Will it stand the test of time?
Undoubtedly Tuesday 12th June 2018 will definitely remain a milestone in the history of America and North Korean relations. While Supreme leader Kim Jong-un and President Trump committed themselves to work together for peace between their respective nations it still remains to be seen how and to what degree this “denuclearization agreement” will stand the test of time. One would ask the question where did North Korea get the wherewith all to finance their rather extensive nuclear programme? Was it from Iran, Israel’s sworn enemy? As for Israel North Korea most definitely sides with the militant objectives of Israel’s immediate Islamic neighbours to destroy Israel. It is well known that in the past North Korea has openly stated their militancy towards Israel.
Hostility towards Israel
According to a report last year in the online publication “The Diplomat” it stated; “Hostility toward Israel has been a consistent feature of North Korean foreign policy since the early stages of the Cold War. Under founding leader Kim Il-sung, Pyongyang frequently sought to delegitimize Israel by describing it as a U.S.-backed “imperial satellite.” North Korea also actively supported Arab countries in their military operations against Israel. During the 1973 Yom Kippur War, the DPRK sent 20 pilots and 19 non-combat personnel to Egypt. North Korean pilots staffed Egyptian MIG-21s during the 1973 war, and the Egyptian air force requested the DPRK’s technical expertise as Cairo attempted to neutralize the offensive capabilities of Israeli F-4 planes.
A most strident critic
During the 1980s, North Korea shifted away from direct military opposition to Israel in favour of arms and military technology sales to Israel’s enemies in the Middle East. The DPRK exported missiles to Iran, Syria, and Libya and assisted both Syria and Iran in their attempts to develop nuclear weapon capabilities… In addition to threatening Israel’s security, the DPRK has antagonized Jerusalem by expressing solidarity with the Palestinian cause. In 1988, North Korea announced its support for a Palestinian state that subsumed Israel into its borders, and endorsed the handover of the Golan Heights to Syria. The North Korean government’s arms supplies to the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) entrenched a deep-rooted alliance between Pyongyang and Palestinian nationalists, which persists to this day. Even though North Korea can no longer match its pro-Palestinian rhetoric with military support, the DPRK remains one of Israel’s most strident international critics.
Israeli occupation?
North Korean officials have frequently described Israel’s military operations in Gaza as “crimes against humanity,” and publicly condemned Israel’s killings of civilians during the 2008-09 Gaza war, 2010 Gaza flotilla raid, and 2014 Israel-Gaza conflict. North Korea’s fierce opposition to Israel’s right to exist and conduct in the Palestinian territories has not gone unnoticed in the Arab world. On April 30 (2017), Hamas praised the North Korean regime for its threatening rhetoric toward Israel, and thanked the DPRK for its solidarity with the Palestinian people against “Israeli occupation.” This positive reinforcement suggests that North Korea is unlikely to moderate or reconsider its militantly anti-Israel foreign policy stance in the near future.”
Stalling for time?
Possibly in Kim’s deep mind he is fully aware of the fact that despite so called ‘sanctions’ against Iran including the dismantled Iranian nuclear deal, that Iran still keeps working away at its nuclear development despite the western sanctions against it. Iran has lots of money and is known to finance Hezbollah and fund terrorism globally. Recently Israel intelligence reported that North Korean scientists were seen at nuclear facilities in Iran and its obvious they were discussing the development of nuclear weapons. While Kim has ‘backtracked’ on his original demand for the withdrawal of American troops from South Korea it may well be he is stalling for time. A man of his character does not change overnight and he is not to be trusted. Possibly he sees the international spotlight on Iran and has taken a ‘back seat’ of sorts in his militancy towards America. Also he may not be sure that China would back his regime in a nuclear war with America?
The Denuclearization deception
Amongst all the ‘backslapping’ and ‘friendliness’ and ‘smiles for the camera’ by Kim and President Trump it remains to be seen what Kim’s real intentions are for the Korean Peninsula. Possibly he wants the whole of Korea for himself? The time for this has not yet come but if America sides with Israel in a war with Iran or wages a war with the wider Islamic world then President trump may well be forced to withdraw American forces from South Korea leaving the way open for Kim to show his ultimate goal, namely the invasion of South Korea and the establishment of a nuclear state backed by Islamic money in exchange for sharing North Korean nuclear technology. After all the backslapping, flattering rhetoric and summits for peace have concluded will it be in reality a case of “The Great Denuclearization Deception?” Even if a peace of sorts is made that effects the whole world the Apostle Paul writes; “For you are fully aware that the day of the LORD will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, “Peace and security,” destruction will come upon them suddenly, like labour pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.” (1 Thessalonians 5:2-3)
A war is coming
According to the Bible a future war of global proportions is coming and most probably between the Islamic and the western nations and one that will see nuclear exchanges. It is a war that will ultimately have its climax with the Second Coming of our Lord Jesus the Messiah.
