Can you hear me now?

I'm going to start straight out of the box with Scripture...just a heads up.

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Matthew 24: 3-14,32-38

3 Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?”

4 And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. 6 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all[a] these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences,[b] and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.

9 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. 10 And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. 11 Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. 12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved. 14 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.

The Parable of the Fig Tree

32 “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.33 So you also, when you see all these things, know that it[d] is near—at the doors! 34 Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place. 35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.

No One Knows the Day or Hour

36 “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven,[e] but My Father only. 37 But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 38 For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark

Daniel 12:1-4

“At that time Michael shall stand up,
The great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people;
And there shall be a time of trouble,
Such as never was since there was a nation,
Even to that time.
And at that time your people shall be delivered,
Every one who is found written in the book.
2 And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake,
Some to everlasting life,
Some to shame and everlasting contempt.
3 Those who are wise shall shine
Like the brightness of the firmament,
And those who turn many to righteousness
Like the stars forever and ever.

4 “But you, Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book until the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase.”

You know, I've said before that I'm not an alarmist, and truth be told, I'm really not. Now, that said, there is something to say about being a realist. When stuff hits the fan like it's been doing lately, one has to sit back and go, "hmm." Seriously, there has to be something to all of this stuff in the Bible. Let's face it, whether you believe it was God-inspired or written strictly by men with really good imaginations, you still have to look at this passage, as well as others and wonder how the heck they knew about all of this stuff going on. I mean, really! Look at what is going on. 

Wildfires are out of control in  Montana, Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Arizona, and California. California is experiencing one of the worst droughts in 1200 years, according to Science News. That's since before Charlemagne ruled the Holy Roman Empire. 

Flooding is occurring in India, and Nigeria. Hurricanes are more furious than ever, as evidenced by Harvey just two weeks ago, and Irma, which is set to hit the Leeward Islands, Bermuda, the Florida Keys and who knows where from there...surely up the East Coast, as a Category 5 hurricane. 

Nation is rising against Nation. Kim Jong-un has declared that he has a hydrogen bomb, said to be five times worse than the one dropped on Nagasaki in World War II. 

In this Nation, we have people divided. Groups that we've never had before, that are more dangerous than we've ever seen, have divided this Nation to the extreme. To speak freely, anymore, endangers one at the very least verbally, at the worst, physically. Nightclubs have been bombed. People have been run down during protests, some peaceful, some not. Our military has been endangered by their own, and even our Government cannot be considered innocent. We are seeing more investigations of Congressmen and Congresswomen, more news of fraudulent activity, more news of corrupt government than ever. We can't even trust our own media any longer. When there were reporters on the scene of some places that Hurricane Harvey dumped on, one major media group stooped to staging a water rescue, which was caught by some sharp-eyed viewers. Seriously, who do you trust anymore?

I'm going to give you my take on this, take it or leave it. 

When you look at the Scripture I posted, what do you see? Now, keep in mind that this Book, the Bible, was written over 2000 years ago. Yes, written by man's hand, but I believe with every fiber of my being, that it was truly God-inspired. How else can what we have read, two millenia ago, even make sense otherwise? No one that wrote those words is alive now, obviously, and yet, looking at them, they could be describing our world today. And take a look at Daniel 12:4b...many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase.

So, let me break that one down for you, because really, its the easiest one to do..."many shall run to and fro..."

In the last 117 years, we have seen our transportation ability increase 100-fold. We have gone from horse and buggy, to the Horseless Carriage, to the Model A, to the Packard, to the Edsel, to the Corvette, to the Mustang, to the Camaro, to the Lamborghini, to the Tesla, to the Driver-less Car. We have gone from watching birds fly, to a solo flight from Kitty Hawk by the Wright Brothers, to prop-planes, to fighter planes, to Flying Fortresses, to the 707, to the 737, to the 727, the 777, the 787...from unmanned rockets, to Sputnik, to Mercury, Gemini, to Apollo, to the Space Shuttles. 

In the last 117 years, in the United States alone, we have seen our Colleges and Universities go from a sparse handful to over 5300. Everything from technical universities, Junior Colleges, Community Colleges, to Beauty Colleges, to major Colleges and Universities. 

We now have the ability to have things instantly. Microwaves are now in most every home, enabling the user to a quick meal. We have fast food, fast weight loss, fast ways to change our looks. Fast coffee, fast cars, even drones to deliver our goods over night, if not within hours. Transcontinental travel is only a matter of hours rather than months or years, and we are in relative comfort doing so, rather than on foot, horseback or train. Space travel? We're currently on track to mimic Star Trek...to boldly go where no one has gone before. 

The Bible is rich with prophecy...some has been fulfilled, some has yet to be fulfilled. One part of prophecy that has been fulfilled almost completely is the prophecy of the Christ. Currently it is said that 353 prophecies have been fulfilled in regards to His first appearance, and some say there are only seven more to occur before His second appearance...although, in my opinion, it may actually be more. 

The seven which are alluded to are these: 

Mankind will have the ability to exterminate itself

Israel had to re-establish it's Homeland.

The Kings of the North and South would do battle.

The four Great Empires.

The rise and fall of Israel and Judah.

The Gospel must be preached to all the world.

Instant, world-wide communication, and God's final (2) Witnesses.

Just these seven alone are enough to make one have the chills, knowing how close we really are. Three of the "final seven" prophecies have been fulfilled. We have the ability to completely obliterate mankind through our nuclear technology. Israel (Judah) has re-established itself when it became a State in 1947. And finally, we have instant, world-wide communication. 

Now if you sit and reflect just on these last seven, you might just get the chills yourself. I mean, think about it, this stuff was written over 2000 years ago, and three are done, fine', completed. That leaves four, and one is being proactively worked on as we speak. The Gospel is being spread to the four corners of the earth. 

So, yeah, the end is drawing nearer, and nearer. Time is growing shorter and shorter. It's time to examine ourselves, because let me tell you, brothers and sisters, hell ain't no party. It's no laughing matter, and to be quite honest with you, I wouldn't want my worst enemy to go there. There is an alternative, that's to accept Christ as your Savior. Today. Right now. Because today, your next breath, your next heartbeat, aren't promised. Today's sunset could be your last. 

So how do you receive Christ? In Romans 10, it says: "That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved" 

The following is a sample prayer, you don't have to say it exactly. 

"God, I recognize that I have not lived my life for You up until now. I have been living for myself and that is wrong. I need You in my life; I want You in my life. I acknowledge the completed work of Your Son Jesus Christ in giving His life for me on the cross at Calvary, and I long to receive the forgiveness you have made freely available to me through this sacrifice. Come into my life now, Lord. Take up residence in my heart and be my king, my Lord, and my Savior. From this day forward, I will no longer be controlled by sin, or the desire to please myself, but I will follow You all the days of my life. Those days are in Your hands. I ask this in Jesus' precious and holy name. Amen."

If you have earnestly said this prayer, or one similar, welcome to the family of Christ. Please, tell someone, spend time in His Word. Find a Bible teaching, Bible preaching church so that you may grow, and learn, and fellowship with others. 

So, I guess my question to you is...Can you hear me now?