God's Prophetic Timeline

before we tackle the subject matter i plan to cover today i want to begin with an important disclaimer while i feel very confident in my biblical understanding of the end times and specifically the scriptures and what they have to say about the future i want to acknowledge right from the beginning that there are godly honorable intelligent believers who see these things that we'll discuss today much differently than i do these people are absolutely wrong but they aren't heretics or bad christians it's also worth noting that as it pertains to the end times regardless of our disagreements concerning the details the orthodox understanding of our final destination is universally agreed upon the suffering of this world will give way to an eternity that we get to spend with our savior jesus christ in the end the differences and eschatological beliefs center primarily on the journey that we have to travel to get to our final destination while there are nuanced positions that split hairs across a wide spectrum of beliefs the core difference between my view and others hinges on how one interprets the prophecies of daniel the olivet discourse of jesus and the book of revelation for example if you believe the 70 weeks prophecy recorded in daniel 9 verses 26 and 27 what jesus then articulated to his disciples from the mount of olives and the revelation given to the apostle john if you think those things document the events of 70 a.d when titus vestizian destroyed jerusalem and the temple well then you'll have a much different perspective than someone like myself who sees these prophecies as still requiring a literal future fulfillment you see for me it boils down to two contrary approaches regarding the bible itself you either contort scripture to fit into an eschatological position you already have or you allow scripture to dictate your eschatology it's really that simple let me let me add before we go further a historical footnote i think it's important beginning in 70 a.d and continuing for 1878 years until may of 1948 church theologians they had a big struggle a challenge you see they struggled with a literal reading of end times prophecies mainly because the children of israel as a nation were front and center in the prophecies now what was the issue well many reasoned how could any of these things be describing future events since the nation of israel didn't exist like in fairness you can understand their challenge like without the nation of israel the logical assumption was these prophecies couldn't be describing the future and since that's the case scholars had to then figure out a way to fi the fulfillment of these prophecies into events that had already happened in history not only did the assumption that israel as a nation was gone and gone forever give rise to what's known as replacement or covenant theology and later dispensationalism but the grand irony of ironies about it all is that such attempts became silly and pointless when out of nowhere israel rose from the ashes of history following world war ii frankly i believe the best way to study as well as to understand biblical prophecy is to employ three very simple approaches first unless you're told otherwise read the text literally secondly look for a historical event that cleanly fits into the literal description and thirdly if there isn't one you can go ahead and assume that the prophecy still has a future fulfillment the purpose of our time together this morning is to is to help us transition from our travels through the book of daniel to now a new study in the book of revelation this bible studies somewhat of a transition between the two and to do this i really have two goals i'm just going to be up front right from the beginning first i want to take what we've learned from daniel concerning the the seven year great tribulation the second coming of jesus the millennial reign of christ as well as what we're going to learn in our travels through the book of revelation and i want to take all of this information and organize it into a very simple timeline that's easy for you to understand take all the pieces all the information and kind of package it together after this i then want to take some time this morning to address three additional prophecies i don't believe fit within the end time scenario but may very well set the stage for these amazing events to begin with any discussion of the end times must start with the 70 weeks prophecy recorded in daniel 9 verses 24 through 27. the reason we have to start here is that this prophecy provides for us kind of the foundation by which so much of our understanding of the future is based it's the foundation in which the house is built since this is the case let me take a few minutes and kind of re-examine not the prophecy and all of its particulars but more of kind of the generalities of the 70 weeks prophecy verse 24 of daniel 9 70 weeks are determined for your people and for your holy city so god set aside 490 years to accomplish the following things to finish the transgression to make an end of sins to make reconciliation for iniquity to bring in everlasting righteousness to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy now most of this list clearly hasn't been fulfilled verse 25 no therefore and understand that from the going forth of the command to restore and build jerusalem until messiah the prince there shall be seven weeks in 62 weeks and the street shall be built again and the wall even in troublesome times we know historically that from the command of king xerxes on march 14th 445 bc allowing the jews to rebuild the city of jerusalem it took 7 weeks or 49 years for the people to complete the street and the walls according to nehemiah all this happened in troublesome times indeed once the city was finished in accordance with xerxes command it then took another 62 weeks or 434 years for jesus to appear to jerusalem making his triumphal entry as a result verse 25 closes with 483 years of the 490 years god had set aside for israel are already being fulfilled verse 26 and after the 62 weeks messiah