The coming of Jesus has been a long awaited event. From the time of the cross when Jesus promised His disciples that He would return to take them and all of God’s children home to live with Him (although the plan of salvation was laid far deeper and before the cross) to today’s philosophers Jesus’ return has been a much studied subject. Ellen White in her studies pointed out Jesus’ imminent return. She also pointed out the ‘signs’ of Jesus’ return. Prophecy has defined what is going to happen beforehand so all christians can be prepared for Jesus’ return.
I believe these signs have already begun, Jesus has begun to start the ‘count down’ to the time of the end. Let’s start from the beginning, Revelation has all the necessary documentation to prove that Jesus is on His way. But first let’s see what Ellen White had to say on the matter.
1/ Devastation and destruction:-
“I am bidden to declare the message that cities full of transgression, and sinful in the extreme, will be destroyed by earthquakes, by fire, by flood. … His unseen agencies will cause destruction, devastation and death.” (Country Living 7.4)
“Calamities will come—calamities most awful, most unexpected; and these destructions will follow one after another.” (Country Living 7.5)
I believe, as it has been proven in the past, that people (yes even God’s people) often fall into a state of lethargy. Nothing ‘visible’ is happening so they falsely deem all is ‘safe’. Jesus’ coming will be ‘as a thief in the night’, and this state of lethargy will be fatal. Some people, christians included, often put God out of their mind completely and in the hustle and bustle of life no thought is given to their salvation.
Now while God never condones hardship of any kind while we are living in Satan’s usurped playground ‘bad things’ are going to happen. So, while God never ‘metes it out’ He does use it to refine our character, to correct our path in life, to draw us closer to Him. As gold is tried in the fire so we are drawn into a closer relationship with God. In times of need we lean closer on Jesus and we learn from experience the tender love and care of our heavenly Father. This is a experience we can never have sitting in a comfy chair and living in a perfect environment, what need of Jesus does this situation present? When trial comes (and it will) these ‘saints’ would fall apart, they wouldn’t know what to do or how to act, they would feel betrayed by Jesus (even though He was right beside them) and their very salvation could be jeopardised. They are ‘unprepared’ to meet the trials of life.
Jesus loves us deeply and He loves to bestow His blessings upon you. Don’t look at these trials as ‘punishments’ from God, look at them as a opportunity to move forward in faith, to grow closer to God, to feel and relax in His power to save. Nothing will ever come upon you without God’s say so. He will be beside you every step of the way, comforting, and if necessary carrying you. We can also safely quote 1st Corinthians 10:13 “but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” And we can rest in that promise.
2/ Massive loss of life:-
“In the last scenes of this earth’s history war will rage. There will be pestilence, plague and famine. The waters of the deep will overflow their boundaries. Property and life will be destroyed by fire and flood. We should be preparing for the mansions that Christ has gone to prepare for them that love Him.” (Ellen White, Last Day Events 24.2)
Loss of life is always a touchy subject. Too many people blame God, they forget it is Satan who brought in death, it is much easier for them just to blame God. Death to a child of God is only a fast track to the kingdom of heaven, to them they know nothing of what is going on anywhere and their next memory is looking into the beautiful face of Jesus. Death to them is a beautiful rest from the trial of this earth, a quick step to heaven. It’s the loved one left behind, deprived of the beauty of the one just lost. It’s the one left behind who feels the pain. Diving into the reasons why is a dangerous liaison. Sometimes it’s safer just to leave it with Jesus. Jesus knows what He is doing and sometimes He just asks us to “just trust Him”. As we don’t always tell our children the reasons for the things we do (they are too young, they won’t understand, it is too much for them now, but later I will tell them and they will be able to ‘take’ it then) so for the very same reasons Jesus doesn’t always tell us. We may find out later but right now Jesus is our heavenly Father and as we ask our children to ‘just trust us for now’ our heavenly Father is doing the same. Jesus is tenderly saying “I know this is hard for you my child, I have walked the same path, I love you dearly, I am at your side, I have felt your tears, comfort will come in the morning but right now I am just asking you to trust Me”.
Friend leave your pain at the cross, your questions will be answered as you walk with Jesus by the river of life, if not before, put the grave behind you and press forward. Time is short, look to Jesus, soon we will be going home and you will be reunited never more to part.
