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Terrorism A New World Disorder He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide Jeff Mezera John W. Gardner once said, “History never looks like history when you are living through it. It always looks confusing and messy, and it always feels uncomfortable.” After experiencing the end of the Cold War, the breakup of the Soviet Union, the fall of the Berlin Wall, and the end of most Communist governments, today’s news speaks of ethnic wars around the world, the growing power of Islam, and the fear of “Terrorism.” The unexpected rise of Islam and its significance to the student of the Bible is puzzling. In the scheme of the biblical prophetic picture significant events are taking place. But just what is that picture? While the signs of the “end of the age” (Matthew 24:3) are numerous, we know “there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again. If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened” (Matthew 24:21,22, NIV). For years Americans considered terrorism to be someone else’s problem. The United States was concerned with the Cold War and the threat of nuclear annihilation. The Palestinian Intifada had become commonplace in the news with repetitive instances of terrorist activity in Israel. Despite repeated attempts at peace, violence continued unabated. In the 1970s terrorism was not as widespread as in recent years. Suicide bombings, assassinations, and hijackings have since become the terrorist acts of choice. Now both computer and biological viruses are used, chemical and radioactive dirty bombs are threatened. Even women and citizens of western countries have committed suicide bombings. Since the 1970s, terrorists have blown up oil installations and hijacked airplanes in an effort to draw attention to their cause. Sometimes they went further. The Palestinian Liberation Organization kidnapped and killed several Israeli athletes during the 1972 Olympics in Munich. In 1979 the American embassy in Iran was seized and sixty-three hostages were detained. The 1980s saw several car bombs used against U.S. embassies, including one in Beirut. An explosion was set off in the underground parking garage of the World Trade Center in 1993. Two years later there was a sarin gas attack in a Tokyo subway. In 2000 the destroyer U.S.S. Cole, as it rested at a dock, nearly sank after an explosive attack. North Korea and Iran have, or are seeking, nuclear weapons. Modern-day pirates have attacked ships in the open seas. In the last ten years kidnapping for ransom has increased as a way for terrorists to raise funds in South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. CNN claims there are between eight thousand and ten thousand such cases annually; Britain’s Foreign Policy Center estimates that these activities alone produce $500 million a year. Many of these terrorist groups are also funded through drug trafficking, so-called Islamic charities, donations, front companies, family fortunes, and criminal activities. Life as we know it changed on September 11, 2001, with a terrorist attack on the United States produced by flying passenger jets into New York’s World Trade Center and the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. That was not all. A month later several letters containing anthrax were sent to offices in New York, Washington, and Florida. Since 1999 there have been insurgent attacks in Chechnya against both individuals and the Russian government. The seizure of a Moscow movie theater ended with hundreds of casualties. Other ethnic battles continue to rage throughout the world. In March 2004 Islamic terrorists bombed the transit system of Madrid; in July 2005 four bombs went off in London; in October 2005 several bombs exploded in succession in Baghdad; three hotels were bombed in Jordan; poor lower class Muslims set fires in France in November 2005. Further violence continues in Israel even though Gaza and four West Bank towns were given to the Palestinians. The new president of Iran has threatened to wipe Israel off the map. With little hope of a stable society or government in these terrorist countries, will the world ever enjoy freedom from terrorism? The hearts of many are anxious because of the prospect of the future: “And there shall be … upon the earth distress of nations, in perplexity for the roaring of the sea and the billows; men fainting for fear, and for expectation of the things which are coming on the world: for the powers of the heavens shall be shaken” (Luke 21:25,26, ASV). Terrorism Edward Gibbon said, “History is indeed little more than the register of the crimes, follies, and misfortunes of mankind.” The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation’s definition of terrorism is “the unlawful use of force or violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives” While America’s “war” has captured several terrorist leaders, it has also seen the recent merger of two of the largest terrorist organizations into one larger and stronger Islamic militant association. And Islam is now the fastest growing religion in the world. Islam Islam came into existence in 622 A.D. through the efforts of a merchant’s son whose name was Mohammed. Today one out of every five people in the world is a Muslim and thus a follower of Mohammed’s teachings. Most Muslims are not terrorists. Many devoted followers of Mohammed both believe and teach that their religion is one of peace; but there are a number of other Muslims who teach differently. These Muslim extremists use terrorism as a means to an end. But what is that end? Similar to other religions, Islam has its own sects and divisions. The main groups, Shi’ite, Sunni, and Sufi, all contain moderates, fundamentalists, and extremists; each has its own unique perspective on the teachings of the Koran. The Shi’ite and the Sunni are the largest groups. The Sunnis believe their Scriptures are the final authority while the Shi’ites look to prophets as the leaders of the Muslim world community, and they believe in prophetic succession. The Koran Although the Koran considers Jesus to be one of the greatest prophets, it denies that he is the son of God. The Koran even denies Jesus died at all. From the time it was first written, there have been atrocities of war and terrorism based on differing interpretations of the Koran. Consider these passages:
