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Scripture For The Day |
A leading scientific journal has stated that the average human life span is now 76 years. This is due principally to the medical advances of the 20th Century. 7Life Commentary: This is good news, but it is worth remembering that it was not uncommon for people in Noah's time to live until 700 years old and older! (Genesis 9 verse 29). James 4 verse 14 says "life is but a vapour." However you look at it, our life on this earth is short, so we need to focus on the eternal things of God (2 Corinthians 4 verse 18).
Verse 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?"
Verse 5 "for many will come in my name, saying 'I am the Christ,' and will deceive many." We only have to look at the false Messiahs in recent years, such as David Koresh, and Jim Jones, not to mention present day imposters to see that this has come true. Verse 6 "And you will hear of wars and rumours of wars." This century has seen a record number of wars, and with the Cold War, rumours of wars have been especially prevalent. Verse 7 "And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes." Verse 12 "and because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold." Crime rates have risen dramatically in recent years, and the recent school shootings in the U.S. illustrate this graphically. Verse 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." With improved media and transport, this is very close to having occured, and perhaps it already has. With all these signs, and nuclear proliferation, the Single European Currency heralding the One World System of government of the AntiChrist, and erroneous New Age beliefs, the End of the Age is surely near. One World Government, prophecied in the Bible in Daniel Chapter 7 and Revelation Chapter 13, is very seductive. Proponents of a global new world order at the 2000 UN Millennium Summit believe it can achieve a prosperous interdependent economy, a cleaner environment, and more control to overcome criminal activity. It sounds good, but the head of a one world government would have a lot of power, and that would be very dangerous in the hands of the wrong person, especially if they deceived people first, as history has shown. Do you value the sovereignty of your country, the right of each nation to self-determination, your civil liberties, and your privacy? Jesus is coming soon to rapture His church. 1 Thessalonians 4 verse 17 says "Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord." The term rapture comes from the greek "rapios" which means to seize away and is a translation of the greek "harpazo" which means caught up or snatched away. If you are a born again Christian, walking with the Lord, you will not go through the Tribulation period. Jesus said in Revelation 3 verse 10 "Because you have kept my command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth." Don't be left behind! The early Christian church taught the pretribulation rapture. “For all the saints and Elect of God are gathered, prior to the Tribulation that is to come, and are taken to the Lord lest they see the confusion that is to overwhelm the world because of our sins” (On the Last Times, the Antichrist, and the End of the World, by Ephraem the Syrian, A.D. 373). Note too that the book of Revelation is sequential, with the church dealt with in Chapters 1-3, with no mention of it between Chapters 4-19 which deals with the Tribulation. After Jesus comes for His church there will be a Tribulation period of seven years before He comes to reign on Earth. Daniel 9 verse 26-27 tell us that the AntiChrist will sign a false peace treaty with Israel. The AntiChrist (Revelation 13) will be a charismatic world leader. He may well come out of the revived Roman Empire, the new political and economic European Union. This false peace will break down after three and a half years after which will come the most catastrophic series of events in world history as outlined in the book of Revelation, culminating in the battle of Armageddon (Revelation 16 verse 16) which Jesus Christ will ultimately win (Revelation 17 verse 14) when He comes back to Earth and splits the Mount of Olives asunder. Before He comes though, in the seven year Tribulation period, Revelation 13 verse 16 says that the AntiChrist, the world leader, the false messiah, will cause everyone to "receive a mark on their right hand or foreheads", and it may well be in the form of either an embedded microchip or a laser tattoo. Accepting this will also ensure that that person's eternal destiny is Hell (Daniel 12 verse 2), and not Heaven, and they will be vulnerable to the Seven Bowl Judgements of Revelation 16 in this life first. Don't be left behind when Jesus comes for His church any day now! Get right with God and accept Christ Today! Everyone who has given their life to Jesus Christ can be assured of Heaven. Those who have not do not have that assurance. Jesus will reign on the Earth for 1000 years (Revelation 20 verse 4), and the Bible says that after that period in Revelation 21 verse 1 that there will be a new Heaven and a new Earth. In verse 4 it says that "God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying; and there shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away." 1 Peter 1 verse 8 says that "though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpresible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith-the salvation of your souls."