shall be cut off but not for himself and the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city in the sanctuary the end of it shall be with a flood until the end of the war desolations are determined again we know verse 26 has a clear fulfillment in history exactly 483 years from xerxes decree seven weeks followed by another 62 weeks jesus presented himself to israel as their messiah the people were waving palm branches the crowd was singing hosanna hosanna the king after we're told this incredible moment we know two tragic events followed according to the prophecy and history confirms it jesus was cut off crucified and the romans destroyed the city and the sanctuary verse 27 then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week now the he refers back to the prince who is to come indicating this future leader would be of roman or european descent additionally the covenant for one week refers to a peace accord that would last a period of seven years or daniel's 70th week we're told that in the middle of the week this three and a half year mark he shall bring an end to the sacrifice and offering and on the wing of abomination shall be one who makes desolate even until the consummation which is determined is poured out on the desolate that jesus would actually build off this important passage and discussing these things with the disciples matthew 25 verse 15 he says therefore when you see this abomination of desolation spoken of by daniel the prophet standing in the holy place let those who are in judah flee to the mountains let him who's on the mount mount mountaintops on the house top not go down to take anything of his house let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes woe to those who are pregnant those who are nursing babies in those days pray that your flight may not be in winter or sabbath there will be great tribulation jesus says such as not has been since the beginning of the world until this time nor nor shall ever be and unless those days were short no flesh would be saved but for the elect's sake those days will be shortened and one of the pastors that i've listened to during my own study and preparation of our series through daniel a man that i admire but totally disagree with when it comes to the future when he got to the 70 weeks prophecy instead of explaining how it fit into his eschatology he simply threw up his hands and said i quote anyone who says they know what this means is lying to you now because the prophecy didn't fit within his belief structure it was just easier for him to ignore it again trying to take the bible to fit into your eschatology versus letting the bible dictate your eschatology really was a shame and disappointing not only do i reject the idea that daniel 9 is unknowable and confusing but from my perspective there are two things that we know for sure that are easy to interpret in light of the 70 weeks prophecy first of the 490 years that god set aside for the jewish people 483 years have already taken place in history that's clear secondly in addition to most of the items on god's to-do list still not being presently accomplished we know that this final period of seven years has no clear historical fulfillment to this point because jesus placed the abomination of desolation spoken of by daniel the prophet as still being a future event we know it could not have been fulfilled at some claim by antiochus epiphanes in 168 bc furthermore while it is true that in 70 a.d titus may have brought an end to sacrifice and offerings you know because he destroyed jerusalem in the temple there's no evidence he confirmed a covenant with many or anyone nor does he commit the abomination of desolation in any way shape or form in light of this reality you're really only left with one logical honest conclusion the final seven years of god's determined 490 year timeline for israel still remains future and since this is the case the 70 weeks prophecy places for us three events on the future timeline let's examine them according to daniel 9 we know the seven years begins with the antichrist signing a peace with many including israel so we know how this begins the seven years we also know that at the middle point the three and a half year mark seven of the seven years a hundred uh 1 260 days technically 360 day year we know at the middle part three and a half years the antichrist commits the abomination of desolation so we know this begins with the signing of the false peace the antichrist many israel we know in the middle part is this abomination of desolation because of this evil act the hebrew people end up rejecting this man and in turn they accept jesus as their messiah what results well the next three the next three and a half years become a great tribulation unlike anything the world's ever seen aside from the systematic persecution of all the jews in addition anyone that would follow jesus this period also includes the judgment of god being poured out on the wicked world that's incomplete and utter rebellion on account of all of this we know how the seven years ends we know how it begins we know what happens in the middle we know what happens at the end these seven years will end 2560 days after they began and a thousand two hundred and sixty days following the abomination of desolation with the battle of armageddon and the second coming of jesus to this earth riding on a white stallion in glory and this awesome event in history anyone on earth who had taken the mark of the beast will be destroyed their souls will be sent to hades to await the final judgment the antichrist the false prophet fallen angels are all thrown into the lake of fire satan is cast into the bottomless pit where he'll remain in chains for a thousand years according to an additional timeline that's provided for us in daniel 12 that kind of takes us a little bit beyond these seven years we know that once christ returns it'll take him 30 days to restore the earth heal the seas round up all of the survivors then with everyone finally gathered in jerusalem the earth back in good health for the next 45 days jesus will