Scripture: Matthew 24 v 13 - 15: "But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.
15 When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)"
(Daniel 9 v 16 - 27 )
Ezra 4 v 11 - 12: "This is the copy of the letter that they sent unto him, even unto Artaxerxes the king; Thy servants the men on this side the river, and at such a time.
12 Be it known unto the king, that the Jews which came up from thee to us are come unto Jerusalem, building the rebellious and the bad city, and have set up the walls thereof, and joined the foundations."
Ezra 7 v 12 - 13: "Artaxerxes, king of kings, unto Ezra the priest, a scribe of the law of the God of heaven, perfect peace, and at such a time.
13 I make a decree, that all they of the people of Israel, and of his priests and Levites, in my realm, which are minded of their own freewill to go up to Jerusalem, go with thee."
In Matthew 24 Jesus is giving His disciples specific signs that will precede His coming again, most of which have been fulfilled. Jesus also refers the reader back to Daniel in Matt 24 v 15 and says that those who can figure this out will know what He is trying to explain.
Daniel - a prophet and an intercessor - is crying out to God from the Jewish captivity in Persia, now known as Iran. In response to this deep prayer God sent the Archangel Gabriel to give Daniel a very important message that stretches beyond this present time. Gabriel told Daniel that he had come to give him skill and understanding.
Gabriel's message from God said that 70 weeks have been calculated to the time when sin will end and to reconcile sinners to God. The 70 weeks begin at the 20th year of the reign of Artaxerxes (Ezra 4 v 7) and end at the last day of the Great Tribulation, still ahead of us.
The calculation (in hindsight) was 70 weeks of years ie 490 years. From the first week to the crucifixion of Jesus was 62 weeks (3 score + 2) = 434 years; then another week of 7 years ie 49 years makes 483 years or 69 weeks of years to when the Temple and all Jerusalem was destroyed by Titus the Roman in AD70.
This prophecy was fulfilled exactly to the day and we are left with 1 week yet to be fulfilled which is the 7 years of Tribulation during which the Church will be raptured and Jews will finally recognise their Messiah as Jesus Christ.
The last week cannot have come before Israel was restored to the Promised Land after 1900 years of exile. This occurred after the Second World War when Hitler tried to exterminate all Jews. The League of Nations voted in 1948 and the Jews won the right to return to their Homeland again.
This fulfilled a prophecy in Jeremiah. In Hebrew it says Eretz Israel Kibbutzainim meaning that Israel will return to the land and make kibbutzes to reclaim the wasteland and make it productive. This started in 1948 and continues to this day.
The Abomination of Desolation that Jesus mentions in Matthew 24 v 15 and Daniel speaks of it in verse 27. In the midst of this final week of the 7 year tribulation Satan will fully manifest in the Antichrist - a world leader - and seat himself in the Holy of Holies in the rebuilt Temple in Jerusalem, and declare himself to be God.
The eyes of the Jews will be opened to the truth and they will flee into the mountains of Petra. The full horror of the Great Tribulation will come upon the sinful world. The Church has been raptured and all believers will have left Earth to meet Jesus in the air. The devil will be rampant over those left alive until the battle of Armageddon.
Many people go about their daily lives completely unaware of the unfolding of the End Times and how their lives will be affected just as happened in the time of Noah. They mocked Noah for 100 years while he built the Ark to keep his family and the animals safe. Their mocking turned to fear when the storms came and there was no place to hide from God's wrath against sin. They all died regretting that they had not listened to Noah.
There are many preachers sending warnings into the churches and to whoever else will listen that the Tribulation is coming. Be ready for the Rapture. Mockers and scoffers abound and laugh off these warnings. They think we are too modern, too scientific or too smart to believe all that.
Nothing could stop the tsunamis that hit Japan and Indonesia. Nothing could stop the towers going down on 9/11 or the war in Syria or tornados, earthquakes and hurricanes. Climate change is a sign of the coming of Jesus. Financial upheaval is a sign. One World is a sign. Wokeness is a sign. As it was in the days of Lot and Noah so will it be at the coming of the Son of Man.
It is coming like an express train and yet billions upon billions of dollars are spent to save some unknown bugs from becoming extinct. God is in control of the creation of bugs and animals. Spend the money on getting the humans saved rather and guaranteeing their eternity in Heaven.
The past few weeks, from the beginning of 2024, there is an urgency in my spirit from the Lord of very big changes beginning soon. Some may be good and positive but may not last long. Some may be really bad but Jesus is with us and will see us through it. Our strength is in Him and the closer we get to Jesus the closer we get to one another. That's the unity of the Body Jesus needs to see.
Prayer: Heavenly Father we need You to shake the nations and bring them to their senses. Time grows short and many will be lost. Help us to overcome spiritual lethargy and lunacy in the world to revive Your people to win the lost. In Jesus' name. Amen.