Approaching The End

I'm sure you have noticed that there is a mushrooming sense of risk that is growing on the world scene to life. Increasing natural disasters often capture the news. There is also political fighting and infighting. There are international tensions that are growing, in conjunction with great advances in modern weaponry. There is mass environmental destruction that's going on in the air, on the land, in the oceans. And that is threatening our life on Earth ultimately, and that is in the news. There is unsolvable global debt in all nations of the world. And there are multilateral preparations for war being made by countries around the globe. They sense that something is materializing that is ominous. And many people talk about doomsday, or talk about the apocalypse, or talk about the end of the world. As you know, there is even an urgency to get people off to find some other place, some other planet, to get a pot or a capsule full of people, so that the human race might survive. I read an article yesterday that said that it's probably not important because, through evolution, even if we all get bombed out, there will be some element of life that will dwarf off and somehow grow back in some other strain of life that will continue on. So, no worries. It's just that we're all not going to be here, and most everything we know won't be here. Well, how do increasingly worrisome events and these looming, ominous sort of threats fit in with Bible prophecy? We ask that question, don't we? Ooh, how does this fit? People say, are we in the end time? Are we about in the end time? What is the prophetic timeline of events as far as where we are on that timeline? Can you sort of lay it out and say, here's exactly right where we are? Why does the Bible even talk about what's coming in the future? Why do we have something called Bible prophecy? Why do we have the Apocalypse or the Book of Revelation? Why do we have these Scriptures on Isaiah and Ezekiel and Hosea and Jeremiah and Daniel and Revelation and the prophecies that Christ gave and that the apostles reiterated? How might it feel about the end time? I was kind of hoping to miss that, personally. All my life I was hoping that I'd get out of here somehow, or it would come later. Some of us might even feel that way. Slow down, slow down, everybody. Let me have a nice life here and let these things come at a different time. It also begs the question, with all these things mounting up, since we can't really ignore them, what should I be doing? How should I be preparing myself for that which is called the end time? Well, those are just some questions that we could ask. And today I'm not going to give you all the answers to them. We can only talk about glimpses of prophecy in a message that is this short. But we all face the specter of an end time that is coming. And the Bible is very clear about that, and we have work to do before the end, as it is often referred to, gets here.

So what about this end? Today I'd like to give a sermon entitled, Approaching the End. It's kind of like you're maybe on an airplane or in a ship, and you're approaching the end of your trip. You're not there yet, but you can hear the engines are winding down, the ears begin to pop, or the ship's engines begin to rev down a bit and people are gathering their things. It kind of might feel like as we approach a time that the Bible calls the end, how should I be preparing? What should I be doing? It's not unusual for people to think about the end in the church. Remember, the disciples asked Jesus in Matthew chapter 24 and verse 3 about the end. They wanted to know. And we may think, well, that was 2,000 years ago. That doesn't really apply. And yet here we are talking about it some 2,000 years later. So let's just tap into their discussion in verse 3 of Matthew 24, where the disciples say, tell us when will these things be and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end, the end of the age. It's really important when you say the end to know what we're talking about. When society says the end, they mean final curtain. You know, it's the end. It's it. Toast. All done. No mas. When we talk about it, notice what they asked. The end of the age.

The end of the age. God has called you and me to see right through what the world sees as a terminus and see it as a beginning. You and I actually look forward to something on the other side of the end. It's what we pray will come. It's God's kingdom coming to earth. This is Phil 24 here of Matthew with end time prophecies, things that happen at the end of the age. People today on the news hear things, see things, and even the newscasters will use the term Well, this weather is of apocalyptic proportions. You've heard that. This big event is of biblical proportions. That's the term. You can look it up and you can find the various news sources that in the last month have used the term This thing has been of biblical proportions by people who don't believe in the Bible.

Why did God give us the prophecies? Are they here to make us afraid, to make us fear? God's Word says, you are my children. You are my saints. You are my firstfruits to join the firstfruit, Jesus Christ, and reign, to be in my family in a divine sense of leading and ruling in the next phase, the next age, the good age, the millennial age, a time that is likened to the Garden of Eden because even the animals and nature and the knowledge of God will be as it was in the Garden of Eden. So, as we see it described. So that's a good thing.

