Stranger Things

In this article I want to bring your attention to more signs and strange occurrences that point to the nearness of end time events.  As the saying goes, "as above, so below."  We worship a sovereign God and all of creation testifies to His sovereignty and purposes.  He's speaking through His Word and through creation, but few want to listen.  Earth is a dim and broken reflection of Heaven similar to how the "Upside Down" in the Netflix original series Stranger Things is a dim reflection of earth.  Human sin and the corruption of the physical universe have severed earth from Heaven, but if we pay attention we can see God's heavenly reality speaking into our world all the time.

As a side note, it just so happens that Netflix's incredibly popular TV show is further conditioning the world to disregard the rapture.  It's all about mysterious disappearances—people who are suddenly snatched into an alternate dimension by malevolent creatures, leaving no trace behind.

Emeralds

In the Book of Revelation the first glimpse of the rapture can be seen in Chapter 4 when the Apostle John is caught up to Heaven at the sound of a trumpet.  Like the male child in Revelation 12:5, the first thing he sees is God on His Throne.  The Throne is surrounded by what looks like a giant emerald (see Rev. 4:3).  An emerald is a green crystal.

The ongoing eruption from Mount Kilauea in Hawaii is currently raining down green crystals across the southeast part of the island:

Falling Dragons and Stars

Simultaneous with or shortly after the rapture, satan, symbolized by a seven-headed dragon, is cast out of Heaven and crashes to the earth.  Along with him are his angels, which in the passage are symbolized by stars (Rev. 12:4; cf Rev. 12:7–9).  Just two days ago a violent storm crashed into the coastal city of Qingdao, China.

In the midst of this storm, some very unusual things fell right out of the sky, including an octopus.  This octopus kind of looks like a seven-headed dragon and in fact, the strange thing is that it appears to have not eight, but seven legs:

The seven-legged octopus landed right on someone's windshield.  But, let's not forget the stars.  Starfish fell out of the sky, too:

Day of the LORD "Stuff"

There is an interesting prophecy in the second chapter of the Book of Joel.  Peter cited it in his sermon to those gathered in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost in 33 AD, specifically this part:

And afterward,
  I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
  your old men will dream dreams,
  your young men will see visions.
Even on my servants, both men and women,
  I will pour out my Spirit in those days.
I will show wonders in the heavens
  and on the earth,
  blood and fire and billows of smoke.
The sun will be turned to darkness  and the moon to blood  before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.
And everyone who calls  on the name of the Lord will be saved

- Joel 2:28–32 (cf Acts 2:16–21)

Peter was citing the prophecy as if it was just fulfilled and I personally agree with him.  How so?  The Holy Spirit had just been poured out for the first time on the disciples (literally moments before Peter's sermon), the Spirit had descended on them as tongues of fire.  The blood of Christ had been poured out a little over 50 days prior, the sun had been turned to darkness for three hours, and, if the crucifixion occurred in 33 AD, the moon looked like blood from Jerusalem on the evening after His crucifixion.  Lastly, Peter was now proclaiming to the people the Gospel message of how, because of Christ's death and resurrection, everyone who calls on the Name of the LORD will be saved.  All the pieces were there.

That being said, there are parts of Joel 2–3 that seem to deal with the Tribulation and the Day of the LORD, which is why I think the above passage may have a secondary or "shadow" fulfillment and we may have just witnessed most or all of the pieces in conjunction with the Revelation 12 Sign.

1. The Spirit being poured out and dreams, visions, and prophecy.  Christians have discussed prophecy since time immemorial, but never has there been such a concerted and conclusive effort to find the truth as there was in 2016, 2017, and this year.  Hundreds and even thousands of believers were uncovering all sorts of ancient and newly revealed information that was mutually confirming the Revelation 12 Sign, the rapture, and the nearness of end time events.  I've been seriously studying Bible prophecy for ten years and I've never seen anything like it.  Rarely do Christians agree about eschatology, but this appeared to be a Spirit-led initiative of revelation.  There were even many hundreds who claimed to have visions and dreams that confirmed individual pieces of the puzzle.

2. Wonders in the heavens and on the earth.  How about a Great Wonder in Heaven?  Would that do?  As for the earth, well, that piece isn't missing either (see here, here, here, and here).

