since alot of members are christians and bible readers/believers..how do you interpret the book of revelations and its warning about a New World Order..i look at everything from a factual and political perspective but i know some see whats going on as a prophecy
https://www.bible-prophecy.com/nwo-newage.htm
A Message by Pastor Ron Graff
To the Alta Loma Brethren In Christ Church
April 27, 1997
Introduction
Please turn in your Bibles to Revelation 17, as we look at the subject "The New World Order and New Age Religion." This will be a short course on prophecy, and a whirlwind tour of current events which may lead to the fulfillment of a future one-world government.
The Biblical Scenario - Revelation 17:1-18
Before we read this chapter, let us give you a grid into which to place this, so you know where to view these events in future prophecy. These are some of the events which we believe are still future for us. First, there is The Rapture of the Church, when Jesus Christ comes back, and we who are true believers are caught up to meet Him in the air. Those who have died in Christ -will come out of their graves and will go up to be with the Lord also. From the heavenly vantage point, then, we will be looking down on the earth during the next seven years. These seven years will be a time known as The Tribulation. During The Tribulation, Antichrist is going to rise to power, and there will be a one-world government, of which he will be the dictator. And in the middle of that Tribulation period, he is going to require everyone on the Earth, according to Revelation 13 to receive a mark on their right hand or forehead which will mean they acknowledge him, not only as their dictator, but as their god. Without that mark they will not be allowed to buy or sell anything for the remainder of the Tribulation period. And then, at the every end of that time, his world empire which he has built will began to crumble, and he is going to fight, literally, against Jesus Christ. He is going to call Christ down out of heaven. Jesus will come back at The Battle of Armageddon, and with His Word, is going to totally obliterate all of the forces of Antichrist and the Devil. We read about that in Revelation 19. Today we are studying Revelation 17. Chapters 17 and 18 go together to portray the destruction of the world empire of Antichrist. This is not the next thing on God's time table, but it is something we need to understand: that before this chapter can take place, a one-world government must emerge. We find here a beast, symbolizing one-world government, and we also find a woman riding on the beast who symbolizes religion that is not pleasing to God.
1A. MYSTERY BABYLON
1B. The Adulterous Woman - Revelation 17:1-6
The first part of this is about the adulterous woman- from verses one to 6.
Revelation 17
"1 One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, 'Come, I will show you the punishment of the great prostitute, who sits on many waters.'"
Incidentally, if you will look down at verse 15, the waters on which the prostitute sits are peoples, multitudes, nations and languages. So, whoever this woman is, she has come control over the people all over the earth.
"2 With her the kings of the earth committed adultery and the inhabitants of the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries.
"3 Then the angel carried me away in the Spirit into a desert. There I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was covered with blasphemous names and had seven heads and ten horns.
"4 The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls. She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries. "5 This title was written on her forehead: MYSTERY BABYLON THE GREAT THE MOTHER OF PROSTITUTES AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
"6 I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of the saints, the blood of those who bore testimony to Jesus. When I saw her, I was greatly astonished."
Today, prophecy scholars believe that woman is apostate religion- a one-world religion, put together by people who believe everything and anything except in personal salvation through the death of Jesus Christ. She is seen as an adulterous woman because, in the Old Testament, in many places, Israel, as the wife of Jehovah, is pictured as an unfaithful wife because she has gone away from her faith in The Lord. In the New Testament, the Church is seen as the Bride of Christ, and we are to be presented as pure and clean. You can see that if the picture is one of a love relation ship between man and God, then those who turn from Him, who follow false teaching, and idolatry, and witchcraft and astrology, are seen as unfaithful to God, and their religion is seen as adulterous. This, then is a picture of world religion giving its power to Antichrist in the last days.
The golden cup is a picture of communion with the world, a turning away from the truth. She is drunk with the blood of the saints. Throughout history we find that the church has persecuted true believers, and in the future it will be even more that way. An apostate church will persecute true believers.
2B. The Seven-Headed Beast - Revelation 17:7-18
The next part of this chapter speaks of the seven-headed beast. Beginning with verse 7 we read this:
"7 Then the angel said to me: "Why are you astonished? I will explain to you the mystery of the woman and of the beast she rides, which has the seven heads and ten horns.
"8 The beast, which you saw, once was, now is not, and will come up out of the Abyss and go to his destruction."
This is a picture of Antichrist, the person.
"The inhabitants of the earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the creation of the world will be astonished when they see the beast, because he once was, now is not, and yet will come.
"9 This calls for a mind with wisdom. The seven heads are seven hills on which the woman sits.
"10 They are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; but when he does come, he must remain for a little while.
