For He will finish the work, and cut it short in righteousness: because a short work will the Lord make upon the earth. -Rom 9:28. When I read this the last time, it set me thinking seriously then ever as to the haste with which the Lord wants to wind up things. Paul sites this passage from Isaiah 10:23: "For the Lord GOD of hosts shall make a consumption, even determined, in the midst of all the land"; and, "I have heard from the Lord GOD of hosts a consumption, even determined upon the whole earth". -Isaiah 28:22.
Not great news at all when I see the agnosticism that is prevalent everywhere around me - eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage (satisfying exclusively the physical appetites or basic instincts). Unsurprisingly, this mindset is equally found even among the believers (who are suppose to anticipate the coming of the Lord)! Bible admonishes the believer: And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draws nigh.-Luke 21:28. However, the reason for this 'don't care' attitude is simple: When the Son of man comes, shall he find faith on the earth? -Luke 18:8.
Are we nearing the end of this age? If so, at what pace? Will it be the end of the world too? And how will it end? These are some frightening questions that demand factual answers. Where else can we go for answers to these questions than the very word of God? Let us see what the Scriptures say about each of these.
When the Lord Jesus Christ spoke about the end of this age, He was doing plain talk except for two parables - one about the fig tree and another about the eagles and the carcass. But, these parables hold facts as equally as His open statements about the end. let us look at what He said in Matthew twenty four. (There are parallel passages in Mark and Luke too).
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.
[Deception has been the one single weapon that Satan has been using even from the eternity past. He deceived one third of the angels, Eve, Adam, and later all mankind. The Lord Jesus warned his hearers (and us, the people of the last days) about this subtle but fiery dart of the evil one. What is seemingly good to the unsuspecting eye is in fact evil to the core - that is deception. And, people who are not grounded in the word of God are prone to this deception. This is because, they do not know the sound doctrines of the Bible. They keep believing the doctrines preached from pulpits (most of which are based on stuff found in books written by deceivers). Such demon-inspired preachers are found in almost every church gathering and every believers' fellowships. Such a preacher ultimately becomes a 'god' / Christ to the hearer. Every such 'Christian' preacher says "I am Christ", though not verbally always but puts up a haughty show that he is one.]
And ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars:
[While there have been two world wars in the last century, there have been other wars that have resulted in millions dying all over the world. As per an April 2020 report there are at least ten official wars and eight active military conflicts recognized by the USA. There are also other violent conflicts involving 64 countries and 576 militias and separatist groups. Wars are not only military; there are drug wars, civil wars and the largest of all, the economic war that is currently triggered by the Covid-19 catastrophe. Cold wars might be what are mentioned as rumors of wars in this portion of scripture.]
See that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.
[Every normal person today is troubled by the news that is propagated by the media real-time. Every nation is panicking and every national leader is clueless as to what could be the solutions to these conflicts. While these wars might not bring an end to the world, the end is certainly fast approaching. However, the Lord assures His believers not to be troubled because all of these are God-determined.]
For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:
[This is particularly about the civil wars and internal conflicts in the countries of the world. Racism is the root cause for such conflicts. Casteism is the direct outcome of Racism. Conflicts based on race and caste are surging globally. More than inter-religious uprisings, intra-religious terrorism is swallowing up millions.]
and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.
[As of April 2020, there are at leas fifty four nations that are facing famine - Nigeria, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen leading the board. 265 million are facing acute hunger and 821 million are living with chronic hunger. 195 million in India are going hungry everyday. Unofficial figures might be manifold times these figures.
8.9 million people in the world die of cancer every year. 25 to 35 million have died of HIV and AIDS so far. 1.07 million people have died of Covid-19 as of 12th Oct 2020.
Here is a table containing details of Earthquakes in diverse place so far in the last decade:]
All these are the beginning of sorrows.
...To be continued in 2/3
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