Showing posts with label end of world. Show all posts
Showing posts with label end of world. Show all posts

Sunday 5 July 2020

The Last Days of Earth.



This is an extremely long post. I wrote it for those who have no idea of what is going to happen as the world draws to a close. I usually write about the great love God has for all people, but I believe the end is very near and have decided to share God’s warnings.

One thing about the Bible, I have learned that sometimes when God says he is doing something, it means he has allowed it to happen. God could have prevented the corona virus that has killed many and changed the world, but he didn’t. He did stop SARS. Through the years, I know God has protected us from utter destruction, but those days are waning.

I believe most disasters are man-made. Even earthquakes at this time are sometimes caused by fracking for oil. I believe that as the world ends it is we ourselves who have destroyed it, not God. We have destroyed it through pollution, clear-cutting trees and perhaps through biological warfare inventions. Let’s face it; we are guilty. Not all of us, mainly the rich and powerful people who want to keep up their horrible works on the earth to become even richer. Our Lord even says, “I will destroy those who destroy the earth.” Revelation 11:18.  He tells us the earth will wear out like a garment. “Lift up your eyes to the heavens, look at the earth beneath; the heavens will vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment and its inhabitants die like flies. But my salvation will last forever, my righteousness will never fail.   Isaiah 51:6

I hope I haven’t left out any important details. I certainly could have; I’m not a scholar. Anyway, here are a lot of verses on the end of time, or Day of the Lord. I pray we will turn to God, who will abundantly pardon all our sins. He is calling and calling to us, and believe me, if you ever give your life over to God, you will never regret it. It is an awesome experience.

“Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him—even those who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. So shall it be! Amen.

 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, who is and was and is to come—the Almighty.”   Revelation 1:7,8

“But you, beloved, remember what was foretold by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ when they said to you, “In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow after their own ungodly desires.” These are the ones who cause divisions, who are worldly and devoid of the Spirit.

But you, beloved, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God as you await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you eternal life.”  Jude 1:17-24

 

“At that time (time of the end) shall arise Michael, the great prince who has charge of your people. (Some believe this is Jesus. I do.) And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never has been since there was a nation till that time. But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone whose name shall be found written in the book.”  Daniel 12:1

 

“And afterward, I will pour out My Spirit on all people.

Your sons and daughters will prophesy,

your old men will dream dreams,

your young men will see visions.

Even on My menservants and maidservants,

I will pour out My Spirit in those days.

I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth,

blood and fire and columns of smoke. The sun will be turned to darkness

and the moon to blood

before the coming of the great and awesome Day of the LORD.

 

And everyone who calls on the name of the LORD

will be saved;

for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem

there will be deliverance, as the LORD has promised,

among the remnant called by the LORD.”   Acts 2:28-32

 

“Most importantly, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. “Where is the promise of His coming?” they will ask. “Ever since our fathers fell asleep, everything continues as it has from the beginning of creation.”  2 Peter 3:3

“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.   2 Peter 3:9

“But the Day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar, the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and its works will be laid bare.

Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to conduct yourselves in holiness and godliness as you anticipate and hasten the coming of the day of God, when the heavens will be destroyed by fire and the elements will melt in the heat.  But in keeping with God’s promise, we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells.”   2 Peter 3:10,11

“Brothers, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you will not grieve like the rest, who are without hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, we also believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in Him.

By the word of the Lord, we declare to you that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a loud command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will be the first to rise. After that, we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will always be with the Lord. 

1 Thessalonians 4:13-17

 


“Therefore, this is what the LORD, the God of Hosts, the Lord, says:

“There will be wailing in all the public squares

and cries of ‘Alas! Alas!’ in all the streets.

The farmer will be summoned to mourn,

and the mourners to wail.

There will be wailing in all the vineyards,

for I will pass through your midst,” says the LORD.

 

       Woe to you who long for the Day of the LORD!

What will the Day of the LORD be for you?

It will be darkness and not light.

It will be like a man who flees from a lion,

only to encounter a bear,

or who enters his house and rests his hand against the wall,

only to be bitten by a snake.

Will not the Day of the LORD

be darkness and not light,

even gloom with no brightness in it?

 “I hate, I despise your feasts!  (Because even as they worshiped God they did evil and hurt people.)

I cannot stand the stench of your solemn assemblies.

Even though you offer Me burnt offerings and grain offerings,

I will not accept them;

for your peace offerings of fattened cattle

I will have no regard.

Take away from Me the noise of your songs!

I will not listen to the music of your harps.

But let justice roll on like a river,

and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”   Amos 5:14-24

 

This is the word of the LORD that came to Zephaniah son of Cushi

 “I will completely sweep away

everything from the face of the earth,”

declares the LORD.

 “I will sweep away man and beast;

I will sweep away the birds of the air,

and the fish of the sea,

and the idols with their wicked worshipers.

I will cut off mankind

from the face of the earth,”

declares the LORD.

 “I will stretch out My hand against Judah

and against all who dwell in Jerusalem.

