Signs of the End Times
By Ashley R. Clarkson
1 January, 2001
This article will be deprecated and replaced by a new article entitled "Olives and Integrated Markets - Signs of the End Times" in the near future.
"And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh." - Luke 21:28
At the Mount of Olives Discourse Jesus outlines the signs to look out for before the Tribulation. He also uses parables to reach across with the message that no one will know exactly when he will return, so we should always be ready. It is my personal belief that these 'signs of the times' are more relevant to us today than to any other time in history.
Sign #1 - Israel.
The tiny nation of Israel's existence today is nothing short of miraculous. The fact that an 'army' of 45,000 troops managed to hold off the well trained legions (more than 650,000 Arab troops) of 5 Arab nations is (in my view) absolutely impossible without the divine intervention of God himself. It simply can't be explained in any other way. But why is Israel a sign of the end times? The answer to that question is fairly simple. For all of the events of the Tribulation to occur, there must be a nation of Israel. How can the antichrist sign a peace treaty with Israel if there is no Israel in the first place? How can the Russian-Arab alliance launch an attack against a non-existent country? I leave the thinking to you."Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh:" Matthew 24:32 is a reference to the rebirth of Israel as a nation. Throughout the Bible the fig tree is used to symbolise Israel (such as Hosea 9:10). So just like when the branches of a fig tree are tender we know the summer is near, so we know that when Israel is restored that the end is near. This is reaffirmed in Matthew 24:34 when Jesus says "Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled." The generation that sees the restoration of Israel will not pass away until the Lord has returned.
Sign #2 - Jerusalem.
On June 7, 1967 during the Six Day War, Israel gained complete control over the entire city of Jerusalem. Jesus prophecied this in Luke 21:24 when he said "And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." The Gentiles (non Jews) no longer control Jerusalem, it is back in Jewish hands. The time is getting very short.Sign #3 - Religious Deception.
"And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many." This is one of the first points that Jesus makes at the Sermon on the mount. It can be found in Matthew 4:4,5 and you can see this prophecy being fulfilled today. Sun Myung Moon, the leader of the Unification Church, is a blatent example of religious deception. He openly claims to be the Messiah, although he is currently serving a jail sentence for tax evasion. Sort of rules him out as a fraudster, don't you think?. Then of course there are all sorts of cults springing up, which deceive people with a gentle approach, then brainwash them into disappearing away with them, never to be seen again by worried relatives.Sign #4 - Wars And Rumours Of Wars.
"And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet." Matthew 24:6 introduces a new sign - war. Now it is true that war has been around for thousands of years. But, in the past half century there have been more conflicts than ever before. Many millions have died at the hands of tyrants - 6 million Jews at the hands of Hitler, 13 million Russians died under the reign of Stalin, and of course there is the reign of Pol Pot in Cambodia. This past century has seen the greatest loss of life recorded. We have become extremely efficient at killing ourselves.As for rumours of wars, I think that the Cold War fits that particularly well. The Cold War got it's name simply because it was the war that 'never heated up'. Often war was rumoured to be close, but never eventuated. It fits the description perfectly (in my opinion, anyway). Turn on the TV today. Most likely there will be some talk of the possibility of war in some part of the globe. Did that happen in other times? Did the peasants of Europe run around scared because they heard of rumours of war between tribes in Africa? or battles between the Maori of New Zealand? No. They probably didn't even know of the existence of these tribes, let alone care about something so far away. But look at CNN, or whatever TV news program. What do you see? Escalating violence in the Middle East? Threats of war? I think you get the picture.
Sign #5 - Nation Shall Rise Against Nation.
"For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places." Matthew 24:7 carries on with the theme of war. It states that nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. As I stated previously, in the past half century we have seen more conflict, misery and death than in any previous century on record. Countries are attacking each other at a great frequency, while others are trying to bring the World together in peace and harmony (and failing). Ethnic unrest is on the increase. In the past few years we've witnessed it in Kosovo, Sierra Leone, and East Timor. As I write this Palestinians are incited to attack Jewish settlements, then are enraged even further when the Israeli army is forced to retaliate. And the amazing thing about it is, that Jesus spoke of this 2000 years ago.Sign #6 - Famines And Plagues.
