And when you hear of wars and insurrections (disturbances, disorder, and confusion), do not become alarmed and panic-stricken and terrified; for all this must take place first, but the end will not [come] immediately. Then He told them, nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be mighty and violent earthquakes, and in various places famines and pestilences (plagues: malignant and contagious or infectious epidemic diseases which are deadly and devastating); and there will be sights of terror and great signs from heaven (Luke 21:9-11-Amplified).
Before the church age we now live in, God revealed Himself through the Jewish race to the world. The Old Covenant was in force until Jesus was raised from the dead. The Jews rejected Jesus as their savior from sin. God set them aside as a result of their unbelief in Jesus and the church age began with the resurrection of Christ. We believers have had a commission from Jesus to take the gospel to the nations and to make disciples for the last 2000 years. We’re now living at the close of this age of grace.
God is beginning now to deal with His unfinished business with the Jewish race. And this has to do with what is happening now worldwide. The world is preparing for the return of Jesus Christ. World events are lining up with what God has foretold in His word.
Look for rapid changes in the months and years to come in 4 areas: The alignment of nations; the disruption of nature; social upheaval; and in the moving of the Holy Spirit in the church.
Israel became a nation again in May of 1948 after having been away from t heir God-promised land for almost 2000 years. Dozens of scriptures promise this return of the Jews. And it’s one of the prominent signs that Jesus is returning to earth soon. Israel and its neighbor have been fighting since the time of Abraham. That fight will continue to escalate until a false peace treaty is signed guaranteeing peace for Israel and land for its Palestinian neighbors. Keep your eye on this situation. When a peace treaty is signed, we believers are going home to heaven in the rapture! (See 2 Thessalonians 2: 1-8).
According to Daniel 2, 4, and 7, Europe will rise again as a world power. The nations there will join together economically, politically, and militarily before the 2nd coming of Christ. A leader who will rule the world with a pseudo peace will emerge from this European Union. The rise of Europe is happening now and is almost complete!
The United States is not mentioned in Bible prophecy anywhere when it speaks of the coming of Christ. That is very strange since we have been the dominant world player politically, economically, and militarily for many decades. Something is destined to happen that will remove us from this position. My hope is that it is the rapture of the church! But if it’s something else, we may be in for some very rough living.
The rise of Islam is another significant development that signals the return of Christ. Terrorism is increasing in intensity worldwide and is largely propagated by Jihad – which is a holy war against infidels or non-Muslims that is encouraged in the Koran, the bible of the Muslim religion. These radical extremists hate Israel and its ally the United States and are plotting its demise. We need strong leadership to deal with this great threat.
World financial instability is also a significant factor in the second coming of Christ. The World leader the Bible speaks of as the man of sin, the son of perdition, or commonly known as the anti-Christ will deal with the results of worldwide financial turmoil by having a mark placed in the skin that will enable consumers to securely buy and sell in the marketplace (See Revelation 13 and 16). The seeds of this are sprouting now with the present volatility in the financial markets.
I’ll continue this tomorrow. I had many comments after I ministered today on this topic as people shared their experiences verifying what I had preached. This is a serious day. Our liberties are in the balance. Our culture needs a move of God! And we must remain alert and spiritually aglow!