You and I are to be separate apart from, mentally, this age and its society, its thoughts. We're to live God's truth. We're to obey God's gospel. We're to follow God and be the light. We are to do right, or righteousness, according to God and His laws, His way, His mind. Let's go to 2 Corinthians 4 and verse 1 and see this contrast. 2 Corinthians 4 and verse 1.

If you're interested in where we are in end-time prophecy and some of the things that are happening, we'll get to some of those maybe interesting or scary little details in a few minutes. But let's set the stage here of who we are and where we are and what we should be doing at the front.

In 2 Corinthians 4 and verse 1, Paul here is saying, Well, there's the first point. This isn't about us losing heart. Yes, we're going to have an adversary all along the way, and that adversary is going to make some physical inroads into the physical lives of God's righteous people who will live forever. But that's short-term. That happened to Jesus Christ. It happened to the prophets. It happens to the apostles. It happens to the people in Hebrews 11. It happens to the saints and the church at the end-time in part. Yes. Those are things that are coming, but we do not lose heart. But we have renounced the hidden things of shame, not walking in craftiness, self-devise craftiness for personal gain, nor handling the Word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth, commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. You know, we have a gospel proclamation in print, in media, and various types of media, electronic media, television. You know what the response to that is? It's very, very low. Why? Well, verse 3. Even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the God of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them. For we do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your servants, for Jesus' sake. For it is God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who is shown in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels. So here we are in our earthen vessels. We have this treasure. We are striving to be of God.

And we do have a God of this world that opposes us, and that thwarts the gospel of God having any sort of large scale return or impact on people today. So that kind of separates it out for us. We are children of the Heavenly Father. We are living in Satan's world. And in Galatians chapter 1 and verse 2, we find out how God feels about this particular age. Galatians chapter 1 and verse 2, those of us aligned with God feel that this is not our age. Just as those in Hebrews 11 said, we desire a different country, a heavenly country. That's who I'm a citizen of. That's where my leadership is. That's where my allegiance is. Galatians 1 and verse 2, All the brethren with me, all the brethren with me, the churches of Galatia, grace to you and peace from God the Father, our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil age. Just notice those words. We are in a family. We are in a group aligned with God the Father, aligned with brothers and sisters, and these things currently are done for us according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory forever and ever. It's that forever and ever, the eternal God, the eternal life that's being offered to us that we hold to. Jesus added that there will be a new age after this one. In Luke chapter 18 verses 29 and 30, he's speaking here about the challenges that come upon those of us that God has called now. We are out of step with society. We are not appreciated in that sense, and it's going to be much more so as the time goes on. But notice Luke 18 in verse 29.

So we have the present evil age we just read about, and we have an age to come. It's that age to come that you and I are focused on, that we pray that God will bring and that we can be a part of. It's a wonderful thing that you and I have been called to. So we find the first purpose of end-time prophecy is for us to be circumspect, attentive, ready in godliness, to be watchful, to be focused on God, watchful as far as being circumspect, attentive and ready in godliness. That's what the definition of watch in the Greek word means. We'll discuss that in a little bit. We're to be alert to who we are.

And first of all, putting the focus of seeking first or primary, seeking in primary state, status, the kingdom of God and His righteousness. That's what we're to be about. The rest of these things get added to us. We have to be alert, resistant, clothed in the armor of God, and avoiding any kind of compromise. In 2 Timothy chapter 3, in the first five verses, we find that the time that we are approaching now is forecast to be one of danger. 2 Timothy chapter 3 and verse 1. But know this, that in the last days, the end times, the last days of this age, perilous times will come. The word perilous in the margin says times of stress or times of danger.

For men, the word for says why. It'll be times of stress and danger for or because of. Men will be lovers of themselves. So you have the love of God, agape love, and you have the love of self, Satan's love, promotion of me and get anything. And I don't care about the earth, I don't care about the people, I don't care about the environment, I don't care about God. It's just me, me, me. And that's destruction. The way of sin, the way of man leads to death. But the way of God, of love and give and serve, that leads to life and happiness.

