Sex, Drugs and Decapitation

Trudging towards the Great Tribulation

Most of us have stepped back from the ledge after the recent election. 

The rationale is, only four more years, God's in control, the House will provide a check & balance, etc. The fact is, the Lord does appoint kings and leaders, and that might be something to be concerned about. These appointments are often used to communicate divine displeasure on chronically hard-hearted nations. 

We will get a new President (probably) in 2016, control of Congress comes and goes, but trends take us somewhere, and we are certainly trudging towards conditions that will be present during the Great Tribulation. 

We could be one hundred days or one hundred years away, but this much is clear, the stage is being set as never before in history. In case you are new to biblical eschatology or have never read  'Left Behind,' here is why our era is uniquely ripe for the rapture and return of Jesus.

• Israel had to be re-established. Check. 1948
• Technology had to exist to allow a global cashless society. Check. Computers 1970.
• A 'mark of the beast' must be available for the hand or forehead to track and control purchases world wide. Check. 1980 implanted computer chips and laser technology.
• Mankind needed the ability to 'destroy all flesh.'  Check. Atomic arms 1945.
• Israel has to be surrounded by enemies. Check! 
• Israel must be abandoned by everyone but God. When the UN has its way.
• It has to be possible for 'every eye to see' an event in Jerusalem. Check. Satellite  technology 1960      

The fact is, a century ago, none of these conditions existed, today they all do.  Repent, the end is near. 

Those are the chess pieces, now here is how the 2012 election fits in.

 Sex and Drugs

Revelation 9:21:  Nor did they repent of their murders, their sorcery, or their sexual immorality. 

America is becoming a society that  congratulates itself for encouraging drug use and sex abuse. Gay rights, abortion and legal marijuana are all winning issues. John MacArthur once said that a carnal culture will not tolerate any moderation of its sexual urges, ultimately, with anyone of any gender or age at any time without consequence. Overstating the case? 
We are willing to allow mass killing of babies to ensure sexual  'freedom.'

Biblical revelation is not shocked by these trends.  During the great tribulation, scripture predicts a society given over to crime, sex and drug use (sorcery is pharmakeia/pharmacy). Given current trends, this is not exactly the stuff of science fiction.

Whether hetero or homo,  the so called sexual revolution in America will not rest until every vestige of morality is dismantled. Brick by brick you can feel the foundations of family life crumbling.  America will not survive as a single-parent society.

The classic cycle of a civilization's ascent and deterioration is, first from bondage to spiritual faith.  The zeal of enlightenment cultivates people of great courage, which breeds a willingness to sacrifice and achieve liberty. Freedom unleashes social and economic energy generating abundance. But abundance unchecked leads to selfishness, self-centeredness then lethargy. A complacent nation soon becomes an apathetic one, trending towards moral decay. Decadence leads to dependence upon leaders willing to trade freedom for bread and circuses. This creates a culture of tyranny and bondage.

Weakened and decayed within, lacking moral vigor and doubting national purpose, these are a people vulnerable to external attack. 

Decapitation & A Thief in the Night

Revelation 20:4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.

If you are a veteran of end times prophecy, you might remember the classic and camp movie, 'A Thief in the Night.'  So bad, it was good, and it packed churches in the '70's.

One scene comes to mind, during the tribulation, Christians recently saved and refusing the mark of the beast, dutifully lined up at a guillotine to be martyred for their new faith.  
Wrong. Since the French won't be running the tribulation, these beheadings won't be by guillotine but by sword. This does seem like an inefficient means of execution, unless the Koran commands you:

Terrorize and behead those who believe in scriptures other than the Qur'an.

-8:12
This prediction seemed odd until 1979, when the modern Islamic Republic was reborn in Iran.  Check.

Make your own application about where America sits on this track. 

Here's some final takeaway on Election 2012. Hard to argue that Governor Romney had a strong  business resume and would have engineered an economic turnaround. But America's greatest need is not a financial revival but a spiritual one. Economic collapse occurs towards the end of the civilization's cycle, so fixing the finances of America without moral remedy will only postpose the inevitable. A new king of a rebellious nation is no long term solution.  We need not just a new king, we need a nation of new hearts.

One possible scenario that I am not too fond of is this: God must allow conditions to become much worse in America until our nation calls upon Him. 

And if not, lights out as we trudge on.

Postscript: A sense of urgency is needed. No doubt, our generation has been an intersection for a number of vital prophecies, Israel being foremost.  And while the above conditions will certainly be present during the tribulation, the church will not be, having been raptured between Revelation chapter 3 & 4.  
After these things.....