3. Blood.  Numerous rivers and waterways have been turning blood red over the past several years.  In fact, just last week red floodwaters inundated parts of Oklahoma City:

4. Fire and billows of smoke.  I take it that the historic eruption in Hawaii that has boiled away the state's largest lake, covered many square miles in lava, destroyed hundreds of homes, and filled in an entire bay, hasn't escaped your attention.  It also happens to be right in the middle of the Ring of Fire.

Nor has the tragic Fuego ("fire") eruption in Guatemala escaped your attention.  Hundreds died from the eruption's pyroclastic flow.  And the town that was destroyed happened to be called St. Miguel (Saint Michael)—the archangel who is about to stand up to do battle with the devil as the Church escapes to Heaven.

5. The sun turned to darkness.  I think the Great American Eclipse fits the bill.  It was the most watched solar eclipse in history, darkening the sun right in the middle of the day.  It also crossed the entirety of the world's most powerful and prosperous Gentile nation.

6. The moon turned to blood.  On January 31, 2018 an extremely rare Super-Blue-Blood Moon eclipse occurred.  The moon looked like blood.  But if that doesn't suffice for you, on July 27th this year another total lunar eclipse—a blood moon—will be visible across the entire Middle East.

7. All who call on the Name of the LORD will be saved.  The first fulfillment of this prophecy signaled the spiritual salvation of the Church—justification by faith alone in Christ alone.  The second fulfillment may signal the physical salvation of the Church when we are caught up to Heaven and glorified before the Day of the LORD.

More Signs in the Heavens

On September 23rd and 24th last year an astronomical alignment formed that perfectly matched the description given in Revelation 12:1–2, complete with male child and all.  The child, the Church in union with Christ, was represented by the planet Jupiter.

A month and a half after the Great Sign the planet Jupiter came into close conjunction with Venus, the bright morning star, which the Bible uses as a symbol for Christ (Rev. 22:16).  The conjunction perhaps symbolized Christ meeting His body, the Church, in the air (1 Thess. 4:16–18).

November 13, 2017

Then precisely at midnight on Christmas Day 2017 in Israel, Jupiter entered Libra, which symbolizes the Altar or Throne of God, perhaps completing the rapture picture.

December 25, 2017

Jupiter circles through Libra for about 9–10 months before finally leaving this Fall.  On the Feast of Trumpets it is situated right in the heart of Libra.  Rewinding three months, there is another interesting alignment: the star that symbolizes Christ in His glory (the planet Venus) is in conjunction with the Beehive Cluster of Cancer, which is right in the middle of the constellation.  This happens nine months to the day since the Feast of Trumpets 2017.

June 21, 2018

Cancer is the constellation directly above the Revelation 12 Sign of Leo, Virgo, and Libra.  Venus was part of the Revelation 12 Sign and represented Christ.  The Head (Venus) joined to the Body (Jupiter) on November 13, 2017 and has since traveled through the remaining constellations to arrive at Cancer.

What is Cancer and what is the significance of the Beehive Cluster?  In the ancient Mazzaroth and Zodiacs the name of the constellation meant "who holds, one who holds, resting place, sacred/immortal place, the seizer, or possessor of seed."  All of these are rapture or heavenly images.  Consider the meaning of its main stars:

Tegmine - "Hiding Place"

Al Himerein - "The lambs or little lambs"

Acubene - Also "hiding place"

Ma'alaph - "Assembled thousands"

Praesepe - Most importantly is the Beehive Cluster, a multitude of stars tightly packed together, many of which are visible to the naked eye.  This means "the cattle-fold, multitude, manger, offspring, or innumerable seed."  These meanings may point to the Church and also contain birth imagery—even imagery that ties to the promises given to Abraham of promised offspring/seed.

Might this June 21st alignment symbolize Christ and His Church in the heavenly hiding place?  Could it picture the multitude of believers, the promised offspring, tucked safely away in Heaven?  It's also interesting that the Head of the male child was born and placed in a manger some 2,000 years ago.  In some sense the Body of the male child will likewise be placed in the heavenly manger—a safe hiding place—symbolized by Praesepe.

So far the signs have not pinpointed the exact date of the rapture or Day of the LORD, but considering how much has transpired in the sky and down on earth in the last nine months, we must be getting very, even frighteningly close and like the magi we will continue to look up as we follow the path to the King.

~ MARANATHA ~

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