The Mark

Chapter 17

Chapter 17

The three men sat in silence for a moment and contemplated the consequences of that statement. Charlie was pleased with his research, but the possibility of Magorum actually being the one Daniel proph esied about and Christ warned about left a knot in his stomach.

"Well I, for one, am glad the compound is finished." Henry broke the silence. "Now we just have to wait and figure out how we're going to fill it." Dave fiddled with his Coke can and Charlie knew he was in deci

sion-making mode. He had seen Dave like this many times before.

"I don't know if the community is ready for us to cry "Great Trib ulation" yet. But I do think it's time for us to talk with our families and friends. Magorum may be the Antichrist and he may not be. But we need to plant the seeds in case we find ourselves in the dead center of the final week of Daniel."

Charlie nodded in agreement. "Wars overseas, terrorist attacks here on American soil, miserable weather-did you hear about the earthquake in Japan? Over a thousand are considered dead. And now the temple is rebuilt. I know some of the natural disasters have been increasing over the past hundred years, but they seem relentless of late. I also know that every generation has cried "tribulation" and has been wrong up until now. I don't want to read into current events and fit the Bible into their context. But when current events fulfill biblical prophecies..." He shook his head. "I just don't want to be wrong."

"I understand how you feel, Charlie," Dave said. "I think the plan ning we've made can be passed from us to the next generation if nec essary. Despite the decay of the church here in America, which is a major red flag to me, I have to keep reminding myself that America doesn't necessarily play an active role in the end times."

Henry sat forward and leaned on his elbows. "What do you mean? I thought the persecution by the Antichrist affected the whole world. Isn't that why we're preparing for the great tribulation?"

"You're absolutely right, Henry," answered Dave, pushing the Coke can away from him. "Revelation 12 says the whole world will worship him and in 13, everyone will be required to take his mark. These are global descriptions. What I meant is that America is not a major power in prophetic Scripture-no power from the West is mentioned, All too often I think we try to center the focus of God here in Amer ica, when His focus for that time is actually on the Middle East."

"Are you saying that the prophetic passages in the Bible are only referring to Israel then?"

"No, Henry," Charlie chimed in. "That is a big mistake that many make. When the disciples asked Jesus what to look for in regard to His return, Jesus didn't say, 'Don't worry, you won't be here, but anyone in Israel who follows Me after the rapture, this is what they should look for... He just came out and answered their question. He de scribed weather disturbances, wars, famine, false teachers. Then He pointed to the Antichrist desecrating the temple, martyrdom, and a great and horrible time of tribulation. Finally, He told them to look for the sign in the heavens-the natural lights going out. Then Jesus will return with His angels to gather His children."

"As we discussed again at our last fellowship meeting," Dave con tinued, "these events which Jesus described perfectly coincide with the seals of Revelation. Same order, all the way up to the sun, moon, and stars falling from the sky."

"I got into a discussion with a guy at work that just went off on me about the church still being here through the last seven years," said Henry. "The thought of going through any type of persecution was just ludicrous to him."

"Christ Himself said we would enter this time in confusion, so it doesn't surprise me," said Dave. "Hey, not to change the subject, but what ever happened to that girl from work you were seeing? Have you talked with her about this?"

"Anna?" Charlie thought he saw Henry blush when he said her name. "Well, after I had a near death experience with her, she's actu ally become my friend."

"Near death? What are you talking about?" Dave stood and walked over to the freezer. He took out a half gallon of Reese's Peanut But ter Cup ice cream and shut the door. He grabbed three spoons and brought it all back to the table.

Picking up a spoon, Henry continued. "Once again we ended a lunch with an argument, but I almost got hit by a car while we were walking back to the parking lot, so she agreed to another lunch. Since then, I've been careful not to be judgmental of her church and it ends up, we really enjoy being together... as friends."

"And you're sure she's a Christian?" Charlie gave Henry a ques tioning look. He knew it was a fair question, considering Henry's track record.

"Yeah, I think she is. She's just never had good teaching. But she understands the basics. For now, that's enough."

"Have you talked end times with her?" Dave asked, digging in for

another bite of ice cream.

"Not yet-there's no way she's ready for that. I touched on it once and she looked at me like I was from outer space."

"Well, you may have to get there sooner than later," said Charlie, setting his spoon on the table.

After the three men had their fill of ice cream, they spent some time in prayer for the fellowship, then Charlie and Henry left for home. As Charlie pulled out of Dave's driveway, he sent up his own prayer of thanksgiving for his friends and their commitment to the Word.

"And above all else, Father," he prayed aloud, as he pulled onto the street, "please find us faithfully following Your Word and looking for Your return. Give us a boldness to share the truth with our friends, and give them ears to hear and hearts to understand."

And he knew exactly where he would start. This weekend he would be working a party for an old high school friend. He was a Christian and had a family already. Charlie determined to set up a time where he could share his convictions about the Lord's return and ask his friend if he was prepared to protect his family.

And Lord, please prepare Thomas's heart for our conversation. He's a good man in a dead church. But he fears You, and I believe with some good, solid urging, he will return to Your Word and respond to it. In Your precious Son's name I pray, Amen.