, we suspend it as well.”  (CNBC)

The treaty was originally intended to protect the US and Europe from Russian missiles.  More importantly, however, both Russia and Iran have in recent years placed troops and war equipment in Syria, Israel’s northern neighbor.

To add fuel to the fire, on Saturday Iran unveiled its newest long-range ballistic missile, which can reach up to 1,300 km or 807 miles, long enough to reach Israel.

What can we do?

We can pray for the peace of Jerusalem, knowing that the final war is yet to come when we will see another extreme sign:

“His [YHVH’s] feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south.”  (Zechariah 14:4)

“On that day there will be neither sunlight nor cold, frosty darkness. It will be a unique day — a day known only to the Lord — with no distinction between day and night.  When evening comes, there will be light.”  (14:6–7)

We can also spread the truth of Messiah Yeshua with our Jewish neighbors and friends throughout the world.

Time is short.  Be a part of making a difference for the Lord in these times.

“Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, and in this way all Israel will be saved.  As it is written:

“The deliverer will come from Zion;  He will turn godlessness away from Jacob.  And this is My covenant with them when I take away their sins.”  (Romans 11:25–26)