In this gripping episode of Directed Life, Kap Chatfield sits down with evangelist and end-times scholar Tiff Shuttlesworth for a prophetic conversation on Bible prophecy, Israel, deception in the Church, and the urgency of the hour. Tiff unpacks how global chaos, rising antisemitism, transhumanism, and misinformation are all aligning with biblical prophecy. From the significance of Israel’s rebirth to the role of deception in the rise of the Antichrist, this episode is a wake-up call to the Church: it’s time to get rooted in truth and prepared for what’s coming. This isn’t fearmongering, it’s a faith-filled call to clarity, conviction, and commitment. Whether you’re curious, confused, or confident about the end times, you need this conversation.
Category Archives: church in the end times
THE CHURCH THAT IS LEFT BEHIND TO FACE THE WRATH OF GOD
Televangelist Keith Moore’s ministry Faith Life International has purchased a third jet following a fundraising campaign to raise $10 million. The used Dassault Falcon 7X jet acquired by Moore’s ministry was listed for sale at $17.5 million, while a new model would have cost $60 million.
In addition to the Falcon 7X, Faith Life International also owns a Dassault Falcon 900 EX (tail number N7KM) and Raytheon 390 (tail number N8PJ) jets. Moore is a licensed pilot and certified to fly all three jet models; however, both Falcon jets require an additional pilot in the cockpit.
Creflo Dollar’s new Gulfstream G550: After televangelist Creflo Dollar asked for 200,000 donors to give $300 each to fund the purchase of a new $65 million Gulfstream G650 jet back in 2015, he faced an immediate backlash due to critical international news coverage. Instead of purchasing the Gulfstream G650, Dollar’s property holding company, World Heir, acquired two used jets: a Gulfstream G-IV (tail number N878SM) and a Learjet 60 (tail number N978SM), which was recently sold.
Why can’t these churches see that they fit God’s description of the church at Laodicea? It is the seventh church representing the church in the seventh year of the 70th Week of Daniel, the final year before Jesus returns to Earth with resurrected Saints to fight the battle of Armageddon and usher in His Millennial Kingdom (http://www.millennialkingdom.net) The church of Laodicea is left behind to face the wrath of God that is poured out with the Trumpet and Bowl judgements over the final year. The sixth church, the church of Philadelphia, is raptured and kept from the wrath of God.
CHURCH OF LAODICEA: LEFT BEHIND TO FACE THE WRATH OF GOD
“‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.” Revelation 3:15-17
CHURCH OF LAODICEA: “BE ZEALOUS AND REPENT“
“I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.” Revelation 3:18-20
CHURCH OF PHILADELPHIA: “KEPT FROM THE HOUR OF TRIAL”
“‘I know your works. Behold, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut. I know that you have but little power, and yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name... Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth.” Revelation 3:8,10
RELIGIOUS BELIEFS ‘AT ODDS’ WITH MAINSTREAM CULTURE
An increasing share of Americans think their religious beliefs are “at odds” with “mainstream American culture.” 48% of citizens say there is either a “great deal” or “some” conflict in this area, up from just 42% in 2020, according to a Pew Research Centre Survey. The survey also found 29% of Americans believe they are religious minorities, up from 24% in 2000.
Meanwhile, most U.S. adults, 80%, said “religion’s role in American life is shrinking,” a percentage that’s the highest it has been in Pew’s research history. Just 18% expressed the belief faith is gaining influence in American society, with 49% saying religion’s influence is on the decline and that it’s a bad thing, which is unsurprising considering 57% of U.S. adults believe religion’s influence on American life is positive.
Americans’ political affiliations impacted their view of religion and public life. Republicans (51%) said it is important to have a president with the same religious beliefs they hold; just 25% of Democrats said the same. Pew found some interesting statistics regarding this year’s presidential candidates with 13% stating they believe Biden is “very religious” and 4% expressing the same about Trump. Source: Faithwire
Sadly, the majority of the people in the survey who claim to be religious are not born-again Christians who hold a Biblical worldview. Already, most of the denominational/institutional churches have compromised with the world on big issues such as gay marriage and homosexuality. These churches will be among those who thought they were part of God’s church but will be left behind to face the wrath of God. In Revelation 3 each of the seven churches represents the church in each of the seven years before Jesus returns first to rapture His church – the church of Philadelphia. The church of Laodicea is the church that is left behind to face the wrath of God but note they still have the opportunity to repent and be saved.
