FEARFUL SIGHTS AND GREAT
SIGNS FROM HEAVEN

INTRODUCTION

"He ... [was] cool [to the touch] ... and unresponsive. Pupils were fixed and ... insensitive to light. No cardiac activity was present. I determined at that time he was deceased. The patient was unfamiliar to me."

Statement made on 12/09/2003 by b7c-4, bb-4
[From the Death of Prisoner #58 by Sean Sullivan]

Prisoner #58 died of unknown causes while being jailed at the Army Brigade Holding Area (BHA) in Mosul, Iraq on December 9, 2003. Sean Sullivan, who works for the Center for Constitutional Rights in New York, describes the official report, such as it is, on his death:

"Perhaps ... [prisoner #58] had a heart attack, perhaps he was diabetic, perhaps he had an allergic reaction, or perhaps he was beaten to death. We don't know. No one in the U.S. Army cared enough to follow through on an investigation into his death. All we know about the fate of ... [prisoner #58] has come from a series of statements taken from soldiers in the U.S. Army in the days after his death. There was to have been an autopsy, as indicated in a checklist at the end of an official army report. They were going to do another round of information gathering, but from the files presented by the government, none of that ever happened. For the U.S. Army ... [prisoner #58's] death amounted to a routine filing of paperwork on which no one remembered to follow up. The cause of [his] death, like ... [many others] in U.S. custody in Iraq remains unsolved."

The brevity and humdrum nature of the report Sullivan describes here is shocking - and what's especially troubling is that there is no explanation on how or even why prisoner #58 came into U.S. custody. He evidently was just another Iraqi who was picked up in a routine "security sweep," hooded and cuffed, and taken to a U.S. "holding facility."

Prisoner #58 was kept in a "general occupation cell" with numerous other Iraqis. He was apparently not a high security risk prisoner or a "major target." Plainly, he just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time when a so-called "security sweep" of the area in which he was living occurred. THE WHOLE INCIDENT SURROUNDING THE CAPTURE AND DEATH OF PRISONER #58 IS KAFKAESQUE IN ITS IMPLICATIONS: The haphazardness of it all is enough to send shivers down the spine of anyone familiar with the meaning of this phrase.

ROUTINE SECURITY SWEEPS LAND THOUSANDS OF INNOCENT
IRAQI CIVILIANS IN PRISON UNDER MEDIEVAL CONDITIONS

The kind of security sweep that landed prisoner #58 in jail in Mosul is now pretty much a commonplace occurrence in Iraq and Afghanistan. The captives caught up in these sweeps - tens of thousands of them, most of whom are innocent - are held incommunicado without charge or trial, according to a March 19, 2005 report in the British Newspaper, the Guardian. They are imprisoned under medieval conditions - in open-air cages, holes in the ground, in equipment storage containers, and in the barbaric prisons of the former rulers of these states. The fact is, THERE ARE MORE PRISONERS TODAY IN IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN THAN THERE WERE DURING THE BRUTAL REGIMES OF BOTH SADDAM HUSSEIN IN IRAQ AND THE TALIBAN IN AFGHANISTAN. All this should say something to us about the savage nature of the U.S. occupation of both countries.

Herbert Bix, a professor of history and sociology at Binghamton University and the author of the Pulitzer prize-winning Hirohito and the Making of Modern Japan, reports that the U.S. army has turned both countries into huge prison camps where gratuitous pain is inflicted on the bodies of prisoners, and where death is an ubiquitous, all-consuming presence. Indeed, U.S. soldiers, CIA agents ("case officers"), and mercenaries ("civilians") working for privatized military firms under contract to the Pentagon, are known to have sadistically tortured large numbers of prisoners while having their deeds photographed and filmed so that they could be seen by friends back home.

And all this is what Pat Robertson calls -

"... A MOVEMENT IN THE HEAVENLIES to break the power of deception so that people [in Afghanistan and Iraq] can be exposed to the gospel" ?

My heavens! - is Robertson "nuts?" But then what else should one expect from a man who openly has called for the assassination of Hugo Chavez, the president of Venezuela.

Robertson has since apologized for this, but only because he was "hoisted by his own petards" by the Left; after all, we have not quite reached the point in our society where this kind of arrogance can be openly supported, and where the Left is prevented from pointing out the shameful, UNCHRISTIAN character of such statements.

But one should not suppose that Robertson was necessarily apologizing to his own "Christian" constituency, most of whom would undoubtedly applaud his "guts" for making such a statement; nor should one assume that he was trying to "regain" the confidence of his corporate sponsors, who are as incensed as he is by the thought that their "holdings" in Venezuela and elsewhere in Latin America are threatened by the socialism implicit in the "Castroesque" politics that Chavez embraces. The American elites feel exactly as Robertson does, though they undoubtedly would have had the sense to have been a little more discreet in expressing their opinions on the matter.

In the three days preceding his death, prisoner #58 was kept hooded and handcuffed; he was subjected to "up and downs" and "smoking." These procedures are not defined by the official army report. On the night of his death, prisoner #58 was given a blanket, and he went to sleep with a hood on his head and his hands tied behind his back.

According to the guards, he did not make any unusual noises in the night. He did not ask for medical assistance. None of the other prisoners touched him. The last time anyone saw him move was at three in the morning when he kicked off his blanket, and one of the soldiers placed the blanket back on top of him.

No lifesaving measures were attempted on him. The final report completed on prisoner #58 contains minimal medical notes and is roughly half a page long. He had ulcers on his wrists, a laceration on the back of his head, a hematoma under the skin on his right bicep and hideous hemorrhages on his stomach, as if he had been brutally kicked there shortly before he expired.

Obviously, if the guards weren't responsible for these injuries, mercenaries were not involved, and CIA operatives were not lurking about that night, very strange supernatural and ethereal forces were at work - the kind that "go bump in the night:"

The awareness of prison and the HORROR connected to it impose themselves in numerous ways onto the daily lives of people in both Iraq and Afghanistan, and they contribute to a climate in which the entire populations of both countries have in effect been CRIMANILIZED - and this fact is central to the institutionalization of the American puppet regimes in both countries.

The consciousness of prison bars imposing themselves on a people and disrupting their close personal, social and family networks is an all too familiar reality to the captive populations of America's client-states. It disrupts their relationships, keeps the captive populations "off balance," and instills a paralyzing fear into all those who come in contact with it. It's probably safe to say that there isn't a family in both Iraq and Afghanistan that hasn't had at least one of its members mysteriously "disappeared" into the American gulag never to be heard of again; nor is there a family that has not received that dreaded "midnight knock on the door" and had family members hauled away. The terror of being "disappeared" into the American system of incarceration is an ever present and fearful reality to the people in these countries.

Some might object to this characterization of what's happening in Iraq and Afghanistan, claiming that these measures have not been sufficiently harsh to quell the "insurrection" in both countries. But one should remember that insofar as most of the captive population in these two countries are concerned, these measures have been very potent. After all, it has led, for example, to a situation in Iraq that has allowed 135,000 troops to control a population almost two hundred and twenty times its own size - a pretty remarkable feat by any estimation, despite the not so "occasional" roadside bomb.

But who really cares about those being killed? - Americans or Iraqis; the American soldiers are, for the most part, "nobodies" who have been recruited from the "down-and-outs" of American society and whose lives will hardly be missed - despite all the public hand-wringing and bogus posturing that seems to indicate otherwise. And, naturally enough, the Iraqis are even less of a consideration in the "risk to gain ratios" and financial calculations of America's elites who are profiting by the U.S. occupation of these countries, OR does one really think that the deaths of these people - even the deaths of American soldiers - cause the CEOs of Exxon-Mobile, Phillips, Haliburton, General Motors, General Electric, Ford, DuPont, etc. to lose any sleep? If so, I have a bridge in Brooklyn I would like to sell them!

