Leading Up To The End

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Leading up to the End

We are not living in normal times, and a majority of the world knows it. The coronavirus is dominating the headlines and is impacting 6 out of 7 continents. Wars, rumors of wars, riots, uprisings, earthquakes, volcanoes, record flooding, insane weather patterns, record high and low temperatures, locust invasions, and other plagues popping up worldwide are catching the majority of the world’s eye.

The Bible talks about birth pangs leading up to the last day (in this case referring to Christ His second coming, as the "last day" can also be the Great White Throne Judgement that takes place after the Millennial Kingdom). Same as real births go, birth pangs come and go but as the day of birth comes closer, the birth pangs come more frequently and become more intense until the day the birth takes place. So as we come closer to Christ His second coming, the world and all these events will get more intense and the pangs will come around more frequently. Days of rest and ease between world events become more rare and sparse, just like physical pregnancies. On this page we go into some general points and identifiers to see if we do see birth pangs increase and intensify. Some of the signs take place during the end times and during the last 3.5 years before Christ His second coming, but eventhough some are for later, can we see the shadow of it already casting on us today? Can we see the signs and the shadows of future events ramp up to a point that it has to burst soon?

Fig Tree Prophecy – Matthew 24:32-34

Jesus gives a major marker of what will be the final generation in what is commonly known as the ‘Parable of the Fig Tree’:
Matthew 24:32-34 KJV – “Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors. Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.”

Many agree the Fig tree (one of multiple tree types) is representative of (in this case of the fig) the nation of Israel. This parable refers to Israel officially becoming a nation. This occurred on May 14, 1948 (UN Partition Plan was accepted in 1947). This miraculous event was prophesied over 2,500 years ago in the Bible, where we’re told that the Jewish people would come back into their land and become a nation again in a single day (Isaiah 66:8)!

Notice, after Jesus mentions Israel becoming a nation again, he explains that that generation shall not pass until all these things be fulfilled. Simply put, Jesus was saying the generation that witnesses Israel officially becoming a nation again (which occurred May 14, 1948) would be the generation that would also witness His Second Coming to earth.

Now how long is a generation? Well, Psalms 90:10 gives us a clue in the >>possible<< timing that 70-80 years is a generation. The exact timing isn’t important. The bottom line is the Jewish State is God’s timepiece. The fact it has been almost 73 years since Israel became a nation, should put us all on the edge of our seats!

1 The Signs of Nature

This category of signs has always been the least respected, even among believers. The mere mention of it usually evokes a sneer accompanied by the words, “Come on, what else is new? There have always been earthquakes and tornadoes and hurricanes.” But those who have this attitude forget that Jesus said the signs would be like “birth pangs” (Matthew 24:8). That means they will increase in frequency and intensity the closer we get to the Lord’s return. In other words, there will be more frequent natural disasters and more intense ones.

And that is exactly what has been happening. For example, between October of 1991 and November of 2004 — a period of 13 years — the United States experienced:

9 of the 10 largest insurance natural disasters in history.
9 of the 10 greatest disasters as ranked by FEMA relief costs.
5 of its costliest hurricanes in history.
3 of its 4 largest tornado swarms in history.

The question is can you see (locally and/ or around the world) the signs of nature increase in numbers and intensity?

2 The Signs of Society

2 Timothy 3:1-5 KJV – “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.”

This passage sounds like a typical evening newscast today! Notice the three things it says people will love in the end times: self, money, and pleasure. People like this may always have existed before today, and during the literal end times it may even be worse than today. But it's growing worse day by day. The hate for Israel, Jews and Christians will also grow worse and Christians won't be turning this world around. Revelation shows a literal 10 day purge of believers by the harlot (current world 'order') which implies that the world will continue to further look down on believers and eventually blame them (whatever the reason may turn out to be), to justify a purge on believers which a large part of society will agree with and/ or allow it to happen. The questions is can you see Israel, Jews and Christians becoming more and more the "enemy/ enemies" of this world through the eyes of the world?

3 The Spiritual Signs

Some of the negative spiritual signs that are specifically prophesied include the following: false christs, cultic groups, heresies, apostasy, skepticism, deception, occultism, and persecution.

The one that Jesus mentioned most frequently was false christs and their cultic groups. And in fulfillment of these prophecies, we have experienced an explosion of cults since 1850. A more positive spiritual prophecy being fulfilled today is the preaching of the Gospel worldwide.

Another remarkable positive sign is the understanding of Bible prophecy. The Hebrew prophets sometimes did not understand the end time prophecies that the Lord gave to them. A good example can be found in Daniel 12:8-9 where Daniel states to the Lord that he does not understand the prophecies that have been entrusted to him. The Lord’s response was, “Go your way, Daniel, because the words are rolled up and sealed until the time of the end”

In other words, the Bible teaches that many of the end time prophecies in the Bible will not be understood until the time comes for them to be fulfilled. And that is exactly what has been happening in the past 100 years. Historical developments and scientific inventions are now making it possible for us to understand end time prophecies that have never been understood before.

