Question No. 3

"And of the end of the world?" The third question asked in verse three.

Matthew 24:36-39 "But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only......But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be......For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,.....And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be."

Mark 13:32 "But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father."

O, how men and women love to be deceived. Don’t tell me the truth, but exactly what I want to hear. According to the false prophets and deceivers, they have far more information regarding the end of the world than does the Son of God and the angels. Since the Son of God does not know the time of his return, perhaps these self styled prophets might give our Lord just a little bit of insider information as to the time.

1 Thessalonians 5:2-4 "For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night......For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape......But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief."

If there is anything easy to understand in the bible, it is this subject. Of course, if one does not know the bible, then he is a the mercy of the sheep in wolves clothing. The element of surprise is the fundamental tactics of war. Nothing in the annals of world history can compare with the state of shock that the world will be in at the glorious return of our Lord.

2 Peter 3:10-13 "But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up......Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness,.....Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?.....Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness."

Take it to the bank! The Lord will return as a thief in the night at which time the earth and the heavens will melt with fervent heat. This is exactly why we are told to be watchful, sober (in our minds) and looking for the new heavens and new earth wherein dwells all righteousness.

1Corinthians 15:22-28 "For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive......But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming......Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power......For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet......The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death......For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith all things are put under him, it is manifest that he is excepted, which did put all things under him......And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all."

When the end of time shall be no more and all enemies are destroyed, our Lord will give up his reign of the kingdom and give it back to the Father that he may be all in all. This is diabolically opposed by those who would have us to believe that when our Lord returns in the end, he will set up his kingdom.

Matthew 24:40-42 "Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left......Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left......Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come."

My advise to all of those who have been suckered into giving their money to the deceivers, is that "they get a money back guarantee" with interest. The quotation is taken from Mac Lyon’s book, "Did You Miss The Rapture?"

Where are those going who will be taken?

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 "But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope......For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him......For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep......For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:.....Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord......Wherefore comfort one another with these words."

They are going to meet the Lord in the air and not the earth, because it will melt with fervent heat.

1 John 3:2 "Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is."

Conclusion:

In view of the fact that only God knows the time of our Lord's return, does he indicate anywhere in his holy word any inkling as to how long it will be? Another question that would be in order is how long can the earth support its exponential population? The rapid accelleration of the birth rate world wide seems to be the highest level of concern. I leave with the reader to speculate as to how this mammoth problem might be solved. But, first, let us see what God has to say about his magnificant creation.

Isaiah 51:6 "Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look upon the earth beneath: for the heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and the earth shall wax old like a garment, and they that dwell therein shall die in like manner: but my salvation shall be fore ever, and my righteousness shall not be abolished."

Make no mistake about it, the heavens and the earth are aging as do its inhabitants. But, in spite of the aging process of all of the creation, God's salvation and righteousness abides for ever. In other words, God did not intend for his creation to last for ever. Then what were God's long range plans?

Revelation 21:1-2 "And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.....And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband."

As the result of the heavens and the earth deteriorating is only one possibility as to why God would terminate his creation. God always pleases himself and he for the pleasure of his good will could end the earth at any time he so desires. Whether God decides to send his Son in our lifetime, or hundreds of years from now, is only known to himself.

2 Thessalonians 1:7-9 "And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels,.....In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:.....Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;"

The destruction of Jerusalem is almost 2,000 years behind us; but, what about our future? The future will be very dim if we fail to obey the gospel of Christ when our Lord returns. The gospel has laid down the terms of Salvation and they cannot be misunderstood.

• Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ with all of your heart

• Repent of all of your past sins

• Confess that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.

• Be born again by water and the Spirit into the water grave of baptism with our Lord.

• That like he died, we also die to sin; like he was buried in the heart of the earth, so are we buried with him in baptism; like he was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, we also are raised from the dead, that is, our sins, to walk a new life.