But here we see men are lovers of themselves, and it goes down, showing all the awful things. In verse 5, having a form of godliness, oh yes, we'll be environmentally responsible and we'll like each other and we'll be tolerant of each other and we'll, you know, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. But we'll deny the power, we'll deny God, we'll deny God's law.

From such people turn away. That's our mission right there. Don't be part of that. Don't get mingled up in that. Don't fall for that. Don't compromise with that. Turn away. That's what you and I are to see as far as end time prophecy. Verse 1, the last days from such people turn away. That's the bookmarks there. Turn away from that. Get away from that.

The end of the age is coming when a majority will be living carelessly as far as God is concerned, lawlessly. As in the days of Noah, we saw that all the heart of man was evil and wicked and God came to just get rid of them. And they were evil and wicked when the flood came and took them all away. So there won't be in society an alertness or a care or a concern about godliness. The next age, the world to come, is once again one that you and I should be all about. It should be why we live, how we live, and should guide and direct us into being children of God. In Hebrews chapter 2 and verse 1, it says, Therefore we, speaking to the church, to God's elect at this time, therefore we must give them more earnest heed to the things we have heard lest we drift away. This end-time stuff is going to try to sweep everybody away. Satan wants to take everybody out, especially the first fruits or the potential first fruits. For if the word spoken through angels proved steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received just reward, how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? You and I have this wonderful thing that's been offered to us. Verse 5, For he has not put the world to come, or the age to come, of which we speak in subjection to angels, but he has put it in subjection to Jesus Christ and the bride. And we have a great big future ahead of us. Notice down in chapter 3 and verse 1, Therefore holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, Wow! That is us! You know, be energized, be focused, stay focused. Verse 6, But Christ as a son over his own house, Whose house we are, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of hope, firm to the end. All right? The end.

We see how the end now plays into our calling, into our assignment. We are people that need to be very circumspect with God in his way of life, close to God, being godly, growing in godliness, even as humanity is going the other way, and will come to what they consider their end. But they're saved from destruction. But the end of that age changes in the governance. Satan will be bound for a thousand years. Jesus Christ and the saints will reign. And so a new age will begin.

In Isaiah 11 and verse 5, we see that this isn't just a different rulership, but no, there's some... the substance is different. Isaiah 11, let's look at verse 5.

As Jesus Christ returns now, and he subdues all that was evil and wrong and the authorities of the current evil age, notice how he reigns. Isaiah 11 verse 5, Righteousness shall be the belt of his loins, and faithfulness the belt of his waist. Right. Doing right according to God, God's laws of love and joy and peace and long suffering.

Loving and serving all.

Verse 9, It's interesting, the earth today is empty of the knowledge of God, and what remains is being erased as quickly as possible. It's now becoming illegal, in fact, in some places. And there's legislation that's already been passed at certain levels, and hasn't gone all the way through, to make this illegal. It's being erased. So this is an age that is going to be totally contrasting anything that we have seen or known at the end of the current age. Now the transition from this current evil age to the age of God, of truth, of light, of right, is going to be tumultuous. It's just going to be tumultuous. Kind of reminds me in one way of the end of World War II in Europe, where Hitler, who had gotten such a grasp into certain elements on the continent, wanted to have a thousand year reign, and he wanted to reign over it all. However, as it broke apart and came to an end, and it didn't go his way, his final declaration was for his generals to destroy everything and everyone. If he couldn't reign over it, no one else would as well. Kind of interesting that that mentality is the one that is reflected of Satan in the end time. He wants to reign, but if he can't reign, then fine. Destroy it all. Rip everything out. Kill all the people. As Jesus said, no flesh would be saved alive if he didn't intervene. Make it a day of Jacob's trouble. Kill all the Israelites so Jesus won't be able to reign over a remnant of Israel. If you can kill them all, you'd deny Christ a reign. Oh, yes, he could reign for a thousand years, but if no one's alive, Satan would sort of have a little vindictive finish there, wouldn't he? Because, as Revelation 20 and verse 5 says, no one can be resurrected until the thousand years are finished. So you can see Satan's going to go very hard, push very hard to erase everything that Christ would be able to rule over, to prevent his rule. So this time of transition is not going to be pretty at all. It's going to be a real mess. The second purpose of prophecy is don't fear what God will do. God is telling us throughout these prophecies, I have a plan, I'm going to work this out. Yes, it's going to be a little like childbirth in a way, but there's going to be a baby at the end. You're really going to like it. Don't fear what God will do because you are his. Get with God and help him do it. In Joel chapter 2 and verse 1, during this time of transition, there's going to be a day of the Lord as well. It's not just Satan the devil. No, there's a day of the Lord, a vengeance of God, the wrath of God, the corrective correction being needed out on sin. Blow the trumpet in Zion, Joel chapter 2 and verse 1. Sound an alarm in my holy mountain. Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the Lord is coming. Here's this transitional phase. The age of Satan is ending, the day of the Lord is coming, and there's a bit of an overlap here. For it is at hand. Verse 2, a day of darkness and gloominess. Verse 11, the Lord gives voice before his army, for his camp is very great, for strong is the one who executes his word. For the day of the Lord is great and very terrible. Who can endure it?

