Kobina’s Comments (group member since Aug 15, 2019)

Kobina’s comments from the Gatekeepers of the End Times (GET) group.

Mark wrote: "Kobina, thank you so much for taking the time to read my comment and then taking the time to write your most insightful response. Time invested becomes time well spent when people like you are invo..."

Mark, it's added to the to-read list.

Mark wrote: "A fascinating read from all above. It’s unfortunate that more people are not here to benefit from such an intelligent, meaningful, and theological perspective.

Most of my time has been elsewher..."

Hi Mark,

I couldn't agree with your sentiments more. Rigidity and orthodoxy in religious matters lead us nowhere. Meekness, a willingness to look at all things with a searching eye, open-mindedness, and an awareness of the relativity of truth--these are the things that will stand us in good stead when we seek for meaning in the promises of the end-times.

Emma wrote: "Mickey it was never the intention of God for man to live in heaven, it was always Gods intention that man would live here eternally on earth. If Adam would never have sinned then would he have even..."

Concerning God's name that you mentioned, Emma, is there only one name for God? In every language of the world, there is a distinct name for God. Does it matter? No, as long as we know Whom we are referring to, isn't that so? God, after all, is not merely a name; He is a reality.

"Say: Call upon God or call upon the All-Merciful: by whichsoever name ye will, invoke Him, for He hath most excellent names." (Qur'an 17:110)

Hi Kent, we are most happy to have you in our group. What is future visionaries all about, apart from fighting the rich and the powerful of the land, or do you fight them?

Mickey wrote: "In St John 1:21 John said he was not Elijah. In Matthew 17:11 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elijah truly shall first come, and restore all things. The Jews expected him but the last days i..."

Mickey, you said: “I believe I am Elijah for this dispensation.” If I understood you properly, you claim to be the Elijah of the last day. That makes you a “prophet”! Is that really what you are claiming? Many countless souls have throughout history even up to the present day, made similar claims and for their troubles, were offered a place in the “lake of fire burning with brimstone” (Revelation 19:20).

I thought if Elijah should return in this day ahead of Christ, he would set a new tone for our understanding of religious worship and for our relationship to the Almighty. Wouldn’t he set in motion a grand scheme to prepare mankind for the greatness of the Day that is about to dawn, and for receiving the Lord of the universe? Would he be focusing on the parables of 2,000 years ago, or rather on the big issues of present-day existence? Would he be bashing Paul of 2,000 years ago, or telling the world of great things to come? Would he set himself up on Goodreads to argue about minor points of doctrine with puny men like us, or he would rather get to the towns and villages of the world to summon mankind to the sure gate that leads to the Kingdom?

Don’t get me wrong. I am not by this suggesting that your claims are false. What I am doing is playing the devil’s advocate, so you can justify your claim to the respect and recognition that any true prophet of God deserves from the peoples of the world.

Emma wrote: "I dont really read books relating to the end times. The Book I look to for accurate information on this subject is the Bible. 2tIM 3:16 "All scripture is inspired by God, and beneficial for trainin..."

Is it only through reading and interpreting the Holy Bible that the faithful would be able to recognize and acknowledge the Return? I don’t think so.

It is important to note, that the importance of history, is to enable mankind to draw lessons from the events of the past. At the First Coming, those who recognized and received Christ into their lives were not the Scripture-reading Pharisees and scribes. They were rather the fishermen, publicans and prostitutes, those who hardly read the Torah; so that shows that reading the Bible is not the only way to the Truth. Indeed, was it not the same Scriptures that were quoted by the Pharisees (John 7:52) to reject Christ?

When Jesus was born, the wise men from the east who were of an entirely different religion (Zoroastrians), and not students of the Torah, recognized that the Saviour of the world had been born, and travelled all the way from their homeland (Persia) to come and worship Him; but the ones in whose Scripture were recorded all the prophecies of His coming knew nothing of His birth. This shows that one can recognize the Return without reading the Bible, or even being a Christian.

