- About fifteen years ago, a giant, killer hurricane was heading out of the Atlantic heading for New Orleans. This caused enormous fear, because New Orleans was judged to not be ready for a direct hit from a hurricane. There were mandatory evacuations of seven parishes as well as voluntary evacuations of six more. There were delays of up to twelve hours on the highways out of the city because of the massive numbers who were leaving. The Superdome was prepped to house people who were going to get flooded out.
- Do you know how this story turned out?
- The storm turned east and missed New Orleans, sparing the city. That’s because I’m talking about Hurricane Ivan, which happened in September 2004.
- I am not talking about Hurricane Katrina, which destroyed New Orleans with a direct hit less than a year later, in August 2005. No, this was Ivan, only eleven months earlier.
- So they saw a massive, destructive hurricane that caused over $25 billion in damages coming right at them. They knew they weren’t prepared. They knew it would destroy them. And then, almost like a miracle, they got a last-minute reprieve as the storm veered east.
- Whew. What a break.
- And what a wake-up call. There was complete agreement that New Orleans wasn’t prepared to handle that storm. There was complete agreement it would have destroyed the city and that inundated the parishes.
- So after Ivan’s near-miss, what did New Orleans do? Did they get right to work making the needed changes? Did they diligently pursue better safeguards that would prevent catastrophe when the time came when the storm didn’t turn aside? Did they use this moment as a wake-up call and do what needed done? No. They didn’t.
- And so when Katrina came roaring ashore less than a year later, New Orleans was basically in the same situation they had been eleven months earlier – woefully, tragically unprepared.
- Ivan had been the warning and they had ignored it. Katrina, though, turned out to be far more than a warning. It was a knock-out punch.
- Today and in the weeks to come we want to talk about an interesting and disturbing subject: the end.
- As we do so, we hear from time to time, especially when things in our world get a little crazy, people saying, “This is the end!” After hearing that over and over and having nothing come of it, it’s easy to dismiss the subject. The threats keep “turning east” and turning out not to be as bad as predicted.
- But we need to know that the Bible is clear on this subject: the end is coming. We don’t know when, but it is coming. And, unlike New Orleans, we need to make preparations to be ready.
- This sermon series is going to be a lengthy one because there are a lot of important subjects that we need to cover. As we go over these subjects, I hope that you will recognize the need to be ready.
- Maybe have some binoculars up there as the image for the sermon. Talk about seeing way off into the future and how much people would like to do that.
A BIG QUESTION RIGHT NOW: Is this the end?
- Matthew 24:1-4a (stopping with “answered”).
- This chapter and the next all concern end times. We are beginning a long sermon series this morning where we will cover many subjects regarding the end. So this morning we are going to talk about the end.
- Right now with the Coronavirus and the massive disruption it has made in our daily lives, there are many who have wondered out loud and even more who have wondered in their hearts: “Is this the end?” Is everything going to fall apart? Are governments going to collapse?
- Now, even though we don’t want to predict the end when we don’t have good reason to, there is some good in the fact that we have been awakened from our slumber.
- The pandemic has stirred us from the slumber of our comfortable, prosperous lives. We often do not concern ourselves with such prophetic things as long as everything is great in our lives.
- This situation is difficult and it reminds us that many of the prophetic details point to harsh and painful circumstances. Our current uncertainty put us in mind of such times.
- As we look at our passage for this morning, we see in vv. 1-3 curiosity about this very question: “Is this the end? What will the end look like? What are the signs?”
- I just want you to notice the first two words in v. 4. After having been asked on this question, “Jesus answered.” This is enormously good news. It means that we haven’t been left in the dark. It means that Jesus has given us insight into what’s going to happen. We don’t have to suffice with our speculative guesses. We have good information from Someone in the know.
- There is much in this chapter and other parts of the Bible that we are going to delve into in depth over the weeks to come. This is going to be a long series and hopefully it will answer your many questions on these issues.
- This morning we are just going to get started. We are going to talk about the big picture of the end times and the way that most people approach it. Specifically, three of the big mistakes they make with regard to it.
THREE MISTAKES:
1. BIBLE PASSAGES TAKEN OUT OF CONTEXT.
- Sometimes people take things the Bible actually says but they pull it out of its original context and make the Bible sound like it’s saying that it’s not.