he'll reorder the nations he'll form his government 75 days after his second coming the millennial reign of christ will begin lasting for a thousand years bc before christ and a.d in the year of our lord will give way to any a new era of human history though we're a little vague on all the particulars according to revelation 20 verses 7 through 10 we're actually given some insight what will happen at the end of these thousand years the millennial reign we read now when the thousand years have expired satan will be released from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth to gather them together to battle whose number is as the sand of the sea they went up on the breath of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints in the beloved city fire came down from god out of heaven and devoured them the devil who deceived them was then cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever at this point the final great white throne judgment occurs whereby all those who had died rejecting jesus are judged we're told according to their works again revelation 21 verses 1 through 4 john writes i saw a new heaven and a new earth for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away also there was no more sea then i john saw the holy city the new jerusalem coming down out of heaven from god prepared as a bride adorned for her husband and i heard a loud voice from heaven saying behold the tabernacle of god is with men and he will dwell with them and they shall be his people god himself will be with them and be their god and god will wipe where wipe away every tear from their eyes there shall be no more death nor sorrow nor crying there shall be no more pain for the former things have passed away getting back to our timeline and specifically the events of the seven year tribulation daniel's 70th week from kind of the 10 000 foot perspective we know this period of time is designed to accomplish two aims from god's perspective first god allows the antichrist to deceive the jewish people so that during the abomination of desolation they might come to see jesus finally as being their christ don't forget the the whole purpose of these seven years according to daniel 9 was for god to finish his dealings with the children of israel that said there is a second purpose you see just as god has done in times past noah's flood sodom and gomorrah the ten plagues of egypt to name just a few examples god will use these seven years to supernaturally cosmically judge the world of her sin and her rebellion and her rejection of jesus well you'll find an outline of these judgments presented for for you in jesus's olivet discourse it is the book of revelation that provides for us the most comprehensive articulation of these things now if you recall in daniel 12 9 jesus said to this old prophet he said go your way daniel for the words are closed up and sealed to the time of the end i want to just for a moment fast forward to the heavenly scene recorded for us in the future in revelation 5. beginning with verse 1 john says i saw on the right hand of him who sat on the throne a scroll written inside and on the back sealed with seven seals then i saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice who was worthy to open the scroll and to loose its seals and no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or even to look at it so i wept much because no one was found worthy to open and read the scroll or to look at it but john says one of the elders said to me do not weep behold the lion of the tribe of judah the root of david has prevailed to open the scroll to loose its seven seals and i looked and behold in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures and in the midst of the elders stood a lamb as though it had been slain having seven horns and seven eyes which are the seven spirits of god sent out into all the earth then he came and we know this is jesus and took the scroll out of the right hand who hit up him who sat on the throne beginning in revelation 6 from heaven jesus the glorified resurrected lord he begins to lose these seven seals and with each of them a divine judgment takes place on the earth personally i believe the imagery of jesus unsealing the scroll intends to relay the enacting of or the implementing of the future prophecies given to daniel the prophet he had been instructed to close up in seal till the time of the end we are now in the time of the end and the throme room of heaven it may be that john is watching jesus unseal the book of daniel to this point the first sealed judgment describes the antichrist emerging on the world scene the second sees this man waging a war a great war in order to consolidate his power and authority the third seal unleashes an economic collapse the fourth widespread death in famine the fifth a global persecution of the saints of god the sixth cosmic disturbances on the earth then with the loosing of the seventh seal we have enacted a second set of judgments known as the trumpet judgments with the first a third of all vegetation is burned up with the second a third of all seed creatures and ships are destroyed with the third a third of all fresh water is made bitter and undrinkable with the fourth a third of the sky was blackened with the fifth demon-like locusts are allowed to torment the people of earth for five months with the six four fallen angels are released to kill a third of mankind through a war with the seventh trumpet we find another set of seven final bold judgments are poured out on the earth the first bowl causes lotham sores to break out on anyone who had the mark of the beast the second bowl turns the sea into into blood all of the sea into blood killing all marine life the third bowl does the same with the fresh water the fourth causes the sun to increase in its heat and scorch men on the earth with a great heat the fifth bowl sees the world covered in a horrifying darkness the six bowl releases four demons who gathered the armies of the world for a final conflict the seventh bowl sees a great earthquake thunderings and lightnings jerusalem split into