The apostle John writes… “Then the sixth angel sounded: And I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God, saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.” So the four angels, who had been prepared for the hour and day and month and year, were released to kill a third of mankind. Now the number of the army of the horsemen was two hundred million; I heard the number of them. And thus I saw the horses in the vision: those who sat on them had breastplates of fiery red, hyacinth blue, and sulphur yellow; and the heads of the horses were like the heads of lions; and out of their mouths came fire, smoke, and brimstone. By these three plagues a third of mankind was killed—by the fire and the smoke and the brimstone which came out of their mouths. For their power is in their mouth and in their tails; for their tails are like serpents, having heads; and with them they do harm. But the rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, that they should not worship demons, and idols of gold, silver, brass, stone, and wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk. And they did not repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts.” (Revelation 9:13-21)
200 million ‘horsemen’
How could a first century man describe modern warfare? It would seem that is precisely what John was describing. Several things to notice; The River Euphrates is mentioned. John also writes about a Middle-Eastern Islamic army being “the Kings of the east” equipped with missiles that have nuclear capabilities being carried on heavily armoured vehicles coming across the dried up Euphrates River. (Revelation 15:12) This army will march on a specific “hour and day and month and year” on God’s calendar “to kill a third of mankind.” This army will be 200 million strong in number. When you consider Turkey, Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, and the Turkic speaking Islamic states of the former Soviet Union being Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan and Georgia fielding an Islamic army of 200 million soldiers for the cause of Allah would not be a problem.
Fire and Sulphur
Then we are told that these “horses” John saw could not be literal horses because “their breastplates were of fiery red, hyacinth blue, and sulphur yellow” and would well describe the metal of heavy armoured vehicles. The heads of the horses resembled the heads of lions as this was the only way John could find to describe these vehicles with fire, smoke, and brimstone coming out of their mouths (Tank gun barrels and missile launchers). By these “plagues” we are told that the third of mankind will be killed by the firepower coming out of these armoured vehicles. In describing “Their ‘tails’ being like serpents, having heads; and with them they do harm” may well be multiple rocket launchers and heavy machine guns mounted on these armoured vehicles. Then we are told that this vast army is a judgment of God upon a world that refuses to repent of their sin and rebellion against Him and that rejects the salvation offered in and through our Lord Jesus the Messiah. All of these things happen after the sixth trumpet is blown.
The Last Trumpet
When the seventh trumpet sounds this announces the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus the Messiah to judge the world and to establish His Millennial Messianic Kingdom on earth. (Revelation 11:15-18) This is the last trumpet! At the sound of this last trumpet the rapture and resurrection of the saints of all the ages will occur. (The Trumpet-1 Thessalonians 4: 16-17) (The Last Trumpet-1 Corinthians 15:51-52) As John also writes; “Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection! The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and will reign with Him for a thousand years.” (Revelation 20:6) The Second death is the lake of fire. (Revelation 21:8b)
Resurrection
If we have repented and believed on the Lord Jesus the Messiah by faith to save us from the power and penalty of sin and to forgive our sin and to keep cleansing us from all of it in our daily lives we will not be judged for our sin when He comes back. If by that same faith in the Lord Jesus we have been put into a right standing with God, then we will not experience the second death even if we physically die before the Lord Jesus comes back. Through our second birth we are already in the resurrection spiritually. (John 11:25-26) We are destined for the physical resurrection when our Lord Jesus returns. He is coming back not only to rescue us but to actually save the world from annihilation. As the Lord Jesus himself said; “For then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will. “Unless those days had been cut short, no life would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short.” (Matthew 24:21-22)
Delivered from the coming wrath
If you are a born again believer in the Lord Jesus then you are part of God’s elect people and “not destined for wrath but to salvation through our Lord Jesus the Messiah… who delivers us from that coming wrath!” (1 Thessalonians 5:9) (1 Thessalonians 1:10) The rescue is coming and we must make sure we have ‘the life jacket’ of Salvation on when ‘the Titanic’ of this world hits ‘the great iceberg’ of the judgment of God and ‘the ship’ of the kingdoms of this world begin to sink down into the dark depths of perdition! With these things in view let us stay spiritually sober and alert and not allow ourselves to be lulled into the sleep of spiritual slothfulness by the Great Denuclearization Deception.