Indeed, the number of deaths occasioned by these bombs - again, both Iraqi and American - are not much more than occurs in the United States on a routine basis in America's ghettos where the "outcasts" and so-called "failures" of the American "way-of-life" (who, sadly, are exactly those who have been inducted as "cannon-fodder" into America's war machine) are effectively confined. It's just that the world press is riveted on what's occurring there (i.e., in Iraq and Afghanistan) and making a fuss over it, unlike the slaughter of innocents that goes on daily in the precincts of America's underclass - a slaughter that the American media conglomerates have effectively hidden from the world. Oh that the world would simply avert its gaze from what's happening in Iraq - it would make things so much simpler for the elites.

Of course, it's not that average Americans themselves are totally ignorant of what's occurring in Iraq, it's that THEY DON'T REALLY CARE - at least those who support George Bush's American New World Order System, which includes, naturally enough, most Christians.

It seems that nothing is able to make Christians focus on what's happening there - not published reports that the CIA is training special units at Fort Bragg as "death squads" to be used in Iraq and Afghanistan; not the video pictures of U.S. helicopters murdering wounded Iraqis lying on the ground; not published reports by reputable newspapers in Europe that during the U.S. attack on Fallujah, napalm and poison gas were used; not the fact that civilians holding white flags have been routinely gunned down, and hospitals and health centers have been attacked; and not reports that the U.S. has seized foreign nationals in their own countries (in Italy, in Canada, in Germany, in Sweden, etc.) who ostensibly oppose George Bush's so-called "War on Terror," and has had them shipped off to prisons in Syria, Jordan and Egypt to be tortured.

But Americans should care! Why? - because, as Malcolm X once said,

"Chickens have a way of coming home to roost."

By that he meant, that the same techniques that the American military is now using against the citizens of Iraq and Afghanistan will someday be used against them: And there are indications that these techniques are already being used in the United States against "trouble makers" in the "Underclass."

The truth is, as the occupations in Iraq and Afghanistan rage on, the Bush administration is systematically - and without much public notice - putting in place an infrastructure designed to control the American population in much the same fashion that the captive populations in Iraq and Afghanistan are being controlled today. The fact is, as the "War on Terror" progresses throughout the world, as the country moves inexorably towards a "Draft" that is capable of providing the "cannon-fodder" for America's wars of conquest, as more and more social programs for the poor are "dried up" in order to feed greater and greater amounts of money into the American war effort, as civil rights restrictions become ever more burdensome and people begin to become "restive," physical control of the population will have to become that much more onerous and "out in the open."

And that's precisely what's happening: For example, in Los Angeles, the pastor of the Bethel A.M.E. (African Methodist-Episcopal) Church, Dr. Lewis Logan II, called a press conference last July 11^th at the corner of 89^th Street and Western Avenue where - just a few months earlier - Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) Officer Stephen Garcia had brutally gunned down 13-year-old Devin Brown in one of the city's most contentious shootings. The community was so outraged that it formed the CCTAA, a grass-roots organization known for its rallying efforts in support of the rights of "disenfranchised populations." The purpose of the gathering at the intersection of 89^th and Western was to call attention to a new covert government operation that was beginning to make its presence felt in the ghetto areas of Los Angeles. The operation is known as "Operation Nutcracker."

Dr. Logan told the assembled crowd:

"Our being here is not symbolic, but substantive of what we are here to discuss, to dramatize, highlight and underscore - that we are concerned that we will disproportionately suffer as a result of Operation Nutcracker."

Melane Muhammad, reporting for the Nation of Islam's newspaper, The Final Call - a newspaper that historically has been one of the first to report on such clandestine government programs - relates that "Operation Nutcracker" is sponsored by the "First Greater Los Angles Neighborhood Stabilization Council (1^st GLANSC), a shadowy "secret-police" organization that originated out of the federal government's new "Gang Bill." The group coordinates the activities of the LAPD, the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department, and federal agencies including the Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearm Agency (ATF), the FBI, and the DEA. Similar programs are being organized in other cities around the country. The goal of the program is to -

"... STABILIZE" neighborhoods by identifying, extracting and detaining any gang members or alleged gang members as DOMESTIC TERRORISTS."

THIS IS EXACTLY THE KIND OF LANGUAGE USED BY THE MILITARY IN THEIR "STABILIZATION" PROGRAMS IN IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN. Melane Muhammad reports that at a recent city council meeting in Los Angeles, 1^st GLANSC members informed those in attendance that gang members (which they identified as "domestic terrorists") would be -

"... carted off to undisclosed MILITARY CAMPS or bases for DISCIPLINE training."

Shocking? - you bet it is, It sounds like some kind of strange aberration out of a "Clockwork Orange." But it isn't! - these are "statements of fact" provided to the L.A. City Council by 1^st GLANSC and its related agencies. What's particularly frightening in the L.A. "Stabilization Program" and similar programs throughout the country is the manner in which these programs have been related to the military. It gives one an idea of just how close the government has come to effectively nullifying the nation's Posse Comitatus act and abolishing the line between the military and civilian police forces - a line that all dictatorships must inevitably and officially annul.

In this connection, it is interesting to note that in the wake of the disaster in New Orleans and what is being pawned off to the American population as an ineffective response by civilian authorities to the catastrophe, the president and many others - both Democratic and Republican officials - are calling for just that: THE ABOLITION OF THE NATION'S POSSE COMITATUS ACT. How convenient for the government! We are surely on the verge of a military dictatorship! - and it seems that that's exactly what so-called "responsible people" want, at least those who voted for George Bush; specifically, Christians.

The L.A. City Council was further informed that any "identified domestic terrorist" would be issued a code red, orange or yellow status indicating his "threat" to the community. Moreover, those held under the auspices of "Operation Nutcracker" would be disallowed any visitations from family members, and the only way they would ever be allowed visitations or phone calls is if the parents or guardians of the detainees had volunteered them for the "stabilization program." And that's not all: It was reported that under "Operation Nutcracker" there will be a TOTAL media blackout, meaning the operating agencies involved in the program will not be required to inform the public of their operations.

Pastor Logan commented that -

"Under this policy, anyone who has a tattoo could be labeled a ‘domestic terrorist'. Those detained would have no right to a speedy trial."

Another alarming element of "Operation Nutcracker," according to CCTAA organizers, is that any parent whose juvenile has been identified as a gang member will face eviction from public housing projects and the loss of any other form of government assistance, thus rendering them homeless and without resources to survive. The potential impact of all this could affect more than 60 large complexes that house thousands and thousands of poor families throughout the Los Angeles area.

Now this should cause a great deal of alarm to anyone cognizant of the Scriptures concerning the "MARK OF THE BEAST," specifically, those references to the MARK in Rev: 13:

"And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:

"And that NO MAN MIGHT BUY OR SELL, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. (Rev. 13:16-17)

The salient feature of these verses is this: The exclusion of all those deemed "enemies of the system" (i.e. "domestic terrorists") from the ECONOMIC activity of the state! - and isn't this PRECISELY what "Operation Nutcracker" is aiming at? Of course it is!

Forget about the technical aspects of the "mark" (i.e., implanted microchips, bar codes, etc.) and concentrate on what the purpose of the "mark" is all about: Economic exclusion! - whole classes of people permanently ghettoized and roaming about within the ghetto with nowhere to go, no roof over their heads, nothing to eat; permanent castoffs living hand to mouth - and not just those directly labeled as "domestic terrorists," but their families and loved ones as well, UNLESS THOSE SAME FAMILIES ARE WILLING TO "COOPERATE" WITH THE GOVERNMENT AND TURN THEIR LOVED ONES IN.

