"Be sober, be vigilant; because
your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour." 1 Peter 5:8
The Bible tells us we are to keep our eyes on the Lord, waiting eagerly for His return. As this world falls apart around us, it becomes even more important to cling to Him and draw our strength from Him. Today, evil seeks to devour every freedom we ever cherished as Americans, giving the prayer "deliver us from evil" a whole new sense of urgency.
The world changed for many of us on June 6, 2013 -- the day we first heard the name Edward Snowden. We knew our government was corrupt; we knew it could not be trusted. But what hit hard that day was the demoralizing realization that our freedom is only an illusion. Edward Snowden removed the blanket of security -- he revealed we live not in a priceless and protected Republic, but under Orwellian imperial rule. We are no longer citizens...we are subjects.
Since the start of Edward Snowden's crusade, I've often thought of this young man's choice to sacrifice everything in his fight against oppression: his life forfeited to any ruthless government that chose to take it; his reputation shredded both by his own actions and the endless political babble dissecting them. Whether one of the bravest men or the most contemptible, Edward Snowden has made a difference.
National Security agencies worldwide were rocked by the "Snowden Effect."
It hit governments with the impact of an avalanche -- burying them under the weight of public scorn.
It tested the already flimsy metal of the media and accomplished the impossible: bipartisan agreement.
It revealed the evil intent of man-made strategy, designed by flawed humans who chose to
target and oppress.
Unwarranted surveillance is oppression, and whether we believe Snowden to be a traitor or a hero, oppression in any shape or form is evil.
A simple biblical truth has been demonstrated on a worldwide scale: "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; Who can know it?" (Jeremiah 17:9)
The NSA is spying on Americans and apparently everyone else, stealing private details of our lives and storing them as evidence for future crimes. For a fresh perspective, watch the movie The Patriot and pay attention to King George's soldiers.
Has government become King and are we, once again, subjects? The answer lies in basic fact: When billions are spent on building the infrastructure of tyranny -- a "data center" in Bluffdale, Utah, designed to record and store every facet of our lives -- then freedom is no more. National Security has become a reason for oppression -- a cover, a straw man, a pathetic attempt to pacify and minimize the gut-wrenching loss of We the People....
To The Remnant, the small percentage of Christians who see the future purpose of this infrastructure in all of its terrible power, it is nothing less than chilling. We know what is coming. "He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name." (Revelation 13: 16, 17)
The method has now been revealed; it is only a matter of time before we see the madness.
It may not be a country called America,
but it will be the fruit of American technology that will orchestrate and implement the Tribulation. Many have debated the role of the United States or even its existence in the end times, but perhaps it is not a geographical location at all...perhaps it is a legacy; a control mechanism born of monstrous power and money.
Edward Snowden showed us the physical evidence of biblical prophecy fulfilled; his story is valuable for the truth it tells. He has shared only a fraction of what he knows with the world and is now a man without a country, seeking asylum with America's enemies. Words mean things, and unleashing them on the world can be costly
.
So in the laudable fight against evil, Snowden inevitably found himself compromised. He professes to love his country, and yet ran to its enemies -- choosing safety over principle. He professes to have only altruistic goals, and yet continues to manipulate headlines for personal gain. The latest of these is his two-pronged attack on both America and Israel. Now it is not only the United States who conspired but Israel, too.
In attacking the "apple" of God's eye, he has made perhaps the gravest error of all.
Whatever we may think of this man, Edward Snowden's story remains compelling and transforming. It reveals the power of evil and its worldwide reach. It demonstrates the truth of the biblical record -- we are in the end times, and events are coalescing into a familiar, predicted pattern. It changes how we view our country and ourselves, and if we are wise, it will turn our hearts toward God.
It's going to happen soon...Jesus will return and all evil will finally be defeated. We have this blessed hope in the name of Him who is our Savior: "Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet...Death is swallowed up in victory." (1 Corinthians 15: 51, 55)