3/ A warning for people to give up a life of sin and return to Jesus:-
“In fires, in floods, in earthquakes, in the fury of the great deep, in calamities by sea and by land, the warning is given that God’s Spirit will not always strive with men.” (Last Day Events 26.2)
“It is a time when, I believe, the Spirit of God is being withdrawn from the world and there are casualties, disasters, loss of life by floods, by fire, by rail, by earthquakes in divers places. There is so much of this death by plagues and disease of every kind.” (Letter 132-1892.14 by Ellen White)
The Bible verses 1/ Revelation 18:2 “…Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and has become a dwelling place of demons…” and 2/ Revelation 18:4 “…Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues” holds a lot of significance for us today. Christians have mingled with the children of Babylon involving themselves in her iniquity, well Babylon is about to be punished, but first God is calling His people out. Awake, Christian, awake, that great day of the Lord is about to break and who shall be able to stand. Now is the time to move out of the cities, put space between yourself and iniquity. God is about to send judgements upon the ungodly and He is sending a warning to His people. As Jesus sent angels to remove Lot from Sodom so He is sending His angels today to remove His saints from Babylon. Don’t feel for a moment that the shift is too hard, don’t hesitate because of a lack of faith, Jesus will supply your needs. Any hesitation now could cause you to lose your life. Your earthly possessions are nothing in comparison to what God has promised us in heaven, don’t do what Lot’s wife did, don’t look back. We now have to put distance between ourselves and the sin laden cities. Don’t delay, Jesus is coming and judgements will come whether you are out or not. Jesus doesn’t want any of His people caught up in His judgements, search your heart, leave your earthly possessions friend, and flee, the time of His judgements has come.
Jesus has made it quite clear in prophecy what to look for and I believe we have arrived in this world’s history to the time of the end. Shortly, I would like to do a comparison to the devastation and destruction of the past to the same events today. I believe we can prove how events today add up to events in prophecy but first let’s take a quick look at Revelation.
Let’s start with the early first signs of Jesus’ return. These events are prophesied in the Bible.
Mark 13:24-26 “But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, And the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken. And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory.”
Revelation 6:12 “And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood;”
Joel 2:31 “The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes.”
We see here three separate prophecies not recorded in the same order but history does have a record of these events.
1/ Lisbon Earthquake:- Saturday 1st November, 1755
Subsequent fires and tsunami (9 metres high)
Lisbon almost totally destroyed
Deaths – 10,000 – 100,000
Intensity – Extreme (9 on Richter scale)
Felt throughout Europe, Finland, North Africa
Tsunami hit southern England
Galway on west coast of Ireland hit
Let’s see what Ellen White has to say on the matter.
Lisbon Earthquake:-
“These signs were witnessed before the opening of the nineteenth century. In fulfilment of this prophecy there occurred, in the year 1755, the most terrible earthquake that has ever been recorded. Though commonly known as the earthquake of Lisbon, it extended to the greater part of Europe, Africa, and America.” (The Great Controversy 304.2)
2/ Dark Day:- 19th May 1780
Came on 10 – 11am
Continued till middle of next night
Several days before the sun appeared red, sky yellow
Moon went red
Observed over New England states and parts of Canada
As far north as Portland Maine
Extended southward to New Jersey
Let’s go back to Ellen White.
Dark Day:-
“Almost, if not altogether alone, as the most mysterious and as yet unexplained phenomenon of its kind, … stands the dark day of May 19, 1780,—a most unaccountable darkening of the whole visible heavens and atmosphere in New England.” (The Great Controversy 306.2)
3/ Falling Stars:- 13th November, 1833
News: “The family was aroused and they thought the world was coming to an end. The slaves fell on their knees and began to pray. The stars showered down so thickly and fast that it looked as though every star in the heavens was falling. When they touched the ground, they burst and drifted away. Stars were still falling when the sun arose the next morning. Never before had there been such a sight witnessed, nor has there been since the greatest meteoric display of our age.”
Again we return to Ellen White.
Falling Stars:-
“This prophecy received a striking and impressive fulfilment in the great meteoric shower of November 13, 1833. That was the most extensive and wonderful display of falling stars which has ever been recorded …” (Christ in His Sanctuary 62.1)
I believe from these events we can have confidence in the prophecy of Jesus’ imminent return. Slowly but surely the events prophesied in the Bible are being ticked off the calendar. Let’s continue in our investigation.
Let’s take what we have learned from prophecy and relate it to today’s events. Can we make connections between prophecy and the unfolding events in the world? Let’s start with the prophecies of the Bible and the recordings of Ellen White:-
Luke 21:11 “And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.”
Luke 21:25 “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;”
Ellen White.
“I am bidden to declare the message that cities full of transgression, and sinful in the extreme, will be destroyed by earthquakes, by fire, by flood. All the world will be warned that there is a God who will display His authority as God. His unseen agencies will cause destruction, devastation, and death. All the accumulated riches will be as nothingness…” (Country Living 7.4)
“Calamities will come—calamities most awful, most unexpected; and these destructions will follow one after another.” (Country Living 7.5)
“The judgments of God are in the land. The wars and rumours of wars, the destruction by fire and flood, say clearly that the time of trouble, which is to increase until the end, is very near at hand.” (Counsels for the Church 336.5)
I believe the following data will show a startling increase of world wide destruction and devastation. Starting with a brief summery of events in 2017 and 2018 we can see the world is at its climax of horrific events, it feels that the world itself is about to break apart. Massive earthquakes, volcanos, tsunami, how much more can this world take before it falls apart?
