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Post by xbeatxofxmyxheartx on Jul 17, 2006 12:50:10 GMT -5
Hello all.  I know I haven't been here in a while. I've been quite busy with my own forum and of course real life stuff. I just wanted to see what you all thought of this..... Yesterday we were at Walmart and while we were checking out, I saw this magazine (Sunday something i think it is..) and it said Armageddon Begins Next Month. When we got home I got on the computer and searched for anything that might give a little more information about this. I found this website/forum: forums.prospero.com/lb-prophecyclub A lot of people on there are thinking that the rapture might be coming pretty soon. They were talking about all the current events (ex. war with Isreal) and it sounded like they could be right. This came as a bit of a surprise for me. I mean, I just didn't think it would happen in my lifetime, you know? I have been thinking about this since I saw that magazine yesterday. Anyone have any comments?? |
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Post by Michael on Jul 17, 2006 13:48:43 GMT -5
Well, try reading Matthew 24. It gives the signs of the end times and if going by that chapter... we are very close. We are living in the End Times and soon Christ will return. It's scary but true. But for the most part, read Matthew 24 and compare what it says there with the current events of today.
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Post by xbeatxofxmyxheartx on Jul 17, 2006 13:50:34 GMT -5
Okay, thank you for the advice. |
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Post by Michael on Jul 18, 2006 15:30:46 GMT -5
Hmm, I don't think it was really advice.. but you're welcome. lol. But I'm serous about reading it.
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Post by Lhiata on Jul 19, 2006 23:46:44 GMT -5
Ermm.... anyone care to quote parts of Mattew 24, or summarize?
*pleads sweetly with cookies and iced tea*
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Post by Nya on Jul 20, 2006 0:35:36 GMT -5
This Curtisey of LifeWay's Online BibleChapter 24 Christ foretells the destruction of the temple 1 And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple. 2 And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down. 3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world? 4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. 5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. 6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows. 9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake. 10 And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. 11 And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. 12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. 13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come. 15 When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand: ) 16 Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains: 17 Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house: 18 Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes. 19 And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! 20 But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day: 21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. 22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened. 23 Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. 24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. 25 Behold, I have told you before. 26 Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not. 27 For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 28 For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together. 29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: 30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
32 Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: 33 So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors. 34 Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled. 35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away. 36 But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. 37 But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, 39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 40 Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. 41 Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left. 42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. 43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. 44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh. 45 Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season? 46 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. 47 Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods. 48 But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; 49 And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken; 50 The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, 51 And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.thats close to how its listed on that site. Hope it helps. I wanted to look it up anyways ^^ And the numbers are the chapter thingys I not sure what they called. |
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Post by PawsTastic on Jul 20, 2006 15:11:29 GMT -5
When you see in the Bible that says Matthew 24, that is the chapter of Matthew then there are numbers behind every important informations, they are verses. DJ can point it out better.
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Post by Michael on Jul 21, 2006 12:38:51 GMT -5
Quoted from the King James Version Bible; Matthew 24: 6-8: We are living in the last days, but the end is not yet as told in verse 6. We have all witnessed scenes and images whether it be from the news, internet, newspaper, etc. We have all seen the wars. I do believe that we can all agree that since . . . maybe the late 90s a lot of nations, countries, states, have been fighting amongst themselves. Look at the mideast. It seems as if they will never quit. This very moment, Israel is lining the borders of Lebanon/Israel with tanks and troops. There are always civil wars popping up in the nations of Africa. Whether it is for freedom or more land. Then the US and Iraq, Afganistan, Uzbekistan, and the other sympathizers of the US enemys. Our world is at war! It seems as if lately all we are doing is fighting and all of this was prophesied in Matthew 24! I'm unsure of how old Jesus was when he taught chapter 24, but since he didn't start his ministry until after he was 30. We'll say he preached it when he was 30/31. If he did, then everything having to do with these "wars and rumors of wars" was prophsied 1975/6 years ago! According to dictionary.com, pestilence means "A usually fatal epidemic disease, especially bubonic plague."Since the early 90s, cases of AIDS/HIV, Monsterous Locust Plaque, TB, a Drug Resistant TB Epidemic and others have been recorded. New deadly viruses and diseases have also been found. We've been racked by the Mad Cow Disease as well as the Ebola Virus. A highly mutated bacteria, which was given the name of Superbug (for real) by doctors around the world, has