I dedicated much of my life to the Redemption of Israel. During my 15 years in Jerusalem, nothing was more important. It would be miraculous. It would be awesome. I wanted to be a part of that work of God. But then, our Lord dragged me off to Taiwan, and that’s when I began to see something serious:
The suffering and death of five billion people.
My hyper-positive focus on Israel had left me unable to see a vast catastrophe that would crush our civilization and kill billions. And, because of our bad eschatology, we aren’t able to see what’s coming.
Let’s dig in to all that badness.
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Bad Eschatology, Part 1 – Introduction
I never cared very much about when the Antichrist would come, or when the Rapture would happen. I didn’t care if you thought that the Millennium was this way, or that. I didn’t care if Donald Trump, Barack Obama, or Alfred E. Newman were the Antichrist. I didn’t care if some magnificent commentator said such and so about the Great Tribulation. As maddening as any of that is, I literally didn’t care about any of that, because I knew something that none of them understood:
God was going to redeem the Children of Jacob.
And, I knew that it would happen long before the Antichrist or the Great Tribulation.
That left me with the ability to focus all of my attention on Israel, a tiny land the size of Taiwan.
I fell in love with the people.
I learned Hebrew.
I sat at the center of geopolitics.
What an amazing experience.
Unfortunately, I’m a little single-minded. When a little is good, a LOT is better. This habit of spending my life going full-throttle in one direction, meant that God has had to throw up a road-block to get my attention. I’m really that clueless at times – just ask Mrs. Little.
God showed me that there are more things to talk about than the Redemption of Israel, so God blew a whistle and threw me out of the pool. I had something important to do, like doing evangelism in Taipei and going berserk over resource depletion. You undoubtedly understand what evangelism is, and we should all be doing it… but, resource depletion?
Ride Of The Four Horsemen
Yeah. Resources.
We’re running out.
(At least, the ones that are easy-to-get)
It took me forever to figure out that the Ride of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse was primarily about resources, our insane reaction to their decline and the devastation that would follow. That probably sounds strange to you, and 20 years ago I would have agreed. But, now that we are hitting our limits to oil, natural gas, copper, steel, water, rare earths. fertilizer and bunch of other stuff that we cannot live without… we are on a rendezvous with an unimaginable destiny.
I describe some of that, in my five most recent articles:
The Four Horsemen, Part One – The White Horse
The Four Horsemen, Part Two – The Red Horse
The Four Horsemen, Part Three – The Black Horse
The Four Horsemen, Part Four – The Pale Horse
The Four Horsemen – Conclusion
The Different Brands Of Eschatology
Unfortunately, none of us really know how long it will take the Four Horsemen to ride. Worse, I’m not able to talk about it on public forums, because no one understands what’s coming. Except for a handful of people, not a single ‘expert’ on eschatology has any ability to comprehend what I’m talking about. And, it’s bad eschatology that’s getting in the way.
Here are the main culprits:
Preterists think that all that stuff is in the past.
Amillennialists think that we’re in the Millennium, ruling and reigning with Christ.
Post Millennialists think that we are either in the Millennium or about to enter it, and that the Great Tribulation is after the Millennium ends.
Dispensationalists think that we have nothing to worry about, since we’re out of here before ANYTHING happens, so let’s eat lunch.
Prewrath Rapturists think that we’ll be going through the time of the Antichrist, but still hold on to everything else that the Dispensationalists believe.
Historical Premillennialists think that we will be going through the Great Tribulation, but don’t have a clue about what the redemption of Israel means – although a few seem to understand a little.
All of those views have their roots in theologians of the distant past, speculating on how the prophecies of the Last Days would play out. And, because these prophecies were sealed until the Last Days, there was no way that they were ever going to get it right.
Even I might be as wrong as these people are. I’ve already had to discard several bad theories of my own, due to my own blindness. And, if I’ve been wrong in the past, there’s a very good chance that I’m wrong now.
The only difference is that I’m attempting to focus on what is visible, and am willing to say that I don’t understand, for those parts that are not. Most theologians and Bible commentators are unable to say the words ‘I don’t know’, and this lack of humility towards Bible prophecy is not cool.
We Were Never Going To Get It Right
I particularly like Charles Spurgeon’s attitude towards eschatology. He only talked about what seemed obvious to him, and refrained from speculating on what could not be seen. He was very wise in this approach, and got criticized for it.
Remember these verses:
But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.
– Daniel 12:4 (KJV)
The fierce anger of Jehovah shall not return, until he have executed, and till he have performed the intents of his heart: in the latter days ye shall understand it.
– Jeremiah 30:24 (ASV)
Translation Note: The ASV gets this verse right. The Hebrew word is תתבוננו (teet-bone-noo), and it means ‘you will understand’. It is understandable that other translations use ‘consider’, but it’s not correct.
