THE SOUNDING OF HOOFBEATS“
“See that you do not refuse Him who speaks. For if they did not escape who refused Him who spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven, whose voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised, saying, “Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.” Now this, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. For our God is a consuming fire. Hebrews 12:25-29.
So what are we to make and take from these verses of scripture? Who is Holy Spirit speaking to?
“Once more I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and dry land; and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the Desire of All Nations, and I will fill this temple with glory,’ says the Lord of hosts.” Haggai 2:6 -7.
When we combine these companion verses, God states that He will will shake the Earth, the heavens, the land, the seas, as well as the nations. This is a tremendous event to think about. I believe that our imaginations can be stretched to the limits in just trying to understand and visualizing these statements. Again, the Earth, the heavens, the dry land, the seas and the nation’s are to be ‘shaken’ by the power God. What does this mean or look like? What should we expect?
Before we continue any further, let me pose to you a question that is based on scripture: Do you believe in the judgement of God or Jesus as Judge? I ask because in my experience of visiting various churches, conferences, bible studies as well as reading much literature – very little speaks to or pertains to the judgement of God. The modern culture or attitude in the church is that it’s not really socially proper to speak about God’s judgement in such stark terminology. In other words, let’s stay away from that painful subject. I would venture to say that many Christians avoid the reality of Jesus as a judge altogether. It’s almost like the judgement of God will offend people or frighten people. “We won’t get them to listen to the gospel if we talk about the judgement of God.” Likewise, avoiding judgement allows us to retain our spiritual ‘winks’ such as accepting the chronic sexual promiscuity within the ranks of our youth and the next generation of the church.
Jesus stated in John 16:8 “And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: of sin, because they do not believe in Me;”
According to John, when the Convictor of the world comes, He will convict the the world of three things: Of sin, of righteousness, and of judgement. As I see it, these are the three unchanging and engraved realities upon which all true Christianity is based: Understanding sin. Understanding righteousness. Understanding judgement. We are severely and spiritually malnourished without a deep understanding of these three foundational principles.
If we ask what sin is, we can simply deduct that it’s everything that is not righteous. In other words, all unrighteousness is sin. So we can easily conclude that there are just two possibilities in every thought and action in our lives – sin and righteousness. And if a thought or action is not righteous – it is sinful.
Some may still ask what sin is as if it’s a personal opinion. But if one were to ask what is ‘crooked’ – all I would have to do is hold up a straight line and state that anything that departs from this, whether by a little or by much is crooked. The same is true with righteousness and sin. God has held up a line of righteousness and it is Jesus Christ… The Word of God. Anything that departs from that – little or much, is sin. How we have based or lived our lives on these precepts whether by sin or righteousness – we will face the judgement of God.
There is one appointment that every one of us, past and present will keep. It will be the judgement of God and not one of us can escape this fact and reality. The good news is that there’s two different judgements – The judgement of condemnation and the judgement for those who’ve received salvation through Christ Jesus. The first will receive the just condemnation by the life they chose to live and the later will receive their just reward and not by anything that they have performed, but by the gift of grace through simple faith in the finished work of the cross. But, everyone of us will stand before the judgement seat of God. Listen friend, it is foolishness to live as if it were not so. I have first have knowledge as I have received great grace!
I realize that these types of offerings for your discernment are not comfortable or even pleasant to hear or read. Nonetheless, it is the climax of our faith and the blueprint for not only eternal life with the Father, but also the blueprint for navigating the waters ahead on our personal and corporate journeys.
Mankind traveled on horses for centuries before the onset of the industrial age. Calvary on horseback was still active as late as World War 1. Jesus as Salvation and Judge is given to us by the Apostle John in the Revelation as a horseman as we vividly see in the ‘Four Horsemen’ as they ride out to fulfill their commands and missions.
“Now I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals; and I heard one of the four living creatures saying with a voice like thunder, “Come and see.” (Let’s note right here that the horsemen were commanded to “come” by Heaven. They are not the result of things that have happened on Earth. Many prophetically inclined people fail to see this. The initiative comes from God alone upon His throne) And I looked, and behold, a white horse. He who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer.”
