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It is breathtaking
to watch a culture that almost everyone perceived to be dead to
suddenly experience a rebirth. There is no question but this is
presently happening to the ancient Assyrians. It is happening
because it had to happen by prophetic design. There are two
prophetic facts that demand an Assyrian presence in this world
and especially in Iraq. The Antichrist will be an Assyrian and
will be known to the world by that identification. Second, the
Assyrian culture will progressively rise to dominance in
Northern Iraq until during the Millennium of Jesus Christ on
this earth. They will be one of only three main nations in the
Middle East during this coming thousand years of perfect peace.
The prophet Isaiah settled this twenty-seven hundred years ago.
Let’s look at this
incredible prophecy. "In that day shall there be a highway out
of Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrian shall come into Egypt, and
the Egyptian into Assyria, and the Egyptian shall serve with the
Assyrians. In that day shall Israel be the third with Egypt and
with Assyria, even a blessing in the midst of the land:" (Isaiah
19:23-24)
When you learn the
continuation of this Assyrian culture with its clear distinction
for twenty-six hundred years since they were decimated by a
coalition of armies in 612 B.C. (another date given is 603
B.C.), it shows the Sovereign Hand of God in everything. I have
been studying and learning of the many different events during
these long years for these descendants of this distinct society
and it’s nothing less than supernatural that they have survived.
They claim that they were one of the first homogenous groups to
embrace Christianity in the first century of the Christian
faith. There are presently five small church denominations
linked together representing Assyrians. All of them claim an
orthodox form of Christianity.
The Assyrian
churches claimed great success during the first five hundred
years of Christianity. They supported several colleges and were
part of spreading the faith until the fall of Constantinople to
the Muslim aggressors. After Mohammed founded the Islam faith
and sought to subdue the entire Middle East for the Moslem
religion, their fortune has been up and down depending on the
tolerance of each different ruler. The Assyrians are practically
the only true Mesopotamians living in Iraq at present. The
Arabs’ first empire in Iraq did not occur until the sixth
century after Christ.
There are
approximately one-and one-half million Assyrians living
presently in Iraq. In A.D. l935, the League of Nations settled a
great number of Assyrians in an area presently governed by
Syria. This appeared to have been an appeasement effort because
the Assyrian people were left out of the original configuration
of nations. Saddam Hussein destroyed many of their villages and
massacred thousands of their citizens. Their history is clearly
one of survival amidst incredible suffering and privation. Their
statistics place over four hundred thousand Assyrians presently
living in America. Already, there are beautiful stories of
Assyrians returning to their homeland from different countries
where they had migrated to survive.
One present member
of the Iraqi Governing Council is an Assyrian. His name is
Younadim Kana. The Assyrians held a World Assyrian Conference in
Moscow on May10-11, 2002. These distinct people are uniting and
seeking a specific geographical area as an Assyrian state in the
country of Iraq. Their success appears to be very limited at
this point. Every movement that has Biblical significance
experiences tremendous resistance. The Devil hates the Word of
God and probably knows it better than most Christians. Every
ounce of progress by Biblical truth will be measured and
attacked but it will prevail on God’s schedule.
The Assyrians appear
to be America’s best friends in the entire country of Iraq. The
sole Assyrian on the Iraqi Council recently stated in his plea
to Washington, "We are calling on…America not to stop; to go on
with us on this blessed mission, which the Iraq people will
never forget: this blessed mission of liberation, of democracy,
and of freedom." They document that over 90% of the Assyrians
support the Coalition and America.
The Antichrist
I have documented in other articles that the antichrist will be
of Assyrian nationality. Bible prophecy leaves no doubt for
those who take prophecy literally. Probably the reason this idea
has been rejected by almost every prophecy teacher is that most
teachers wait for the facts to begin to unfold before they dare
to speak. The Word of God can be trusted when there is not one
proof in sight. Prophecy is history written in advance. This
fact by no means suggests or accuses the Assyrian people as a
culture of being Antichrist themselves. In fact, the opposite is
true.
Daniel shows us that
the antichrist comes from a people that believe in the God of
Holy Scripture. He plainly teaches that the antichrist rejects
the God of his fathers. Daniel prophesies, "Neither shall he
regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor
regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all. But in
his estate shall he honor the God of forces: and a god whom his
fathers knew not shall he honor with gold, and silver, and with
precious stones, and pleasant things." (Daniel 11:37-38)
The word "fathers"
suggests that this evil dictator comes from a lineage of people
that believed in the God of the Holy Bible. It fits perfectly as
always when God said it by His Infallible Book.
The Assyrians have a
glorious future. They will be revived, thoroughly renewed to
fundamental Christianity, and become a great nation during the
Millennium. They will serve the Lord Jesus Christ as King of
Kings and will help make the Middle East the center of a
Millennium theocracy. The utopia, for which men have dreamed,
armies have fought and billions have died, will fill this earth.
The earth will become a Garden of Eden.
Joseph R. Chambers |
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