Prophecy and the End of Days
Isaiah 46:9 “....I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me. 10 I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, 'My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.'”
God knows all things. He knows the future. Not only that, he tells what the future will be. In Biblical or Christian language, we say that God is a God of prophecy. God speaks his plan or purposes (which are future things) and they happen some time in the future. It is not prediction, but a proclamation of what God will do or allow to happen in human history as God ultimately directs human events toward the fulfillment of his great plans and purposes.
It is said that at least 1/4 of the Bible is prophecy at the time that it was spoken or written in the sense that it has to do with something that was to happen some time after it was spoken or written. Much of what God says he will do or will happen has indeed happened, often in very literal and accurate ways as previously spoken by God. The accuracy of the Bible prophecies as seen when you compare the prophecies and the way they were fulfilled is absolutely amazing. God indeed knows the future and speaks even the end while yet at the beginning or much earlier before they happened.
Today we want to start a short series of studies on Biblical prophecy, especially as it relates to the end times (or the so-called “last days”). We want to understand God’s plan for the world, see the absolute reliability of prophecy as written in the Holy Scriptures (Bible), be assured by the sovereignty or ultimate control of God over history and human events, and receive information that will prepare us spiritually for the things that are yet coming.
Most of our time in this short series of discussions will be focused on what God says will happen regarding the last generation of people on the earth as we know it. God does not want you to be unaware of what is coming so that you will not be caught unprepared. So he has spoken what is to come. We will talk about these things for a few sundays beginning today.
As a practical matter, we see that the signs of the coming (return) of the Lord Jesus Christ to earth is indeed near. We should, therefore, purify our lives and live wise and godly lives as we await the return of the King, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will establish his kingdom of righteousness and peace on earth. The fulness (completion) of our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. Let’s be excited and prepared.
Lathur Badoy