The Greatest Proof
Back to 1The Bible’s Greatest Prophecies Unlocked!
This book has already mentioned several times how most do not take God’s words seriously. Of course, while He knew it would happen, this was never what Jesus intended when He uttered the prophecies described in this and the previous five chapters. In fact, so no one could possibly miss the certainty of all these horrific fulfillments to come just before His Return, He concluded all three accounts of the Olivet Prophecy—Matthew, Mark and Luke!—with a similar statement Since Jesus’ words are repeated in three of the gospel accounts for emphasis, they are all included here for the same reason.
After listing all that we have been discussing, Jesus said in Matthew, “Verily [truly] I say unto you, this generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My words shall not pass away” (Mt 24:34-35).
Now Mark: “Verily I say unto you, that this generation shall not pass, till all these things be done. Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away” (Mk 13:30-31).
And Luke records, “Verily I say unto you, this generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled. HEAVEN AND EARTH SHALL PASS AWAY: BUT MY WORDS SHALL NOT PASS AWAY” (Lk 21:32-33)!
Now ask if Jesus took seriously His own words. He literally elevated the fulfillment of all the prophetic horrors described through this book above the certainty of the continued existence of the entire universe, including Earth. And, again, this is repeated three times so no one could doubt what would happen—so there would be no room for dismissive thinking or minimizing what would occur.
How could anyone find a way to believe the prophecies described by Christ will not come to pass?
On only one other occasion did Christ call the existence of heaven and earth into the equation to demonstrate the certainty of His words. It is instructive: “Think not that I am come to destroy THE LAW, or the prophets [the Old Testament]: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from THE LAW, till all be fulfilled” (Matt. 5:17-18).
Impossible to misunderstand, right? And also impossible to ignore or dismiss, right?
Wrong! The vast majority of ministers in the world of professing Christianity, with their millions of parishioners happily agreeing, have rejected the Ten Commandments (The Law) as “only for the Jews”—having convinced themselves they were “done away”—“nailed to the cross”—supposedly by the very Jesus Christ who spoke of their certain continuance.
NEVER underestimate the power of human beings to delude themselves through human reasoning into rejecting the plain words of God—words that are IMPOSSIBLE TO MISUNDERSTAND! If you doubt this, just hand this book to one of your friends and then, assuming they will read it, see if they share your conviction about it.
Let’s summarize. The greatest proof that the four horsemen of the Apocalypse have not been riding for the last 2,000 years—but rather represent conditions that only come to pass at the end of the age—is that their entire fulfillment would be contained within a single generation! The evidence is in. We are now deep into that generation.
The room will soon go black!
If you still find it difficult to believe that all of this could really happen so fast in the modern age, remember that up to one-half of a much less interconnected world died due to a single plague in a period of just three years—AD 1347 to 1350—in regard to the Black Death. Christ declares one-quarter will die in a “generation”—much more than three years.
Take Heed
Again, the God of the Bible is a loving God. He always sounds an alarm to those in harm’s way. He wants no one to have an excuse!
The Church of God has the responsibility to “cry aloud, spare not, lift up [our] voice like a trumpet, and show My people their transgression, and the house of Jacob [Israel] their sins” (Isa. 58:1). The modern nations of Israel—and the world—need to be warned that punishment is coming. You are now learning about this punishment—and you are being warned! There will soon be no time remaining to do this (John 9:4; Amos 8:11).
Make yourself think about what is being reported in your newspaper and on your television every day. People are dying here and there, and here and there, in increasing numbers, and in a broadening array of sometimes new and different ways, more and more of them terrible. For these, we can say in a sense that the Great Tribulation or Day of the Lord already came. Sometimes what took these victims can be small events—other times they can be large.
Consider. For the thousands of people killed in the terrorist attack of September 11, 2001, the “tribulation,” in a sense, came and went in an instant. For them it is over. There is nothing that can any longer be done for them. They are asleep, awaiting the time when they will be resurrected and given an opportunity to learn the truth of God’s awesome Plan for mankind. Only then will they understand why they died—or (because the dead are asleep, waiting to be resurrected) even in many cases that they died!
Here is the point. While the worst is over for them, it is not yet over for America, the rest of the world—or you! Do not say that we have years to go and “I can take my time” with matters involving eternal life, or even protection through the years ahead. And do not say, “All the things of this chapter (and others) just cannot be.” Scripture says they can. And the thousands of victims who died without notice in two tall buildings testify to the truth of how suddenly calamity can come. (Take time to read what amounts to an extraordinary parallel account from Jesus found in Luke 13:4-5regarding a “tower in Siloam,” and how death can be immediate, random and entirely unexpected for those who are not under God’s protection.)
Even greater numbers—vastly greater—will perish beyond the horsemen. Take seriously the meaning behind world-shaking events and calamities. The prophecies of this chapter are certain—they will come to pass. Any who believe God—and Jesus Christ—will accept His inspired Word. This same Word also reveals the way to avoid the false hope of how a final escape will come…