Time of Distress (8) - Power and Persecution

The season begins with trouble and disaster spreading throughout the world. Unprecedented terror and dread terror will abound on earth as a spirit of fear take hold of human lives. This will culminate with human governments accruing enormous powers. The season will climax with political power concentrated in the hands of fewer and fewer people, but being dramatically expanded in scope.

The principalities and powers will use the times of distress to soften the world up for their power play. When people will see their political leaders on television declaring peace and promising to restore broken dreams, their faith in political power will be boosted. Fear of the future and faith in the state are a dangerous mix. When fear and dread are pervasive and faith and trust inhuman government is widespread, accumulation and concentration of political power is easy.

The Time of Distress will be the last hurrah for Human Political Power. At the season begins, governments everywhere take up emergency powers, as people cry out for relief from their troubles. Most people will support their leaders, as they attempt to turn back the tide of evil, so those with power will deal ruthlessly with those who oppose them. In many places governments will be successful in turning back the worst evil, at least for a while.

A few Christians will see where the accumulation of political power is leading and speak against it. This will lead to the persecution represented by the fifth seal of Revelation.

When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained (Rev 6:9).

Christians who expose their political leaders as human messiahs will face terrible persecution.

Many more Christians will welcome the expansion of political power as a solution to the problems that they care about. They will be immune from persecution and life will go on in some sort of normality until the political powers fail.