Is Russian President Vladimir Putin the Antichrist? Only to some folks who fear that Putin intends to rebuild the old Soviet Empire through military force.
Putin's not the Antichrist. Rather, he's a shrewd and ruthless political leader who takes no prisoners when it comes to those who oppose and cross him. Just ask former Russian oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky who served eight years in prison, (2005-2013) allegedly for financial fraud.
In reality, Khodorkovsky was one of Putin's most outspoken critics until he was jailed. Before he was arrested, Khodorkovsky was one of the richest men in the world with an estimated wealth of $15 billion. When he was released from prison two years ago, his wealth was estimated at $100-200 million. Did Khodorkovsky's harsh criticism of Putin have anything to do with his incarceration and loss of wealth? Does the sun come up in the east?
Indeed it does. And indeed, Putin's not a nice guy when it comes to his enemies. But he's not stupid either, unlike many western political leaders who see the world much differently than he does. Putin deals in reality rather than in the fantasies and social theories that his western counterparts deal in.
For example, western leaders such as President Barack Obama, British Prime Minister David Cameron and Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel are convinced that the upheaval going on in Iraq, Syria and Libya is caused by poverty and joblessness. Putin knows that it was caused by ignorant western leaders who believed they could replace strongmen dictators such as Assad, Saddam Hussein, Hosni Mubarak and Muammar Gaddafi with benevolent leaders disposed to "democracy."
Why has Putin put Russian troops in Syria? To protect Syrian President Bashar al-Assad by destroying the coterie of rebels from "freedom-fighters" to ISIS that marched into Syria after the United States pulled its troops out of Iraq. Though Assad's a brutal man who has used force and torture against his enemies, he's kept a lid on terrorism and religious fundamentalism in Syria.
There are those who want Assad out of Syria--western leaders who want to a more "democratic" leader to rule that nation, and Islamists who want Assad out so they can reestablish a caliphate in that region that vanished 90 years ago with the fall of the Ottoman Empire.
Why does Putin need Assad? Because if Assad falls, ISIS will take over that nation and begin moving northward into nations such as Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.
Those are Muslim nations that will offer no resistance to ISIS. And Russia sits to the north of these nations. Thus, the Russians can either deal with ISIS in Syria, or they can deal with the jihadists in Russia. Since Russia's too massive of a nation to build a fence around, Putin plans to do away with ISIS and the American-trained rebels who are fighting Assad in Syria before they begin moving northward toward the Bear.
And if Putin succeeds and keeps Assad in power? Then what? Will Putin abandon the Middle East? Hardly. With the United States retreating from the world stage, Putin plans to reshape the Middle East according to his worldview. That means that Islamists will eventually be driven from the Middle East into the west where they will cause havoc and destruction before Russia eventually extends her power across the entire world.
Here's what Putin said in a speech to the Russian Duma in 2013: :"In Russia, we live as Russians. Any minority, from anywhere, if it wants to live in Russia, to work and eat in Russia, should speak Russian, and should respect the Russian laws. If they prefer Sharia Law, and live the life of Muslims, then we advise them to go to those places where that's the state law. Russia does not need Muslim minorities. Minorities need Russia, and we will not grant them special privileges, or try to change our laws to fit their desires, no matter how loud they yell discrimination."
Putin clearly means that Islam has no future in Russia. And if he has his way, Islam won't have a future in many other places on the planet. Taking a swipe at the west, Putin said this: "We will not tolerate disrespect of our Russian culture. We had better learn from the suicides of America, England, Holland and France, if we are to survive as a nation. The Muslims are taking over those countries and they will not take over Russia. The Russian customs and traditions are not compatible with the lack of culture or the primitive ways of Sharia Law and Muslims. When this honorable legislative body thinks of creating new laws, it should have in mind the Russian national interest first, observing that the Muslim minorities are not Russians."
Putin indeed plans on building a new Russian empire. And unlike the old Soviet Union, the new empire will be a global one. Who says? Biblical prophecy says. Two ancient prophets--Daniel and Ezekiel--who lived about 2,600 years ago, revealed the rise of Russia as a world power in the last days (Daniel 11, Ezekiel 38-39).
And we're beginning to see that happen. It will take time; perhaps many years. But it's going to happen. And the dreaded Antichrist will eventually come from this rejuvenated superpower. Thus, Russia's ascent to global dominance is no coincidence. It's prophetic. And in some ways, Vladimir Putin has become a foreshadow of the coming Antichrist.
No comments:
Post a Comment