been reaking havoc because it is extremely and highly resistance to antibiotics. Thousands of elk and other animals have been affected by the Mad Deer disease (a disease much like the Mad Cow disease) in Canada and parts of Northern US. In the past, the US, the UN, and other influention and powerful nations were threatened with antrax. The US just got past the West Nile virus. Zimbabwe is witnessing many deaths to the "Foot and Mouth" disease, which is an animal disease, but can also affect humans through skin wounds or through the oral mucusa by handling infected stock. The has been a Dengue Fever outbreak in Hawaii, the first since 1943. And then we are experiencing the the Bird Flu! We have also been experiencing many earthquakes, tsunamis, and hurricanes since 2000. It seems as if the number of hurricanes is growing at a higher rate than before in past hurricane seasons. The earthquakes are stronger than before, And the Tsunamis hitting past the previous years records. There is no need for me to explain the famines for we know there are many in Africa, rationings being made in order for the war efforts, etc. We all know about it. And this is only verses 6&7!! These two verse alone show how we are living in the last days.Also defined by dictionary.com, sorrows means: 1. Mental suffering or pain caused by injury, loss, or despair. 2. A source or cause of sorrow; a misfortune. 3. Expression of sorrow; grieving.The wars, rumors of wars, pestilences, earthquakes, and famines are only the beginning of sorrows! Or the beginning of mental suffering/pain caused by injury, loss, or despair. Or the beginning of other things that'll cause sorrow. Or the beginning of misfurtune. This beginning of sorrows is only in the last days! the days before the rapture. When Jesus Christ returns in the clouds he will take all the dead saints and then the saints that are alive and remain on earth, he will take. All those that do not follow him he leaves. Then the Tribulation when even more things take place that add on to those things of the Beginning of Sorrows. The Tribulation is seven years long. Towards the end, things are worse the then earth has ever seen. And when the seven years is up, a major war will take place. A war in which the WHOLE world. Meaning every civilian and service man alike, will fight. Then Christ returns to those how came to him after the rapture and to judge those who did not. |
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Post by Lhiata on Jul 21, 2006 20:09:13 GMT -5
"19 And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!"
Greaaaat. Just great. So women of child-bearing age are doubly screwed.
This does freak me out a bit, I mean, look at the weather 100 years ago, and look at it today, it's... acting different.
Excuse me, it's... far more severe today, a great deal more of natural disasters and such.
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Post by Michael on Jul 21, 2006 23:47:41 GMT -5
Hmm, maybe not doubly but according to that verse at the verse least, equally "screwed".
Yeah, check out the hurricane records from 100 years ago and now look at last hurricane season's records.
I'm not sure how this was suppose to be meant, but you're right either way. The weather is a lot more severe than what is was even 10 years ago. It's not just the weather, either. Television has gotten worse- even non-Christians can agree with that, the morale of people today, the violence, etc. The list continues.
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Post by Lhiata on Jul 22, 2006 20:33:15 GMT -5
I said "excuse me" because I was tripping over my words, 'tis all. |
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Post by Michael on Jul 22, 2006 22:11:38 GMT -5
 Okay, either way I didn't mind. lol. Working in fast food helps you like that. lol. ;D |
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Post by Aled on Jul 23, 2006 14:21:30 GMT -5
Hehe there is too much to read lol. But in my personal opinon the rapture is not coming. There is alot of stuff that has been happening and I talked to my dad about it, he doesn't think it is anywhere near. The signs are too, whats the word...weak? yes there is a war between Israel and Lebonan but thats nothing compared ot what would happen before and during the rapture. Also it saays there will be natural disasters worse then ever spanning the globe. Yes there have a been a few but once again nothing compared to what will happen. The rapture is not somehting small, its the beggining of the end, the time when every chrisitan and ebliever go to heaven and every non-believer is doomed to an infinite lifetime in hell. So I think there is a heck of alot more to ahppen before we start quesitoning it |
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Post by Ifrit on Jul 23, 2006 14:29:45 GMT -5
I Stand with Aled there.
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Post by dj on Jul 23, 2006 20:17:24 GMT -5
ok. I understand one thing about it all. I know it is going to happen, I know that whwen the time comes I will be taken and it leaves me one question for everyone that reads this: regardless of whether it happens tonight or in 500 years, are you ready? DO you want to chance the fact that it might not happen yet? What if you are wrong? Jesus prepaes us by saying, "No one knows the time nor the hour but God Himself.." Do we really want to take the chance and say, it may happen after my lifetime and then not be prepared? What happens if you are wrong. We must begin to live as if it will happen at any moment. even if you die before the rapture does come. Are you prepared? Are you ready? Can you say today with confidence that if Jesus Christ were to come back today in 5 minutes that you know for a fact that you will be taken with Him? the plan for salvation is very clear. NO person can enter the Kingdom of Heaven EXCEPT through ME, (Jesus). By claiming that He is the Son of God, born of a virgin, died on the cross so that He could take our sins upon Himself allowing Him to become the ultimate sacrifice, that He rose again three days later from the dead so that we can live eternally in Heaven with Him; this is the only way to Heaven. If you believe it, then tell God that. Don't just think it or believe, confess it to Him. tell Him you know you are a sinner, and repeat what i said before. But believe it and mean it. Allow God to ake you and mold you into the person HE wants you to be. this is not a ploy. This is truth. If you would like more information on this i have a website dedicated strictly to this. you can visit us at any time at www.christscrusaders.com or the forum at www.christscrusaders.net me or someone else is always willing to talk about this with you. |
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Post by dj on Jul 23, 2006 20:30:53 GMT -5
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Post by Lhiata on Jul 23, 2006 20:44:44 GMT -5
I just had an hour-long conversation with my boss and the other waitresses, and the whole thing just makes me feel so... tired.
