Prophecy

Wilful Forgetfulness

Why do people choose to ignore or forget?

by Donald CB Cameron

BIBLE PROPHECY PUZZLE

Does Bible prophecy seem to be a bit of a puzzle?

Tod Hampson

Everyone recognises that world conditions are disintegrating at an unprecedented rate, but many don't see these conditions as signs of the end-times. And I understand why.

INTELLECTUAL climates change continually. Why they have such authority while they last, it is difficult to understand. Certainly in recent decades the religious outlook on our Lord’s return has changed.

The past few months have been a very dark time for our nation and for the world. Whilst Covid-19 is still a threat to be taken seriously, there are moves to try and restore some semblance of normality. We remain hopeful that ‘the clouds are lifting.’ This book of the same name is a reprint of a work last century by the late Oswald J Smith, former pastor of The Peoples Church, Toronto, and a speaker on our UK platforms. It is sub-titled, ‘Studies in prophecy and the visions of Daniel.’ Clearly the Babylonian exile was a dark time in the history of the Hebrew people and much of Daniel's prophecy looked forward to brighter days when the clouds would be lifted.

I have lived through several impactful - even game-changing - historical events, which all occurred within 1 year. I worked in DC (District of Columbia) on 9/11, during the DC sniper murders, and during the DC anthrax mail attacks. That condensed time period was a pivotal moment in our nation’s history. Things were never the same. Our Gen-Z population doesn’t know what it was like before 9/11, just as my Gen-X generation doesn’t know what it was like before the culture-shaking events of the 1960's. After 9/11, people filled churches again - but only for a time.

What do Brexit, the 100% politically-motivated impeachment of a US president, and an unprecedented third round of Israeli elections (in less than a year) have in common? One word —Globalism.

In the first article in this series, we were able to provide a definition of prophecy, i.e. we observed that prophecy was, in simple terms, a message emanating from God via the Holy Spirit, providing truths otherwise unknown to its hearers. We were also able to identify some of the key characteristics of prophecy; for example, that the truths being communicated might be about past or future events and also that the future events being foretold may be immutable, or may be subject to change, depending upon the response of the hearers.

When the old Soviet Union collapsed in the late 1980’s, we saw the emergence of ‘Glasnost' (openness) and of ‘Perestroika’ (Restructuring) and we hoped that a real change had somehow taken place in the old land of Russia. For a time we dared to believe that there had been real change.

"He must be loosed a little season"

(Rev. 20: 3. 7-10)
by Dr. Alec Passmore