To the Church in Laodicea
“‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me. The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’ Revelation 3:15-22
CHURCHES ARE BEING TAKEN OVER BY DEMONIC SPIRITS
“Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons…” 1 Timothy 4:1
In this verse, where Paul refers to those who “shall depart from the faith,” he is not talking about ungodly individuals who stick their middle finger in God’s face, spit on the Bible, and hate the church. He is talking about believers who will depart from the church, from the truth of the Bible, from the preaching, from prayer, from fasting, and from deliverance and miracles. And the reason they will depart is shocking. They will give heed to seducing spirits. These are evil spirits, and these dark seducing spirits will eventually woo them into accepting “doctrines of devils.”
Doctrines of devils are false religions and other false teachings that dismiss the Bible: idol worship, the worship of man, the worship of objects, the worship of charms and amulets and crystals and horoscopes, etc.; and they will eventually defend every sort of perversion that goes against the Word of God. Church people will literally side with demons, occultism, and witchcraft. If you haven’t seen that come full circle in our time, then you’ve not been paying attention. In short, Paul says there will be demonic activity in the church during the last days that will destroy the church. The influence of demonic activity in the life of the American church is an absolute fact. Demons work to destroy the conscience of their host and have no conscience of their own. A demonic spirit is void of that emotional connection to God, so it causes people to live numb and dry and lukewarm and barren, and in this context, we begin to understand that a demon is nothing more than a person without a body who has taken hold of a human body.
As we see more and more demonic influence in our culture, we need to heed Paul’s warnings. The devil is going hard after the people of God, and no one is an exception. We must buckle up with the armour of God, stick close to His Word, and keep our eyes focused on Christ.
“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” Ephesians 6:10-12
CHURCH AS JESUS INTENDED
Returning to a no-frills practice of following Jesus will be good for all of us. We will remember what our faith is all about. This is why in the last days before Jesus returns He needs to purify His church. Apostasy in denominational churches is rife as demonstrated by the acceptance of gay marriage and homosexual pastors. They no longer believe in the inerrancy of God’s Word. Like the world, they have been caught up in the evolutionary myth of billions of years of Earth’s history. They no longer believe that God judged mankind with the worldwide flood of Noah’s day and yet it is the only explanation for the existence of billions of dead things buried quickly all over the world, including the fossil fuels: coal, oil, and natural gas (the result of buried forests). They have discounted both Noah’s flood and the short timescale of Scripture determined by Genesis 1-11. When you study geology from a biblical standpoint and use the geological model of the Flood to connect the real-world observations of geology you discover it is superior to the prevailing old-earth frameworks in explaining the data. (Biblical Geology 101 by Michael Oard and Robert Carter 2021).
An exciting training development, one which could help us prepare for church without buildings, has gained great popularity in the body of Christ over the past several years by readying people for possible service on the mission field, particularly among Muslims. TOAG, or “Training Ordinary Apprentices to Go,” (Global Mobilisation Network). It seeks to teach people to “do church” in small group settings, away from large worship gatherings that will not be available abroad. Participants spend ten months learning how to reach unreached people groups and develop an authentic community in a small group setting. Families with children are welcomed in, and future workers for Christ are much better prepared than earlier generations of believers. I’ve heard from a few that have participated in TOAG that it is difficult, yet rewarding. The method’s founders state the goal of the training: During TOAG, interns learn to be a Kingdom Community without including Western structures that often hinder movements. They experience life in community with other interns, something more akin to the Book of Acts. By taking them out of present ecclesiastical structures, which include powerful (& professional) music, well-crafted homilies (by highly trained professionals) in safe, comfortable surroundings (expensive buildings), interns experience first-hand what is and is not required for believers to be a ‘Kingdom-Community,’ experimenting with simple, organic structures capable of sharing the life-changing power of God’s Kingdom and reproducing into movements. … These are just some of the reasons why many Americans benefit from the hands-on learning experience of TOAG.
We need to prepare for the prophesied persecution that is coming and expect God to grow us through it as never before. Literally, millions of Christians around the world can testify to this truth, as Paul testified clearly in this Scripture.
“We also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.” Romans 5:3-5:
Whether you use TOAG or some other training method you need to get with like-minded believers who understand the times and get into step with what God is calling us to do in these last days to make sure we complete the Great Commission in the community where God has placed us.
Check out http://www.lastdaysovercomer.org for the free ebook Prepare for the Last Days – Fulfilling God’s Purposes at the End of the Age.
PROPHESIED END TIMES CHURCH
This week, nearly two million people attended a mass celebrated by Pope Francis in Portugal on the occasion of World Youth Day. A couple of days before that, 200,000 people attended a religious celebration at Fatima, the site of an appearance in 1917 to three children of the Virgin Mary. It’s also been a site of miraculous cures ever since. That’s some pulling power.
The striking thing about these giant congregations is that they were overwhelmingly young people. Francis can thank the greatest of the modern popes, John Paul II, who founded WYD in the mid-1980s.
