In this enlightening episode of Turning Point, Dr. David Jeremiah delves into the intricacies of globalism, exploring its connections to biblical prophecy. Beginning with historical attempts at global unity, from the Tower of Babel to the rise of empires throughout history, the discussion uncovers the underlying themes in prophecy that predict a resurgence of globalization in the final days. The narrative is anchored by a detailed interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream as revealed in the book of Daniel, providing a roadmap of past, present, and future global dynamics.
00:00:05 Introduction to Globalism and Biblical Prophecy
Thanks to modern technology, information, even money, can be shared instantly worldwide. But is there a downside to living in such a connected world? Today on Turning Point, Dr. David Jeremiah considers this state of interconnectedness in light of biblical prophecy as he continues the series, Where Do We Go From Here? Listen as David introduces his message, Globalism and International Prophecy.
SPEAKER 02 :
Thank you for joining us today as we continue our discussion of where do we go from here. Today we’re going to talk about globalism, the idea that we don’t need nations, we just everybody need to get along, that we should abandon our borders and just join hands with all the cultures. And so much of that has its impact on us as we see many people coming to our country, not to be fitting in with who we are and what we do, but to bring their culture here and establish it as an entity in our nation, which is very, very difficult to comprehend. The Bible teaches us that God does not want that to happen, that He designed the world the way He wants it to be. In fact, if you listen during these next two days, I will show you a verse of Scripture where we are told that Jesus Christ is a nationalist. He is not a globalist. And we should not be globalists either, because God has a plan for the nations, and that plan is laid out in His book, the Bible. You can get the information for this series in a book that we have written called Where Do We Go From Here? That book is available from Turning Point. But more important for the study this time is the study guide that goes with this because it outlines every lesson we talk about on the radio. And you can get your study guide from davidjeremiah.org. I encourage you to do it. And while you’re doing that, why don’t you take a moment and send a gift to Turning Point through the mail and ask for your copy of this month’s resource, our special gift for those who help us as we study the Bible. It’s a workbook called Understanding Biblical Prophecy, a 30-day Bible study to help you open up the prophetic scriptures with understanding. It’s yours for the asking when you send your gift today, but be sure to ask for it in your communication and we’ll send it to you right away. Here then is part one of Globalism, an International Prophecy. A story spread over the internet saying that the United Nations was quietly working on a shadowy plan to create a new world order and a one-world government. Among other items under discussion was a global currency, a central bank, the end of national sovereignty, mandatory vaccines, universal basic income, microchipping of citizens, and the end of fossil fuels. Many of these goals could be achieved according to this shadow plan by 2030, which was titled UN Agenda 21-2030. Of course, when they were confronted with it, United Nations quickly disavowed the report and the media debunked it. But why did this story spread so quickly? because every element of it seemed plausible. It seemed possible. This is especially true in light of a global emergency like COVID-19, which nearly crushed the world’s economy. Imagine what would have happened had the mortality rate of the pandemic been exponentially higher. Such an exponential global crisis would certainly have called for some sort of unified global response, and we had some of that, as you know. Dr. Albert Moeller, who is the president of one of the great seminaries in our country and a prolific writer, said that globalization means that we now understand ourselves as living in an economy and in a community that is irreversibly connected globally. We are able to get on an airplane in virtually any American city and be at any spot on the globe within 24 hours. Globalization means that headlines from around the world can arrive as quickly as headlines from across the street. And there is a growing awareness of this fact that we are now part of a global civilization that includes and seems to reach virtually every inhabitant on this planet. This is all new. We weren’t born into this. This has happened during our lifetime. I remember over a decade ago, I wrote a book about the dangers of a coming worldwide economic Armageddon. Here’s what I said. Could we be standing today on the edge of a recession from which no one economy, no one nation, no one union will be able to extricate the world? The Bible predicts that such an era is coming, fueled by the world’s economic convulsions, and the only answer will seem to be the unification of the nations under one economic system and one world order. One would expect such a process to begin with the gradual consolidation of wealth and power, both nationally and globally. Today, as we witness the merging of banks and the centralization of financial regulations, we cannot help but wonder if the Antichrist is waiting in the wings, ready to make his entrance onto the stage of this desperate world. So what I’ve said so far is this, that the world has been getting smaller with each passing era. Its interconnectedness is greater and its inhabitants more vulnerable to one world government, given the right conditions. The events of recent years, including the COVID-19 pandemic, have only accelerated the discussion and increased the trajectory of globalism. So what does that mean? Well, let’s take a look at what we can know for certain about the broader scope