Well, there's the question. Who can endure it? See, it didn't say no one can endure it, did it? It said, who can endure it?

Joel chapter 2 and verse 12. Now therefore says the Lord, turn to me with all your heart, and with fasting, with weeping, with mourning. Rinse your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful. Slow to anger and of great kindness, he relents from doing harm.

In the day of the Lord, the righteous are okay. They're fine.

So the first purpose of prophecy that we see is to be alert to godliness, be part of God and his family and what he's doing. And the second point is don't fear what God is doing. Be on God's side.

He's worked together in our understanding of prophecy. Remember there in Matthew chapter 6, I'll read it this time, Matthew chapter 6 verse 32.

When Jesus on the Mount said, Matthew 6 verse 32, He's talking about verse 31, don't be after all the things that you want, what you can eat, what you can drink, what you wear.

For after these things, the unbelievers seek.

Your Heavenly Father knows that you need these things. In all situations, God will always know what you need.

But you seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. And all these things will be added to you. Therefore, verse 34, do not worry about tomorrow.

For tomorrow, it will worry about its own things.

If we are gods, then God knows what our needs are. And God actually has some purposes for his saints in these times.

He will put some of us in certain circumstances, brought before judges, and we're told not to even think about what we say, so that we can give a certain answer.

Jesus described political, military, environmental crises that will happen before his coming.

In Matthew 24, in verse 6, for instance, and you will hear of wars and rumors of wars.

There's always war. There's always been war. Wars just mount up all the time. It's just part of history with Satan leading this world.

You will hear of wars and rumors of wars. Notice what he said. See that you are not troubled.

It's not the purpose of prophecy to make us all troubled. You should not be troubled, for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will then rise against nation, kingdom against kingdom, famines, pestilences, earthquakes in various places. And all these are the beginning of sorrows. Or, as the new standard, new revised standard version said, all these are the beginning of birth pains. There's something coming. See, there's something coming after this.

So there will be periodic things happening, but the end is not yet. The end is a unique time. The actual end of this age is a unique time, when various things come together and all of them come together. Not just one or two. You say, oh, an earthquake! Oh, is the end here? Oh, a bomb went off! Is the end here?

You know, there's an organized way that these things work out. And even though we might be able to put them together and even see them approaching, he just said, see that you're not troubled. It's not about you being troubled.

More than any time in history, we can see many elements of Jesus Christ prophecies developing. They're sort of growing to where this could eventually grow into that. But we don't know at what pace. There are quite a few things that are still missing. Some of the missing elements of the end time include things like persecution against God's people, being hated by all nations for His namesake. In Luke 21, verse 10, he said, again, like Matthew 24, national rights of against nation, kingdom against kingdom, etc., etc. Verse 12, But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons. You will be brought before kings and rulers for My namesake, but it will turn out for you as an occasion for testimony. Again, who is in God's camp and what are they for? What's a purpose for? It'll turn out for you for an occasion for God to have a testimony. Therefore, settle it in your hearts not to meditate beforehand on what you will answer, for I will give you a mouth of wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or resist.

