Prophetic Landscape of Our Postmodern World :: By James Pannafino

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#1. Understanding of Bible Prophecy

Knowing the unfolding of prophecy for the last days was Daniel’s most profound question (Daniel 12:4; 8-10). The Bible specifically says we cannot know the exact time of the Lord’s return for His true church.

Matthew 25:13 “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.”

But the Scriptures make it equally clear that we can know the season of the Lord’s return!

Luke 21:28 “Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near. (cf. 1 Thessalonians 5:2-6).

Furthermore, the Scriptures give us many signs to watch for, signs that will signal that Jesus is ready to return. The wise follower of the Lord will give serious study to, and know what time it is on God’s prophetic clock. The writer of the Hebrew letter referred to these signs when he proclaimed that believers should encourage one another when they see the “Day” of His glorious return drawing near (Hebrews 10:25-27).

#2. The Miraculous Return of Israel

The Bible distinctly predicts the return of the Jewish people, against all odds, to their ancient homeland in the last days, which the Lord has supernaturally orchestrated.

Jeremiah 16:14-15 “’Therefore behold, the days are coming,’ says the LORD, “that it shall no more be said, ‘The LORD lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of Egypt,’ but, ‘The LORD lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north and from all the lands where He had driven them.’ For I will bring them back into their land which I gave to their fathers.

  • Regathering of the Jews foretold (Isaiah 11:10-12)
  • Reclamation of the land of Israel (Ezekiel 36:34-35)
  • Sovereignty of Jerusalem once again (Luke 21:24)
  • Epicenter of world politics on Israel (Zechariah 12:3)
  • Russian, Iran, and Turkey threat to Israel (Ezekiel 38-39)
  • The testimony of divine intervention (Ezekiel 39:7)

Promise of God: Israel will never be removed

Amos 9:14-15 “’I will bring my people Israel back from exile… I will plant Israel in their own land, never again to be uprooted from the land I have given them,’ says the LORD your God.”

#3. Love of Many Growing Cold

All you have to do is look at the news to see how lovers of self and haters of others has exploded in our world! Jesus spoke explicitly of this sign expanding worldwide at the end of this age (see Matthew 24:13).

The last days will be a time loveless delusion and deceit.

2 Timothy 3:2-4 “People will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.”

Still, our primary calling remains to grow in our love for the Lord while striving to share His great mercy with others.

Revelation 2:4-5 “But I have this complaint against you. You don’t love me or each other as you did at first! Look how far you have fallen! Turn back to me and do the works you did at first.”

#4. The Rise of False Teachers Corrupting The ‘Church’…Along with a Revival Outpouring Worldwide

The Last Days will bring about a “falling away” from core Biblical Christianity, denying the key doctrines of our faith!

2 Peter 3:3-4 “Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, ‘Where is this coming he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation” (cf. Romans 1:18-22).

  • Denial of the Second Coming of Christ
  • Denial of the Pending Judgments of God

The Last Days will also be evidenced by the greatest move of God our world has ever witnessed!

Preaching and Receiving of the Gospel worldwide

Matthew 24:14 “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.”

Revival Outpouring (*Luke 14:15-24, just before the Tribulation; *Joel 2:28-29, during the Tribulation).

#5. The Falling Away

2 Thessalonians 2:3 “Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first.”

1 Timothy 4:1-2 “The Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons…”

There has undoubtedly been a falling away from the faith; just look at plummeting church attendance. There is also a falling away from the truth of the Bible by those who have distorted and twisted Scripture, falling into serious error, and many are being led astray.

1 John 2:19 “These people left our churches, but they never really belonged with us; otherwise they would have stayed with us. When they left, it proved that they did not belong with us.”

#6. Increase of Lawlessness

The “mystery of lawlessness” was active in Paul’s day, as it is in our world today, and will expand significantly as we approach the return of King Jesus!

2 Thessalonians 2:7-8 “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.”

Today, many who profess Christ do not even seek to keep the commandments. And, although we can’t be saved by the commandments, those who are saved strive to do so.

