Transcription
Pastor Jack Hibbs, since the moment the war in Iran started, we've been wanting to get your perspective. So, my friend, what do you think is happening biblically, prophetically right now?
>> Well, I tell you what, from the outside in, Raj, I would say this. Jesus said that regarding the last days, there would be wars and rumors of wars. And so we're going to see wars increase no matter what government decides what according to Jesus as we get deeper into the last days. There's going to be wars and rumors of wars. Now when anything ever happens in the world regarding Israel, we sit up and take notice because God says Israel is the apple of my eye. And of course when we talk about Islam that gets our attention because Islam is diametrically opposed to the Judeo-Christian Bible and the existence or the survival of the Jew or the Christian according to uh Quranic teaching. So we've got all of a sudden from the outside Raj in uh we've got these things that get our biblical attention. And what's beautiful about all of this is that you and I are simply practicing what we've been told from the Bible. Jesus said in John 14:29, "I've told you these things in advance that when they come to pass, you might believe that I am he."
So, what specifically could be going on? And so I would encourage your audience, Raj, to turn to Jeremiah uh chapter 49 because uh there's an interesting passage of scripture that says this. The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah the prophet uh against Elam in the beginning of the reign of King Zedekiah of Judah, saying, "Thus says the Lord of hosts, behold, I will break the bow of Elam." Elam is a geographical section that was inside the Persian Empire which just happens to be inside the region of Iran today. Now listen to this prophecy. It's very specific. He says I'm going to God God is going to break the bow. Not the arrow but the bow. Bow is what you launch arrows with.
>> The foremost of their might against Elam. I will bring the four winds from the four quarters of heaven and scatter them, those of Elam, those of Persia, toward all the winds. There shall be no nation where their outcast of Elam will not go. For I will cause Elam to be dismayed before their enemies and before those who seek their life. I will bring disaster upon them, that is Elam, my fierce anger, says the Lord, and I will send the sword after them until I have consumed them. Watch this. I will set my throne or my authority over Elam, and I will destroy from there the king and his princes, says the Lord. Final verse. But it shall come to pass in the latter days, the last days, end times, that I will bring back the captives of Elam, says the Lord. Raj, are we looking at since 1979? Are we looking at the fulfillment of that passage of Isaiah for this reason? Or Jeremiah, excuse me.
>> Wow.
>> We've looked, we've researched history on this. Elam, Persia, has never been driven to the four corners of the earth before. Never. Until, guess what? Until February of 1979, when the Shah fell and the Islamic radicals took over, over a million Persians fled the country to the four corners of the earth. And now, like we saw on Sunday in Los Angeles here, 350,000 Persians were shouting, "God bless Donald Trump. God bless Bibi Netanyahu, and thank you for saving our homeland." Raj, is it possible? Is it possible that we're watching the fulfillment of Jeremiah 49:34-39 where God now is destroying the king and his princes? Doesn't notice that's his descendants and he's going to bring back all those that were driven out.
>> Wow.
>> No, no one's ever ever in fact one gentleman in Iran said that so many Persians listen to this language and I quote him. So many Persians after 1979 were in a diaspora to the ends of the earth. And this guy's not even a Christian. I heard that on the news. So, if we're looking at this, Raj, I think biblically, let's wait and see. You know, we don't want to be goofy about it, but we got to answer these questions. When was
>> Yeah.
>> And it's not just LA, it's South Africa, it's Berlin, it's London. The Persian diaspora, as you as you mentioned, uh is celebrating all over the world. Uh, you know, you and I did a story uh at my last uh job at TBN about uh the Ezekiel war. Are are we starting the Ezekiel war? All right. So, everyone's just trying to play the the game, right? Like, is it is it this, is it that, are we here, are we there? Obviously, we're not date setters. Uh, and obviously, you know, you don't want to be that person that says it's this time, it's that time. Uh, but does this does this feel different to you? It's absolutely different. And this is this is one reporter's opinion. I'm not saying thus sayeth the Lord. I'm saying maybe maybe Jack's right, maybe Jack's wrong. And it is this. No one saw this coming. No one saw this coming. And so the Ezekiel battle will take place. But remember the Ezekiel battle tells us that Israel will dwell at peace in peace when that time happens. So right now Israel is not at peace. But what if Raj what if Iran it's its nemesis for these last 47 years? What if what if there's a a complete change in the government and Jeremiah 49 is being fulfilled. What if Israel now uh goes into a a a realm of peace? What if, so to speak, Iran is neutralized by a new government? And what if over time while Israel dwells safely and feels peaceful that there is either another governmental change regarding Iran or there is some sort of uh event in Iran that will bring about the fulfillment of Ezekiel 38. I guess what I'm saying is this. Always keep your eye on Isaiah 17:1 and two because Damascus is going to be destroyed. The Bible says, "And never again inhabited by humans." That's never happened. Second thing is this. What about Jeremiah 49 and those of Persia coming back into their land. What about Ezekiel 38? If I had to guess, I would say Jeremiah 49:34-39. Exc Jeremiah uh yeah, Jeremiah 49 34-39 is setting up what might be Isaiah 17:1 and two, which would preempt and then be the nucleus for Ezekiel 38. So that's that's a fascinating perspective and you're absolutely right. Now that I think about it, since you know May 1948, the idea of Israel ever being at peace just seemed like a fantasy, right? Like they well of course they'd never be at peace. Then you have the Abraham Accords, but still you have this dark cloud of the Iranian regime. They'll and then suddenly if this regime were to fall, there could be theoretically peace in the Middle East. And suddenly you're like, "Wow." like that that prophecy that almost seemed, you know, unattainable is suddenly right in front of us, which is just an amazing concept. You know, I was watching uh one of your sermons from the weekend. And you point out this, I think it's so important. I don't know why people are afraid to go into the spiritual side of things, but you you quoted uh Daniel 10:13. And I I don't know why we avoid this topic, but I think it's so important. It goes like this. But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me 21 days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to me or came to help me, but I was detained there with the king of Persia. So, uh, what's the prince of Persia? What's going on here? And, and maybe, uh, for those of us who aren't comfortable with the spiritual realm. I mean, the Bible is pretty clear, is it not?