Turning family members against one another is a classic technique of ALL dictatorships. This has NEVER happened before in the history of the country, despite what you might think, but it is what happened to the Jews in Germany. All this gives credence to the words of Jesus when He warned His disciples concerning the exigencies of the "end of days:"

"And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death." (Matthew 10:21)

Pastor Logan says that there apparently have already been a series of "Operation Nutcracker" raids in Los Angeles. For example, Carol Brown, a 35-year resident of the Jordan Downs Housing Project, reports that her nephew has been carted off to an undisclosed military reservation for "disciplinary action." That's all she seems to know: she doesn't know where he is, she doesn't know the charges against him, and she doesn't have any way of finding out. What makes Brown suspect that her nephew was the "subject" of an "Operation Nutcracker" raid is that her sister - the boy's mother, who is also a resident of Jordan Downs - was subsequently evicted from the housing project.

This is something straight out of the army's "SOP" (i.e., "Standard Operating Procedures") in Iraq - after all, what's there to differentiate between the way that Carol Brown's nephew was handled in Los Angeles and the way that Prisoner #58 was handled at the Army Brigade Holding Area (BHA) in Mosul, Iraq? Obviously, there is nothing! Both were picked up in a routine "security sweep" because they happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, and both were treated in a cavalier, haphazard way with no real concern for their safety, let alone their innocence or guilt. THE OBJECT IN BOTH INSTANCES IS TO INSTILL FEAR INTO THE CAPTIVE POPULATION; what happens to those who are actually caught up in these operations is of no real concern to the authorities. FEAR is the object here, not justice.

And there are other stories similar to Brown's. Leannette Hill, another occupant of the Jordan Downs Housing Project, is appalled; she says that -

"... it's outrageous that in 2005 we are dealing with a very fascist form of law enforcement."

She goes on to say that it -

"... sounds like what it is: MARTIAL LAW."

A third resident of Jordan Downs dryly, but very astutely observes:

"[The Bush administration] is hell-bent on putting the poor of the world on their knees. These evil people know that by classifying any person or group of people as "terrorists," they have the right to lock them up or shoot them ... The bottom line is that U.S. democracy has become a Christian theocracy fascist police state where all your phone calls are heard, your internet sites you visit are traced and many other things you would be alarmed to know about. IN THESE DAYS IF YOU ARE NOT A CHRISTIAN REPUBLICAN, YOU ARE A TERRORIST."

My heavens! - if a poor, relatively uneducated resident of the Jordan Downs Housing Project can see what's happening, why is it so difficult for "well-meaning" Christians to see what's going on. Could it be that they don't see because THEY DON'T WANT TO SEE? that they refuse to see that the very same techniques the U.S. military is using in Iraq and Afghanistan are now being used against American citizens? that the "CHICKENS HAVE COME HOME TO ROOST?"

Moreover, for Christians to think that these techniques will be limited to America's black underclass is about as ridiculous as believing the fairy tale that the moon is made out of green cheese. Soon - very soon now - these techniques will be utilized against ALL the enemies of George Bush's American New World Order System; again, techniques that will cause -

"...brother to deliver up brother to death, the father his child: and shall cause children to rise up against their parents, and have them put to death." (Matthew 10:21)

Of course, most Christians think that this won't happen to them: that they won't be reduced to this kind of groveling acquiescence to the wishes of the state; that somehow or other those who don't have the courage to take action now - action that is plainly called for in the Scriptures (Rev. 18:4) - will magically "RISE TO THE OCCASION" and be capable of standing up to their adversaries when they are finally "put on the test." [Please see our article, Come out of Her."]

But this isn't what the Scriptures seem to indicate: As I have said so many times before in previous articles - and despite what so many of my erstwhile colleagues want to believe - tribulation itself does not produce courage; it doesn't produce character; it doesn't produce ANYTHING; it only strengthens that which is already there. Jesus said:

"Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.
"And five of them were wise, and five were foolish.
"They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them:
"But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.
"While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.
"And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.
"Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.
"And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.
"But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.
"And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they THAT WERE READY went in with him to the marriage: and THE DOOR WAS SHUT.
"Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us.
"But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.
"Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh." (Matthew 25:1-13)

Now look at this portion of Scripture carefully. The Lord was not comparing apples to oranges here as some suppose; he was not comparing believers to unbelievers. They were all of the same "genre;" they were all VIRGINS! In other words, they were all BELIEVERS! The difference between these two groups of virgins is that one group had oil for their lamps, and the other group did not. Moreover, it isn't as if the group whose lamps were going out had no oil, or how else could they say, "Our lamps have gone out." Obviously, if their lamps had gone out, they had been lit at some point in the past; otherwise, their statement makes no sense.

There are also two other things that we should take note of here: First, those who had no oil for their lamps could not get it from their friends; in other words, this kind of oil is not something you can get "free" or from other people. You have to "buy" it for yourself. Second, if once the door to the wedding feast is closed to you, it will NOT be reopened. If you miss your chance to "go in with Him," you will be shut out of the marriage feast. Now, that's what the Bible says. Of course, there are those who try to MINIMIZE this portion of Scripture - and other portions of Scripture very much like it; for example, Matthew 25:14-30 where the "unprofitable servant" - who is analogous to the virgins with no oil in their lamps - is cast out to a place where -

"... there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." (Matthew 25:30)

Pretty scary! Obviously, this is a very serious matter - but there it is, in black and white and on the pages of the Bible. And remember, we're talking about a servant of the Lord here, not some kind of "outsider" to the household of God.

The Lord is desperately trying to get something across to you, and that is this: If you do not have the courage to stand up for the Lord now, if you do not have the courage to obey God now, you will not have the courage to obey Him when THAT time finally comes, and you are "put on the test." This is what these verses are all about - and to MINIMIZE them with regard to your personal situation is a very dangerous thing for you to do. I say again, tribulation by itself does not produce character; it only strengthens that which is already there.

Finally, you should understand that there is a "time element" involved here: If you do not "buy" oil for your lamp in the time allotted to you to do so, it will do you no good to attempt to buy oil for your lamp "after the fact." Look at the verses here: It isn't as if the virgins who had no oil for their lamps did not want to purchase it after they had "wised up" to their perilous situation. Plainly, they did - and they went out quickly to do so, apparently in somewhat of a panic. But it was to no avail. IT WAS TOO LATE. Christians don't like to hear this, but this is plainly what the Scriptures teach. BROTHERS AND SISTERS, YOU NEED TO KNOW THAT THERE CAN COME A TIME IN YOUR LIFE WHEN IT WILL BE TOO LATE FOR YOU TO RESPOND TO GOD! And you should understand something else: all of this was said in SPECIFIC relation to the "end of days" - IN SPECIFIC RELATION TO THE SITUATION YOU FACE RIGHT NOW IN YOU LIFE.

Brothers and sisters, listen to me very carefully here: We are very close to the end now - when it will become too late for YOU to do anything about your situation. Time is no longer on YOUR side. It is YOUR enemy now. Time will not make things better for you; it will only make things worse. Indeed - and I say this with tears in my eyes - I already know of many, many people associated with Antipas who delayed their "going out" when the Lord first spoke to them some several years ago, AND THINGS HAVE ONLY GOTTEN WORSE FOR THEM IN THE INTERIM. And if the Scriptures have anything to say about it, they cannot expect that things will get better for them. When God tells you to obey Him, He means for you to do it now! Right now! Nonetheless, most of these people plod on now, believing that somehow or other they will be "given a walk" insofar as their particular situation is concerned; that somehow their situation is "peculiar" and "special" which exempts them from the "rules" that govern the lives of other people.