- This is a particular danger when it comes to prophetic passages, which are by their very nature often somewhat opaque or challenging. (See, for instance, much of the imagery in the book of Revelation.)
- A simple example of taking words in the Bible out of context is Psalm 14:1. That verse says, “There is no God.” Shocking words from the Bible! That does accurately quote the Bible’s words, but not the context of those words. The larger verse: “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.’”
- Understanding it in context makes the passage says exactly the opposite of the message when it was wrongly quoted out of context.
- Let me give an example of something I came up with myself to show the dangers of taking verses out of context.
- The following passage, which I wrote, has to do with Biblical prophecies about the presidency of George W. Bush. Now, let me say up front what I’ve done: I have taken verses out of context. I do not believe there are actually Biblical prophecies about the presidency of George W. Bush. But I want you to notice how convincing this sounds.
- In the book of Daniel, it speaks of a ruler who “started small but grew in power to the south and to the east” (Daniel 8:9). We know George W. Bush had an undistinguished early life (“started small”) but then began to accumulate power in both of the places his father had lived – Texas (“to the south”) and Maine (“to the east”). Later in Daniel, it says that the “king of the South will engage. . . in battle” and that he “will invade many countries and sweep through them like a flood” (Daniel 11:40). Another passage adds to the picture by proclaiming a time when they “brought out the king’s son and put the crown on him; he presented him with a copy of the covenant and proclaimed him king. They anointed him, and the people clapped their hands and shouted, ‘Long live the king!’” (2 Kings 11:12). We all know that George W. Bush was the son of previous president George H.W. Bush. More amazing, though, is the reference in Isaiah 30 to “the day of great slaughter, when the towers fall” (Isaiah 30:25), which obviously points us to the horrific attacks on 9/11. Later in that same chapter, it prophecies that “[the] voice of the Lord will shatter Assyria; with his rod he will strike them down” (Isaiah 30:31). Biblical Assyria occupied much of the same land as modern-day Iraq! The American military intervention there has brought about the fulfillment of predictions from the prophet Jeremiah: “How broken and shattered is the hammer of the whole earth! How desolate is Babylon among the nations!” (Jeremiah 50:23) and “For the time will surely come when [the Lord] will punish the idols of Babylon; her whole land will be disgraced and her slain will al lie fallen within her” (Jeremiah 51:47). Babylon was the capital of the ancient kingdom that occupied modern-day Iraq! From these passages we clearly see the Biblical prophecy concerning the election and actions of President Bush.
- Pretty good stuff, huh?
- And yet none of that is true. It’s all taken out of context. Yes, the verses are accurately quoted, but I’ve pulled them out their original context to try to make them sound as though they say something that the original passage doesn’t actually say.
- We need to be aware that others are sometimes doing that when they apply various Bible passages to current events. Sometimes they sincerely believe they’ve figured out something real; others know they are being duplicitous. In either case, it’s essential that we know what the Bible actually says and teaches so that we can discern the times. There is much room here for deception and misinformation.
- Let me give an example that happened earlier this year related to COVID-19.
- A Facebook post from “End Times Witness” cited 1 Chronicles 7:13-14 to “prove” that end times was happening now. They took references in the passage to “hold back the rain” to the Australian wildfires, “send locusts” to events in Africa, and “epidemic” to COVID-19.
- The post was reposted many, many times. Lots of people found it convincing.
- What’s the problem with the post? Specifically, how do we know that what’s in the post is being taken out of context?
1. Notice verse 11. This is something that Solomon is saying to Israel at the completion of the Temple. This is not a general promise or general prophecy. There is a very specific time and context.
2. Because of that, what it says in the highlighted part is specific to Israel. That means it’s not applicable to various parts of the world (Australia and Africa are mentioned). (I should note that, in rare situations, there can be a “secondary fulfillment” of a prophecy, but that is unusual and it’s important that all the details match up, which they clearly don’t here.)
3. Further, the details in verse 13 (lack of rain, locusts, an epidemic) are things that regularly happen in our world. They are common occurrences that have happened thousands of times. It’s tempting to try to insert our situation into the Bible passage (even when that’s not at all justified) just because what’s going on now is vaguely similar to what mentioned in the passage, but that doesn’t respect what the passage actually says.
