Veering toward the End Times
FORBIDDEN: Book Four of the Forlorn series
By Gina Detwiler
When I started writing Forlorn, I never thought I would end up delving into End Times eschatology. I thought the books would be about a girl conquering one demon.
One.
The last two years changed everything. A worldwide pandemic. The Great Reset. Lockdowns. Mask mandates. Unprecedented encroachments on human freedom. mRNA vaccines. Contact tracing. Vaccine passports. Subdermal microchips. Data tracking. Quarantine containment camps. Riots. Thugs taking over cities. Drones spying on people. The emergence of weird new biotechnologies like hydrogel, Neurolinks, and nanobots inserted into people’s bodies. Censorship of anyone who disagrees with the mainstream narrative. World leaders all marching in lockstep to the orders of a secretive, elitist organization led by a 70s Bond villain.
Turns out there is more than one demon in the world.
Maybe I’m hyperventilating. Maybe this isn’t the End Times. It could be that the world has temporarily turned into a Ray Bradbury novel, and everything will go back to normal soon.
I hope so.
But as a fiction writer, it’s my job to ask, “What if?”
What if we are living in the End Times? What if the COVID pandemic is a sign of the “birth pangs”—the beginning of the end? What if the dissolution of Western culture and the demoralization of the Church will lead to the great “falling away” spoken of in the scriptures? What if the vaccine passports, microchips, and other intrusive measures are the first steps towards instituting a worldwide cashless society, as predicted in Revelation, where no one can buy, sell, travel, or engage in any public activity without the Mark of the Beast?
This scenario does fit perfectly with the plot points of my new novel Forbidden: what if a powerful elitist organization intentionally started a worldwide pandemic to sell its “miracle cure,” Darwin Speer’s DNA-altering treatment created from Jared’s Nephilim blood (see Book 3—Forgiven). And what if Speer’s collider accident (also in Forgiven) leads to the Watchers being released from the Abyss and the rise of a new world leader with supernatural power?
I find it fascinating and a little frightening how the progression of my books has dovetailed with current events. Did God orchestrate the timing of all this? I believe He is in control, even when everything seems out of control. I also think He gave us the Book of Revelation and the other scriptural hints about End Times not to scare us but to prepare us.
SIGNS OF THE END TIMES
I’m not the only one to speculate in the last couple of years as to whether or not we might be living in the End Times. But what exactly are the signs? Jesus said there would be wars, famine, earthquakes. John said there would be a great Beast, the Antichrist, a False Prophet, the Four Horsemen, many more wars, and natural disasters on an unprecedented scale.
Paul had a more spiritual perspective:
'But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people. ' 2 Timothy 3:1-5
Self-love is nothing new, but social media has fed this beast so, like the plant in Little Shop of Horrors, it has grown to monstrous proportions. Feelings have replaced facts. Opinions trump truth. Morality has been turned upside down so that the world celebrates what used to be considered sin while condemning biblical morality. Holding conservative views of sexuality will get you censored and even canceled in this country. In other places, Canada, for instance, it’s even illegal.
The Church is not helping matters much. In fact, it is contributing to the problem by preaching a muddled, humanistic “gospel” that seems more interested in attracting followers than saving souls from sin. Paul predicted this would happen:
'For a time is coming when people will no longer listen to sound and wholesome teaching. They will follow their own desires and will look for teachers who will tell them whatever their itching ears want to hear. They will reject the truth and chase after myths. ' 2 Timothy 4:3-4
My character Harry Ravel is an example of this—he was based upon the phenomenally wealthy and successful “evangelist” Joel Osteen. Take Joel’s book The Power of I Am as an example. If you know your Bible, “I AM” refers only to God. But in Joel’s twisted theology, it refers to you.
Whatever follows the words "I am" will always come looking for you. So, when you go through the day saying: "I am blessed" . . . blessings pursue you. "I am talented" . . . talent follows you. "I am healthy". . . health heads your way. "I am strong". . . strength tracks you down.
If that isn’t a blatant example of self-love, I don’t know what is.
But things are getting worse. Paul says not only will preachers tell lies, but they will also teach doctrines from demons:
'Now the Holy Spirit tells us clearly that in the last times some will turn away from the true faith; they will follow deceptive spirits and teachings that come from demons. ' 1 Timothy 4:1
I’ve seen this happening as more and more evangelical leaders—many of whom I have followed for decades—have abandoned the true gospel in favor of social justice causes like homosexuality, same-sex marriage, transgenderism, feminism, Black Lives Matter, and Critical Race Theory. More and more churches are openly touting concepts like “liberation theology” and “queer theology.” They are pushing the vaccine mandates, telling their followers it’s their Christian duty to get the vaccine and wear masks, and even preaching against religious exemptions. Frances Collins, the former director of the NIH, who professes to be a Christian and is praised by the likes of Tim Keller, has funded fetal tissue research and even believes God is “ok” with that. The sad thing is that many Christians agree with him. If the babies are dead anyway, they reason, why not use their body parts for something good?
There have been false teachers around ever since Paul’s day. But I’ve sensed a definite escalation in recent years, a speeding toward the finish. I’m not the only one. Daniel 12 says, “Many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase.” Knowledge is a double-edged sword—as we have learned from Adam and Eve. It can be for our benefit, but it can also lead to our destruction.
In Forbidden, I tried to envision a world where these demonic forces get their way, at least for a time. The frightening thing is that most of the world will go along with it—the Bible tells us so. Those of us who have been paying attention have seen it happening already.
'But you aren’t in the dark about these things, dear brothers and sisters, and you won’t be surprised when the day of the Lord comes like a thief. For you are all children of the light and of the day; we don’t belong to darkness and night. So be on your guard, not asleep like the others. Stay alert and be clearheaded. ' 1 Thessalonians 5:4-6
Stay awake.
Gina Detwiler’s newest novel, Forbidden, Part Four of the YA Supernatural Forlorn series, releases March 2022. In addition to Forlorn, she is the co-author of the middle-grade fantasy series The Prince Warriors with Priscilla Shirer. She’s also written The Ultimate Bible Character Guide for LifeWay.