But look at what's going on in the world today, and you might think otherwise: GOD IS BENDING OVER THE PARAPET OF HEAVEN AND FRANTICALLY, AS IT WERE, TRYING TO SHAKE YOU OUT OF YOUR COMPLACENCY - AND HE IS SHAKING UP THE WORLD IN ORDER TO DO SO! And make no mistake about it, it's your complacency that is holding you back. You don't really think that it's quite as late as the Bible is telling you it is. SO THE LORD IS CALLING UPON NATURE TO DEMONSTRATE TO YOU IN A "CASCADE OF DISASTERS" THAT IT IS! THAT'S WHAT HURRICANE KATRINA WAS ALL ABOUT - AND THERE IS MORE TO COME!

"Hurry! Hurry! - that's what the Lord is trying to say to you! If you do not hurry, you will end up SPIRITUALLY like Prisoner #58. Wake up! Wake up! Don't delay! Get out while there is still time! LOOK AT WHAT IS HAPPENING: GOD IS WARNING YOU WITH -

"... FEARFUL SIGHTS and GREAT SIGNS ... FROM HEAVEN." (Luke 21:11)

These signs are given us for two very specific reasons:

1. As a WARNING to God's servants "who have ears to hear" and "eyes to see" (Matt. 13:15) to take action quickly.
2. As a TESTIMONY "from heaven" against the pretensions of the American New world Order System and the church associated with it.

In the light of this, think about what's been going on: Almost four weeks ago hurricane Katrina slammed ashore near New Orleans; the entire city, together with a surrounding area encompassing more than 90,000 square miles, was utterly devastated. It's estimated that hundreds and hundreds of people were killed in New Orleans alone with as many as a million more permanently or semi-permanently displaced. Damage estimates range as high as 200 Billion dollars - and who knows what the total will finally be in the region at large. Surrounding cities like Baton Rouge and Houston have been swamped with refugees seeking shelter. IT IS THE WORST "NATURAL DISASTER" TO HAVE EVER STRUCK THE UNITED STATES - and it is no coincidence, but rather the result of "forces" that have been gathering about us for many years now. There is more at work here than mere "happenstance."

Scientists believe that the ferocity of the CATEGORY 5 HURRICANE was generated by the super-heated waters of the Gulf of Mexico which reached a staggering 90 degrees Fahrenheit this summer. Meteorologists say that Katrina would probably have never generated the kind of power it eventually did had it not been for this phenomenon. Indeed, when the hurricane passed over Florida it was only a category 1 storm; but as soon as it hit the warm waters of the Gulf, it turned into a MONSTER.

Most scientists believe that the high temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico have resulted from global warming, and that a climatic threshold was reached this summer that has lastingly affected weather patterns over the Gulf. And it's not just weather patterns in the Gulf; many scientists believe that the earth is now in a process of rapid climate change - with the emphasis on the word "rapid." For example, John D. Cox, author of Climate Change and What It Means For Our Future, writes:

"Forget the old idea about climate ... [changing slowly], about changes taking hold over thousands of years. If the last ice age were an epoch of slumbering stability, as we have so long supposed, the Greenland ice core profiles should be relatively smooth. Instead, they gyrate all over the place, reflecting numerous, ABRUPT changes in temperatures, wind conditions and precipitation. They are footprints of a system that lurches and jumps in new directions IN THE SPAN OF JUST A FEW YEARS, certainly within a human lifetime."

Cox believes that we are now involved in just such a process of RAPID climate change, and it will shake up our lives in ways we cannot now even imagine.

This is no laughing matter! Indeed, National Academy of Sciences President Ralph Cicerone and Nobel-Prize-winning chemist Mario Molina warn that -

"Climate change is one of the most worrisome global environmental problems confronting human society today."

It's in this disturbing light that we should view what has happened in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast: Katrina is only the first of many super-storms to come; that new storms already lining up in the Atlantic and moving toward the warm waters of the Gulf have the same potential as Katrina to devastate the Gulf region. IN FACT, NEW ORLEANS AND THE GULF AREA MAY SUFFER KATRINA-STYLE DEVASTATONS OVER AND OVER AGAIN IN THE COMING YEARS, rendering the entire region uninhabitable.

But as unimaginable as it might seem, Katrina is only one of a great number of other catastrophes that have occurred over the last 24 months, beginning with a massive earthquake along the boundary of the Arabian and the Eurasian tectonic plates which devastated one of the most celebrated of Persian caravan cities: Bam, Iran. The massive quake killed over 26,000 people. This is to say nothing about the several quakes in Turkey that preceded the quake in Bam - a series of huge temblors which produced results almost as devastating as the quake in Bam.

Twelve months later - almost to the very hour of the earthquake in Bam - a giant 9.2 temblor struck the Indian Ocean basin, creating a huge tsunami that killed close to 300,000 people from Indonesia and Thailand in the east to Kenya and Madagascar in the west. The giant earthquake was so powerful that it actually lifted the ocean's seabed 60 feet above its original resting place. IN TERMS OF PEOPLE KILLED BY A SINGLE EVENT, IT WAS EASILY THE WORLD'S BIGGEST "NATURAL DISASTER" IN THE MODERN ERA.

Three months later, another giant earthquake shook the same area. The quake registered a massive 8.7 on the Richter Scale killing several thousand people. The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake struck about 19 miles under the seabed, some 155 miles south-southwest of the December 26^th temblor. The quake lasted two minutes and briefly cut electricity in Banda Aceh. Thousands of people poured into the streets seeking higher ground in anticipation of another tsunami, which - thankfully - never came.

A few months later there were more developments northeast of Indonesia near Japan - the appearance of a HELLISH red glow on the surface of the ocean just off the tiny island of Iwo Jima which began producing vapor streams reaching thousands of feet into the air. Japanese Defense officials who flew over the area in a helicopter were thunder-struck by the infernal sight. They believe that it is the result of new and very virulent undersea volcanic activity - something they believe could augur badly for Japan.

But it's not just on the other side of the earth that this kind of seismic activity has been happening. Since the Indian Ocean quake, there have been a series of ominous earthquakes up and down the great San Andreas Fault which, according to Dr. Kerry Sieh, a veteran seismologist at the California Institute of Technology, could be a precursor of something TERRIBLE to come, either in San Francisco or in Los Angeles.

Sieh says that the next 7.5 quake in Los Angeles could kill as many as 50,000 people, and that's not a big quake considering what the San Andreas Fault could generate. Scientists claim that the fault is capable of producing a quake in the range of 12 points on the Richter scale - a quake so big that, according to Andrew C. Revkin, it could easily "submerge the inhabitants" of California in the Pacific Ocean.

And if that isn't enough to send shivers up and down one's spine, Mount St. Helens has been acting up in the most serious fashion since its devastating eruption in May 1980; this coupled with seismic activity in the Yellowstone basin in Montana and a recent earthquake off Cape Mendocino indicate that for some mysterious reason the enormous Cascadia Fault has come alive again after centuries of inactivity. The earthquake off Cape Mendocino originated in a geologically complicated area known as the Triple Junction where the San Andreas Fault heads to sea, and the Cascadia Subduction Zone begins. Stretching from Cape Mendocino to Puget Sound, the Cascadia Subduction Zone marks a very unstable region on the Earth's surface where the edge of one geological plate pushes beneath another.

An earthquake about as strong as the one that struck the Indian Ocean last December 26^th hit Cascadia in 1700; such a quake today could submerge Seattle and the surrounding area in the sea. The quake in 1700 did just that, only there wasn't a Seattle there at the time. Dr. Michael Reichle, California's acting state geologist, and Dr. Bruce Jaffe, a research oceanographer and tsunami expert with the U.S. Geological Survey in Santa Cruz, believe the Cascadia Fault could slip again very soon, producing a catastrophic quake.

If either the San Andreas Fault or the Cascadia Subduction Zone produces a quake on the scale of the one that hit the Indian Ocean last December, it could make what happened in New Orleans seem like child's play in comparison.

