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And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole

world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

Matthew 24:14

In the recent Israel election, it looked as if Netanyahu was in danger of losing. The exit polls showed him behind Benny Gantz. Benny Gantz even gave a victory speech declaring he had won. But the exit polls were wrong; the votes were what decided the election, and the votes were in Benjamin Netanyahu's favor. From a conservative point of view, this is a real blessing for Israel and America. From a Christian standpoint, we know God determined the outcome.

Many believers think we are in the last of the last days. Without date setting, we can still know the season the Lord will return, and many would say we are in that season. They point to things like the way society is becoming more and more lawless and rebellious towards God (2 Tim 3:1-5), and how the world looks more like the days of Noah than ever before (Matt 24:37). Technology is fulfilling Daniel 12:4 that talks about in the end there will be an explosion of knowledge, and people will travel all around seeking to discover what the future holds. The evidence we see coming of a new world order in government, religion, and economy (Rev 13, 17-18) also leads many to believe the end is near. And the gospel, going throughout the world (Matt 24:14), is spreading like never before. For those who say the end is near, I see three groups of people:

GROUP #1 are those who say the gospel is spreading rapidly and more people are responding than at any other time in history. They believe an end time revival is just around the corner. I don't see any Scripture to support this view except they may use Matthew 24:14 which tells us that the "Good News about the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world so that all nations hear it, and then the end will come." What it doesn't say is that a mass number of people will accept Christ. It is true though that for someone to believe the gospel, they first have to hear the Good News.

GROUP #2 are the ones who keep up with current events in light of Bible prophecy and say they are seeing the signs of the times being fulfilled now, according to what Scripture says the world will look like just before the Tribulation begins and Antichrist comes into power. Some things you see on television like the increase of attacks on churches and other hate crimes or evil in general; other things are not covered by the media such as CERN or Agenda 21. I will do separate posts on the signs of the times and the rise of Antichrist.

GROUP #3 says we can't know when the end will come so why concern ourselves with things that can be divisive. Instead, live your life like the end is near, sharing the gospel urgently and making prayer a priority. Depend on the Holy Spirit to guide you and focus your life on your relationship with Jesus. Concentrate on loving others.

CONCLUSION

All three groups place a high priority on sharing the Good News of Jesus. There is a fourth group of Christians, though, and possibly the majority, who are "asleep." They neither actively share the gospel in any way nor give any thought to the time in history we are living in from a biblical point of view. They focus on their own little world, try to live a good life, and give God a place on Sunday or when tragedy strikes. But when things are seemingly good in their world, they give little thought to God. They believe the gospel, but they have never let it change them.

One thing is clear: When Jesus returns, most people will not be ready. They will be living their lives like they do every other day completely unaware of what is happening. Just like in the days of Noah, when the end comes, it will be too late. When the rains came in Noah's day, the people were swept away, not because they never had the chance to hear and take heed, but because they didn't believe Noah or his message.

Many believe God is using Trump as a "temporary mercy" on America to keep it from spiraling down into destruction and letting the one-world system take effect. With Netanyahu winning the election and becoming the longest running Prime Minister in Israel, God may be giving people more time to repent and turn to Jesus. But how can the unsaved call on Jesus to save them unless they believe in Him? And how can they believe in Jesus if they have never heard about Him? And how can they hear about Jesus unless someone tells them (Rom 10:14)?

This is the Good News of the gospel--Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures. He was buried, and was raised from the dead on the third day just as the Scriptures tell us (1 Cor 15:3-4). We are saved by God's grace through our having faith in what Jesus did on the cross where he paid the penalty for our sin. Our sin separates us from God (Is 59:2). Salvation is a free gift, not something we can earn (Eph 2:8-9).

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