The Bible warns of a time when people will have to work an entire day just to have enough money to purchase a loaf of bread. It’s hard to imagine a time when our purchasing power will be diminished to the point of having to struggle just to be able to feed one person. Right now the economies of many nations seem to be stable despite a few crisis areas like Greece, Portugal, and others. The notion that the world’s economic condition is fine right now is false. Regardless of what the Fed, the administration, or your personal financial portfolio communicates about the current economic situation, it won’t last. A time is coming when the dollar will collapse and the conditions will be set for a global economy under the control of the Antichrist. Let’s look at where we are now and what the Bible says about the end times economy. Revelation 6:5
The current situation facing the US. economy is one of greed and illusion. The Fed continues to print money at a fevered pitch, trying to revive the economy through quantitative easing (QE). The rationale is by infusing enough ‘digital dollars’ into the banking system, the economy will grow because borrowing, lending, and spending will increase. This ‘quick fix’ hasn’t worked before, resulting in a larger federal deficit. If people aren’t borrowing, buying, and selling, printing money, and QE only adds massive debt. Washington has amassed so much debt and the number stands at 18.1 trillion dollars. Every day an average of 2.3 billion dollars is added. The current national debt parceled out to every US. Citizen amounts to each of us being on the hook for $56,718.06!
The point I’m making is that this charade cannot continue much longer. The communist Chinese government, the Russians, India, and Brazil are very aware of our problems and there have been renewed calls for the replacement of the dollar as the world’s reserve currency. It’s hard to imagine the dollar being replaced by another currency as the world’s economic benchmark, but it could very well happen. It is possible to wake up one morning and see the dollar slide into a death spiral, stocks in free fall, and hyperinflation, I believe it is. James 5:1
The federal government is preparing for the possibility and aftermath of a sudden collapse of the economy. DHS, The Pentagon, FEMA, and other agencies have contingency plans in place. Here’s the thing, I know much has been written about a future US or worldwide financial collapse. This can be an arena for sensationalism and over-speculation.
On the other hand, there is the other extreme of people burying their heads in the sand, ignoring the warnings, and proclaiming: peace & safety regarding the solvency of the dollar. If we take the middle-of-the-road view and look at current conditions, there is reason to believe we are indeed on the verge of dark financial times ahead. People in the know are warning about a potential collapse of the US. economy. Breitbart News Network reports the following about Senator Rand Paul and the demand for an audit of the Fed:
“If the Fed was a normal bank without extraordinary powers, it would be insolvent.” -Senator Rand Paul
Senator Paul notes that nearly 40% of the Fed’s liabilities are mortgage-backed securities and the question that needs to be asked is: How many are distressed home loans? The report continues and notes: Once, the dollar was literally as good as gold and backed by the full faith and credit of the US. government. Since the panic of 2008…..the dollar is backed by bad home loans, bad car loans, and derivatives.
Jim Rickards is someone else in the know who is sounding the alarm about the coming economic crisis. Rickards worked on Wall St. for 35 years, he is a regular financial commentator on media outlets and author of the NY Times bestseller Currency Wars. Rickards has been called on to brief Congressional subcommittees about the economic situation. At a treasury meeting, he said,
” The Fed and the Treasury are the greatest threats to national security, not Al-qaeda.”
Rickards noted that in the 1950s & 60s, for every dollar of debt, we realized $2.41 in growth measured in the GDP. Now for every dollar of US. debt, only .03 of growth is realized, and soon it will be in the negative. He said this debt-to-growth situation is a signal of a complex system about to collapse.
How will this economic crisis unfold? I don’t know, however; it’s a subject where speculation is rampant. Will the Chinese come calling and want to liquify the money they lend us to cover our debt? Will the recent volatility in the oil markets cause economic turmoil? It’s hard to say, but we witnessed the Russian Rubble drop 40% of its value last year due to the plunge in oil prices. The point is numerous conditions in play could trigger a collapse of the US. and the world’s economy.
Two other things need to be considered. First, we know that a collapse of the dollar would cause havoc on the world’s financial markets, but would the damage be limited, and would the US. be the only major casualty? Second, if the dollar’s collapse sets in motion a global economic collapse, what would the world’s ‘new economy’ look like? I believe the second scenario is the most realistic, given the fact that the economies of the world are so interconnected.
What does this mean for the future, the world, and the believer in Jesus?
