What Is Awaiting Unbelieving Mankind

What is Awaiting

Unbelieving Mankind…

                                                                                                      By Pastor F. M. Riley

                                                                                                   May 16, 2015

 

    “Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in My holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand.

    A day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations,”

                                                                          Joel 2:1-2.  

    “The great day of the Lord is near, and hasteth greatly, even the voice of the day of the Lord: the mighty man shall cry bitterly.

    That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness,”

                                                                         Zephaniah 1:14-15.

Introduction

    As I sit here this morning in Missouri, it is pouring down rain and the sky is shrouded in clouds.  This is the third day in a row that the day has dawned with clouds hiding the Sun as it rises.  Sometime today we may, or we may not, get some sunshine to brighten the day.  

    How often mankind upon the earth fails to think about the beauty of the sunrise, and the blessing  the sunshine brings to us.  How often mankind fails to thank God for the light of each day provided by the Sun, giving to mankind upon the earth light and energy, and the warmth the earth needs to produce the food we must have to sustain our lives.  

    I have lived long enough to know that day after day without seeing  the Sun, either in the Spring and Summer seasons, or in the Fall and Winter seasons, causes people to become depressed and gloomy, like the darkened day itself.  It is during such prolonged conditions that people develop “cabin fever,” and a strong desire to just get out of the house and into the fresh open air.

    But in thinking about this subject, I realized that mankind living on the earth today hasn’t seen anything yet, in view of what is coming.  And what is coming upon those left behind on the earth following the resurrection and Pre-tribulation Rapture of New Covenant believers is what this study is about!

     May this study serve as a FINAL WARNING to unbelieving men and women, boys and girls, to hurry in seeking the Lord as their own personal Savior, before the thick darkness descends upon all of humanity left upon the earth following the Pre-Tribulation resurrection and rapture of all true believers, 1 Corinthians 15:20-23; Zephaniah 1:14-18.  

The Great Earthquake

     I  remind our readers that at the time Christ Jesus died on the cross, a  great

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earthquake occurred, followed by a number of aftershocks, Matthew 27:46-54; 28:1-8. One of the results of this great earthquake was that the graves of the deceased saints in or near Jerusalem were opened, and following His resurrection those deceased saints came out of their graves alive, and went into Jerusalem, appearing to many as visible “witnesses” of the resurrecting and life giving power of the Lord Jesus Christ, John 11:25-26.  These saints that arose following the resurrection of Christ were “the firstfruits” of the resurrection, 1 Corinthians 15:20-21.  Dear readers, it is technically and grammatically incorrect to speak of “firstfruits” being  gathered,  unless there is going to be more “fruits” gathered at a later time.  And so there will be!   1 Corinthians 15:50-58. Glory to God!  Praise the Lord!  Hallelujah!  

    But what does this glance back at history have to do with what is awaiting unbelieving mankind upon the earth?  I’m so glad you asked…..

The Greater Earthquake

     I would remind our readers that the very last “sign” the Lord Jesus Christ spoke about in Matthew 24:4-7, which is to precede the time of “sorrows” upon the earth was “..... earthquakes, in divers places.”  Is mankind on the earth today seeing and experiencing such earthquakes?  Every single day!  One would have to be brain dead not to know about all the earthquakes which are occurring somewhere in the earth every day, for they are being reported on daily by the world news media.  

     However, the earthquakes occurring today are just the prelude to “the big one.”  Since the graves of the saints in or near Jerusalem were opened following the resurrection of Christ Jesus, I think we who are true believers have good reason to expect an  earthquake to occur at the time the Lord comes to resurrect and rapture His New Covenant saints to glory.  But I also think it will be much larger, likely the largest earthquake that has ever occurred in the history of mankind.  

    Why?  Because the graves or burial sites of every believer who has lived and died during this entire “dispensation of grace,” [2,000 years] will be opened, and such graves are scattered all over the face of the earth in every nation. These graves of  New Covenant believers will not be opened in order to allow the bodies of the believers to exit, but rather to allow those left behind to witness for themselves that the bodies and bones that were once in the graves are gone; totally missing.  What a witness to those left behind, that the resurrection and rapture predicted in God’s Word will have actually and literally occurred.  Glory to God!  Praise the Lord!  

The Beginning of a Chain of Events…..

