Faith Today: March 2018

Diana Washington-Valdez, ordained
Christian minister with Ashkenazi
Jewish ancestry.

Bible prophecies and science predictions

Central Bible verses

^“At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” Hebrews 12:26

^“For thus says the Lord of hosts: Yet once more, in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land.” Haggai 2:6

Cataclysms, earthquakes, famine, mass migrations, war, pestilence, conflict, and the prophetic

NEWS: Earthquakes and the prophetic in Israel Experts expect a major tremor
Study says 'the big one' on West Coast is waiting to happen Study on the 'big one'

The Bible mentions all of these and more

Several Christian ministers with prophetic insights shared their views on television and in public videos. Among the most notable things they asserted were that the West Coast, and to a lesser extent the East Coast and Gulf of Mexico Coast, will experience tsunamis. What they believe will happen to the West Coast is nothing short of catastrophic.

A massive tsunami can be triggered by any one or more of several things: a major megathrust-type earthquake and aftershocks within the Pacific Ring of Fire [1], a deliberate or accidental missile, underground nuclear missile tests, one or more large meteorites or asteroids falling on different parts of the world and volcanic eruptions.

Any of these things really can happen.

We know from the geologic history of the Earth that large meteors that didn’t burn up in the atmosphere inflicted serious damage. One of them left a 2.4-mile circumference crater in Arizona [1], while an asteroid was suspected of wiping out the Maya civilization [2].

Recently, several news media outlets reported on the findings of scientists that believe the Earth is due for a “megathrust” event. [3]. We know that the Ring of Fire is an active earthquake and volcanic zone.

The Great Flood described in the Book of Genesis represents the cataclysm to end all cataclysms [4]. Cultures in all parts of the world have stories handed down to us about a great flood. Such an event or a meteorite could have erased the dinosaurs.

An earthquake followed by unusual events was reported in Jerusalem at the crucifixion of Jesus Christ Matthew 27:51.

According to Genesis 11:6, humans had a common language at one time [5]. This ended at Babel when the Lord decided he needed to break up the common language. Humans speaking new languages then scattered across the world [6].

Over the centuries, the Israelites experienced numerous forced migrations, and encountered conflicts in Europe during the Inquisitions of 1232 and 1542 [7], as well as in Germany during the Nazi period of 1933-45 [8], before obtaining in 1948 a return to their homeland of Israel, also known as the “promised land.”

Historically, the combined systematic murders of millions of people under Adolf Hitler and later in the Soviet Union under Josef Stalin [9] were human catastrophes.

The Great Plague of 1346 to 1353 is thought to have killed up to 60 percent of the population in Europe and the Near East [10]. The Spanish Flu of 1918 to 1920, which did not originate in Spain, was a major influenza pandemic that also took the lives of millions around the world [11]. Each year, infectious diseases like malaria and tuberculosis also take the lives of countless people.

Read a short history of the world, and you will soon see that war seems to be a constant, especially in the more volatile parts of the globe [12].

Bad things can happen at any time to large numbers of people.

When prophets share what they claim to be a divinely-inspired insight, they are reminding us of what has happened in the past and could happen again. Scientists who study and analyze data - concerning earthquakes, volcanoes, asteroids and solar and geomagnetic storms – do their best to warn us, too.

Several self-proclaimed, modern-day Christian prophets believe that a catastrophic tsunami or tsunamis for the West Coast (also possible for Mexico and or South America) could be imminent. Although they were unable to set a date for the catastrophes, at least one of them thinks the West Coast could be struck within the next two to three years, if not sooner.

The 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake and ensuing tsunamis were responsible for the deaths of an estimated 230,000 or more humans. NASA’s website includes a report about the different effects of the 9.0 earthquake and tsunami events [13].

I know of more than one such “prophet” that furthermore believes that there will be a significant change in leadership that will affect North Korea and South Korea. According to them, it’s possible for this to happen soon.

The Middle East and the Baltics regions, as everyone knows, continue to be geopolitical hot zones of concern to the entire world.

Some people seek out the views of psychics about these matters, but the Bible explicitly warns us to stay away from mediums and the occult in general. The passage in Deuteronomy 18:9-12 offers one such warning. Why? Generally, there are two good reasons. They may be charlatans, or their source of information comes from the dark side (the demonic).

We have seen “Christians” in recent times make very public predictions about the end of the world (or other catastrophes) that turned out to be false. Were they “false prophets?” Maybe, or, perhaps they were self-deluded people who ran with information they thought was true.

We’ve also had cult leaders who claimed to be prophets and who caused considerable harm to their followers, those who were blinded by the leaders’ charisma and powers of persuasion. Jim Jones, for example, the founder of the People’s Temple, was a notorious cult leader who led more than 900 of his followers to their deaths in a 1978 suicide-pact [14].

