In the series concerning the Tribulation Period (key word–Tribulation) I go into considerable detail concerning that 2 1/2 year period of destruction and death. In this series we will delve more into the final year of that disastrous period known Biblically as “the Day of the Lord,” specifically the period leading up to that “great and terrible day” that, in my OPINION, will arrive within eight years during which the so-called “Christian Nations” of the world, led by America and Britain, will sink even deeper into Satan’s Spiritual Sewer known as “the church.” During His Great Day, God will unleash His wrath on sinning man (including churchman) in a flood of pain and suffering that, as Jesus tells us in Matthew 24, will be worse than all of the world’s previous disasters COMBINED. We are today experiencing the “beginning of (such) sorrows.” Fortunately, the Lord is warning those with eyes to see and ears to hear to prepare for what is coming. With that warning in mind, we will now look into the final year of hell on this earth as described by the Prophet Zephaniah. Bear in mind that it is during that year that Jesus will return to earth, BRINGING SALVAGTION WITH HIM, with which He will award those who had “endured (in righteousness and persecution) until the end of their lives (Mat. 10:22/ Rev. 2:26,27; 3:22/ 1 Jn. 3:9/ 1 Pet. 1:5).

In Zephaniah 1:2-6 the Lord, speaking through the prophet, wastes no time identifying the extent to which He will punish sinning man during the final year of this age. Reading the segment reveals that He will “… destroy (consume) all things from all the land (earth).” He goes on to say that He will destroy men and beasts, the fowls of heaven and the fish of the sea. He will also destroy the stumbling blocks with the wicked (false beliefs and practices) along with those who enticed the people to honor them. He promises to “… stretch out My hand against Judah and against all the residents of Jerusalem” because they were supposed to be His examples to the heathen world. “I will cut off from this place every vestige of Baal and the names of all pagan priests along with the (Jewish) priests” who brought heathenism to the Jewish people. He will cut off those who pay homage to heathen gods while pretending to worship Him (God). Then in verse six He proclaims His wrath on those who “TURN BACK FROM FOLLOWING THE LORD, who no longer seek Him or inquire of Him.” Scripture makes plain that every Word uttered in the above passage applies to the church that would come into existence in 31 A.D. which is identified as “the “Israel of God” in Galatians 6:16.

Verses five and six refer to those who at one time had been God’s true servants but had “fallen away” (turned back) from obeying Him, as would their church descendants during the final era of the world which are identified as the Laodicean church era in Revelation 3:14-22. Read about that era using the key word–Era. The Apostle Paul, referring to the return of Christ to earth, noted that He would not return until after a the church’s “falling away” (Gk. apostasy) that would take place during the final days of this world. Anyone open to reality can see that we are in that period at the present time, and that we are falling away faster and more completely with the passage of time.

Verse six is the most important verse of the passage because it describes what is happening within the (Laodicean) Catholic/Protestant Religious System today where we find that those whose ancestors had, in the past, known the Lord have embraced the customs of their more recent church fathers. For example, until 1681 celebrating Christmas was AGAINST THE LAW in the land that would become the United States of America. The 7th Day Sabbath was also the recognized and practiced by many in the colonies. The apostasy of the church and the nation is abundantly clear. Their falling away is also spoken of in 2 Thessalonians 2 and Revelation chapter 3 where we are introduced to the end-time Laodicean Church that came of the scene in the latter 1980’s and remains today in the form of the Catholic/Protestant Religious System commonly called “Christianity.” This is THE PREMIER SIGN that we are living in the final days of world as it has been known.

The church continues to turn away from the Lord, which is the SIGN that the Day of the Lord is near. Another part of that sign is that God has revealed this apostasy to His Very Elect remnant, the modern-day descendants of the original church who, throughout the past 2000 years, have remained true to Him, though their numbers today are miniscule when compared to the masses who, thought they claim the status of true saints, are not. They are in fact S.I.N.O.s–Saints In Name Only.

In reading the Book of Revelation one can find Christ’s message to the final two eras of the church as represented by the ancient churches located in Philadelphia and Laodicea respectively using the key word–Eras. Doing so, one will find that the previous (Philadelphia) era remained true to the Lord until its founder died in the mid-1980s. During their 50+ years of existence that organization stayed true to their Lord and Master. It was during that time that I was drawn into that church by a direct word for the Lord. I have remained a part of that era, as have some others and a few of their spiritual descendants. Today we of that tiny world-wide church are the only ones preaching and teaching God’s Truth globally. It is against us that the religious world will turn during the coming international church civil war. Read about that war using the key word–Civil.

Students of the Holy Scriptures will notice that God never delivers His messages Himself; HE ALWAYS USES MEN AS HIS LOGOS (SPOKESMEN) TO MANKIND. Jesus was no exception. As a man like all other men, He came to earth to speak to the people of earth. When He returned to the Father He assigned those whom He had called, and those who would later be called, to preach and teach His Gospel to the masses. Today we are “knocking on the door” of those in the final (Laodicean) church era. Many are answering a “knock.” The problem is that those they open the door to are Satan’s false messenger.

Anciently, no one “knocked” on the door of a residence. Visitors stood outside the gate and called out to those inside. If their voice was recognized they would be allowed in. The problem is that those inside today reject the voice of God’s messengers and do not allow them to come inside (to hear our massage). Instead, they respond to voices of strangers (false prophets), allow them to enter, then embrace their messages. This is the root cause of the great apostasy of the modern-day church. This is made possible by Satan who keeps his people ignorant of God” “voice” (Truth/Gospel) through the work of his false prophets who fill their minds with his church doctrine.

L.J.