    Volcanic Eruptions…..It is, or should be, obvious to every reader that when the great world-wide earthquake occurs in connection with the resurrection and rapture, it will shake the earth up until every volcano on earth will explode into eruption.  We are speaking of over 1,000 volcanoes which presently exist in countries all over the earth, plus any new ones that may come into existence under such a world-wide shaking of the earth.  

     Now look at Peter’s prophecy in Acts 2:19, and Joel’s prophecy in Joel 2:30.  Peter was inspired of the Lord to say “and I will show wonders [signs] in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke.”  

Likewise Joel was inspired of God to say, “And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.”  

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    I urge our readers to take your own Concordance or Lexicon and look up the meaning of the word translated as “pillars” in Joel 2:30.  The Hebrew word literally means, “standing upright columns of smoke.”  Check it out for yourself.  

    Now the last time I checked [Mt. St. Helens, in Washington, 1980…..I was there!], erupting volcanoes give off vast amounts of thick, black, heavy, smoke.  Depending on the

strength of the explosion, they also send a cloud of volcanic ash straight up into the sky

above the volcano, which can literally extend for six to eight miles or more into the upper atmosphere.  It doesn’t take much intelligence to understand that if every volcano on earth  goes into eruption at the same time [1,000 or more], plus any new ones which may be brought into existence by the extreme shaking of “the big one,” then both Peter’s prophecy and Joel’s prophecy will be fulfilled to the letter.  The prevailing winds will carry the smoke [volcanic ash] all over the earth, so that the whole earth will be literally shrouded in “vapor of smoke,” and standing upright “pillars” of smoke will be seen all over the landscape of the whole earth. All of these volcanoes erupting at the same time will saturate the upper atmosphere to the extent that normal sunlight will be blocked out, and the whole earth plunged into gloominess and darkness, exactly as the prophetic Scriptures predict.

    Darkness that can be felt….Our readers should remember that in ancient Egypt, a plague of darkness was brought upon the Egyptians, Exodus 10:21-29.  It was darkness that could literally be felt, 10:21. What kind of darkness could this be?  Yes, I believe I do know, for I have experienced such darkness.  

     When Mount St. Helens erupted in the state of Washington in 1980, I was pastoring a church in the Tri-cities area.  It was a beautiful Sunday morning, with not a cloud in the sky.  But as I was in my study preparing for the Sunday morning service, I heard what, at the time, I presumed to be, a “sonic boom.”  It was so loud that it shook our entire church building.  However, it turned out to be, not a sonic boom, but the explosion and eruption  of Mount St. Helens, approximately 125 miles south and west of our church location.   We proceeded with our Sunday morning service, but by the time we dismissed at noon, the ash cloud from St. Helens had covered our entire city and the whole surrounding area.  When we exited the church building at high noon, it was so dark that I literally could not see my hand in front of my face, but I could feel and even taste the darkness.  I could feel the ash falling from the cloud, covering everything and everyone exposed.  I could taste the ash as it fell on my lips, and smell the sulphur in it as I breathed it into my nostrils.  Pitch darkness that could be literally felt.  

    Folks, when a thousand or more volcanoes are erupting all over the earth, the entire earth will be plunged into total darkness from such a massive infusion of volcanic ash in the upper atmosphere.  And it will go on and on and on.  There will be days, weeks, and months, that will pass before those left behind on the earth will even catch a glimpse of the Sun.  And in those rare times when they do catch a glimpse of the Sun, they won’t like it, for not being able to see the Sun doesn’t mean that it will be cold….. 

    Extreme Heat…..When this occurs in the earth, and it will occur, the massive amount of heat from these erupting volcanoes will be unlike anything ever previously imagined by modern man.  The 1,000 or more exploding and erupting volcanoes will heat up the atmosphere and the surface temperature of the earth, literally cooking and burning up every shred of vegetation exposed to such heat, not to mention literally burning up men

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and women, boys and girls, and animals and birds, that cannot or do not find shelter as quickly as possible.  Read 2 Peter 3:10, and believe what it says!    

    Where would anyone find shelter from such heat?  Try the caves and dens and holes of the earth, Isaiah 2:10-22; Micah 7:17.