You'll be betrayed by parents and brothers and relatives and friends. Some of you will be put to death. You'll be hated by all for My namesake. Now we might close the book and say, oh, this is really tough. But notice the next verse. But not a hair of your head shall be lost. You know, be with God. Be fully with God.

In verse 19, by your patience—or the Greek word would mean patient endurance—by your patient endurance, possess your lives. You and I need to endure, persevere, endure to the end in godliness, and not worry about these other things. We know that before the end happens, there will be a seven-year period in which sacrifices will take place in a holy place. We don't know if a temple will be built or just an altar, but there will be a holy place, and the sacrifices will take place in Jerusalem over, we'll say, a seven-year period. But in the midst of the week, the sacrifice is cut off. The abomination of desolation takes place there, as stated in Daniel. And that begins, the last half of the seven and a half years is the Great Tribulation. So before the Great Tribulation, or at the end of the Great Tribulation is the end, you can back up seven years, we don't see the sacrificing take place. So we know that some of these things are a ways out. We know that there will ultimately be global genocide. Matthew 24, there will be such horrible times that have not existed from the beginning of the world, known or ever shall be. Really, really tough times. And unless those days would be shortened, no flesh would be saved alive. We know that for those things to happen, there will have to be a beast and a false prophet, and the beasts of Daniel and Revelation. Let's look back in Revelation 13, verses 1-9, Revelation 13, and verse 1.

John, here in a vision, said, I stood on the sand of the sea, and I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, on his horns ten crowns, and on his heads a blasphemous name. This is nothing we want to be aligned with.

It talks about the world powers down through history, and finally coming down, verse 4, they worshiped the dragon who gave authority to the beast. So we don't want the mark of the beast, we don't want any association with the beast, as we'll see in a moment. To have something from that written on your forehead, that's where your thought is. You don't want to think like them, you don't want to be part of that system. And on your right hand, you don't want to do right according to them, but wrong according to God. And doing and thinking evil makes an individual an enemy of God. Mr. Armstrong, when I was young, he used to say that the right hand and the things that are done have to involve breaking the Sabbath. It just has to involve breaking the Sabbath. He didn't know how, but he said somehow that mark of the beast on the right hand has to be breaking God's Sabbath. Well, now as we come down, we begin to see things line up, for instance. In our world, we see this invasion of individuals who are moving around from country to country, and they're just infiltrating all countries, and income people who worship on different days. And over in Europe, there are some really strenuous situations going on from individuals who come in very religious and are pushing really hard at local societies. And how do you get those people out? At one point, Daniel says the king of the south, representing a certain mindset, a certain political system, a certain genre of people, will push against the king of the north, which is another European kind of a mindset. How do you push back and how do you cleanse out? Well, one way is simply go back to the roots of Europe, which you hear the Pope talk about all the time. The roots of Europe are in the church, and that religion meets on Sunday. And we read in Revelation that this beast, in verse 15, he was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, and that the beast should cause as many as who would not worship the image of the beast to be killed. And he causes all small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except for the one that has the mark or the name of the beast. So you're either going along with the system and you're doing what the system does, and that system will be a Sunday-keeping system. That's where its history is. And unfortunately, all those who don't go by that system will be killed, it says, and that takes out people who worship on Fridays, people who worship on Saturdays. The time of Jacob's trouble gets caught in the middle. God's people get caught right in the middle. You know, this is going to be a time where if an individual doesn't have divine protection, divine guidance, safety from the terrors of the end time, it's going to be a very, very difficult time. There are all kinds of things that happen here that would scare us to death. You know, Daniel is trembling when he gave his prophecy, and John here, he sees all of these things take place.

And yet, you know, you and I are supposed to go right through it as God's people. In Matthew 24 and verse 23, one of the big elements that Satan will use against us is an attempt to deceive us, an attempt to get us to go along with that mark on the forehead, the mark of the beast on the forehead. And if you can go along with that, and then you can do wrong, then he's got us. See, Satan wants to kill us, too. How does Satan kill God's people? How does Satan kill anybody, really? He has God do it in the lake of fire. It's a clever little twist, isn't it? If he can get you and me to be deceived and defy the laws of God, to defy the living God, God will kill us.

