Printer Friendly Version

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

Revelation 6:1-2, 4 - 5, 8

1 Corinthians 14:8
8 For if the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself to the battle?

Matthew 24
4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.

5For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.

6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.

7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.

8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.

My focus today is:
1) The Sound of the Trumpet

2) The sounds of the approaching hoof-beats of the Four Horseman of the Apocalypse

We are living in a world today that is filled with the sounds of the Endtime.

Jesus talked about the signs of His coming and of the end of the world in answer to the disciples questions of Matthew 24:3

My focus today is relative to the physical signs that Jesus referred to that would be in the earth in these later times. Jesus mentioned six physical signs:
1) Wars & Rumors of War
2) Nations uprising against other nations
3) Kingdoms against kingdoms
4) Famines
5) Pestilences
6) Earthquakes

Matthew 24:6-7
[6] When reports come in of wars and rumored wars, keep your head and don't panic. This is routine history; this is no sign of the end. [7] Nation will fight nation and ruler fight ruler, over and over. Famines and earthquakes will occur in various places. THE MESSAGE

[6] You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. [7] Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. NEW INTL VERSION

[6] You will be hearing of (A)wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. [7] For (B)nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be (C)famines and earthquakes. NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE

[6]And wars will break out near and far, but don't panic. Yes, these things must come, but the end won't follow immediately. [7] The nations and kingdoms will proclaim war against each other, and there will be famines and earthquakes in many parts of the world. NEW LIVING TRANSLATION

[6] You will hear of wars and lots of talk about wars, but do not be afraid. These things must happen, but it is not the end yet. [7] Nations will have wars with other nations. Countries will fight against countries. There will be no food for people. The earth will shake and break apart in different places. NEW LIFE VERSION

1) Wars & Rumors Of Wars

Wars Of The United States

6 When reports come in of wars and rumored wars, keep your head and don't panic. This is routine history; this is no sign of the end.

THE END IS NOT YET………………………..

2) NATION RISING AGAINST NATIONS

The list is so overwhelming that we would get mired in information were we to list all the conflict of nations vs. nations.

A small example:
The Bosnian Conflict - Bosnia and Herzegovina 1991-93

The Russian - Japanese War 1904-05

India Pakistan War of Independence - 1948-49

The Sino Indian War - India & China 1962

Boxer Rebellion (1900)-Involved Britain, France, Germany, Russia, the United States, Japan, Italy, and Austria-Hungary against "Boxer" rebels in China as well as against the Chinese government.

The Crimean War ( 1853-1856)-Britain, France, the Ottoman Empire and Sardinia against Russia.

Arab Israelis Wars

African nations had so many uprisings against each other they are to numerous to begin to list.

3) KINGDOM AGAINST KINGDOM

God's Kingdom

Satan's Kingdom

Man's Kingdoms

Revelation 11:15 "…….the kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ and he shall reign for ever and ever."

God's Kingdom VS. Satan's Kingdom has been waging war since Lucifer was cast out of heaven

Revelation 12:7-12

Though Satan is the adversary of God and man (1 Pet. 5:8), and a constant enemy (Mt. 13:28), the Lord, consistent with his own plan, has allowed the devil a certain latitude of operation. This reality is well illustrated in the book of Job. Satan could not have brought affliction upon the patriarch of Uz, except for the permission of God. "And Jehovah said unto Satan, Behold all that he has is in your power: only upon himself put not forth your hand" (Job 1:12). There is both permission, and the restriction of operation, within this passage.

Satan has been allowed the power of temptation over men. Matthew referred to him as "the tempter" (Mt. 4:3). The present tense participle form in the Greek text suggests a characteristic activity on the part of this foe (cf. 1 Pet. 5:8). But he cannot overpower us against our will; it is possible to resist him (Jas. 4:7).

3 POINTS:
1. God is ultimately in control of all earthly powers. He rules as sovereign. Civil governments are under the Lord's supreme power (Rom. 13:1).

