Prophecy in the Bible tends to be scattered about the Scriptures and it is not until it has been studied for a little while that the order of things becomes apparent. One of the few areas where it is in some chronological order is in Matthew 24 and Luke 21. These Scriptures act as a good base to work from when expanding ones knowledge of the subject. However even they are an overview and cannot be taken totally in the order they are written or without the use of other Scriptures.
In the account in Matthew 24; not long before the Crucifixion of Christ His disciples were talking with Him about the Temple. Jesus said it would not be long before the Temple would be destroyed. This puzzled the disciples and they asked Him three questions; [1] When will the destruction of the Temple happen? [2] What will be the sign of your return? [3] And of the end of the age. Perhaps over the next month or two we may be able to answer these questions, not only in the light of the Lords instruction here but by further prophecies elsewhere in the Bible.
Jesus did not answer their questions separately but gave an outline of future events in general. The first event was the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple. In 70AD the Roman army under Titus was sent to quell an uprising by the Jews. In the execution of his orders he proceeded to destroy the city of Jerusalem. The soldiers found that the fire melted the gold on the temple roof and they tore the stones one from another to retrieve the gold from between the stones where it had run down. In fact every stone was thrown down as Christ had predicted. From then on the Jews were persecuted including the Christians. Banished from Jerusalem they spread out into surrounding countries taking the Gospel with them. Persecution reached a terrible intensity under various Roman rulers, until the conversion of the Emperor Constantine, when by various compromises, which we cannot go into here, Christianity became the Roman Empires official religion.
Since then there have been various wars and rumours of wars as we know from history, but in the last 100 years various international and national conflicts seemed to have reached a greater intensity. It seems to be in many countries where if they are not fighting another country they are in conflict with themselves. The Bible refers to “as in the days of Noah,” when God repented that He had created man because of the violence and decided to destroy all living creatures, with the exception of 8 people [Noah and his family], plus two of every kind of animal and bird, plus seven of each of certain animals. We find from Scripture, that previous to the flood, Satan sent his angels down to upset Gods creation, through the marrying of the angels with the daughters of men [Gen 6:1-8] [2 Peter 2:4] which created giants who the people looked up to, instead of rejecting those who were half evil angel. Mankind in the days of Noah had also become very wicked and full of violence, this is one of the signs Jesus predicted would precede His coming. It seems as though today we find every part of the world in conflict, subject to loose living and rebellion. Men and women are heedless of God and what is to come upon the earth, as in Noah’s day. Jesus went on to say the resulting damage and disruption would cause famine and disease in diverse places. Certainly we have today many areas of the world which are suffering famine and distress due to the disruption caused through the conflicts that have occurred and are still happening within their borders.
The Lord described how there would be evidence of increasing earthquakes as the time drew near for His return [Matt 24:7-8]. Luke’s account refers to a disruption in weather patterns as a sign of the Lords return. This is certainly happening at the moment as we see storms, floods and other serious changes in the normal flow of the climate. As the Bible says in Isaiah 51 and verse 6 “Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look on the earth beneath. For the heavens will vanish away like smoke, The earth will grow old like a garment, And those who dwell in it will die in like manner; But My salvation will be forever, And My righteousness will not be abolished”.
We in the West live very peacefully and are generally allowed to worship as we like. However we are told in the Lords prophecy to expect persecution. It happened to the early Church and in these days it is occurring in many Eastern and African countries. However if you have not noticed, things are becoming more difficult in much of Western culture. The change in marriage laws, and general outlook, homosexuality, and morals are now encroaching on our previous way of life. We must be on our guard.
Next month we will see how the persecution and a watering down of the Gospel in churches world wide will create a falling away, or apostasy which will sweep across the Christian Church, and will prepare the way for the coming Antichrist. “But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life. And on some have compassion, making a distinction; but others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire, hating even the garment defiled by the flesh. Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, And to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy,” (Jude 1:20-24 NKJV)
Brian D. Papworth; South Pacific Representative for the Prophetic Witness Movement International.
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