Jesus Christ promised the world that He would return. That was about
2000 years ago. Even many of the mainstream "Christians" do not
really believe that He will. They go on about their lives as if things are
going to continue as they are. Many have the attitude that Peter said
they would have: 2 Pet. 3:3 ¶ knowing this first: that scoffers will come
in the last days, walking according to their own lusts, 4 and saying,
"Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep,
all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation."
Jesus foretold the conditions that would exist in this world at the time
of His coming. His apostles asked Him what would the signs be of His
coming. This is part of what He told them:
Matt. 24: 21 "For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not
been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall
be. 22 "And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be
saved; but for the elect's sake those days will be shortened.
23 "Then if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or 'There!' do
not believe it. 24 "For false christs and false prophets will rise and
show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.
25 "See, I have told you beforehand. 26 "Therefore if they say to you,
'Look, He is in the desert!' do not go out; or 'Look, He is in the inner
rooms!' do not believe it. 27 "For as the lightning comes from the east
and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.
28 "For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered
together. 29 "Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun
will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall
from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
30 "Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all
the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man
coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
The conditions existing at the time of His coming are unprecedented.
There are some who are saying that His coming is imminent, yet none
of the signs that He gave are happening at the present time. No doubt
He had been telling His disciples that He was going away and return
as the parable of the talents reveals: (Mt 25:15) They asked Him: Matt.
24: 3 Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him
privately, saying, "Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be
the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?" Here is another
part of His reply: 4 ¶ And Jesus answered and said to them: "Take
heed that no one deceives you. 5 "For many will come in My name,
saying, I am the Christ, and will deceive many. 6 "And you will hear of
wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these
things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7 "For nation will rise
against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be
famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. 8 "All these
are the beginning of sorrows.
He is telling everyone to be very careful not to be deceived , for there
would be many coming and saying that Jesus is the Christ and
deceive many into thinking that they were preaching the truth because
they came in the name of Jesus Christ, but with a deceitful message.
There have been numerous ones through the centuries proclaiming
that Jesus' return is eminent, even setting dates and having their
followers going out on hills in white robes waiting for His return, or
waiting to board a space vehicle, and some committing mass suicide.
Jesus gave a warning not to be deceived by such men, that no one
would know when He would return but that He would come as a thief
in the night: Matt. 24: 42 "Watch therefore, for you do not know what
hour your Lord is coming. 43 "But know this, that if the master of the
house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have
watched and not allowed his house to be broken into.
44 "Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an
hour you do not expect. 1Th 5:2 For you yourselves know perfectly
that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night.
He gave some signs that would show those who were watching that
His coming was drawing close, but no one knows just when. The time
of His coming is not known but His actual coming will not be secret. A
deceiver came along many years ago and, contrary to what Jesus
admonished them, many were and are deceived by this person into
believing that Jesus would come secretly in what is known as the
rapture. But here once again is what Jesus said: 25 "See, I have told
you beforehand. 26 "Therefore if they say to you, 'Look, He is in the
desert!' do not go out; or 'Look, He is in the inner rooms!' do not believe
it. 27 "For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west,
so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.
Have you ever been out on a dark stormy night and see a streak of
lightening go across the sky from one end to the other? If so, you
know that the light from that lightening is very bright, much brighter
than the sunlight. No one will not know or be unaware that something
very unusual is happening. The book of Revelation also shows that
His coming will not be secret: Rev 1:7 Behold, He is coming with
clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all
the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen.
Why will all the tribes mourn? Because the world does not know nor
believe that Jesus was God in the flesh, and that He is going to return
to this earth and take over the reins of government and enforce the
laws of God. In their ignorance and deception they will think that the
world is being invaded by aliens from another planet, from outer space.
They will be partially right because He will come from another world,
the spirit world and bring the armies of that world with Him: Mt 25:31 ¶
"When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with
Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory.
When they see Him and the millions of angels filling the sky and hear
the sound of a great trumpet, with light greater than sunlight, they will
mourn because of the knowledge that whoever this is He has the force
to take over the earth and they do not know His intentions, whether to
take them all as slaves, or possibly annihilate mankind and take the
planet for themselves.