When Saul recognized Jesus and became a follower and an Apostle with the new name of Paul, it was not on account of reading the Scriptures. It was on account of a vision and a spiritual experience that he had. This again shows that recognition is not limited only to reading the Scriptures.

It is also important to note that even though Christ Himself accented that He had been sent only to the “lost sheep of the House of Israel” (Matthew 15:24), ultimately it was the Gentiles who overwhelmingly became His followers, whilst the Jews in whose Holy Book were inscribed all the prophecies of His coming, overwhelmingly rejected Him. And this situation has remained unchanged right up to the present day. This shows that Scripture itself can become an obstacle to Truth; especially if one becomes too rigid in interpretation, and overly satisfied with the level of one’s learning.

“God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24).

The Pharisees were very sure in their interpretation of Scripture, that the Messiah’s role would be to restore the material sovereignty of Israel, and no other. Even the Apostles, after interacting with their Lord for three and a half years, still believed that this was what needed to happen, which was why the last thing they asked Christ before His Ascension was whether Israel’s sovereignty would be restored (Acts 1:6).

This brings me to my final point: We know from what happened at the First Coming that it was not the prophecies of the Old Testament that defined the limits of Christ’s life and teachings. If it were so, it would have been easy for the Jews to recognize that the Messiah they awaited had arrived. Rather, it was Christ, by His life and teachings, that reinterpreted the real intent of all that had been revealed in the Old Testament. Therefore, in our day, and in this the “end-times”, we need to exercise extreme caution in the matter of interpretation of the Bible and the other Holy Books, for it is not these Books that will define the parameters of the Return; rather, the Revelation that will come with the Return will reinterpret the Scriptures of the world (II Peter 1:20-21; I Corinthians 4:5).

Emma wrote: "At Matthew 24:37-39, Jesus Christ made a comparison between the days of Noah and the last days, where we now find ourselves. He said: “Just as the days of Noah were, so the presence (parousia) of t..."

There is an alternative explanation of Noah’s ark, and of why Christ compared the circumstances of His return with that story. The first thing of note about Noah was that he was a physical person, who was a “just man and perfect in his generation and (he) walked with God” (Genesis 6:9); just as Christ, on His return, will be the just and perfect One of our generation. So at the Second Coming, Christ will be the Noah of our time. He will build His Ark (new Religious system). The rain will fall from heaven (new Revelation from God through Him). Upon this Revelation, the Ark of His religious system will sail. Anyone who joins the Ark (Religious system) will be numbered with His “elect” and will be saved. The others who refuse to get under this system will be drowned spiritually.

You appear to suggest that the Second Coming will not involve the physical presence of Christ. That scenario should only be presented as a “possibility”, and not as a rigid fact. Other possibilities can be derived from the Bible, and these have been highlighted in my book: “Gatekeepers”. Those who adhered to dogmas at the First coming, failed to recognize the Lord of mankind. The ones who recognized Him were simple, open-minded people who did not allow dogmas, or traditions, or the popular expectations, or their learning to veil them from the truth of the Messiah’s presence. That is why Christ said that if you do not become like a little child, you cannot enter into the Kingdom. (Luke 18:17) Simplicity, open-mindedness, and a passion to search for truth from all sources will be the key to success in the New Day, for “he that seeketh findeth” (Luke 11:10)

“Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth…” (Revelation 16:15).

You are most welcome, Niraja, to this group.

The Bible contains all we shall ever need to know about the end-times. But the Bible is like a vast ocean. We cannot scour this vast ocean and discover all the pearls that lie beneath its depths. We cannot possibly understand every single word that we read, nor correctly interpret every single prophecy we find. This is where reading of postings, like those on this site, or books, or commentaries, etc., can help in our quest. Sometimes, a simple sentence we read somewhere may open new vistas of understanding before our eyes. I think those who are truly searching for truth should read the Bible always, but at the same time, not shy away from listening to others or reading from other sources. This point is emphasized in "Gatekeepers". From the things we hear, we throw out what we consider to be trash, and preserve what we find to be words of wisdom.