of historical events past, present, and future. First, what to know about the course of history. What we see in today’s trends toward globalization was long ago anticipated in biblical prophecy. The first attempt at globalization occurred in Genesis chapter 11, when a powerful warlord named Nimrod established the empire of Babylon and built the Tower of Babel. He was called a mighty hunter before the Lord. What was he hunting? He was hunting people and power and glory and wealth and world domination. And as the post-flood population grew, Nimrod became the first global tyrant. The Bible says this about him in 1 Chronicles 1.10. He was the first on earth to be a mighty man. In other words, Nimrod, from Genesis 11, was the father of all future dictators and the first prototype of the coming Antichrist. Now, when the southern kingdom of Judah was invaded in 605, a young Jewish man, a teenager, was swept up and taken to the palace of Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar. Like Nimrod, Nebuchadnezzar’s ancient predecessor, He was the most powerful man on earth in his day. I remember reading extensively about Nebuchadnezzar and being overwhelmed at just his presence, the aura of this man, the most powerful despot who had ever lived up to that time. He enlarged his empire until it stretched from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean Sea. It included parts of present-day Kuwait, Iraq, Syria, Jordan, Israel, Lebanon, and Turkey. You can see what an incredible empire this man built. He built the most fabulous capital city the world has ever seen. Even today, the ruins of Babylon are spread over 2,000 acres and represent the largest archaeological site in the Middle East. The metropolitan part of this city was surrounded by a massive wall. This wall was considered impenetrable. Some portions of the wall still exist among the ruins. They are said to have been 56 miles in length, 320 feet tall, and so broad on the top that a four-horse chariot could be driven along the top of the wall. This was one of the great wonders of the world. As you know, there was a hanging gardens there that became very famous. In the heart of the city, there was this massive ziggurat that reached toward the sky. It was a new version of the Tower of Babel. It was a new attempt to reach up to God. And it rose seven stages of gleaming enamel to a height of 650 feet, crowned with a shrine which contained a massive table of solid gold and an ornate bed on which every night some women would sleep to await the pleasures of the gods.” The whole city was something like a fairy tale with bridges and boulevards and gateways and lavish glazed bricks. This was the city of Nebuchadnezzar and where Daniel would grow up. Nebuchadnezzar was the greatest and richest man who ever had lived before his time, but that didn’t keep him away from having bad dreams. How many of you know, whoever you are, no matter what you’ve accomplished in your life, if you’re scheduled to have a bad dream, you’re going to have a bad dream. Amen. And Nebuchadnezzar had bad dreams. One night he had such a bad dream that he summoned his advisors and his magicians to his palace. And he demanded that they tell him what his dream was and then tell him what it meant. And of course that freaked him out because nobody had ever been asked to do that before. How are we supposed to know what your dream was? You tell us your dream and we’ll tell you what it meant. Nebuchadnezzar said, no, if you’re not smart enough to tell me what I dreamed, you’re not going to be smart enough to tell me what it meant. And he was so angry. he said he was going to kill them all he was going to destroy his whole brain trust daniel was one of them and daniel prayed with his friends and god gave him supernatural insight and daniel sent word up the ranks that he would be able to reveal the dream and he would be able to interpret it just give me a shot at it he said and i’ll do this so he comes before the king and this is his speech which i will read right out of the book of daniel No wise man, enchanter, magician, or diviner can explain to the king the mystery he is asked about. But there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and he has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in days to come. In his dream, Nebuchadnezzar saw this massive statue, and its head was gold, and its chest and its arms were made out of silver, and it was bronze from its stomach to its thighs, and the legs were iron. and the feet and the toes were partly iron and partly clay. And then Nebuchadnezzar saw a rock that had been quarried by an invisible hand, and this rock flew through the air and struck the statue, and it toppled and broke into a million tiny bits that were swept away by the wind like chaff. the rock began to grow and soon became a mountain so large that it covered the whole earth. Now, that’s quite a dream. I mean, that’s a vivid dream. You may have had some dreams, but probably not any quite like that one. So Daniel told him, this is what your dream was, and obviously it was, because Nebuchadnezzar didn’t argue with him. And then he gave him this interpretation, and I’m going to explain this to you just as it is in the Scripture, and you’ll see why this is such an important time in the whole discussion of globalization. First of all, Daniel said the head of gold represented the empire of Babylon. That was the empire that was in power. He said the chest of silver with its two arms represented the next great world empire, which was Medo-Persia, one arm for each part of the nation. The stomach and thighs of bronze depicted the next stage in world history, the Greek empire of Alexander the Great. And following that were the legs of iron. How many of you have ever heard of the Iron Legions of Rome? Well, this was representative of the Roman Empire. And the feet and toes are a final world empire that will arise sometime in the last days. And the rock, oh, the rock is the one that will come to demolish