What Is The Time Of The End? ( 23)

Third condition: A new superpower to emerge

The third prophecy deals with the latter revival of the Roman Empire, prophesied extensively in Daniel and Revelation.

Daniel, interpreting Nebuchadnezzar's dream of a colossal human image, spoke of a series of "kingdoms" to arise on the world scene. The first of these, said Daniel, was the Babylonian Empire under Nebuchadnezzar himself (Daniel:2:28-38









). It was to be followed by three other kingdoms (verses 39-40). Comparing history with other prophecies, we can understand that these four kingdoms were, in order, the Babylonian, Medo-Persian, Greco-Macedonian and Roman empires.

Speaking of the fourth and final kingdom, the Roman Empire, Daniel said it would be "strong as iron, inasmuch as iron breaks in pieces and shatters everything; and like iron that crushes, that kingdom will break in pieces and crush all the others" (verse 40). Rome indeed proved to be more dominant and enduring than its predecessors, swallowing up their remnants in a reign that lasted for centuries.

However, Daniel also revealed fascinating prophetic details of this kingdom. He said the legs and feet of the image in Nebuchadnezzar's dream represented a kingdom, later shown to be the Roman Empire. The image had feet and toes composed "partly of potter's clay and partly of iron." This indicated that "the kingdom shall be divided" and "partly strong and partly fragile." Also, "just as iron does not mix with clay," the components of this kingdom would not adhere firmly together for long (verses 41-43).

Then, describing Jesus Christ's return and His overthrow of all human kingdoms and governments, Daniel says, "in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed … it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever" (verse 44).

The Bible prophesies that a group of 10 "kings," or national leaders, through alliances or other arrangements will give rise to a union that will fulfill these end-time predictions. Daniel's prophecy indicates these leaders will preserve their cultures and languages, so it will not be one integrated group of states, such as the United States, but 10 individual political and cultural entities united for a common purpose. Some will be much stronger than the others.

Notice that the book of Revelation gives more details: "The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have received no kingdom as yet, but they receive authority for one hour as kings with the beast. These are of one mind, and they will give their power and authority to the beast. These will make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, for He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and those who are with Him are called, chosen and faithful" (Revelation:17:12-14

).

The current moves to expand and solidify the European Union appear to be a precursor to this prophesied power. It is interesting to let history reveal the roots of the movement to unify Europe.

In the Jan. 29, 1996 issue of Newsweek, Michael Elliot reported: "In January 1957, six nations signed a treaty on the site of the ancient Roman Capitol, and brought into being the European Economic Community … An aide to Paul-Henri Spaak, the then Belgian foreign minister, remembers that his boss said, 'Do you think that we have laid the first stone of a new Roman Empire?' Recalls the aide, 'We felt very strongly we were Romans that day.'"

Certainly the idea of establishing a new Roman Empire was on the minds of the founders of the current organization of European nations. It has continued to prosper as barriers to integration tumble and greater cooperation and unity in economic and military affairs come about. Time will tell where these trends will lead—and how quickly.

The prophetic connection

Where does this leave us?

With mankind possessing the capacity to destroy all human life in several ways, with Israel in control of Jerusalem and a desire among some Israelis to restore the temple and sacrifices, and with a strong and determined effort afoot to unify the nations of Europe, we would do well to heed the warnings of biblical prophecy and not ignore its connection with world conditions.

These scenarios appear to be the most likely way various prophecies of Daniel and Revelation could be fulfilled in light of current conditions. In any event, prophecies of the Bible will come to pass whether or not we understand them in every detail. In the meantime we should heed Jesus Christ's warning in Matthew:24:44: "Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect."

To be cont'd. 

God bless you all. 

What Is The Time Of The End? ( 22)

First condition: Man's ability to annihilate human life

The first of these certain prophecies deals with a specific condition described by Christ that would be present only as the end time drew near. He said to His disciples: "It will be a time of great distress; there has never been such a time from the beginning of the world until now, and will never be again. If that time of troubles were not cut short, no living thing could survive; but for the sake of God's chosen it will be cut short"(Matthew:24:21-22
, New English Bible).

Jesus warned that a time would come when mankind would see its destructive capacity grow so awesome that all human life could be annihilated. This is what makes the time of "great distress" so terrifying, unequaled in human history.