"For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places." The next sign given in Matthew 24:7 is that of famines and plagues. Take a look at the World today. AIDS has taken a hold in many African countries at an almost Epidemic rate. Superbugs that are resistent to antibiotics are appearing daily, and in the past 30 years we have seen viruses such as Ebola, Hunta, and other extremely contagious viruses spread like wildfire through third world countries. Cancer runs riot throughout the world, slowly killing thousands of people a year. Famines follow war, devastating countries already ravaged from conflict. You've most likely seen the ad's on TV from agencies begging you to sponsor a child. You may have dismissed it as not being as bad as it looks. As much as I would like to think they are overdoing it, I know that they are not. Famine is taking lives every day, and it's only getting worse.Sign #7 - Earthquakes.
"For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places." The last sign given in Matthew 24:7 is that of earthquakes. Over the past few years a surprising frequency of earthquakes has occurred all over the world. Turkey was rocked by large earthquakes, Kobe, Japan was hit in 1995, and just this year, several very large earthquakes have hit El Salvador, leveling parts of San Salvador and leaving hundreds dead and many more injured.Sign #8 - Apostasy.
"And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold." - Matthew 24:12. "Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron; Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth." - 1 Timothy 4:1-3. "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. For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith." - 2 Timothy 3:1-8. This sign refers to a falling away from faith, and is certainly evident today. The above verses describe the sort of people we see today, who are more worried about the pleasures of this world than what happens in the next.Sign #9 - Fearful Events.
"And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven." Luke 21:11 speaks of fearful events from heaven. A popular theme in movies of recent times is catastrophes such as asteroids hitting the Earth. Then of course there is all these 'UFO' visits (the fact I consider them demonic illusions at best is another story). This kind of stuff fits fearful events pretty well. And what of these asteroids? As we peer further out into space, we become ever more paranoid at what might be heading towards us. And a few near misses by comets doesn't help matters either.Sign #10 - Signs In The Heavens.
"And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven." - Luke 21:11. "And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken." - Luke 21:25-26. Doesn't it seem strange that there appears to be more events such as this happening in the world today? Sunspots, meteor showers, comets...you name it, we're seeing it. Coincidence? Somehow, I think not.Sign #11 - Lawlessness.
"And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold." - Matthew 24:12. "And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way." - 2 Thessalonians 2:6-7. Almost every night on the news there is some report of a murder, or robbery, or some other heinous crime. Lawlessness is on the increase, and sadly, it's only going to get worse.Sign #12 - Persecution.
"Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake." - Matthew 24:9. "But take heed to yourselves: for they shall deliver you up to councils; and in the synagogues ye shall be beaten: and ye shall be brought before rulers and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them. But when they shall lead you, and deliver you up, take no thought beforehand what ye shall speak, neither do ye premeditate: but whatsoever shall be given you in that hour, that speak ye: for it is not ye that speak, but the Holy Ghost. Now the brother shall betray the brother to death, and the father the son; and children shall rise up against their parents, and shall cause them to be put to death. And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved." - Mark 13:9,11-13. Did you know that more Christians were martyred the Twentieth Century than in the previous 19 centuries put together? Hate crimes and religious intolerance against Christians is on the increase.Sign #13 - Increase In Knowledge.
"But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased." - Daniel 12:4. This verse serves as a sign in two parts. The first sign it gives is that knowledge will increase. Well, in the past 50 years knowledge has exploded. Jet engines, computers, microwaves, rockets and (sadly, I must say) nuclear weapons have been refined to be even more lethal than the originals dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki 56 years ago. This past century has seen more technological development than any other before it. We've moved from horse drawn carriages to cars, months aboard ships to mere hours aboard planes, and medical advances such as vaccinations have revolutionised the way we live our lives.The second sign is that of understanding end-times prophecy itself. It was not until the rebirth of Israel in 1948 that we began to study the signs and prophecies in detail, and we now know more about what will most likely happen than any other century. Our knowledge of where we are and what is to come is increasing, and we do indeed go back and forth between the apocolyptic books, seeking the truth.