Emma wrote: "Hello my name s Emma, 32yrs old. I love discussing Religion and anything spiritually upbuilding."

It's wonderful to have you in this group, Emma. I have read your posts, and they are very rich and educative.

Sharon wrote: "Good Cheer. My name is Sharon. This is an interesting topic.
By introduction, I'm a writer, and also have a prophetic ministry. I enjoy bringing the Heart of the Father God, as I am given the a..."

Welcome Sharon, we are most grateful to have you in the group.

Your points of view are respected and are well taken, Mickey. There is one more thing about the coming of Elijah that I omitted to mention. Many Muslim sects also believe in the coming of Prophet Issa (Jesus) in the last days. They however do not ascribe to the view that Jesus would come to gather the Christians alone to paradise; rather, that He would come to renew and revitalize Islam and present it as the final religion for mankind before the world ends. Islamic traditions also mention the coming of another personality before Prophet Issa, and the title he is known by is that of "the Mahdi".

Mont'ster wrote: "Kobina wrote: "Yeah, it's great. They have taken up all the space, but it's wonderful to have them."

Oy! I didn't know they would display like that! I've never added books to a group bookshelf..."


I see what you mean. I tried everything but it appears the home page arrangement of the books can't be changed. Maybe the books are shuttled around automatically.

Hi Mickey,

I found your take on this subject very interesting. The subject of Elijah’s return is also taken up in my book: Gatekeepers – The Quest for Clues to an Age-Old Riddle (a fictional novel), but from a slightly different angle.

It is important to note that the Jews also believed that Elijah would come first before “the great and dreadful day” of their Messiah (which was fulfilled at the First Coming of Jesus). This expectation of the Jews is verifiable in John 1:21 and Matthew 17:10. Christ not only validated this expectation, but asserted that it had been fulfilled in the person of John the Baptist [Matthew 17:11-13]. It is also worth noting that the Apostles did consider the days of Christ as “the last days” [Acts 2:16-17]. It was certainly “the last days” of the Dispensation of Moses; but not the “last days” of humanity.

I found your statement that Elijah will come first before (the Second Coming of) Jesus as very profound. It is plausible insofar as the Second Coming could be a replica of the First. My book explores this possibility by first focusing on Jesus’ prediction that His return would be like the days of Noah, and then demonstrating how the First Coming was similarly like the days of Noah. (Refer to Gatekeepers for details.)

Should the Second Coming have similarities with the First Coming, then the role of the Elijah of the last day would, like the First Coming, be that of a Forerunner to prepare humanity for that Great Day.

There are so many “dogmas” out there concerning the last day. The Gatekeepers book encourages the reader to have an open mind about what that day will bring.

Mont'ster wrote: "Kobina, as you suggested, I put the Left Behind books on the group's bookshelf for reference. Even though there were a lot of "spin-offs" from this set of books, I only shelved the original 12 boo..."

Yeah, it's great. They have taken up all the space, but it's wonderful to have them.

Adrienna wrote: "I am writing a series called Miss the Mark that deals with apocalyptic, spiritual themes similar to Left Behind. I wrote from current events and our time span accounts.

Working on getting a litera..."

It's wonderful to hear about the books you are writing. How many will there be in the series?

Adrienna wrote: "Adrienna!


[image error]"

Interesting stuff! You could list the books in the group's bookshelf for our reference, if you wish.

Hi, Mont'ster, it's great to have you in the group.

Are the current issues of globalization, worldwide environmental degradation, the threat of nuclear annihilation, global pandemics, widespread terrorism, etc., all signs of the end times? Are the upheavals of the end times the birth pangs of a new world order? How are these themes being reported in literature and fiction?