three the cities of the earth brought into ruin and a hundred pound hailstones raining down on the planet i should add here that trying to place these three sets of judgments that take place during these seven years the seals the trumpets and the bulls trying to place them into like a clear chronological framework is really difficult and it's difficult for two i think understandable reasons one keep in mind events taking place in heaven are triggering events occurring on earth now the obvious challenge to that is that we don't actually fully understand the way that time functions in the heavenly realm and how it relates to the way that time functions on earth still a bit of a mystery also because the seventh seal judgment triggers six trumpet judgments with the seventh trumpet triggering seven more bold judgments meaning the seventh seal judgment actually includes a grand total of 13 additional judgments there is no doubt no question that we have some serious overlap i'm not sure a repeating but definitely an overlap now in my opinion and again you really can't be dogmatic to the point but my opinion is that the first four seal judgments that are actually described using very unique language a white horse and a red horse and a black horse and a pale horse i believe the first four seals occurred during the first three and a half years with the rest of the judgments probably taking place during the second half which jesus refers to as great tribulation it's all tribulation but this is great tribulation and i should add that there are some who try to argue the first three and a half years aren't really that bad now they might not be as bad if you place them in context of the final three and a half years but i can say this with certainty i don't want to live through them now let me recap again the idea here is to try to place this in a real concise articulate frame let me recap what we've discussed thus far the seven year tribulation period begins with the antichrist signing a treaty with many including israel seal one concerning those who refuse to join this confederation the antichrist wages war on them seal two as a result the global economy collapses seal three from war severe inflation famine we're told a fourth of the earth perishes seal four i should add during this time we have 144 000 hebrews from the 12 tribes of israel's sealed as evangelists we also have two witnesses we'll get to that when we get to our rev our revelation series now at the halfway point of these seven years this antichrist he enters the temple and he commits the abomination of desolation talked about by daniel talked about jesus he's also allowed to kill these two witnesses and he proceeds to initiate a brutal persecution of the saints of god seal five almost immediately the earth begins to moan for its maker seal six over these three and a half years this seventh seal unleashes what can only be described as truly great tribulation a third of all vegetation is burned up a third of the sea is turned to blood a third of fresh water becomes undrinkable a third of the sky is blackened at some point demon locusts are released to torment men for five years while that's happening four more demons are released out of chains to spark another war that kills an additional one-third of mankind then as we rapidly approach the end of the seven years all those who've taken the mark break out in these loathsome sores likely because of the fallout of the second great war the rest of the seas turned to blood all of the fresh water becomes undrinkable the deterioration of the ozone causes the temperatures on earth to soar whether it be on account of a nuclear fallout or volcanic eruptions the entire sky has turned to darkness four more demons are released to bring the world together for this final battle in the valley of megiddo armageddon then the final bowl is poured out whereby god brings the cities of this world to ruin through a great earthquake he judges the world for blasphemy how he stones them with a hundred pound hailstones it's in this moment jesus comes riding out of heaven on a white horse he puts an end to the mayhem indeed if things were allowed to continue no flesh would have been able to survive following jesus's second coming the destruction of the antichrist the false prophet all those that had aligned themselves with him satan being cast into chains for 30 days jesus restores the earth he rounds up the elect the survivors then over the next 45 days jesus reorganizes the nations he establishes his kingdom you and i rule and reign we're given jobs jesus reigns gloriously on this earth for a thousand years when there's one final rebellion that god intervenes and he crushes following this all the sinners are judged and this existence gives way to a new heaven and a new earth that's your future now moving beyond the prophecies that directly tie into what we call the end times regarding the future our future i should add that the bible does include three additional prophecies that seem to occur before daniel's 70th week but likely in close proximity let's go through all three of them first according to congruent prophecies recorded in isaiah 17 and jeremiah 49 we know a day will come when the syrian capital of damascus which is by the way one of the world's oldest cities will be utterly and completely destroyed in fact because of her wickedness god says that he will kindle a fire in the wall of damascus so that she ceases from being a city and becomes such a ruinous heap that her young men shall fall in her streets and that all the men of war shall be cut off in that day in one day now whether the destruction the future destruction of damascus and why do we know this is future because damascus exists whether this happens via a preemptive attack a nuclear attack maybe by israel or that the city is brought to some type of ruin from an accident like we recently saw in the lebanese capital of berut there is a day coming on the horizon when damascus experiences the divine judgment of god so that's the first future event secondly in ezekiel 38 and 39 we have provided for