The Last of the Last Days

Below is but a small measure of revelation that my father had received from the Lord. I hope this will be a blessing to you. All that is written below are the words of my father.

August 25, 2020 

In loving memory of my father
Robert Louis (Bob) Padgett
July 28, 1931-May 22, 2023

Peter, Paul, and John all proclaimed that they were living in the last days (or the last times). If that were true then (and it must be) how much more are we living in the last days now? The "last days" began with the first coming of Christ and will be fulfilled or completed at His second coming. This message is about the last of the last days in which we live and the significance for us today.

Without any doubt, the most important exhortation in the Bible, which occurs in both the Old and New Testaments, is "prepare ye the way of the Lord. That occurs in Isaiah 40:3 and in Matthew 3:3, when it was spoken by John the Baptist. That exhortation is still true for our generation today. Unfortunately, many witnesses today agree that the modern-day church is not prepared for the trials and tribulation which will precede the second coming of the Lord.

A number of years ago the sovereignty of God arranged for me to meet another man named John. He was a conservative Episcopalian minister, with much humility, and highly respected and sought after by his peers. At several services on one Sunday morning he said, to his church members, that very difficult times are coming to the Church soon, and that he believed many members of that Episcopal Church were not prepared for the times ahead. Then he confessed, publicly, that he did not know how to prepare the people for the difficult times. One of the first steps in preparation for the current and soon coming events is to understand the persecution and tribulation that must surely come soon. A multitude of Scriptures tell us that we Christians must go through that tribulation. However, the effect that great tribulation has on us depends upon how closely we are walking with the Lord. The judgment of God is upon our nation, and judgment must begin with the household of God. The Lord says, in Hosea 5:15, "I will go and return to My place, till they acknowledge their offence, and seek My face: in their affliction they will seek Me early."

Both true believers in Christ and non-believers always have been interested in when this world will end. One website lists more than 200 prophecies in the past concerning the date when the world will end. Undoubtedly there have been many more such predictions which few men know about. Jehovah's Witnesses have predicted 10 different dates for the end of the world, ranging from 1874 to 1994. Even some folks in the Thessalonian church (in 53 AD) were deceived by someone who told them that Christ had already returned (2 Thessalonians 1:3 and 3:10-15), so they were afraid that they had already "missed" His coming. That was one of the major purposes of Paul's two epistles to the Thessalonians. Every Chapter of 1 Thessalonians ends with a reference to the second coming of Christ; and almost one third of the verses in 2 Thessalonians deals with eschatology (doctrine of end-time events). We all know that Jesus said, in Matthew 24:36, "But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but My Father only."

At the other end of the spectrum there are many professing Christians whose attitude has always been "business as usual."

48 But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming;
49 And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken;
50 The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of,
51 And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 24:48-51

But Jesus told us to watch ... always to be prepared for His coming.

Isaiah 62:10-12, "10 Go through, go through the gates; prepare ye the way of the people; cast up, cast up the highway; gather out the stones; lift up a standard for the people.
11 Behold, the LORD hath proclaimed unto the end of the world, Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy salvation cometh; behold, His reward is with Him, and His work before Him.
12 And they shall call them, The holy people, The redeemed of the LORD: and thou shalt be called, Sought out, A city not forsaken."

To whom are theses verses written? To those who have eyes to see and ears to hear ... to the overcomers, the remnant, the daughter of spiritual Zion, the Bride of Christ. Go through, go through the gates: The word "gates" can be translated as "doors" or "cities." The overcomers today must prepare the way of the people... the Church. Go through the doors and the cities that the Lord opens. "Cast up the highway" means to exalt the kingdom of God. Gather out the stones ... Christians are living stones. The standard to be lifted up is the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ. From Verse 12, "thy salvation" is likewise the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ, and He is coming. "His reward" is Himself. The Lord told Abraham, in Genesis 15:1, "I am your shield and your exceeding great reward." What is His work before Him when He returns to earth? a great harvest of souls, through the work of the overcomers, such as never seen on earth before. The "city not forsaken" is spiritual Jerusalem.