history at its zenith and establish a truly global kingdom marked by righteousness and peace. Now, let’s go back over that for just a moment and get clarity on it. In the days of Nimrod, God broke up the globalization of his empire by confusing the languages. Later in the same area of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar brought the then known world under his power and Persia came after that and did the same and Alexander did the same for the Greeks and then came Rome and under all these governments, there was a sort of globalization, sort of a world domination, though without holiness and without the fear of God. And after the fall of Rome, there’s been no world domination. I mean, you might say that the United States is the most famous, the most important, but we are a long way from being world dominators, as you all know. But don’t forget the feet and the toes on this statue because that’s the part of the statue that was not fulfilled in history. According to Daniel, there will be one more attempt at a one-world government in the future. It will be something of a revival of the old Roman Empire made up of a confederation of 10 kings or kingdoms dominated by a Nimrod-type dictator. But it won’t last long, for God will bring it to an end with the second coming of Jesus Christ. In Daniel chapter 2, verse 44, we read these words, “‘In the days of these kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed, and the kingdom shall not be left to other people. It shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and this kingdom shall stand forever.'” what to know about the course of history daniel laid it all out in that one prophecy in the second chapter of daniel you have the most complete prophecy of what the world would look like in the future of anything you’ll ever find notice this is in history this is prophecy daniel said first there will be our kingdom that we’re in right now. Then there’ll be the Medes and the Persians, and they’ll take over. And then the Greeks will come, and then the Romans will come, and then there won’t be anything for a long time. And then after a long interval, there will be a resumed Roman Empire. the Roman Empire revisited. And we’re in the midst of that right now. I mean, I don’t wanna tell you what the 10 nations are because it doesn’t say there are 10 nations, it says there are 10 kings, 10 people of influence. But if you look at what’s happening in Europe, the European coalition of nations is sort of the beginning of the reiteration of the Roman Empire. And the Bible says that when this happens, We are at the end of the age and something very critical will take place. Let’s go on to the next thing. What to know about the course of history? What to know about the climax of history? Throughout the book of Daniel, we’re told there’s a predetermined outcome to history. The unfolding events around us are leading somewhere. The earth isn’t lurching into the future any more than it’s wobbling in its orbit. It is moving toward a rendezvous with the decrees of the Lord Jesus Christ. How does that comfort your heart to know we’re on our way someplace? This is not just random what’s happening to us. Before he establishes his global millennial kingdom, there will be a final horrific attempt at man-made globalization. It will lead to a time of unprecedented great tribulation. I personally believe we’re in the early stages of that right now, and I think I can prove that as we go along. The book of Revelation completes the story that is started by Daniel. These two books are twins, the Old Testament and the New. In Revelation 13, here’s what we read. We’re told that during days of great worldwide distress, Satan will raise up a man of lawlessness who will become the ultimate Nimrod. He’s described in Revelation 13, 1 as a beast. This chapter gives us the concluding picture of human globalization, this beast who will come out of the revived Roman Empire. Well, let me read to you what the Scripture says about him, because I can’t describe it any better than the book of Revelation does. The whole world was filled with wonder and followed the beast. The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise its authority for 42 months. It opened its mouth to blaspheme God and to slander his name and his dwelling place and those who live in heaven. It was given power to wage war against God’s holy people and to conquer them. And it was given authority over every tribe, every people, every language, every nation. That’s what you call globalization. All inhabitants of the earth will worship this beast, says the book of Revelation, all whose names have not been written in the Lamb’s book of life. The whole world, says John, every tribe, every people, every language, every nation, all the inhabitants of the world, the Antichrist will rebuild the ancient Babylon for his world capital, and he will be on the verge of uniting the armies of the world in a last great attempt to destroy God’s chosen people, the people of Israel. He will globalize the economy, forcing everyone to be chipped in some way with the mark with 666 of Revelation 13, 18. And without this mark, no one will be able to make purchases or engage in commerce. You will go to the store and gather your groceries, but when you check out, if you don’t have the mark, perhaps inserted under the skin of your hand, which is being done now very rapidly in some European nations, you will not be able to check out. You’ll just leave and you won’t have anything to eat. In that period of time, if you don’t join the globalization program, the program of the Antichrist, you will either be outright killed or more likely be starved until you can’t live any longer. Widespread persecution will spill the blood of thousands upon thousands of believers, and more blood will be spilled in the wars waged in an effort to unify the nations and destroy the Jewish people. Zechariah the prophet speaks of a day when all the nations of the earth are gathered against