us an amazingly detailed description of a future attack against the nation of israel truth be told this account provided by ezekiel it's so detailed we have more information about this conflict than we do about the battle of armageddon this is a major event now i wish i had more time to unpack the prophecy at length but let me at least just give you the generalities at some point again in the future israel will be attacked by a coalition of nations aligned with russia known as gog and magog this list of nations and the prophecy that join russia include iran libya some of the islamic countries of northern africa as well as turkey now in the scenario that ezekiel describes israel she's outmatched and outgunned that said against insurmountable odds and what appeared to be certain destruction god supernaturally intervenes and he protects his people by completely destroying this coalition in fact what happens is so blatantly obviously supernatural that in turn it leads to a spiritual stirring and awakening within israel i believe sets the stage for the beginning of daniel's 70th week a case can be made that this event described in ezekiel 38 and 39 creates the need whereby a world leader rises up to broker a peace between israel and the rest of the world a peace by the way that the jews now spiritually re reawakened the man include the rebuilding of their temple something they wouldn't do today but they will then this spiritual awakening on account of god's direct intervention also then paves the way for the jews to see this leader who brings peace and a new temple as being their messiah sadly it won't take but three and a half years for the hebrew people to see that this man is an antichrist and that jesus is the true christ now what's so fascinating about ezekiel ezekiel 38 and 39 these prophecies are the nations that are not included in the list so a coalition of nations come against israel it's fascinating those that aren't listed that aren't included historically iraq which would be babylon jordan syria and egypt have always been the enemies of the jewish people and yet they're oddly absent today through events that we've actually seen develop in our own generation our own lifetime these nations i just mentioned would likely pass on such a conflict syria has been mired in civil war for the last decade in fact if damascus was destroyed prior to ezekiel 38 and 39 you can understand why syria wouldn't be included in the list aside from this egypt and jordan are two of the arab nations who actually have peace treaties with israel no doubt iraq has issues with iran that they have to worry about additionally you should you should notice that saudi arabia as well as the rest of the sunni gulf states are not included as well again what we've seen recently provides some interesting insight led first by the uae normalizing historically relations with israel just a few weeks ago many people believe that this is just the beginning that the majority of the arabian peninsula who are sunni muslims are likely to strike up normalization of relations with israel all this might follow suit soon again why they're not included in this list according to the prophecy the other thing that's that provides some intrigue so israel is left to fend for herself against this invasion but a lot of people find it odd that the united states is absent like today few would risk an attack on israel because it would bring the usa into the conflict because we're the chief ally of israel now it's my personal opinion that the reason that america is absent from this scenario and israel alone by this point history stems from the third prophetic event that takes place before the beginning of daniel's 70th week and that is the rapture of the church now you'll not find one chapter dedicated to the rapture of the church like a chapter is like everything you need to know about the rapture right here but there is no question that this future event weaves its way throughout the entire new testament as an overview and that's all i have time for but the doctrine of the rapture presents a future moment in time when jesus the groom calls the bride the church home to heaven first thessalonians chapter 4 verses 16 through 18 paul writes of this event he says for the lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout with a voice of an arch angel the trumpet of god the dead in christ will rise first then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up or wrath raptured together with them in the clouds to meet the lord in the air and thus we shall be with the lord always therefore comfort one another with these words now not to be mistaken as the second coming of jesus when he actually returns to the earth the rapture describes the moment when the church is instead taken from this earth to join jesus in heaven again writing of this event in first corinthians 15 paul says behold i tell you a mystery we shall not all sleep or die some of us will be changed in a moment in the twinkling of an eye at the last trumpet for the trumpet will sound and the dead will be raised incorruptible and we shall be changed metamorphosized transformed now up front regarding those who believe in the rapture some see this event happening in the middle of the seven year tribulation others see it happening at the end we refer to these positions as a mid-trib in a post-trib respectively i believe that the bible is absolutely crystal clear that the rapture of the church must happen before the tribulation in fact i don't think it can happen in any other place and let me explain why and ii thessalonians chapter 2 verses 5 through 8 paul he actually points to the work of the holy spirit through the church of jesus as the singular thing presently restricting the revealing of the antichrist let me read you what he writes he says now you know what is restraining that he this is the antichrist may be revealed in his own time for the mystery of lawlessness is already at work only he the holy spirit who now restrains will do so till he the holy spirit is taken out of the way then the lawless when the antichrist will