2. Satan has been allowed a certain domain of temptation in a world where man possesses the gift of "freedom of choice."

3. The human family has surrendered much to Satan - both as individuals, and collectively as nations.

Man's kingdoms have been at conflict since the beginning of time from the days before the Flood and the Tower of Babel on.

Kingdoms fighting kingdoms

There are kingdoms of governments………kingdoms of man
There are kingdoms of religions……………kingdoms of man

4 Great Empires of the Earth:
1) Babylonian
2) Medo-Persian
3) Grecian
4) Roman

Revelation 11:15 "…….the kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ and he shall reign for ever and ever."

4) F A M I N E S

In 2000, the world had 6.1 billion human inhabitants. This number could rise to more than 9 billion in the next 50 years. For the last 50 years, world population multiplied more rapidly than ever before, and more rapidly than it will ever grow in the future.

Throughout the 20th century each additional billion has been achieved in a shorter period of time. Human population entered the 20th century with 1.6 billion people and left the century with 6.1 billion.

The growth of the last 200 years appears explosive on the historical timeline. The overall effects of this growth on living standards, resource use, and the environment will continue to change the world landscape long after.

Famines have greatly increased especially on the continent of Africa. North Korea has been experiencing severe famine as families are eating weeds, grass, and bark to sustain themselves. Orphans have had their growth stunted by hunger and diarrhea and people going bald for lack of nutrition.

The World Health Organization estimates that one-third of the world is well-fed, one-third is under-fed one-third is starving!

Since I began discussing famine at least 200 people have died of starvation. Over 4 million will die this year.

5) P E S T I L E N C E S

Pestilence - a contagious or infectious epidemic disease that is virulent and devastating;
• Global Aids Epidemic - 40 million infected, 3.1 died in 2001
• Mad Cow Disease
• Anthrax
• West Nile Virus
• Ebola virus
• Smallpox virus - Killed 300 million in the 20th century
• Genetically engineered viruses
• Bubonic Plague
• Cholera
• Drought
• Floods
• Genetic Modification
• Bio-terrorism

6) E A R T H Q U A K E S (Notice it is plural)

Quake rattled Earth orbit, changed map of Asia: US geophysicist

An earthquake that unleashed deadly tidal waves on Asia was so powerful it made the Earth wobble on its axis and permanently altered the regional map, US geophysicists said.

The 9.0-magnitude temblor that struck 250 kilometers (155 miles) southeast of Sumatra island Sunday may have moved small islands as much as 20 meters (66 feet), according to one expert.

"That earthquake has changed the map," US Geological Survey expert Ken Hudnut told AFP.

"Based on seismic modeling, some of the smaller islands off the southwest coast of Sumatra may have moved to the southwest by about 20 meters. That is a lot of slip." In addition, the energy released as the two sides of the undersea fault slipped against each other made the Earth wobble on its axis, Hudnut said.

"We can detect very slight motions of the Earth and I would expect that the Earth wobbled in its orbit when the earthquake occurred due the massive amount of energy exerted and the sudden shift in mass," Hudnut said.

AP) -- Scientists describe Sunday's devastating earthquake off the island of Sumatra as a "megathrust" -- a grade reserved for the most powerful shifts in the Earth's crust.

The term doesn't entirely capture the awesome power of the fourth largest earthquake since 1900, or the tsunami catastrophes it spawned for coastal areas around the Indian Ocean.
"Sunday was one of the biggest earthquakes in the region in the past 200 years."

How powerful? By some estimates, it was equal to detonating a million atomic bombs.

Sieh and other scientists said it probably jolted the planet's rotation. "It causes the planet to wobble a little bit, but it's not going to turn Earth upside down," Sieh said.

According to reports out of Colombo, Sri Lankan wildlife officials are said to be stunned.

