John Hagee - Financial Armageddon: We Are in a Battle for our Very Survival…

In times of crisis people need a clear word. There is no shortage of opinions on the news, over the Internet, in newspapers and magazines, but what is needed is a word that is founded on the One who is the Word. Through John Hagee's book you will gain understanding about the current global financial crisis from a spiritual perspective. Solid biblical teaching undergirds Pastor Hagee's prophetic insight into our times and encourages the reader to trust in the one source that will never disappoint.

Jane Hansen Hoyt

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FINANCIAL ARMAGEDDON by John Hagee
Published by FrontLine
Charisma Media/Charisma House Book Group
600 Rinehart Road
Lake Mary, Florida 32746
www.charismahouse.com

This book or parts thereof may not be reproduced in any form, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwisewithout prior written permission of the publisher, except as provided by United States of America copyright law.

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are from the New King James Version of the Bible. Copyright 1979, 1980, 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc., publishers. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked AMP are from the Amplified Bible. Old Testament copyright 1965, 1987 by the Zondervan Corporation. The Amplified New Testament copyright 1954, 1958, 1987 by the Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked KJV are from the King James Version of the Bible.

Scripture quotations marked NAS are from the New American Standard Bible. Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977 by the Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked NIV are from the Holy Bible, New International Version. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, International Bible Society. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked NLT are from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, IL 60189. All rights reserved.

Design Director: Bill Johnson
Cover design by Justin Evans

Copyright 2008 by John Hagee
All rights reserved

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
An application to register this book for cataloging has been submitted to the Library of Congress.
International Standard Book Number: 978-1-59979-603-1
E-ISBN: 978-1-59979-630-7

Contents

by Stephen Strang

T HE FINANCIAL CRISIS THAT DEVELOPED ON WALL STREET in the fall of 2008 is unlike anything Ive seen before in my career. No one seems to have the answers, even though everyone is trying to figure out what the crisis means.

Financial Armageddon by Pastor John Hagee provides answers from the Word of God. Hagee is a powerful minister whose preaching and teaching put difficult times into perspective for Christians, and he has great insight into the meaning of current events from a biblical perspective. For example, when oil prices skyrocketed in mid-2008, Hagee prepared a teaching series titled The Oil Crisis and the Road to Armageddon. The response to the series was more than double what is usually expected. Why? Because people want answers, and Hagee gives them.

I believe the existing crisis is so important that I encouraged our Strang Book Group to rush this book into print. It appeared on bookstore shelves only six weeks after we conceived the ideaa time frame that is almost unheard of in publishing circles.

The problems we are currently experiencing have a greater significance than a typical credit crunch or mortgage crisis. They are a precursor to a tremendous battle that will take place at what the Bible calls Armageddon. (See Revelation 16:14, 16.) In order to understand them, we must learn to discern the times, as the sons of Issachar did in 1 Chronicles 12:32, and view them in light of the Word of God.

As a businessman, I read Hagees manuscript with great interest. What happens on Wall Street or in international markets affects me and those who work with me. Plus, I have some investments in the stock market for my retirement years, and I dont want to see them wiped out. Whether you own a business as I do or work for someone else, I know you too want to understand what is going on.

Let me add my perspective to what youre about to read, and maybe I can help you comprehend something about what the media sometimes hysterically call a financial meltdown.

The stock market has plummeted before, and I believe it will recover. So Im not planning to revamp my stock portfolio. I expect the value of the stocks to increase in the future. I still remember the dot-com bubble that burst a few years ago, the recession of 1992, and the terrible stagflation of the 1970s when I was just beginning my career.

Our current situation has come as no surprise. Considering some of the bad loans that were made, the creative instruments Wall Street created, and the overblown real estate market, it was only a matter of time until something drastic happened to correct the mistakes. But the panic that has set in has made the problems worse, even though our federal government has spent billions of dollars to try to stabilize the market.

I think we can expect that America will come out of this bear market and financial slump just as it has before. But every time we experience a downturn, people want our government to do more. Year by year we become more of an international market, depending on international banks to help stabilize the financial situation. If this doesnt occur, people panic.

When people panic, they look for a strong leader who will give them what they want and make their financial problems go away. Do you see the pattern that develops? A global economy and global crises make people yearn for a global leader to solve their problems. Suddenly you have the scenario the Bible says leads to the rise of a man called the Antichrist, who leads us into the Battle of Armageddon!

If you dont think this is possible, look at history. It was the terrible inflation and financial problems after World War I in Germany that made the people turn to Hitler. Not only could it happen again, but, according to the Bible, it will happen again.

Thats why its important to understand what is going on. All of us are at risk because we live in a complex, world-financial system that causes us to be dependent on others to provide the groceries we buy and to deliver the gas we put in our cars. We are dependent on others to have the money to buy the goods and services we sell or to pay our paychecks. When any part of the system breaks down, we are vulnerable like everyone else. Period.

So we must do what we can not only to survive but also to thrive in difficult economic situations such as the current bear market on Wall Street, which may be part of the bigger financial Armageddon that is coming.

The first step is to rein in our fear. Financial crisis can lead to collapse simply because people become afraid and panic. We must understand that Gods Word is true whether stocks are up or down and whether credit is tight or abundant.

Long before President Franklin D. Roosevelt, in his 1933 inaugural address, said in reference to the depressed economic condition of our nation, The only thing we have to fear is fear itself, God Himself had given us the admonition not to fear. He said through the prophet Isaiah, Fear not, for I have redeemed you.When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you.Since you were precious in My sight, you have been honored, and I have loved you (Isa. 43:14).