These seven kings, or kingdoms, can be seen as seven world empires. They are very reminiscent of three visions from the Book of Daniel. In the second chapter of Daniel, for instance, there is a rather lengthy, graphic section. It is a dream that Nebuchadnezzar had. He saw an image of a huge statue with gold head, silver chest and arms, brass waist and thighs, and iron legs. The feet of this statue were partly of iron and partly of clay. While he watched the statue, there was a huge rock from heaven that landed on the feet, breaking the feet because of the clay, and causing the whole image to fall over and break into pieces. Then the rock that landed on the feet grew into a huge mountain. Now, Nebuchadnezzar did not have the first clue about what this dream meant, but it bothered him a lot. He called all of his magicians, and no one could interpret the dream, but God gave Daniel the proper interpretation. Daniel explained to Nebuchadnezzar that this was a picture of world kingdoms. He said that Nebuchadnezzar was the Golden head. After Nebuchadnezzar's Babylon, there would come another kingdom which was slightly inferior. He did not name it, but that would be the Medo-Persian Empire. Then there would be a third, which we know to be Greece, and after that, a fourth empire, the Roman. The final form of that Roman Empire, the feet, would be partly of the Roman Empire (the iron), and partly of something else (the clay) that was brittle. The rock from Heaven would be Messiah, whose kingdom would shatter all human kingdoms when He comes back as King of Kings. When you put all of this together, it is the same sort of picture, except that, in Daniel, it starts with the third of the seven kingdoms, the Babylonian Empire. If we look back in history, we find that there were two kingdoms before Babylon: Egypt and Assyria. Then came Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece. Those were the five that had fallen. In the vision it says that one of the kings is - meaning that it existed at that time. That would be Rome, the sixth head. The seventh head has not yet come. It will be beyond the Roman Empire, beyond the time of the vision which was given to John, and even beyond our time right now, because, since the Roman Empire there never has been another whole world empire. There have been many attempts to set up empires. Napoleon, Charlemagne, Adolph ******, and others have tried, but no one has ever succeeded in having a world empire from the time of the Roman Empire until now. But, according to the Bible, there will be a world empire during the end times that will be dominated by Antichrist.
"11 The beast who once was, and now is not, is an eighth king. He belongs to the seven and is going to his destruction."
Antichrist himself is an eighth king.
" 12 'The ten horns you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but who for one hour will receive authority as kings along with the beast."
When you picture the seven-headed beast (I always see a sort of Brontosaurus with seven heads on seven long necks), think about the last head as having ten horns. In the Old Testament, horns always stand for power or authority.
"13 They have one purpose and will give their power and authority to the beast.
"14 They will make war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will overcome them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings-- and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers.'"
Those of us who have gone up with Him in the Rapture, when He comes back at the end of these seven years as King of Kings to destroy Antichrist and his world empire, we are going to come back with Him. We don't have to fight according to Revelation 19.
"15 Then the angel said to me, 'The waters you saw, where the prostitute sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations and languages.
"16 The beast and the ten horns you saw will hate the prostitute. They will bring her to ruin and leave her naked; they will eat her flesh and burn her with fire."
The prostitute on the beast is world religion. It gives its power to Antichrist in order for his world empire to become a reality. But he, being energized by Satan, does not love that world religion, but hates it and destroys it when he can.
"17 For God has put it into their hearts to accomplish his purpose by agreeing to give the beast their power to rule, until God's words are fulfilled.
"18 The woman you saw is the great city that rules over the kings of the Earth." (NIV)
Most Biblical commentators feel that this refers to Rome, which is symbolic of world religion because it has, from the time of Christ until now, had more religious sway over the kings of the earth than any other. This is not an attack against a denomination. But, at any given time, there are two camps among Christians. There are those who are true believers in Jesus Christ, who have placed their faith in Him and trust only in Him for salvation. But there is another camp, and always has been, who, although they call themselves Christians, are really relying on works, and because of their works, they focus on the wrong things. They begin to believe the same sort of things that modern Humanists believe, and trust ingood works for their salvation. Because of that, they are not in a right relationship with God.
Now, with this Biblical background, let us consider the woman and the seven-headed beast that is emerging around us even as we read the news from day to day. There is a movement toward a one-world religion, and a movement toward a one-world government that we want to consider.
If you don't realize that the end, or the outcome of all of this, is good for believers, you could become very depressed about this information. It is not my purpose to distress you. You should not be upset or overwhelmed, but you should think about the outcome. (Please see the application at the bottom of this article.)
These two issues: a coming one-world religion and a coming one-world government, are just two of at least twenty "pieces of the prophecy puzzle" that all point toward the soon coming of Jesus Christ for His church. We don't set dates. It could be many years in the future. But it could be today! We have more reason to believe this than any people who have ever lived before.