Mankind has been fighting wars since the dawn of history. But man never had the ability—with rocks and clubs, bows and arrows, cannons or automatic weapons—to literally exterminate every human being on earth.

This changed in 1945 with the detonation of the first atomic bombs, followed by the development of far more destructive hydrogen bombs. With thousands of nuclear weapons at its disposal, as well as thousands of tons of chemical and biological weapons, humanity has the ability to destroy all human life from the planet many times over.

This situation never existed in history until the latter half of the 20th century. Mankind has never been a great caretaker of the earth, yet never before have we had the capacity to destroy all human life. But Christ said that collectively, if left unchecked, we would do exactly that. And this is one of the reasons He must intervene—to save mankind from self-annihilation!

Second condition: The Jewish nation reborn

The second condition that must exist before Christ's return concerns the existence of the modern nation-state of Israel in control of Jerusalem for a time.

The survival of the religion and culture of the ancient Jewish people, who witnessed the rise and decline of such great civilizations as Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Persia, Greece and Rome, goes against the odds.

The fact that they were never assimilated into the nations where they were scattered is unprecedented. A historian of the 19th century, Heinrich Graetz, noted that "a nation which has witnessed the rise and decay of the most ancient empires, and which still continues to hold its place in the present day, deserves the closest attention."

The French emperor Napoleon is reported to have been passing near a synagogue when he heard weeping inside. When he asked, "What is this crying?," he was told the Jewish people were weeping over the destruction of their temple. Impressed, Napoleon said, "A people that longs so much for its city and its temple are bound to restore them one day!"

That prediction has partially come to pass. Now the Jews—descendants of the ancient kingdom of Judah—again are in possession of Jerusalem, and their "weeping" takes place on the western side of the Temple Mount, at the retaining wall for the vast platform Herod the Great constructed to support the rebuilt temple. There, at the Western Wall, many Jews still cry and bemoan the loss of their temple and pray for its restoration. Thus the place is also sometimes aptly called the Wailing Wall.

Christ described conditions under which, as the end time approached, Jews would again control Jerusalem and the "holy place." Later He said the holy place would be desecrated. He stated, "Therefore when you see the 'abomination of desolation,' spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place (whoever reads, let him understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains" (Matthew:24:15-16
). The abomination of desolation, described in Daniel 8-12, deals with the defiling of the holy place in Jerusalem.

Before 1948 this seemed impossible. The Jews had been scattered for close to 2,000 years, and the Arabs had controlled the Holy Land for centuries. Jews did not have the military power, unity or backing of most of the world to come to their ancient homeland. Many books were written about the overwhelming odds against Zionism, the attempt to establish a Jewish homeland. Yet a Zionist state was established.

Once the fledgling nation of modern Israel was founded in 1948, it appeared that its inhabitants would never control Jerusalem, and the populous Arab nations surrounding her pledged they would never allow it. Yet in the Six-Day War of 1967, the state of Israel took possession of all of Jerusalem. But the Israelis allowed control of the Temple Mount, the platform on which the temple had stood, to remain in the hands of Arab Muslims.

Since Arab Muslims control the Temple Mount, or the "holy place" that Christ referred to in His prophecy, there is still a part of the prophecy that has not been fulfilled. Since 1989 organized efforts have continued to prepare for the building of a new temple. From 1990 on, certain Israeli Jews have tried to place the first stone of a new temple on the Temple Mount, to no avail. Police and Muslim authorities have prohibited their entry onto the Mount, yet the resolve is there.

That is how matters stand. Christ's prophecy has been partially accomplished, with Israel in control of Jerusalem, but with other parts of His prophecy waiting to be fulfilled.

To be cont'd. 

God bless you all. 

What Is The Time Of The End? ( 21)

God's Framework for End-Time Prophecy

Bible prophecy reveals several specific conditions that must be met before Christ returns to earth. Where are we on this prophetic time scale?

How should we view prophecy? Can it provide spiritual benefits?

The apostle Peter mentioned that prophecy should serve to strengthen our hope and faith in the future. He said: "And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts …" (2 Peter:1:19).

Here Peter compared Bible prophecies to a light that provides visibility until the final coming of God's Kingdom, brought by Jesus Christ to earth. When this occurs every eye will see His glory as if it is a great light (Matthew:24:27, 30; Revelation:1:7).