    Further, have I mentioned that such tremendous heat carried into the atmosphere by the force of the exploding volcanoes will literally “dry out” the earth’s atmosphere, so that there will be no rain upon the earth during the first half of the Tribulation period? Not some!  None!  Compare Revelation 11:3  and 11:6.  According  to astronomers that I have discussed this with, it is possible that such tremendous heat pushed high into the sky above the earth by the erupting volcanoes, could even wipe out the ozone layer which protects all living things from the direct ultra-violet rays of the Sun.  Should this happen, and it is highly likely, the temperature on the surface of the earth could easily rise to three, four, five, or even six or seven hundred degrees during the daylight hours.  A person, even stepping out of their cave or hole into such heat would instantly die of heatstroke or burst into flames and burn up.  Ridiculous, some readers may say.  Then compare the surface temperature on some of the planets in the solar system right today, which do not have an atmosphere and ozone layer to protect them, and while you are at it read Isaiah 30:26.  Folks,“God is not mocked,” Galatians 6:7.  His Word is true, and it will literally come to pass exactly as stated.

    This extreme heat is why the prophet Joel was inspired to write that “the beasts” upon the earth will “groan,” and “the herds of cattle” will be perplexed, because “the rivers of waters are dried up.” Read it for yourself in Joel 1:15-20.   

    World Famine…..It should be glaringly obvious to our readers that under such conditions on the earth, there will be NO FOOD produced. None! Rather, the New World Order political leaders will move swiftly to seize all available food supplies and institute world-wide food rationing.  Yes, I do mean that jack booted government thugs will literally kick in the doors of private homes in nations all over the earth, and forcibly seize the food supplies right out of the pantries and cabinets of their own citizens.  The excuse for such seizure of all food supplies on the earth, of course, will be the same excuse that wicked politicians have always used to justify their wickedness, “for the common good of all.”  Sic!  Now read Revelation 6:5-6, and once again, believe what you read!  This is God’s inspired, inerrant, Word!  

    Sadly, it is these God hating, Christ rejecting, one-world planners, of the New World Order who have created the problems mankind is facing in the world today, and most of mankind is too Scripturally illiterate and “willingly ignorant”  to understand what is even happening.    

    Rising of the Oceans…..Again, it doesn’t take a great deal of intelligence to understand that when all of this occurs, the extreme heat from the erupting volcanoes, will cause all of the ice caps and glaciers on the face of the earth to quickly melt, resulting in a three to four feet, or more,  rise in the waters of the oceans.  And the rise in the waters will flood vast areas of land along the coastal areas of the earth, which are presently occupied and used by mankind.  All presently low lying areas along the coasts will be covered with water.  Goodbye Florida!  Read Psalm 46.  Hello!  Are we awake yet?

    Wars in every Nation on Earth…..It should be glaringly obvious to our readers that when the masses of people on earth begin to face starvation, that they will go to war to

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forcibly seize food from other peoples and nations to maintain their lives.  Isn’t this exactly what is prophesied to occur under the opening of the second Seal in Revelation 6:3-4?  Folks, the prospect of starvation transforms normally decent people into little more than wild carnivorous animals, driven out of their minds by their desperate hunger, who will kill and destroy just to obtain the food necessary to maintain life.  Have you read the accounts in God’s Word about parents eating their own children in order to survive?  No!  Then read 2 Kings 6:24-29  and Lamentations 2:11-12  and 2:19-20.  If the Lord God of Heaven refused to keep His own chosen people from such harsh judgment in order to bring them to repentance for their wickedness, what makes some living today think they will be exempt from such judgment?

Plagues, Pestilences, and Disease

    It ought to be obvious to any reader, that with the dead bodies of men, animals, and birds, scattered all over the earth, disease and pestilence will spread like wildfire.  But surely the medical authorities will do something about it!  Any reader who believes this has to be speaking in jest!  All of the present systems of mankind on the earth will totally collapse, and that means the medical system right along with all the rest.  There will be no doctors and hospitals to take care of the sick and dying.  There will be no health food stores or pharmacies dispensing medicine.  In fact, there won’t be much of anything left, for nearly every man-made structure on earth will have been shaken down in the great earthquake right at the beginning of the Tribulation.  Folks, this will be the situation  unbelieving mankind left on the earth following the Pre-Tribulation Rapture of God’s people [true believers] will find themselves in.  But there is more!  Let’s add on…..

The Judgment of God Himself

    What I have described up to this point “could be” explained by some as “natural disasters.”  So let’s just add in the direct intervention of the Lord God as it is set forth in the inspired Scriptures.