You know the internet has a lot of information and after some research these summaries could be obtained:-
2017
A devastating year with natural disasters such as catastrophic floods, wildfires and earthquakes affecting millions across the globe
Recently estimated disasters this year caused an estimated $306 billion in total economic losses
June-July: China flooding
August: Sierra Leone floods and landslides, Hurricane Harvey, India flooding, Hurricane Irma
September: Mexico earthquakes, Bangladesh monsoon, Hurricane Maria
October: Northern California wildfire
November: Vietnam typhoon, Iran earthquake, Bali volcano
December: Southern California wildfires
Friends that’s a natural disaster almost every month!
Still quoting the internet:-
“Global disasters in 2017 cost approximately $306 billion, nearly double the cost of 2016.
This year saw the US hit with more powerful hurricanes than in the past 12 years. Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria are estimated to have contributed $93 billion to the annual economic losses from global disasters. Wildfires in California, which continue to rage, will add another $7 billion. And thunderstorms in central and southern states in the US will contribute $2.5 billion.”
Let’s now go to 2018
“Natural disasters around the world are occurring at an alarming rate in 2018. Every few weeks, we’re witnessing earthquakes that demolish whole cities, wildfires that burn thousands of acres, and cyclones that cause mass flooding and property damage. In the wake of these disasters, people grieve the losses of loved ones and destroyed property while anticipating the long road back to personal and communal recovery.”
January: Windstorm Friederike – Germany, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Poland, with mild storm weather hitting parts of the UK, Montecito Mudslides – Southern California, Santa Barbara Thomas Fire – Southern California
February: Papua New Guinea Earthquake, Oaxaca Earthquake Mexico, Hualien Earthquake -Taiwan
March: Cyclone Josie Fiji, New England Bomb Cyclone
May: Dust Storms, Mount Kilauea Eruption, Subtropical Storm Alberto
June: Mount Fuego Eruption
July: California Wildfires, Japan Flooding and Mudslides
August: Tropical Storm Lane, Hawaii
September: Indonesia Earthquake and Tsunami, Hurricane Florence, Super Typhoon Mangkhut
October: Hurricane Michael
November: California Fires
From disaster reports 2018:-
- “134,000,000 people needed assistance in 2018.”
- “During the first 9 months of 2018, the U.S. has experienced an active year of billion-dollar disaster events.”
Data from the internet estimates that catastrophes in the first half of 2018 resulted in $36 billion in total global economic losses.
The conclusions I believe we can draw from these summaries prove the world is in major chaos. Never before have we seen turmoil like today. Every news broadcast say “it’s the worst ever”. Friends the earth is reeling, and today I stand before you plainly stating ‘time is up’. No longer will Jesus ‘bear’ with humanity, no longer can He shield His children from the evils of this world, no, Jesus is coming friend, He is coming to take His faithful home, to remove them from the results of evil and sin, to remove them from Satan’s playground and to impart to them their inheritance, a beautiful mansion in heaven, where peace and love reign supreme.
Dear friends, there are also moral laws that need to be pointed out. Too often these concepts are avoided, slighted over or ignored completely. For too long these issues have merely just been ‘tolerated’. I know I am putting my neck on the chopping block but I serve and love the God of heaven and I feel I can no longer sit quiet on the sidelines while God’s law is trampled under foot. Yes it is a free world, they are free to choose any path they want to walk but am I free to say “no I don’t agree with you”? or is our church ‘free’ to say “no we cannot condone this unity”? I believe we are not. No longer friend, is there ‘freedom’ for everybody, but freedom only seems to come for those who are covered by the law of this land. God’s law has been superseded, it has been cast aside. Satan is now at the controls driving this world to destruction and we are now standing on the brink.
Friends, how can a God of love stand back and watch His creation degraded to a level far below even the animals, it is true not even wild animals carry on in the same manner as humanity. No monkey ever got drunk, killed his ‘wife’ or raped his daughter. There are infinite examples of how low humanity has fallen. All around us men and women even children are fighting, murdering, raping their fellow man, if any object is ‘wanted’ by them it is merely taken, stolen often by force and sometimes at the loss of the life of the owner. The laws of the land aren’t sufficient, how many times have we heard terrible crimes being committed by a offender just out on bail. There is no respect for property, or liberty, a life is taken without a ‘bat of the eye’, selfish, greedy people daily oppress the weak, rob the poor, needlessly put lives at risk driving drunk, texting or talking on phones while driving not caring that at the blink of a eye their life and the lives of others could be marred forever. Selfishness abounds and me, me, me is on everyones lips. Friends, I say again, how can God continue to watch this planet disappear into a gulf of sin. Our next generation of children have no chance whatsoever. Everywhere they turn, everywhere they go iniquity abounds. It is ‘in their face’ from day one. Schools bombard them, if they speak out or against it the courts jail them, the world in general has turned against them. The world has turned against God. The damage done now is irreparable, there is no turning back and no chance of revival. Our God is a God of love and He isn’t going to allow another generation to advance when it has no chance of salvation.
Yes friend I hope that now you can see why
Jesus must come today.
Amen