Signs
"Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short." -Revelation 12:12 NIV
"Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives." - 2 Peter 3:11 NIV
"As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” - Matthew 24:3 NIV
Jesus is coming back. In this series, we will be explaining and bringing understanding the details of the End Times so you can see things through the eyes of the Bible. As a church and as christians, we need to be prepared. We will discuss signs, the rapture, tribulation, and revelation in the upcoming weeks.
Today, we begin to break down the different signs that we will experience when the End Times are near.
1.) Reunification of Israel
"The hand of the Lord was on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” I said, “Sovereign Lord, you alone know.” Then he said to me: “Son of man, these bones are the people of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.’ Therefore prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: My people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel."
-Ezekiel 37:1-3, 11-12 NIV
2.) Relativism and Deception Increases
"Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many." - Matthew 24:4-5 NIV
3.) Restlessness Worldwide
"You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains." - Matthew 24:6-8 NIV
4.) Renounce Sound Doctrine
"At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other"
- Matthew 24:10 NIV
"And then many will be offended and repelled and will begin to distrust and desert [Him Whom they ought to trust and obey] and will stumble and fall away and betray one another and pursue one another with hatred." - Matthew 24:10 Amplified Version
"In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy." -Acts 2:17-18 NIV
We need to be people of the Spirit. When we're people of the Spirit, we are filled with the Spirit and full of His Word. The End Times are near, but we don't have to live in fear because we serve a God we can trust and look to in times of trial and tribulation. Join us in the upcoming weeks as we navigate the End Times and how we can be examples of Christ in this time, as well as grow in our relationship and trust with Him.