The nations of the world will make a concerted effort to repel this
invasion and will muster their forces : Rev 16:13 And I saw three
unclean spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth of the dragon, out of
the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.
14 For they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the
kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of
that great day of God Almighty. ( This is couched in this manner
because these men are Satan and his demon's tools. How they
muster the rulers of the nations to come will be by the means that
nations use to communicate with one another, only they will be
performing some sort of signs to convince the rulers to join them in
the fight against, what they perceive as an invasion.) 15 "Behold, I am
coming as a thief. Blessed is he who watches, and keeps his garments,
lest he walk naked and they see his shame." 16 And they gathered
them together to the place called in Hebrew, Armageddon.
Armageddon means Hill of Megiddo. It is in the plains or the valley of
Jezreel. It is a very large area a good place to assemble armies in
order to launch an assault. There is an excavated ruin there which the
guide said used to be a stable where King Solomon stabled some of
his horses, also there was a sign that said this was the place where
there would be a last great battle between the forces of evil and the
forces of good. It is a misnomer to call it the battle of Armageddon,
because this is only the staging area to prepare for the assault on this
invading force that has come down on the Mount of Olives at
Jerusalem.
Zec 14:4 And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives,
which faces Jerusalem on the east. And the Mount of Olives shall be
split in two, from east to west, making a very large valley; Half of the
mountain shall move toward the north and half of it toward the south.
Acts 1:9 Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched,
He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. 10 And
while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold,
two men stood by them in white apparel, 11 who also said, "Men of
Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus,
who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as
you saw Him go into heaven." 12 ¶ Then they returned to Jerusalem
from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day's
journey.
The armies of the nations will advance from the plains of Jezreel and
come up the valley of Jehoshaphat which is between Jerusalem and
the Mount of Olives. Jehoshaphat means God's judgment, or Valley of
God's Judgment:
Joel 3:9 ¶ Proclaim this among the nations: "Prepare for war! Wake up
the mighty men, Let all the men of war draw near, Let them come up.
10 Beat your plowshares into swords And your pruning hooks into
spears; Let the weak say, 'I am strong.'" 11 Assemble and come, all you
nations, And gather together all around. Cause Your mighty ones to go
down there, O LORD. 12 "Let the nations be wakened, and come up to
the Valley of Jehoshaphat; For there I will sit to judge all the
surrounding nations. 13 Put in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Come,
go down; For the winepress is full, The vats overflow-For their
wickedness is great."
14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the
LORD is near in the valley of decision. 15 The sun and moon will grow
dark, And the stars will diminish their brightness. 16 The LORD also
will roar from Zion, And utter His voice from Jerusalem; The heavens
and earth will shake; But the LORD will be a shelter for His people, And
the strength of the children of Israel.
Here is what happens to those armies:
Zech 14:9 And the LORD shall be King over all the earth. In that day it
shall be-"The LORD is one," And His name one. 10 All the land shall be
turned into a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem.
Jerusalem shall be raised up and inhabited in her place from
Benjamin's Gate to the place of the First Gate and the Corner Gate, and
from the Tower of Hananeel to the king's winepresses. 11 The people
shall dwell in it; And no longer shall there be utter destruction, But
Jerusalem shall be safely inhabited. 12 And this shall be the plague
with which the LORD will strike all the people who fought against
Jerusalem: Their flesh shall dissolve while they stand on their feet,
Their eyes shall dissolve in their sockets, And their tongues shall
dissolve in their mouths. 13 It shall come to pass in that day That a
great panic from the LORD will be among them. Everyone will seize the
hand of his neighbor, And raise his hand against his neighbor's hand;
14 Judah also will fight at Jerusalem. And the wealth of all the
surrounding nations Shall be gathered together: Gold, silver, and
apparel in great abundance. 15 Such also shall be the plague On the
horse and the mule, On the camel and the donkey, And on all the cattle
that will be in those camps. So shall this plague be. 16 ¶ And it shall
come to pass that everyone who is left of all the nations which came
against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King,
the LORD of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.