Taking all this into account, it's not unreasonable for even the most non-pulsed person to ask, What's going on? The fact is, in the twenty-four months separating the catastrophe in Bam and the disaster in New Orleans, there has been a series of ruinous events occurring in places that seem at first blush to be entirely disconnected - from severe weather anomolies, to earthquakes, to epidemics and famines in both east and west Africa which themselves are tied to weather anomolies..

All this has led a growing number of very reputable scientists to believe that there is something very worrying going on - a "CASCADE OF DISASTERS" that Simon Winchester, a well-known expert on "natural disasters," says should cause one to wonder if these events are not interconnected in some "latent and very deadly fashion;" that it all may be a precursor of worse things to come. Indeed, Daniel Sarewitz, a professor of science and society at Arizona State University, says that THE WORLD IS FOR SOME INEXPLICABLE REASON EXPERIENCING A SHARP INCREASE IN "NATURAL DISASTERS" - FROM ABOUT 100 PER YEAR IN THE EARLY 1960s TO AS MANY AS 500 PER YEAR TODAY - and the rate of these "natural disasters" is accelerating.

Jeffrey Sachs, director of Columbia University's Earth Institute, says that he also believes something very foreboding is astir insofar as nature is concerned; he goes on to say,

"We're [evidently] at a period in Earth's history where WE'RE LIVING ON THE EDGE WHERE THINGS COULD GO TERRIBLY WRONG ..."

And Sachs is right here in more ways than he can possibly imagine. The fact is, we are living on the edge of what the Bible calls "THE BEGINNING OF SORROWS" (Matthew 24:8 and Mark 13:8), which is the first half of the so-called "Tribulation Period" or Daniel's "Seventieth Week." [We URGE you, if you do not understand what we are talking about here, to take the time to read Chapter V of the Antipas Papers, "Understanding the Book of Revelation;" please also see Chapter VII of the Antipas Papers, "The First Half of the Seventieth Week: The Seven Seals."]

It's perhaps best that we pause briefly here to put this period of time - i.e., THE BEGINNING OF SORROWS - into perspective insofar as the larger flow of prophetic events during the "end of days" - i.e., the "Seventieth Week" - is concerned because, as both Dr. Sachs and Dr. Winchester suggest, the "CASCADE OF NATURAL DISASTERS" that has been occurring around the world in recent months does not appear to be a "happen-chance" phenomenon.

These catastrophes are instead exactly what these two men describe them to be: Cataclysms that are interconnected in a "latent and very deadly fashion" - and they are "precursors of worse things to come" - BUT NOT SO MUCH FOR THE WORLD (at least not at this time) AS FOR THE CHURCH AND ALL THOSE WHO IN ANY WAY HAVE ALLIED THEMSELVES WITH THE AMERICAN NEW WORLD ORDER SYSTEM - actively or even passively, no matter. Again, what God is doing here is setting in motion a series of "natural disasters" designed -

1. As a TESTIMONY "from heaven" against the pretensions of the American New world Order System and the church associated with it.
2. As a WARNING to His servants "who have ears to hear" and "eyes to see" (Matt. 13:15) to put as much distance as possible between themselves (on the one hand) and "Babylon the Great" (i.e., the United States) and the church that has allied itself with Babylon. [For a detailed description of this great "Latter Day" nation, please see our article, "In Search of Babylon: What Does the Bible Say?"]

Christians need to understand something here: the Bible says,

"For the time is come that judgment MUST BEGIN at the house of God ..." (1 Peter 4:17a)

This, of course, doesn't mean that the world itself will escape judgment, because the Bible then goes on to say:

"... and if it FIRST begin with us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the Gospel of God?" (1Peter 4:17b)

But the salient point in all this - what should get the attention of Christians, but obviously is not getting their notice - is NOT that unbelievers are going to be judged, but that the "household of God" is going to be judged, and judged FIRST.

The judgment of the world per se is reserved for the END of the Tribulation Period. What's being "tested" or judged now - i.e., in that period of time immediately preceding and during the "BEGINNING OF SORROWS" - is the "Christianity" of those who call themselves "followers of Christ" - which gives the lie to all those asinine Christians who smugly believe that the disaster in New Orleans had anything to do with the supposed sins and so-called "wretched life-style" of the people there and on the Gulf Coast, particularly in Biloxi [Again, we URGE you to read Chapter V of the Antipas Papers, "Understanding the Book of Revelation;" we also URGE you to see Chapter IV of the Antipas Papers, "The Great Escape: Misconceptions Concerning the Rapture."]

After all, what happened in New Orleans? - plainly, the American form of Christianity was put "on the test," and it failed miserably - AND ITS FAILURE IS THERE, OUT IN THE OPEN, FOR ALL TO SEE so that when judgment is finally passed on the American church, there will be no question as to God's righteousness in the matter.

The fact is, those who call themselves Christians in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast - those white, middle-class Christians who together with George Bush are preparing to conquer the Middle East and Central Asia for "Christ and the church;" those miserable so-called "born-againers" who think that poverty is a curse of God (rather than what it really is, the result of the oppression of the rich over the poor); those punctilious little twits who made their escape from New Orleans before the storm in their SUVs and left the poor to fend for themselves in the Super Dome and on the adjacent causeways; those effete, pompous little twerps who sanctimoniously attend church every Sunday and listen attentively while their pastors call damnation down on homosexuals, abortionists, feminists and other "sinners," and who think it not unchristian to block the bridges out of New Orleans to prevent the poor blacks of that city from fleeing across the river into their parishes and "swamping" them - they're the ones whose "Christianity" was put "on the test" and found "wanting;" NOT the "Christian" casino owners of Biloxi or the "Christian" transvestites of the French Quarter - there aren't any!

And what a failure it was! - revealing the SUV Christianity of George Bush and his followers to be exactly what it really is: A FRAUD and a SHAM: the kind of fake Christianity that puts God's name to an open shame (Hebrews 6:6); these are the people about whom the Bible says:

"The name of God is BLASPHEMED among the ... [unbelievers] because of you [who call yourselves Christian] ..." (Romans 2:24)

AND YOU SHOULD UNDERSTAND SOMETHING HERE: IT IS NOT GOOD ENOUGH FOR YOU TO SAY THAT YOU ARE NOT A PART OF THIS KIND OF CHRISTIANITY AND TO SEPARATE YOURSELF FROM IT WHILE ALL THE TIME YOU CONTINUE TO BENEFIT FROM YOUR ASSOCIATION WITH THE "BEAST" THIS CHRISTIANITY HAS WHORED HERSELF OUT TO BY REMAINING IN THE UNITED STATES - for whatever reason. [Please see our article, "Come out of Her."] Matthew 25:31-46)

This is the kind of false religiosity that Jesus was referencing in Matthew 25:31-46; the kind that has no substance to it:

"When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:
"And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:
"And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.
"Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
"FOR I WAS AN HUNGRED, AND YE GAVE ME MEAT: I WAS THIRSTY, AND YE GAVE ME DRINK: I WAS A STRANGER, AND YE TOOK ME IN:
"NAKED, AND YE CLOTHED ME: I WAS SICK, AND YE VISITED ME: I WAS IN PRISON, AND YE CAME UNTO ME.
"Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?
"When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?
"Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?
"And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.
"Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:
"FOR I WAS AN HUNGRED, AND YE GAVE ME NO MEAT: I WAS THIRSTY, AND YE GAVE ME NO DRINK:
"I WAS A STRANGER, AND YE TOOK NE MOT IN: NAKED, AND YE CLOTHED ME NOT: SICK AND IN PRISON, AND YE VISITED ME NOT.
"Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?
"Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.
"AND THESE SHALL GO AWAY INTO EVERLASTING PUNISHMENT: but the righteous into life eternal. (Matthew 25:31-46)

Now, in the light of these verses, you tell me what kind of Christianity was on display in New Orleans? What kind of Christianity was it that left the poor huddled together in the filth and slime of the Super Dome and on the causeways of New Orleans without water and food for five days while its adherents made good their escape in their BMWs and SUVs: It was the Christianity of George Bush and his followers - AND IT IS YOUR CHRISTIANITY TOO IF YOU REFUSE TO SEPARATE YOURSELF FROM BOTH IT AND THE "BEAST" WITH WHICH IT HAS ALLIED ITSELF.

