Overcoming the Saints

The LDS Church believes the Bible speaks that the Church of Christ established by Jesus Christ would be rejected and fall into a complete Apostasy. And just as the people rejected and crucified Jesus Christ, and destroyed the temple, God would also allow His church and priesthood authority to be lost for a season. Christ did say that a church built upon the rock of revelation and upon the keys and authority of Peter would never fall. Many Christians claim that verse makes it impossible for there to have been a complete apostasy. But the issue here is that the so-called evangelical Christian church denies continuing revelation and priesthood, and prophets, and keys, and authority. So, by definition, they are apostate and the gates of hell have prevailed against them. And there are many other scriptures in the Old and New Testament which foretells of this Great Apostasy. And if that is not enough we can look to the Dark Ages were at the very moment we would expect the blessings of heaven to be poured out upon the Gentiles for embracing Christianity, what we see are the plagues of Revelations, disease, famine, ignorance, and the Judgements of God poured out upon Europe.

Dan 7:21 I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them;

Daniel sees, in Chapter 7, 4 Beasts or Kingdoms. The first represents the Babylonian Empire, the second represents the Persian Empire. The third represents the Greek Empire that splits into 4 after the Death of Alexander the Great (Egypt, Turkey, Syria, and Greece). The Fourth Kingdom with 10 horns and a little horn which is as big as all the previous kingdoms combined is the Roman Empire. The 10 horns represent 10 Emperors or Caesars to Vespasian. And the little horn is the son of Vespasian, Titus who destroyed the Temple of Jerusalem and carried off the treasures of the temple to Rome and crucified possibly 3600 Jews around the walls of the city and then persecuted the Saints in Rome feeding them to the lions at the newly constructed Roman Colosseum.

Dan 7:25 And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.

The Roman Empire under Emperor Constantine thought the change the times and laws, and doctrines of the true Christian faith. Time, times, and dividing of times or 3 1/2 years is a recurring reference made by Daniel and John in Revelations to the Apostasy as the famine of Elijah lasted 3 1/2 years.

Rev. 13: 7 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.

John in Revelations describes only the fourth and last beast or kingdom of Daniel. Because this fourth Kingdom which is the Roman Empire would be more powerful than any of the preceding Kingdoms, John describes this beast as having 7 heads (Babylon (1), Persia (1), Greece (4), and Rome (1)) and 10 horns with the little horn referring again to Titus who was the son of Emperor Vespasian at the time He destroyed the temple at Jerusalem and then later became Emperor himself.

Amos 8: 11 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord:

Amos says that unlike past apostasies, this time a person would search north, south; the entire Earth and not find it. Never had there been a spiritual famine like this. When Abraham left Ur, he found the everlasting covenant with Melchesidek. When Moses left Egypt he found the gospel with Jethro the High Priest of Midian. When the Jews at the time of Christ sought for the truth they left Jerusalem and found the true baptism in the wilderness with John the Baptist. But this time according to Amos, the truth would not be found.

Matt. 24: 2, 29, 34 And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down. . . . 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: . . . Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.

While referring to the temple, and His body, Christ saying that not one stone being left upon another also makes reference to His church which Christ also likens to his body as He does the temple. With respect to the Church of Christ, no one stone would be left upon another doctrinally speaking. The stones are still there scattered about, but not even the ruins of the original as it was meant to be remain. And like the Jews worshiping at what they think is the western wall of the temple, Christians will find out that they have been also worshipping at the wrong wall.The sun, moon, stars not giving their light refers to the heavenly light of revelation ceasing. And the church not built upon the rock of revelation from heaven cannot stand against the gates of hell. And Christ says that all these things in Matt 24 would be fulfilled in that generation.

These scriptures have multiple fulfillment. But they have been fulfilled once. The tribulation was the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple by Titus and Vespasian. 3600 or more Jews were crucified outside the walls of the city of Jerusalem. Titus looted the temple and brought back the treasures and gold of the temple to Rome. When Titus was made Emperor Mount Vesuvius destroyed Pompeii and Herculaneum, there was drought, famine, and plagues that swept through the Empire and another fire in Rome. Emperor Titus blamed the Christians and had them killed for sport in the newly constructed Roman Colosseum.

2 Thes. 2: 3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;

Paul says the apostasy would happen before the Second Coming of Christ and that the son of perdition would be revealed. Many Christians look to the future for a fulfilling of this prophecy. And while it may have multiple fulfillment, it has already been fulfilled as Christ said it would in that generation.

1 Jn. 4: 3 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.

John says here and elsewhere, as does the Epistle of Barnabas that the antichrist is already in the world and has already been revealed.

Rev 12:14-16 And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent. And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood. And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.

John in Revelations says the woman, or the Church of Christ would go into the wilderness like the Jews who spent 40 years in the desert. But the Earth would help the woman. How? The Book of Mormon comes from the Earth like a "voice speaking from the dust", and "low out of the ground" as Isaiah says to restore the truth of Gods word and gospel to the Earth.

Dan 2:44 And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.

Daniel in Chapter 2 gives the interpretation of King Nebecanezzar's Dream saw the image with a head of gold, shoulders of silver, belly of brass, legs of iron, and feet of iron and clay. The head of gold represented the Babylonian kingdom, silver is Persia, bronze is Greece, and Iron is Rome. But during the days of the feet of Iron mixed with clay would God set up His everlasting kingdom which will be cut out of the mountain without hands and roll forth and destroy the image and then fill the whole Earth. The rock of which Daniel speaks does not start during the days of the Roman Empire, but during the Days of the feet of iron and clay which is today in the Last Days with our United States of American and Mexico, European Union, Soviet Socialist Republic, UN, NATO, and NAFT treaties.

Rev. 14: 6 And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,

John says that after this apostasy, there would be another angel who would come to Earth with the everlasting gospel to preach to every nation. This isn't another gospel but it is another angel sent from God.