Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition, who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped, so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.

-2 Thessalonians 2:3-4

And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.

-Matthew 24:10-12

Moreover king Antiochus wrote to his whole kingdom, that all should be one people, and every one should leave his laws: so all the heathen agreed according to the commandment of the king. Yea, many also of the Israelites consented to his religion, and sacrificed unto idols, and profaned the sabbath.

-1 Maccabees 1:41-43

People leave Christianity for a variety of reasons. Sometimes, they come back. The Bible tells us that Christ goes looking for the lost and that no-one can separate us from the love of God. How, then, do we understand the case of a person who, so far as we know, never came back? Some argue that the person was never a true Christian in the first place. Others say that it is possible, through a free choice, to renounce one’s salvation.

In any event, the Bible teaches that there is such a thing as apostasy. Those who formerly were identified as Christians, whatever that means metaphysically and epistemologically, have ceased to be Christians. Spiritual death is the final result of apostasy: those who do not belong to the Lord will be cast into the fire at the final resurrection, like weeds gathered in the harvest of a farmer’s field.

Ministering and holding one’s own faith in the midst of apostasy are challenges. Life has a way of testing people. The Bible tells us that God does not permit testing beyond what we are able to bear, but this does not entail that everyone passes the test.

Although each one is ultimately responsible for his own choices, humans live in societies. As John Donne once observed, “No man is an island”. The Bible teaches that Christians are part of God’s family; we are brothers and sisters to one another. This means we have a duty of care towards each other, qualified by our awareness and ability to help.

The problem of evil is something that ostensibly has caused apostasy in the Church. The subjective nature of our experience makes it difficult to be certain in this matter, as apostates may give this answer for why they left as a cover to hide deeper feelings and choices.

Nevertheless, it may play a part. This is why it is important for Christians to have an answer to this problem, both intellectually and practically. We must understand that our suffering takes place in a bigger context of free will and love. We must be willing to share in one another’s suffering. We must stoke the fires of faith, admonishing one another to hold on to Christ, to the hope of the Age to Come.

Lastly, we must not set up stumbling blocks: we must not indulge in false teachings that promise comfort of a worldly kind in this life. Such is not guaranteed. Indeed, some of the holiest of God’s people have suffered the most horrifying of experiences. Christ Himself, the Son of God, suffered the Passion.

Apostasy, of course, has other causes and effects, which the reader is welcome to write in the comments below. It is a phenomenon that is happening now and is expected to worsen as the end of the age approaches.

This short video is well worth watching.  A few years ago I read Paul Copan’s book mentioned in the video, and agreed with much in it. As I recall he was a Calvinist at the time of writing (though I could be mistaken). Nevertheless, the book is a product of a sharp mind, reflecting his excellent philosophical skills. I would recommend reading it, if at all possible.

–True for you, but not for me?, by Paul Copan

This short video on recent developments in UK politics is worth watching:

I have little to add except to say we must pray that the Lord will overcome those who would be tyrants . At the risk of drawing opprobrium, I say to Christians who are members of or in any other way support the Labour Party: Withdraw NOW. You must have no more to do with that party – now is the time when you must make your choice. Choose wisely.

The citizens of the UK will defy any attempt at tyranny that the Labour Party may bring.

The Seventy Weeks prophecy is often (though not exclusively) interpreted as meaning that the countdown began with Artaxerxes’ permission to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, and that the “anointed one” who is “cut off without nothing” is Jesus the Messiah at the crucifixion. Chris White, drawing on the work of Charles Cooper, presents a different model of interpretation here (though the final week is analysed in much the same way as the earlier model).

The reader is advised to consult the article if he wishes to examine the reasoning involved in the theory. However, since the article is thirty-four pages long, a summary of the main points are presented here, for the sake of brevity. While I enjoy reading Charles Cooper’s work and, like him, subscribe to pre-wrath eschatology, I do not necessarily agree with all his views or those of Chris White. For example, I do not agree with Chris White regarding his interpretation of Mystery Babylon or his response to the central theses of the Islamic Antichrist paradigm. Nor do I have a settled position regarding the interpretation of Daniel 9 presented here. Rather, the position is put forward as worthy of consideration in its diligence of reasoning and engagement with the Hebrew language.

Summary

The decree to rebuild the city and sanctuary, which commences the seven weeks, is the decree of Cyrus to rebuild Jerusalem and its Temple, not a decree issued under Artaxerxes or any other Persian ruler. The seven weeks end with the coming of Nehemiah to complete the decree’s tasks. Nehemiah is the anointed prince: a governor of Yehud (Judah), anointed by God for the purpose of rebuilding Jerusalem and the Temple.

