Discerning the Signs but Looking for the Lord
I do listen. As I get older, I forget more easily, but I do listen to people’s concerns. In the last several years, a number of devoted Christians have asked me some form of the following question: “Are we close to the return of Jesus Christ?” As with any Biblical teaching, we must be careful with this subject. In Matthew 24:36, Jesus said, “Of that day and hour knoweth no man.” Later, in Acts 1:7, He added, “It is not for you to know the times or the seasons.” Paul wrote in I Thesssalonians 5:2 that “the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.” Thus, date-setting defies God’s Word and dishonors our Savior. However, in Matthew 16:3, Jesus pointedly asks, “Can ye not discern the signs of the times?” We do not know and cannot know the exact time of Jesus’ Second Coming and the resulting period of the Tribulation, but we are told to seriously study the signs found in Scripture. (I will be using this opening paragraph for each of the brief messages in this series. The following material will change daily.)
A twentieth sign of the superintended end is that nations will seek to unify. This indicator may seem to contradict Mark 13:7 (which we considered three weeks ago), a passage which confirms that wars will continue and increase. These two seemingly contradictory thoughts are actually complementary: because wars will rage, people will desire to come together in peace. Unfortunately, as Revelation 13:8 clarifies, this union will occur under the authoritarian authority of the Antichrist, who will initially masquerade as a man of peace (Daniel 9:27; Revelation 6:1-2 – note that he has “a bow” but no arrows,” meaning that he does not exploit his military power at first).
We believe that the removal of the Church (the Rapture) will come before the Antichrist seizes control (we will study this subject in detail in a few days – unless Jesus comes back before then!). Thus, even if he is alive today, we do not know who he is. However, we do see the possibility of worldwide unity through international institutions and organizations. A century ago, there was no United Nations (and its precursor, the League of Nations, had just been founded). NGO’s (Non-Governmental Organizations) have surprising power today, as well as access to powerful people. An increasingly integrated world economy is a present reality. Several competing world philosophies (including Marxism, postmodernism, secular humanism, and Islam) actively desire a new world order. What was nearly unthinkable 100 years ago is staring us in the face right now. The Christian’s answer to this understandable but wrongly placed desire for world peace is personal reconciliation with Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6). He offers more than earthly peace; He provides peace everlasting.