When the Lord Jesus comes out of the Holy of Holies on the last spiritual Day of Atonement, and returns to earth, bringing ten thousands of His saints with Him (Jude 14), the devil will be bound for 1000 years, or the Millennium. During those 1000 years the devil cannot deceive anyone. But that does not imply that every human on earth will accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. The nature of man will still be alive. From Revelation, Chapter 20, Verse 6, only the overcomers over all of time (both the early rain and the latter rain), will reign with Him on earth for those 1000 years. Those overcomers will fulfill John 14:12, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on Me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto My Father."

From Revelation 20, Verses 7-8, after the 1000 years, Satan will be loosed for a little while and will go out again to try to deceive people. But then the Lord will cast the devil and the devil's angels into the lake of fire. Revelation 20:15, "And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire."

Revelation 21:7-8, "He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be My son.

But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”

When we think of end-time events in the last of the last days, most believers probably think of the books of Revelation, Daniel, and Matthew, Chapter 24. I certainly do not understand everything written in those books. I believe no person on earth today understands everything written in the Book of Revelation. However, exhortations related to our actions in these last days are scattered throughout the Bible.

Let us start by looking at Matthew 24:3-10.

3 And as He sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto Him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of Thy coming, and of the end of the world?
4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.
5 For many shall come in My name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.
6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.
7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.
8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.

Few would doubt that we are living in the time of the "beginning of sorrows." We have seen numerous famines, pestilences (or plagues), and earthquakes in diverse places. Scripture speaks of famines in the days of Abraham (Genesis 12); Isaac (Genesis 26); Joseph (Genesis 41); Ruth (Ruth 1:1); Elijah (1 Kings 18:2); Elisha (2 Kings 8:1); and Zedekiah (2 Kings 25:2). In addition, in 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:" I believe the visible Church has been living in the fulfillment of Amos 8:11 for a long period of time. There is no famine of the Lord speaking but a famine of hearing on the part of His chosen people, and unless we hear what the Spirit is saying, we cannot walk in His will.

We have certainly seen earthquakes in diverse places. 80% of the world's earthquakes happen around the Pacific Ocean ... near the east coast of Asia and the west coast of America, particularly California. Many long years ago I had a dream in which there was an earthquake just off the coast of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. That earthquake was so severe that planes could not fly in the vicinity and even radio waves could not pass through. Revelation 16:18 says, "And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great." Psalm 37:18-19, "The LORD knoweth the days of the upright: and their inheritance shall be for ever. They shall not be ashamed in the evil time: and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied."

The "upright" does not necessarily equate to all born-again believers.

Then we have pestilences, or plagues.

Revelation 15:1, 8, "And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvelous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God.

And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from His power; and no man was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled." 

Revelation 15:8 says that every Christian on earth must endure the time of the last plagues. A good question is, "Have those last seven plagues already begun?" If so, what plague are we experiencing now with the coronavirus? One of the best revelations concerning the coronavirus came from our son. I quote, "So what is the purpose of the time and season we are in now with the coronavirus? One thing that I believe that the Lord impressed upon me is how millions of people around the world are now covering their faces. Therefore, I did a search of Scripture on that subject and here are a couple of verses that jumped out:

Genesis 38:15, When Judah saw her, he thought her to be an harlot; because she had covered her face.

Psalm 69:7, Because for thy sake I have borne reproach; shame hath covered my face.

So have we played the harlot? Have we borne reproach and shame to the Lord? Yet why have we refused to cover our faces? We did not willingly cover our faces so I believe the Lord allowed the coronavirus." (end quote)

Is cancer a plague? The American Cancer Society has been soliciting research money for more than 100 years and has never found a cure. Some believe that cancer was first reported in Greece in 400 B.C. Is AIDS/HIV a plague? Historically, plagues have killed one-third of all men in the known world on two occasions. Revelation 9:15-18 says one-third of the men on earth will be killed for a third and final time. That will result in the fulfillment of Isaiah 4:1, when, because of the scarcity of men,

1 And in that day seven women shall take hold of one man, saying, We will eat our own bread, and wear our own apparel: only let us be called by thy name, to take away our reproach.

But then the good news for the overcomers ...

2 In that day shall the branch of the LORD be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and comely for them that are escaped of Israel.

