"And when He broke the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, 'Come and see.' And another, a red horse, went out; and to him who sat on it, it was granted to take peace from the earth, and that men should slay one another; and a great sword was given to him" (Rev. 6:3, 4 NASB).

The white horse first seal "conquering" for world peace is short lived. For "while they are saying, 'Peace and safety (security)!' then destruction will come upon them suddenly like birth pangs upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape (1 Thess. 5:3). This "sudden destruction" coming upon the world while they're celebrating peace and security by human effort through the United Nations and N.A.T.O., is the red horse, second seal, of Revelation. It's counterpart in Matthew 24:6 and 7 is the "rumors of wars" and "nations rising against nations and kingdoms against kingdoms", part of the "beginnings of birth pangs". The red horse rider of the second seal is "granted to take peace from the earth, and that men should slay one another (italicizing mine). Note also that "a great sword" is given to him. One can only imagine the enormity of world destruction caused by this great war. (One may read about this Magog war in greater detail in Ezekiel chapters 38 and 39; Magog=Russia.) How disheartening it will be to those who have put their hope in the short lived peace. This event will also begin to set up the desperate conditions required for the Antichrist to enter upon the scene in the middle of Daniel's 70th week (Dan. 9:27; 1 Thess. 2:1-12). As soon as the peace accord is signed with Syria and Lebanon, probably by year 2000, then the United Nations forces will be it's guarantor for seven years. This officially begins Daniel's 70th week and religious Jews will be sanctioned to begin building their long awaited temple on Mount Moriah alongside the Moslem's mosque while the Jerusalem problem is trying to be worked out; only this too will fail (Zechariah 12:2, 3).

Unfortunately, Christians who have been taught the pre-tribulational rapture of the church will be in for a great surprise and disappointment. Those who teach that bad things happen only to bad people are deluded and deluding the church. God will hold these accountable who are not warning Christians to be prepared by having their priorities in order knowing that God has never in history excused the church from testing and persecution. The bible does not teach a secret, "as a thief" rapture for the body of Christ that is imminent (1 Thess. 5:4-11), without prior events and signs. We clearly see the chronological flow of events and signs in Matthew chapter 24 preceding the Lords expectant return and the rapture of the church (Matt. 24:3-31). The same can be said of the order of the first six Revelation seals preceding God's wrath (Rev. 6:14-17) and the raptured church in heaven (Rev. 7:9-17). (The above view is referred to as the pre-wrath rapture position, a modified post-tribulational, premillennial dispensational theology.) Someone once said, "Sometimes truth hurts, but it hurts worse when it becomes a surprise."