The sixty-two weeks, in which Jerusalem is troubled, existing with a moat and city squares, is the period from Nehemiah to the destruction of the city and Temple in 70 AD. The prophecy states that this destruction comes after the sixty-two weeks have expired, which is the case according to certain calculations given in the article: the city was sacked around two months after the expiry of those weeks. The “flood” reference in the prophecy does not mean that Jerusalem was destroyed by water. It is a simile: Jerusalem was destroyed with the suddenness and devastating power that characterise floods. This is an accurate reflection of the sack, which happened in a short space of time, and utterly ruined the city.

The reference to cutting off an anointed one refers not to Christ’s crucifixion, but the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD. The Temple is an anointed place (and the Seventy Weeks are described as being about anointing a holy place, among other things). God cuts off the Temple, through the agency of the Romans and rebellious Jews, as a consequence of their breaches of the covenant. “Cut off” here means to end: the Temple no longer exists or functions; it is removed from Israel (and Israel from it). The destruction of the Temple in 70 AD is analogous to the former Temple’s destruction at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar’s armies (this is the position of Josephus).

The “people of the prince who is to come” are the destroyers of the Temple. The prince is Titus, a Roman general and son of Emperor Vespasian. He commanded the armies that sacked Jerusalem. The emphasis is on the people (or host), because the army destroyed the Temple, in its frenzy and hatred, against the wishes of Titus, who wished to preserve it, as Josephus describes.

The seventieth week is still future. It will probably commence with the confirmation of an already existing treaty. In the middle of the seven years specified in the treaty, the Antichrist will desecrate a rebuilt Jewish Temple, making it desolate. The Antichrist, though not given a name or noun or pronoun, is the subject of “confirm”, which does not refer back to the “people” (the Roman armies) or “the prince who is to come” (Titus). This verse cannot, therefore, be used to settle questions about the ethnicity of the Antichrist or the possibility that he will rule a “revived Roman empire”. Other parts of Scripture must be employed regarding those and related questions.

The Temple desecrated by the Antichrist will be destroyed at the Parousia. It will be replaced with a new Temple (the one described in the closing chapters of Ezekiel), which is to be anointed with oil, as per the beginning of the Seventy Weeks prophecy.

These times call for prayer. It is my hope that AATW will become an online house of prayer. My dream is to see a prayer posted here everyday, from as many contributors as possible, with Amens in the comments below. This dream does not mean excluding regular posts – indeed, it might be better to set up a separate prayer-feed tab – but I hope that we will pursue it and draw closer to God and to each other.

Dear Lord,

Today we bring before you the individual congregations of which we each are a part. We  ask that You will bring fresh vision and energy to our congregations, mending what needs mending and pruning what needs pruning.

Please build us up in the unity of the Holy Spirit, with a hunger and thirst for Your presence. Grant that we may seek You with our hearts in prayer, meditation, and any means You may wish to use.

In Jesus’ name,

Amen.

The following prayer is controversial.  I ask those of you who believe in what is written to write “Amen” in the comments below (and anything else positive and supporting, should you wish – including further prayers). I was inspired to write this by a recent piece at NEO and some prophetic words shared at Richard’s Watch.

Heavenly Father,

May Your holy Name be exalted throughout the earth. We acknowledge that these are times of trial and change. We seek to discern your will and purpose in this change. We confess that we have not always been diligent in prayer, confession, or repentance. May we, by Your Spirit and the ministry of Your Son, Jesus Christ, grow closer to You. May we learn Your will and delight in it. May that delight turn into co-operation with and service to You.

We pray for our political leaders, President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Boris Johnson. We declare that these are men chosen by You for such an hour as this, men with anointings, after the fashion of Cyrus, David, and Esther. We acknowledge the spiritual heritage of our nations and thee links these men have with You through baptism, confirmation, and other rites and practices. We thank You that You have placed Christians in the circles of acquaintance around these men. We pray that these leaders will grow close to You and have a saving, transformational faith in Jesus the Messiah. May You place wisdom and courage in these men’s hearts and minds. May You give them the power and authority from Christ to perform Your will.

We ask that through these men and other servants of Yours You will reform Your Church in the United States of America and the United Kingdom, and reform our nations as a whole in every respect: socially, economically, legally, politically, culturally, and spiritually – in every context: the individual, the family, the business, the association, the church, and the state.