When it comes to the prophetic, we must tread carefully. People who have the spiritual gift of prophecy would do well to cross-check their dreams, visions or insights with others before rushing off to tell the rest of the world.

“Surely the Sovereign Lord does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets.” Amos 3:7.

Besides the foretelling of events, prophets have been used by the Lord to warn people to repent of their sins, which includes, when permitted and when led by the Lord, taking to task government and spiritual leaders and others so they can get back on track. John the Baptist was such a prophet.

Needless to say, real prophets serve the Lord wholeheartedly and are rarely popular with the in-crowd.

We should not be afraid of the supernatural, when it comes from the Lord, and if we remain within His boundaries of safety as set forth in the Bible.

The Bible states in the Old and New Testaments, in the books of Acts and Joel, that the Lord plans to pour out His Spirit on people in these last days.

Acts 2:17

“‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh,
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
and your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams;”

Joel 2:28-29 :

²⁸“And it shall come to pass afterward,
    that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh;
your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
    your old men shall dream dreams,
    and your young men shall see visions.

²⁹Even on the male and female servants
    in those days I will pour out my Spirit.”

As a minister, I hesitate to refer to the natural and human-induced disasters we are experiencing in modern times as God’s judgment on sinners. We are still living in the era of God’s grace.

The fact that a “prophet” tells us that something is going to happen could be just that, an advisory about what is to come. It does not necessarily mean that people are being punished for their sins. According to the Book of Revelation, a worldwide time of reckoning is coming, later.

Science and history show us that really bad things have happened and will continue to happen. Prophets, if they are acting under divine inspiration and foretell these events, are but messengers. Scientists who offer their best forecasts for natural disasters are another form of messengers.

What can we do if something ‘big’ is about to happen?

We can do certain things to prepare ourselves and our families in case of natural or human-induced catastrophes. Cyber-attacks by foreign agents against U.S. energy and election systems have already taken place. These things are going on right now [15].

But, we don’t have to become “preppers” to protect ourselves in the face of catastrophes. We can take some practical measures to mitigate short-term effects. The U.S. government has provided on the Web a recommended checklist of items and measures. Most importantly, we can pray and ask the Lord to guide us in these matters. [16]

From accounts in Genesis, the Lord had Noah build an ark to save humanity and the animals. He sent angels to escort Lot and his family out of Sodom and Gomorrah. He parted the Red Sea for the Israelites. There comes a point in time when we must leave the rest in the hands of a sovereign Lord.

Listen to the Lord’s call to repentance

Jesus Christ started out His earthly ministry with a call to repentance: “From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” ^{Matthew 4:17a}Repent means to turn around. Jesus obtained salvation for us with His death, burial and resurrection.

Salvation is available to anyone, but it is an individual and voluntary choice to accept it.

The Lord has done everything that is necessary to procure our salvation: He is waiting for us to respond. What are you waiting on?

If you are not sure of how to pray to ask for salvation, you can begin by reciting from your heart this suggested prayer:

Prayer

Dear Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner, and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe You died for my sins and rose from the dead. I turn from my sins and invite You to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as my Lord and Savior. In Your Name. Jesus invites

After that, ask the Lord and other Christians to help you find a good Bible-centered church and fellowship to grow in the faith. Let someone know you have given your life to Jesus, and may God bless you always.

Diana Washington Valdez/Faith Today Christian Ministries
Facebook ministry page

Next in the series: Idolatry, the Book of Jeremiah and the growing popularity of idolatrous indigenous practices and ceremonies.

Notes

Bile quotes are from the NIV, KJV and ESV versions. For online readers, I recommend www.biblegateway.com, which contains numerous Bible versions in English and Spanish and other languages.

Definitions are from Merriam-Webster.com

Prophecy (noun)/prophecies(plural)/prophesy (verb): 1. Inspired utterance of a prophet. 2. Function or vocation of a prophet. 3. A prediction of something to come.

Prophetic: 1. Of, relating to, or characteristic of a prophet or prophecy. 2. Foretelling events.

Prediction: 2. Something that is predicted: Forecast.

Prophets: Examples of prophets in the Bible: Daniel, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Isaiah, Deborah, John. This is not an exhaustive list.

Links to media sources cited

[1] The Guardian Big earthquakes likely

[2] Arizona crater

[3] Science Daily Dinosaurs and Mayas

[4] ABC News The Great Flood

[5,6] Genesis Genesis 11:6-8

[7] Chabad.org Spanish Inquisition

[8] Wikipedia Nazi Germany
[9] Stanford.edu Book on Stalin

[10] HistoryToday.com The great plague