So, Jesus says, Matthew 24, let's start in verse 23, Then if anyone says to you, look here is the Christ, or there, don't believe it. For false Christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, the very elect. It didn't say to deceive the elect, it said to deceive if possible. Now, Jesus said in his day, he told the Father, None have been snatched out of your hand, all that you gave me I have. Jesus said, I will never leave you or forsake you. So, we don't need to worry about that. We just have to worry about us aborting ourselves, us being deceived, us giving up, us giving in, and compromising, turning off the Spirit and going for the self. So, it's serious, and yet, at the same time, we're in good hands. We're in the best of hands.

During this three and a half year Great Tribulation, when all that's rolling out, it's kind of reminiscent of the time when the Israelites were in Egypt, and Aaron and Moses were before Pharaoh, and you had gods, two witnesses doing miracles, and then you had the false miracles being done by the false ones. In Revelation 11, verse 3, God, throughout this horrible evil time, has two prominent individuals. They're countering all of the false miracles and all the false signs. Revelation 11, verse 3, and I will give power to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy 1,260 days, three and a half years. These have power to shut heaven so that no rain falls in the days of their prophecy, and they have the power over waters to turn them to blood and to strike the earth with all plagues, as often as they desire. Right there, in verse 6, we see that if an individual is focused on God, God is always present. In fact, there is the truth that will be preached to all people around the world. An angel will fly around the world having the everlasting gospel to preach to all people, all nations, all tribes, all tongue. That will have the truth taught to them by an angel. And then it says, and then the end will come. So it's not like God is going anywhere or the people of God are going anywhere. We are always with God, and God is always working. So where are we now as the end time approaches? What we see in religious deception and confusion is it's there, and it's subtle. It comes up through the education system and gradually erodes away any kind of knowledge of God. God's truth is being closer to being outlawed. It's coming closer. We see wars and rumors of wars. Of course, those are often not really played up in the news much, but they are going on. Right now, India and Pakistan are duking it out. And it's a very, very testy situation because India is larger. It has 130 nuclear weapons, and it's building more. Pakistan is smaller. It has 140 nuclear weapons. It's building more. They have the mechanisms India does to do land, air, and sea deliver those weapons systems. You come over into the Middle East, which is a tenuous situation where no one knows for sure who has what at the moment. But as nations fight it out there, the armaments are growing. Of course, you have North Korea with its unknown nuclear missile types, sizes. They evidently have little nukes all the way up to the big nukes and delivery systems that no one is even aware of anymore. They'd say, it's just happened so fast, it's been incredible. They've been able to do, in a few short years, what it took the United States many years to do as far as developing the delivery systems for nuclear and other types of weapons. Of course, you have China, which was always said in the last five or ten years, that China doesn't have much of a military. All of a sudden, China has a massive military and just put somebody or something on the back side of the Moon. Remember where you can never see? And they successfully landed something back there. And when our men went around in space capsules, you couldn't talk to them back there either. Somehow, China has landed back there and has quite a mission going on. New versions of weaponry are proliferating at a speed and of a type that is just breathtaking. I subscribe to a couple of online services, and artificial intelligence warfare is just mushrooming.

It is one thing for, say, a general to command some troops. You know, the old days, you'd sort of lay out your battle plan, and they'd be over there, and you'd be over here, and you'd kind of fake them out, and you'd go to war. Well, the new way is there are so many delivery systems from so many surprising directions that sometimes involve people, and sometimes involve drones, and sometimes involve missiles.

And sometimes involve so many surprises and different types that it overwhelms the mind of any military operations on both sides. So in order to even process all that would happen in all the theaters and all the things taking place at the same time, you have to give that over to artificial intelligence, to essentially a battery of computers that can sense everything coming on and make decisions and recommendations.

Instantly, as it happens. And then those devices themselves, the planes, the robotic things, the missiles and everything, are given artificial intelligence as well to determine all the changes that take place along the route. Today, this last week, it was announced that Kalishnikov, who makes, I think everybody's used to hearing, the AK-47, which is a rather inexpensive automatic rifle that's used around the world, even the United States, buys them for allies because they're inexpensive, they're very accurate.

