In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes. -Judges 21:25 (NASB)

In the 2005 movie Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, the third chapter of the Star Wars science fiction saga, moviegoers witnessed a large-scale betrayal that led up to the events in the 1977 movie Star Wars. Misplaced trust and security in a corrupt leader and embedded clone troops set the stage for a galactic massacre and iron-fisted rule.

When the time was right, the soon-to-be self-proclaimed emperor issued the command, “Execute Order 66,” the trigger phrase to activate dormant programming in clone troops across the galaxy. Those troops instantly turned on their allies, the Jedi (the peacekeepers), and the galaxy was plunged into a dark era.

That may be science fiction, but the parallels to our world become clearer by the day.

Before man was created, Lucifer was cast down from heaven for attempting to usurp God, and then as the serpent, tricked Eve with the same lie: Just do what you want. If you do this forbidden thing, you will be like God. We know how then ended.

Many generations later, especially noted throughout the Book of Judges, God’s chosen people repeatedly turned from Him and His laws, doing what was right in their eyes. When the perversion got too great, Israel finally cried out to God, and He would rescue them with a judge…and then they would repeat the cycle all over again.

We continue the cycle today, as the world continues to get darker and more perverse, where man knows that doing whatever he wants is right. Humans are elevated and worshiped like gods, and the Bible is relegated to fairy tale status. Those who follow God’s laws are ridiculed and considered ignorant dinosaurs. The stage is being reset again for a new cycle.

As foretold in the Book of Revelation, the spiritual equivalent of Order 66 will be executed, when Satan and his fallen angels will attempt and fail the ultimate cosmic coup (Revelation 12:7-12). But then all hell will break loose on earth when the sleepwalking world will sadly realize that their trust in only themselves was woefully misplaced (2 Thessalonians 2:10-12). But there is a new hope.

Though there will be a Great Tribulation on the earth in the last days, believers are the only ones who can take comfort in knowing that they alone were the faithful who will ultimately end up in the presence of the Lord, unlike all those who heard of Him and turned from Him. Where will your heart be when Order 66 takes place? If you haven’t chosen the only deliverance and path to Heaven, walk this way.

But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. -Matthew‬ ‭24:36‬ ‭(NIV)

Some say that September 23, 2015 (or thereabouts) will be the Second Coming of Christ. The basis of this prediction is tied to ancient Jewish cultures and idioms, which are not explained in the bible, because they would be understood to readers of the time.

I wrote and published this post in advance of the date. It’s a long explanation, but basically:

• the “hour no one knows” was a commonly known idiom of the time regarding the Feast of Trumpets,
• the bible is basically a love story about a Father looking for a bride for His Son, and
• that His Son’s Second Coming is the culmination of the ultimate Jewish wedding.

There are then many cultural and idiomatic connections to phrases modern readers take at face value, like Jesus coming as a “thief in the night,” which is a Hebraic reference to how a high priest would set the garments of sleeping guards on fire.

This really intrigued me when I read some of these websites, because I have long (well, relative to my short time as a baby Christian) wondered how much cultural context modern readers were missing when reading texts that have been translated so many times.

So do we need pack our spiritual bags?!?

My take on these predictions is this, fellow Christ follower: we should always be alert and ready for Christ’s triumphant return!

I don’t care whether the predictions are right on the money, or if they’re not. We are to live every moment for Christ anyway, and if it helps to remember that He could return at any time (as most of us interpret Scripture), so be it.

Let us live for the One who gave His life so we may have life everlasting in His presence! No matter when it happens, true believer, I can’t wait for us to meet again on the other side!