We know there is a time coming when this whole world’s economic structure will be under the absolute control of the antichrist. In fact, the Bible clearly states that this economy will be a religious-economic system. The final seven years of human history prior to the second coming of our Lord (The 70th week of Daniel) will be a time when the people of the world will have to choose between commerce or starvation. Make no mistake about it, the choice is so much greater than simply deciding to partake in or opt out of modern commerce. It actually comes down to a system of worship. Either worship the world leader (Antichrist) as God and be able to buy, sell, feed your family, etc. or stand for Jesus and accept the consequences.
We don’t know if there will be a building of economic crisis gradually into a crescendo of problems that lead to a consolidation of the world economy under the Antichrist or if the start of a one-world economic system will be sudden. The Bible clearly states that when this economy does exist, it will come down to taking the mark of the beast (Antichrist) on the right hand or forehead in order to participate in the marketplace. Revelation 13:16
Picture a person who has come to know Jesus as his or her Lord during this time of hell on Earth. Perhaps they came to faith by the witness of one of the 144,000 Jews proclaiming the gospel or some other faithful witness. Regardless, here they are, perhaps with several mouths to feed at home, gas to buy, or a bank account they cannot access because they refuse to renounce Christ and worship the world leader who claims to be God.
The ultimate destination of this current economic upheaval we are witnessing will eventually lead to the one world economic system under Antichrist.
It’s not my intent to get into the timing of the rapture of the church although I do believe the church will not be here after the 6th seal is open and not endure God’s wrath on an unrepentant world. Here is the point I do want to make clear:
Right now, as you read this, there is a growing disdain for Christians. This disdain crosses socio-economic, political, and traditional barriers because the world hates who we are. We identify with Jesus as our Savior; in His own words, He warns us that the world will hate us too. What does this have to do with the coming one world-global economic system? We are beginning to see the consequences of taking a stand for our faith right now and it is a glimpse into what is coming on a global scale, and I believe it’s sooner than later.
Governments, prosecutors, and rogue judges are becoming increasingly hostile to people who are true Christians. Here is one recent example out of hundreds we could cover: Barronelle Stutzman is the owner of Arlene’s Florist Shop in Washington state and she has refused to make a flower arrangement for a gay couple’s “wedding.” The attorney general has filed a lawsuit against Mrs. Stutzman and her business. She won’t make the flower arrangement because she believes as a Christian that “marriage is between a man and a woman.” She is facing heavy civil penalties, fines, and the forced closure of her business.
There are dozens if not hundreds of such cases involving Christians who own bakeries, photography studios, wedding venues, and others……they are facing the same harassment from the legal system. The bottom line is that the only crime they are ‘guilty’ is practicing their Christian faith. I don’t believe a Muslim-owned business would face the same issues or have to deal with a legal system with an agenda but we will address the issue of ‘tolerance’ of everyone with the exception of Christians in a later article.
I firmly believe even before the Antichrist consolidates power, we are already seeing the spirit of the Antichrist at work in the world right now.
Persecution, albeit limited to economic and legal harassment here in the west is already beginning. No matter what we face or how much suffering we must endure before the rapture is in the hands of our Lord. As believers, we will see increasing pressure to go with the flow, close our mouths about our faith, be politically correct, and tolerate everything, or there will be a price to pay.
I want to encourage believers to stand firm in their faith, share the gospel, and live for Jesus because true security is found in Him alone. It is foolish to trust in the wisdom of man, the world system, and money. This world will (not) continue on this path of “peace & safety” much longer. No one can say for certain when an economic collapse will come, but many analysts believe it is very near. In light of that, I wanted to share a final thought on true security:
We should certainly be wise stewards of what the Lord has given us and be prudent about preparing for the safety and well-being of our family. I’m not endorsing a survivalist mentality, nor am I endorsing an attitude of denial. We can see uncertain times and danger ahead and prepare accordingly.
Two Christ-honoring fellow Bible teachers I respect do an excellent job of describing how Christians should view preparing for uncertain times ahead. Gary Kah of Hope For The World and Jack Kelly of Grace Thru Faith has written articles about the subject and how Christians should trust the Lord. Click on their names to follow the link to the articles. They both make the clear-cut distinction, ultimately our times are in God’s hands and no matter what, we belong to Him. Having our souls prepared for eternity is of utmost importance. Proverbs 11:28 and Matthew 6:19
All for Him,
Howard
