Signs Of The Second Coming Series

Sermon: Signs of the Second Coming Mark 13:3-22 June 15, 2003

I Introduction

A Every age wants to know the future

1 Poll -Time Magazine article by Nancy Gibbs - The article continues by pointing out that even the pre-Christian is thinking about the future. Recent polls suggest that 35% of Americans say they are paying closer attention to news events and how they relate to the coming of the world since the terrorist attacks of September 11th. 17% of Americans believe the end of the world will happen in their lifetime. 36% of Americans believe that the Bible is the Word of God and is to be taken literally. 59% believe the prophecies in the Book of Revelation will come true.

a

2 Dr. George Sweeting once estimated that "more than a fourth of the Bible is predictive prophecy...Both the Old and New Testaments are full of promises about the return of Jesus Christ. Over 1800 references appear in the O.T., and seventeen O.T. books give prominence to this theme. Of the 260 chapters in the N.T., there are more than 300 references to the Lord¡¦s return--one out of every 30 verses. Twenty-three of the 27 N.T. books refer to this great event...For every prophecy on the first coming of Christ, there are 8 on Christ¡¦s second coming."

SOURCE: Today in the Word, MBI, December, 1989, p. 40. Submitted by Guy Caley

B READ SCRIPTURE (apologize for switching text)

II What Jesus has to say about it

A Recorded in all three gospels

1 There will be signs

2 Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives the very place where the prophet Zechariah had predicted that the Messiah would stand when he came to establish his kingdom (Zech 14:4). It was fitting place for the disciples to ask Jesus when he would come in power and what they could expect then. Jesus¡¦ reply emphasized the events that would take place before the end of the age but not the chronological order of events.

a They were looking at the immediate ¡V when would the Messiah come ¡V when would he take over

b Nearly 2000 years have passed and we are still asking ¡§what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age? And the signs still apply

B Six Signs as found in the gospels

1 There will be False Prophets, claims of representatives of Jesus, the new Jesus or the Messiah ¡V claims that have a special message from God

a Cults

i David Koresch

ii Wicca

iii Divination

iv Applegate

v Scientology

vi Neo Gnosticism

vii Holy Order of MANS

viii People¡¦s Temple (Jim Jones)

ix Movement for the Restoration

x Solar Temple

b False prophets within the Christian circle

i Prosperity gospel

ii Do wahever your desires tell you too it¡¦s okay God made you that way Give to your desires

iii There is no such thing as hell or sin

iv Jesus is not the only way to heaven

v Christians need to learn from other faiths

vi A recent study of Christian lay leaders

„« 47% believe there are no absolute Moral Truths

„« 43% say there is no such thing as the Holy Spirt

„« 33 prerecent believe that Jesus never had a physical resurrection

„« 19 percent believe Jesus sinned while on earth

c To penetrate the disguises of false teachers we can ask 1. have their predictions come true or do they have to revise them to fit what¡¦s already happened? 2. Does any teaching utlize a small section of the Bible but neglect the whole. 3. Does the teaching contradict what the Bible says bout God. 4. Are the practices meant to glorify teacher or Christ? 5. Do the teachings promote hostility toward other Christians?

d

2 There will be Political Unrest

a Rumors of war ¡V now that¡¦s a joke

i No longer rumors fact

ii 8% has seen peace.

b) 3,100 years, peace in 286.

c) 8,000 treaties made, broken.

3 There will be Natural Disasters

a Earthquakes

i The World Almanac tells us that there were only 21 earthquakes of major strength between the years 1000 and 1800. But between 1800 and 1900 there were 18 major earthquakes. In the next 50 years, between 1900 and 1950, there were 33 major quakes, and between 1950 and 1991 there were 93 major earthquakes, almost tripling the number of the previous half century, and claiming the lives of 1.3 million people around the world. This dramatic increase of severe quakes has led many scientists to predict that we are entering a new period of great seismic disturbances

b Famine

i So many images on TV of swollen stomachs that we have become immune

ii Ehiopia (12.5 million), Sudan Somalia Kenya, the D R of Congo, Burundi, Rwanda, Liberia, Angola, Zimbabwe, Korea, Afghanistan, Iraq and a bunch of countries I can¡¦t even pronouce