This particular crown in its context and meaning is not a royal crown but a wreath or a victors crown. It was a crown something like we would see adorned by an Olympic champion. Much of our end time doctrine will be dependant upon how we define this White Horse and its rider. For me personally, it is a vivid word picture of Jesus Christ riding out with the Gospel to all the peoples of the Earth. The Messianic prophecy or the revelation of Christ in Psalm 45 wonderfully illustrates Jesus as this rider who is unconquerable and nothing on Earth can or will stop Him:
“My heart is overflowing with a good theme; I recite my composition concerning the King; My tongue is the pen of a ready writer. You are fairer than the sons of men; Grace is poured upon Your lips; Therefore God has blessed You forever. Gird Your sword upon Your thigh, O Mighty One, With Your glory and Your majesty. (I believe that it’s correct in assuming that this is no ordinary human conqueror because they are not marked by humility, truth and righteousness) And in Your majesty ride prosperously because of truth, humility, and righteousness; And Your right hand shall teach You awesome things. Your arrows are sharp in the heart of the King’s enemies; The peoples fall under You.”
We know that the King’s enemies are Satan and his horde and maybe the arrows are representative of salvation and the piercing conviction of Holy Spirit? It is Holy Spirit that pierces and draws the hearts of humanity unto repentance and thus causing people to fall or bow before Him.
When He opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, “Come and see.” (Again, notice that this horse was commanded by God in Heaven. It’s important that we understand this or we’ll get a false perspective of what’s happening on Earth) Another horse, fiery red, went out. And it was granted to the one who sat on it to take peace from the earth, and that people should kill one another; and there was given to him a great sword.”
Could this horse and its rider represent ethnic conflict? Something is released by this horse and rider even in the midst of modern or civilized thought, education and history to look back upon. Something is released that provokes and causes people groups to hate people groups and nations to hate nations and cultures to hate cultures and one race to hate another race. These various prejudices have not improved through time but have become more and more deeper entrenched in self-serving ideologies. You should not be surprised or taken aback of what’s unfolding racially and culturally as I believe that not one nation will be spared of this outworking of the flesh nature. What would things socially look like when the Red Horse rides through the United States with it’s many nationalities, racial groups and cultures that refuse to integrate into its established Judao-Christian values? What is currently expressed on the surface is somewhat still socially congenial, but what is the true heart condition of the unredeemed within the races and nations of the Earth? Will even the elect be deceived if it were possible? Again, this horse was ordered from heaven and it is a part of judgement. Remember that the Revelation of Jesus is the revelation of the judgement and ultimate victory of Jesus.
When He opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come and see.” So I looked, and behold, a black horse, and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, “A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the oil and the wine.”
It should be obvious to even the non-Christian that this horse and rider points to shortage and the rationing of goods and services. A denarius was a working person’s daily wage. In order words, a working person at this time will make just enough money to feed themselves and that’s it! But what does ‘do not harm the oil and wine” mean? Could it be that the oil and the wine are to be reserved for the rich? In the midst of this global environment of shortage, will there be those who are living in luxury? I believe so and we clearly see it happening in the world today. The poor are getting poorer and the rich are getting richer in regard to available resources. Except for some wonderful exceptions (and these are exceptions!) the rich do not care for the poor… They care for themselves. They are gripped by this spirit and rider in their self-love.
When He opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, “Come and see.” So I looked, and behold, a pale horse. And the name of him who sat on it was Death, and Hades followed with him. And power was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword, with hunger, with death, and by the beasts of the earth.”
Again, this horse and rider should be obvious in its mission and points to famine and ultimately, wide spread death that will affect a fourth or 25% of the Earth’s population. It’s important that we recognize that there are two riders. The first is death and the second is Hades. Death claims the bodies of humanity and Hades claims the souls of men. It’s also important to notice that authority was given to them and this authority came from God and from the throne in His judgement.
It’s my hope that you’ll consider these four horses and their riders. I also hope that you’ll see the prophetic message for God’s people saved by grace through Jesus Christ – that the White Horse has to stay in front of the other three horses as they race toward the end of days. There are family members, friends, neighbors, work associates that have yet to receive the precious blood of Christ for their redemption and salvation. We need the Rider upon the White Horse to ride before us firing the arrows of conviction and repentance in our homes, communities and nations before the other rider’s directives and mission has progressed too far and these terrible judgements fall upon mankind. All of us should be praying and have a deep passion that the White Horse will get there and to those whom we love before lawlessness and civil war is realized.
dannykorakas 