Christians are commanded to flee to the mountains
when they see the abomination of desolation
(Matthew 24:15-16, cf. Daniel 11:31,36,
2 Thessalonians 2:4), which will start the
Antichrist's 42-month world-reign and successful
war against the church (Revelation 13:5-10,
14:12-13, 20:4, Matthew 24:9-13), just as
Christians are commanded to flee any place where
they are being persecuted (Matthew 10:23), not out
of any cowardly fear of suffering or death
(Revelation 2:10), but so that they might live to
preach another day to those not persecuting them
(Acts 17:10-18:11), and so that some in the church
might still be "alive and remain" at the second
coming (1 Thessalonians 4:15-17).
While Christians are soldiers in God's army,
wrestling against Satan and his demons (Ephesians
6:12), Christians do not war physically
(2 Corinthians 10:3-5). Indeed, they are
specifically commanded not to war physically
(Matthew 26:52), even in revenge (Matthew 5:39),
just as they are told that they will not win
physically against Satan (Revelation 2:10) or the
Antichrist (Revelation 13:7-10, 14:12-13, 20:4) or
any of the evil people around the world who will be
killing Christians during the coming tribulation
(Matthew 24:9-13). So Christians must completely
erase from their minds any idea of fighting some
successful physical war against evil during that
time.
Instead, Christians will defeat the plans of Satan
and all evil during the coming tribulation by either
fleeing into protected places in the mountains
(Matthew 24:16, Ezekiel 7:16), the wilderness
(Revelation 12:6), where Satan will be unable to
harm them (Revelation 12:14-16), or by dying
faithfully at his hands (Revelation 12:11, 2:10).
Christians will be more than conquerors even as they
are led like sheep to the slaughter (Romans
8:36-37), for their death is gain to them as it
takes them into heaven to be with Jesus
(Philippians 1:21,23, 2 Corinthians 5:8), and they
will return with Jesus at the second coming to be
resurrected into immortal bodies (1 Thessalonians
4:14-16, 1 Corinthians 15:22-23,52-53) in which they
will reign with Jesus on the earth for 1000 years
(Revelation 20:4-6, 5:10, 2:26-29). So death is no
loss for a Christian; no Christian should ever fear
death (Hebrews 2:15, Revelation 2:10, 21:8).
The armor of Ephesians 6:13-17 is not for physical
protection or survival, but rather for spiritual
protection and survival; that is, for Christians to
be able to maintain their salvation they must remain
in the truth (1 Timothy 4:16, 2 Timothy 4:2-4), and
they must remain in righteousness (Hebrews 10:26-29,
1 Corinthians 9:27, 6:9-10, Galatians 5:19-21), and
they must remain in the gospel (1 Corinthians 15:1-4,
Colossians 1:23, Mark 8:35-38), and they must remain
in the faith (1 Timothy 4:1, 2 Timothy 2:12, Hebrews
6:4-8), and they must remain in the salvation that
comes only through Jesus Christ of Nazareth (John
14:6, 3:36, Acts 4:12), and they must remain in the
word of God (James 1:21, 2 Timothy 3:15-17).
None of these things protect Christians physically.
Indeed, they are the very reason that Christian
martyrs have been killed by evil people throughout
history, and will be killed by evil people during the
coming tribulation (Matthew 24:9-13, Revelation
13:7-10, 14:12-13, 20:4). So Christians must
completely erase from their minds any idea that the
armor of God is for their physical protection.
---
The 144,000 male-virgins part of the church
(Revelation 14:4) won't flee to the mountains, but
will be caught up to the throne of God (Revelation
14:5) as the "man child" right before the 42-month
world-reign of the Antichrist begins (Revelation
12:5-6). It will be the rest of the church which
will remain on the earth that will either flee into
the mountains (Matthew 24:16, Ezekiel 7:16), the
wilderness (Revelation 12:6), to be protected from
Satan (Revelation 12:14-16), or will remain in the
cities to suffer the wrath of Satan (Revelation
12:17) and the Antichrist (Revelation 13:7-10,
14:12-13, 20:4) and evil people all around the
world (Matthew 24:9-13).
---
Mark 8:35-38 includes reference to those Christians
who will save their lives during the reign of the
Antichrist not by fleeing into the mountains, the
wilderness, but by committing apostasy, denying
Jesus and the gospel and the word of God, in order
to keep from being killed for being Christian;
instead of faithfully giving up their lives for
Jesus and the gospel and the word of God (Revelation
20:4, 12:11).
---
Not believing in any conspiracy theory simply
because it's a conspiracy theory does have to do
with pride. It has nothing to do with common sense.
No one has said to believe every idiotic internet
philosophy out there, but to test every last one
which we become aware of against what the Bible
itself teaches; and to reject any which aren't in
line with the Bible, and to keep an open mind about
those which are in line with the Bible. The Bible
indeed works just fine (2 Timothy 3:15-17), but we
must actually apply it to the things which we are
facing in the world, and see how those things may be
talked about or be involved in the things talked
about in the Bible.
The Bible speaks of the Antichrist conspiracy, when
he will gain power through a "small people" (Daniel
11:23), as in numerically small. So it behooves us to
consider who these relatively few people may be who
will succeed in eventually bringing the whole world
into the worship of Lucifer and the Antichrist
(Revelation 13:4) and his gnostic doctrine (1 John
4:3, 2 John 1:7); not so that we might try to
forestall or defeat them, but so that we might be
wary of them and avoid them and not be snookered by
them, and so that we might warn others about them.
If they are going to succeed in taking over the
world, this will include news organizations, both
local and worldwide, which they could have taken
over already, precisely in order to be able to
control the information and disinformation which the
world will be provided in the run-up to its takeover
by the Antichrist. So Christians must completely
erase from their minds any idea that the news media
are the arbiters of what is the truth and what is
deception.