    In Revelation 6, the Lord Jesus Christ, our Kinsman-Redeemer, begins to open the Seals on the “little book,” taken by Him out of the hand of the Heavenly Father in 5:7.  This “little book” is the Title Deed to the earth itself, and the opening of the Seals on the book set forth the conditions required  before the earth can be redeemed  and revert back to the possession of its rightful owners; MANKIND.  So everything which occurs under the opening of these Seals is a judgment of God.  The opening of these Seals by the Lord Jesus can then hardly be referred to as “natural disasters” or “the normal course of events.”  Rather, they are “the wrath of the Lamb,” 6:16.  Those readers who never think of the tender, lowly, loving, Lamb of God, the Lord Jesus Christ, as becoming ANGRY over the sin and wickedness of mankind, and their rejection of  and refusal  to believe on Him, had better think again.

    Then following the Seal judgments, will come the Trumpet Judgments, as set forth in Revelation 8.  Natural disasters?  Yes, they could be called that, except for the fact that God’s Word points out that they are being sent upon mankind from before God’s throne in Heaven, 8:1-5.   Fire falling from the sky, hail and fire, a great comet or asteroid [or a planet?] burning with fire, asteroid showers, the Sun and Moon being smitten, the bottomless pit being opened, releasing the hellacious locusts upon the earth, the vast army from the east marching across the Euphrates to invade Europe and the Middle East, and on and on.

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    Oh, I haven’t mentioned that earthquakes will continue to rock the earth throughout the entire seven years of the Tribulation.  Men on the earth may attempt to rebuild, but the Lord God will “throw down.”  By the end of the Tribulation, seven years after its beginning, there will not be a man-made structure standing anywhere on the face of the whole earth.  All will be gone!  

    How do I know this?  Because those who have survived will be sleeping in the woods, and trusting the Lord to keep the animals from attacking them.  Read it for yourself in  

Ezekiel 34:22-25.  

Conclusion

    In this study, I have set before the readers exactly what the inspired Word prophesies that those unbelievers left behind at the rapture, are going to have to face and deal with on a daily basis.  I want to remind our readers that everything in past human history, which was prophesied to occur, came to pass exactly as prophesied.  Even so, these prophecies of the coming seven year Tribulation, will also come to pass exactly as prophesied.  

     Now in view of what is about to come upon the earth, does any  presently  unbelieving  reader [unsaved…still lost in your sin and unbelief ] really want to gamble your life and eternal soul on the slim hope that none of what I have described in this study will ever happen?  Do you?  Really?

     Dear reader, if you are not saved from sin, never having received Christ Jesus as your own personal Savior, then hurry [RUSH] to seek the Lord today.  Why the hurry?  Because time is swiftly running out!  The prophecies of God’s Word clearly indicate that the Lord Jesus will return at any minute of any day now to remove His believing people off the face of this earth, Galatians 1:4.  When true believers have been removed, then the terrible seven year Tribulation will begin, and I have attempted in this study to faithfully outline what life will be like on earth for those left behind on the earth following  the rapture.  Take it to heart!  

     If any reader is unsaved, or if any reader has doubts about their relationship with the Lord, then please, please, read John 3:3-7, 3:16, 3:36, 5:24, 14:6, Acts 4:12, 16:30-31, Romans 10:8-13, Ephesians 2:8-10, Titus 3:5-6, and believe what you read, calling upon the Lord in prayer [any way you know how] to help your unbelief.  If any reader needs further help, please contact me at once.  I will study the Word with you, pray with you, and help you in any way I know how, to find Christ as your own personal Savior, or to receive the assurance that you are indeed a true believer and a born again child of God.    

    I really do want to meet every reader in glory when our Lord comes for us.  This is not simply a cliché with me.  It is a genuine burden for the souls of my readers.  Please don’t disappoint me!

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    Permission is granted to any true believer, or Bible believing Christian ministry to reproduce this study to share with others, or to quote from it in context as written.

    Thank you dear brothers and sisters in Christ for your kind responses to my studies, and for your prayers and gifts in support of this ministry.  Your kind words of encouragement, and your prayers and gifts are appreciated so much.  Thank you!

    Please address all comments, questions, and correspondence to:  Pastor F. M. Riley, Last Call Gospel Ministry, 184 County Road 108, Harrisburg, Missouri 65256.  

