Mark 13:21-25

Mark 13:21 (KJB)
And then if any man shall say to you, Lo, here is Christ; or, lo, he is there; believe him not:

Now Jesus begins to answer the second question as to what will be the sign of His coming and of the end of the world. Jesus had more to say about the destruction of Jerusalem than the end of the world here and that is because there are very few signs which will have to be fulfilled. The first one is that there is going to be a rise in those who claim they are Christ. The Lord Jesus is going to descend from Heaven on the last day and that is why when someone states that Jesus is somewhere on planet earth, they are not to be followed because they are false. I remember when I was a new Christian, in 1982, some people had spent over half a million dollars in placing huge full page ads in newspapers such as the Atlanta Constitution. The title of the article read “The Christ is Now Here.” They stated that He was in Tibet waiting to be revealed. Well it is now 2013 and He still has not come on the scene. Some leaders of cults were proclaimed as being the incarnate Christ such as Sun Yung Moon from South Korea, Jim Jones in Guyana, David Koresh in Texas, Father Divine who claimed to be God who lived in Georgia, Brooklyn, and Harlem in New York City, etc. There will be a rise in the people who think they are the incarnate Christ but they are all to be rejected.

Mark 13:22 (KJB)
For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall show signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect.

Jesus repeats His stern warning that as we approach the end of time, there will be many who will claim to be Christ and there will be many false prophets. Keep in mind that the name “Christ” means Messiah. Now a Messiah does not necessarily mean that one is speaking of Jesus but can be a person who leads some hope, cause, or group. So when Jesus is warning that we are to be on the lookout for false Christs, He is warning that we must be on the lookout for those who claim divinity or who claim they have a special call from God which, of course, is a false calling. So a false Christ can be someone who heads up some type of movement. For example, in India there was a man named Sai Baba who actually had such satanic powers that he could make things materialize in his hand. His organization reached out in 166 countries out of a world of 196 countries. In India alone, he had over 20 million followers.

Then there are going to be false prophets. A prophet is one who declares God’s word. However, there are going to be many false prophets in these final days. Many false prophets are found right in churches of the charismatic movement. Benny Hinn stated on Trinity Broadcasting that God was going to destroy all homosexuals in 1995. In 2013, I can see they are still around with their gay marriage and almost every TV program has one. Oral Roberts stated he saw a 900 foot Jesus. Jesse Duplantis claimed he was in Heaven for five hours. Pat Robertson claimed to have raised someone from the dead but could not remember his name. Then not only charismatics but there are those who set dates for the Lord’s return. Tongue speaking is not exclusive in the charismatic movement but many mainline churches now accept them. Chuck Colson was a staunch ecumenist who tried to bring the Roman Catholic Church and evangelicals together. Now his Chuck Colson Center continues the same policy after his demise. Robert Schuller taught New Age and Positive thinking. Rick Warren believes that the God of the Bible and Allah are the same person. Then there are those like James White, Dan Wallace, Bruce Metzger, et al who advocate usage of the modern counterfeit versions with all their omissions and changes and reject the King James Bible.

Unfortunately, there are many Christians who have been duped by these people. This generation of Christians is one of the most biblically illiterate generations in history. We have so much material available and we have the lowest spiritual IQ’s out there. Many Christians who were once staunch creationists are now accepting the days of creation as long periods of time, they are now questioning whether Adam truly existed or was he just a story. It does seem that many of the Elect of God are being deceived just look at how many are in charismatic churches and how many follow certain preachers which are teaching some doctrines falsely. It only requires one or two false doctrines to open the door to full deception. In our day, we are seeing many of the Elect become deceived and the reason is that they refuse to do any studying on their own and accept whatever they are told to accept. This is why the majority of Christians can no longer absorb truth because truth has become their enemy to the point that they now fight against it. Go tell a charismatic that tongues are not for today and they are being deceived by it, you will see what I mean.

Mark 13:23 (KJB)
But take ye heed: behold, I have foretold you all things.

Jesus is being faithful to the followers of His that He is giving them ample warning of these things and no one could ever blame Him or God that they were not warned. Christians fall into apostasy because they refuse to check things out in Scripture and examine all teachings brought before them. The “Teaching of the Day” mindset is now what prevails. What is taught on Monday may be changed on Tuesday. The words “take…heed” are in the present tense which means the opportunities for deception are always present.

Mark 13:24 (KJB)
But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light,

As much as theologians have tried to make this tribulation some type of seven year tribulation, it is pure speculation and cannot be confirmed by Scripture. (Rev 11:2 KJV) But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months. The forty and two months here are representative of the entire New Testament period. (Luke 21:24 KJV) And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. When Jesus was speaking about the destruction of Jerusalem, He stated that it would be trodden down of the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. The Gospel is still going forth all over this world and non-Jews are being saved and until the last one is saved, the times of the Gentiles will not be fulfilled. If one studies the history of Jerusalem, one will find that it has been destroyed several times and invaded such as the Crusades. Even today in 2013, Jerusalem is still being trodden down of the Gentiles because many of the Jews in Israel are not real descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. They are Ashkenazi and Sephardic which are Gentile in root.

“After that tribulation in those days” is referring to the whole New Testament period. Once the last Gentile is saved somewhere in the world, then the time of tribulation will be over for the believer. This world is the only tribulation a true believer will ever know. It is interesting to note here that it says “after” which means no more time. Yet, theologians try to jam a thousand year millennium into that time frame when the Scripture states “after.”

Then we see the direct signs in the heavens signaling the soon return of Jesus. First the sun will be darkened just as it was when the Lord was being crucified. Then because the sun will be darkened, the moon will not be able to reflect any light because there won’t be any.

Mark 13:25 (KJB)
And the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken.

The third major sign is that the stars will fall from Heaven. Many of them will be meteorites and isn’t it interesting that we see an increase in meteorites falling and asteroids coming close to earth. Then the powers of Heaven will be shaken. Not only will the physical universe be collapsing but also the kingdom of Satan will be collapsing too. He right now is in the heavens and the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ will spell the end of his kingdom and he will be shaken as he is sent to eternal damnation. (Heb 12:26 KJV) Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven. The word “heavens” is plural meaning that all the heavens as we know of shall be shaken. The first which surrounds earth, the second which is the universe, and the third which is the abode of God because the judgment against sin will be that mighty.

(Luke 21:25 KJV) And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring;  Then Luke gives us a little more insight into those days. Not only will the universe be shaken but the nations will be in perplexity, that means they see no way out of their dilemma and the sea and the waves roaring. Interesting that “sea” is mentions as singular because it is not speaking of a singular sea but is speaking about the people of the world. Every person except the believer will be wondering what is happening. (Isa 17:12-13 KJV) Woe to the multitude of many people, which make a noise like the noise of the seas; and to the rushing of nations, that make a rushing like the rushing of mighty waters! {13} The nations shall rush like the rushing of many waters: but God shall rebuke them, and they shall flee far off, and shall be chased as the chaff of the mountains before the wind, and like a rolling thing before the whirlwind.

(Luke 21:28 KJV) And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh. When you see these things begin then look up for it is close.

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