And, again, it's not as if the hypocrisy of this form of Christianity is a "hidden thing" anymore; for there it was - this fake Christianity - out in the open for all to see: by CNN, by ABC, by NBC, by CBS, by BBC, etc. Even Fox News was revolted by what it saw.

Yes! - judgment is coming to the American church; but before it does, it must be exposed for the utter farce it is; that's what was going on insofar as Katrina is concerned; and this process is going to continue until there is no question in anyone's mind as to its fraudulent nature. And when those awful words of JUDGMENT are finally pronounced against it - i.e., "DEPART FROM ME, YE CURSED, INTO EVERLASTING FIRE, PREPARED FOR THE DEVIL AND HIS ANGELS" (Matthew 25:40) - there will be no question as to the "righteousness" of this pronouncement; everyone's tongue will be silenced:

"For true and righteous are his JUDGMENTS: for he hath judged the great whore ([i.e., the apostate church), which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her hand." (Revelation 19:2)

This is the "prophetic process" that we have embarked upon here; this is what this "CASCADE OF DISASTERS" is all about," AND MAKE NO MISTAKE ABOUT IT, YOUR CHRISTIANITY IS "ON THE TEST" AS WELL - and it's not what you say that will count for anything, but what you do; that's what will count!

This brings us to the matter of the Tribulation. The word, "Tribulation" means "test." It is derived from the Latin word, Tribulum, which means to press and subject to stress. But the word means more - it means to SEVERELY test; to press to the point of ANGUISH - much as a test pilot tests an experimental plane and presses it to its very limits of toleration. [Please see Chapter XI of the Antipas Papers, "Tribulation and Judgment."]

The Roman word, Tribune is also derived from the Latin word Tribulum. A Tribune in ancient Rome was a magistrate or judge appointed to hear civil and criminal proceedings. It is the word from which our modern English word "Tribunal" was derived - which means a seat of judgment. In all these instances, the word Tribulum (from which, once again, the English word "Tribulation" is derived) had a legal sense attached to it. It meant (in the sense that is appropriate here) pressure and stress applied to an object in order to test it.

This is the exact sense that the translators of the King James Version of the Bible were trying to convey when they translated the Greek word Thlipsis as "Tribulation" in Revelation 7:14. As with the Latin word Tribulum, the Greek word Thlipsis means pressure and stress applied to an object for the purpose of testing. It is this sense, then, of the word "Tribulation" that the translators of the King James Version of the Bible were trying to convey to the readers - A TIME OF TESTING.

Listen to me! I tell you the truth! I solemnly warn you! - God is "testing" the American church and all those associated with her - actively or even passively, no matter. He is going to OPENLY make a show of its hypocrisy and pretense to virtue because IT IS NO SMALL THING TO GOD THAT THE AMERICAN NEW WORLD ORDER SYSTEM AND THE CHURCH WITH WHICH THAT SYSTEM HAS PARTNERED IS MURDERING AND LOOTING THE POOR AND DISPOSSESSED OF THIS WORLD IN HIS NAME AND IN THE NAME OF HIS BELOVED SON. This is the great crime of the Woman and the Beast of Revelation 17: it is exactly for this reason that this "thing" - this "whore" - is called an ABOMINATION,(a horror, a detestation) unto God:

"And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great WHORE that sitteth upon many waters:

"With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.

"So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.

"And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:

"And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH." (Revelation 17:1-5)

PUTTING CHRIST TO AN OPEN SHAME

Again, I tell you, this is no small thing to God! - i.e., to have His Holiness brought into question by the activity of those who are called by His great Name. And in this connection, the Bible somberly warns us (again, those of us who call ourselves by His Name) that it is -

"... IMPOSSIBLE for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,

"And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,

"If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame." (Hebrews 6:4-6)

Brothers and sisters: you need to think about what is being said here; you need to think about it long and hard: The Bible says that it is IMPOSSIBLE for those who were made "partakers of the Holy Spirit," if they shall fall away, "TO RENEW THEM AGAIN UNTO REPENTENCE." And why is that? - because they have "PUT CHRIST TO AN OPEN SHAME!" - and be clear, the Bible is talking about Christians, or how else is it possible to understand what the Bible means here when it references these people as once being "partakers of the Holy Spirit?"

How fearful a thing it is, therefore, to involve yourself - again, even in the most peripheral and passive fashion - with Babylon the Great and the church that supports it, seeing that the people connected to these twin entities are "putting God to an open shame" by murdering and pillaging the poor and dispossessed of the earth in the Name of Christ. I tell you the truth, dear Christian, when I say that it's one thing for you as a Christian to sin, and by doing so sullying God's precious Name because you call yourself by His Name, but it's quite another to say that God actually APPROVES what you are doing! When you do that, you are putting God to an "open shame;" you have involved Him in your sin! - AND THIS IS INTOLERABLE TO GOD!

God is calling out to His people; HE IS BENDING OVER THE PARAPET OF HEAVEN, as it were, and shouting out to all those who will listen: He is warning all His servants "who have ears to hear" to separate themselves from this EVIL THING while there is still time; to put as much distance between themselves and this MONSTROSITY - this ABOMINATION (Rev. 17:5) - as is possible. And HE IS CALLING UPON NATURE TO BEAR WITNESS AGAINST THE PRETENSIONS OF THE BEAST AND THE WHORE THAT IS ASSOCIATED WITH IT.

And how is that exactly? - well, think about it: The church and the American New World Order System that supports the church claim that they are bringing in the Kingdom of God; but if that were so, why doesn't nature corroborate their testimony? - after all, the Bible says that when Christ's Kingdom comes there will be -

"... no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain ..." (Revelation 21:4)

But this isn't what's happening insofar as the American New World Order System and the church that has partnered with it are concerned. NATURE HERSELF IS IN REBELLION TO WHAT'S GOING ON - and you must understand something here: These anomolies of nature that are beginning to beset the world - these "earthquakes in divers places," these "fearful sights" and "great signs" are "FROM heaven," not hell. (Luke 21:11) It's as if nature itself is retching in disgust with regard to the pretensions of the Beast and the Woman who rides the Beast; and, again, with each new catastrophe, each new disaster, God is in effect warning His people to get away from Babylon and EVERYTHING that pertains to it. [Please see our article, "Come out of Her." ]

With all this in mind, we can begin to put the "BEGINNING OF SORROWS" into perspective with regard to the other events of the "Seventieth Week." The "Seventieth Week" will be a period of time encompassing seven years; it will, as we have already indicated, be divided into two periods of three and a half years each: (1) the "Beginning of Sorrows" (Matt. 24:8) [i.e., the "Seven Seals"], and (2) the "Great Tribulation" (Rev. 7:14) [i.e., the "Seven Trumpets"]. These divisions will be marked out by three specific events which will define the beginning of the Seventieth Week, its middle, and its end. These events will be as follows:

1. The beginning: THE TREATY WITH DEATH AND HELL through which Antichrist, as "King of Babylon," will guarantee Israel's security in a defense pact against the forces of Radical Islam; this treaty will provoke the events of the Gog/Magog War and the first half of the Seventieth Week. [Please see Chapter VI of the Antipas Papers, "The Gog/Magog War;" please also see our articles, "Sowing the Seeds of the Gog/Magog War" and "Radical slam."]
2. The middle: the ABOMINATION OF DESOLATION. [Please see Chapter VIII of the Antipas Papers, "Mid-Way Through the Tribulation: The Abomination of Desolation."]
3. The End: the BATTLE OF ARMAGEDDON.

