Europe awakening?

Europe awakening?

Europe awakening? Are the ten toes wriggling with life? Are we seeing Daniel’s final stage prophecy in its early stages? (This is a special Ukraine-Russia prophecy edition from www.godsgreenhouse.net.)

The world is like a chessboard. One move causes another move or response. It has always been that way because the world is always changing. This includes international politics which, in turn, affect us at home. Daniel 2:21 reminds us that God “changes the times and the seasons, removes kings and establishes kings…” Never forget: God, not man, is in charge!

Prophecy students understand this chessboard concept and try to anticipate the next move…often to their own dismay, because they go out too far on a limb and declare predictions that are unsupported by Scripture–predictions which then fail. This is happening today in many circles, because people are easily drawn to the doomsday scenario.

Two principles should never be forgotten by prophecy students.

1) There are no prophecies to be fulfilled prior to the Rapture of God’s saints. None. Zip. To state otherwise is to assume Paul was wrong when he stated he was “looking or anticipating the imminent return of Christ” in HIS day (Titus 2:13). That would NOT have been possible if other events must occur first. I submit Paul and the early believers were not wrong, but rather many modern-day sign chasers are wrong.

2) The best way to approach prophecy is to recognize what will happen AFTER the Rapture. The events of Revelation 6-18 are an example of those events. Revelation 4:1 pictures this order in these words, “Come up here, John (perhaps a reference to the Rapture), and I will show you things which shall happen afterward.” Important caveat: There is NO guarantee these next events begin immediately after the Rapture. There may be an interim period of time. No one knows and it is foolish to make such a guarantee. It is even more presumptuous to say, “Yes, but I believe such and such” and to treat such a personal view as Scripture when it is nothing but a personal opinion that belongs on the newspaper’s editorial page. (Always distinguish your opinion from the clear teaching of Scripture.)

Thus, the better way to approach prophecy is to list the post-Rapture events recorded in Scripture and then work backward. For instance, we have very high confidence the Roman Empire described in Daniel 2:40-43 will be resurrected (has it ever truly gone away?) in the end days and will be destroyed by the returning Messiah at the Battle of Armageddon (Daniel 2:44-45). (This resurrection is confirmed by Daniel 7:13-27 and Revelation 17:7-18). We conclude the ten toes described in Daniel 2 (Nebuchadnezzar’s statue) suggest a future end-time union of ten nations or national entities of some sort, out of whom will arise the evil Antichrist of Revelation 13 and 17.

BUT HOW WILL SUCH A POWERFUL EUROPE ARISE? Its impotency in recent years was clearly recognized by Putin and perhaps contributed to the invasion of Ukraine. Could it be that we are seeing the stirring of such a revival? Perhaps the wriggling of the ten toes?

Perhaps so but then again perhaps not. But there is logic to this line of reasoning…that Putin has inadvertently moved the chess piece that prompts another piece to be moved.

The following news article (dated March 13, 2022) shows how things MIGHT be evolving in the direction of a resurrected European power. Interestingly, the article is from the more liberal New York Times. Regardless of your politics, I recommend reading the article. It appears below:

“Europe’s assertive response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has presented a possibility that was hard to imagine a month ago: the European Union as a superpower that can alter the global order, promoting liberal democratic values worldwide.

“Before the war, the E.U. focused largely on economic growth. It resisted calls, particularly from the U.S., to increase its military spending and become more self-sufficient at defending Europe.

“Vladimir Putin’s invasion drove European countries to be more aggressive. They imposed tough sanctions, helping to cripple Russia’s economy, and are working to cut off trade from Russia. They have sent weapons and other aid to Ukraine. Several moved to increase military spending, and E.U. leaders met in France over the past few days to coordinate their efforts. The leaders of France and Germany pressed Putin yesterday in a phone call to agree to a cease-fire.

“Europe’s new commitments could help counter the global democratic backslide of the past 15 or so years. Democracies’ failure to stand up for themselves partly enabled that shift. But a tougher Europe, as well as other countries’ fierce response to Russia’s invasion, shows that democracies are still willing to wield power to counter autocratic governments.

“’Democratic nations and people are sending a united message to Putin that democracy matters, and authoritarians cannot act with impunity, and that’s powerful,’ said Michael Abramowitz, the president of Freedom House, which tracks the state of democracy around the world.

“The E.U. is often fractious, made up of nations and ethnic groups that warred with each other for centuries and have different, sometimes competing interests and values. Britain’s vote in 2016 to leave the union shows how far such divisions can go.

“But the E.U. has moved in a more united direction over time. Though it is not a single country, in many ways it acts like one. What began as a loose organization of six nations now includes most of the continent’s population, with 27 countries as members. Most share a currency and open their borders to each other, and they all send representatives to legislative, executive and judicial branches with powers across all aspects of European life.

“The E.U.’s response to Russia’s invasion was another unifying step — one that could push Europe from its passive role to an influential democratic force around the world.

c.)(Interpreting the Bible including prophecy is discussed in my book God Answers—Today! on Amazon, Apple, Kobo, etc.)

Tom Swartzwelder was born again at the age of nine in an old-fashioned revival meeting. Tom received his B.A. from Tennessee Temple University and his M. Div from Luther Rice Seminary. He has pastored for nearly forty years in both bi-vocational and full-time roles. He provides practical how-to-do-ministry resources for the disciples of Jesus Christ at (Link this address:) http://www.godsgreenhouse.net. Tom’s latest book is (Link this book address too) “God Speaks–Today!”      https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09KXD13RD/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1