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Dedicated to the Student of the Last Days |
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Vol. 22, October 2021 |
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Featured Article
Book of Revelation: An Introduction

While studying the New Testament, have you ever come to the last book and found yourself faced with the daunting task of trying to comprehend the symbolism found in the Book of Revelation? Don't feel bad, so have millions of other Bible students, me among them. For years, I was baffled and confused by the mysterious imagery of John's vision. Just like Enoch, Ezekiel, Daniel, and Isaiah, God showed John an amazing array of imagery as He communicated to His prophet those things He wanted to relate to His children. What made me finally tackle John's Revelation? I caught the Prophesy Bug.
After years of studying the scriptures, I desired to find the truth about what lay ahead for me and my family. I found many prophesies of the last days scattered throughout the Old and New Testaments. I studied the prophesies of Daniel and his vision of King Nebuchadnezzar's image, Ezekiel and Yoel's descriptions of devastating end times wars against Israel, Isaiah's descriptions of the coming Messiah and the events surrounding Israel in the last days. Unfortunately, I could not find anywhere in scripture where these scattered prophesies were explicitly tied together in chronological order. History is filled with hundreds of scholars who have attempted to piece these scattered prophecies into a coherent chronology, each one differing in some extent from the other. Today is no different.
I knew that God wouldn't ask us to study these prophesies (Revelation 1:3; 3:3; 22:7-10, Matthew 24:42-43, Luke 21:36) without giving the Bible student a hint as to the timeline of the events that will occur during the last days. You can visit any Christian bookstore today and find hundreds of books on the subject of end time chronology, each one different from another. On the internet there are just as many conflicting webpages discussing this same topic. I found all this just as confusing as the next Bible student has. It is especially difficult if you don't know the order of the many prophesies found in the Bible and how they relate to one another.
During my study, I finally decided to tackle the book of Revelation. I weighed the many different ways to interpret John's vision using several different books and webpages and found that Revelation of St John the Divine did indeed have a timeline of last days events. Not every prophesied event in the Bible can be found IN John's Revelation. However, one can logically insert them in his chronology (or at least to my satisfaction). Of course, this is where the debate begins among Bible students and scholars. This debate has been ongoing ever since John first disseminated his revelation to the seven churches.
I will explain what I have gleaned from John's great work in future articles. This First article will be an introduction to the Book of Revelation and will answer the Five W's: What, Who, When, Where and Why of John's Revelation. But first, let's look at the different categories of how the Book of Revelation has been interpreted over the centuries since it's recording. I will only touch on the basics here. There are as many interpretations of Revelation as there are scholars. Many books have been written on the many differing ways to interpret Biblical prophesy, let alone the exegesis of the Book of Revelation itself...
Read more here.
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Update on Books
Since my last update, I joined David Farland's Apex writing group to improve my writing. David has taught many best-selling authors: Brandon Sanderson (Way of Kings), Stephenie Meyer (Twilight), James Dashner (The Maze Runner), J.K. Rowling (Harry Potter) and many more. This month I will be attending the Latter-day Saint Publishing and Media Association Conference and will be learning how to better my writing craft and pitching my book to agents and editors. Have a great October.
JK Sellers
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Frequently Asked Questions
Anthony from Florida asks: Do you believe that there is life on other planets?
See the answer here.
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Wars and Rumor of Wars.... Matthew 24:6 Prophesies in the News:
After our debacle in Afghanistan, the US left a power vacuum in this strategic area of the world. China, our number one national security threat, has now filled the void, threatening the whole region. The way in which we withdrew has emboldened our enemies, especially China. We left behind critical military technology that China will reverse engineer and duplicate, we abandoned thousands of American citizens and allies, we abandoned Bagram, a billion-dollar air base filled with billions of dollars of arms, thus equipping a terrorist organization far beyond its wildest expectations. China, the Taliban, and other enemies around the world now see us as weak and vulnerable.
BY A.J. KAUFMAN
SEP 03, 2021
"As many warned, China will be the Taliban's main partner in Afghanistan, according to various reports. This dangerous alliance is backed by Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, who also values China's so-called "Belt and Road Initiative," since the project could revive the Silk Road trade routes that connected east and west for many centuries.
"China will be our main partner and represents a great opportunity for us because it is ready to invest in our country and support reconstruction efforts," Mujahid said."
Read more here.
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The Earth Shall Reel To and Fro...Isaiah 24:20
By Brad Bergan
Sep 27, 2021
From Interesting Engineering
"Our solar system has more surprises in store.
The eight official planets aren't the only ones that survived the formation of our solar system, and the Earth might have another sister planet lurking somewhere in interstellar space, in a "third zone" of the solar system, according to a recent paper published in the journal Annual Review of Astronomy and Astrophysics.
This means that, if Planet 9 is out there, it might have a Mars-sized company..."
read more at Interesting Engineering.
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The Third Temple
"In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old:" Amos 9:11
POSTED BY: DATTATREYA MANDAL APRIL 8, 2019
FromRealm of History
"There are very few historical ruins in the world that have held up their legacy so much so that they still play a significant role in the cultural consciousness of the people. The Second Temple of Jerusalem (or simply the Second Temple) undoubtedly belongs to this rare category of historical structures. And while the remnants of this temple complex, like the Wailing Wall, are confined to the perimeters of the present-day Temple Mount, the structure in itself probably reached its greatest extent (in dimensions) during the reign of Herod (circa 1st century BC). And that is why the Second Temple is often referred to as Herod's Temple.