What is "that day?" the day the Lord returns. "The escaped of Israel" literally means a
"remnant." Jesus, in Matthew 24:16, says the same thing about "the escaped of Israel," "Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:"

In other words, after we are born again and baptized with the Holy Spirit, we must press on to know the Lord or flee into the kingdom of God.

3 And it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, even every one that is written among the living in Jerusalem:

4 When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning.

5 And the LORD will create upon every dwelling place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night: for upon all the glory shall be a defence.

6 And there shall be a tabernacle for a shadow in the daytime from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and for a covert from storm and from rain.

Mount Zion speaks of the remnant, the overcomers, the place where God dwells.

Psalm 76:1-2, "To the chief Musician on Neginoth, A Psalm or Song of Asaph. In Judah is God known: His name is great in Israel. In Salem also is His tabernacle, and His dwelling place in Zion.".

Those two verses describe four types of Christians, based on their maturity level. The chief Musician is the Lord Himself. "Neginoth" is a ten-stringed instrument, which is man, with his 10 fingers and ten toes. Many long years ago the Lord gave the following poem to a personal friend of mine and a true prophet of the Lord. The title of his poem is "Symbol to Substance."

"To reach the substance through the symbol I must dance 

til leaving my shell, for the higher I advance,

When the source I have found, the cup I no longer take: 

the eternal bread I eat, the wafer I forsake,

At my Father's table, feasting from the vine, 

I forget grainless husks and pulp void of wine.

I must know the silence to reach the music where the cords of life lie in passive state - Ready to vibrate with eternal harmony awaiting the instrument which is me."

Isaiah 40:9, "O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God!"

Both Zion and Jerusalem bring good tidings. However, spiritual Jerusalem (true prophets and teachers) is told to speak, but spiritual Zion is told to get up into the high mountain (the kingdom of God). Jerusalem speaks to the cities of Judah, "Behold yor God." In Scripture, "behold" is the voice of the Holy Spirit. This brings out a living principle ... those Christians at one rung of the ladder are designed to help Christians at the level just below them, but the blind cannot lead the blind.

Hosea 6:3, "Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the LORD: His going forth is prepared as the morning; and He shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain unto the earth."

The Hebrew word, translated as "know," which occurs twice in that verse means "to ascertain by seeing." The great prophet Isaiah's life was changed, as recorded in Isaiah 6, when he saw the Lord in His holiness and thereby received a revelation that the natural self of all men was that of unclean lips. Paul echoes the needful attitude of all Christians when he said, in 

Philippians 3:14, "I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus."

Back to Matthew 24.

9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for My name's sake.

10 And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.

Likewise, few would doubt that we are not yet in the fulness of the time of Verses 9 and 10. The "you" in Verse 9 and the "many" in Verse 10 speak of professing Christians. Perhaps the last part of Verse 9 has already been fulfilled ... ye shall be hated of all nations for His name's sake.

A tremendous amount of confusion is in the world, with immense and far-reaching complications. The world is going from darkness to gross darkness. The United States is fast becoming as Sodom and Gomorrah. Terrorists abound. Our highways are like the valley of the shadow of death. About 40 years ago, a woman in Florida spoke of a vision she had of a tidal wave that was going to sweep over all of Florida. Some saints fled the state, believing her word that Florida would be inundated with water. It turned out to be a tidal wave of deception, not water.

Many years ago, I read that there is no Constitutional basis for many of the departments in the Federal Government, which remains a huge and uncontrollable entity. Personal rights and freedoms in the United States have been under attack and eroding for at least 80 years. The enemy has been using his pawns increasingly over the years to make us dependent upon the Federal Government. That will give rise to the fulfillment of Revelation 13 when a beast shall rise up out of the sea (the sea of humanity). That beast will have seven heads and ten horns and the dragon (Satan) will give that beast his power. Revelation 13:8, "And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world."

