July…??
By Pastor F. M. Riley
“God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that He is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands;
Neither is worshipped with men’s hands, as though He needed anything, seeing He giveth to all life and breath, and all things;
And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;
That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after Him, and find Him, though He be not far from every one of us:
For in Him we live, and move, and have our being,…..” Acts 17:24-28.
Introduction
There are a number of spiritual truths set forth in the above Scripture text, but for the purposes of this study I want to emphasize only two of those truths for our readers.
First, it is explicitly stated that Almighty God has “determined the times before appointed.” In other words, nothing in the course of human history has occurred in any hap-hazard manner. Every age, dispensation, and period of time
in the course of human history was planned and “framed by the Word of God” from
eternity past, Hebrews 11:3. Almighty
God was in full control in the past, is in full control today, and will continue to be in full control in the future. Nothing has occurred in all of human history that the Lord did not either permit to occur or directly will to come to pass. In either case, He is now and always has been able to “…make all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose,” Romans 8:28.
Second, it is explicitly stated in
this text that Almighty God “hath determined the times before appointed”
for the specific purpose that “men…..should seek the
Lord…” I cannot help but believe
this is the very reason why the Lord Himself rebuked the Pharisees and Sadducees
in Matthew
16:1-3, saying to them, “O ye hypocrites, ye can discern
the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?” In
other words, throughout human history when God permitted mankind to enter times
of great peril and crisis, those times were an incentive to motivate men to “seek
the Lord.”
Right now mankind is in just such a
time of peril and crisis again, and is on the very threshold of entering an
even worse time; the very worst time of peril and crisis that has ever or will
ever occur in human history. Read on…..
What will occur during July?
The month of July…….July
is the 7th month on our present Gentile calendar. “7” is the Bible number associated with “completion; to complete; to fill up; to
finish; to bring to a conclusion.”
The month of July on our
calendar contains parts of the months of Tammuz and Av, the 4th and
5th months on the Jewish calendar which the Lord gave to the Jewish
people in Exodus 12. “4” is the
Bible number associated with “the flesh;
the natural man; the first creation; humanity; the nations.” “5” is the Bible number associated with “grace; mercy; favor; especially as it
proceeds forth from God.” 4 + 5 =
9. “9” is the Bible number associated
with “the spirit (of man, God, or the
evil one); the fruit of the Spirit; the fruition or completion of the work of
the spirit (man, God, or the evil one).”
Every true
believer knows that there are two spirits at work in this world
which are in direct opposition to one another; the Spirit of God and the spirit
of Satan. Both have their own agendas
which are being worked out among men. It
is not at all then unreasonable to believe that in this 7th month of
the year the possibility exists that the Lord’s agenda for His New
Testament church on earth will be completed by the rapture. Neither is it unreasonable to believe that the
possibility exists that Satan’s agenda of bringing his chosen leader
forth upon the world scene will come to fruition during this 7th
month. Think about it as you read the
rest of this study…..
Further, according to
information available about the harvest seasons in Israel, the wheat harvest
which begins on or around Pentecost comes to an end around the end of July. I think this is highly interesting and possibly
prophetically significant in view of Ruth 2:23, “So she kept fast by the maidens
of Boaz to glean unto the end of barley harvest and of wheat harvest…..” The next chapter in Ruth
then records the account of Ruth [a
type of the Gentile bride] going
to Boaz [a type of Christ]. Is this also a type of the rapture of the Lord’s New Testament Gentile
bride at the end of the wheat harvest in Israel, which occurs near the end
of the month of July? I DO NOT
KNOW! But in view of the time in
which we are living right now it is certainly worth considering by God’s
people.
In view of these things, the month of July
could be an important month in the fulfillment of end-time prophecy.
Following is a list of dates in July that may
have special significance for God’s people, along with background
information and comments setting forth the reasons why these dates could be
significant.
July
1 – 3…….These first three days in July are the 9th, 10th,
and 11th of Tammuz on the Jewish calendar.
There are Bible “codes” which suggest that
these may be days of turmoil and trouble for humanity in general and for the
people of the United States
in particular. But they also suggest
that the rapture of God’s people could occur sometime during this three
day period. Are these “codes”
reliable? I do not know! I am only passing on information so that
God’s people can be on the alert. Watch
these dates!
July
4th…….This date is the 12th day of Tammuz on the
Jewish calendar.
But it is also the anniversary of America’s 233
years of national existence. On this
date America
will begin their 234th year as a nation. Or will they?