God gives us an outline and sequence of prophetic events, but many specifics remain unclear. Some things we can see clearly, but others are beyond our understanding at this point in history.

In other words, the Bible provides a reliable framework of prophecy, but it can be counterproductive to try to interpret every yet-to-be-fulfilled detail in the light of our circumstances. Such circumstances could change dramatically before those details come to pass.

So what is the framework of prophecy that remains sure? Among the many prophecies of events leading up to Christ's return, several major prophetic scenarios can be identified and specifically confirmed as they occur. As Peter said, we "do well to heed" them.

To be cont'd.

God bless you all. 

What Is The Time Of The End? (20)

Signs of global environmental fatigue

Already the earth is showing serious consequences from this rapid population increase combined with the excessive consumption of the earth's resources. In 1989 the fishing industry reported a dwindling of fish catches in oceans, and the decline has continued. Diminishing reserves of metals, fossil fuels, forests, arable lands, freshwater and wildlife are facts of life.

Pollution has reached a global scale, with hardly any part of the earth free from contaminated air, water and soil. This is not an extremist view, but what world organizations such as the UN and the Red Cross are regularly reporting.

Perhaps in the United States, Europe and Japan, where funds are available to curb the most damaging effects of the rise in population, there is not so much concern. But these nations comprise only a sixth of the world's inhabitants. The rest of the world is in a far worse condition.

More famines predicted

The dramatic increase in the world population has placed great strains on the political, military, economic and social systems around the planet. Some relief agencies already consider parts of Africa to be in a chronic state of hunger.

The population explosion is not only a problem of quantity, but of quality—because of varying living standards. While the birth rate in industrialized countries has plummeted, in backward regions it remains quite high.

It is estimated that 95 percent of population growth will occur in the 130 poorest countries. Already a fourth of the earth's inhabitants live on less than a dollar a day. Yet this is where population growth is greatest. Two countries and one region—China (1.3 billion people), India (1.1 billion) and Africa (800 million)—contain half the world's population.

As the population grows, it strains the relations within cities and among nations. More crime, violence and disease will invariably appear as people are increasingly forced to live in cramped and unhealthy quarters.

According to 2001 UN statistics, Tokyo was the world's most populous city, with 26 million. But the UN calculates that in the next 15 years the world's largest cities will be Bombay (Mumbai), India, with 26 million; Lagos, Nigeria, with 23 million; Dhaka, Bangladesh, with 21 million; São Paulo, Brazil, with 20 million; Karachi, Pakistan, and Mexico City with 19 million; and Jakarta, Indonesia, and Calcutta and Delhi, India, with 17 million. Can these nations, many of them impoverished, continue to provide basic services and enforce the peace as their resources dry up?

Prophecy on the march

How is this related to prophecy? First, according to the end-time scenario described in the book of Revelation, a massive army from east of the Euphrates will cross the river and bring a disastrous world war. "And I heard a voice … saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, "Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.' So the four angels, who had been prepared for the hour and day and month and year, were released to kill a third of mankind. Now the number of the army of the horsemen was two hundred million" (Revelation:9:13-16


).

For this prophecy to come to pass, billions of people must exist on the planet for this region to field 200 million able-bodied soldiers. Until the latter part of the 20th century, the nations in this area could not muster even half that number. But now, for the first time in history, they can provide such a massive military force.

Also, as world population multiplied in the 20th century, so did the explosion of knowledge, made possible by improved communications, travel and technology. We can easily see the fulfillment of the prophecy God gave to Daniel: "But you, Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book until the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase" (Daniel:12:4).

We take for granted such things as rapid international travel, computers, the Internet and the knowledge explosion, but these were widely available beginning only during the closing years of the 20th century.

To be cont'd. 

God bless you all. 

What Is The Time Of The End? (19)

The Population Explosion and Prophecy

How is the increase of the world's population related to prophecy?

According to population experts, it took almost 1,900 years for the world to slowly rise from an estimated 250 million at the time of Christ to a billion and a half at the beginning of the 20th century. Then, in the 20th century alone, the earth's population has exploded as it quadrupled in size. It has passed the staggering mark of 6 billion people. In spite of advances in birth control, the world population still rapidly climbs.