That company has now come up with a commercial drone, a military drone they call the Kamikaze drone. It's a one-way drone, and it's going to be offered for sale to all the small armies or the small groups of the world. It carries 40 pounds for 40 miles one way with GPS and AI technology.

What you do is you put your destination in there, and you hook 40 pounds of bomb and push send, and it goes. It's been the thing that Russia has worried about. One was flown into one of their military camps over in the Middle East one time, but that was a homemade, crude thing. These are high-end, and these now are what the United States has worried about for years, that somebody would develop something high-tech like this and put it in the hands of somebody that could fly it to essentially any site unknown. And not just one. They're affordable, so you could buy a whole fleet of them send a whole swarm in on a place. And that's where drones are going now, anyway. It's drone swarms, smaller drones that come at you in the hundreds full of munitions or whatever. It's not over the horizon. This is the new reality.

Artificial intelligence vehicles. Aviation Week reported yesterday. Boeing is developing the prototype in Australia for display for countries who might want to buy it. It's called the Loyal Wingman.

It's a fighter jet that has an artificial intelligence brain, but it's unmanned. But this fighter jet, you don't just get one of them, you get a bunch of them. And they can fly now as a fleet of jets, coordinated from either a single jet or a stationary command post, aerial command post or whatever.

And they're cheap. They're a fraction of the cost of a jet. And they're being developed to sell to countries globally who need sort of a cut rate air force.

Also is in situ companies' small tactical unmanned aircraft. Liquid robotics' wave glider unmanned ocean surface vehicle. Boeing's Echo Voyager large unmanned undersea vehicle. So there's the air on the water, under the water.

Now, the world is just arming itself with incredible things. Germany's Chancellor Merkel stated in November publicly the need for a strong European army.

She and the French President signed an agreement indicating that they desire a strong European army that will be able to intervene in global affairs.

It's not something that is happening right now, but it's the desire. It's out in the open. It is stated it actually has a signature on it.

We see the engineered crops around the world, and yes, they provide a lot of crops, but the process of those engineered crops relies on chemicals to fertilize and also kill pests, which is killing off the Earth's soil. More and more, the Earth's soil is dying.

You know, there are things about this planet Earth as they just continue to cut down our rainforests and grow various products, and drugs are being pushed on so many peoples around this world.

And then, of all things, we have diseases, these super-growing diseases that are threats that they haven't really unleashed yet, but we see them popping up, and they're beginning to scare people, because there aren't really any antidotes for some of them.

These are the things that Jesus talked about further down the road happening, but we see some signs, we see some potential development towards those things.

And he said, all these things, not just some of them, all that he said must come to pass, but the end is not yet.

In Matthew 24, verse 8, all these are the beginning of sorrows.

We see some things going on. We see some fractions. We see rivalries. Is there anything on Earth that's going well?

Is there any country that's just doing great? Is there anything that's honorable and praiseworthy and joyous?

Eventually, we see that prophecies will come down to the point where humanity is in a perilous state, and then, let's go to Revelation 14, and a great event happens.

Revelation 14, chapter 9. Then I looked, and behold, a lamb standing on Mount Zion. And out of all this mess that's taking place, he sees in vision a lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144,000, having his father's name written on their foreheads. Verse 4, these are the ones who are not defiled with religiously, when it says women. It's talking about with other concepts that are ungodly.

For they are virgins. You talk about the ten virgins of Christ. We are to be the bride of Christ. We are betrothed to him. We remain true to him. We don't commit that adultery with the other suitor, Satan the Devil, you see. We don't have his thoughts. These are the ones who follow the lamb wherever he goes. These were redeemed from among men being firstfruits to the God and the lamb.

And in their mouth was found no deceit, for they are without God, without fault, before the throne of God. You know, you and I can be part of the solution. We have this beautiful opportunity. If we stay on track, if we know who we are, we know why these prophecies tell us what's coming so that we can prepare, so that we can be aware, we can be alert, and we can be focused on pursuing the kingdom of God and his righteousness.