The U. S.
military is right now on “High Alert” due to intelligence information received from
several different sources regarding a possible nuclear attack on Hawaii by North
Korea on July 4th. According to news sources our U.S. military
was warned of the possibility of such an attack by Japanese, Russian,
and Chinese intelligence forces. As I
write U.S. ships with
missile interceptors are already in the vicinity of Hawaii.
However, it appears to me personally that
there is one “flaw” in this whole scenario.
While our military is concentrating on Hawaii,
the possibility exists that the “nut case” leading North Korea could just as easily order his
military to launch the missile at Alaska, Seattle, Los Angeles, South Korea, or Japan. God have mercy! Watch this date!
July
7th…….This date is the 15th day of Tammuz on the
Jewish calendar.
There will be a full moon on this date,
but also an eclipse of the moon. Strange
things have been known to happen when the moon is full, and also during
eclipses of the moon. Considering the
times in which we are living today, and in view of Acts 2:20 [which to my knowledge has not been fulfilled]
this could be a very important date. Watch
this date!
July
9th…….This date is the 17th day of Tammuz on the
Jewish calendar. This is the date in
ancient history when the armies of Nebuchadnezzar surrounded Jerusalem, beginning a siege of the city
which ended with its capture and destruction 21 days later. What will happen on this date? I do not know! But it could be a very significant
date. Watch this date!
July
11th…….This date is the 19th day of Tammuz on the
Jewish calendar.
There are quite of number of God’s people
today who believe that this date is a critical time marker in Bible
prophecy. Therefore it could be
very significant in fulfilling prophetic events. Watch this date!
July
16th…….This date is the 24th day of Tammuz on the
Jewish calendar.
But
it is also a significant anniversary date…..
On this date the Atomic Age was born by
the explosion of the first atom bomb in the desert just north of Alamogordo, New
Mexico in 1945.
On this date the first lunar landing on
the moon was made by Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin in Apollo 11 in 1969.
On this date the first of 21 pieces of the
Shoemaker-Levy Comet impacted the planet Jupiter in 1994. The 21 pieces of the comet continued to plow
into Jupiter for the next seven days.
Was this a type
prefiguring the 21 judgments of the seven year Tribulation? I do not know!
But I do know that this date has been very
significant in the past, and therefore it is a date that could be very
significant during this month of July. Watch
this date!
July
22nd…….This date is the 1st day of Av on the Jewish
calendar.
It is also the date on which a total solar
eclipse will occur. Read Acts
2:20 again! There are seven
days between this date and the 9th of Av. Count them for yourself. This date could also be a very
significant date. Watch this date!
July
30th…….This date is the 9th day of Av on the
Jewish calendar. This date is the end of
the 21 day period of mourning which begins for the Jews on the 17th
day of Tammuz.
This date is commonly referred to as
“Destruction Day” by the Jewish people because of all the terrible things which
have happened to the Jewish people on the 9th day of Av throughout history.
Both the first and second Temples were destroyed on the 9th day of Av in
past history by the armies of Babylon and Rome.
It was also on the 9th day of
Av that the Jews were expelled from Great Britain
in the 1200’s, and from Spain
in the 1400’s.
It was on the 9th day of Av
that Adolph Hitler’s “Final Solution” to commit the Jews to genocide by gassing
and burning them was approved in 1938.
This date is exactly 60 days past
Pentecost which occurred on May 31st. “60” is the Bible number associated with “pride; the pride of the Gentiles; boasting
of the Gentiles; times of the Gentiles.” Is it possible that the
rapture of God’s people could occur, and the terrible Tribulation period could
begin on the earth on this 9th day of Av? I do not know! But I do know the 9th day of Av
has been a highly significant date in the past, and therefore it could
be a very significant date this year. Watch
this date!
Conclusion
Now our readers have been given an entire
outline of the month of July setting forth every date in this month that may
possibly hold some prophetical significance for those of God’s people who
are seriously searching the Scriptures, watching, praying, waiting, witnessing,
and warning as our Lord commanded us to do, Mark 13:33-37; Luke 19:13.
What any reader does with this
outline of possible dates is entirely up to them. I have done what the Lord laid on my heart to
do. May God add His grace to this effort
is my prayer.
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NOTICE:
Every reader is granted permission to reproduce this outline and share
it with your loved ones, friends, neighbors, and with anyone else you feel led
to share it with. Time is short and the
hour is urgent. The souls that God’s
people point to Christ and win today are the very last souls that will be saved
before the lost world is plunged into the terrors of the great and terrible
Tribulation. Work today! Tomorrow may be too late! May
God bless your efforts is my prayer.
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Any reader desiring to contact me can
address correspondence to: Pastor F. M. Riley, 3900 Clark Lane C-10, Columbia,
Missouri 65202,
or email me at fmrglbd5@yahoo.com
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