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Tuesday, May 6, 2014

The ‘Blood Moon’ Prophecy?


Animation of the April 14th / 15th 'Blood Moon'
Could a series of four “blood moons” be connected to the return of Christ and the end of the world?

That is what some religious leaders are interpreting from the biblical words at Joel 2:31: “The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of the LORD come.” — King James Version.

The words were later quoted by the Christian Apostle Peter at Acts 2:20. Revelation 6:12 also foretold a time when the sun would become black and the moon became as blood. Does the recent announcement of four blood moons appearing over the next 18 months spell doom for the world?

An official statement released earlier from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) said, “For people in the United States, an extraordinary series of lunar eclipses is about to begin. The action starts on April 15th when the full Moon passes through the amber shadow of Earth, producing a midnight eclipse visible across North America. So begins a lunar eclipse tetrad — a series of four consecutive total eclipses occurring at approximately six-month intervals. The total eclipse of April 15, 2014, will be followed by another on Oct. 8, 2014, and another on April 4, 2015, and another on Sept. 28 2015.”

“The most unique thing about the 2014-2015 tetrad is that all of them are visible for all or part of the USA,” says NASA eclipse expert Fred Espenak. NASA also announced there will be eight sets of tetrads before the year 2100. But some believe these latest “blood moons” are more unique than meets the eye, especially since the two in April occur during Passover, and the other two will occur during the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles.

The problem with this theory is the fact that God’s Word does not say a series of blood moons will signal something traumatic or world-changing in Israel. Joel 2:31 specifically says, the moon shall be turned into blood, “before the great and terrible day of the LORD,” not before something traumatic or world-changing happens in Israel.

Any connection to the biblical phenomena with something traumatic in Jerusalem comes, not from the mouth of God, but from the minds of men trying to interpret God’s Word. There is a huge difference. Instead of resting our hopes on one celestial event, Jesus Christ foretold a composite sign to let us know that his return was imminent in Matthew Chapter 24. Please, read it for yourself.

The first warning Jesus gave according to Matthew 24:4, was to watch out that no one deceives you. Then in verses 6-14 Jesus foretold wars, earthquakes, food shortages and diseases in one place after another, including an increase in lawlessness and persecution against Christians while they engaged in a worldwide preaching work about God’s kingdom.

In Matthew 24:29-30, Jesus said, “Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.” — King James Version.

Was any one of these events, in itself, a sign that the end was near? No. Jesus said at Matthew 24:33, “When ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the door.” — King James Version. Did you notice that Jesus did not limit the foretold heavenly phenomenon to the moon turning into blood?

Instead, he elaborates on a series of celestial events where “the powers of the heavens shall be shaken” and “all the tribes of the earth” are affected — not just Israel. Could God’s Word, then, be referring to something far more troubling than what NASA sees in these sets of four blood moons? Only God knows for certain.

Actually, the Scriptures do not say whether the moon will be turned into blood for hours, days, months or years before the great and terrible day of the Lord. There is no way to know for sure until it happens. At the same time, servants of God are warned to keep on the watch at Luke 21:36, because something will eventually trigger what everyone has been waiting for — our standing before the Son of Man.

But isn’t speculating on specifics when the Bible is not specific like putting words into God’s mouth? Instead of letting the Word of God speak for itself, would you prefer to risk being guilty of adding to the Word of God, thus making the Bible appear to be false, when in fact, it is human interpretations and their failed expectations that prove false? Why not simply wait and see?

It seems God has shared as much as He wants us to know about the future in His Word. While we are all free to listen to whomever we want, to read whatever we want and to speculate as much as we want, let nothing replace your reading, studying and meditating on the Bible. Keep watching. Keep waiting for God.

Then once in a blue moon you may actually see a blood moon and be reminded, not only of the creativity and colorful power of God, but also about the wonderful blessings that are yet to come.

SOURCE: This article is from WILLIAM WRIGHT
http://www.clevelandbanner.com/view/full_story/24974835/article-WRIGHT-WAY--The--blood-moon--prophecy-?instance=main_article

Thanks to Brother Mac Tuckey for bringing this article to my attention! The ‘blood moon’ prophecy? (Supporting the Brotherhood)
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(To those who are not Jehovah's Witnesses (JWs), please remember that if you are looking for the authoritative information about the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society's (WTBTS) Bible-based beliefs and practices, you should look to our OFFICIAL WEBSITE at http://www.jw.org/en. Numerous publications as well as the New World Translation Bible (NWT) and the very useful Watchtower Online Library can be found there.)



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