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We are living in a time when there is a widespread sense of impending international crisis. How do we see things from Heaven's perspective?

In the past week, Westminster has been buzzing with speculation that the Prime Minister will call a referendum on Europe as early as June this year. At the meeting of business leaders in Davos, Switzerland this week, David Cameron has been urging increased support for a deal that will bolster his campaign for Britain to stay in the European Union.

He called upon business leaders to make their voices heard in support of Britain staying within Europe. His appeal was strengthened by reports that Goldman Sachs had made a donation of a six-figure sum to the campaign to keep Britain in the EU as the Prime Minister threw his weight behind the campaign.

But most of Europe's leaders have other things on their minds, as the migrant crisis deepens. Donald Tusk, the current President of the European Council, said that Europe has two months in which to solve the migrant crisis - or the EU itself is likely to collapse. He was referring to the reduced numbers trying to enter Eastern Europe via Greece in the winter months, when the crossing from Turkey is particularly dangerous. He was forecasting that as soon as spring arrives, the vast flow of migrants and asylum seekers will be beyond control. 

EU Collapse?

Winter sets in in 'The Jungle' migrant camp, Calais.

French Prime Minister Manuel Valls has also warned that the European Union is in danger of fracturing in the coming months if the migrants cannot be stopped. Despite the winter weather, there are reports that 2,000 newcomers a day are finding their way into Europe.

Europe's open borders policy allowing all its citizens to move freely has already collapsed, with the closing of borders between many eastern European nations and - significantly - between Austria and Germany, as well as the closing of the 10-mile-long bridge between Denmark and Sweden.

The re-imposition of border controls has come about through the vast numbers coming from the war zones of Syria and Iraq, as well as North Africa via Italy, that are imposing impossible demands upon public services such as housing, health, education and employment. It simply is not possible to accommodate such large numbers in many communities in such a short time.

Europe's open borders policy has already collapsed and public services are pressurised. It is simply not possible to accommodate such large numbers in such a short time.

Culture Clashes

But the major pressure has been intensified by reports that have filled the media of sex attacks upon women and girls by asylum seekers and migrants, which have inflamed public opinion.

These incidents, which police and local authorities have tried to hide, are the inevitable result of the clash of cultures. Cultural integration simply cannot take place in a short space of time, neither can it be forced upon a community for which no preparation has been made and where no attempt has been made to ensure that the newcomers have even a basic understanding of the language and customs of the host society.

International Upheaval

The mistakes that have been made in Europe are horrendous and come at a time of increasing international conflict, economic uncertainty and political upheaval. There is a widespread sense of impending international crisis that is compounded by the economic chaos in China; the tensions in the Far East caused by North Korean boasts that they have exploded a hydrogen bomb; the expectation that Iran will flood the market with cheap oil that will destabilise the economy of oil-producing countries, the increasing complexity of the Syrian civil war and the brutal conflict being waged by the so-called Islamic State.

As if all this is not enough, the murder of Alexander Litvinenko in London has added to diplomatic tensions between Britain and Russia after an enquiry implicated President Putin in the assassination.

The EU migrant situation, with a host of other events around the globe, together compound a widespread sense of impending international crisis.

Heaven's Perspective

That's a brief roundup of just some of the things that are going on in the world. But what is the prophetic significance of these events? If it were possible to look at the state of the world from the heavenly places, what conclusion would be reached? I think our 'heavenly observer' might start by quoting Psalm 2; "Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against his Anointed One. Let us break their chains, they say, and throw off their fetters".

The evidence suggests that the whole world is in rebellion against its Creator. In Britain they are even teaching small school children that there is no such thing as 'gender' in an attempt to blot out the Creator of the Universe! The psalmist says that "the Lord God scoffs at them!" because he knows that one day they will be brought before him to account for their lives and the evil they have done. In fact, Jesus said it would be better for people who destroy the lives of children to have a millstone tied around their necks and drown in the sea than go on abusing children.

But on the bigger picture, the Bible tells us that there will come a time in world history when the rebellion of humans against the God of Creation becomes so great that their actions threaten to destroy the entire world. Before that happens, God will do something dramatic. He will shake all nations, and everything that human beings have created, from the great financial and political empires to the denominational structures that we call 'churches'. In fact, the only things that will not be shaken are the things that God himself has made. Isaiah describes the day when the great shaking of all creation reaches its climax. He says that "The pride of men will be humbled; and the Lord alone will be exalted in that day" (Isa 2:17).

The Bible tells of a time in world history when human rebellion against God will become so great that their actions threaten to destroy the entire world - but also that God will intervene.

None of us knows when all this will happen, but the year 2016 has certainly started with a lot of events which indicate that a significant milestone has been reached in world history. The advice of Jesus was when we see these things happening we should "watch and pray".