Signs Of The Second Coming Of Jesus
8-3-2011 Vol. 5 Part 2b
Psalm 38:12-22 NKJV Those also who seek my life lay snares for me; Those who seek my hurt speak of destruction, And plan deception all the day long. But I, like a deaf man, do not hear; And I am like a mute who does not open his mouth. Thus I am like a man who does not hear, And in whose mouth is no response. For in You, O LORD, I hope; You will hear, O Lord my God. For I said, "Hear me, lest they rejoice over me, Lest, when my foot slips, they exalt themselves against me." For I am ready to fall, And my sorrow is continually before me. For I will declare my iniquity; I will be in anguish over my sin. But my enemies are vigorous, and they are strong; And those who hate me wrongfully have multiplied. Those also who render evil for good, They are my adversaries, because I follow what is good. Do not forsake me, O LORD; O my God, be not far from me! Make haste to help me, O Lord, my salvation! Father we praise your name, we give you all the glory. We ask that you hear our prayers for those that are on the Prayer List. Touch our loved ones and draw them to your Son Jesus Christ so that he can reveal to them that he is the only Way, Truth, and Life for eternity. In Jesus name we pray! Amen!
Continued from last week; This is about Matthew 24:7-9.
Devastation: The other half of verse 7 talks about famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. We know there is famine around the world including here in the United States. Just turn on the TV or open your mail, and you will see organizations soliciting money for starving nations. We have homeless people without enough to eat right here in the U.S. What is really sad is the way some people spend a lot of money on their dogs, cats, horses, etc. but turn their back on someone scrounging through a dumpster for something to eat. If it was a dog or a cat someone would scoop up the animal and care for it without batting an eye.
Pestilence seems to be getting much worse in the last ten years. Every time you turn around you hear of someone else being diagnosed with Cancer, Alzheimer's, Parkinson’s, Aids, West Nile, H1N1, etc. These are all increasing in frequency. Polio and Tuberculosis also are making a comeback. All this can be classified as pestilence, but what about this aspect, and the way the pests are being controlled, what effect is this having on us? A pest to a farmer is anything out of place in a field of corn, soybeans, or the intended crop. This being weeds, insects, and fungus. Being in the agricultural seed business for the past 30 some years there is a huge amount of crop dusting done now compared to 30 years ago. If you live in my area the crop dusters have been going daily now for the past two weeks. Thirty years ago it was seldom when you had to call in a crop duster to spray fields. Now it isn’t just at detasseling time and not just for corn, but beans are being spray quite frequently for rust, mildew, fungus, spider mites, etc. Corn may be sprayed three times a year for various things. All these things can be classified as pestilence. One definition of pestilence is; something that is considered harmful, destructive, or evil. Destructive and evil also puts terrorism in perspective with its increase around the world and how it fits in. When I think of pestilence I think of only the plague of insects God has sent to this earth throughout history, but pestilence covers a huge spectrum.
We all know earthquakes are on the rise. They will continue and with much greater intensity as we move forward in time. Between 1900 and 1969 there were roughly six major earthquakes every ten years. Over the last 35 years there have been about seventeen major quakes every 10 years. For the last two to three years we have seen ten to twenty major quakes each year.
Persecution: As time moves forward Christians will be persecuted. Christians will be considered terrorists to the world. We have heard our President already say the U.S. isn’t a Christian nation, and this type of thing will escalate. Some of our news media has made negative comments about God. There is a new religious movement starting to come into being, called the New Age. The belief of these New Age groups is they believe in anything except the true gospel and what Jesus did for us on the Cross. It is a world belief that all religions are good and they should all come together under one roof. It is all about pleasing self by means of worldly things. I see this growing and as it grows, persecution of Christians will rise, there won’t be any place for Bible believing, Born Again Saints. Anyone that puts their faith in Jesus will be hunted down and killed. There are two verses in Revelation that supports this. Revelation 13:7 NKJV It was granted to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them. And authority was given him over every tribe, tongue, and nation. Revelation 13:15 NKJV He was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed.
