Fiction - Week 16 - A Fiasco in a Restaurant.

All characters in this story are fictional and bear no resemblance to any person, living or dead.

A story based on Biblical Truth.

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In the boardroom of Portcullis House facing the Houses of Parliament in the heart of Westminster, Philip Banks felt himself tremble within, although he made every effort to hide it from his paymasters seated around the table. Playing a Judas Iscariot against a Christian group in their hideaway in Egham meant delivering his friends to the officials of Gaius Caligula.

He thought of George Bolton, a friend he made when they started a new life at Holloway College. Yes, they disagreed on matters to the point where they nearly fought in a crowded restaurant in Windsor. Yet, at all other times, George stood by him, along with Steve Wright, the student who suddenly vanished along with his friend, Roger Padula, a motor mechanic at a local garage.

Then there was Peter, the leader of the group, whose knowledge of theology had shone a light on his own unbelief. Through him, even Phil became more knowledgeable about the Bible. Indeed, they all tried to muster his faith in Christ, but he knew it was already too late to believe. The door of grace was already closed to all those who took the Mark. Hence, he must remain absolutely loyal to Gaius Caligula. Secretly, he began to see chinks of weakness in his idol, who claimed to be God. Yet he dared not even hint to the men in business suits seated at the boardroom table.

Then there was Emily, the black female in the group. She was like a mother to him. The very thought of betraying her to these men made him shudder, but there was no way out, no excuses. With a heavy heart, he beckoned the group to arrange transport.

Portcullis House with Westminster Bridge.

There are twelve of them. We need a vehicle with room to take them all. Where will you take them? Phil asked.

To an interrogation centre here in London. Its location will remain a secret.

Are any of you accompanying me? Phil asked.

No, you will all be escorted by the Army. But we will meet you at the interrogation centre.

Presently, an army vehicle was parked outside. A group of uniformed soldiers sat inside, beside the driver. Phil then signalled to them.

I asked the driver. Do you know where Egham is?

The driver, whom I sat next to in the cab, answered, It's on the A30 past Staines.

The Church of St John the Baptist is easily recognisable. Phil said. Keep an eye out for the clock tower.

The vehicle's satnav was still in use. The driver entered the postcode for the church, and the onboard computer suggested taking the M4, leaving at Exit 4b for the M25. Leave the M25 at Junction 13. The vehicle then began its hour-long journey.

Meanwhile, in Egham, we watched on Phil's laptop as a vast army raced towards Petra in southern Jordan. According to the news reports, Caligula commanded the armies from his base in Jerusalem, around 100 miles (160 km) away. The Jews assembled in and around the region were bowed in prayer. They had rejected the Antichrist as their Messiah, on the principle that he wasn't Jewish. Now, he was seeking revenge by eliminating them from the earth. It was a modern replay of the Holocaust, except that the execution would be much quicker and more efficient.

As we watched, our hearts were in our mouths. 860,000 Jews is a large number, and they occupied a large territory around the desert ruins. Yet, due to his studies, Peter knew that this group of believing Jews was only a portion of approximately eight million who would believe in their true Messiah, out of a total population of world Jewry of around 24,000,000.

As the leaders of the army raced towards their destination, carrying many weapons of destruction, the assembled crowd of Jews came into view. They were almost there. The armies began to fire their weapons.

Just then, something extraordinary happened. The ground on which the armies were advancing suddenly gave way, forming a huge fissure, a widening crack in the ground, which swallowed them up!

I cried out, THE JUDGMENT OF KORAH HAPPENING AGAIN, THIS TIME ON A MUCH LARGER SCALE!

From where we were watching, which was from a TV camera fixed onto the underside of a drone, we could see that the fissure was not an elongated shallow pit. Rather, it was deep, apparently bottomless, and impossible to climb back out. Further views into it from the overhead drone revealed that way, way down was incandescent lava. 

The armies continued to rush towards the crevice like lemmings leaping off a cliff edge. Only a small number at the rear managed to stop and draw back in time before falling in. They then fled in terror back to where they started.

A fissure began to open near Petra.

Caligula, along with Elijah, watched the whole scene on their office computer. He was furious! He knew perfectly well that the true God in Heaven intervened to protect the Jews gathered in Petra. In a rage, he shouted at the false prophet, spilling out his rage at the risen Jesus and the God of heaven. Elijah made every effort to calm his master down, with some effect. 

Caligula banged his fist on his desk, jarring the computer screen. He paced up and down the room like a lion kept in confinement. He then said, 

I want every single person not bearing my Mark rounded up and executed! He shouted at one of his generals who had just entered the room. GO! ROUND THEM UP AND KILL THEM ALL! KILL THEM!

In Egham, Peter gazed wide-eyed at the screen. This is a miracle, a miracle! What John wrote in Revelation chapter 12 was fulfilled to the letter. Look! Look everyone! The fissure streaking across the landscape is slowly closing! The Jews targeted are now safe. People can now walk across the site of the fissure without realising what they had crossed.

And I bet that every soldier on that march had the Clover Leaf etched on their forehead or right hand. I said. I'm sure that when the camera zoomed in, I saw some with the Mark on their foreheads.

You are right, George. John responded. They all had the Mark, and all perished, except some at the rear. The Bible is explicit in what it says.

Suddenly, the floor shook beneath us. 

EARTHQUAKE! Someone shouted as crockery rolled off the kitchen worktop and smashed on the floor.

The quake lasted only a few seconds, but it was enough to convince us that the Tribulation judgments were already underway. We looked around the church for any possible damage. Fortunately, there wasn't any serious damage; only some chairs had toppled. We gathered in a tight circle and bowed in prayer, acknowledging God's power, but also his protection during this hour of trial.

We sat still for a while, maybe up to thirty minutes. All was quiet. We clung to each other, edifying each other's faith and praying for the power of endurance. 

Until the main entrance doors flung open as if rammed. We saw Phil Banks stride in with a group of soldiers marching into the church behind him.

This is the group! Phil announced with a firmness he wasn't aware he possessed. We would have arrived here half an hour ago if the earthquake hadn't struck. It caused traffic chaos on the roads.

He then turned to me, his former college mate.

I'm sorry, George, and you too, Peter and Emily. But I must stay true to Gaius Caligula. After the loss of his military forces in Jordan, he has commanded that everyone not bearing the Mark must be arrested. And that includes all Christian believers.

What is going to happen to us now? Emily asked, her voice trembling.

We'll see. Phil answered, reluctant to answer what he already knew.

YOU TREACHEROUS SCUMBAG! I shouted aloud to Phil. I WISHED I SMACKED YOU ONE THAT NIGHT IN THE RESTAURANT! BLOODY TRAITOR!

I felt Peter's hand grasp my wrist. Remember Isaiah 53:7 we once discussed. "He was oppressed, he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he was brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth".

I recognised the wisdom in Peter's words. Thereafter, I said nothing further and allowed myself to be arrested with the entire group.

We were handcuffed and led to the waiting vehicle, a military van. I turned to look back at the church, knowing that I would never see it again, let alone enter.

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To be Continued.