When is Jesus Coming Back?
Dear family
and friends:
It has been
15 years since I last talked about end times and Jesus’ return! So much has
happened since then including a world-wide pandemic. I feel now is a good time
to revisit the topic. Everything we need to know is in God’s word. “All scripture is God-breathed and is useful
for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” (2 Timothy
3:16). The bible is the most studied, most controversial, and most published
book on the planet.
A quarter of
the Bible consists of prophecy of which about three quarters has already come
to pass. This should give us confidence of what is yet to come and to put our
trust and faith in Jesus. I will be focusing on some of the prophecies occurring
now or yet to be fulfilled. To get an
overview, you can read what Jesus told his disciples would be the signs of the
end of the age before his return, found in two accounts: Matthew 24 and Mark
13. For more serious study you can also look
at 2 Peter 3, 2 Timothy 3, 1 Thessalonians 2, Revelation, Ezekiel 37 & 38,
and Daniel 2, 7 & 9.
Here is a
summary of what Jesus foretold over 2000 years ago: Nations will rise against
nations, there will be famines and earthquakes, false prophets will arise and
deceive many, wickedness will increase, brother will betray brother, a father
will betray his child, and children will rebel against their parents. The
gospel will be preached to all nations, there will be unequaled distress from
the beginning of the world (the tribulation), the sun will be darkened, the
moon will not give its light, the stars will fall from the sky, and the
heavenly bodies will be shaken. Then
Jesus will come on the clouds of the sky to gather his church. “Even so, when
you see all these things, you will know that it is near, right at the door. I
tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all
these things have happened.” Matthew 24:13-14.
Some other
passages add on to these predictions: Israel will become a state (Ezekiel 37)
the rich will increase their wealth at the expense of the poor (James 5), there
will be an increase of travel and knowledge (Daniel 12:4), there will be a
moral breakdown and unbelief (2 Peter 3:1-12), people will be lovers of
themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their
parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous and without
self-control…(2 Timothy 3). There will also be a one world church and one world
government during the tribulation where the beast and false prophet are
revealed (Revelation 17 and Daniel 2).
When I look
at the state of the world today, I see we are ever closer to a unified ten head
government as predicted in Daniel 2, which would give the ability to the beast
(the antichrist) to take over as described in Revelation 13. Government bodies like the World Health
Organization, the World Economic Forum, the World Trade Organization, the
United Nations, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and European
Union are all advocating a one world agenda.
I believe
the ongoing Covid 19 pandemic illustrates how easily this could be done. Look
how quickly the world shut down and borders closed. Everyone panicked, and
governments quickly stepped in with laws that took away basic rights and
freedoms for the greater good of the population. Look at how economies have
been devastated and food supply impacted.
As we speak, world-wide vaccine passports are now being discussed which
could be a foretaste of how to track all people on earth. Now imagine more
severe pandemics, disasters, climate change upheaval, droughts, crop failures
and wars. The conditions for world governance would quickly transition.
No one is
trying to hide this plan. For example, go on the World Economic Forum website
and you will find information on the “great reset”. Leaders around the world seem to be using the
WEF catch phrase “Build Back Better” everywhere (Including our Prime Minister
Trudeau). The UN
has their Sustainable Development Goals aimed to
bring peace and prosperity to all people by 2030. These socialist views of eliminating economic inequalities,
poverty and saving the environment sound good, but could ultimately be used by
the antichrist to his advantage as he takes over these ten-ruling world
governments. (The world has not faired well with these types of principles as
seen in Marxist/Communist ideology which end up in dictatorships that exploit
the poor and often lead to horrific genocides.)
When the
antichrist is finally revealed for who he is, the world will be under his
control including all commerce: “He also forced everyone, small and great, rich
and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on his right hand or on his
forehead, so that no one could buy or sell unless he had the mark, which is the
name of the beast or the number of his name (Revelation 13:16-17).
In 2015, thousands of Swedes had
microchips implanted in their wrists to use in place of keys and id cards. In
2020 Walletmor, a Polish-British
company based in London, said they have created the world’s first microchip
implant that can be inserted under the skin and used to make contactless
payments at any card terminal. Check out their video! https://youtu.be/aymBka2nhUo
On 28 August 2020, Neuralink CEO Elon Musk revealed a company directed
live video podcast showcasing a pig called Gertrude with a coin-sized computer
chip in her brain to demonstrate his ambitious plans to create a working
brain-to-machine interface. Nanobot biotechnology is another interesting aspect
of medical treatment. These programmable
micro robots smaller than the size of a human cell are being researched and
developed as we speak to be used in our bodies.
It seems like the technology is already here to implement the mark of
the beast in order to buy and sell. When I studied this passage 15 years ago, I
thought it meant some type of barcode! How far we have come in technology is
mindboggling. It might not be a chip, but most people will likely take the
mark, just to survive. But as Christians
we are warned not to take the mark of the beast, and many will die because of
it. Make no mistake, there will be a choice to be made during the end times.
“If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on the forehead
or on the hand, he, too, will drink of the wine of God’s fury…This calls for
patience and endurance on the part of the saints who obey God’s commandments
and remain faithful to Jesus” (Revelation 14: 9, 10, 12).
So when will Jesus return for His church? It could happen
tomorrow. It could happen a hundred years from now. Most bible scholars believe
the church will be spared from the tribulation to come as Jesus will come back
for His church:
“For the Lord himself,
with a cry of command, with the archangel’s call and with the sound of God’s
trumpet, will descend from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise
first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up in the
clouds together with them to meet the Lord in the air; and so we will be with
the Lord for ever. Therefore encourage one another with these words” (1 Thessalonians
4:16-19).
So,
if Christians disappear don’t believe that this is because of UF0’s and alien
abductions!
But there will be a great harvest where many will give
their lives to Christ during the tribulation and will have to face the wrath of
the antichrist. (See Revelation 7:9-17).
I would choose to follow Christ now rather than later! Only Gods knows
the exact day of Christ’s return according to scripture. But Jesus did tell us
the signs to look for and to be ready as he shared in Mark: “No one knows about
the day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the
Father. Be on guard. Be alert! You do not know when that time will come…If he
comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. What I say to you, I say to
everyone: ‘Watch!’ ” (Mark 13:32,36,37).
When world events do not make sense or seem frightening,
I hope this will bring you comfort that God has a plan and already knows the
ending, because he alone is omniscient! This should encourage us and give us
hope for our eternal future.
As frightening as the book of Revelation is, chapters
21-23 describe a new heavens and earth, where everything is made brand new,
where there is no more pain or suffering, and where God himself will dwell with
us. There is also an invitation at the end of Revelation:
“And let him who hears say, “Come!”. Whoever is thirsty,
let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the gift of the water of life”
(Revelation 22:17).
I am thankful that this gift bought by Jesus’ sacrifice is free to whoever wishes to take it: "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved!" (Romans 10:9)
Jesus is truly our living water. Let’s all be ready!
