the bible is a history book
but it is unlike any other history book
available in any public library
the history of the bible starts with the
creation of the earth
and ends with the end of the world no
other history book has ever been
published that covers such a broad range
of events on planet earth
partially because no one was present at
the start to witness and documented
and therefore no one can write the
beginning of our world authoritatively
we are the only folks in the world who
know how it will all end
that is unique the lord did not reveal
the future to his followers to satisfy
their curiosity
it was to prepare them for the future so
that they would not be surprised when it
arrived
and that they would not misinterpret it
be grateful that jesus was so forthright
in sharing what the future holds for us
people ask are we in the end times
however
the bible talks of the last days and we
have been in the last days for two
thousand years
the last days started at pentecost where
the first prophecy of the last days was
fulfilled
every christian generation should live
to be ready for the lord's return
the bible is a book full of predictions
its pages contain 735 predictions about
the future
a prediction can be found in one quarter
of the bible's chapters
from beginning to end it is basically a
prophetic text
though some books focus more on
predictions than others
596 of the 735 predictions have indeed
occurred
and have literally come true according
to the scripture prediction
so 81 of all bible prophecies have
already come true
and some of those prophecies were made
centuries before the case
it doesn't take much confidence to
believe that the remaining 19 percent
will happen as well that's a very high
score
the bible has proved 100 right for every
prediction that could have been
fulfilled by now
of the rest most of them are concerned
with the actual return of jesus
and what follows after that how many of
these predictions remain to come true
before jesus returns
the answer is about 20 and we are
watching to see those happen first
before we look for the lord's return
jesus told us to watch and pray what do
we watch
we cannot stand still and watch the
clouds to wait for him to appear
that is not what he meant he meant keep
an
eye on what's going on in the world and
see what signs i gave you
to help you prepare signals are the
signs
so let's look at matthew chapter 24
where the disciples asked him
what will be the signs or signals of
your return
what would we do if we don't know when
it's going to happen
to their inquiry jesus gave a direct and
unambiguous answer
we can thank god that he responded in
such a straightforward manner
in the book of revelation he gives a
much more detailed and comprehensive
response
but here he gives a rundown of the signs
that will precede his arrival
the disciples approached jesus secretly
as he was seated on the mount of olives
matthew 24 3-36
later jesus sat on the mount of olives
his disciples came to him privately and
said
tell us when will this all happen what
sign will signal your return and the end
of the world
jesus told them don't let anyone mislead
you
for many will come in my name claiming i
am the messiah
they will deceive many and you will hear
of wars and threats of wars
but don't panic yes these things must
take place
but the end won't follow immediately
nation will go to war against
nation and kingdom against kingdom there
will be famines and earthquakes in many
parts of the world
but all this is only the first of the
birth pains with more to come
then you will be arrested persecuted and
killed
you will be hated all over the world
because you are my followers
and many will turn away from me and
betray and hate each other
and many false prophets will appear and
deceive many people
sin will be rampant everywhere and the
love of many will grow cold
but the one who endures to the end will
be saved
and the good news of the kingdom will be
preached throughout the whole world
so that all nations will hear it and
then the end will come
the day is coming when you will see what
daniel the prophet spoke about
the sacrilegious object that causes
desecration standing in the holy place
reader pay attention then those in judea
must flee to the hills
a person out on the deck of a roof must
not go down into the house to pack
a person out in the field must not
return even to get a coat
how terrible it will be for pregnant
women and for nursing mothers in those
days and pray that your flight will not
be in the winter or on the sabbath
for there will be greater anguish than
at any time since the world began
and it will never be so great again in
fact
unless that time of calamity is
shortened not a single person will
survive
but it will be shortened for the sake of
god's chosen ones
then if anyone tells you look here is
the messiah
or there he is don't believe it for
false messiahs and false prophets will
rise up and perform great signs and
wonders
so as to deceive if possible even god's
chosen ones
see i have warned you about this ahead
of time so if someone tells you look
the messiah is out in the desert don't
bother to go and look
or look he is hiding here don't believe
it
for as the lightning flashes in the east
and shines to the west
so it will be when the son of man comes
just as the gathering of vultures shows
there is a carcass nearby
so these signs indicate that the end is
near
immediately after the anguish of those
days the sun will be darkened
the moon will give no light the stars
will fall from the sky
and the powers in the heavens will be
shaken and then
at last the sign that the son of man is
coming will appear in the heavens
and there will be a deep mourning among
all the peoples of the earth
and they will see the son of man coming
on the clouds of heaven with power
and great glory and he will send out his
angels with the mighty blast of a
trumpet
and they will gather his chosen ones
from all over the world
from the farthest ends of the earth and
heaven
now learn a lesson from the fig tree
when its branch's bud and its leaves
begin to sprout
you know that summer is near in the same
way
when you see all these things you can
know his return is very near
right at the door i tell you the truth
this generation will not pass from the
scene until all these things take place
heaven and earth will disappear but my
words will never disappear
however no one knows the day or hour
when these things will happen
not even the angels in heaven or the son
himself
only the father knows now in that
passage he gave four distinct signs of
his coming
so what exactly are these four signs he
gave us
the first is clearly disasters in the
world and dimensions for example
wars famines and earthquakes these are
certainly happening
but they have been happening for over
thousand years they are getting more
