The Last Days and the Return of Jesus Christ

 

Nowadays in Christianity, there are many interpretations regarding the End Time and the second coming of Jesus Christ. The majority of Christians in the Western nations believe that Jesus will come anytime to rescue us from any big troubles or great persecutions. But let's better examine the preponderance of Bible Scriptures on this matter:

In Matthew chapter 24, Jesus was seating on the Mount of Olives, and the disciples came to him, saying: 

 “Tell us, when will these things be? And WHAT WILL BE THE SIGN OF YOUR COMING, and of the end of the age?” (Matthew 24:3) 

In this chapter, Jesus gives many signs and events that MUST happen BEFORE He will come back.

> Many will come in his name saying: “I am the Christ”; and shall deceive many.

> Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 

> There will be famines, pestilences, earthquakes; all these are the beginning of sorrows.

> We the followers of Jesus will be hated by all nations for his name's sake.

> Many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. 

> Because iniquity will abound, the love of many will grow cold.

> The gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world, and then the end will come. 

> When we will see THE ABOMINATION OF DESOLATION, SPOKEN BY DANIEL THE PROPHET, standing in the holy place (whoever reads, let him understand), then we will have to flee out of the cities and out of “civilization”. 

Let us ask ourselves: What is the only HOLY PLACE in this date and age? Is it not our own BODY? 

Jesus mentioned once about his own BODY being the TEMPLE of God: 

 "So the Jews answered and said to Him, 'What sign do You show to us, since You do these things?' Jesus answered and said to them, 'Destroy this TEMPLE, and in three days I will raise it up.' Then the Jews said, 'It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?' But He was speaking of the TEMPLE of His BODY. Therefore, when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said.” (John 2:18-22)

The apostle Paul exhorts us: 

 "Do you not know that you are the TEMPLE of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the TEMPLE of God, God will destroy him. For the TEMPLE of God is HOLY, which TEMPLE you are." (1Corinthians 3:16-17) 

Will we not defile our temple, if we allow a microchip be implanted in our hand, to be able to buy or sell, and have access to all the technological benefits and gadgets available at our fingertips? 

The apostle John wrote: 

 "Love not the world (man's system) neither the things that are in the world; if any man loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world passes away, and the lust of it. But he who does the will of God abides forever." (1John 2:15-17)

But, what is the "Abomination of Desolation” spoken by Daniel the prophet? The apostle John received a prophecy in the book of Revelation chapter 13, about the appearing and worship by all humans of the Image of the Beast; and about the implanting of the Mark of the Beast in every human BODY, in the right hand or in the forehead, apparently a high-technology tracking device, without which no one will be able to BUY or SELL. (The Beast in the books of Daniel and Revelation is the person of the Antichrist or 'man of sin', in the Gospels and in the letters of the apostles.)

"He (the False Prophet) was granted power to give breath to the Image of the Beast, that the Image of the Beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed. He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a Mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may BUY or SELL except one who has the MARK or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number is 666." (Revelation 13:15-18)

In Revelation chapter 14, John’s prophecy warns us about the serious consequences of worshipping the BEAST and his IMAGE, and receiving the MARK, saying: 

 “If anyone worships the BEAST and his IMAGE, and receives his MARK on his forehead or on his hand, he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of His indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb (Jesus). And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night, who worship the BEAST and his IMAGE, and whoever receives the MARK of his name. (Revelation 14:9-11)

> For there will be GREAT TRIBULATION like never before nor ever will be. Unless those days should be shortened, no one will be saved.

We can see that in the time of the apostles and right after, many true believers have been persecuted and killed as martyrs. They had great tribulations which kept them desperate and close to the Lord. 

Jesus said:  

 "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have PEACE. In this world you will have TRIBULATION; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)

The apostle Paul wrote:

 "For to you it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in Him, but also to SUFFER for His sake." (Philippians 1:29)

 > FALSE CHRISTS and FALSE PROPHETS will rise, who will show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even us the followers of Jesus Christ.

 > We must not believe if someone tells us: “Christ is here or there”:

 "For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will be the COMING OF THE SON OF MAN (Jesus Christ). AND 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. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will GATHER TOGETHER His elect (the saints in Christ) from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other (the Rapture).” (Matthew 24:27,29-31)

The apostle John wrote about Jesus:

 "Behold, [Jesus Christ] is coming with clouds, and EVERY EYE will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him." (Revelation 1:7)

JESUS OUR LORD WILL NOT COME SECRETLY, as mainstream Christianity has been proclaiming until now. We will ALL see him! It will be spectacular! Hallelujah! 