The character of the first half of the Seventieth Week will be defined by the Seven Seals; that of the second half by the Seven Trumpets; and the end [the Judgment, which will actually occur immediately AFTER the Seventieth Week] by the Seven Vials. [Again, we urge you to see Chapter VII of the Antipas Papers, "The First Half of the Seventieth Week: The Seven Seals;" we also urge you to see Chapter IX of the Antipas Papers, "The Second Half of the Seventieth Week: The Seven Trumpets," and Chapter X, "The End of the Tribulation: The Seven Vials."]

The course and character of the "BEGINNING OF SORROWS" is outlined in Matthew chapter twenty-four (as is the entire course of the Seventieth Week). It's here that we can begin to understand the "BEGINNING OF SORROWS" as one part of an enormous series of prophetic events insofar as the "end of days" are concerned; specifically, the appearance of the "God-Men" of the Apostate Church, and the wars of conquest that are unleashed as the Beast and the Whore of Revelation 17 partner together to extend their dominion over the world. And, of course, this is exactly what they are beginning to do in the Middle East and Central Asia, CREATING THE KIND OF "BLOW-BACK" ON THE AMERICAN POLITICAL SYSTEM THAT CANNOT HELP BUT LEAD TO THE CREATION OF A POLICE-STATE AND THE KIND OF "POLICE MECHANISMS" THAT LANDED PRISONER #58 IN PRISON IN MOSUL; THE KIND OF "POLICE MECHANISMS" THAT "BLEW-BACK" ON CAROL BROWN'S NEPHEW IN THE JORDAN DOWNS HOUSING PROJECT IN LOS ANGELES; THE KIND OF "POLICE MECHANISMS" THAT WILL CAUSE -

"...brother to deliver up brother to death, the father his child: and shall cause children to rise up against their parents, and have them put to death." (Matthew 10:21)

And, again, while most Christians think that it's impossible for them to descend to this kind of groveling-like behavior - i.e., turning against their father and mother, their sisters and brothers, their wife or husband, and even their children in this fashion - they're wrong!

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I ask you, dear Christian - I ask you once more - in heaven's name how is it possible for Christians who think they can disobey God now with regard to His holy DICTATE to "come out of her" - to somehow or other think that later - under much worse conditions - they will magically "rise to the occasion" and obey God then? No! What will most likely happen is that their so-called "Christianity" will be exposed for the fraud it really is - so that when they hear those awful words spoken against them (or, worse, against YOU), "Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels" (Matthew 25:41), their tongues (YOUR tongue) will be silenced before the RIGHTEOUS judgment of God: "Their (YOUR) Christianity was nothing more than a FRAUD." [Again, we URGE you to see our article, "Come out of Her."]

1. VERSES 3 AND 4 OF MATTHEW CHAPTER 24: INTRODUCTION

   Verses 3 and 4 of Matthew 24 read as follows:

   "And as he (Christ) 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? (Verse 3)

   "And Jesus answered and said unto them, TAKE HEED THAT NO MAN DECEIVE YOU." (Verse 4)

   In other words, if you, dear Christian, are not very careful, if you do not take the appropriate action NOW - you will be deceived! No question about it.

2. VERSE 5 OF MATTHEW CHAPTER 24: THE SUPERMEN
   OF AMERICA'S NEW WORLD ORDER SYSTEM

   And now the prophecy begins, and as it does, you should take careful note of the fact that it is describing things THAT HAVE ALREADY OCCURRED, OR ARE IN THE PROCESS OF OCCURRING RIGHT NOW - and this should give you cause for concern if only because it indicates how close you are to the "Point of no Return" insofar as your Christianity is concerned and the Christianity of the American New World Order System. Verse 5 reads as follows:

   "For many shall come in my name, saying, I AM THE CHRIST: and shall deceive many." (verse 5)

   I AM THE CHRIST

   What's the Bible telling us here?

   Verse 5 is warning us that there will appear a new class of so-called Christians just prior to and during the first half of the Tribulation Period - the so-called "SUPERMEN,;" a "MIRACLE CLASS" of "God-Men" who will deceive people by their "lying signs and wonders" (2 Thess. 9:8) - people who in their titanic arrogance will "commandeer" (as it were) the deity of Christ and who will, as a result, be cast down to the pit as surely as Lucifer was cast down for making the same claim:

   "How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!

   "For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:

   "I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I WILL BE LIKE THE MOST HIGH.

   "Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit. (Isaiah 14:12-15)

   MANY ANTICHRISTS

   IT IS PRECISELY AGAINST THE ENORMOUS ARROGANCE OF THESE "MIRACLE-WORKERS" - THESE SO-CALLED "GOD-MEN" - THAT NATURE IS REVOLTING; IT IS EXACTLY AGAINST THEIR PRETENTIONS THAT GOD HAS CALLED FORTH FROM HEAVEN A "CASCADE OF DISASTERS." (Luke 21:11) These are those about whom the Bible warns us:

   "Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there MANY antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time ..." (1 John 2:18) [Please see our article, "Today's Church: making Zombies out of Christians - The Prophets and Apostles Movement."]

   These are EXACTLY those whom verse 5 of Matthew 24 is referencing: "For MANY shall come in my name, saying, I AM THE CHRIST: and shall deceive many;" people who, like Kenneth Hagin, claim:

   "That's who we are; we're Jesus ..." [Please see our article, "The Obermenschen (Supermen) of Kenneth Hagin, Kenneth Copeland, and John Wimber."]

   FALSE TEACHERS AMONG YOU

   And - as we have said so many times before - it's not just Hagin , but countless other leaders of today's church who make the same claim as Hagin does or who associate themselves with those who do; people like Rick Warren, C. Peter Wagner, Tim LaHaye, Beverley LaHaye, Ern Baxter, Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell, Chuck Colson, Robert Stearns, Mike Bickle, Reuven Doron, Che Ahn, Frank Hammond, Cindy Jacobs, Bill Hamon, John Eckhardt, Bobbie Byerly, Dutch Sheets, Jim Goll, John Paul Jackson, Francis Frangipane, James Ryle, Frank Damazio, Ed Silvoso, Carlos Annacondia, Claudio Freidzon, Roger Mitchell, Ted Haggard, Paul Cain, Chuck Pierce, Rick Joyner, Kingsley Fletcher, Jim Laffoon, Barbara Wentroble, ad infinitum, ad nauseum. These are precisely those whom the Apostle Peter warns us about in his 2^nd epistle to the church:

   "But there were false prophets also among the people, EVEN AS THERE SHALL BE FALSE TEACHERS AMONG YOU, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves SWIFT DESTRUCTION." (2 Peter 2:1)

   These leaders of the church - these IDIOTS and DOLTS - who claim to be the "seers" and "diviners" of America's New World Order System; who claim they are bringing in the Kingdom of God - through force of arms, if necessary; who claim that they are "MASTERS OF THE FAITH," the "MANIFEST SONS OF GOD," the "MANCHILD COMPANY," the "FIRST FRUITS," "JOEL'S ARMY," the "OVERCOMERS," the "NEW BREED." the "BONDAGE-BREAKERS" for the rest of mankind, i.e., "GOD-MEN" who are able to move in and out of the supernatural and natural realms and who ostensibly have been appointed by God to cleanse the earth of "evil doers" - they are, ALL OF THEM, headed for the Pit, EVERONE OF THEM! [Please see our articles, "The God-Men of America's New World Order System;" please also see our article, "Luciferic Christianity."]

