Spirit and Truth Ministries

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A PROPHETIC WORD

ON THE "DAY OF TERROR"

Don Hawley

September 12, 2001

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A few years ago my wife and I enjoyed the view from the top of the south tower of the World Trade Center.  That great structure thrusting more than 100 stories into the sky seemed so solid, so Herculean.  It's hard to realize that on Tuesday morning, September 11, it caught the early sun as usual, but by sundown simply didn't exist--taking with it a still undetermined number of lives.

 

During the television coverage of this tragedy, my attention was drawn to a common theme voiced by so many commentators.  Rabbi Eric H. Yoffie put it well, "In ways large and small, our world has irreparably changed."  Most of us have a sense that things will never again be quite the same.

 

Why?  What happened? 

 

Since the dawn of history neither the gates of hell nor the gates of heaven have been wide open, even though men sometimes thought otherwise.  Now, with a sudden, painful wrenching, the gates of hell have been jarred on their hinges.  In my book THE FINAL TEST--For the Final Generation I deal with this very matter in the chapter titled "Gates of Heaven, Gates of Hell."  Following are some appropriate quotes from that volume.

 

 

THE GATES OF HELL

"Our supernatural God is about to bring to account a supernatural devil.  The paranormal armies of God and Satan have been warring for eons, but the last battle of the war won on Calvary is under way.  God is going to allow the gates of hell to be opened wider than at any other time in human history.  The devil's miraculous power will exceed anything ever witnessed.  The hoards of hell will be engaged in their final, frenzied activity.  Whatever you see around you at this time will be multiplied a hundredfold.

 

"Just as God can't help but love and save because it's his basic nature, so the devil can't help but hate and kill because that's his basic nature.  The only reason Satan didn't take the life of Job was that God wouldn't let him go that far.  The entire human race would have been extinct long ago but for God's restraining hand.  Now, for the first time, that protecting hand largely will be removed and the results will be awesome.

 

Ever since the advent of sin mankind has suffered the consequences.  What with plagues, natural disasters and unceasing war, suffering often has been acute.  However, we can't compare the past to the future--or even the present."  pp.  301, 302.

 

 

THE GATES OF HEAVEN

"Fortunately, the gates of heaven also will be open wider than ever before.  And the devil, with all his minions, is no match for the power that flows from the throne of God.  The armies of righteousness will emerge like lightning, with the Commander of the Host, Jesus Christ, leading his celestial troops.  This truly will be "the mother of all battles."  There never has been any doubt about the outcome of this war, only how we will fare as individual participants.

 

"Many of us have seen 'signs and wonders' to a modest degree, but soon the truly uncommon will become commonplace.  As Jesus prophesied, in his name we will do greater things than he did while on earth."  pp. 303, 304.

 

 

FENCE SITTING

"Charles Dickens could have been writing about our day when he opened his book The Tale of Two Cities with the following quote:  'It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.'  How appropriate for the season when the gates of heaven and hell swing wide. 

 

"Thinking people already detect the early shaking, as God raises his voice once again.  He's very unhappy about the spiritual fence sitting so prevalent.

 

"We life in an age when people are too busy, or too uncaring, to either fully accept or fully reject the Savior.  But pending events will solve the problem.  God will shake the fence so hard that every member of the human race, even the politicians, will fly off on one side or the other."  pp. 305, 306.

 

 

WHAT LIES AHEAD

"When it all bursts forth, every aspect of our lives will be affected.  Repercussions will be global, and nothing will ever be like it was.  Everything will be in disorder.  The economy will collapse, stocks and bonds, even money itself will be without value.  Governments will fall, mobs will rule in many places.  Armies will march, and battles will rage.  Health professionals will be helpless against new and virulent forms of disease.    Natural disasters will devastate the earth.  If not for the fact that God promised to make a short work upon the earth, the human race would be wiped out. 

 

"Christians won't go completely unscathed; some will even be martyred.  Nevertheless, those who have established a close relationship with Christ have nothing to fear, and they will hold fast till the end.  Then there will come a glorious, eternal dawn with all things made new."  p. 310.

 

 

EIGHT FORECASTS

1.  We have not yet imagined what will transpire once the gates of hell are opened wide, but on September 11 those with ears to hear and eyes to see got a decided wake-up call.

 

2.  As the gates of hell begin to swing on their hinges, we should anticipate that the gates of heaven also will begin to move in unprecedented strength.  The old church formula of men, money, and methods will be superceded by God's simple, Holy Spirit empowered, agenda.  Personally, I think God is calling us back to the original pattern of small house churches, units that are "persecution proof."  That plan turned the world upside down in the first century, and it is working right now in China where an estimated 20,000 people are being brought to Christ each day.

 

3.  It is significant that the gates of hell should move first.  Most are so glued to their sitcoms that nothing short of a thunder clap can attract their attention.  A loving God will, if necessary, allow trouble and persecution to shake the fence of indifference.  The shaking has only begun in earnest.

 

4.  The Unites Sates will get its revenge, but that will only add fuel to the flames.

 

5.  Soon, the chaos will reach such a crescendo that even those living in the land of the free will willingly, even eagerly, surrender their precious liberties for a futile promise of apparent security.

 

6.  Events about to envelop us will help bring about a powerful, and dangerous, world government.

 

7.  A few are waking up to the fact that our nation's financial structure is teetering on the edge of disaster.  What happened on September 11 can only give our economy another nudge in the wrong direction.  The economies of the world are now completely interdependent, and when one major player collapses the others will quickly follow suit.  The resulting upheaval will easily eclipse the terrors experienced just hours ago.

 

8.  So many Christians have their neat little end-time agendas all spelled out.  They know just what will transpire and in what order.  Christ can't come until this happens, and that will be followed by   .   .   .   Well, you can dump your pat scenarios.  We've never been able to figure out our omnipotent God in the past, and we are in no position to do so now.  Much of what God will do in the near future will come as an overwhelming surprise.   The final movements will be rapid ones, and the celestial wedding party is nearer than you think.  Our attention ought to be on the wedding garment our Lord has purchased at such great price.

 

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