“Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you, and you shall be hated of all nations for My name’s sake” Matthew 24:9

Jesus quoted the above passage of scripture to the apostles not long before He was crucified. Jesus was talking to His disciples here about the time of His return and the signs that would precede His coming. It is now a well known fact that Christians are being beheaded, burned alive, crucified, shot and even sawn asunder in the Middle East, as Jesus said it would happen. Few, however, realize that Islam is the fastest growing religion throughout Europe. Catholic and Christian churches are closing in record numbers in Britain. At least 10,000 churches have been closed in Britain since 1960, and another 4,000 churches are set to be closed, according to Christian Research, an organization that tracks religious trends in Britain. There are more than 1,700 mosques in Britain, many of them converted from former churches. There are an estimated 2,000 Muslim prayer halls, as well as countless other unofficial mosques scattered throughout the country. According to the Pew Research Center in Washington, the number of Muslims in Britain is forecast to double to 5.5 million by 2030. More people attend mosques than churches in Britain. Additionally, according to research, Islam is well underway to overtaking Roman Catholicism as the dominant religion in France. The Catholic church closed more than 60 churches in France during the last ten years, many of which are slated to become mosques, according to La Croix, a Roman Catholic newspaper in France. Similar statistics have been tallied in Germany with regard to the rise of Islam and mosques throughout the country, according to Gatestone Institute. Jesus also said concerning the last days, “Many shall be offended and shall betray one another and hate one another” Matthew 24:10. “For I have come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law and a man’s foes shall be those of his own household” Matthew 10:35-36. Jesus did not mean that He intends this to happen, but that these things will happen because of Him. Just as we see Muslims declaring jihad against Christians and the Christian genocide throughout the Middle East, we also hear of frequent stonings and beheadings of wives, daughters and sons who have converted to Christianity in the Middle East, and even here in America. According to the Qur’an, it is a father and/or brother’s duty to kill those among their own family members who convert to Christianity, who become “kafirs” (infidels). The persecutions Jesus spoke of largely refer to the rise of Islam after His ascension. At least two-thirds of all global wars and conflicts involve Islamic jihad against other peoples. One hundred percent of all wars resulting in tens of thousands to millions of deaths involve Islamic aggression against non-Muslims. When Jesus told His disciples, “Nation will rise against nation, kingdom against kingdom...” (Matthew 24:7), He was referring to the same ancient Assyrians that rose up against Israel, when God’s hedge of protection was removed from Israel because of Israel’s sins. The same ancient people have killed as many as 2 million people in Afghanistan in recent history and more than 220,000 in Syria only since 2011. This is the same antichrist kingdom (Islamic State) rising up in Iraq that was spoken of by the Prophet Daniel and John the Revelator. John wrote, “He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads, that no man might buy or sell, except he who has the mark, the name of the beast (antichrist), or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding count the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is six hundred, sixty-six” Revelation 13:16-18. He also wrote, “I saw thrones and those who sat upon them and judgment was given unto them, and I saw the souls of those who were beheaded for the witness of Jesus and for the Word of God, who had not worshiped the beast, neither his image, neither had they received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years” Revelation 20:4. It is obvious to see that through the study of Bible prophecy that Muslims comprise the antichrist kingdom spoken of by the prophets, and that their awaited Mahdi (Muslim messiah) will be the antichrist himself, who will demand the worship of his followers, and who will also institute a cashless society, whereby only those who receive his mark and worship his image can buy and sell. Those who refuse will be beheaded, just as we are seeing predominantly throughout the Middle East and parts of Africa right now. Jesus said, “When you shall see all these things, know that it (His return) is near, even at the doors” Matthew 24:33. Are you prepared for the Lord’s return? If not, salvation is only a prayer away. God bless you.