Now for a somewhat amazing truth. The Washington Post newspaper is widely known as one of the most liberal, far-left newspapers in the United States. Shortly after Donald Trump was elected President in 2016, The Washington Post, on line two of their front page, has always had the following byline: "Democracy Dies in Darkness." That is certainly true, but not because of the reason that the editor of the Post thinks. It is debatable whether the United States is a democracy anymore, with more and more socialist trends. That may increase very soon. Perhaps more to the point, democracy never has been God's form of government. An article on the front page of last Thursday's Washington Post (August 20, 2020) says: "To Democrats, one issue subsumes all: The nation's essence is at stake." How true! but again, not for the reason that the writer of that article says. The amazing truth is that even those who have no relationship whatsoever with the Lord at times will, unknowingly, speak forth prophetic truth. In August of 2009, Barack Obama said in a speech in Turkey, "We are no longer a Christian nation." How true!

Events are unfolding to force us to live by faith. If we try to live any other way, we will throw away our birthright. The first of the tri-part Babylon to fall will be economic. That could happen any day now. When economic Babylon falls, we will see riots in our streets. We have seen some of these riots during the current pandemic. People do desperate things when they are hungry, homeless, and angry.

Revelation 6:6, "And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine.”

This verse speaks of the great inflation which is coming to the earth, probably starting with the United States. Of course, we already live in times of great inflation. I remember when my father's salary for a year was $2000. I remember paying 5 cents for a fully loaded hot dog. I remember paying 5 cents for a cone of ice cream that was packed to overflowing with ice cream. I remember going to the movies for 9 cents. The first house my wife and I bought, which was in 1963 in Palo Alto, California, cost $22,000, That house was last sold in 2014 for 1.55 million dollars.

HOWEVER, even though prices for everything have multiplied by 100 in the past 75 years or less, the financial economy will soon get much worse. Even worldly economists have been predicting that for quite some time. Large companies and small companies are going bankrupt. State and city governments are going bankrupt. The Federal Government debt is spiraling out of control and will get much worse very soon. Social Security has been in financial trouble dating at least back to 1977.

Now let us consider some other scriptures which soon will be fulfilled in these last days.

Isaiah 3:12, "As for My people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O My people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths." 

Even within Christian families, children are very rebellious and do not honor their parents anymore. "Christian" schools are almost as bad as public schools, In 2001, after I retired from teaching in a local university, I talked with the pastor, whom I knew well, of an Assembly of God Church, which also had a school for grades 7-12. I asked if I might be able to teach in their school. She responded, "You don't want to teach here. We have as many discipline problems as in the public schools." According to several of our grandchildren, sex, drugs, and homosexuality is rampant in our public schools from grades 7-12.

Most Church historians believe that Jesus was born between 5 B.C. and 3 B.C. and probably in our September, during the Feast of Tabernacles, six months after John the Baptist was born. (There are six months between the Feast of Tabemacles and Passover.) Thirty-three and one-half years later, just prior to the Passover (John 19:14), Jesus was crucified at Calvary. That would place His resurrection between 28 A.D. and 30) A.D. Assuming the approximate 4,000 years prior to the birth of Jesus and the 2,000 years after His resurrection, we come to the years 2028 to 2030 as the second coming of Jesus to earth. Now I am NOT prophesying that Jesus will return within the next 8 to 10 years, but it is certainly possible.

Now IF that is true, and I tend to believe it is true, then we have time for two more four-year terms for the President of the United States whoever that may be. Let us try to relate that to Isaiah 3:12 which must be fulfilled prior the Lord's second coming to earth. To repeat,

Isaiah 3:12, "As for My people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O My people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths." 

About 18 months ago, a very mature man of God called me somewhat out of the blue. We talked about the world situation and the state of the Church for about 45 minutes. At one point I mentioned Isaiah 3:12. Then he said that I was the first Christian; other than himself, who he had ever heard speak of that verse. Why do you think that is true? I would encourage every Christian to read Isaiah, Chapter 30. In Verses 8-10 of Isaiah 30, the Lord told Isaiah, concerning His chosen people,

"Now go, write it before them in a table, and note it in a book, that it may be for the time to come for ever and ever: That this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the LORD: Which say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits:"

