Trump Puts a Mute on the Fourth Trumpet

 

President Trump recently reversed decades of climate change policy in America. On February 12, he announced that he was rescinding the scientific finding of the EPA (2009) that climate change endangers human health and the environment, ending the federal governments’ legal authority to control man-made greenhouse pollution.  This means that automobiles will no longer be subject to emission mandates. If the change in EPA policy stands the test of judicial challenge, the next regulations to be rescinded will be industrial emissions.

Trump’s motivation is economic, not scientific. He wants to make cars cheaper for Americans, and deregulate industry’s pollution standards, and validate America’s need for oil production. In the process, he is thumbing his nose at any and all global scientific findings on climate change. 

To tell you the truth, I don’t give a hoot about the politics of climate change -- under Obama, under Trump, or even UN efforts. Regulations, solutions, statistics, and deterrents are never going to solve the problem. Not emission controls, not carbon capture, not solar energy. While I firmly believe in climate change, I do not think there is anything mankind can do to reverse the effects of population explosion and the industrial revolution. Only the return of Christ, when He reigns as King of Kings in the millennial kingdom, will bring a halt to climate change.

Most MAGA-Trump enthusiasts are probably ecstatic that Trump found a way to stick it to the science of climate change. Most conservative Christians that I know agree with Trump when he mocks climate change as a “hoax”, and regulation as a “con job”. Nothing will change their mind, not even Biblical prophecy, which predicted climate change and affirms it.

Here's my point. Trump can thumb his nose at science all he wants, and thumb his nose at a host of International Climate Change Organizations. He does it often and he does it well. But he cannot get away with thumbing his nose at God. He cannot mute the fourth trumpet. He cannot preempt the prophecy of God. Actually, he doesn’t have a clue what prophecy says about climate change. But then, most Christians don’t have a clue, either. 

Climate change is one of the seven trumpets and seven bowls in Revelation – the fourth one to be exact. These trumpets are warnings that God gives to mankind that judgment is rapidly approaching. The trumpets are not judgments of God reserved for the seven-year Tribulation period. They have been occurring as signs from God for nearly 120 years, similar to the warning time that God gave mankind before the flood. The fourth trumpet prophesies the warning sign that the sun, moon and stars will turn dark (Rev 8:12). One third of each, to be exact. (One third is simply the inverse of three, a number used by God to indicate His divine providence in a given event. It does not indicate a statistical, measurable quantity). In the corresponding bowl description, the sun is allowed to scorch people with intense heat, such that people end up cursing God (Rev 16:8-9). These prophecies are interpreted many different ways. Speculation abounds. But when history interprets prophecy then we can be sure what God was foretelling. Climate change is a warning sign to mankind to prepare for judgment. Trump can thumb his nose all he wants, but Christians would be wise to understand what these prophecies are predicting instead of denying climate change. These prophecies can in fact be a conversational tool to discuss the soon-coming return of Christ and the judgment that will ensue.

Jesus, perhaps, also referred to these trumpet and bowl prophecies of the end times when He spoke to His disciples about future events. He said, “‘the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken” (Mt 24:29; cf Isa 13:10, 34:4). Jesus is referring to the same prophetic event alluded to in Revelation. He is not predicting blood moons, eclipses, or other such phenomenon, but on a supernatural scale. No, he is saying that one of the signs of His return would be the darkening of the sun, moon, and stars by pollution, the main component of climate change.

(The picture shows the Great London Smog which occurred in December, 1952. It killed thousands.)

Makor: The Keeper of the Springs

Like a neon light, one single word, Makor, stood out in the dream that woke me up. In the dream a group was reading and studying Revelation. Spontaneously, everyone got excited and started pointing at a verse, thumping their Bibles, and exclaiming, “Makor, Makor.” The context of the dream wasn’t important, but the word was, I knew for sure. So, I goggled it. Turned out it was not Arabic, Slavic, or Tagalog, it was Hebrew. I never studied Hebrew in seminary, so I began researching the etymology and meaning of the word. I discovered that Makor is the Hebrew word for source, usually applied to a fountain, a spring, a well, a source of fresh, living water. But that didn’t answer the question, “What was God trying to tell me with this word of knowledge. I’m just not getting it.”

A week later I got my answer. My wife Carol got up early one morning and interrupted my study and told me that she just had a dream. As she described it to me, I quickly realized that it was an incredible word picture of Makor.

She was driving along a highway and crossed over a beautiful, inviting stream. She stopped her car, got out, and walked down to the stream. Others were there, too, and they said that the stream was a natural spring-fed stream, and very refreshing. She knelt down and scooped up several handfuls of water to drink. As she started back to the car, her curiosity beckoned her to want to go up to see the spring. But there was no road, only a trail. So, she set out on a hike. Alone.

When she got to the headwaters, she found a large cave with a pool of water inside. The stream flowed from the cave. She walked into the large cave. Inside she noticed an old red pickup truck parked beside the pool. Behind the truck was an opening into a smaller cave, from which a spring flowed into the large cave. A man walked out from the smaller cave and began to talk with her. He said that it was his job to keep watch over the spring. He enjoyed having a visitor and had lots to say about the spring water. He enjoyed explaining and sharing his knowledge. He said that he wished others would come up to learn about the spring, the source of the stream.

