| (Copyright) by John Jewell (London, England) |
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| That’s what most people wish everyone else as a new Roman year begins and I’m sure that most people genuinely do want everyone else, including themselves, to have a happy year. Most, however, from experience, will not be convinced it will be a happy year. For some in the western world it may be a productive year, even a profitable one, and indeed, for a number it might be a fairly good year with one or two high points; but for most of the inhabitants of this planet it will be yet another miserable year. We have been chronicling its events nearly every week for over 6 years, the first edition of this newsletter as such being on the 24th of October 2003. This is now the 7th year of publication of the What Next Newsletter, and this is the 304th edition. In all this time we have consistently tried to show how far away from the true God we are as a people, what we need to do to return to Him and the benefits of doing that. We have tried to do as the bible tells us, as we endeavour to serve God, to actively bring a message to the world, to all nations, of warning, but with a message of hope. To show the world in general that there is going to be a new world. We do what we can to show people that there is a purpose to life, we try to show what that purpose is, we are but a few but together, and as God makes possible, and using the latest technology, that message is being preached around this world. It can be picked up over internet radio 24 hours a day, 7 days a week in around 120 nations. The message is also transmitted over two European radio stations. God’s message has got to be taken around the world. It can’t be transmitted in every nation in the local languages that just isn’t practicable. How would you get broadcasts and articles translated and preached in all those languages! Even the international newspapers don’t try to do that. For example, the International Herald Tribune is put together in Paris, France and printed in the English language. English is virtually the world language today. It’s enough to make the message available around the world and in every nation. Today, our radio station, radio4living, can be heard and listened to even in remote parts of Kenya and the islands of the South Pacific. For those who don’t understand English, or suffer dreadful hardship in everyday life, it is comforting to know that there is another day. Jesus Christ did not say that every single person at this time had to hear the message and understand it. He was asked by the disciples what would signify his return to this earth, what would signify the end of this present world system – if it can be given the credit of being called a system! He spelled out for them and for us today what would be happening in the world. He said there would be wars and rumours of war, nation against nation, there would be famines, diseases, earthquakes. Now these have always been around, but before his return they would be at a level never known before. He said that there would be false prophets who would deceive many. At this time of the year, you are witness to those false prophets. The western world is told of a baby Jesus, and everything gets very sentimental. But in the gospels the baby Jesus is given very little time. The account is kept in perspective. In fact, two of the gospels don’t even mention Christ as a baby at all. And the other two gospels give no more space than 3 or 4 pages. After all, he had to be born! What was important was his life, then his sacrifice of that life, and the message he brought. It was not the baby who was to be our Saviour, it was to be the adult man. True ministers of God will bring that message! The same message he commissioned the disciples to take to the world. He said in words everyone can understand that the gospel of the kingdom and everything that that entails would be preached in all the world for a witness to all nations and then, then shall the end come. But even then, there was one more factor to come into place. The gospel of Matthew in chapter 24 says of the end of the age that the world would reach a point when but for the return of Jesus Christ everyone on earth would be wiped out. He says this: “except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: …! “ And he meant saved alive. The planet would reach a point at which all life on earth would cease. We are now very close to such an eventuality. At one point in time it would not have seemed possible that you could kill, slaughter and annihilate everyone on earth. Or virtually everyone. It may be a medium sized planet as planets go, but nevertheless it is still pretty big! So how could all life be ended! Or rather what situation could arise that, if continued, would see the ending of all life. From television we are familiar with the lives of the Roman emperors. Is there anything they could have done that would have eradicated all life from earth! The answer is, obviously, No! How about the European monarchs? Not one, otherwise you can be certain one would have attempted it! How about the English monarchs? The Tudors for example! Not possible. There’s always a Cromwell around to stop it and in any case, it just couldn’t be done. So, one has to come closer to our present age. Take for example, the last 100 years! The First World War