Catastrophic Answers Await Us

Jesus said to them: "Watch out that no one deceives you. Many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am he,' and will deceive many. When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places, and famines. These are the beginning of birth pains." (Mark 13:5-8, NIV)

There are many potholes in the road near my house.  A pothole is a place where the road is cracked and a section of the road is just missing.  It is very hard on your automobile tires to hit a pothole.  So it is best to avoid them if you can.

I have learned the hard way where there are major potholes in the road ahead.  At certain points I swing wide to the right and at other times wide to the left.  Sometimes you have to swerve left and right to avoid multiple holes in the road.  Since I know where these potholes are, I can avoid them - assuming I stay alert.

Jesus provides a warning here about some upcoming "potholes" in the future - not potholes in the road but life events that could be even more dangerous: 

• Many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am he,' and will deceive many (v6).
• When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come (v7). 
• Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom (v8). 
• There will be earthquakes in various places (v8).
• and famines (v8).

Jesus describes these events as birth pains - the rather unpleasant pain that precedes the birth of a child, a rather happy event.  These are not the "signs" of the end of the age but things that lead up to that time.  Birth pains are progressive - they get worse and worse until the final climactic moment.

In the Big Picture chart of biblical history, the birth pains are characteristic of the church age - the time from Jesus' ascension until the beginning of the Tribulation period.

These things have been happening since the first century.  Many have thought it was the end of the age when the first and second world wars were being fought.  Many have pointed out increasing frequency and intensity of earthquakes in the last 100 years.  Certainly famine has been a horrific problem in many parts of the planet.

This is not very rosy picture of the future.  But Jesus assures us, "Such things must happen, but the end is still to come" (Mark 13:7, NIV).

"You must be on your guard. You will be handed over to the local councils and flogged in the synagogues. On account of me you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them. 1And the gospel must first be preached to all nations. Whenever you are arrested and brought to trial, do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit. "Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child. Children will rebel against their parents and have them put to death. All men will hate you because of me, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. (Mark 13:9-13, NIV)

There will be a time of great persecution of believers.  Many will be arrested, tortured, and tried for the crime of professing faith in the LORD Jesus.  Families will be torn apart by the faith of some and the lack of faith by others.  Believers will be hated because of the LORD Jesus we serve.

Why would the LORD Jesus allow believers to endure such tragedy?

• In verse 9, "On account of  me you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them."
• Many of the greatest tragedies we endure as believers are our greatest opportunities to witness to the world of the wisdom, power, faithfulness, and love of our great God and Savior.

Have you ever experienced family turmoil that was related to your faith?

• There have been times in the past where I took a stand based on biblical teaching that resulted in my being ostracized and abandoned by members of my extended family. 

What was the outcome of this trial?

• It was extremely painful ... but necessary.  It lasted much longer than we thought it should.       But the LORD used this as a witness to His truth and grace.  The  relationships were ultimately renewed.

This time of persecution Jesus reveals will be during what is called the Tribulation Period.  It is a time predicted in the Old Testament as "Jacob's trouble" (Jeremiah 30:7, NKJV) and in the New Testament as the "tribulation" (Matthew 24:9, NKJV) or the "Great Tribulation" (Matthew 24:21; Revelation 7:14, NIV).  In fact, Revelation 6-18 covers the tribulation period in great detail.

In the Big Picture chart of biblical history, the persecution Jesus spoke of covers the period of the seven-year Tribulation. Note that during this ominous seven-year period, the gospel will be proclaimed to all nations by many believers: "And the gospel must first be preached to all nations" (Mark 13:10, NIV).  Just to be sure, the Bible predicts that God will even send an angel to proclaim the gospel all over the world:

Then I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth—to every nation, tribe, tongue, and people— saying with a loud voice, “Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment has come; and worship Him who made heaven and earth, the sea and springs of water.” (Revelation 14:6-7, NIV)

This seven-year period of tribulation will begin with an era of great peace.  A world leader will emerge to unite all nations under his rule.  But this peace comes at a great cost - people will eventually be required to worship him.  This will occur halfway through the tribulation period when this ruler, the antichrist, will defile the temple by establishing himself as the object of worship.