WYD is a key experience for millions of young people and typically leads to spikes in religious vocations and spiritual life generally. However, even this astounding good moment is mired in the strangest contemporary confusion.
Portuguese bishop Americo Aguiar, who has just been elevated to the rank of cardinal by the Pope, assured the world: “We don’t want to convert the young people to Christ or the Catholic Church or anything like that.”
Say what? If a bishop doesn’t want to convert people to Christ, surely he’s in the wrong line of work. Why not become a game show host or a diversity officer at a university? Good callings but, unlike bishoping, they don’t require you to preach Christ.
Bishop Aguiar said the main purpose of WYD was to celebrate diversity so all young people could walk happily together. This is almost literally insane. Of course, diversity’s a good thing. But it’s not the only thing or the main thing. It would be like a cancer hospital declaring it was no longer interested in actually treating cancer but would instead focus on celebrating the wide range of people who came along.
Jesus told us that in the last days before He returns to restore righteousness that much of the church will compromise with the world, that there would be apostasy, a great falling away, and even worse.
“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake. And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.” Matthew 24:9-13
Taken from an article in The Weekend Australian by Greg Sheridan – Pope’s brand of liberalism is ‘entombed’ in the ’60s
HILLSONG
Hillsong Church’s International Ministry Director Darren Kitto claimed he would need to cover nearly $50,000 in pool expenses in 2018 as part of a $125,000 housing allowance for a Newport Beach, California, home he purchased in the Santa Ana Heights neighborhood for $1.85 million that features a “portable spa.”
The details on Kitto’s housing allowance claim for 2018 were highlighted in a trove of documents first made public on March 9 by Andrew Wilkie, an independent member of the Australian Parliament, thanks to the work of a whistleblower.
Last days church: what did Jesus have to say about the church that is left behind after the rapture of the Saints.
“‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.” Revelation 3:15-19
HOSTILITY AGAINST CHURCHES
In December 2022, Family Research Council (FRC) released an extensive publication documenting a sharp rise in acts of hostility against churches in the United States. Analyzing publicly available data from the past five years, FRC found a total of 420 documented acts of hostility that occurred between January 2018 and September 2022.
The types of acts identified include vandalism, arson, gun-related incidents, bomb threats, and more. There also appeared to be an increase in frequency over the course of the reporting period. FRC’s report identified 137 acts of hostility against churches between January and September 2022. By comparison, there were 96 incidents in all 12 months of 2021. FRC also identified 54 incidents against churches in 2020, 83 in 2019, and 50 in 2018. Since the launch of that report, FRC has continued to track acts of hostility against churches. The fourth quarter of 2022 saw an additional 54 incidents, for a total of 191 in 2022. That number is nearly double the previous year’s total of 96. In the first quarter of 2023, 69 incidents have already occurred. If this rate continues, 2023 will have the highest number of incidents of the six years FRC has tracked, continuing the upward trend. Most of the 2023 incidents occurred in January (43); 14 occurred in February, and 12 occurred in March 2023.
Criminal acts of vandalism and destruction of church property are symptomatic of a collapse in societal reverence and respect for houses of worship and religion—in this case, churches and Christianity. Some people appear increasingly comfortable lashing out against church buildings, pointing to a larger societal problem of marginalizing core Christian beliefs, including those that touch
on hot-button political issues related to human dignity and sexuality. The anger and division that increasingly characterize American society are endangering churches and eroding religious freedom. When congregants feel targeted by members of their communities or church buildings bear the brunt of outrage over political events, the very ability to live out one’s faith safely is
under attack. Violent or destructive incidents that interfere with an individual’s lawful free exercise of religion at their house of worship present a significant nationwide challenge.
The above report is to be expected as we fast approach the Biblical prophesied time before Jesus returns to restore righteousness to the world. Lawlessness, deception, many abandoning the faith, apostasy, Antichrist, and the Mark of the Beast are all prophesied to take place before His return. Christians need to prepare for these coming events and be faithful to proclaim the GOOD NEWS, the “gospel of the kingdom” until Jesus returns to rapture faithful believers and pour out His wrath upon an unbelieving world.
“And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” Matthew 24:12-14
“For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, those days will be cut short.” Matthew 24:21-22
“Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him … For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God … The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” 2 Thessalonians 2:1,3-4,9-12
FACE PERSECUTION OR FLEE?
The end times church will be faced with this question (face persecution of flee) more and more as Christians experience the coming prophesied tribulation in the last seven years before Jesus returns first to rapture His church and to pour out His wrath on a lawless, unrepentant world.