The ultimate purpose of prophecy, we might say, a summary of it, is found in 2 Peter 3 and verse 10. Because what's coming isn't really the end. It's one of the ends. It's the end of Satan, temporarily. He will have an end at another time, but this coming end is the end of his age, his influence. 2 Peter 3, well, let's look at verse 9 first. The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some count slackness, but he's long suffering toward us. See, this book is about us.

This whole Bible is about you and me, the people of God. He's not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. But that day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night to them, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, the elements will melt with fervent heat, the earth, and the works that are in it will be burnt up. There's the end of things physical. That's the purpose of prophecy, is verse 11, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness.

Looking for and hastening the coming day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, the elements will melt with fervent heat. Now, I've got my own little scenario for that. It's my own little speculation. When you look at that, and you have new heavens and new earth, and these heavens and earth are done away with, well, everything physical is made of atoms, right? If you were to release the atoms like in an atom bomb, what do you have? You have great noise, and you have great heat, and it all burns up. So we might say humans, in any resurrection, in any life, have a very limited span.

So, since all these things, verse 11, will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be? Verse 13, Nevertheless, we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. God only knows the details of the future, but we look for a spirit heavens, a spirit Jerusalem, spirit eternal made things where God dwells. And that's where righteousness is.

So, verse 14, Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by him in peace without spot and blameless. You and I need to not fear, not worry, but actually be a part of what God is doing. Be part of the bride of Christ, the family of God, agents of his. Let's look at Isaiah 33 as we wrap this up. Isaiah 33, verse 14, says, The sinners in Zion are afraid. Whose to be afraid? Whose to fear? Sinners. Fearfulness has seized the hypocrites. Once again, as we are approaching the time of the end, what should we be doing? Well, we shouldn't be among these. The question now is passed, just as we read in Peter.

Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? Who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings? If you just look at the lake of fire in one sense, it says, everything is burned up. And then you have new heavens and new earth. Everything physical goes away. Who will dwell with that? Who will live through that? Well, here it is, verse 15.

He who walks righteously, it just means right in God's eyes, He who walks right in God's eyes and speaks uprightly, Who despises the gain of oppressions, Who gestures with his hands refusing bribes, Who stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed, And shuts his eyes from seeing evil. In all cases, media, entertainment, gains, etc. We're not part of that, you see. We're not part of that. Verse 16. He will dwell on high. His place of defense will be the fortress of rocks. Bread will be given him.

His water will be sure. Let's turn over in conclusion to Luke chapter 21, verse 34, and see what Jesus says about this terrible time of the end and what he and God the Father want for their children during that time. Just as we read here about defense, fortress of rocks, bread given to them, water sure, let's go over to Luke chapter 21, verse 34, But take heed to yourselves, or watch, lest your hearts be weighed down with the cares of his life, and that day, the day of the Lord, come upon you unexpectedly.

For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. To everyone else, it's going to go bam, like that, but not to us. We're on God's side. We know what's coming. We're part of it. Remember, the end of this age is the beginning of God's millennial age of love and joy and peace, fulfilling lives, us teaching and helping. And so, verse 36, watch therefore. Let's look at this word, watch. It comes from the Greek word, agru-penaio. It has two senses. One is a physical sense and one is a mental-spiritual sense. Now, in the physical sense, it means to be sleepless. Don't go to sleep, literally.

Keep awake and watch. But as the Greek translation shows, it has a mental-spiritual sense. According to Thayer's Greek lexicon, it means to be circumspect, be attentive and ready. So he's speaking here, not of a physical...the whole parable...I'm sorry, the whole prophecy here isn't about stocking up food. It's about being mentally and spiritually prepared. He says, therefore...verse 36... Therefore, be circumspect, attentive and ready, and pray always. We're doing that, that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass and to stand before the Son of Man. You and I are different than this present evil age if we are part of the kingdom of God. We are different than the children of the devil if we are children of God the Father and brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ.

Let's make sure that we are solid members of the family of God. True children of God the Father. True bride of Jesus Christ, virginous and chaste to Him. And in doing so, as we approach the end, let us be strong and of good courage. And God will lead and guide us in His way, and everything will work out well as we approach the end.