“Wars and rumors of wars” have always been. Since the time of Christ, this planet has had thirteen years of war for every year of peace. As time goes on, we’re going to hear more about “wars and rumors of wars,” but we who belong to God should not allow ourselves to be excessively distressed about such news. We can tell that more wars will come to pass, but we need to remind ourselves that “…the end is not yet.”
“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. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrow.”
Matthew 24:6-8
Jesus warned that “…nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom…” which is a sign. Famines, plagues and earthquakes in different and numerous places will also continue to occur. The true cause of all serious disturbances, like war, famine and starvation, is sin—and the Bible tells us that things are going to continue to get much worse, like labor pains increasing before a child is born. Great darkness is coming, which is one way God will use to wake up His people. Now, more than ever before, we need to awaken to the fact that Jesus is coming, and His coming will be very soon. When He does come, there will be no more tears, starvation or death —a tremendous, sweeping change truly is coming! “And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away” (Revelation 21:4).
This planet has had two world wars already, and it has been plagued with famines, pestilences, deadly viruses, earthquakes, etc. in many different places. Yet the Bible warns that all of these are just the beginning of sorrows, or “birth pains.” The Lord hints that these disturbances are only the first pangs, which are nothing compared with the difficult labor that can bring death which will come to pass later. Jesus warned about the coming calamities of the nation of Israel in general, and the calamities of the Christians specifically. The sufferings of His followers have often been brought about by judgments sent upon the land for the sins of the people. Christians have frequently been accused of being the source of such disastrous events and have consequently been cruelly persecuted. All of these are signs of Jesus’ soon return.
God’s people don’t have sorrow like unbelievers who have no hope. We have a Blessed Hope!
Sin that has no pity or mercy is the source of the sorrow and decline of this planet. It comes with the things of this world system, which we have become too attached to. But God’s people don’t have sorrow like unbelievers who have no hope. We have a Blessed Hope! And He is going to turn our sadness into joy.
The time will soon come when those of the world will “…deliver you [Christians] up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for My name’s sake” (Matthew 24:9). All of Christ’s disciples became martyrs except John. “…then many shall be offended, and shall betray one another, and hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise and deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold” (vs. 10-12). We are living in a time when iniquity (wickedness) is abundant. As a result, the love of many people for the things of the Lord has grown cold.
While there are areas of the world that have not yet been reached with the Good News about Jesus, no major national group remains that has not heard it.
“But he that shall endure to the end, the same shall be saved” (v. 13). Jesus is telling us not to give up. He declared that: “…this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come” (v. 14). While there are areas of the world that have not yet been reached with the Good News about Jesus, no major national group remains that has not heard it. Some areas have rejected it and made it against the law—but the Gospel has gone out all over the world, nevertheless.
The kingdom of Christ is not of this world. If it was, the world wouldn’t be in the sorry state it’s in today! The whole planet is now in trouble. Christ will become King of this world one day soon, but not as it is now. When He becomes King, there will no longer be sickness, trouble, drug addicts, famine, war, etc. Right now, He’s telling His people to “Hold on—I am coming soon!” Let’s pray that God will shake the nations once again to prepare for His coming. Just imagine—we’re going to meet the coming King of this world very soon! Therefore, we need to prepare for the return of our Lord, our King and our God. He is Jesus Christ and He is coming soon!
If you are not a part of Christ’s kingdom and want to have peace with God, you can easily do so right now—look at our page on the way to God for further information.
[Image credits: Featured image(where applicable) British Library/unsplash; Birmingham Museums Trust/unsplash; Tumisu/pixabay; Chris Eyes/freeimages; Davide Cantelli/unsplash]