While our popular notions hark back to the Second Temple of King Herod (circa 1st century BC), Biblical accounts talk about the founding of the Second Temple in the 6th century itself, more than seventy years after the unceremonious destruction of the First Temple (or Solomon's Temple – see the reconstruction here) by the ancient Neo-Babylonian army in 586 BC. According to such accounts, the second founding was spearheaded by the Jewish exiles who were allowed to return to their homeland following the magnanimous decree of the Persian king Cyrus the Great.
One of their leaders, known as Zerubbabel, was later appointed the governor of the Persian Province of Yehud Medinata. And it was his possibly elevated effort as an administrative head, aided by both logistical and materialistic support (including personal gifts) from his followers, that allowed the establishment of a new altar on the original site of the altar of the First Temple. This was followed by the construction of the temple itself in 515 BC, which rose to a height of 60 cubits (approx. 90 ft)..."
read more Here
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"History merely repeats itself. It has all been done before. Nothing under the sun is truly new." Eccles. 1:9
by David Baker
January 2, 2020 4.56pm EST
From The Conversation
"What will happen in the 2020s? If history is any guide (and there's good reason to think it is), the outlook isn't great.
Here are some big-picture predictions: stagnant real wages, faltering standard of living for the lower and middle classes, worsening wealth inequality, more riots and uprisings, ongoing political polarisation, more elites competing for limited positions of power, and elites co-opting radical movements.
Thanks to globalisation, all this won't just happen in one country but in the majority of countries in the world. We will also see geopolitical realignment, dividing the world into new alliances and blocs.
There is also a low to moderate chance of a "trigger event" – a shock like an environmental crisis, plague, or economic meltdown – that will kick off a period of extreme violence. And there is a much lower chance we will see a technological breakthrough on par with the industrial revolution that can ease the pressure in the 2020s and reverse the trends above.
These aren't just guesses. They are predictions made with the tools of cliodynamics, which uses dozens of case studies of civilisations over the past 5,000 years to look for mathematical patterns in human history..."
read more at The Conversation
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"Son of man, set your face against Gog, of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshek and Tubal; prophesy against him..." Ezekiel 38:2
UN General Assembly
by: EDITH M. LEDERER, Associated Press
Sep 29, 2021
From CW33 International
"UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The foreign minister of the divided island of Cyprus is accusing Turkey's president of attempting to promote a new Ottoman empire in the eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East — and says such an approach to geopolitics could adversely impact regional security.
Nikos Christodoulides, whose Mediterranean island nation is divided into a breakaway Turkish Cypriot north and internationally recognized Greek Cypriot south that is a member of the European Union, pointed to what he called aggressive Turkish behavior not only in Cyprus but in Syria, Iraq, Libya and other Arab countries in the region.
"We see the militarization of the Turkish foreign policy," Christodoulides said in an interview with The Associated Press, "and this is of great concern for all the countries in the region..."
read more at CW33 International
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Come, Follow Me,...Matthew 4:19
by Tracie | Apr 30, 2020 | Bible Journaling Study, Bible Journaling Tips, Blog
"How to Follow Jesus
There's no one specific formula on how to follow Jesus, yet following Jesus is the key to living a whole Christian life. You can find books on how to follow Jesus, but everyone's opinion is different. How do you know the "right" way to follow Jesus? Here's what the Bible says.
1. Accept Jesus as Your Savior
The first thing that you must do is accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. (John 14:6)
You cannot do anything to receive salvation on your own. It's a free gift provided by Jesus' precious blood when He died on the cross for your sins. Jesus loves you and wants to have an eternal and personal relationship with you. By accepting Jesus as your savior, he forgives your sins, delivers you from the fear of death, and loves you unconditionally.
Accept Jesus Christ and experience His comforting presence, power, wisdom, and guidance. All you need to do is open your heart and soul to him and accept His sacrifice for you. It really is that easy. Then continuously seek His will in your life. Ask Him to give you the wisdom, strength, and determination to live a whole Christian life..."
read more at Bible Journaling Study
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Emergency Preparedness
"If ye are prepared ye shall not fear..."
UPDATED JULY 28, 2017
From THE PREPARED
"It seems silly to spell it out, but it needs to be said: every person, regardless of their politics or age or income or location, benefits from being reasonably prepared for emergencies.
You should be prepared. Your spouse, kids, parents, neighbors, and friends should be prepared. Liberals, conservatives, gun slingers, vegans, young adults in their first dorm room, working moms, soccer dads, and grandparents in the country — everyone should be prepared.
"Prepping" is not a dirty word. Prepping is not limited to the tin-foil-hat stereotypes producers love to put on TV. Most preppers are rational and they come from all walks of life.
Many preppers are very intelligent and successful — so much so that they have a front row seat to the forces in our world making things worse, and it has caused them to take action and get prepared.
This is the best time ever to be alive, and life is generally good for most people in the developed world. But the comforts of modern life are a fluke in the grand scheme of our history, and many experts think we've already peaked.
We've taken all this for granted and assumed it will continue, which creates an achilles heel that leaves billions of people at the mercy of unstable systems. Billions of people are unable to do simple things like start a fire or dress a wound..."
Read more at The Prepared
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