be revealed whom the lord will consume with the breath of his mouth and destroy with the brightness of his coming it stands to reason the rapture of the church not only enables the antichrist to finally come upon the world stage what's been restraining no longer but the completion of what we know as the church age also enables god to now turn his attention back to his dealings with the hebrew people which again relates directly to the 70 weeks prophecy romans 11 verses 25 and 26 paul writes for i do not desire that you should be ignorant of this mystery that blindness in part has happened to israel until so what will change the fullness of the gentiles has come in and so all israel will be saved we'll get to this in our study in the book of revelation the very structure of the book itself reinforces this idea the church age coming to an end the church rapturing god's attention turning now to the hebrew people aside from all this you will find the idea of imminency being critical to the rapture itself imminency what does that mean it means that the rapture could happen at any at any moment at any time and jesus would say that no man knows the day or the hour like the biggest issue connecting the rapture with the abomination of desolation which is the view of mid-tribulationalists or connecting it to the second coming of jesus which is what post-tribulationalists do the problem with this is that it completely removes the idea of imminency like because of daniel's prophecies and their specificity we have a firm timeline of when these events happen to the day aside from that the problem the post-tribulational view is who's left to populate the millennial reign of christ now it's worth pointing out that the bible describes the conditions on earth leading up to the rapture in such a way that again it's impossible for it to happen during the tribulation you see when jesus calls the church home no one will be expecting it or seeing it coming in fact there will be peace we're told life will be good it'll be the opposite environment of a tribulational world that's been thrown into judgment and chaos and calamity ultimately a pre-tribulational placement of the rapture happening before daniel 70 70th week is consistent not just with scriptural precedent but i also believe jesus is character in first thessalonians 1 verse 10 paul encourages the church to quote wait for his son to come from heaven whom god raised from the dead who will deliver us from the wrath to come so look for jesus who will deliver us from the wrath then a few chapters later first thessalonians 5 verse 9 paul adds for god did not appoint us the church to wrath but to obtain salvation through our lord jesus christ like don't forget the two goals of the tribulational period first god wants to finish his dealings with israel and judge the world for sin right finish his dealings with israel one judge the world for sin too like over and over and over again the bible reinforces the the precedent that before god punishes or pours out his wrath on the wicked he first removes the righteous think back to noah and the ark lot sodom and gomorrah to this point about this being consistent with jesus's character joe foach i think said it perfectly he said it's not as though jesus would beat up the bride before the honeymoon again we have not been appointed for wrath lastly not only should the rapture challenge christians is it designed to challenge christians to live every day as if it may be our last the rapture provides comfort when it comes to the future it's designed to provide comfort as just one of many examples in revelation 3 10 jesus says to the faithful church the church of philadelphia he says because you have kept my command to persevere i also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world what's he talking about to test those who dwell on the earth if the church had to endure any of the tribulational period how in the world would the doctrine of the rapture provide any comfort or encouragement it wouldn't now let me play this out again giving you the big picture and i'm going to use a little license i believe that it's the rapture of the church that ends up crippling america leaving israel alone i believe syria seeing an opportunity moves against israel but that move is immediately thwarted by israel when they destroy the city of damascus because russia is aligned with syria in fact today they have military bases on syrian soil they take the israelis strike against damascus seriously russia organizes a coalition of the willing they attack and israel is doomed but god intervenes reawakened by spiritual things a jewish leader then emerges from europe he's ushers in a peace accord allowing the temple to be rebuilt he's hailed as the messiah in closing why should any of us care about the end times it's an honest question in the end it's it's simple really like knowing how things end should clarify what things should be important now like christian like we should not allow ourselves to get bogged down in despair by the things happening in our world today we're still we shouldn't allow ourselves to get distracted by them from our ultimate purpose you see the remedy to racism or social equity or environmental justice it's not what you and i do it's the return of jesus that's the ultimate remedy like our priorities as christians should be really clear and simple let me ask if the rapture happened today for it could are you ready to stand before jesus your king to hear well done good and faithful servant are you ready if you knew great tribulation would begin tomorrow who do you love enough that you'd warn them immediately you see the way that you answer those two questions it should let you know the things in your life that should change immediately and it should let you know who you need to share the love of christ with again knowing how things end really does clarify what things should be important right now so father we thank you for your word what it says to us we love you in jesus name amen

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Published: Mon Sep 14 2020