In this photo taken Sunday, June 3, 2018, the demolished house church is seen in the city of Zhengzhou in central China’s Henan province. Under President Xi Jinping, China’s most powerful leader since Mao Zedong, believers are seeing their freedoms shrink dramatically even as the country undergoes a religious revival. Experts and activists say that as he consolidates his power, Xi is waging the most severe systematic suppression of Christianity in the country since religious freedom was written into the Chinese constitution in 1982. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
Three years ago, 62 members of China’s Shenzhen Reformed Holy Church, also known as the Mayflower Church, fled to South Korea to escape persecution from the Communist government. They requested political asylum in South Korea but were denied. The church is now in Thailand, where members hope to gain refugee status, and eventually resettle in the United States. Until then, they face many challenges, including possible arrest by Thailand immigration police and being sent back to China.
The Mayflower Church believes that they are like the Israelites in Exodus who God brought out of Egypt. As well, if you study the book of Acts, the Apostle Paul fled persecution. Most Christian churches in the Western world would support the course of action taken by the Mayflower Church, however, many of the Chinese house church Christians have a self-identity of being “patriotic martyrs”. They are willing to suffer and be martyred for their faith. So when a group decides to leave persecution and martyrdom, that creates some tension in what has become a cultural and religious identity of the entire house church Protestant movement in China.
Regardless, it was encouraging to learn what Pastor Pan said in response to this contradictory view, “While church members still face restrictions and potential deportation, we enjoy the freedom we have to worship. I struggle with many uncertainties in my heart like most of my congregation. But we find strength every time we experience how God has been faithfully providing for our daily needs and how He is constantly protecting us from the evil men who want to harm us. “Whether we go live in the US or are taken back to China, we will regard this experience as listening to God’s call and continuing to be a vibrant testimony of His goodness and faithfulness.”
CHURCH OF ENGLAND DEPARTS FROM GOD’S WORD
Archbishop of York says gay sex is OK if in ‘committed, stable, faithful relationships’
The Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, and Rev. Canon Stephen Race (R) when he is consecrated as the new Bishop of Beverley during a service in York Minster on November 30, 2022, in York, England.
BBC Radio Four’s William Crawley asked the archbishop the following questions:
- Are homosexuality and same-sex marriage sinful? The C of E’s new stance on the issue is that it’s OK, as long as couples are in “committed, stable, faithful relationships,” adding that same-sex married couples will be “welcomed fully into the life of the Church, on their terms.”
- William Crawley asked the archbishop whether the C of E’s recent decision not to officiate same-sex weddings while allowing gay marriages to be blessed was a “bit of a fudge.” Cottrell responded, “I see it as a way of holding together a church which doesn’t agree on this issue and it takes us to a place where LGBTIQ+ people, people entering into same-sex marriages, people in civil partnerships are able to come to the Church of England and those relationships and marriages can be acknowledged and celebrated.”
- Crawley then asked if the denomination believes “gay sex is sin,? The archbishop replied, “Well, what we are saying is that physical and sexual intimacy belongs in committed, stable, faithful relationships, and therefore where we see a committed, stable, faithful relationship between two people of the same sex, we are now in a position where those people can be welcomed fully into the life of the Church, on their terms.”
Crawley said the C of E must be blessing same-sex unions because it believes it to be good. Archbishop Cottrell replied, “As I say, we believe that stable, faithful, committed, loving relationships are good. They are the place for physical intimacy …”
Crawley again asked, “And not a sin?” The archbishop then responded, “But well, that … that’s what I’m saying … we’re looking to focus on the good in relationships and we want people to live in good, stable, faithful relationships.”
Earlier this month, C of E bishops apologized to the LGBT community for their “rejection and exclusion” within the denomination, saying they were now “welcome and valued” within the denomination.
The group Christian Concern said Cottrell’s statement confirms the CofE’s departure from its own biblical teaching on human sexuality which states that marriage is: “in its nature a union permanent and lifelong, for better for worse, till death them do part, of one man with one woman.”
Andrea Williams, Christian Concern’s chief executive who was also a member of the general synod for 10 years, said Cottrell’s comments “embody the compromised position of the Church of England on human sexuality.” “The role of the Archbishop of York is to lead in explaining God’s beautiful pattern for human life and relationships, not to preside over a convoluted process of compromise. Sadly, it has been a failure of leadership from the start by the Archbishops of Canterbury and York. For this, they will answer to God, and we must pray for them. It is not loving or kind to hide the truth from the culture,” she said.
God’s Word is adamant that sexual expression is reserved for marriage between one man and one woman. Any other form of sexual relationship is sexually immoral.
This is just one of the many signs Jesus told us would happen before His second coming to restore righteousness.
“And then many will fall away (from faith) and betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.” Matthew 24:10-13
LIVING ETERNAL NOW 