And, as we look back over the last two thousand years, there’s literally no way that any theologian could have figured out what was happening until the last hundred-plus years. Muslim control of the Middle East seemed impenetrable. No one could understand how the Antichrist could limit the buying and selling of goods and services to only those with his mark. No one could understand how the children of Jacob could be brought back to their land, and then be redeemed.
Stop The Bad Eschatology
Unfortunately, our current set of theologians are so engrossed in commentaries from that past, that they are unable to see what’s wrong with their view of the Last Days. Our seminaries are churning out cookie-cutter theologians who can only think along the lines of Darby, Henry and Augustine. Furthermore, they have been warned to tow the line… or else!
This has got to stop. Bad times are coming, and our churches are not prepared to meet the great tragedies that lie before us. I can only hope that the difficulties that have already begun will lead to spiritual revival and an awakening to what the Bible actually says.
Think of what I’m doing here as an attempt to set the record straight – or, at least help point the way to how it can be. I certainly do not have all the answers, and would never claim that I do.
It is time to submit to what the Bible actually says, instead of forcing the Bible to submit to what we say.
Unfortunately, submitting to the Bible isn’t very fun. It’s much more interesting to make stuff up and build castles in the air. And, I think Paul said it best:
3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;
4 And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.
– 2 Timothy 4:3-4 (KJV)
The Problem
Getting people to give up their fables is hard. I’ve been watching the rise of fabulists for a long time, and getting people to break out of their brain-washed paradigm is fantastically hard. In fact, such a breakout is so rare, that I have only a tiny hope that people will wake up to what is coming, before it comes.
So, before I jump into an examination of the ideas and errors of our bad eschatology, I will first need to describe the problem that we will all have to overcome – if we are to have any hope in seeing our own mistakes. And, there are a certain set of reactions that I have noticed, when people with bad eschatology are shown how wrong their thinking is.
I will do that in my next post, and I hope that it will help us to see watch our own reactions to any errors that we might hold. We’re all wrong about something. Our challenge will be to prayerfully re-examine what we believe, in the light of scripture, and change what we believe, if we get something wrong.
Lord willing, we will talk about that in my next post.
I truly hope that you’ll be ready for this
A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished. – Proverbs 22:3
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Hey bro. It’s me, Charles, again.
Back in school for the last time. I’m gonna do the best I can still to get as many people to hear His Word as much as possible, and that’s been through little paper slips currently carrying Acts 17:30 on them. I want to ask you a question because it’s been nagging at me.
Before I get to that, I want to say that on Saturday, I had an interesting convo with my mother. I told her I wanted to get baptized, because I haven’t been yet, and this led to a whole slew of discussions that I had scripturally learned in the past year, especially from you, John, and I did my best to explain it all to my mother. She actually understood, and now she’s committed to reading her Bible, although I feel that that won’t make her a Christian by any stretch considering the way she acts, though I do in trust in the fact that she has been repenting behind the scenes as she told me. However, I don’t see the true Christian attitude (this is America after all).
But I want to ask you this question deeply because it is very important: Having repented of all my sins and given my life to Christ, it is my duty to trust and obey Him at all times. I have not yet been baptized, but I want to so bad, and I have praying that I will be real soon at some point, at some church. What if I were to die today or tomorrow, having given my life to Christ, but having not yet been baptized? Would I be in heaven or hell? I would like the Scriptural answer to this question.
Yours in Christ, Charles 🙂
Hi Charles Selix,
I am absolutely confident that you would go to heaven, if you were hit by the proverbial bus tomorrow. The fact that you are seeking to be baptized is more than enough.
Also, remember that the commandment to baptize was given to the church – meaning, that WE are commanded to baptize YOU. If your were going to the church I currently attend, and if they found out that you had not been properly baptized, it would be their job to make that happen.
So, you get extra points for figuring this out yourself. Well done.
Also, remember that it is God that chooses you. You could not have come to this understanding if He had not already done so. And, since He has chosen you, He will walk with you to the end of your life. Count on it.
Again, while it’s true that you need to be baptized, the burden is on us to make sure that you are.
Keep up the good work, brother. It is God’s desire that you be in His Kingdom.
Yours in Christ,
John Little
RevelationSix.com
PS. As for your mother, give her time. Give her all the love that you can, and let God walk her through this.
I should add that I was “baptized” as a baby, and my parents continue getting me to believe that I’ll be a-okay, but I know the Truth, and I trust in the Truth.
Same with the rest of my family. :\
Actually, I said to my mother after Grandma’s tonight, along the lines of, “You know I wanna get baptized, right?” And she replied, “Yeah.” And then I asked her later what she knew baptism meant, and she said, “Yeah, I know.”
Sounds like I’m gonna get baptized real soon!