I will cut off from this place every remnant of Baal,

the names of the idolatrous and pagan priests—

those who bow on the rooftops

to worship the host of heaven,

those who bow down and swear by the LORD

but also swear by Milcom,

and those who turn back

from following the LORD,

neither seeking the LORD

nor inquiring of Him.”   

     Be silent in the presence of the Lord GOD,

for the Day of the LORD is near.

Indeed, the LORD has prepared a sacrifice;

He has consecrated His guests.

 “On the Day of the LORD’s sacrifice

I will punish the princes,

the sons of the king,

and all who are dressed in foreign apparel.

On that day I will punish

all who leap over the threshold,

who fill the house of their master

with violence and deceit.

On that day,” declares the LORD,

“a cry will go up from the Fish Gate,

a wail from the Second District,

and a loud crashing from the hills.

Wail, O dwellers of the Hollow,

for all your merchants will be silenced;

all who weigh out silver will be cut off.

And at that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps

and punish the men settled in complacency,

who say to themselves,

‘The LORD will do nothing,

either good or bad.’

Their wealth will be plundered

and their houses laid waste.

They will build houses but not inhabit them,

and plant vineyards but never drink their wine.

The great Day of the LORD is near—

near and coming quickly.

Listen, the Day of the LORD!

Then the cry of the mighty will be bitter.

That day will be

a day of wrath,

a day of trouble and distress,

a day of destruction and desolation,

a day of darkness and gloom,

a day of clouds and blackness,

a day of horn blast and battle cry

against the fortified cities,

and against the high corner towers.

I will bring such distress on mankind

that they will walk like the blind,

because they have sinned against the LORD.

Their blood will be poured out like dust

and their flesh like dung.

Neither their silver nor their gold

will be able to deliver them

on the Day of the LORD’s wrath.

The whole earth will be consumed

by the fire of His jealousy.”

For indeed, He will make a sudden end

of all who dwell on the earth.”   Book of Zephaniah

I am now including the entire chapter of Matthew 24, which is quite long. But it is Jesus himself speaking of the end of the world and his second coming. He is also speaking about the fall of Jerusalem, which took place in the year 70 AD. The Romans came and destroyed the temple and the city.

“As Jesus left the temple and was walking away, His disciples came up to Him to point out its buildings.

 “Do you see all these things?” He replied. “Truly I tell you, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”

While Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming and of the end of the age?”

Jesus answered, “See to it that no one deceives you.  For many will come in My name, claiming, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many.  You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. These 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.

Then they will deliver you over to be persecuted and killed, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name.  At that time many will fall away and will betray and hate one another, and many false prophets will arise and mislead many.

Because of the multiplication of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold. But the one who perseveres to the end will be saved.

And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination of desolation,’ described by the prophet Daniel (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let no one on the housetop come down to retrieve anything from his house. And let no one in the field return for his cloak.

How miserable those days will be for pregnant and nursing mothers! Pray that your flight will not occur in the winter or on the Sabbath. For at that time there will be great tribulation, unmatched from the beginning of the world until now, and never to be seen again. If those days had not been cut short, nobody would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, those days will be cut short.

At that time, if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There He is!’ do not believe it. For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders that would deceive even the elect, if that were possible. See, I have told you in advance.

So if they tell you, ‘There He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.  Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather.

Immediately after the tribulation of those days:

‘The sun will be darkened,

and the moon will not give its light;

the stars will fall from the sky,

and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.’

At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and all the tribes of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. And He will send out His angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.

Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its branches become tender and sprout leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see all these things, you will know that He is near, right at the door.  Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have happened. (This is a difficult verse since these things have not happened. But it seems Jesus was talking about showing his power and great glory, which he did show to Peter, James and John on the mountain where he was changed into glory and Elijah and Moses came down from heaven to talk with him.) Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away.

No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so will it be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark. And they were oblivious, until the flood came and swept them all away. So will it be at the coming of the Son of Man. Two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left.

Therefore, keep watch, because you do not know the day on which your Lord will come. But understand this: If the homeowner had known in which watch of the night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. For this reason, you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour you do not expect.

Matthew 24

Seven Last Plagues: (I believe we bring these on ourselves through war and pollution.

1Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying to the seven angels, “Go, pour out on the earth the seven bowls of God’s wrath.”

2So the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth, and loathsome, malignant sores broke out on those who had the mark of the beast and worshiped its image.

3And the second angel poured out his bowl into the sea, and it turned to blood like that of the dead, and every living thing in the sea died.

4And the third angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and springs of water, and they turned to blood. 5And I heard the angel of the waters say:

“Righteous are You, O Holy One,

who is and was,

because You have brought these judgments.

6For they have spilled the blood of saints and prophets,

and You have given them blood to drink,

as they deserve.”

7And I heard the altar reply:

“Yes, Lord God Almighty,

true and just are Your judgments.”

8Then the fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and it was given power to scorch the people with fire. 9And the people were scorched by intense heat, and they cursed the name of God, who had authority over these plagues; yet they did not repent and give Him glory.