In Second Thessalonians chapter 2, the apostle Paul describes some events that must come before the return of Jesus and our gathering together to Him up in the air with our new glorious body (1Corinthians 15:50-53; 1Thessalonians 4:14-18):

 "Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day (the day of gathering together to Jesus) will not come unless the FALLING AWAY [from the faith] comes first, and the MAN of SIN (the Antichrist) is revealed, the SON of PERDITION, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. 

 "And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming. The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness." (2Thessalonians 2:3-4,8-12)   

THE FALLING AWAY of the faith will come first. We can see it already with the false prosperity doctrine, which is contrary to the teachings of Jesus and the apostles. "Do not make treasures on earth" (Matthew 6:19). And also the current deceiving Ecumenism: the unity of all Christian denominations and world religions in the name of "Love", stating that Jesus is not the only way of salvation anymore, because "we are all children of God", which is completely opposite to what the Holy Scriptures say. (See John 1:12-13; 3:16-17; John 14:6.)

THE MAN OF SIN, the son of perdition, MUST BE REVEALED. We are still waiting for him to be revealed openly, as he will exalt himself as God and above all that is worshipped. The Antichrist the “Son” of Satan will come with power, signs and lying wonders to deceive those who reject the love of the truth of Jesus Christ. This LAWLESS ONE will be consumed with the breath of Jesus' mouth and destroyed at the brightness of his coming! This will happen at the battle of Armageddon when Jesus will throw the Antichrist and the False Prophet in the lake of fire for eternal punishment for all their wicked deeds (Revelation 19:19-20). Praise God!

We will end this writing with THE PARABLE OF THE FIG TREE in the gospel of Matthew chapter 24:

 “Now learn this parable from the fig tree: When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. So you also, WHEN YOU SEE ALL THESE THINGS, KNOW THAT THE SON OF MAN IS NEAR, AT THE DOORS! Assuredly, I say to you, THIS GENERATION WILL BY NO MEANS PASS AWAY, TILL ALL THESE THINGS TAKE PLACE. Heaven and Earth will pass away, but My Words will by no means pass away. 

“But of that [exact] day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but My Father only. Therefore you also BE READY, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect." (Matthew 24:32-36, 44)

(PRAYER:) Our Heavenly Father and God, in the name of your beloved Son Jesus our Lord, we thank you for instructing us more and more through your Word and Spirit, about the times we are living right now and the many signs unfolding before our eyes, indicating that the coming of our King and Lord Jesus is very near.

We can discern that we don't have so much time left of daylight, as the Antichrist is grouping his forces toward a one-world government, and soon he will put in place his despotic controlling system through his diabolical image and microchip (RFID 060606).

Help us, Lord God, to stay awake and alert and on the attack, working wholeheartedly to advance the Kingdom, as if today would be our last day, for the night approaches when no one can work or evangelise.

And no matter the circumstances, help us to keep our eyes on You. You promised us that you will never leave us nor forsake us, and that You will be with us always even unto the end. Thank You, Father, and thank You, Jesus our Saviour! 

Help us, our Father and God, to be faithful each day to proclaim among the lost the Good News of salvation in union with Christ Jesus, so that many may come to repentance and salvation and reconciliation with You. Amen. (See Romans 5:8-11; 2Corinthians 5:14-21.)

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Here are some powerful Scripture songs about the Time of the End, and the glorious and triumphal return of our Lord and King Jesus Christ, the Son of our living God and heavenly Father:

'The Time of the End & Jesus' Return' >  

 

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Related article: ‘The Kingdom of Darkness & the Kingdom of Light' >

 

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Our Life Is In God’s Hands

We are living in some quite turbulent times now, when believers should evaluate their level of faith and obedience to God's Word. 

We can feel the winds of persecution and tribulation approaching fast and coming very soon against the true followers of Jesus Christ, in the Western world in particular. And surely many Christians will be worrying about it, if their faith is not grounded in God's powerful, life-giving Word.

But why worry about the coming worldwide persecution because of our faith, and even about dying for the name of Jesus and the Gospel's sake? In fact, we shouldn't fear, because this is what we pledged and committed to, when we gave our life to our Lord and Saviour. He bought us with his holy Blood, and we now belong to Him completely. And because of this, our time of passing away is in his hands!

According to the Scriptures, the Lord will let us know when will be the time of our departure from our present body to a heavenly realm, so that we don't need to worry in advance.

Jesus admonished us saying: 

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. 