A glimpse at the trend shows why many are concerned. According to the United Nations Population Division, it took 123 years to move from 1 billion to 2 billion population. Yet it took only 33 years to reach the 3 billion mark and 14 years to arrive at the 4 billion level. Next it took only 13 years to reach 5 billion, and just 11 years later we crossed the 6 billion mark.

From now on, it is estimated, a billion people will be added every 10 years. Provided this rate of growth—adding some 80 million new people per year—continues, the planet's population will double again in 50 years.

What does this all mean? Is the earth able to sustain this level of population growth without bringing on dire consequences?

To be cont'd.

God bless you all. 

What Is The Time Of The End? (18)

The seventh and final seal

Finally the seventh seal is opened (Revelation 8). It describes seven other aspects of end-time events, each announced with a trumpet blast. In the first four of these plagues God strikes the earth and mankind's environmental support systems. The fifth trumpet's plague inflicts great pain on those refusing to serve God. In the sixth trumpet plague, God permits an unimaginably destructive and all-out worldwide war to begin (Revelation 8-9).

With the sounding of the seventh trumpet, the Bible reveals that "the mystery of God would be finished, as He declared to His servants the prophets" (Revelation:10:7).

This mystery of the end time was briefly alluded to in the Garden of Eden and its meaning glimpsed by the patriarchs and prophets. John writes: "Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, 'The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!'" (Revelation:11:15).

God is in control. Every prophetic detail will be carried out according to His time frame. 

As Christ concluded His Olivet Prophecy in Luke:21:34-36

, He warned His disciples who would live during the end time: "But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass [the terrible end-time events], and to stand before the Son of Man."

To be cont'd. 

God bless you all. 

What Is The Time Of The End? ( 17)

Christ opens the seven seals:

John then describes events and trends to take place during the period before the 3 1⁄2 years. Jesus opens, in Revelation 6, the seven seals on the scroll of prophecy. The first four of the seven represent events beginning in the days of the apostles and leading up to the time of the end. Jesus gave the meaning of the seals in the Olivet Prophecy about the end time (Matthew 24, Mark 13, Luke 21).

The first seal (Revelation:6:1-2
) represents widespread deception by a false Christianity that began in the days of the apostles (Matthew:24:4- 5). The second seal (Revelation:6:3-4
) refers to the increasing devastation caused by war as the end approaches (Matthew:24:6-7
). The third seal (Revelation:6:5-6
) represents increasing hunger and famines (Matthew:24:7). Other consequences of war and famine are represented by the fourth seal (Revelation:6:7-8
)—such things as disease, plagues and civil unrest that kill many people (Matthew:24:7).

All of the events in the first four seals have been occurring, with varying frequency and intensity, from Christ's time to our day. But they have greatly intensified over the last century and will grow even worse in the suffering mankind will have to endure nearer the end.

The fifth seal (Revelation:6:9-11

) brings us directly to the time of the end. It acknowledges the past persecution and martyrdom of God's servants and announces they will have to wait "a little while longer, until both the number of their fellow servants and their brethren, who would be killed as they were, was completed," before God avenges their deaths.

In Matthew:24:9 Jesus tells His followers this will be a time when "they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name's sake." He also describes it as a time of "great tribulation" unlike anything the world has ever experienced (verse 21).

The sixth seal

The next seal describes how "powers of the heavens will be shaken" (Matthew:24:29) after the end-time tribulation and martyrdom of the saints has begun but before God's wrath is unleashed in "the day of the Lord" (Joel:2:31). These heavenly signs announce the beginning of the Day of the Lord.

Terrifying heavenly signs announce Jesus Christ's direct intervention in world events to save mankind from itself. This shows that, while God has permitted the previous end-time disasters, Satan has been their driving force. Now God begins to demolish Satan's kingdom, pouring out His wrath on a rebellious and insolent world.

"I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood. And the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind. Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place.

"And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains, and said to the mountains and rocks, 'Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?'" (Revelation:6:12-17




).

Jesus described this sixth sign in His Olivet Prophecy: "And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; men's hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption [rescue] draws near" (Luke:21:25-28


).

Consequently, in the latter part of the 3 1⁄2 years of Satan's wrath, God will intervene, first with signs and wonders in the heavens, then by orchestrating His final punishments before Jesus Christ's return.

To be cont'd. 

God bless you all.