From the prospect of Biblical prophecy these are truly exciting times.

It is important that everybody understands why the landscape of Biblical prophecy teaching seems to be shifting.  Many long held assertions are being seen from the light of new revelations from the Lord and a new understanding of scriptures that we have read many times over the years.  More and more we are finding that we have overlooked what can only be described as patently obvious scriptures.

They did not become “obvious” until the Lord removed the blinders.

The Bible long ago foretold of a time of great understanding as the end approached.  Indeed we are seeing this manifest today.  Here is the thing – it is not just one or two scholars here and there that see these changes.  It is becoming a body wide occurrence that has manifested in believers of every denomination, orthodoxy and sect.  There is no single or individual tie between the many believers that are coming to renewed understanding of scripture save one – the salvation of Christ.

Daniel 12:4, 8-9 – But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.

And I heard, but I understood not: then said I, O my Lord, what shall be the end of these things?  And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.

Indeed, this revelatory outpouring has transcended traditional lines that would draw calls of “heresy” from one denomination to another.  That is the key difference here.  There is no particular bend in the body of believers that has escaped this outpouring.  From the charismatic movement to the Holiness movement – from Baptists to Lutherans – from Pentecostal to Presbyterian it is the same.  Old divisions that once stood in stark contrast to one another have begun to share an understanding – absent cooperation – that cannot be attributed to the heresy of a particular doctrine or denomination.

From these revelations there have emerged four narratives that seem to denominate the prophecy spectrum across the doctrinal divide:

Israel is the key to end times prophecy.  All study must be grounded in roots of our common Jewish heritage in order to glean the full meaning of the scriptures.  Understand, this is not a call to join the Hebrew Roots Movement.  Rather, it is a nearly universal acknowledgement from all sectors of the body of Christ that we have been missing something – something that cannot be provided absent a better understand of the Orthodox Jewish history of the church.  After all, Jesus was an orthodox Jew.

Secondly – The narrative of the revived Roman Empire is incorrect as many of us have held it.  It is becoming clear that while there will be a revived Roman Empire, it will be an empire that willingly and without any struggle surrenders to a greater, more vicious power that strikes forth to subdue the greater parts of the earth.

Here is the short description of the statue of Daniel and the “revived Roman Empire”:

The standard of the revived Roman Empire made a great deal of sense for many years until Islam truly hit its current iteration in the last 25 years or so.  Once this happened it became possible to understand Daniels vision regarding the statue of world empires.

For those reading that are unsure how the revived Roman Empire ideology came about here it is. The two legs of iron seemed to naturally fit Rome and its division into the east and west empires.  Also, there has been a school of thought that the western empire may have been representative of the two legs and ten toes as ten barbarian cultures eventually ended the Western Roman Empire.  However, this theory never seemed to accurately account for the clear division of Rome into two separate and autonomous entities.

While the revived Roman Empire understanding still holds, history has cleared the clutter and now many can now see how Rome did indeed spawn the two legs.  Indeed, the two legs did become the east and west empires; it went beyond that though.

The west empire became the Catholic Church, the Holy Roman Empire and the nations of European Christendom.  The east empire became Byzantium, then the Ottoman Empire and finally the current collection of nations in the Middle East that bow before Allah.

We now know through additional scripture – such as the two chapters describing the religious and political empires comprising of Mystery Babylon (Revelation 17 details the coming religious Babylon while Revelation 18 details the coming political Babylon) – that an apostate church will bow low before Islam, deny the nature of Christ as the only begotten Son of God and succeed in surrendering the whole of the western empire to Allah.  It will do so while yet millions are executed (by different means at first, then exclusively through beheading) by Islamic hordes (for the testimony of Christ) that have embarked on a soft, silent invasion that has lasted for 20 years.  Their armies are now complete.  We shall speak more on Islam in a moment.

Third – While there are many that argue against a pre-tribulation Rapture, the advent of the increased study of Jewish tradition has made any other conclusion nearly untenable.  While the arguments against a pre-tribulation Rapture have remained stagnant and unchanging, the amount of renewed revelation and understanding for the pre-tribulation Rapture are beyond what any could have imagined even 50 years ago.