Take Israel for example. All of end time prophecy revolves around the nation of Israel. But how could those prophecies be understood as long as Israel did not exist and there was no prospect that the nation would ever exist again as it does since 1948?

4 The Signs of World Politics

Israel is pictured as being re-established (Ezekiel 37:21-22) and surrounded by hostile Arab neighbors intent on its destruction (Ezekiel 35:1 – 36:7). This, of course has been the situation in the Middle East since the Israeli Declaration of Independence in May of 1948. Daniel prophesied that the Roman Empire would be revived (Daniel 2:36-41), something many men — like Charlemagne, Napoleon, and Hitler — tried to do through force. But the prophecy had to await God’s timing for its fulfillment, and that came after World War II, with the formation of the European Common Market that has since morphed into the superpower called the European Union.

The Bible pictures a great power located in the land of Magog in the “remote parts of the north.” This nation or region will menace Israel in the end times and will ultimately lead an invasion of Israel together with specified allies, all of which are modern day Islamic states (Ezekiel 38:1 – 39:16). A theory is that Russia with all its Islamic republics and its Islamic allies (Iran for example) fits this description. The magnitude of warfare in the 20th Century is another fulfillment of end time prophecy related to world politics. The 20th Century was one of unparalleled war. Like birth pangs, the frequency and intensity of war increased exponentially.

5 The Signs of Israel

The signs that relate to Israel are the most important of all because Israel is God’s prophetic time clock. Scriptures will often tie a prophesied future event with something that will happen to Israel. We are told to watch the Israel, and when the prophesied event concerning them occurs, we can be sure that the other prophesied event will also occur.

There are many prophecies concerning the Jews in the end times, many of which began to be fulfilled in the 20th Century, but there are four key ones. The first is their worldwide regathering in unbelief (Isaiah 11:11-12). In 1900 there were only 40,000 Jews in Palestine. By the end of World War II that number had risen to 800,000. Today, there are more than 6.9 million who have come from all over the world. The prophet Jeremiah says twice that when history is completed, the Jewish people will look back and conclude that their worldwide regathering was a greater miracle than their deliverance from Egyptian captivity (Jeremiah 16:14-15 and 23:7-8).

The second key prophecy concerning the Jews is a natural consequence of their regathering. It is the re-establishment of their state which occurred on May 14, 1948 (Isaiah 66:7-8). The third key prophecy is the re-occupation of Jerusalem which occurred on June 7, 1967 during the miraculous Six Day War (Zechariah 8:4-8).

The fourth key prophecy is the one whose fulfillment we are witnessing today — the re-focusing of world politics upon the nation of Israel (Zechariah 12:2-3). All the nations of the world, including the United States, are coming against Israel over the issue of the control of the nation’s capital — the city of Jerusalem. The Vatican wants the city put under its control. The United Nations wants it to be internationalized. The European Union is demanding it be divided between the Arabs and the Jews. The Arabs want all of it.

7 Signs in Heaven

As there are 3 heavens (heaven as in the sky above the earth where the birds fly, heaven as in space, and heaven where God dwells, which you could call a different dimension from our (for the living) current one. God can show signs in the heavenlies as shown in Luke: 25 “And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves". In Revelation we find the 'revelation 12 sign' that is: "12 And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. 2 She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth." Many agree (and literally saw) this sign be fulfilled in september 2017 in the constellations above us (something that God has put in place and cannot be altered by anyone including not satan). This event isn't unique in a sense of that this has never occured before in human history, but it is unique that this is the first time that it happened since Israel has become a nation again after 2000 years. On top of that it happened exactly on Israel's 70th year of her (regathered) existance, as 1947 was the year the UN partition plan was accepted that would recognize Israel as an independent nation. The question is can you see, as a generation possibly being 70 to 80 years, this sign on Israel's 70th UN anniversary to be a warning that the last possible 10 years are ticking? That God is giving a warning that we are now in the Book of Revelation (not in tribulation, not in wrath, but entered into the book).

Conclusion

The events happening today may not be at the same level yet as it will happen when the restraining by Christ stops. But this 'turning up the heat' can only last so long. As the fig tree has been restored by Israel's regathering, the enemies of Israel are waiting to attack, natural events that keep increasing in strength and numbers, societies views on Israel, Jews and Christians grow worse and worse, signs in the heavenlies paired up with a Biblical generation, Israel's regathering in 1947/8 started the clock and some see it ticking and can see the shadows being cast over the world today. This should shake and wake everyone up to repent, turn to, accept and believe in Christ as the day of tomorrow is not promised.

Last Updated: 7-9-2022