(OPINION) Charisma – 2020 begins as the first year of the new decade of the 2020s—100 years since the famed “Roaring Twenties” of the last century. Prophetically, we might wonder if this is the year in which our Lord Jesus will return! And, if it is, how that relates to:
—The resurrection of those who have died “in the Lord.”
—The rapture of the living saints.
—The great tribulation of Satan.
—The end-times judgments and rewards of God.
Those are all things we read about in both the Old and New Testaments.
Pew Research Center reports that 48% of all Christians in the United States not only believe in the second coming of Jesus Christ but believe it is going to occur within the next four decades (basically, within their own lifetimes). If that belief is proven to be true, think of the dramatic implications it should have immediately for every person on earth!
No wonder the apostle Paul used the Second Coming as the primary reason for right living right now, since “time is running out” and “the coming of the Lord is nearer now than when we first believed” (Rom. 13:11, TLB).
Jesus told His disciples that no one actually knows the day or hour of His return, “not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only” (Matt. 24:36, MEV).
While the exact time of Christ’s promised return (John 14:1-4; Acts 1:7-11) is uncertain, the timing—pointing to the divine sequence or season—will become clearer the closer we get to the final apocalyptic revelation itself. For example, Daniel’s prophecies were to be “sealed … until the time of the end,” when knowledge and experience will help the wise, spiritually-minded to discern and understand the meanings(Dan. 12:4-10). READ MORE