For now, I will continue to spread the Gospel as always.
Yours in Christ, Charles 🙂
Awesome! – JL
During the Middle Ages, Catholics called people who got properly immersed, Anabaptists – meaning re-baptizers. Then, they burned ’em at the stake. – JL
Thank you so much, bro! 🙂 God’s Blessings!
And I pray for Taiwan as well, along with Israel and all other people around the world in need.
Let me tell you something very important: I have Asperger’s syndrome, which is a form of Autism.
It is something that has affected me for my entire life up to now. All the time, the interests I had – whether it was a character from a movie I liked for aesthetics or a cartoon in general or something – it would pretty much be a pattern.
Now that my life has been given to Christ and my mind has been changed from complete conformity to the world, to life in Jesus Christ and being deeply concerned about the state of many people in the world – such as the YouTubers I have watched, who I leave comments on to see if they’ll repent (find my comment in this example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qX5xStRNaYg&lc=UgyCmiWrrrbLaw5h-OF4AaABAg) – I know from God’s Word what am I supposed to do, by daily reading and looking at it and keeping it in mind through the day. With all the sins I’ve committed that God has opened me up to, and that I have repented of all, it has given me fear and trembling in my heart about what will happen to the rest of my family, to the people at the church I go to, and the people I see and know at school.
When I go to school, I see the same people I’ve had through the years. They’re not Christians, but that should be obvious. I always pass out the Message of Christ written on a piece of paper – specifically Acts 17:30 right now – to many at school. It is the way God is directing me so far to handle things. When I first started my Senior year, I actually read my Bible out loud to tables, and then did the best I could to explain it, hoping they would hold it in their heart and understand the need to repent. I faced persecution from a couple of adults and a few kids in the past semester, but I’m willing to face persecution anytime because God is always gonna guide me no matter what; I trust in Him.
As for my family, all I hear out of my brother’s and sister’s mouths is the same crude talk, God’s Name being taken in vain, and other things that they say, same with my parents. I pray so hard for my family, and I have done a little bit of explanation to them, but it hasn’t worked so far, but I trust in God that it hopefully will, if He lets it. It hurts me. I did the same things in the past, but I repented and gave all my life to the Lord. I pray for my family – all of my family all over the nation – to do the same thing. They call themselves “Christians”, and all I see from not just them, but myself, are the same sinful words and things, even though Dad and Mom do repent and pray in private. I don’t know how much longer that will hold up, but, I’ll be patient and love them.
I want a physical brother who I can fellowship with daily, because I’m currently on my physical own serving the Lord. I see the people at my church – I’m not completely confident to call them all brethren – once a week, but never another day. And I can’t say my siblings are brethren because they’re still young and receive bad company. I received bad company, too, from stupid dances and other things, especially things school-related. The one true best friend I ever had was this girl who professes to be a Christian, and I hope she’s walking on that daily, but we don’t see each other anymore, though she is in a Christian club at school. We were friends on the school bus back in 8th Grade, but now it’s just the rare “Oh, hi there” and so on. I mean I know I’ve got you as a virtual friend, because you are my brother, but you’re all the way in Taiwan and I’m here in Missouri, sitting in my room typing this, tired out and ready to take a shower and go to bed, having done the best I could – boasting only in the Name of Jesus Christ my Lord.
I also still have yet to be baptized, but I trust in God that He will soon that to me, whenever He can. It was in 2018 when I finally said, “I love the Lord,” but that was only on the inside of my mind. Yes, I prayed every day, and I read Matthew through John in the summer of that year, but that wasn’t enough. I kept researching other Christian or supposedly Christian commentaries from others, until I saw your website in August 2022. Gosh, did I regret reading that Baldwin’s articles; I was about ready to become a typical pretribulation rapture easy believer thinking that Israel was us and not the nation itself, and that it was evil and so forth for the rest of my life, until I came to your article about Mr. Baldwin. Boy, did I repent hard that day!
There is much more I wanna talk to you about, brother, but I’ll just leave the things that I have talked about here for tonight. May God guide you always as He has, and please pray that my family, as well as the other people I mentioned, might repent and give all their lives to Christ. I will be patient.
Yours in Christ, Charles 🙂
P.S.
I got copies of your books in December, thanks to my paternal grandmother ordering them on Amazon. I already read them in September beforehand, though, so I already had all the knowledge I needed (I just wish I read the books in the Bible first). Mom’s read the descriptions of them, and, I’m sure you were expecting this, but she says she thinks you sound like a kook and she’s going to read those books to find out. Like you said, people will hate the truth at first, but then they’ll eventually grow to love it.
God willing, the time will tell.
Hi Charles,
Asperger’s is a hard burden to bear, but God will not give you more than you can take. And, our Lord uses all strengths and weaknesses for His glory. When we are weak, He is strong.