"When they persecute you in this city, flee to another. For assuredly, I say to you, you will not have gone through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes. 

"But when they arrest you and deliver you up, do not worry beforehand, or premeditate what you will speak. But whatever is given you in that hour, speak that; for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit of your Father." (Mathew 6:34; 10:23; Mark 13:11) 

Since the beginning of Jesus' ministry, the Jews were ready to throw Him down a hill; at other times they wanted to stone Him or take Him. But each time He managed to walk through them and escaped because it was not his time to die and go yet. 

The apostle Paul was warned by the Holy Spirit in every city he passed through, that he shouldn't go to Jerusalem because persecution awaited him there. But he answered the brethren saying: "What do you mean by weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus!" (Acts 21:13)

But Paul's time didn't arrived yet to meet the Lord. There was still work for him to do. Because later on the Lord reassured him saying: "Be of good cheer, Paul; for as you have testified for Me in Jerusalem, so you must also bear witness at Rome.” (Acts 23:11)

In a second letter to Timothy, Paul let him know that his time to pass away was near when he said: 

"For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.  I have fought a good fight, I have finished my race, I have kept the faith: Finally, there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me at that Day: and not to me only, but also to all who love his appearing." (2Timothy 4:6-8)

The apostle Peter also mentioned about his departure: 

“For this reason I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, though you know and are established in the present truth. Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent (body) to stir you up by reminding you, knowing that shortly I must put off my tent (body) just as our Lord Jesus Christ showed me. Moreover I will be careful to ensure that you always have a reminder of these things after my decease (death)." (2Peter 1:12-15)

No matter what will happen to us, the Lord wants us to be a WITNESS to this dying generation and He wants us also to REJOICE in persecutions, because we are partakers of Christ's sufferings and our names are written in the Book of Life. Hallelujah! 

When the apostles were beaten for preaching Jesus, "they feared greatly and stopped preaching..." REALLY? 

Let's see what the apostles did after they were beaten 

"And when they had called the apostles, and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. And they departed from the presence of the council, REJOICING that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name. And DAILY in the temple, and in every house, they CEASED NOT to teach and preach Jesus Christ." (Acts 5:40-42) Hallelujah!

Jesus said in the powerful and marvellous book of Revelation:

“He who OVERCOMES shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life; but I will CONFESS his name before My Father and before His angels.

"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, to test those who dwell on the earth. Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your CROWN (glorious body). He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. I will write on him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God. And I will write on him My new name.

"Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.” (Revelation 3:5, 10-12, 20-21 )

(Prayer:) 'Thank you, Father, and thank you, Jesus, for your precious promises! Thank you for helping us to keep our eyes in you. We rejoice that we are part of your Kingdom and that you have a perfect plan for each of your children. We rest in you. Our desire is to do your will and be faithful each day, one day at a time until this blessed Day when we will meet. Hallelujah! Glory to you!'

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"Come Out From Among Them & Be Separate!"

We are entering in very difficult and dangerous, but exciting times. In fact, the church is going to be divided in two factions between:  1) those who compromise and ignore the Word of God, being solely interested in following the lukewarm and worldly ecumenical, established Christian church;  and 2) those who are outside of all human hierarchy, and wholeheartedly follow and obey the Lord Jesus and the truth of God's Word, who really love each other and work together and sacrifice themselves to advance the Kingdom.

The Bible exhort us:  "Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: 'I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be My people.' Therefore 'Come out from among them and be separate [from all ECCLESIASTIC PYRAMIDAL STRUCTURE], says the Lord God. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you.' 'I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, says the Lord God Almighty.'" (2Corinthians 6:14-18)

We are separated, thank God, from all pyramidal, ecclesiastical structure of man for several years now. We are only part of the body of Christ, the true spiritual church made up of faithful living stones--the family of God! (See 1Corinthians 3:1-17; Ephesians 2:11-22; 1Peter 1:1-10.)

We are committed to obey and follow our Lord Jesus and his Word, proclaiming  to every person the Gospel of redemption of the soul from sin, through his sacrifice and resurrection; and also equipping new disciples for God's service. (See Acts chapter 2; 2Corinthians 5:14-21.) 

Naturally, the devil doesn't like the fact that we are Bible fundamentalist and active disciples of Jesus Christ, who bear witness of the faith continuously and openly.  And of course the opposition and persecution are guaranteed at any time. (See John 15:18-27; 2Timothy 3:10-17; Jude 3-4,16-25.)

