In Matthew 24 Jesus is warning His disciples then and now that a time of terrific horror is coming on the world because of man’s sins.  One of the “signs” He mentions relative to His return to earth is EARTHQUAKES IN MANY PLACES.  Though He does not specifically mention such “natural” disasters as droughts, floods, ice storms, heat waves, tornadoes, hurricanes, volcanic eruptions, fires, etc., we know from Scripture that these curses are sent from God to correct fallen man and to turn his attention to the Lord.  Though His attempts to draw sinful mankind to Himself rarely work, the gracious Lord continues to pour out His punishment on them, knowing that only a “few” will heed His “pleadings,” “find” His “strait gate” (church), enter it and “walk” His “narrow way” (obey His Law) which leads the traveler to the Kingdom of God (Mat. 7:13,14).

Of all the “natural” disasters inflicted on sinning man, earthquakes have not been known to wreak great havoc in modern times in terms of numbers killed, etc.  However, Jesus specifically mentions the use of earthquakes as a “sign” that man is living in the final days of the world.  What we must understand is that earthquakes are continuously taking place in the bowels of the earth.  Only rarely do they make it to the earth’s surface and cause considerable damage and loss of life.  Whereas some disasters (tornadoes, hurricanes, etc.) are expected (and even named), earthquakes continue to be an anomaly and come as a surprise when they do occur.

The “Pacific Basin” is the title given to the nations that surround the Pacific Ocean.  The circular land mass within which the ocean rests is called the “Ring of Fire.”  Beneath the top layer of the landscape lies a series of volcanoes that, when (not if) unleashed, will set much of the world on fire.  Vulcanologists tell us that there is a volcano beneath Yellowstone National Park that when, not if, it erupts it will do incredible damage to the five surrounding states.  I was born near the New Madrid Fault which is located beneath the earth’s surface in Southeast Missouri.  In 1900 the fault’s stone plates moved, opening up the earth and creating a huge, deep gap that began in the Mississippi River and moved outward from it for quite a distance.  The earthquake was so deep that it caused the river to reverse course and run backward (north) for an entire day as it filled the huge gap it had created in the earth’s surface.  That gap became Reelfoot Lake in which I spent a number of Sunday afternoons many years ago.  The movement of the fault’s plates was so powerful that it caused church bells to ring in Boston, Mass.  We all remember the Haiti disaster that was caused by an earthquake which killed many people and left many more homeless.

Many of the world’s faults are located above underground fire pits filled with melted rock.  When their plates move it allows the molten rock, called lava, to push upwards causing an eruption in which the lava explodes into the air, killing and destroying everything it touches.  This is the way above-ground volcanoes are created.  One of history’s most deadly volcano eruptions took place in Italy in 79 A.D.  Over an 18 hour period it spewed ash over the nearby city of Pompeii, destroying it and killing thousands of people by turning them into stone.

Evidently, the end-time earthquakes God warns us about will be much more devastating than any experienced in the history of man.  Though it is not described in the Holy Scriptures, one particular earthquake is mentioned in Amos 1:1.  So unique was this particular earthquake that the prophet called it “THE earthquake.”  The use of the word “the” indicates that readers in Old Testament times recognized the particular earthquake to which he was referring.  Obviously other earthquakes were taking place during those days.  Therefore, to be designated as “THE” earthquake, this particular quake had to have been extremely devastating.  In Matthew 24 Jesus refers to “earthquakes,” meaning more than one.  I believe that readers in the early church understood that He was referring many earthquakes of the caliber of “THE” earthquake.

The effect earthquakes have on human beings is brought out in Isaiah 2:19-21 in which the prophet writes that God will “shake terribly the earth,” causing men to hide in caves out of fear of Him, which means that they will know that He is causing the earth to shake.   Notice that Isaiah, operating under the power of the Holy Spirit (2 Pet. 1:21), wrote that God would shake the ENTIRE EARTH.  Could anything be more terrifying than the entire earth shaking?  I would think that this would cause even the most hardened of people to take note of the Lord.  Would this not cause those who see God only as a loving, caring entity in a whole new light?  Remember, “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Heb. 10:31).  Remember also that Jesus said that what He had described was merely “the beginning of sorrows” (vs 8).  Contrary to universal opinion, the God that “is love” (1 Jn. 4:8) is also a God of anger, wrath and retribution (Lev. 26/ Deut. 28/ Rev. 6:16,17).  If, that is, we can believe the Holy Bible.  Do you?

It will soon become evident that sweet baby Jesus of manger fame Whom billions know about has become the Lion of the tribe of Judah whom those same billions ignore.  Those who do not know the wrathful God do not know the Biblical God of judgment.  He will judge each of us by “open(ing) the Books” of the Bible (Rev. 20:12) and comparing our lives to the life commanded in His Holy Scriptures.  Note that MAN WILL BE JUDGED RELATIVE TO THOSE THINGS WRITTEN IN THE BOOKS ACCORDING TO THEIR WORKS”–ACCORDING TO THEIR OBEDIENCE TO “THE THINGS WRITTEN IN THE BOOKS.”  WHERE DOES THIS LEAVE SO-CALLED “SINNERS SAVED BY GRACE?” WHOSE WORKS ARE, BY THEIR OWN ADMISSION, OF THE SIN VARIETY.  Sin, we are told in the Scriptures, is the breaking of the Law (1 Jn. 3:4).  SSBG have nailed that Law to the cross, accused God of the act, then have done whatever they wanted to do–sin.  An excellent example of their attitude toward the Bible was voiced by a woman I dealt with who said concerning sin: “Don’t worry about sin; God will forgive you.  He doesn’t like sin, but He won’t do anything about it.”  This is the unspoken mantra of the Institutional Church.  How will such “Christians” fare when their WORKS are compared to the WORKS required in the Books of the Bible?  When I bring this up to church people I am greeted with what I call the Stephen Syndrome.  They spiritually stop up their ears, spiritually grind their teeth at me and spiritually stone me.

Undoubtedly we are living in the final stage of man’s Satan-empowered rule of this world’s civilizations.  But there is hope for those who believe and obey God’s Word.  Jesus Christ will soon return to earth with great power and glory (Mat. 24:30).  He will then rule the earth (Rev. 19:15,16).  He will stop all war on earth (Isa. 2:4).  He will establish God’s government on earth (Micah 4:1-4).  His Very Elect will rule and reign with Him on earth (Rev. 5:10; 20:6; 22:5).  Read God’s Very Elect: Future Caretakers of the Universe.  Key word–Caretakers.  L.J.