9:5 “Fight and slay the pagans wherever ye find them, and seize them, beleaguer them, and lie in wait for them in every stratagem [of war].” 47:4 “Therefore, when ye meet the unbelievers, smite at their necks, at length when ye have thoroughly subdued them, bind a bond firmly [on them] … but if it had been God’s will, he could certainly have exacted retribution from them [himself], but [he lets you fight] in order to test you, some with others. But those who are slain in the way of God, he will never let their deeds be lost.” Psalm 83 “They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance” (Psalm 83:4). This prophecy has not had a complete fulfillment as yet, for to be “cut off from being a nation” Israel must first have become a nation. That did occur in 1948. On May 15, 1948, the day Israel declared its independence, Azzam Pasha, Secretary General of the Arab League, declared “jihad” against Israel: “This will be a war of extermination and a momentous massacre which will be spoken of like the Mongolian massacres and the Crusades” (New York Times, May 16, 1948). At the time Egypt’s president, Gamal Abdul Nasser, stated, “We shall not enter Palestine with its soil covered in sand … We shall enter it with its soil saturated in blood” (March 8, 1965). A few months later Nasser stated that his aims were the “full restoration of the rights of the Palestinian people. In other words, we aim at the destruction of the State of Israel. The immediate aim: perfection of Arab military might. The national aim: the eradication of Israel.” At the same time the Iraqi President, Abdur Rahman Aref, boasted, “Our goal is clear—to wipe Israel off the map.” The PLO’s stated mission objectives include:
Because similar conflicts as described in Psalm 83 have occurred in times with some of the nations listed, but not with all the specific nations against Israel at the same time, we look to the future and a modern map for fulfillment of this prophecy. Here are the nations listed in Psalm 83 along with their modern name today:
The result of Psalm 83 may lie with verse 18, that men may know that only Jehovah’s name is the most high (and not the name of Allah). The End? Psalm 83 is not the end. The end of the war is described in Ezekiel 38 where we find the enemy in “Jacob’s trouble” is not the Arab nations as described in Psalm 83, but rather an entirely different collaboration of nations. While the majority of the nations listed in Ezekiel 38 are not Arab, most of them are Muslim. Here is the Ezekiel 38 list:
And for the western block nations of verse 13:
The result of Psalm 83 was that the nations would know the name of the Lord. The result of Ezekiel 38 is similar: “I will summon a sword against Gog on all my mountains, declares the Sovereign LORD. Every man’s sword will be against his brother. I will execute judgment upon him with plague and bloodshed … and on the many nations with him. And so I will show my greatness and my holiness, and I will make myself known in the sight of many nations. Then they will know that I am the LORD” (Ezekiel 38:21-23, NIV). “We are fully aware of the fact that many of the Lord’s people who have come to a knowledge of the Divine Plan have been inclined to discredit any interpretation and application of the prophetic Word to the great Mohammedan power. However, when we carefully examine the history of this once powerful empire, and its baneful religion as it has affected Christianity, its beclouding the Gospel sunlight of Truth, etc., we can scarcely avoid the conviction that it, as well as the great Papal system, has its place in the prophetic Word.”—“The Long Promised Regathering of Israel,” The Herald of Christ’s Kingdom, June, 1922. “When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near” (Luke 21:28, NIV). The End of Terrorism The end result of this will be the fruition of God’s plan and the fulfillment of prophecy. The terrorists will be held accountable. “For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another; in the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel” (Romans 2:14-16). “But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more” (Luke 12:48). They will learn of the Lord God and they will be judged righteously: “The LORD shall endure forever; He has prepared His throne for judgment. He shall judge the world in righteousness, and He shall administer judgment for the peoples in uprightness” (Psalm 9:7,8, NKJV). Yet the kingdom of God will lead the inhabitants of the world, including the present followers of Mohammed, to trust in God’s promises and to proclaim in that day that “this is our God: we have waited for him, and he will save us; this is the LORD; we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation” (Isaiah 25:9). “For when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness” (Isaiah 26:9). In that day the Lord will make himself known to all men on the earth. “They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea” (Isaiah 11:9). “After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people” (Jeremiah 31:33). “He shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more” (Micah 4:3). This is God’s answer to terrorism: “So likewise ye, when ye see these things come to pass, know ye that the kingdom of God is nigh at hand. Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled. Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away. And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man” (Luke 21:31-36). |
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