Well, it's funny, Raj, because people want Christianity to be true to a point, right? They like the part that they can explain and and it's okay and it's fine like kumbaya have a nice day. But when we look at the Bible, Daniel tells us that not only was that true, but that when the angel spoke to him, he became very even sick. He was sick for many days after the departure of that angel. So effective was the spiritual realm. Meaning and he announces that in the invisible warfare over nations there are demonic or spiritual activities where there's clearly the prince of Persia the prince of Greece is mentioned hey is there a prince of America is there the is there the prince over Great Britain apparently according to the Bible the spiritual realm there are principalities and powers just like on earth we have municipalities well there are assigned powers according to the Bible over nations.
But gosh, I have to tell you something. Uh, we've all struggled with the thought of how is the antichrist ever going to rise with the advent of Islam? Islam believes in global dominance. So, the doctrine of Islam doesn't jive with the rise of the antichrist. You can't have two. Plus, the Jews are not going to accept a Muslim Messiah. They're going to accept a Jewish Messiah as the antichrist. So if this is the collapse of Islam, remember Raj, Islam has no promises. They have no Bible, it's a it's a cult. And if that is the case, which it is, if Islam's dissolved, then that opens up the door Raj to the advent or the revelation of the antichrist, which we don't know when he's coming, but we don't see the antichrist in Islam in parody. And then the other thing uh which is more remarkable uh I think is the fact that we are looking at a time right now where I can tell you this almost to the month during Trump's first administration I was very involved in that White House and Mike Pompeo beautiful Christian brother told me personally that in the opening throws of COVID when Iran was shut down like all other nations The CIA detected a massive download of information coming out of the cloud. And so the CIA investigated what it was because they have the power to do that. And he told me no other nation on the on the planet was downloading more Bibles, more sermons, and Bible material than Iran. Fast forward. If during COVID, which was a fact, the fastest growing church in the world was the Iranian believers, could this be the result right now of their freedom coming that there'd be a mass what if there's a massive uh uh evangelical awakening throughout the Persian Empire, ancient Persian Empire? What if it spills over and we see Muslims in in Dubai, Saudi Arabia, in in uh Bahrain, uh Jordan? What if there's a movement where it's like a dragnet where Jesus in these last few maybe I'll say hours as it were of the church is scooping up souls.
>> Where otherwise with the Islamic stronghold of Persia because remember you got to remember Saudi Arabia and Persia, they're the big strong dogs, right? They're the they're the two factions of Islam. What if Iran goes down because they're banking on creating right now, that's why they're attacking all these other countries that are their allies. They believe that in a fiery ball of great peril, the Imam of Islam returns. So, it's hard for your viewers to understand this. Militarily, we think we're winning, and I hope we are. In Islam, in Iran, every time someone dies, every time they get hit, they actually view that as a victory that's going to cause their Imam to return to rescue them. And and and pastor, that's been what's been confusing to people. Why? Why would you hit Dubai? Why would you hit the Kuwait airport, Bahrain Hotel? What are you doing? But it's not a political solution. It's a theological move.
>> Raj, listen. Look, I'm not saying thus sayeth the Lord. I haven't heard anybody say this. And you know, I'm just saying in my head, knowing their theology, their move is to create a fireball on earth. They don't care how that's how their Messiah returns. We know that that's not the Messiah, the real Messiah of the Bible. Could you imagine Raj if they get so committed to that instead of shooting at Saudi Arabia in Kuwait in Jordan and UAE instead of shooting there? What if they shot at the Al-Aqsa Mosque or the Dome of the Rock Mosque? You want to set the world on fire? If they hit that location to create the create this Islamic conflagration that ushers in the Mahdi, their Messiah. Wow. That's how desperate they're getting. This is a crazy time, folks. You better know your Bible. And you, like Sun Tzu said in The Art of War, you better know your enemy because you don't have if you don't believe uh your enemy, that's that's your business. But listen, your enemy believes what they believe in. Even though you think it's crazy, they believe in it. And that's enough to cause you to sit up and be ready, be on guard.
Amen. And amen, Pastor Jack. Uh, and to echo what you said, we need to know our Bible uh now more than ever. I know you have to catch a flight to Cincinnati, but I appreciate your time, my friend, and God bless.
>> God bless you. Thank you so much.