“I will
call for a sword against Gog throughout all My mountains,” says the Lord GOD.
“Every man’s sword will be against his brother.
Ezekiel 38:21 NKJV
The
presence of Russia in many of the countries in the Middle East has prompted many
people to speculate on the possibility that the prophecies which are set to
occur just before, and after the rapture of the Church, are about to be fulfilled. I for one, agree with that idea
wholeheartedly, and am of the opinion it is going to happen sooner rather than
later. As I have studied different
prophecies over the years, this conflict as revealed by Ezekiel, has quite
often held my attention for a number of reasons. Today I want to share with you just one of
those reasons.
If
you look up the definition of the word war in any dictionary, you will most
likely find something along the lines of “an armed conflict between two
opposing forces or nations”. Now that
sounds fine on the surface, and most would agree that it accurately describes
what we have come to know as war, yet I believe that in situations where God is
on one side of the two opposing forces, history shows this might not be an
entirely accurate description of what occurs on the battlefield. Why is that you ask? Look closely at the account in the passage
from Ezekiel and tell me what “arms” are used by God to defend His people?
“Every man’s sword
will be against his brother.”
As
I thought about what we read here, I could not help but wonder exactly how this
is going to play out in the eyes of the world when it occurs? You have a massive army of Israel’s enemies
led by Gog who descend upon the mountains of Israel with the intent to
annihilate and take spoil. Israel will
no doubt be preparing to defend itself by moving massive numbers of troops and
materiel northward in anticipation of the invasion. The world will be watching with all too many
hoping to see Israel finally defeated, when suddenly the entire army of Gog begins
to fight against each other!
Now
if this sounds a little unbelieveable, I can assure you it is not the first
time God chooses to use this method to defeat His enemies. When Israel went to war against the
Midianites, led by Gideon, God employed the same “tactic” allowing Israel to be
victorious using only three hundred men!
When
the three hundred blew the trumpets, the LORD set every man’s sword against his
companion throughout the whole camp;
Judges 7:22 NKJV
Later
in Israel’s history, when Saul was king, once again God uses the same “sword”
to defeat the Philistines.
Then
Saul and all the people who were with him assembled, and they went to the
battle; and indeed every man’s sword was against his neighbor, and there was
very great confusion. 1 Samuel
14:20 NKJV
As
I thought this week about God’s sword being a method of confusion causing His
enemies to fight against each other, my first thought was exactly how could the
“media” today put a spin on this when it happens in Israel? A new biological weapon engineered by Israel
which causes “hallucinations and paranoia” when released above the
battlefield? If you think about it, do
you really believe the world would admit “God” actually exists and is defending
Israel? Obviously that thought has already
occurred to God because He goes on to make it clear that the entire world will
know exactly who is making this all happen.
“And it
will come to pass at the same time, when Gog comes against the land of Israel,”
says the Lord GOD, “that My fury will show in My face. “For in My jealousy and
in the fire of My wrath I have spoken: ‘Surely in that day there shall be a
great earthquake in the land of Israel, ‘so that the fish of the sea, the birds
of the heavens, the beasts of the field, all creeping things that creep on the
earth, and all men who are on the face of the earth shall shake at My presence.
The mountains shall be thrown down, the steep places shall fall, and every wall
shall fall to the ground.’ “I will call for a sword against Gog throughout all
My mountains,” says the Lord GOD. “Every man’s sword will be against his
brother. “And I will bring him to judgment with pestilence and bloodshed; I
will rain down on him, on his troops, and on the many peoples who are with him,
flooding rain, great hailstones, fire, and brimstone. “Thus I will magnify
Myself and sanctify Myself, and I will be known in the eyes of many nations.
Then they shall know that I am the LORD.” ’ Ezekiel 38:18-23 NKJV
Most
scholars agree that the battle described in this passage occurs just
immediately before the seventieth week of Daniel, otherwise known as the
tribulation, begins. It is this conflict
that not only turns back the nation of Israel to Him, it allows the antichrist
to enforce the peace between Israel and its enemies which is described in the
book of Daniel. Of course, no one can
agree as to exactly when the rapture will occur in light of all of these events
but since that is the case, let me share a thought I had while studying and meditating
on this subject this past week.
“Then
they shall know that I am the LORD.”
Think
carefully about what God says here. The
entire world will know! Now I am not
sure how you see it, but to me, this removes everyone’s excuse that they didn’t
know. If the rapture were to occur after
these events, and I am not saying that this will be the case, would that not
mean that everyone left on earth after the rapture made the choice to ignore or
reject God revealing Himself to them?
The Word makes it clear that no one will have an excuse. Does it not make sense that by revealing
Himself through the events in this passage from Ezekiel, God removes every
excuse from those who choose to disbelieve?
No
one knows when the rapture of the Church will occur, but it certainly seems
obvious from this account in Ezekiel that God has a plan to reveal Himself in
such a way as to remove anyone’s claim that they did not know He exists, and
that it is incumbent for mankind to make a choice to believe or not believe. Seen in that light, it seems clear that all
those left behind will be faced with making a choice to accept or reject what
God will reveal to them on the day of His deliverance of Israel from Gog and
his armies. I have no doubt that this
world will come up with some sort of explanation for the events described in
this passage of scripture, but even if it does make some sort of sense and the
media does its best to propagate it, we are told by God Himself that the world
will know the truth.
As
we see this day approaching, and the day of our deliverance is imminent, have
you made your choice yet? If you are reading this today and have never made the
decision to accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, I urge you to do it
right now. Simply admit to God that you need His forgiveness because you are a
sinner, believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sins, and invite Him to
come in and control your life through the Holy Spirit by praying a simple
prayer like this;
Father, I know I am a sinner in need of salvation. I believe
you sent your Son Jesus to die on the cross for my sin, and I ask you now to
forgive me of my sins. I want to receive your gift of salvation so please come
into my heart and help me to live and follow you as my Lord and Savior. In
Jesus' name, Amen.
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