A Timely Marker

        This is a word of preparation given at a recent Chronos Ministry weekly meeting. When Jesus unfolded the rapture and His second coming to the disciples, He compared an event that was about to happen in their time, the Abomination of Desolation that would bring the destruction of the temple (in 70 AD), to an event that would happen in our time. Specifically the shaking of the heavens.
          “And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; men’s hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken” (Luke 21:25-26).
            Notice that Jesus connects this shaking with the other signs of His visible coming and the rapture. Specifically, the final sign of total darkness over the whole earth at the same time. That sign alone would be enough to bring fear. Yet notice Jesus points to the expectation of something that adds to that fear. This fearful expectation is the snare of that Day described in so many of the Day of the Lord passages.
            Fear and the pit and the snare are upon you, O inhabitant of the earth.  And it shall be that he who flees from the noise of the fear shall fall into the pit, and he who comes up from the midst of the pit
shall be caught in the snare; for the windows from on high are open, and the foundations of the earth are shaken. The earth is violently broken, the earth is split open, the earth is shaken exceedingly. The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall totter like a hut; its transgression shall be heavy upon it, and it will fall, and not rise again. It shall come to pass in that Day that the Lord will punish on high the host of exalted ones, and on the earth the kings of the earth” (Isaiah 24:17-21).
            We know we are coming to the end of the age allotted to mankind in God’s plan of redemption, the end of the 6th great Day when counting from Adam. We know when Jesus was born (within a window of roughly four years) and we know when He started His ministry when He was around 30 years of age. We can see the Day of the Lord, the final 1,000-year Day, approaching (Heb. 10:25).
            We also know that the Bible speaks of trumpet judgments unleashed after the rapture and the seating of the Church as the heavenly court. The second trumpet angel unleashes something like a great mountain burning with fire that is thrown into the seas and the third trumpet angel unleashes a great star falling from heaven burning like a torch.
            Remarkably, NASA described such a scenario of an asteroid named Apophis that could match these judgments. It is set to strike on April 13, 2029. The Bible calls it Wormwood. After warning about the asteroid, NASA quickly removed the references, claiming that they now expect it to avoid the earth. Just as remarkable is that events like this were used to justify the development of the Space War unit of our military shortly thereafter. Is it possible that these references have been removed because it would bring about an expectation of great fear and the hearts of the people failing?
            Which brings us to why are we sharing this. Knowing what God’s Word records, enables us to be warn our families, friends, and others about what is written concerning these last Days so that they can make the crucial decision to know Jesus as their Savior. Believers shall be removed from the earth just before the trumpet judgments unfold.
            Of course, those left behind can accept Jesus after the rapture and become part of the family of the redeemed. But they will miss out on being part of the Church and ruling government. Plus, they will have to endure God’s vengeance against evil that is unleashed during the first 3½ years of the Day of the Lord (the 7th and Last Day when counting from Adam).  
            The bottom line is that the more we know about the truths of God’s end-time plan, the more we can be about the Father’s business and our Lord’s commission to preach the Gospel and continue His ministry by the power of the Spirit. After all, God desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Timothy 2:4).