When Carol finished telling me her dream I said to her, “It’s hardly fair that I study for hours and hours to know what God is trying to tell me, and you get a beautiful word-picture dream in ten minutes.” Then I asked her, “How do you suppose that man in the dream got a truck up there in the cave if there was no road?” She said to me, “Well, I guess if you’re the Holy Spirit you don’t need a road, you can just plop your pickup down wherever you want.”

Fifteen years have transpired since the Makor dreams. I can understand more clearly now what God was telling me in preparation to fulfill His calling to “write about it”. First of all, go to the source as you re-examine prophecy, don’t rely on the ubiquitous teachings of prophecy gurus or mimic the style of all the prophecy updaters.  As Carol hiked up the trail, in the dream, she passed some pastures full of cows and horses, and a few dump yards full of vehicles and old engines. She realized just how contaminated the stream must be down at the bridge. Second, I knew that I must trust the Holy Spirit to enlighten and guide me into truth. I have several mementos of old red pickup trucks, reminding me to sit on the tailgate of the truck and talk with the keeper of the springs. All the inductive study I can muster won’t uncover the truth apart from the Holy Spirit’s help.

I discovered that the only way to re-examine prophecy is to hike up the little trail to the spring, away from the highway and the group watering hole. I had to rethink all the end-times scenarios I had been taught by countless pastors, authors, and even seminary professors. I boxed up my entire library of books on prophecy. I had to let go of the cherished cornerstones of American eschatology -- the seven-year Tribulation, the two-part installment of the second coming of Christ (i.e., pre-trib rapture), and the one-world ruler, Antichrist. None of it is true. It is precisely the false teaching that Jesus warned about, which will cause many to fall away in the final days.

Are you one who thinks that fellowshipping with the man in the cave by the red pickup is far too mystical? The Holy Spirit is our God-given Helper. He guides us into truth and enlightens to our minds the understanding of Scriptures. Yes, the Word of God is living and powerful, but so is the Holy Spirit. Jesus said so, Himself.

“If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him. By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive” (John 7:38). You are not full until you are overflowing. First you must thirst, then you must be filled, then the fountain of living water will flow out of you.

Electronics Age In Bible Prophecy

The rise and fall of the electronics age is a significant subject of Biblical prophecy, as it relates to the last days in which we live. The surgence of electronics upon the world scene in these last days is obvious. Starting with the discovery of electricity in the 18^th century, it has grown and expanded exponentially in the last century. The end of the electronics age is not the least bit expected, though. In fact, the thought of it is unfathomable.

The electronics age is undeniably a significant facet of the day we live in. But it is not recognized by most Bible prophecy interpreters Very few understand what the prophecy is actually predicting. Perhaps that is because it so obscured by apocalyptic imagery. First century descriptions are very difficult to reconcile with our modern vernacular. So, the question becomes: Do we really see it in Revelation?

Absolutely! The electronics age is the second beast described in the last half of Revelation 13 (vv 11-18; aka, the false prophet, Rev 16:19; 19:20). The vision starts with a beast coming up out of the earth with two horns, seeming like a lamb, but speaking like a dragon. It ends with the enigmatic number, 666. For me, this is one of the most intriguing visions in Revelation, packed with real-world relevance for today. It is pinpoint accurate. Once again, history interprets prophecy, squashing speculation and conjecture.

With the discovery of electricity there was a steady procession of inventions. The two horns on the beast represent positive and negative current. Why does it come out of the ground? Because electricity does not work without the electrical current returning to a ground rod. Why the lamb and the dragon? Electrical inventions all seem so innocent, practical, and helpful at the start. But with the development of electronics the innocent lamb became a false prophet, speaking like a dragon. The beast and false prophet imagery does not depict a man, such as the Antichrist, or his accomplice, but rather the dominance and deception of electronics in the last days.

How does electronics live up to the designation, false prophet? Prophets purport to dispense truth, wisdom and guidance. But a false prophet is deceiving, misleading, and destructive, all the while pretending to be a lamb. It promises life and truth, but delivers deception, bondage, and slavery. Stop and realize how much our world – our morals, our activities, our loyalties, our beliefs – are shaped by the electronic images on television and computer screens.

What about the number, 666? It is not a number engraved on the forehead of wicked unbelievers during a factitious seven-year Tribulation period. When history unveiled the number 666 it became the key to identifying the beast, the false prophet. “Solve a riddle: Put your heads together and figure out the meaning of the number of the beast. It’s a human number: 666” (Rev 13:18, MSG). The barcode, invented in 1974, uses the number six to signify the beginning, midpoint and ending of the scan. Barcodes, UPC labels, QR codes, smart cards, and other forms of electronic codes have controlled commerce for the last fifty years. You cannot transact business without electronics – buy, sell, inventory, shipping, delivery, cash register – nothing.

But there’s more. The electronics age will come to an end. Termino! Kaput! Revelation predicts that the false prophet (remember, that is the electronics age, not a person) will be thrown into the lake of fire (Rev 19:19-21), some time concurrent with Christ’s victory at the Battle of Armageddon. Similarly, Peter prophesied that the elements in the heavens will be destroyed by fire, and the works of mankind will be laid bare (II Pet 3:10). This is speaking of the satellite-dependent electronics technology that is the very lifeblood of mankind in these last hours before the Day of the Lord. Just think of it, Christ's Millennial kingdom, free of all electronics. 

And there you have it, a very abbreviated version of chapter 3 in my book, Right At The Door. The false prophet of Revelation 13 is the electronics age of the end times, one of many compelling signs and warnings that the end is very near.