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 What is Awaiting

Unbelieving Mankind…

                                                                                                      By Pastor F. M. Riley

                                                                                                   May 16, 2015

 

    “Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in My holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand.

    A day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations,”

                                                                          Joel 2:1-2.  

    “The great day of the Lord is near, and hasteth greatly, even the voice of the day of the Lord: the mighty man shall cry bitterly.

    That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness,”

                                                                         Zephaniah 1:14-15.

Introduction

    As I sit here this morning in Missouri, it is pouring down rain and the sky is shrouded in clouds.  This is the third day in a row that the day has dawned with clouds hiding the Sun as it rises.  Sometime today we may, or we may not, get some sunshine to brighten the day.  

    How often mankind upon the earth fails to think about the beauty of the sunrise, and the blessing  the sunshine brings to us.  How often mankind fails to thank God for the light of each day provided by the Sun, giving to mankind upon the earth light and energy, and the warmth the earth needs to produce the food we must have to sustain our lives.  

    I have lived long enough to know that day after day without seeing  the Sun, either in the Spring and Summer seasons, or in the Fall and Winter seasons, causes people to become depressed and gloomy, like the darkened day itself.  It is during such prolonged conditions that people develop “cabin fever,” and a strong desire to just get out of the house and into the fresh open air.

    But in thinking about this subject, I realized that mankind living on the earth today hasn’t seen anything yet, in view of what is coming.  And what is coming upon those left behind on the earth following the resurrection and Pre-tribulation Rapture of New Covenant believers is what this study is about!

     May this study serve as a FINAL WARNING to unbelieving men and women, boys and girls, to hurry in seeking the Lord as their own personal Savior, before the thick darkness descends upon all of humanity left upon the earth following the Pre-Tribulation resurrection and rapture of all true believers, 1 Corinthians 15:20-23; Zephaniah 1:14-18.  

The Great Earthquake

     I  remind our readers that at the time Christ Jesus died on the cross, a  great

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earthquake occurred, followed by a number of aftershocks, Matthew 27:46-54; 28:1-8. One of the results of this great earthquake was that the graves of the deceased saints in or near Jerusalem were opened, and following His resurrection those deceased saints came out of their graves alive, and went into Jerusalem, appearing to many as visible “witnesses” of the resurrecting and life giving power of the Lord Jesus Christ, John 11:25-26.  These saints that arose following the resurrection of Christ were “the firstfruits” of the resurrection, 1 Corinthians 15:20-21.  Dear readers, it is technically and grammatically incorrect to speak of “firstfruits” being  gathered,  unless there is going to be more “fruits” gathered at a later time.  And so there will be!   1 Corinthians 15:50-58. Glory to God!  Praise the Lord!  Hallelujah!  

    But what does this glance back at history have to do with what is awaiting unbelieving mankind upon the earth?  I’m so glad you asked…..

The Greater Earthquake

     I would remind our readers that the very last “sign” the Lord Jesus Christ spoke about in Matthew 24:4-7, which is to precede the time of “sorrows” upon the earth was “..... earthquakes, in divers places.”  Is mankind on the earth today seeing and experiencing such earthquakes?  Every single day!  One would have to be brain dead not to know about all the earthquakes which are occurring somewhere in the earth every day, for they are being reported on daily by the world news media.  

     However, the earthquakes occurring today are just the prelude to “the big one.”  Since the graves of the saints in or near Jerusalem were opened following the resurrection of Christ Jesus, I think we who are true believers have good reason to expect an  earthquake to occur at the time the Lord comes to resurrect and rapture His New Covenant saints to glory.  But I also think it will be much larger, likely the largest earthquake that has ever occurred in the history of mankind.  

    Why?  Because the graves or burial sites of every believer who has lived and died during this entire “dispensation of grace,” [2,000 years] will be opened, and such graves are scattered all over the face of the earth in every nation. These graves of  New Covenant believers will not be opened in order to allow the bodies of the believers to exit, but rather to allow those left behind to witness for themselves that the bodies and bones that were once in the graves are gone; totally missing.  What a witness to those left behind, that the resurrection and rapture predicted in God’s Word will have actually and literally occurred.  Glory to God!  Praise the Lord!  

The Beginning of a Chain of Events…..

