Recently My wife and I welcomed our grandson and his family into our home for a much-anticipated visit. He and his wife have two sons, ages three and five. Our ritual upon their arrival is for me to help the younger of the boys out of his car seat, take him in my arms and carry him into the house. This time, when I reached in to help him, he pushed my hands away and said: “I got this.” His message to me was loud and clear–he had outgrown his need for Pop’s help. He was now in charge. I just needed to stand aside and let him show me how to take care of business. After I stopped laughing I realized that he had just demonstrated the modern-day Church’s attitude toward God and His Son. It was these people that Jesus described in His letter to the Laodicean Church as recorded in Revelation 3:14-20. Simply stated, the church’s attitude is: “We got this. We don’t need Your Bible; we have church doctrine. We don’t need Your messengers telling us what we do not want to hear; we have our hirelings to tell us what we pay them to tell us. You’ve done all you need to do. We’ll take it from here.”

Jesus foresaw this happening 2000 years ago and warned us through what has come to be known at the Olivet Prophecy. This forecast of man’s cause and effect activities covered the spiritual life of mankind from that point in time (31 A.D.) until the blowing of the seventh trumpet which will announce the return to earth of the Lord of the universe–JESUS CHRIST. Generally speaking, Jesus warned His true saints about this insane time in which we are now living, along with our distant past and immediate future. Christ’s prophetic statement was first mentioned in the Book written by the Prophet Daniel. The prophet described in his book four world-ruling beasts (nations) which would affect mankind until the end of the age. Following His revelation to Daniel, God told him to write on a scroll what He had said to him and shown him in the form of visions and dreams. Having done so, Daniel was told to seal the scroll which would not be opened “until the time of the end,” meaning the end of this world. We are the generation that is seeing and hearing the contents of Daniel’s scroll as the Book of Revelation describes it in symbolic form. Only now, at “the time of the end,” has God allowed men to understand the Truth about what Daniel wrote. Revelation ends with the return of Jesus Christ to earth to establish the Kingdom of God. Those who have obeyed Him during this life will rejoice upon His arrival. All others will have a totally different attitude. In my opinion the greatest prophecies ever proclaimed are found in Isaiah 53, Matthew 24 and the Book of Revelation. Matthew 24 and Revelation are actually one prophecy with the latter being the explanation of the former. Isaiah 53 tells us what the Word (Jn. 1:1-4,14) would endure in order to save those who would obey Him. In Matthew 24 we find the Lord and His 12 disciples on the Mount of Olives where He is explaining what would happen to Jerusalem in the future (70 A.D.). At that point the disciples asked Him when He would return to earth and what would be the sign of His imminent return. He replied that only God the Father knew the date of His apocalypse (revealing). But He did know what would take place between then (31 A.D.) and His Second Advent.

We will now take a general look at Christ’s Matthew 24 proclamations concerning what would happen over the following 2000+ years. In this series we will examine His prophecy in a general way in that I have on several occasions gone into detail about the soon-coming time which will include a religious civil war within professing Christendom, key word–Civil, followed by a 2 1/2 year Tribulation Period, key word–Tribulation. The one-year period following the Tribulation is called The Day of the Lord which consists of the end-time opening of the seven seals of Daniel’s scroll (book). This one year period is also discussed in the Tribulation series. More on the opening of the seals in a later series. We will not turn to Christ’s prophetic Olivet message found in Matthew chapter 24.

Beginning in verse 4 Jesus warns those who study His Word about a series of things that will come upon mankind because he (man) would fail to believe and correctly deal with His first warning–false religion. Because of this failure, the following things would take place: wars, famines, diseases and earthquakes. Note in verse 8 that He calls these devastating curses from on high “the beginning of sorrows.” Read The “Voices” of God. Key word–Voices. Over the following 6 verses Jesus describes what would happen as the end of the world drew near. Verses 4 through 14 Jesus outlines what has happened over the past 2000 years, what is taking place today and what will take place in the immediate future. But do not forget, what He describes in this passage is merely a hint of what is coming upon the earth.

The cause of man’s problems enumerated by the Lord can be summed up on one word: LAWLESSNESS (Gk.–iniquity). Read Matthew 7:21-23 for Christ’s Words on the subject. Why does religious man reject God’s Law? Because man’s love for His Word, and therefore for Him, has grown cold (vs 12). Man does not need God’s Law to guide him through this life. Having formulated his own laws (suggestions/options) by which to govern his life, those in the world’s religions have said and continue to say to their Creator what my great grandson said to me: “I GOT THIS.”

Of late we have watched an unusual phenomenon taking place within professing Christendom–two totally opposite things are happening. We are witnessing the great apostasy (falling away from the Lord) that the Apostle Paul warned about in Second Thessalonians 2: 3 and a great religious revival (rising from the dead) AT THE SAME TIME AND AMONG THE SAME PEOPLE. The spiritual problems with this situation are the same as those that were evidenced in the spiritual movements of the past. And they all evolved out of the same spiritual error which nullified any good that might have come out of them: MAN’S REFUSAL TO BASE HIS SPIRITUL LIFE ON GOD’S WORD. Today’s religious movement is touted as a mass, rapidly-growing REVIVAL. “Revival” means to raise from the dead. The problem with this revival is the same as those of the past: TO WHAT ARE THE PARTICIPANTS BEING REVIVED? TO GOD’S WORD? OR TO SOMETHING ELSE?

Like religious revivals of the past, this one is based on emotion. Watching what is going on within revivalist circles of late is much like watching what goes on during ball games–a great outpouring of emotional expression–and nothing else. Once the emotional high of the activity wears off, it’s participants immediately revert to religious business as usual. Once the emotion has dissipated, it’s back to the world and the things of the world, back to wasting of time doing exactly what the world does–whatever appeals to the flesh–talking about worldly things, thinking about worldly things and doing worldly things. Once the moment passes, it’s back to staring at hand-held screens so as to catch up on what the world has to offer. This attitude lasts until the next emotional gathering when the cycle repeats itself.

However, among today’s revivalists another dimension has been added–an emphasis on MUSIC. Singing has always been a part of religion. But of late it has become THE major theme of revivalism. Music has tremendous power over the EMOTIONS, which often is a substitute for true spiritual change. What we are seeing in today’s revivals is emotion, and little else. I have seen people weep while listening to music, even secular music. Music is good. However, I find most religious songs do not feature God’s Truths, but rather Satan’s lies. I will close with a perfect example which I have used before. The lyrics of the popular church hymn tell the singer and the listener that, no matter what sin one commits or how many time he commits it, God “… will always say, ‘I forgive.'” That, dear reader, is a Biblically-proven lie. Read the truth about forgiveness using the key word–Granted.

Following highly emotional revivals one will notice that the changes that take place within the religious community are like “new year’s resolutions.” The joke is that gyms always have a surge in new memberships following January 1st as people make their New Years Resolutions to “get in shape.” By February 1st most of the resoluters have stopped working out, watching their diets, etc. By March 1st only the usual group are showing up and working out as they have been for years. The newbies have all returned to their worship of their visual addictions. The same is true in the religious realm. The mass movement, the music, the Satan-induced emotion–all soon go by the wayside as the world once again grasps their attention and holds it until the next religious meeting. What is missing is the study of, belief in and obedience to THE WORD OF GOD. When the emotional fever subsides we will see the current revivalists returning to religious business in the same churches where they are told that to go to heaven one needs only to show up, ‘fess up, pay up and get ready to go up. And when not in church, it’s back to staring at screens instead of studying God’s Word. And Satan smiles. L.J.