Now let me be absolutely clear ... I am about the most apolitical person you will ever meet. I am not a Republican, not a Democrat, and not politically oriented in any way. We are citizens of a different kingdom. The Scripture in Daniel 2:21 is true ….. it is God who sets up kings and removes kings. We humans think that we elect our leaders, but it is the Lord who has ordained all things and who works all things after the counsel of His own will (Ephesians 1:11). He is sovereign and His timetable will always be on time. I believe that any professing Christian who gets involved in worldly politics may be sincere, but they do not understand the ways of the Lord. That truth is brought out clearly in Joshua 5:13-15, in Genesis 14:21-24, and in Matthew 22:21. I have only two comments about the forthcoming Presidential election. First, whoever the Lord has ordained to be the next President should give us a big clue as to the Lord's timetable for His soon coming to earth; and second, the welfare or well-being of our nation does NOT depend upon whoever is our next President ... it depends upon some number of Christians who will fulfill 2 Chronicles 7:14 - "If My people, who are called by My name, will humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." Does our land need healing?

We have seen an ever-increasing trend of business women CEO's, female Congress persons, and female pastors of churches. Note the three parts of Babylon again, economic, political, and religious. In two more months, the United States will elect its next President. On one ticket we have a woman vice-president candidate. If the Democrats win the presidential election, a possible candidate to be Secretary of State is Hillary Clinton, because of her past experience. What happens if the President dies or is incapacitated in some way? The Vice-President becomes President. Who is next in line after the Vice-President? The Secretary of State.

Now I want to share with you some related visions and actions which were given to three solid, mature Christians. One believer, a number of years ago, was told by he Lord to go and stand in the middle of the rotunda of the Capitol Building in Washington, DC. and speak a word of confusion to the United States government. He did just that and the word of the Lord has certainly been fulfilled. Another believer saw in a vision that the dome of the same Capitol Building was sliced off. A third, mature man of God had a vision just prior to the 2016 Presidential election in which a huge multitude of people were crowded together in a huge auditorium. Then he saw Hillary Clinton, dressed in all white (indicating deception), enter the auditorium. She said, in a very authoritative voice, "All Christians up against the wall." Because of that vision, he thought that Hillary would be elected Presentin 2016. That, of course, did not happen. Why not? Because of the love of God to give his chosen people more time to repent, to humble themselves, and pray, and seek His face, and turn from their wicked ways (2 Chronicles 7:14). Apparently, that has not been done by His chosen people to the extent that has satisfied the Lord. HOWEVER, there is no time limit to the word of the Lord. That vision may very well yet be fulfilled after the 2020 or 2024 Presidential election.

In any event, Scripture is fulfilled more than once because of human nature. History repeats itself. In Acts 4:23-28, after Peter and John were released from prison, we read,

23 And being let go, they went to their own company, and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said unto them.

24 And when they heard that, they lifted up their voice to God with one accord, and said, Lord, thou art God, which hast made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all that in them is:

25 Who by the mouth of Thy servant David hast said, Why did the heathen rage, and the people imagine vain things?

26 The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against His Christ.

27 For of a truth against Thy holy child Jesus, Whom Thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together,

28 For to do whatsoever Thy hand and Thy counsel determined before to be done.

Verses 26-28 soon will be fulfilled one last time. Those verses were fulfilled the first time when Jesus was crucified. They must be fulfilled once more in the Body of Christ in our time. Verse 26 says that the coalition included kings and rulers. Read Isaiah 3:12 once more concerning rulers. Herod and Pilate, who represent political rulers, were not the best of friends, but they united to pursue the death of Jesus. The coalition to kill Jesus included Gentiles and Jews, both non-Christians and the chosen people of God. Judas betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver. That means that Babylon, consisting of three parts, economic, political, and religious was responsible for the death of Jesus. So shall it be in these lasts days. Please note from Verse 28 the sovereignty of God. It is God who gathered together all of the evil coalition to fulfill the counsel and will of God,

Given all that we have shared so far, what manner of men must we be?

2 Peter 3:10-15

10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.

11 Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness,

12 Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?

13 Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.

14 Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of Him in peace, without spot, and blameless.

15 And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you;

Now the natural man within us Christians always tends to think that "I am OK. I am born again, baptized with the Holy Ghost, lead a morally good life, and so on." But there are no limitations to the risen Christ. Therefore, there is always room for more of Christ within.

Hebrews 9:28, "So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for Him shall He appear the second time without sin unto salvation." Who is looking for Him?