    Volcanic Eruptions…..It is, or should be, obvious to every reader that when the great world-wide earthquake occurs in connection with the resurrection and rapture, it will shake the earth up until every volcano on earth will explode into eruption.  We are speaking of over 1,000 volcanoes which presently exist in countries all over the earth, plus any new ones that may come into existence under such a world-wide shaking of the earth.  

     Now look at Peter’s prophecy in Acts 2:19, and Joel’s prophecy in Joel 2:30.  Peter was inspired of the Lord to say “and I will show wonders [signs] in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke.”  

Likewise Joel was inspired of God to say, “And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.”  

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    I urge our readers to take your own Concordance or Lexicon and look up the meaning of the word translated as “pillars” in Joel 2:30.  The Hebrew word literally means, “standing upright columns of smoke.”  Check it out for yourself.  

    Now the last time I checked [Mt. St. Helens, in Washington, 1980…..I was there!], erupting volcanoes give off vast amounts of thick, black, heavy, smoke.  Depending on the

strength of the explosion, they also send a cloud of volcanic ash straight up into the sky

above the volcano, which can literally extend for six to eight miles or more into the upper atmosphere.  It doesn’t take much intelligence to understand that if every volcano on earth  goes into eruption at the same time [1,000 or more], plus any new ones which may be brought into existence by the extreme shaking of “the big one,” then both Peter’s prophecy and Joel’s prophecy will be fulfilled to the letter.  The prevailing winds will carry the smoke [volcanic ash] all over the earth, so that the whole earth will be literally shrouded in “vapor of smoke,” and standing upright “pillars” of smoke will be seen all over the landscape of the whole earth. All of these volcanoes erupting at the same time will saturate the upper atmosphere to the extent that normal sunlight will be blocked out, and the whole earth plunged into gloominess and darkness, exactly as the prophetic Scriptures predict.

    Darkness that can be felt….Our readers should remember that in ancient Egypt, a plague of darkness was brought upon the Egyptians, Exodus 10:21-29.  It was darkness that could literally be felt, 10:21. What kind of darkness could this be?  Yes, I believe I do know, for I have experienced such darkness.  

     When Mount St. Helens erupted in the state of Washington in 1980, I was pastoring a church in the Tri-cities area.  It was a beautiful Sunday morning, with not a cloud in the sky.  But as I was in my study preparing for the Sunday morning service, I heard what, at the time, I presumed to be, a “sonic boom.”  It was so loud that it shook our entire church building.  However, it turned out to be, not a sonic boom, but the explosion and eruption  of Mount St. Helens, approximately 125 miles south and west of our church location.   We proceeded with our Sunday morning service, but by the time we dismissed at noon, the ash cloud from St. Helens had covered our entire city and the whole surrounding area.  When we exited the church building at high noon, it was so dark that I literally could not see my hand in front of my face, but I could feel and even taste the darkness.  I could feel the ash falling from the cloud, covering everything and everyone exposed.  I could taste the ash as it fell on my lips, and smell the sulphur in it as I breathed it into my nostrils.  Pitch darkness that could be literally felt.  

    Folks, when a thousand or more volcanoes are erupting all over the earth, the entire earth will be plunged into total darkness from such a massive infusion of volcanic ash in the upper atmosphere.  And it will go on and on and on.  There will be days, weeks, and months, that will pass before those left behind on the earth will even catch a glimpse of the Sun.  And in those rare times when they do catch a glimpse of the Sun, they won’t like it, for not being able to see the Sun doesn’t mean that it will be cold….. 

    Extreme Heat…..When this occurs in the earth, and it will occur, the massive amount of heat from these erupting volcanoes will be unlike anything ever previously imagined by modern man.  The 1,000 or more exploding and erupting volcanoes will heat up the atmosphere and the surface temperature of the earth, literally cooking and burning up every shred of vegetation exposed to such heat, not to mention literally burning up men

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and women, boys and girls, and animals and birds, that cannot or do not find shelter as quickly as possible.  Read 2 Peter 3:10, and believe what it says!    

    Where would anyone find shelter from such heat?  Try the caves and dens and holes of the earth, Isaiah 2:10-22; Micah 7:17.

