Matthew 24:3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world? 4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. 6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass" ....... 7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.
The times here spoken of in this passage of scripture are right upon us, as can be seen and understood by even those of a secular mindset, for one round of turmoil follows another without even a break for us to catch ourselves. With the dawning of the 21st century, many people across the globe were in uneasy agitation as to what would transpire with the turn of the century, but Christ had already given us the signs that would portend His soon coming, signs which we cannot ignore or deny, except we were to bury our heads in the sand. We are now embroiled in several wars and conflicts across the earth, and almost daily we hear of potential unrest, and diseases and viruses that are coming upon the stage of action so fast and furious, that we can scarcely discover cures before a next one arrives on the scene.
According to Christ, these are just the beginning of sorrows, in other words, we haven't seen anything as yet. Christ also gave us a specific sign that would signal to all true believers that earth's history is about to close, and this specific information will soon become a reality on account of the the spiritual nature of the problems we are facing, which will require a spiritual solution. Let's read:
Matthew 24:15 When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) 16 Then" ..... 17 Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house: 18 Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
The question for us is , what is the "abomination of desolation " spoken of by the prophet Daniel? In answering this very important question we will need to take a look at the closing history of the ancient city of Jerusalem, which was besieged by the Romans in two stages, first by Cestius, then finally by Titus who then brought the city to ruins. When the Roman generals had surrounded Jerusalem, they planted the Roman banner on Jewish soil, signalling that a new Sheriff was in town, and that all who would not submit to their dogmas would be incarcerated or obliterated, whichever came first.
Similarly, the book of Daniel refers to a time when the sanctuary of God will be desecrated by the abomination of desolations, which will finally and inevitably usher in the return of Christ. Let's read:
Daniel 11:3 And a mighty king shall stand up, that shall rule with great dominion, and do according to his will, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate. 36 And the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods, 37 Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all.
This description as given by the prophet Daniel points unmistakeably to Rome, and the substitute forms of worship that have been instituted to replace the true worship of God, and also to remove our focus from off of Christ to a mere man. When this form of worship with it's celebration being on Sunday is put into law, the "Abomination" referred to will have been completed, reaching its climax in the total subjugation of all who value economic privileges over the favor of God. The mark of the beast mentioned in Revelation chapter 13, will therefore represent the final leg of the implementation of the abomination of desolation, a system of false worship and deadly doctrines that will ultimately put billions of people on a fast track to perdition, if the warnings of God are not heeded.
What is worthy of note in the book of Daniel is that the prophecy pertaining to the dreaded abomination of desolation is found in chapter eleven, so now let's take a close look at how the very next chapter starts. Let's read:
Daniel 12:1 And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book. 2 And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.
It is obvious that the time of trouble Christ warns us of, follows close on the heels of the legalization of a false form of religion, and although many are not aware, we are now hastening with lightening speed towards that very time. The religious wars and disputes being fought over in the middle east are going to act as catalysts in the implementation of a new world order with a centralized form of government and economic structure, together with a one world religion which supposedly caters to the clamors of the masses. Already Sunday laws are in place in many European and other countries, and whenever the leading nation of the free world stoops to adopt stipulated religious dogmas that are contrary to the word of God, then the complete fulfillment of Christ's prophecy in Matthew chapter 24 will be finally realized.
We therefore end with a passage of scripture which encourages us to look up, and live in readiness since the fulfillment of these prophecies foreshadow the soon return of Christ in the clouds of heaven. Let's read:
Luke 21:28 And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh. 29 And he spake to them a parable; Behold the fig tree, and all the trees; 30 When they now shoot forth, ye see and know of your own selves that summer is now nigh at hand. 31 So likewise ye, when ye see these things come to pass, know ye that the kingdom of God is nigh at hand. 34 And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. 35 For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth.
May the word of God, and the indwelling of The Holy Ghost, instruct us in the understanding of these prophecies, for the time is at hand. God bless!