I mean, it's frightening, the concept alone, but what can one really do...
My boss is religious, and I just felt like...
Alright, who here has seen the movie "Dogma"?
It's kind of like that. I feel that it's more important just to *have* faith rather than to have faith in a religion... I was raised Catholic, and always felt that faith was treated more like a burden than a blessing...
I guess I'm the kind of non-denominational user-friendly believer. *shrugs and offers to lend out my copy of Dogma*
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Post by Michael on Jul 23, 2006 21:21:45 GMT -5
Aled, Jesus said that in the End Times there will be many scoffers and skeptics. Today, many people do question the End Times and whether they will be happening because many books and movies have come out saying they'd happen at such a time and it not happen. Like Lhiata said, thinking about it can make you tired but waiting for it would to. The Bible says to keep the faith and watch the skies. We are to comfort one another with "Maranotha" or "Our Lord Cometh". As Matthew 24 says the love will wax cold due to iniquity. Iniquity is putting your will and desires over that of God's. I think we can all agree that our world is filled with iniquity and is continuing to fill even more so. I do believe that we are living in the Last Days... but I don't know whether the Rapture will be soon or whether I'll be 82. Jesus said that no one knows the hour, the minute, the second at which he would return. Not even himself. Only God the Father knows. Again, Matthew 24 speaks of the two men in the field. One is taken, another is left. I believe that not only would I be blessed more but I'd be more prepared if I kept watch. If I was sure to be ready for his coming. Otherwise, I may slip and be preoccupied with things I shouldn't be and be caught unaware.
I've heard of Dogma but I honestly can't talk about it having not seen it. But I agree with you though, Lhiata. The Catholic faith has become to be more of a burden than a blessing. Honestly, and I know I will set some off, I don't catagorize Catholicism under Christianity. Catholicism is a religion in its own, I think. Jesus says that we are to believe on him and he will save us. He is our mediator to God the Father. Not Mary. Yes, Mary was chosen to give the miraculous virgin birth but she cannot go to God for us. Only Jesus. He was the one to die for us. He was the one to live a perfect and sinless life to die for those who live sinful and wicked lives. Btw, when I say wicked I mean even the nice old elderly man who gives the little dum dum lolipops. If he didn't recieve Christ as his personal savior and does not have a relationship with him and God, he is wicked. I don't mean that in a harsh way either so please don't take it that way.
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Post by dj on Jul 23, 2006 22:22:23 GMT -5
When we are born , we are born into a sinful nature, spiritually. We are sinful, wicked as Michael put it. God tells us the the punishment of sin is death. Also spiritual. Our spiritual death is eternal and we will spend it in hell UNLESS we repent of our sins. By repenting, we are confessing that Jesus Christ came to earth to die for our sins so that those sins can be forgiven. Jesus became the human sacrifice of death for us, in place of us, so that we may live eternally in Heaven. That is our spiritual life, life in Heaven. THis is also the life that we are granted when we repent and confess. God's forgiveness is available to everyone in existence, but in order to gain eternal life in Heaven, we must God for that forgiveness that He has so freely given through the death of His Son. It is like I said in my last post about this, If you believe it, then you just have to tell Him it. I can give you a book, but you dont have that book unless you take it. same principle here. Jesus has given us that forgiveness, through His death, but we have to claim it in order to receive it. It is available to all who believe. All yuo gotta do is ask.
I wouldnt place my faith or the basis of things i believe in movies or what can be derived from movies or books. A movie is some guys opinions put into picture. What you need to look for in answers is better found in the Bible. try looking there. i can guarantee you will find what you are looking for!
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Post by nateyboy on Feb 27, 2007 23:16:54 GMT -5
As for the end times... I highly doubt were close to the tribulation.
1.
It talks about being persicuted by all nations... there way to many nations that don't heavly persicute christins for it to be any time soon.
2.
Thesilonains talks about the resurection of the body and the dead at the sound of the last trumpet. Some people Link this to the 7 trumpets and seals in revealations in which case if that were ture we have quite a few plagues to go through before then.
3.
Many things have still not come to pass that are predicted... we only think we might have noted some currently happening.
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