    Further, have I mentioned that such tremendous heat carried into the atmosphere by the force of the exploding volcanoes will literally “dry out” the earth’s atmosphere, so that there will be no rain upon the earth during the first half of the Tribulation period? Not some!  None!  Compare Revelation 11:3  and 11:6.  According  to astronomers that I have discussed this with, it is possible that such tremendous heat pushed high into the sky above the earth by the erupting volcanoes, could even wipe out the ozone layer which protects all living things from the direct ultra-violet rays of the Sun.  Should this happen, and it is highly likely, the temperature on the surface of the earth could easily rise to three, four, five, or even six or seven hundred degrees during the daylight hours.  A person, even stepping out of their cave or hole into such heat would instantly die of heatstroke or burst into flames and burn up.  Ridiculous, some readers may say.  Then compare the surface temperature on some of the planets in the solar system right today, which do not have an atmosphere and ozone layer to protect them, and while you are at it read Isaiah 30:26.  Folks,“God is not mocked,” Galatians 6:7.  His Word is true, and it will literally come to pass exactly as stated.

    This extreme heat is why the prophet Joel was inspired to write that “the beasts” upon the earth will “groan,” and “the herds of cattle” will be perplexed, because “the rivers of waters are dried up.” Read it for yourself in Joel 1:15-20.   

    World Famine…..It should be glaringly obvious to our readers that under such conditions on the earth, there will be NO FOOD produced. None! Rather, the New World Order political leaders will move swiftly to seize all available food supplies and institute world-wide food rationing.  Yes, I do mean that jack booted government thugs will literally kick in the doors of private homes in nations all over the earth, and forcibly seize the food supplies right out of the pantries and cabinets of their own citizens.  The excuse for such seizure of all food supplies on the earth, of course, will be the same excuse that wicked politicians have always used to justify their wickedness, “for the common good of all.”  Sic!  Now read Revelation 6:5-6, and once again, believe what you read!  This is God’s inspired, inerrant, Word!  

    Sadly, it is these God hating, Christ rejecting, one-world planners, of the New World Order who have created the problems mankind is facing in the world today, and most of mankind is too Scripturally illiterate and “willingly ignorant”  to understand what is even happening.    

    Rising of the Oceans…..Again, it doesn’t take a great deal of intelligence to understand that when all of this occurs, the extreme heat from the erupting volcanoes, will cause all of the ice caps and glaciers on the face of the earth to quickly melt, resulting in a three to four feet, or more,  rise in the waters of the oceans.  And the rise in the waters will flood vast areas of land along the coastal areas of the earth, which are presently occupied and used by mankind.  All presently low lying areas along the coasts will be covered with water.  Goodbye Florida!  Read Psalm 46.  Hello!  Are we awake yet?

    Wars in every Nation on Earth…..It should be glaringly obvious to our readers that when the masses of people on earth begin to face starvation, that they will go to war to

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forcibly seize food from other peoples and nations to maintain their lives.  Isn’t this exactly what is prophesied to occur under the opening of the second Seal in Revelation 6:3-4?  Folks, the prospect of starvation transforms normally decent people into little more than wild carnivorous animals, driven out of their minds by their desperate hunger, who will kill and destroy just to obtain the food necessary to maintain life.  Have you read the accounts in God’s Word about parents eating their own children in order to survive?  No!  Then read 2 Kings 6:24-29  and Lamentations 2:11-12  and 2:19-20.  If the Lord God of Heaven refused to keep His own chosen people from such harsh judgment in order to bring them to repentance for their wickedness, what makes some living today think they will be exempt from such judgment?

Plagues, Pestilences, and Disease

    It ought to be obvious to any reader, that with the dead bodies of men, animals, and birds, scattered all over the earth, disease and pestilence will spread like wildfire.  But surely the medical authorities will do something about it!  Any reader who believes this has to be speaking in jest!  All of the present systems of mankind on the earth will totally collapse, and that means the medical system right along with all the rest.  There will be no doctors and hospitals to take care of the sick and dying.  There will be no health food stores or pharmacies dispensing medicine.  In fact, there won’t be much of anything left, for nearly every man-made structure on earth will have been shaken down in the great earthquake right at the beginning of the Tribulation.  Folks, this will be the situation  unbelieving mankind left on the earth following the Pre-Tribulation Rapture of God’s people [true believers] will find themselves in.  But there is more!  Let’s add on…..

The Judgment of God Himself

    What I have described up to this point “could be” explained by some as “natural disasters.”  So let’s just add in the direct intervention of the Lord God as it is set forth in the inspired Scriptures.