1 John 3:6 “No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him.”

The true church of these last days stands in stark contrast with the false apostate ‘church’ by its passion to live for and honor Christ.

Titus 2:14 “Who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.”

#7. Increasing Decay of Our Culture

Jesus and the inspired writers of the scripture provide us a myriad of social indicators that we are living in the last days!

2 Timothy 3:1-5 “But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power.”

  • Increasing despair (2 Timothy 3:1)
  • Increasing materialism (2 Timothy 3:2)
  • Increasing influence of Humanism (2 Timothy 3:2)
  • Calling evil good and good evil (2 Timothy 3:3)
  • Increasing hedonism (2 Timothy 3:4)
  • A false form of spirituality (2 Timothy 3:5)

#8. Global Technological Delusions

The advancements of mankind will culminate in a utopian tyranny and destructive global implosion.

Transhumanism rebellion… self-deification, a world without God.

Jeremiah 17:9 “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it? (cf. Psalm 14:1).

High-speed transportation and knowledge explosion

Daniel 12:4 “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.”

Computer and laser technology

Revelation 13:16-17 “He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast.”

Television/satellite transmission

Revelation 11:9-10 “Then those from the peoples, tribes, tongues, and nations will see their dead bodies three-and-a-half days, and not allow their dead bodies to be put into graves.”

#9. A World Overwhelmed

In the Last Days, people will experience the constant sensation of feeling overcome by circumstances while living daily in a quandary by what is happening in our world.

Luke 21:25-26 “And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; men’s hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.”

Disasters, of nature and man-made, will encompass all the world!

  • Wars and rumors of wars
  • Increasing famine
  • Overwhelming pestilence
  • Earthquakes of unprecedented destruction (Matthew 24:6-8; Luke 21:10-11; Mark 13:7-8)

Globalism preparing the way for the rise of Antichrist.

  • Restoration of the ‘Roman Empire’ into a final Beast system (Daniel 2 & 7; cf. 9:27)
  • Movement toward world government (Daniel 7:23-26)

The promise of the return of Jesus Christ to end this age of evil and destruction

Matthew 24:22 “And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened.”

Daniel 7:26-27 “But the court will sit, and his power will be taken away and completely destroyed forever. Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven will be handed over to the holy people of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him.”

#10. God’s Final Word: The Messiah’s Triumph and Kingdom

Psalm 2:1-12 “Why do the nations rage, and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD and against his Anointed, saying, ‘Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us.’ He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision.

“Then he will speak to them in his wrath, and terrify them in his fury, saying, ‘As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill.’ I will tell of the decree: The LORD said to me, ‘You are my Son; today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.’ Now therefore, O kings, be wise; be warned, O rulers of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.”

He Who Has An Ear :: By Brother Bill Oldham

“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches” (Revelation 3:22).

There came a day when seven churches stood before the Judge of all things, Jesus Christ. There was no need for them to present their case or testify because the Judge knew all of the true facts about them, and He had summoned them to appear before Him. It’s important to understand that Jesus loved these churches, and His grace was going forth to try to bring them to the place where they were pleasing to Him and the Father.

In every church, Jesus knew their works: He knew what was happening, dismissing what they said about themselves. Jesus knew the good, the bad, and the ugly about each church and each individual in that church. There were commendations and condemnations in His judgments; Christ gave them clear commands as to what they were to keep on doing and what must immediately cease. He was plain about dealing with evildoers in the church, and about the lukewarmness of Laodicea making Him sick. “True and righteous are His judgments.”

“He who has ears to hear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

This exhortation from our Lord covered two areas: the existing conditions that were pleasing and should continue, and the ones that were displeasing to the Lord and needed to be corrected. And then the rewards that He promised to “Him who overcomes.” The Spirit of the Lord said everything that needed to be said to those seven churches to bring them to a place of commendation and eternal reward. Then, it was up to them to “…Not only be hearers, but doers of His word” To be overcomers!