Jesus warned us:  "Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.” (Matthew 24:9-14)

The apostles John and Paul made it clear in the letters that there are many deceiving antichrists who have come from the congregation of faith; and that the greatest deceiver, the Antichrist, was about to come one day to declare himself as "Christ" and "God" of this world. (See 2Thessalonians 2:1-4.)

“Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour. They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us. (1John 2:18-19)

After studying the Word of God on Bible prophecy for several years, we believe that the Antichrist currently knows very well that his world ecumenical alliance will not be well received and respected for a long time by all, for instance, by the radical fundamentalist Muslims.

Because of this, the 'man of sin' is engineering behind the scenes a sinister plan to break the ecumenical pact between religions at any given time. He will convince everyone that he is the true "Christ" and "Saviour", who solves all the problems of the world, proclaiming himself as the world leader and even "God". (See Daniel 8:23-25; 9:27; 11:28-45; 2Thessalonians 2:3-4; Revelation 13:3-10; chapter 17.)

He will force all humans to worship him (the Beast) and the devil (the Dragon), with the help of the False Prophet. This one will deceive the whole world by performing false miracles, and will introduce the Abomination of Desolation (or Mark of the Beast). This appears to be a high-tech microchip inserted into the human body of everyone who worships the Antichrist, to be able to buy or sell.  In this way, every human being will be controlled by this sinister totalitarian regime. (See Revelation chapter 13.)

Of course, our King Jesus will come just after the great tribulation that will last three and a half years, to rescue his own and destroy the wicked men and rule over the whole Earth with righteousness. Praise God! Hallelujah! (See Daniel 7:7-14; Matthew 24:15-31; Mark 13:14-27; Revelation 6:12-17; 14:14-20; 19:11-21; 20:1-6.)

Here is a question we should all ask:  "Am I a lukewarm Christian simply following the structure of the passive and compromising Christian church, based on worship services and on teachings and traditions of men?  Or am I a vibrant disciple of Jesus Christ, ready to even give my life for proclaiming his name and the Gospel to the lost at every opportunity?"

 We pray that many will be found true disciples of Jesus, who love and serve God actively and sincerely and without compromise; and who are ready to suffer shame, persecution, deprivation, anguish, pain and even death, to openly proclaim the Gospel of Jesus, the true Christ and Lord and Son of God! (See Mark 8:34-38; 16:15-20; Philippians 3:7-21; 2Timothy 2:1-13; chapter 3; 4:1-8; James 1:2-4,12; 1Peter 1:3-9; 4:12-19.)

"And calling the crowd and his disciples, Jesus said to them: 'If anyone wants to come after me, deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses  his life because of me and the gospel will save her. Well, what good is it for a man to win the whole world and lose his soul?  Well, what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him, when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.'" (Mark 8:34-38)

“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written: 'For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.' Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:35-39)

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God Will Always Protect His Faithful Children

This morning I got very inspired reading the book of Daniel.

Daniel and his three companions were deported to Babylon and chosen to be taught in all the wisdom of the Chaldeans; and after three years they had to be presented to the king. 

Right away, Daniel and his friends didn't want to compromise their Jewish  believes and be defiled with the king's food and wine. They boldly presented their request to the one in charge of them to give them ten days with pulse to eat and water to drink, and see how they would look. It happened that they looked healthier than those who ate from the king's table. The Lord was with them because they trust in their God completely. 

In fact, the Lord promoted Daniel to the highest position in the kingdom of Nebuchadnezzar as well as with the other kings that followed.

Again their faith got tested when the King ordered a decree that everyone should  bow done before the big golden image at the sounds of music, if not they would be thrown into the fiery furnace.  

Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego took a stand of faith and refused to bow down before the image. Being brought before the king, they boldly exclaimed: "If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto you O king, that we will not serve your gods, nor worship the golden image which you have set up." (Daniel 3:17-18)

And what happened next? : "Behold, I see four men walking in the midst of the fire and the form of the fourth is like a son of God [an angel of God]." (Daniel 3:25) Hallelujah! What a testimony, they were completely protected in the fiery furnace and didn't even smell fire!

And even the king changed his mind and said to everyone in the kingdom: “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, who sent his angel and delivered his servants who trusted in Him, and they have frustrated the king’s word, and yielded their bodies, that they should not serve nor worship any god except their own God!” (Daniel 3:28)

The Lord is well able to deliver his people who trust in him to the uttermost! "The eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him." (2Chronicles 16:9)

Jesus said: "These things have I spoken unto you, that in me you might have peace. In the world you shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." (John 16:33) Amen!

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