We ask that You will deliver our nations from dangerous liaisons with other nations, individuals, and groups, through Brexit and other processes. We ask that You would raise up our nations to resist the coming Antichrist, Mystery Babylon, and all the spiritual and human forces of wickedness. We ask that through revival in our countries You would increase our missionary roles to the rest of the world, and through true Christian unity, would make Your Church around the world one in itself and with You.

We ask that You would encourage and help us to bless Your people Israel, including witness to the truth that Jesus of Nazareth is their God and Messiah. May You open the eyes of Israel and preserve a righteous remnant through the time of Jacob’s Trouble, as You promised through the Prophets and through Your Son, Jesus the Messiah.

Grant us this day a fresh zeal for Your presence and for transformation, that we might dwell in Your throne room and pray in truth and power, believing with faith, hope, and love, in You and Your Kingdom. Grant us rest, revelation, and renewed purpose and vision.

In the name of Jesus Christ, King of kings and Lord of lords, in whom You are pleased to let Your fullness, power, and authority dwell, we ask these things.

Amen.

In one sense, as Ecclesiastes says, “There is nothing new under the sun.” History provides us with ample evidence of what humanity is. The picture is both appalling and sublime: by divine inspiration, we are capable of acts of love and charity; by our own depravity and satanic inducement, we can commit the very worst acts of atrocity.

Scripture acts as a mirror: if we let God speak to us, rather than hide in the shadows, we see ourselves as we really are. In that moment of truth, if we do not rebel, we will confess our sins and ask God to forgive and transform us. The Christian and the Christian Church are on a journey of transformation, of being conformed to the likeness of Jesus Christ, God’s Son. This means having His mind and behaviour, and, in the end, being given a heavenly body like His.

The end times also act as a mirror. They show us what fallen humanity, without the grace of God, is like. In a sense, the end times are like Hell on earth (although the true Hell is infinitely worse: a place of hopelessness, despair, and torment). Showing us the mirror is part of Paul’s purpose in 2 Thessalonians 2, alongside showing Christians how to know when the Day of the LORD and the rapture are near:

Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.

Various end times passages talk about measures coming to the full as a prerequisite for the end. The full number of Gentiles must enter the Church, and then Israel will be saved (ring composition: Abraham to Christ to Gentiles to Israel). Mystery Babylon is destroyed when her wickedness has come to the full. The Antichrist is destroyed by Christ after the Great Tribulation, which Christ and the Old Testament describe as the worst time in (Israel’s) history.

This is one of the purposes for knowing about the end times, to appreciate our need for Christ and to encourage us to live godly lives. Christ is the hope of creation: things must come to their worst before we receive our deliverance, the resurrection and rapture (the “gathering” in the passage above).

Two articles I stumbled across today that our high-church readers may enjoy:

http://www.newliturgicalmovement.org/2006/07/on-origins-and-development-of.html#.XTWU0HtrzIU

http://www.newliturgicalmovement.org/2006/07/on-origin-and-development-of-vestments.html#.XTWURntrzIU

My personal view is that I prefer medieval vestments from an aesthetic viewpoint; I leave theological judgments on the matter to those who are more learned than I.

In the film, Luther, starring Joseph Fiennes, Martin Luther discusses the incipient Reformation with his Father Confessor, Johann von Staupitz, as they prepare for the Diet of Worms. Von Staupitz laments the chaos that seems to have been unleashed. He expresses the fear that Luther is destroying the Church, rather than reforming her. Luther responds to this that reform comes at a cost.

This scene has always made an impact on me. Although this particular film has a number of historical inaccuracies, I find parts of it edifying in the lessons they teach. The cost of reform is one of them.

This is a period in time that is crying out for reform, reform of the Church and reform of the states. Heresy and deceit abound. Rebellion against ancient custom, which once could safeguard a nation without the support of law, has made it dangerous to speak one’s thoughts aloud. History, the wellspring of conservatism, has been forgotten and – worse still – rewritten. Death stalks the lands, and the powers of darkness tighten their grip on the nations.

God knows these things. They are not too great for Him to overcome. His grace and power are breaking through and the Devil suspects that his time is short. The return of Christ approaches, and when He comes, He will pour out the wrath of God on the unrepentant.

In the meantime, reform is necessary. The Church must be prepared for the “final push”, the completion of her great commission. This reform is costly. It will mean repentance, humility, and a careful use of Scripture, in order to avoid falling for deception.

As the Church is reformed, though the world continues in a dark direction, the light of the Church will grow brighter and the Gospel will go out in power. May the Lord’s will be accomplished.