God is alerting believers of the soon return of His Son through the “Signs of the Times.” These are prophecies concerning world events and unique attitudes we are told to watch for, prophecies that will identify the season of the Lord’s return.
God is obligated by His character to warn the world of impending Tribulation judgment and the imminent return of His Son.
The reason for this is because Jesus is returning in great wrath to “judge and wage war” (Rev. 19:11), and God never pours out His wrath without warning.
The Lord does not wish that any should perish, but that all should be brought to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). Therefore, He always warns before He executes His wrath.
He warned the world through Noah for 120 years. He also warned Sodom and Gomorrah through Abraham. He sent Jonah to warn the pagan city of Nineveh, and He sent Nahum to the same city 150 years later. God used Jeremiah to warn Judah that He was sending the Babylonian’s to destroy Jerusalem if they didn’t repent. And Jesus warned that the Romans would wipe out Israel and their Temple if they didn’t repent. It happened in 70 AD.
Likewise, God is warning the world today that time is running out. He is sending sign after sign that His Son is about to return. The message of the hour we should be hearing from pulpits is: “Flee from the wrath that is to come by fleeing into the loving arms of Jesus now.”
Jesus came the first time as an expression of God’s love; He came to die for the sins of Mankind. But when He returns, He will come in vengeance to pour out the wrath of God on those who have rejected God’s love and grace.
A common response to those like me who believe we live in the last days is this: “The world has seen violence and wickedness all through its history. What’s so different about today?” I fully understand that question. When we consider the world wars of the previous century, it seems as though things could not get any worse than that. Seventy-five years ago, many Christians thought Hitler was Antichrist based on his hatred of the Jews and his efforts to establish a socialist empire. This was truly a terrible time in world history, but it was not the prelude to the Tribulation period like we're seeing today.
The Holocaust was for a different purpose. It was Satan's effort to prevent Israel from becoming a nation and fulfilling their end time destiny. My assertion regarding the nearness of the Day of the Lord does not stem from a comparison of the peril in years past to that of today.
Our time in history is unique because of the abundance of biblical signs telling us that the Tribulation is rapidly approaching. And our generation is unique because we are seeing a “convergence” of all the Signs of the Times shouting to us that the Lord is coming soon! Below, I list several key signs that warn us of its nearness in time:
The Signs of Israel as a Nation
The rebirth of Israel in 1948 sparked a domino effect on end time prophecy. Not only is God gathering Jews back to the Land, Israel is now in control of Jerusalem, a major sign and prerequisite for the events of the Tribulation period.
Aligning Nations of Prophecy
Ezekiel 38 provides important details of the Battle of Armageddon that are not mentioned in the book of Revelation. Although the prophet lists the invading armies by their ancient names, the alliance will consist of Turkey, Iran, Sudan, and Libya. Today, all four of these radical Islamic nations have abundant military resources and soldiers in Syria, close to Israel’s borders. Both Iran and Turkey also have a strategic alliance with Libya and Sudan.
Equally remarkable are the countries missing from the Ezekiel list of Israel’s enemies and how they’re in alignment today. Egypt and Jordan currently have peace treaties with Israel; Saudi Arabia has recently formed a close alliance with Jerusalem in response to the threat from Iran. The Lord, through the prophet Ezekiel, precisely described today’s current Middle East alignment of nations over 2,600 years ago.
Alignment of Turkey and Iran
In an amazing turn of events, Turkey and Iran are forming an alliance! Turkey is Sunni and the former head of the Ottoman empire while Iran is the world’s most dominant Shiite nation. Traditionally, these two Muslim factions don’t mix well but that’s exactly how Daniel prophesied the final empire, “And just as you saw the iron mixed with baked clay, so the people will be a mixture and will not remain united, any more than iron mixes with clay” (Daniel 2:43).
The Push for Third Temple
The Bible predicts the existence of a third Jewish temple in the last days. In Matthew 24:15, Jesus referred to Daniel’s prophecy that Antichrist would defile a rebuilt Jewish temple in the middle of the seven-year tribulation (see also Dan. 9:27). The push for this temple is rising at a fever pitch in Israel. For the first time, Orthodox political parties have included a pro-temple plank as part of their party statement in 2019. Most amazingly, they were voted into the Knesset!
The Tribulation is casting its shadow over the final years of the Church age. Time is running short. The Bible tells us we cannot know the timing of Jesus’ return for His church, which happens before the Tribulation. But He did give us Signs so we would recognize the season of His return, and we are in that season. If you are in the Greenville, SC area then mark your calendar to join our class (Tuesday, October 1, 2019 - click here for details) we will discuss prophecies about world events and unique attitudes to watch for that identify the season of the Lord’s return. Our goal for the class is to help you realize we are smack-dab in the middle of the end times!
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