"When you see 'the abomination that causes desolation' standing where it does not belong—let the reader understand—then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 1Let no one on the roof of his house go down or enter the house to take anything out. Let no one in the field go back to get his cloak. How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! Pray that this will not take place in winter, because those will be days of distress unequaled from the beginning, when God created the world, until now—and never to be equaled again. If the Lord had not cut short those days, no one would survive. But for the sake of the elect, whom he has chosen, he has shortened them. At that time if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or, 'Look, there he is!' do not believe it. For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and miracles to deceive the elect—if that were possible. So be on your guard; I have told you everything ahead of time." (Mark 13:14-23, NIV)

So during the latter half of the tribulation (see the Big Picture chart of biblical history), literally all hell breaks loose on Earth.  The judgments of God on a largely unbelieving world are horrific.  Note what Jesus says:

19because those will be days of distress unequaled from the beginning, when God created the world, until now—and never to be equaled again. 20If the Lord had not cut short those days, no one would survive. (Mark 13:19-20, NIV)

Many have argued that this horrible time Jesus predicted has already occurred - this is known as a preterist view of the end-times..  They try to explain that this prophecy of Jesus all took place in the first century up through 70 A.D. when the temple was destroyed.  This, however, is contradictory to Jesus' warning about how terrible this time will be.  It will be without equal in history - when you consider the world-wide flood of Noah's time and the tragic wars that have been fought all over the world - there is no reasonable way to conclude that what Jesus predicted all transpired in the first century.

"But in those days, following that distress, 'the sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not give its light;
the stars will fall from the sky,
and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.' At that time men will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens." (Mark 13:24-27, NIV)

The most hoped for event in the heart of every believer is the return of the LORD Jesus.  In the midst of this prediction of terrible times, there is the glorious hope of His return.

What are the imminent signs that Jesus is returning?

• Sun and the moon will be darkened (v24)
• Stars in the sky will fall away (v25)
• There will be great turbulence everywhere (v25)
• There will be clouds (v26)

Do you know people who are always afraid the sky is falling whenever the least little thing happens?  One day, they will be right!

I remember Nelson Price, former pastor of Roswell Street Baptist Church, used to say, "I love a cloudy day ... because it means this could be the day that Jesus returns."  Now I have a pretty good hunch that these clouds are going to be unlike any clouds we have ever seen before.  They will indicate a breach between time and eternity, heaven and earth.  It will be unlike anything anyone has ever seen.

At that time men will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. (Mark 13:26, NIV)

And in this parallel passage:

At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all 

the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory. (Matthew 24:30, NIV)

Note that everyone will see this glorious event but not everyone will see it with joy.  Believers will rejoice and shout; unbelievers will cry and moan.  Believers will see the return of the LORD Jesus as their redemption.  Unbelievers will see the return as the time of their judgment.  But everyone will see.

The Jehovah's Witnesses teach that the 2nd coming of Jesus happened in 1914 when He set up an invisible, heavenly kingdom to rule the Earth.1 Of course, they first predicted it would occur in 1874.  When that didn't happen, they changed their predictions to 1914.  When that didn't happen, the prediction morphed into an "invisible return."  This is an example of the false christ and false teachings that Jesus warned about in Mark 13.  God's truth is true yesterday, today, and tomorrow.  It does not change.  And we can be confident that this teaching of the Jehovah's Witnesses in incorrect because it directly contradicts the clear teaching of Scripture - everyone will see the return of the LORD Jesus.

Will you see it as a joyous event or a mournful one?  Right now, you can commit your life to the LORD Jesus and be among those who rejoice even at the thought of His return.  Click here to learn about the good news of God's GRACE.

Next let us consider some Critical Advice for the Present.

End Notes

1. Retrieved 1/29/2019 from https://www.jw.org/en/publications/books/bible-teach/1914-significant-year-bible-prophecy/.