Commentaries abound concerning these seven churches, with much explanation about the situation and context of each church. Some say that those words only applied to those specific churches and nothing else. Others say they apply to seven church ages, the last being the Laodicean age, of where we presently are. Still others say that they represent seven conditions which appear in all the churches throughout the ages.

This one thing I know for certain: The Holy Spirit has spoken to the church through the Scriptures, all we need to know. The church of God doesn’t need any new revelation or word from God.

“All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy” 3:16-17).

The Bible contains the fullness of God’s revelation of Himself to man. Written by many different men of God over a period of many years, it is one book with perfect continuity, written under the inspiration of God.

“…No prophecy in Scripture ever came from the prophet’s own understanding, or from human initiative. No, these prophets were moved by the Holy Spirit, and they spoke from God” (2 Peter 1:20-21).

When a believer is sitting under the teaching of a so-called preacher, teacher, or pastor, and they do not stay true to the Scriptures, or even worse, teach their hearers they need to “unhitch” from the Old Testament or the Bible altogether, that believer needs to run to the nearest exit and never return.

There is or was a movement that began to teach that everything in the Scriptures needed to be taught in context. I know very little about that except something I read. It was about a very familiar promise God had given to Israel in a particular situation. The writer made the point that the church couldn’t lay claim to the promise because it was given to Israel only. With all due respect, they miss a very important truth.

The revelation of God and Jesus in the Bible is just that: it reveals their unchanging nature, heart and mind in dealing with their chosen people, whether it be Israel or the church. When you read in the Old Testament about rebellious Israel, you will also read of God’s amazing grace and patience with them. In times of chastisement and judgment, God made some great promises to restore them. That same God is the God and Father of the church of God in Christ Jesus.

The unchanging character, nature, heart and mind of God came into full view when Jesus Christ appeared. He is the image of the invisible God; it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him; Jesus is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His nature. And forever will the love of God for the world remain indelibly inscribed in the wounds in Jesus’ glorious body.

“God…in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom He also made the world…. We must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away from it” (Hebrews 1:1-2, 2:1).

Every child of God has been given a set of spiritual ears to hear what the Spirit has said. God has given His chosen people a complete book to listen and to learn everything He wants them to know about Him and His Son. In Genesis, God reveals in the beginning how all things came to be; in Revelation, He reveals the end of this present age and the beginning of the ages to come.

To His chosen ones, the most important truth in the Bible is His only begotten Son Jesus Christ. How He left His home in glory and came to earth as a baby, born of a virgin. Jesus was sent to earth by His Father because God so loved the world. It was the Father’s good pleasure to lay on Him the iniquity of the world, and to bruise Him so that sinners could be set free from the bondage of sin and the fear of death. Jesus accomplished this in His crucifixion, burial, and resurrection.

When Jesus sat down at the right hand of God as Lord, He had the power to grant eternal life to all who should call upon His name; and those who do are born again. And this is wonderful, but every new babe in Christ, and all of God’s elect who are looking and waiting for Jesus’ return, must realize they need to hear and take heed to the full counsel of God.

Here’s what I mean: God is holy; there is no sin or darkness in Him. His children are called to be holy: separated from this world and the love of it. In our great salvation, we must walk in fear and trembling before our holy God lest we drift. Not a fear of now being cast into Hell but a fear of grieving and quenching the very heart of God who loves us and keeps us.

In the New Testament, there are many sins and issues addressed, but I want to mainly focus on two. The first is immorality: adultery, fornication, and greed. “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches”:

“…Immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints…for this you know with certainty, that no immoral or impure person or covetous man, who is an idolater, has an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God” (Ephesians 5:3-5).

The second issue is the specific command Jesus gave to His church before He was crucified: “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches”:

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:34-35).

This commandment calls the members of Christ’s body to love each other as He loved us. A member may have faith, they may give themselves to helping in community projects, they may be active in the leadership of the church; but if they don’t have love for their brothers and sisters in the body, all of their other works are worthless.

“He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him. But he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes” (1 John 2:10-11).

We shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ and give an account of ourselves to God. “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

Brother Bill Oldham

bboldham@sbcglobal.net