End times hysteria has a way of hanging around causing chaos and generally scaring people. People are fascinated by it, even if they don’t believe it will happen. There are numerous books and movies that make a lot of money by twisting biblical truth out of context. The confusion and commotion do not lead people to the Truth, instead it leads people to a god of their on making and away from Jesus. The church at Thessalonica was hearing rumors and they were frightened. But Paul reminded them they already knew that the rumors were unfounded, they had the prophecies, the scriptures and the teaching to understand the truth. Verses 1-5 read,
“Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, 2 not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. 3 Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, 4 who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God. 5 Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things?”
Jesus described it this way in Matthew 24:15-18,
“So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), 16 then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 17 Let the one who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house, 18 and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak.”
As believers, we don’t have to freak out when we hear the hearsay or the heresy. We know the truth, we have access to the Word of God, and we have communication with God Himself. The current uproar about the apocalypse being about to start is based on what John Hagee calls The Four Blood Moons. I have not read this book, but I have read the Bible. The tetrad of blood moons is not Biblically based.
First let me give a quick explanation of a blood moon. A blood moon is a lunar eclipse. It is called a blood moon because as the shadow of the earth covers the moon, it turns a coppery red color, the color of blood. A tetrad of blood moons means four lunar eclipses separated by 6 lunar months each. The final blood moon of the current tetrad will take place on September 27th-28th 2015. The first three of these moons were not visible in Israel. I would think that when God shows us a sign it will be seen by all His people and especially in Israel. Since the first century there have been 62 tetrads of blood moons.
People like John Hagee who sold a lot of books about it want to frighten people and say that this is a sign of “The End” They have misconstrued scripture and trust that we will trust them enough to not read the Word for ourselves. What does the Bible say about the moon turning to blood? Joel 2:30-32 reads,
“And I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and columns of smoke. 31 The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. 32 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the Lord has said, and among the survivors shall be those whom the Lord calls.”
And Revelation 6:12-14 says,
“When he opened the sixth seal, I looked, and behold, there was a great earthquake, and the sun became black as sackcloth, the full moon became like blood, 13 and the stars of the sky fell to the earth as the fig tree sheds its winter fruit when shaken by a gale. 14 The sky vanished like a scroll that is being rolled up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place.”
Clearly it is more than the moon looking red for a couple of nights. But there are many people out there who are agitated about Armageddon, the day of reckoning. We should be provoked by it, but we shouldn’t incite fear or extremism. We have to know the facts, we have to study for ourselves.
Did the antichrist set himself up as god to the world yet? Nope. Did he desecrate God’s Temple yet and put himself in God’s place? No. People have come and will continue to come saying things like, “The world will end October 21st 2015!” or “Jesus came back!” This is a sign of that the end is coming but it is not a sign of the end. In Matthew 24:23-27 Jesus said,
“Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. 24 For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. 25 See, I have told you beforehand.26 So, if they say to you, ‘Look, he is in the wilderness,’ do not go out. If they say, ‘Look, he is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. 27 For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.”
We will know when Jesus comes back! We will see it! There are many things be ought to know and keep in mind about the end times. I strongly urge you to read Matthew 24 and the other prophecies about the end times for yourself.
The times are becoming more and more evil. Christianity is being marginalized and one world religion is gaining popularity. These are signs that the end is nearing, but it is not the end. These things have been happening since Jesus ascended to Heaven. They will continue until He comes back. The Lord is holding the antichrist back. He has Satan in check until the right time. Ad we trust The Lord to do it in His time, not ours. Verses 6-8 read,
“And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming.”
As followers of Christ we look forward to The Day of Judgement, but remember that many many people will enter eternal damnation on that day. Many people will be lost forever. Our Father doesn’t want that. 2 Peter 3:8-10 says,
“But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. 10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed”
Some things have to happen in order for God to say “The time is now.” All peoples have to have heard the Gospel. (Mathew 24:14). Everyone has to have a chance to accept or reject Christ. And when they reject Him, God will let them believe in the antichrist. They won’t see his evil, which will be obvious to believers, they’ll see him as great and powerful, a unifier of nations and just what and who they’ve been seeking right up until they see Jesus leading His angel armies. Then they’ll fall to their knees in devastating realization of the Truth. Satan thinks he’s in charge right now and up to that moment, most of the world will gladly follow the father of lies. Verses 9-12 read,
“The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, 10 and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. 11 Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, 12 in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.”
Believer, do not feed lies and chaos. Know the Truth, trust the Truth, and teach the Truth. The people who spread fear, lies, and bedlam will pay for their sins. The people who glorify Jesus will bless the earth and reap rewards they do not deserve.