would have seemed to some to threaten the life of everyone on earth. But again, not possible. There was no viable procedure. The second world war was much the same, apart from one factor! And that was the dropping of two atomic bombs on Hiroshima and upon Nagasaki, in Japan. We then entered an age within which it had now become possible, with development, to destroy all life on earth. The atomic bombs became hydrogen bombs, and an arms race began and so today Russia and America between them have around 20,000 hydrogen bombs. Britain and France also have a stock, although not so many in actual numbers. But then, in addition, a small number of “peace-loving” nations such as North Korea and Pakistan have a few each. To which must be added those held by India and Israel and now probably Iran. But it is only necessary, so it has been estimated, to set off a total of 100 at the one time to start the nuclear winter. This could, conceivably, eradicate all life from earth. Could some sort of chain reaction be developed that could vaporize the planet! We’re probably in comic book territory now! I haven’t otherwise heard this as even a wild theory. What other possibilities exist! Well, there are those weather conditions that could be activated by the activities of Man. Conditions of which we are already becoming aware. Conditions that if continued would see the eradication of all life on earth. Drought is one such possibility. This is already becoming extensive to varying degrees and it wouldn’t take much for it to be so widespread as to cause wars between nations over food supplies and over the supply of water. The melting of ice in the Himalayas is already prejudicing the supply of water to southern China, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and India with the River Ganges being reduced in its flow. Drought is rapidly becoming a problem to the whole of the northern part of Africa, to most of Australia and to large parts of the United States. It is also raising its head in Spain with the Sahara having successfully crossed the Mediterranean from Africa. It was less than 2 years ago that Barcelona on the Mediterranean coast of Spain was forced to import water by tanker for a while. It could certainly be a mixture of these events. Loss of water supply and drought could bring about shortage of food, or famine. This could easily be accompanied by widespread fires such as have already taken place in the United States and in Spain. This demon inspired cocktail would inevitably result in disease. Not even a year ago we had witness to how rapidly a disease could race around the world. This was the swine flu. Originating in Mexico, I believe it was, it took no time at all before deaths from it were being reported from everywhere on earth. Cases are still being identified. What if this had been a highly infectious, virulent, and aggressive disease such as has been known before. What about something like smallpox, only even more active. It is not impossible. In fact, it is highly likely. Jesus Christ was not joking. He knew what he was talking about when he spoke of a situation that could see the ending of all life on earth. In Matthew 24: 21 – 22 it says this: “except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: ..” Revelation 11: 18 has this: “… and (God) should destroy them which destroy the earth.” This is writing of people who are in the process of making it impossible for life to exist on earth in the short term. It is not referring to the possibility of the planet becoming a supernova in the heavens! People tend to forget that we already have an example of climate change that did wipe out all life from the face of the earth. In Genesis 6: 13 speaking of the world population God says He will destroy them with the earth. He did, but He didn’t destroy the planet. This was the climate change to end all climate changes! Water erupted from the earth itself and as it says in Genesis 7:11 the windows of heaven were opened. And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights. The planet was completely flooded right to the top of the highest mountain. Everything living, whether animal, bird or man died! Only one family with sample pairs of animals, birds etc. survived. Obviously, all fish survived! What happened then! Did the planet enter into a new rainy season? A climate change so no life could be sustained? Not at all! What caused the climate change? It was mankind! Genesis 6 says that it was man’s activities (man was so violent) that caused God to take action. Once that was dealt with, the waters subsided, the environment rejuvenated itself and the earth was repopulated. Once again violence fills the earth. People are violent to each other, and they abuse the environment. For every action there is a reaction. We see it as changes to the climate. Changes which could destroy all life on earth. Are these permanent changes? No! Is God’s hand once again to be shown? Yes, it is! In the gospel of Matthew, chapter 24 it says this: “….as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. We know there will not be a worldwide flood again as God promised there wouldn’t be. But we are going to come face to face with the imminent results of our own actions as we just read in Matthew 24:22 “except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.” |
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