I hope I haven’t confused you by this scripture stating Born Again Christians will be hunted down and killed. Let me clarify this. The Rapture will remove the present day Saints. The above scripture, 2 Thessalonians 2:11 states anyone that had a chance to accept Jesus as their Saviour before the Rapture, and didn’t, will have a great delusion place upon them by God. They will not be able to discern the truth and accept Jesus. So where will these Born Again Christians come from? They will be people that never heard or understood why Jesus died on the Cross. God will provide people during the Tribulation to witness to these people so they will have a chance to accept Jesus as there Saviour.
What we have just covered in Matthew is also stated in Revelation Chapter 6.
Mathew | Revelation |
Matthew 24:4-5 NKJV And Jesus answered and said to them: "Take heed that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will deceive many. False prophets, religion, and teachings. Deception at its best. | Revelation 6:1-2 NKJV Now I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals; and I heard one of the four living creatures saying with a voice like thunder, "Come and see." 2 And I looked, and behold, a white horse. He who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer. This man on the white horse is not Jesus. He symbolizes someone bringing false teaching and peace to the world. He is the deceiver, the one claiming, “I am the Messiah.” |
Matthew 24:6-7 NKJV And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom…. Wars and rumors of wars. Constant turmoil. It is predicted that the US is targeted for a large terrorist attack in the future. | Revelation 6:3-4 NKJV When He opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, "Come and see." 4 Another horse, fiery red, went out. And it was granted to the one who sat on it to take peace from the earth, and that people should kill one another; and there was given to him a great sword. The man on the red horse symbolizes war. The false peace will be broken by a time of wars, rumors of wars, and bloodshed. |
Matthew 24:7 NKJV ….. And there will be famines…… Severe starvation around the world. Food will cost an astronomical amount of money for a small portion. Just today I heard speculation that the price of corn may hit $10.00 per bushel. I don’t know where that would put beans, $20.00???? What food product doesn’t have corn or beans in it? | Revelation 6:5-6 NKJV When He opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, "Come and see." So I looked, and behold, a black horse, and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand. 6 And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, "A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the oil and the wine." The man on the black horse symbolizes famine, weighing of money for grain. |
Matthew 24:7 NKJV …pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. We know one definition of pestilence is, “harmful, destruction, or evil”. What must happen for one world currency to come into being, that is predicted in Revelation Chapter 13? Has our government postponed this by signing a bill that still isn’t the answer? It isn’t just the US struggling financially. Is the US on the list for a major earthquake? What if the vision of the Chicago earthquake comes true? http://www.greatdreams.com/madrid.htm | Revelation 6:7-8 NKJV When He opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, "Come and see." 8 So I looked, and behold, a pale horse. And the name of him who sat on it was Death, and Hades followed with him. And power was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword, with hunger, with death, and by the beasts of the earth. The man on the pale horse symbolizes death. People will die in vast numbers due to wars, famines, disease, and natural disasters. |
Matthew 24:9 NKJV "Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name's sake. Persecution of Christians is on the rise and will continue on through the Tribulation. | Revelation 6:9-11 NKJV When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held. 10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying, "How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?" 11 Then a white robe was given to each of them; and it was said to them that they should rest a little while longer, until both the number of their fellow servants and their brethren, who would be killed as they were, was completed. The fifth seal symbolizes the persecuted and martyred saints. |
As things continued to happen in our present time, you have to wonder where we are on God’s timeline. How close is the Rapture? Now that you know a little about God’s plan, and when the next natural disaster happens, the next terrorist attack takes place, the world’s economy, someone is diagnosed with some disease, a Christian that was killed, etc., ask yourself this. Am I living for God and assured of going to Heaven if the Rapture happens tomorrow? If you’re not, and the Rapture happens, you will not have a chance to accept Jesus, because God will put that veil of delusion upon you.
All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God!
Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth,
Unless you are Born Again, you cannot enter into Heaven, the Kingdom of God."
Bill
Last Week’s Trivia: Who did God add 15 years of life to?
Answer: 2 Kings 20:6 NKJV And I will add to your days fifteen years. I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria; and I will defend this city for My own sake, and for the sake of My servant David." It was Hezekiah, 2 Kings Chapter 20 tells why this happened.
This week’s Trivia: Why did God have the sun dial shadow go back 10 degrees?
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