Among these inescapable understandings are the ancient traditional Jewish wedding, the seven Feasts of the Lord, the harvest cycles and seasons and the Book of Remembrance to name a few.

Fourth, the common denominator is, and has always been Islam.  This has become the single greatest piece of the revelatory shift that has occurred.  More and more Biblical scholars can see with clearing eyes the full weight of Islam bearing down on the earth.

From the Arabic name of Allah being equal to the Greek number six hundred, sixty and six to the colors of Islam seen in the four horseman of the apocalypse there is no escaping it.  Even the directions of the earth for which the riders of the horses are dispatched gives a chilling indication of where the devastation they herald shall be released – and it all points to Islam and the surrender of Europe.  We have watched in the last year alone as the players for the battles against Israel line up and begin to prepare.  We have watched as current world history literally offers a remarkable lesson on ancient Biblical geography – especially in the Middle East.  It has become unnerving for those with knowledge of Biblical prophecy to watch the last pieces of the puzzle line up.

For the new prophecy scholar this is doubtless a confusing time.  It becomes difficult to read, study and research with so many changes being introduced nearly as fast as the next version of Windows or Apple Iphone.  Here is what must be remembered – there has been but one man to walk the earth that was capable of knowing and understanding the entire revelation of God.

You and I are not Him.

You see, the Lord delivers revelation and understanding to each of us as we are built, or ready to understand it.  There are some that are naturally better at understanding economics.  To them the Lord may concentrate revelations and understanding on the mark of the beast and the coming global economic system.  To the retired military officer may go revelations concerning the prophecies of Ezekiel 38 and 39.  To the doctor may fall a greater understanding of plagues and pestilence.

There are some that are called to be seekers.  A seeker is a natural academic.  By default they will have a well-rounded understanding of many things.  The seeker is a digger by design.  They can find the things that most will miss.  The seeker has an ability to speak, yet this is not their first calling.  Their powers of speech are such that others that are called first to speech will be able to understand their efforts and run with the results.

That would be the speaker.  The speaker is likewise a natural academic, though not to the degree of the seeker.  They too hold a well-rounded understanding of the things around them.  However, their understanding is based on the need to interpret what the seeker finds into a language that is easily digested by the masses.

It is important that you understand this dynamic of revelation as you go forward in your studies of prophecy.  It will be critical in maintaining perspective as you interpret the things you hear and build your own base line for prophetic understanding.  Also, you must never forget that learning in the Lord is a lifelong process.  I cannot name a single biblical scholar of renown that holds the exact beliefs that were present when they started their journey with the Lord.  This does not mean that their views and beliefs were wrong.  Rather, they held what is best described as incomplete understandings of the complete picture.

Remember, there is only One that ever mastered the whole equation.

In my own life I have a background in math, science and electrical engineering.  I have completed many years of training, experience and education.  Yet, I still endeavor to understand the nature of electricity.  So simple in its construct yet so powerful in its application.  Electricity is energy at the atomic level.  The fact that mankind can both harness and manipulate this force of nature is a true testament to all we have achieved.  Yet, like my colleagues and brethren in the industry I continue to search for an even greater understanding that will open additional avenues of possibility.

It is an understanding that does indeed grow.  Likewise, the more we learn – such as in the study of electricity given as example – the more we are able to find an increasing bed of knowledge.  This is what has occurred, and is occurring in the study of prophecy and especially the study of the pre-tribulation Rapture.

What each of you can take from this is the simple concept laid out in the pages of the Bible.  Line upon line, precept upon precept – with prayer and faith the Lord will help you to build the understanding that He has set aside for you.  I cannot state this enough – trust that the Lord reveals things as He sees fit.  Be equally thankful for what He withholds as He is perfect and surely holds a perfect reason for keeping something from you.

That is how it is with all of us.  That is how it will be with you as well.

Blessings to all in the name of our blessed Lord and Savior, Christ Jesus.