intense
so we certainly are in this first sign
there are already wars
rumors of wars earthquakes and famine
jesus says don't be deceived he says
that again and again
all the way through as we get nearer to
the end
the danger is deception both inside and
outside the church in this case he says
from false christs false messiahs people
who will take advantage of the turmoil
of natural disasters
to present themselves as saviors there
are well-known examples of people who
pretend to be saviors
and lead people into desert locations
only to end in tragedy
however there are many false christs
false saviors who claim to be the
promised deliverer from all our troubles
the more problems there are the more
false deliverers there would be
but as jesus advises us don't be alarmed
don't be worried when you learn of a new
war a new tragedy
or a new famine breaking out he said
something astonishing these are painful
events
but they are not pangs of death they are
birth pains
so when you read of disasters in the
media these are the pains that mean
something new is about to be born this
should completely change our attitude
we know what the world is coming to we
should not be alarmed or dismayed
not as worried as the world will be
about these things
disasters in the world are the pain of
birth in a new world that is to be born
therefore we are very different we have
sympathy for those who are suffering
disasters
and hopefully we express it and help but
in our hearts we are not alarmed
we are hopeful we are looking for a new
birth of a new world
and therefore we are not dismayed or
depressed by all the problems in the
world
in short jesus's advice to us would be
not to panic
not to be disturbed but even to rejoice
and say
these are all signs of something new
happening
the second sign of his coming is not in
the world but in the church
disasters in the world are the first
sign
the church not the world is the second
sign of his coming
the first warning is disasters around
the world
the second is changes in the church just
as he divided the first sign into three
parts
wars earthquakes and famines he divides
the second sign into three parts
all of which occur within the church the
first is persecution
that we will be hated in every nation
the second aspect of this sign would be
a significant reduction in the church's
size
most people's love will grow cold when
the whole church is under strain
many nominal christians if not all true
christians would leave
under the burdens of universal
persecution their love would grow cold
that's a very depressing sign the big
surprise in the third part of the sign
is that the gospel will be preached to
every racial group
the third part of the sign is that the
gospel will be proclaimed
a smaller purified church would have a
greater impact on the planet
that is exactly what jesus is implying
false prophets can be a source of deceit
in all of this
we are aware of the teachings of false
prophets when there is no peace
they teach peace rather than being a
source of challenge
their message is one of comfort it's all
right
it won't happen they'll say all now
jesus's advice
is to keep going don't give in to these
false prophets
whoever perseveres to the end will be
saved when that sign
occurs when all aspects of the church
are despised by the world
that is jesus's advice to all christians
why should that be the case the answer
is that
wheat and tares grow together and the
closer they get to full maturity
the more tension there will be between
them so it's only natural that
christians will be under a lot of
pressure in the end
christians are social misfits so there
would be hatred
the world does not belong to us our
citizenship is in the heavenly realms
we are unique and it is because of our
uniqueness
that hate can arise since jesus was so
different from everyone else
he drew hate against himself john
15 19 if you were of the world it would
love you as its own
instead the world hates you because you
are not of the world
but i have chosen you out of the world
it's not fun to be despised
that takes us to the third sign of the
end times which is jerusalem's distress
geographically it will be very limited
in this passage
jesus quotes daniel's prophecies and
there is a character in daniel's
prophecies who is referred to as the
abomination of desolation
daniel mentions it three times what does
it all mean
what's the big deal it's about a human
being a man who establishes himself
in the very city of god calls himself
god
and refuses to accept anyone else's will
above his own
a tyrant whose arrival will have global
ramifications
but who will be centered in jerusalem
the city of god
the holy place then jesus says that the
fourth sign of his coming will come
immediately after that so we shall know
when he is coming
we shall be ready when that sign comes
there will be no danger of false
prophets or false messiahs
there will be no deception it will be
too quick
what will happen is that all natural
light will be switched off
the sun will go dark the stars will fall
there are many predictions of this
all the way through the bible isaiah
says
the heavens will be rolled up like a
carpet
all the stars of heaven will be
dissolved the skies will be rolled up
like a scroll
and all their stars will fall like
withered leaves from the vine
like foliage from the fig tree the
natural light will be gone
leaving only artificial light to
illuminate the earth
what is happening what is going on
people may ask
this is it christians will exclaim
the sun stars and moons stop shining
right before that happens
god turns off the lights of heaven to
prepare for the blaze of light from the
lightning that will mark his return
then he comes on the clouds back to the
planet earth and we meet him
we are not meeting in an earthly stadium
because there isn't one large enough to
accommodate such a large crowd
we'll reach him in the air and that'll
suffice
isn't that a fantastic prospect when you
see all these things you know he is at
the gates
just about to walk through he says
then jesus gives a very simple statement
about a fig tree
and this is where many christians have
gone astray he says
now learn this lesson from the fig tree
as soon as its twigs get tender and its
leaves come out
you know that summer is near jesus is
telling us that when you notice
all these events happen you know that we
are there
now that analogy of the fig tree is not
an allegory
it is a straightforward analogy from
everyday experiences
such as jesus often presented in his
teaching
you see the fig tree doing this you say
the summer is coming
and it will come in the same style when
you notice these four signs
you know that summer is coming sadly
people have read it as an allegory
in closing our question for the day
what's a worship song that has helped
you feel closer to god
you