- Again, we see the need to read the Bible in context and not try to twist it into something that was not originally intended.
2. ENDLESS OBSESSION WITH THE END TIMES.
- A second mistake concerning the end times is found with those who endlessly are obsessed with the end times.
- There are people who focus on end times to the exclusion of the rest of the Bible. They are monomaniacal concerning the Bible and prophecy.
- There are not a ton of these people, but you know when you’re around one because they won’t shut up about it. As someone once said, a zealot is someone who won’t change their mind and won’t change the subject.
- Story about Leonard’s visitor.
- Let me review some book titles by a popular evangelical pastor and author. His books concerning prophecy have often sold over 500,000 copies, so these are messages that many are buying into.
- I am talking about John Hagee.
- Let’s look at some of the book titles he’s put out. I want you to notice how each oversells. And then I want to note when the books were written.
a. Four Blood Moons: Something Is About to Change.
- 2013.
b. Earth’s Final Moments: Powerful Insight and Understanding of the Prophetic Signs that Surround Us.
- 2011.
c. Jerusalem Countdown. (Back cover: “World War III has begun!”).
- 2007.
d. From Daniel to Doomsday: The Countdown Has Begun.
- 2000.
e. Beginning of the End: The Assassination of Yitzhak Rabin and the Coming Antichrist.
- 1996.
- Each, as you can’t help but notice, promises that now is the time. And, each time, it has not proven to be true.
- One question this raises is why people continue to come back to such authors and pastors when they are proven wrong. Part of the problem is that failure to think back to what they’ve claimed in the past. Part of the problem is their ignorance of Scripture.
- One big point I want make here concerns the type of people who are obsessed with prophecy. These people always think that now is the time that everything is getting ready to break loose on Revelation events. I have never met one of these people who said, “I think we have to be ready at any time, but I don’t think there are a lot of signs going on right now.”
- We need to be careful about getting drawn down into the rabbit hole that these people live in.
- Particularly right now we are seeing more of this because we are in a moment of obvious crisis. There are more people now who are finding signs of the end in everything. We need to always be alert to the signs the Bible points us toward but we also need to use discernment about not going overboard.
- Finally, this single focus on prophecy almost always comes at the cost of daily obedience to Christ.
- Rather than living out the truth of Christ in everyday life, they are instead completely focused on learning more esoteric knowledge about obscure prophetic details.
- So this obsession comes at the expense of their daily walk with Christ.
3. NO THOUGHTS OF END TIMES.
- On the last point I said that a few passionate people end up in that situation. This third point, though, is a well-populated category. It’s those that give little or no thought to the end times.
- I would say that Americans today give little thought to heaven, hell, or eternity in general. A big reason for this is the relative ease and prosperity of their current lives, which gives them little reason to hope for something beyond this life. Right on the tail of that is the little thought that goes into the end times. Again, I think for many Americans there is a strong desire for the good time they are enjoying to continue.
- I think there was evidence of this recently with the Coronavirus. When it happened and everyone’s lives got disrupted, there was a lot of talk about wanting things to “get back to normal.” There was almost no talk about whether this disruption to daily life might have been from the hand of God to move us out of our stupor. Why? Because I think what we really long for is our economic prosperity, not spiritual revival.
OUR NEXT STEP: Begin with the end in mind.
- It helps to start out knowing exactly where you desire to end up.
- If an athletic team starts out knowing their goal is to win states, it helps them focus on what they need to do to achieve that.
- If a high school freshman knows he wants to be a nurse, it helps him to know what he needs to take in high school to be ready for college.
- This is especially true concerning where we invest our lives:
a. If America is the most important thing, then go all in on America.
b. If money is the most important thing, then go all in on money.
c. If popularity is the most important thing, then go all in on popularity.
d. But if Jesus is the most important things, then go all in on Jesus.
- Be ready for what’s ahead. That includes knowing what Jesus taught . . . and this sermon series will fill in many of those details. But it also includes incorporating Jesus’ truth into how we live our lives and what we believe our future holds.
- God is not just aware of what’s ahead. He is the author of what’s ahead.
- There is a plan and God is the author.