Your willingness to share the gospel is awesome. Well done. Just remember that this is a marathon, so don’t expect quick results. In fact, for some, you might not ever see the results of your work, but that’s okay. It can take years for a seed planted to bear fruit. And remember, someone needs to plow the field.
I hear you on the need for Christian fellowship. This is so important, but we are seeing less of it every day. I am surprised at how far we have fallen. But, the Lord knows our needs, and He loves us.
Keep up the good work, Charles. It is encouraging to see how well you are doing.
Yours in Christ,
John Little
Revelation Six
PS. Yup. I’m a kook. But if I’m right, it doesn’t matter how crazy I am.
You wanna talk about complete blindness? Look at my father.
And no, I’m not talking about his half-blindness in one eye; I’m specifically talking about him as a Democrat. You see, my father has been a straight Democrat for… pretty much life. In late December, while we were in Iowa, in a rather heated agree-to-disagree encounter, I brought up to my sister at a restaurant we were eating that she should not support the LGBT. It was on my mind, and I felt the need I had to say something. Now, I should’ve said something at home, but I couldn’t have the feeling nag at me any longer. She started crying – I love her, but now she knows the truth – and my father, who Biblically does not support homosexuality and so on in any way, got on to me about it, saying I was being “hateful” when I called the LGBT flag a hate symbol. Again, my father does not at all support these sins. I walked out of the restaurant in tears, and I went off on Dad for the people he supported (Joe Biden and so on), and did the best I could to explain the truth about those nasty people. Then my brother came in and was like, “Calm down.” Now, I must admit, I could have handled it in a better way, by waiting to get home and talk about it, but I just had to speak up, and it wasn’t the best way I could’ve done it. It was just me in tears and yelling at him, out of love, for his spiritual safety.
I would like to point out that my father is actually a mental health therapist, and I’m sure he’s helped many clients just fine. My problem is the fact that he doesn’t live out his faith in true Christlikeness, and instead resorts to the same secular tactics that many use unless he’s in church on Sunday.
Please pray for my father, and the rest of my family.
Yours in Christ, Charles
I love my family just the same.
Hi Charles,
I understand the pressure that you feel, to help people see that they are wrong in what they believe. You care about where they are going and the damage that they are doing to themselves.
However, there are reasons why they cannot see what you see. I will be getting into that in my next post. And, since your Dad is a professional in mental health, he should be aware of such cognitive problems like:
Cognitive Bias
Confirmation Bias
Willful Blindness
Cognitive Blindness
Cognitive Dissonance
The bottom line is that changing your mind about something is often a traumatic and threatening experience. And, it’s much, much easier for young people than those who are older.
Remember that we are to do everything in love, which is really hard in the heat of the moment.
Keep up the good work, Charles.
Yours in Christ,
John Little
Revelation Six
Hey bro.
So, in my acting class, I’m going to be taking part in a classroom project. I did the same thing last year, and I auditioned for a play that I ultimately got the leading role in late in 2022. I’d also like to add – I am not boasting of myself – that I was in all three plays all three years of middle school.
I’d like to ask the question: Am I compromising my faith in Christ to be part of this project, because it’s not at all voluntary?
Also, I’ve tried to talking to one boy who professes to believe in Jesus at school recently. I’m hoping he’s in the same location at school tomorrow – I skip school lunch – so I can have a short talk with him as I did today and on Tuesday. I hope to gain him as a brother, while also continuing to disciple for Christ by sharing Him through the paper messages I give to random people most places I go.
Y’know what I wish? I wish I had a teleporter. I wish you could have a teleporter, as well as for all of us in Christ. I wish we had a teleporter to go around the world and help people, and maybe find an empty island so we could all be safe on it, while teleporting elsewhere, risking death. They would have a new home on the island, where we can worship Christ daily together and rest in Him.
I know it’s all just my fantasy, but I wish that could happen. God says otherwise though in His Word, so I must heed what He says.
I know that I am still young in the faith, but I trust and obey God that He will continue to strengthen me through Christ in discipleship for Him, because I love and fear Him so much, above all else.
But anyways, if you have the Scriptural answer to my question, please let me know, John.
Yours in Christ,
Charles
Hi Charles,
You would only be compromising your faith if the play itself promoted an immoral or anti-Christian message. Even if they were forcing you to participate, you would be required to refuse.
Well done on your evangelism. Keep that up.
As for that teleporter, God has something better: the Holy Spirit. We were chosen before the foundation of the world. God never loses anyone that He chooses.
Keep up the good work, Charles.
Yours in Christ,
John Little
Revelation Six
PS. Since you are providing a lot of personal detail in your comments, I recommend that you stop using your last name, or substitute it with an ‘S’ – for future security.