"The strange thing is we haven't recorded any dead animals," H.D. Ratnayake, deputy director of the national Wildlife Department, told Reuters. "No elephants are dead, not even a dead hare or rabbit."

"I think animals can sense disaster," he added. "They have a sixth sense. They know when things are happening."

The sentiment was echoed by Gehan de Silva Wijeyeratne, whose Jetwing Eco Holidays runs a hotel in the Yala National Park, the country's largest wildlife reserve where hundreds of wild elephants dwell along with some 130 other species.

"This is very interesting. I am finding bodies of humans, but I have yet to see a dead animal,'' he told the Associated Press.

The 9.0 killer earthquake in Asia that unleashed tsunamis killing tens of thousands followed exactly one year to the hour after the Bam, Iran, earthquake that killed 26,000.

The Ten Largest Earthquakes of the 20th Century

CONCLUSION

The Progress of Knowledge -- The mental sign is seen first in the progress of knowledge. Man's knowledge doubles in less than 6 years. By the time many medical students graduate, much of their earlier training is already obsolete.

Printed material doubles in less than 15 years. Technology, for example, has developed the laser beam, a concentration of energy in a pinpoint of light. It is now used in various forms of surgeries, sometime requiring no incisions at all.

Computers now exist that can assimilate all 850,000 words of the Bible five times over in one second. Computer chips, no larger than the fingernail of a little finger, can store millions of items of information. There is a calculator that can make over 1 million calculations in one second. And who would have thought in the late 1970s that we could send a spaceship 35 million miles away to Mars that would be controlled in Houston? This is the technological sophistication of the era in which we live. In Daniel 12:4, the prophet announced that in the last days travel and knowledge would increase.

THEY'VE ALL BEEN WRONG

Looking back at how Christians have viewed Christ's second coming in the past, we find many people obsessed with figuring out all the details and making predictions.

Here is a quote: "The last days are upon us. Weigh carefully the times. Look for him who is above all time, eternal and invisible" That statement was not made by a modern prophecy expert. That statement did not come religious TV. It was made by a Christian named Ignatius, who lived in 110 AD, just a few decades after 1 John was written.

Here is another quote: "There is no doubt that the Antichrist has already been born. Firmly established in his early years, he will, after reaching maturity, achieve supreme power" That statement wasn't made by a radio prophecy teacher.

It was written by a Christian leader named Martin living in 375 AD.

In the year 236 AD a church leader named Hippolytus predicted that Christ was sure to return by 500 AD.

The years between 999 and 1030 AD were characterized by excessive speculation about Christ's second coming among Christians, so much so that it led to social chaos as farmers didn't plant crops for the next year, buildings weren't repaired, and the details of daily life were neglected because they thought Christ would return in their lifetime.

In the 1500's the Protestant reformer Martin Luther said, "We have reached the time of the white horse of the Apocalypse. This world will not last any longer… than another hundred years."

Christopher Columbus said he was sure the world would end by 1656. The year 1666 saw an explosion in end time speculation, so much so that one pastor wrote in his journal that every time a storm hit, people would go to church to await Christ's second coming.

In the 1800s a Christian named William Miller said, "I am fully convinced that somewhere between March 21st, 1843 and March 21st, 1844 Christ will come."

When Miller's date came and went, hundreds of people walked away from the Christian faith. If their pastor was wrong about that, what else was he wrong about?

In our own generation, many modern day prophecy experts guessed that 1981 would mark the rapture of the church and the beginning of the terrible seven year tribulation period that would culminate in the battle of Armageddon. Now as we near the year 2000, dozens of prophecy experts on Christian TV, radio, and in books are making new predictions related to the year 2000.

Christian historian Richard Kyle cautions us, "Through two thousand years of Western history millions of…sincere, devout, and knowledgeable people have seen the end as [about to happen in their own lifetimes]…But they have all been wrong."

ONE THING IS RIGHT

Matthew 24:36-39 "But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no not the angles of heaven, but my Father only. But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be."