    In Revelation 6, the Lord Jesus Christ, our Kinsman-Redeemer, begins to open the Seals on the “little book,” taken by Him out of the hand of the Heavenly Father in 5:7.  This “little book” is the Title Deed to the earth itself, and the opening of the Seals on the book set forth the conditions required  before the earth can be redeemed  and revert back to the possession of its rightful owners; MANKIND.  So everything which occurs under the opening of these Seals is a judgment of God.  The opening of these Seals by the Lord Jesus can then hardly be referred to as “natural disasters” or “the normal course of events.”  Rather, they are “the wrath of the Lamb,” 6:16.  Those readers who never think of the tender, lowly, loving, Lamb of God, the Lord Jesus Christ, as becoming ANGRY over the sin and wickedness of mankind, and their rejection of  and refusal  to believe on Him, had better think again.

    Then following the Seal judgments, will come the Trumpet Judgments, as set forth in Revelation 8.  Natural disasters?  Yes, they could be called that, except for the fact that God’s Word points out that they are being sent upon mankind from before God’s throne in Heaven, 8:1-5.   Fire falling from the sky, hail and fire, a great comet or asteroid [or a planet?] burning with fire, asteroid showers, the Sun and Moon being smitten, the bottomless pit being opened, releasing the hellacious locusts upon the earth, the vast army from the east marching across the Euphrates to invade Europe and the Middle East, and on and on.

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    Oh, I haven’t mentioned that earthquakes will continue to rock the earth throughout the entire seven years of the Tribulation.  Men on the earth may attempt to rebuild, but the Lord God will “throw down.”  By the end of the Tribulation, seven years after its beginning, there will not be a man-made structure standing anywhere on the face of the whole earth.  All will be gone!  

    How do I know this?  Because those who have survived will be sleeping in the woods, and trusting the Lord to keep the animals from attacking them.  Read it for yourself in  

Ezekiel 34:22-25.  

Conclusion

    In this study, I have set before the readers exactly what the inspired Word prophesies that those unbelievers left behind at the rapture, are going to have to face and deal with on a daily basis.  I want to remind our readers that everything in past human history, which was prophesied to occur, came to pass exactly as prophesied.  Even so, these prophecies of the coming seven year Tribulation, will also come to pass exactly as prophesied.  

     Now in view of what is about to come upon the earth, does any  presently  unbelieving  reader [unsaved…still lost in your sin and unbelief ] really want to gamble your life and eternal soul on the slim hope that none of what I have described in this study will ever happen?  Do you?  Really?

     Dear reader, if you are not saved from sin, never having received Christ Jesus as your own personal Savior, then hurry [RUSH] to seek the Lord today.  Why the hurry?  Because time is swiftly running out!  The prophecies of God’s Word clearly indicate that the Lord Jesus will return at any minute of any day now to remove His believing people off the face of this earth, Galatians 1:4.  When true believers have been removed, then the terrible seven year Tribulation will begin, and I have attempted in this study to faithfully outline what life will be like on earth for those left behind on the earth following  the rapture.  Take it to heart!  

     If any reader is unsaved, or if any reader has doubts about their relationship with the Lord, then please, please, read John 3:3-7, 3:16, 3:36, 5:24, 14:6, Acts 4:12, 16:30-31, Romans 10:8-13, Ephesians 2:8-10, Titus 3:5-6, and believe what you read, calling upon the Lord in prayer [any way you know how] to help your unbelief.  If any reader needs further help, please contact me at once.  I will study the Word with you, pray with you, and help you in any way I know how, to find Christ as your own personal Savior, or to receive the assurance that you are indeed a true believer and a born again child of God.    

    I really do want to meet every reader in glory when our Lord comes for us.  This is not simply a cliché with me.  It is a genuine burden for the souls of my readers.  Please don’t disappoint me!

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    Permission is granted to any true believer, or Bible believing Christian ministry to reproduce this study to share with others, or to quote from it in context as written.

    Thank you dear brothers and sisters in Christ for your kind responses to my studies, and for your prayers and gifts in support of this ministry.  Your kind words of encouragement, and your prayers and gifts are appreciated so much.  Thank you!

    Please address all comments, questions, and correspondence to:  Pastor F. M. Riley, Last Call Gospel Ministry, 184 County Road 108, Harrisburg, Missouri 65256.  

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