   Believe me when I tell you that you are making a huge mistake in allying yourself with such people - passively or otherwise, there's no difference! There is NO middle ground here. You cannot associate yourself with them and still call yourself a disciple of Christ. Jesus said:

   "He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad." (Matthew 12:30)

3. VERSE 6 AND 7a OF MATTHEW 24: WARS AND RUMORS OF WARS

   Verses 6 and 7a - like verse 5 of Matthew 24 (above) - describe things THAT HAVE ALREADY OCCURRED, OR ARE IN THE PROCESS OF OCCURRING RIGHT NOW, which should, like verse 5, give you cause for concern if only because they indicate how close you are to the "Point of no Return" insofar as your Christianity is concerned and the Christianity of the American New World Order System. These verses read:

   "And ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars ... For nations shall rise against nation ..." (verse 6 and 7a) [Please see Chapter VI of the Antipas Papers, "The Gog/Magog War."]

   What's the Bible saying here? - i.e., to all those "who have ears to hear" (Matthew 13:43): that the "end of days" will be characterized by military turmoil as the American New World Order System seeks to impose its dominion and MURDEROUS form of Christianity on the rest of mankind. It's a system THAT HALLOWS THE HUMAN QUEST FOR PROSPERITY, AND SANCTIFIES GREED AS A MORAL IMPERATIVE; a noxious parasite that, as Michael Parenti (and Karl Marx) suggests -

   "... CHASES OVER THE WHOLE SURFACE OF THE GLOBE. IT NESTLES EVERYWHERE, IT SETTLES EVERYWHERE, IT ESTABLISHES CONNECTIONS EVERYWHERE." [Please see our article, "A Woman Riding a Beast Going Forth Conquering and to Conquer;" please also see our articles, "The American Empire: the Corporate / Pentagon / CIA / Missionary Archipelago," "The American Empire and the New Global Elite" and "Inside the American New World Order System."]

   AMERICA: AN "OVERFLOWING SCOURGE

   It's for this reason that the Bible speaks of America [i.e., Babylon the Great"] as an "OVERFLOWING SCOURGE" (Isaiah 28:18); one that is "DREADFUL" and "TERRIBLE;" that is "STRONG EXCEEDINGLY," and one that "DEVOURS" and "BREAKS IN PIECES." (Daniel 7:7) [For a detailed description of this great "Latter Day" nation, please see our article, "In Search of Babylon: What Does the Bible Say?" Please also see Chapter XIV of the Antipas Papers, "The Beast of Revelation 17 (both section 1 and section 2).]

   GREED AND LUST

   Brothers and sisters in the Lord, believe me when I say that the wars of the American New World Order System have NOTHING to do with God, and everything to do with GREED and LUST. The Bible says:

   "From whence come WARS and FIGHTINGS among you? come they not hence, even of your LUSTS ...?

   "Ye LUST, and have not: ye KILL, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: [for this reason, you] ... FIGHT and WAR ..." (James 4:1-2)

   This is what the Bible says! - don't argue with me! - your argument is with God if you disagree with this statement. Jesus doesn't need us to take up arms for His sake! It's absolutely STUPID to think so - i.e., that He needs us to fight for Him. Jesus said,

   "Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?" (Matthew 26:53)

   And He went on to say:

   "... My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight ... but ... my kingdom [comes] not from hence." (John 18:36)

   THE FALSE TEACHERS AND "TOADIES"
   OF THE AMERICAN CHURCH

   But, of course, this isn't what the leaders of the American church think. For example, C. Peter Wagner writes:

   "For the first time in 50 years our nation is unified, in heart and in voice, READY TO SHIFT FROM AN ERA OF PEACE TO AN ERA OF WAR."

   And Wagner thinks this is a good thing! - it's the blind leading the blind (Matthew 15:14) And it's not just Wagner. Barbara Wentroble urges Christians to -

   "... eat and drink and gain new strength. Rise up and GET READY FOR WAR."

   And make no mistake about it; like Wagner, she is urging her followers to partner with George Bush's American New World Order System to bring war to the world - IN THE NAME OF JESUS CHRIST.

   But, again, the wars that Wagner and Wentroble are urging on the American church have NOTHING to do with Christ, and everything to do with GREED and LUST. It's GREED and LUST that is propelling these wars, and everyone else in the world knows that. No wonder the Bible says of such people (i.e., people like Wagner and Wentroble):

   "The name of God is BLASPHEMED among the ... [unbelievers] because of you [who call yourselves Christian] ..." (Romans 2:24)

4. VERSE 7b OF MATTHEW 24: FEARFUL SIGHTS AND GREAT SIGNS

   It's in the light of Romans 2:24 (above) that you must understand verse 7b of Matthew chapter 24

   "... and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. (Verse 7)

   Luke puts it this way:

   "And great EARTHQUAKES shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and FEARFUL SIGHTS and GREAT SIGNS shall there be FROM HEAVEN." (Luke 21:11)

And that's precisely what's happening now!

The exact amount of time the world has left is anyone's guess. But insofar as those who dwell in the midst of Babylon, YOUR time has run out! There is only ONE reason - and ONE reason only - for you to remain in Babylon: And that's if you hold a COMMISSION from God to warn Christians there to get out! But is that what you possess? Is it really? Is that what you're doing right now? Testifying in the STREETS (cf. Revelation 11:3-8) of that "Great City?" [We URGE you to read Chapter XII of the Antipas Papers, "The Two Witnesses."]

Have you left your job, put on SACKCLOTH (i.e., abject poverty), and are you right now actually in the STREETS of that "Great City" TESTIFYING against its pretensions? Daily, hour by hour, are you out in the STREETS passing out our flyers - in the ghettos trying to reach the poor and dispossessed of America who are huddled helplessly against the machinations of the American elites? Is that what you're doing? Are you doing that? Are you DRIVEN to do that? - if so, then YOU HOLD A COMMISSION FROM GOD TO STAY, and your soul is secure in His hands.

But if you don't hold such a COMMISSION from God - and that's a very, very special COMMISSION, indeed - and if by your staying in Babylon, all you're doing is "pretending to get your sh-t together," if all you're doing is living in your nice home, mowing your nice lawn, paying your bills, and being "responsible" insofar as the "cares of this world" are concerned; and if all you're doing is clickity-clacking away on your computer key board, and if your main object in life is to keep your loved-ones "happy and secure," then you are in grave danger of having your faith exposed as a FRAUD, and hearing those awful words pronounced against you:

"I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity" (Matthew 7:23)

If that's your case, you need to repent and get out as soon as possible! I say again, God is bending over the parapet of heaven, as it were, and by means of "... FEARFUL SIGHTS and GREAT SIGNS ... FROM HEAVEN" (Luke 21:11) HE IS FRANTICALLY TRYING TO SHAKE YOU OUT OF YOUR COMPLACENCY. "Hurry! Hurry! - that's what the Lord is trying to say to you! If you do not hurry, you will end up SPIRITUALLY like Prisoner #58.

Wake up! Wake up! Don't delay! Get out while there is still time!

As for you in other lands and among other peoples - and there are many, many of you who come to our website - God has a great COMMISSION for you (and also for those of you who have the "guts" to get out of Babylon and join these brethren in this great work): and that's the "Gospel of the Kingdom;" we speak here, of course, of the larger work of the "Two Witnesses" in their world-wide ministry. More about that in later articles. What we would urge you to do now is read our article, "The Good News Of The Coming Kingdom."

God bless you all!

S.R. Shearer
Antipas Ministries

P.S. Brothers and sisters, we ask you to remember the word of Scripture when it says -

"If we have sown unto you spiritual things, is it a great thing if we shall reap your carnal things?" (1Cor. 9:11)

If you have benefited from this ministry, then we ask that you return the favor by ministering to us of your carnal (material) things. We need your continued financial support for this ministry - which is moment by moment under very heavy spiritual and physical attack - if we are to go forward.