*** NOTE: This was originally posted prior to the first of the four blood moons on April 14.
First, I am not a doomsday preacher.
I do however enjoy the study of end times and I am looking forward to the Lord’s return. I am fully of the belief that it will happen at some point during my lifetime.
It amazes me how so many things are beginning to line up as the Bible has prophesied that it would. I could talk of the emergence of aliens into pop culture (my opinion is that most will say after the rapture that aliens abducted the weakest earthlings). I could talk about NFC (Near Field Communication) and micro-chipping which I believe will be used for the mark of the beast. I could talk about the current barcode that most products have on their boxes/packaging that contains 666. I could talk about the fear of identity theft and how people will eventually do whatever it takes to protect their identity (again, mark of the beast). I could talk about the wars and rumors of wars; the number of earthquakes and natural disasters or the famines around the world. I could talk about the downfall of modern culture. I could even talk about the potential threat to the city of Damascus as prophesied in Isaiah 17:1. But I don’t want to be considered a doomsday preacher so I won’t.
With that said, I have been asked by many about the coming Blood Moons so here are some thoughts.
Interesting facts about the coming Blood Moons …
Tonight, April 14 (technically Tuesday morning, April 15) from around 1:00 – 2:00 am (Central Standard Time) there will be a total lunar eclipse. A total lunar eclipse occurs when the moon is in the full moon stage and passes through the Earth’s shadow, darkening the moon’s typically bright glow. During this total lunar eclipse the moon is entirely immersed in Earth’s shadow, and can take on a dusky “blood red” color due to the scattering of sunlight through the edges of Earth’s atmosphere.
There will be three other “Blood Moons” over the course of the next 18 months each coming in six month intervals. According to NASA’s website these will occur on October 8, 2014, April 4, 2015 and September 28, 2015.
Having four total lunar eclipses in a two-year pattern is known as a tetrad and is pretty rare. As a matter of fact, according to the NASA website, the skies were tetrad free from 1600 to 1900.
What is of even more unusual circumstance with this current tetrad is that each of the “Blood Moons” occurs on Jewish Feast days. Tomorrow is the Jewish holiday of Passover. The October 2014 date is known as Sukkoth, or the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles. The 2015 dates fall on the same Jewish holidays. To have a tetrad fall on Jewish Feast days is extremely rare and has only occurred seven times since 1 A.D.
Again of interest, each time a tetrad falls on Jewish Feast days something out of the ordinary happens with the nation of Israel or the Jewish people. One of those occurrences was connected to 1492 (the year the Jews were expelled from Spain by Queen Isabella). Another was in 1948 (statehood for Israel and the War of Independence). The last one was in 1967 (the Six-Day War when Israel recaptured all of Jerusalem). Yes, this may all be coincidence but you can also research the first four and see how something significant happened with the Jewish people each time.)
Now, a couple questions …
Does God control the sun, the moon and the stars? Yes. Genesis 1:14; Joshua 10:12-14.
Are Jewish Feasts relevant to God, and are they related to the moon? Yes. Leviticus 23.
Are “Blood Moons” prophetic in Scripture? Yes. Joel 2:29-30, Acts 2:20, Revelation 6:12.
Does that mean that something out of the ordinary is going to happen to Israel in the next two years? I guess we will just have to wait and see.
What does the Bible say? (The most important question.)
Acts 2:20 states, “The sun will become dark, and the moon will turn blood red before that great and glorious day of Lord arrives.” (NLT)
Luke 21:25 states, “And there will be strange signs in the sun, moon, and stars. And here on earth the nations will be in turmoil, perplexed by the roaring seas and strange tides.” (NLT)
Mark 13:24-26 states, “At that time, after the anguish of those days, the sun will be darkened, the moon will give no light, the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. Then everyone will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds with great power and glory.” (NLT)
I don’t write this blog to scare anyone. My purpose is to hopefully encourage you to pay attention to the world around you. To my Christian friends, are you living your life in a way that pleases the Lord? To my non-Christian friends, I would love to have some dialogue with you about the reality of who Jesus is and how He is actively involved in our world today.
To all my friends, the return of Jesus IS going to happen! We don’t know when, but He is coming again.
“Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen.” (Luke 21:26)
“He who is the faithful witness to all these things says, “”Yes I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.” (Revelation 22:20)
Randy Harp 