10And the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and its kingdom was plunged into darkness, and men began to gnaw their tongues in anguish 11and curse the God of heaven for their pains and sores; yet they did not repent of their deeds.

12And the sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up to prepare the way for the kings of the East.

13And I saw three unclean spirits that looked like frogs coming out of the mouths of the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet. 14These are demonic spirits that perform signs and go out to all the kings of the earth, to assemble them for battle on the great day of God the Almighty.

15“Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who remains awake and clothed, so that he will not go naked and let his shame be exposed.”

16And they assembled the kings in the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.

The Seventh Bowl of Wrath

17Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came from the throne in the temple, saying, “It is done!”

18And there were flashes of lightning, and rumblings, and peals of thunder, and a great earthquake the likes of which had not occurred since men were upon the earth—so mighty was the great quake. 19The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed. And God remembered Babylon the great and gave her the cup of the wine of the fury of His wrath.

20Then every island fled, and no mountain could be found. 21And great hailstones weighing almost a hundred pounds each rained down on them from above. And men cursed God for the plague of hail, because it was so horrendous.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Saturday 17 March 2018

Fear and Faith.


Photo by: https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=User:Karemin1094&action=edit&redlink=1

"God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.  Therefore, we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging." 

"Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change and though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea;  though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling." 
Psalm 46:1-3

 Psalm 46 brings comfort to me. There are beautiful, as well as fearful thoughts here. Verses 1-3 remind me of what Jesus said to the disciples in the midst of a terrible storm, when they were in danger of capsizing and drowning. He asks them, “Why are you afraid? Where is your faith?”

Jesus was explaining to them that no matter how frightening a situation is, we must have faith (trust) in God. If God allows us to drown, that is fine. If God decides to save us from drowning, that is fine. This is total trust in God’s wisdom and power. The disciples had not learned this kind of trust yet.

In these three verses, the Psalm describes the world in convulsions. Some commentators say these represent the anger of the nations. Some say they represent actual physical events. Some say they represent the storms of life. Some say they represent all three.

Because of the later verses in this chapter, I believe they represent the physical condition of the earth right before Jesus returns. Verses 6-9 say this:

"Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall; he lifts his voice, the earth melts. The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress."
"Come and see what the Lord has done, the desolations he has brought on the earth. He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth. He breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire."

About the last plague to come upon mankind, the Book of Revelation says this:

"Look, I come like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake and remains clothed, so as not to go naked and be shamefully exposed." And they assembled them at the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon. The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple, from the throne, saying, “It is done!”
  
"And there were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, and a great earthquake such as there had never been since man was on the earth, so great was that earthquake."

"The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell, and God remembered Babylon the great, to make her drain the cup of the wine of the fury of his wrath.   And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found."
Revelation 16:15-20

What is so beautiful in this Psalm are the verses that give us hope, peace and courage:

"There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells. God is within her, she will not fall; God will help her at break of day."

"He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”

"The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress."
As these days draw near, let us pray for God's courage, faith and peace.





Saturday 8 April 2017

Revelation: Armegeddon, the Seventh Plague.

I am posting chapters from my sister's book, "The End is near. End Time Bible Prophecy Anyone Can Understand." E.A. James. Available at lulu.com

Continued from previous post..

Armageddon

And I saw coming out of the mouth of the dragon (Satan) and out of the mouth of the beast (Catholicism, Pope) and out of the mouth of the false prophet (apostate Protestant leader), three unclean spirits like frogs; for they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them together for the war of the great day of God, the Almighty.  And they gathered them together to the place which in Hebrew is called Har-Magedon.  Rev. 16:13, 14, 16

          The plain of Megiddo was often the site of major battles in Old Testament times.  (See Judges 5:19 and 2 Kin. 23:29)  It is located in modern day Israel and here, Revelation says, will be the site of the final great battle of this world. 
 As the threat rises from those kings from the east, the image of the beast (the beast, the false prophet, the political powers backing them up) will convince all the nations to rally together and send armies to fight.  The stage will be set in the Middle East for the climactic battle between radical Islam and Christianity, with the Jewish nation of Israel caught in the middle.


Seventh Bowl of Wrath:  The End of the World.
Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl upon the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple from the throne, saying, “It is done.” 

And there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder; and there was a great earthquake, such as there had not been since man came to be upon the earth, so great an earthquake was it, and so mighty.  The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell.  Babylon the great was remembered before God, to give her the cup of the wine of His fierce wrath.  And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.  And huge hailstones, about one hundred pounds each, came down from heaven upon men; and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, and because its plague was extremely severe.  Rev. 16:17-21

          We learned that Babylon the great, the mother of harlots… (Rev. 17:5) is Jezebel, the false church (Catholicism) and as the mother of harlots we see she is joined with apostate Protestant churches.  (See Chapter 7) 

Those having the mark of the beast cry and lament as they see their world crashing down (Rev. 18:9-19).  But those of us bearing the seal of God will rejoice (Rev. 18:20).