Jerusalem. Israel will be the center of it, and the people of the earth, under the leadership of the Antichrist, will join forces to try to take out the nation of Israel. And just at that moment, just when it looks like there’s no hope, when you could look at it from a human’s perspective and say, Israel is toast. It’s over. That’s when Christ will return, like a rock that strikes the edifice of world history, and all of these nations that thought they were so great under the leadership of the Antichrist will be destroyed. So the trend lines of history are moving in that direction. The Bible says, for the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Isn’t that true? Isn’t lawlessness already at work? Only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way. Let me just add, the restrainer is the Holy Spirit. When is the Holy Spirit taken out of the way? When the rapture happens. Where does the Holy Spirit live? He lives in you. When the rapture comes and you’re taken out, the Holy Spirit is taken out of the way. What the writer of Thessalonians is saying is lawlessness is going to break out in the tribulation. Somebody said, why is it going to be so bad? Because all of the influence for good will be gone. The Holy Spirit won’t be here. Just think what this world would be like now without the influence of Christian people who stand in the way of total chaos and destruction. Well, that day is coming. The Bible says it’s coming. And then the lawless one will be revealed. Who’s that? That’s the Antichrist. whom the Lord will ultimately consume, says Paul, with the breath of his mouth and destroy with the brightness of his coming. What a turn of events. So this is the climax of human history. When Christ will come again as a conqueror, he will come on a white horse followed by armies. The Armageddon armies of the Antichrist will be dispersed and annihilated by the spoken words that come like a flaming sword of his lips. I have to pause and tell you, I used to wonder, see all these nations come against Israel and then all of a sudden they see the coming of Christ and they turn their attention from Israel if they only knew what we knew. and they decide they’re gonna take out Christ. And the Bible says he comes from heaven with all the saints and all his holy angels. Remember that? And then it says, we’re all dressed in white. Who goes to war dressed in white? Well, if you’re not gonna fight but just be a spectator, you can dress in white, because this is the shortest war in history. The Bible says, when he comes with his saints and angels, he will destroy the enemy with the breath of his mouth, and it’s all over. Listen to how Zechariah describes this. I will gather all the nations to Jerusalem to fight against it. Then the Lord will go out and fight against those nations as he fights on a day of battle. On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives. The Lord will be king over all the earth, and on that day there will be one Lord and his name the only name.” What to know about the course of history and what to know about the climax of history? Here’s the third one. What to know about the culmination of history? What happens then? So Jesus comes back. He defeats the armies of Armageddon that come against Israel and then come against him. Well, what happens then is what is called the millennium. This is found in many places in the Bible. In fact, I had a teacher in prophecy when I was in seminary named Dwight Pentecost, and he used to say there’s more information in the Bible about the millennium than any other topic you could ever research. It’s not all together in one place. It’s scattered all over in the minor prophets and in the major prophets. But the millennium, as you know, is a period of 1,000 years. Millay means 1,000, and annum is the word for annual or years. So millennium means 1,000 years. During this time, the Lord will be in charge, and he will fulfill all the promises he’s made in Scripture regarding the people of Israel and the ultimate future of the earth. Yes, there is a globalism coming. It will be God’s globalism, but that won’t be true until he comes to set up his kingdom on this earth. And we’ll have more about this tomorrow as we continue our discussion of where do we go from here. You know, I have been taking some time every month to just focus in on all of our friends who listen to us in Canada. And I’m going to take that moment right now. All of our Canadian friends, many of whom I have met and who are incredibly determined Bible students. You listen to us. You study with us. And I want you to know that when you give to Turning Point, your gift stays in Canada forever. All of the gifts from Canadians go to support the Canadian stations that we’re on throughout the country. We have an office there, and everything that we get from Canada stays in Canada. You can be sure you’re making an investment in your own country when you invest in Turning Point from the Canadian side of the border. Thank you so much for your faithfulness. We’ll see you right here tomorrow on this good station for the next edition of a Turning Point.
SPEAKER 01 :
For more information on Dr. Jeremiah’s series, Where Do We Go From Here?, please visit our website where we also offer two free ways to help you stay connected, our monthly Turning Points magazine and our daily email devotional. Sign up today at davidjeremiah.org slash radio. That’s davidjeremiah.org slash radio. Or call us at 800-947-1993. Ask for your copy of David’s new book, Understanding Biblical Prophecy, a 30-day Bible study. It’s a powerful resource, and it’s yours for a gift of any amount. You can also purchase the Jeremiah Study Bible in the English Standard, New International, and New King James versions, available in a variety of handsome cover options. Get all the details when you visit our website, davidjeremiah.org slash radio. This is David Michael Jeremiah. Join us tomorrow as we continue, Where Do We Go From Here? on Turning Point with Dr. David Jeremiah.
