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| | However, for those willing to accept the plain words of the Bible and history—and just the volume of facts, evidence, proof, fruit and scriptures presented here—the white horse and rider are plainly identified as false, counterfeit Christianity!This horse and rider—armed with a very real bow—are almost done with attempts to gain converts through missionary work and dialogue. The European political, legal and military machine will soon be used by the final Beast to <em>enforce</em> the practice of Roman state religion—again! Powerful “<em>arrows</em>” will target all resistors, unleashing the most horrific global war and religious persecution the world has ever seen!The historical pattern re-emerges: <em>Religious</em> authority harnesses the power of <em>civil</em> authority to impose its will. False Christianity begets unthinkable destruction. Hence, the second horseman...<br> | | However, for those willing to accept the plain words of the Bible and history—and just the volume of facts, evidence, proof, fruit and scriptures presented here—the white horse and rider are plainly identified as false, counterfeit Christianity!This horse and rider—armed with a very real bow—are almost done with attempts to gain converts through missionary work and dialogue. The European political, legal and military machine will soon be used by the final Beast to <em>enforce</em> the practice of Roman state religion—again! Powerful “<em>arrows</em>” will target all resistors, unleashing the most horrific global war and religious persecution the world has ever seen!The historical pattern re-emerges: <em>Religious</em> authority harnesses the power of <em>civil</em> authority to impose its will. False Christianity begets unthinkable destruction. Hence, the second horseman...<br> |
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| − | <strong>CHAPTER FOURTEEN –</strong><br>
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| − | <strong>THE RED HORSE—WAR</strong><br>
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| − | The horror of war has swept the world since Cain killed Abel. It has been the result of man’s unrelenting murderous rage toward his fellow man. Its fruits are terror, destruction, economic upheaval, orphaned children, population displacement, widespread devastation of the land, rape, hunger, disease, untold suffering, misery, despair, maiming and crippling, atrocities, death and even genocide. All of this yields <em>greater</em> hatred and revenge, endless retaliation and more war, because nothing is ever permanently resolved through military conflict. No matter the diligence or sincerity of their efforts, men and nations cannot find a way to peace!
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| − | <strong>Setting the Stage</strong><br>
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| − | Let’s revisit Revelation 6:4: “And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to <em>take peace from the earth</em>, and that they should <em>kill</em> one another: and there was given unto him a <em>great sword</em>.” John’s vision has grave implications for all people today.
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| − | Compare once again the parallel passage in Matthew 24:6-7 to better understand the meaning of this symbolic horseman: “And you shall hear of wars and rumors of wars: see that you be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom…”<br>
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| − | We find that the rider of the red horse has the power to “take peace from the earth”—which of course means that <em>war</em> replaces it! He represents the dreadful devastation of armed conflict between and within nations.
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| − | The phrase “wars and rumors of wars” refers to a <em>general condition</em> of warfare that would be amplified just before Christ’s Return. The next statement—“For nation shall rise against nation, and<em> kingdom</em> against <em>kingdom</em>”—indicates a <em>further intensified state</em> of war to emerge (“kingdom against kingdom”), at this point near the very end—total world war.<br>
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| − | Luke 21:9 adds a broader understanding of these events: “But when you shall hear of wars and<em> commotions</em>, be not terrified: for these things must first come to pass; but the end is not by and by.” The Greek word for “commotions” means “disorder,” “confusion” and “tumult.” An expanded definition could include acts and effects of terrorism, such as bombings. Could any thinking person doubt this condition has arrived in full force?
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| − | But war has existed from the beginning of mankind. How then could Jesus use “wars and rumors of wars” as a special sign announcing the arrival of “the last days”?
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| − | The answer: The ever-present grim specter of war has reintroduced itself, having morphed into something with potential for destruction <em>far beyond</em> what has ever been seen before. In fact, this has already begun. Now time is running out.
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| − | <strong>A Bloody Track Record</strong><br>
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| − | It has been observed that human history has primarily been a chronicle of war. What began as family or tribal conflicts later developed into ones between nations. Some international conflicts begin with one-sided action, others with mutual aggression. Additionally, long-standing ethnic, tribal and religious differences, coupled with boundary disputes and outright intent to seize the land or property of others, have always served to fuel the <em>next</em> war fought between the same peoples or nations.
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| − | War has affected all nations in every period of history. In fact many nations have made war their primary means of livelihood—not just a means of defense, as so many claim. Those that chose not to actively pursue war were still forced to expend much time, money and effort to protect themselves—sometimes having to “buy” peace by paying tribute to powers that could have dominated or destroyed them.<br>
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| − | In the mid-1960s, a Norwegian statistician programmed a computer to count all of the wars through the 6,000 years of mankind’s history. It concluded that 14,531 wars had been fought. But this was merely the number that were <em>known</em> and <em>recorded</em>. How many more were not? And consider that this was several decades ago. Countless more have been fought since then. Of course, this does not count the endless stream of individual terrorist acts, such as suicide bombings and other assaults, which occur in undeclared wars.
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| − | ----
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| − | '''[[My Family History]]'''
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| − | '''Back to [[1The Bible’s Greatest Prophecies Unlocked!]]'''
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The devil has always sought to position himself in place of the true God. Through his universal system, he blinds and enslaves humanity. Billions are deceived. Previous billions have been. Many more will be. Even you have been lied to. A complete seduction has taken place, and the false church has played the central role in it. The most important knowledge has been kept from you by those you most trusted!
No matter its length, no one chapter could possibly cover everything about the reach and effects of the counterfeit universal system that has ravaged the world of Christendom. For instance, so much more could be explained about the almost unending number of individual false doctrines that this system has devised about salvation and the afterlife, heaven and hell, law and grace, baptism and conversion, judgment, the true Church, among many others. In addition would be the origin of the many different pagan holidays that have been imported into professing Christianity, as well as the stories of how those bringing them have gotten away with it usually by merely pasting Christian-sounding names over them. (There are certain other counterfeits of individual Bible truths that will be covered in later chapters.)
However, for those willing to accept the plain words of the Bible and history—and just the volume of facts, evidence, proof, fruit and scriptures presented here—the white horse and rider are plainly identified as false, counterfeit Christianity!This horse and rider—armed with a very real bow—are almost done with attempts to gain converts through missionary work and dialogue. The European political, legal and military machine will soon be used by the final Beast to enforce the practice of Roman state religion—again! Powerful “arrows” will target all resistors, unleashing the most horrific global war and religious persecution the world has ever seen!The historical pattern re-emerges: Religious authority harnesses the power of civil authority to impose its will. False Christianity begets unthinkable destruction. Hence, the second horseman...
