What Do We Look For Before Jesus Comes?
Bob Yandian
In this newsletter I want to examine the times we are living in. The national midterm elections did not turn out like many ministers predicted, but it should have been a given. Much of what was being told was out of line with scripture. No Bible authors or prophets, including Jesus, prophesied of the outcome of the United States. Our country is not found in Bible prophecy and will apparently be mingled as one of many with the clay nations of Daniel 2:32-33. The only eternal nation on earth is Israel. The United States will not deliver the world. Jesus will do so personally at the end of the Tribulation. He will then rule from Jerusalem for one thousand years. We will then have the privilege of ruling with Him over the earth.
Our main job is not to figure out the chronology of end time events, but to preach the gospel in the power of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:7-8). Of course, God wants us to pray for our nation and its leaders (1 Timothy 2:4), become involved with good candidates, speak up for moral biblical issues and vote for the best candidates. After that, leave the results in God’s hands and stay focused on our main reason for being left here, winning souls. Angels do not rejoice over anything temporary, only over eternal things. They do not rejoice over who is elected president of the United States or the passing of moral bills in Congress. We do and rightfully so. But angels rejoice over every sinner who repents. A government’s affect is temporary. We have the only job on earth with eternal results.
What Are The End Time Markers We Should Look For?
“And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. 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.” (2 Thessalonians 2:6-9)
Although the Bible does not give us the day or hour of the appearing of Jesus for His Church, general signs are given to tell us world conditions preceding the event that Jesus’ coming for us is close. This verse, addressed to the Church, tells us what to look for just preceding the taking away of Christian’s from the earth.
Lawlessness will increase rapidly. Jesus told this to His disciples in Matthew 24:12. Lawlessness means exactly what it says – people will break the law and the law will not respond. The laws which have protected us for years will simply be words on a page which are not enforced. There will be a rapid increase in disobedience to civil laws. Theft, murder, abduction, trafficking, and drugs are increasing rapidly today and laws against them are simply not being enforced.
There is a power behind lawlessness, the lawless one himself, Satan. Why would Satan care about law? He broke the highest law of all when he rebelled against God and tried to overthrow Him. So, why would he care about our national, state, and local laws to protect people? Satan’s kingdom thrives on chaos.
We who are in the Church, the Body of Christ, are what is restraining the lawlessness of Satan. Our government and laws are enforced by human authority and power. But the Church operates in divine power hindering the very source of lawlessness, Satan himself.
There will soon be a visible world leader emerge, a human indwelled and controlled by Satan, Antichrist. Just as God directed His power and authority into the earth through His Son Jesus Christ, Satan will do the same through his son, Antichrist.
The force restraining Satan today, the Church, is also the force keeping Antichrist from being revealed. Not only are we looking forward to the departure of the Church into heaven, so is Satan. He cannot reveal His messiah, Antichrist, until we are gone. This is how much authority we have in the earth today. Antichrist cannot reveal himself until all Christians are removed. Even the presence of one Christian can keep Satan from putting his world leader into place.
Satan Still Tries to Display His Messiah
My wife and I were in London quite a few years ago and saw an advertisement in the USA Today newspaper. The ad was printed and purchased in all major newspapers worldwide and covered a full page announcing the appearing of Matraea. This was the name given to a coming world leader who would bring peace and international understanding to all nations. We recognized this as the Antichrist. Then, the date of his arrival was given.
I told my wife, if this was true, the rapture would be happening in only a few days because this leader could not make an entrance if we were still here. Of course, the day came and went and someone lost a lot of money on the ad. I believe Antichrist is probably in the world, but he cannot show himself as long as the Church is still here.
What Will Happen Before Jesus Comes for Us?
None of the points I am about to make will indicate the tribulation has begun, only that it is close. We will realize more each day that our time is short and how important it is to win another person to Jesus.
1. We will see the diminishing of national borders, less restrictions and paperwork on international travel.
2. We will see the forming of a one world system of government, business, and commerce. Along with city, state, and national taxes, we will begin paying international taxes. And we will hear more of a new, soon coming, single world currency.
3. We will see more of the realigning of nations:
a. The nations representing evil, having great military power, will be China, Russia, and Persia (Iran, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia).
b. Th nations representing good will and protection will be the members of the European Union (revived Rome in prophecy).
c. The decline of the West, especially the United States. We will witness our demise as our wealth is spent and sent to other nations with greater regularity.
d. There will be an aligning of all nations against Israel leaving it alone in the world (Matthew 24:9). After the Church is removed, Israel will turn to eh EU for protection and draw up a seven-year peace treaty with Europe and its leader, Antichrist.
There will be an international revival of the outpouring of God’s grace and supernatural power will begin and increase. It will grow stronger beginning before the rapture and gaining strength as the tribulation begins and progresses. Where sin abounds (the tribulation) grace (revival) will much more abound. This revival will be a display to the nations of the greatest time of evangelism the world has ever seen. Satan and the world will stand defiantly against God, like Pharaoh did before the parting of the Red Sea. In the end, God won against Pharaoh in front of the inhabitants of Egypt. God will win again against Satan and Antichrist before the entire world as Jesus returns as lightening from the east to the west to rule the earth with His Church.
