FEAR
AND FOREBODING
FOLLOWED
BY POWER AND GLORY
LUKE
21:25-28
(See
also Matthew 24)
Luke
21:25 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; Men's
hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are
coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.
Susie: At
first, I thought that Jesus must have been totally moving from the destruction
of Jerusalem in 70 AD to prophesying about the end times just before His
triumphant return. However, the Jewish historian Josephus reported heavenly and
earthly signs occurring leading up to and during the 70 AD fall of Jerusalem.
We found and article online at http://www.bible.ca/pre-flavius-josephus-70AD-Mt24-fulfilled.htm and
have included the following chart from it:
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Brief
summary of Josephus' record:
The Judgment on Jerusalem
according to History and Destruction of the temple
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Heavenly
phenomena
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Earthly phenomena
(reported by
priests)
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Susan: God
controls everything including the heavenly bodies—the moon, stars, and sun. God
caused the sun to stand still as Joshua led Israel in battle (Joshua 10:13).
There are debates as to whether this “missing day” can be proven
scientifically. However, believing the Bible to be God’s word and God’s word to
be true, I trust that this was an actual occurrence. The sun was also darkened
for three hours when Jesus hung on the cross.
Susie:
Phenomena such as these accompanied many pivotal events in the history of God’s
people and served to increase faith that God was in control of every situation
and particularly what was happening around them at the moment. Back on track .
. . we can conclude that Jesus prophecy about the fall of the Jerusalem and the
accompanying signs had both immediate and more distant fulfillments as do many
prophecies.
Susan: The
Old Testament prophets foretold signs in the heavenlies and on the earth that
would precede the great and terrible Day of Lord:
Isaiah
13:9-10 Behold, the day of the Lord cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce
anger, to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out
of it. For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give
their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall
not cause her light to shine.
Ezekiel
32:7-8 And when I shall put thee out, I will cover the heaven, and make the
stars thereof dark; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not
give her light. All the bright lights of heaven will I make dark over thee, and
set darkness upon thy land, saith the Lord God.
Joel
2:10 The earth shall quake before them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and
the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining.
Joel
2:31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the
great and terrible day of the Lord come.
Joel
3:15 The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their
shining.
Susan: There
are future prophecies in Revelation that mirror the prophecies we have quoted
from the Old Testament. They also confirm that Jesus’s words recorded in Luke
21:25-26 will be fulfilled preceding His return to earth in the future.
Revelation
6:12-13 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a
great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon
became as blood; And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig
tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind.
Revelation
8:12 (VOICE) The fourth messenger sounded his trumpet, and one-third of the
sun, one-third of the moon, and one-third of the stars were darkened. As a
result, one-third of their light flickered and failed. For one-third of the
day, the sun did not shine; and likewise for one-third of the night, the moon
and stars did not give their light.
Luke
21:27 And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and
great glory.
Susie: The
first time Jesus lived on earth as man, He came as a tiny, helpless baby born
in a stable to humble peasants. The next time He comes, He will exhibit all His
might power. He defeated sin and death on the cross and as He rose from the
grave; however evil is still stalking the earth as a defeated foe. When Jesus
returns in blazing glory, Satan and evil will be wiped out completely, and
God’s children will be avenged.
Susan: The
first time Jesus walked on Earth, He was mild in manner and humble of heart
(with the exception of tossing the buyers and sellers out of the Temple and
railing on the Pharisees during His last week before the crucifixion.) But when
He returns, He is going to show up in power, majesty, and glory.
2
Thessalonians 1:6-8 (NIV) God is
just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you and give relief to you
who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is
revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. He will punish
those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.
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.
Susan: The
destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD and slaughter of Jewish people as a result of
their rejection of Jesus as the Messiah was a foreshadowing of the destruction
of all who have opposed and rejected Him when He returns in great glory.
Susie: Those
Christians who heeded Jesus’s warning fled the city of Jerusalem in 70 AD, and
many of them escaped death or capture. Those who believe, place their trust in,
and rely on Jesus for salvation will avoid the judgement and devastation when
He returns in the future. Not only will believers NOT be condemned to Hell,
they will be forever in the presence of the Lord, filled with comfort and joy.
Susan: The ones
who have rejected Jesus should be riddled with fear at the thought of His
return. But for those who have believed and relied on Him, who have
relationship with our Lord, the signs of His coming cause eager excitement and
awesome anticipation of complete redemption from everything that troubles us—physical,
emotional, mental, and spiritual trials.
Susie: Therefore,
for those of us who trust Jesus, as we see biblical prophecy of Jesus’s second
coming fulfilled, we can confidently, expectantly lift our eyes to Him. We need
not fear His return because it will result in the completion of all He has
promised, all we have hoped for.
Susan: It
will be the “great and terrible Day of the Lord” for all who have rejected
Jesus, but for those of us who belong to Him, who have been adopted into His
forever familyship, it should be a cause of great celebration!
“LIFT UP YOUR HEADS; FOR YOUR
REDEMPTION DRAWETH NIGH!”
Ponder
this and Apply it: Do prophecies of the great tribulation, of the
end times, of Jesus’s return fill you with dread or delight? Examine your heart
and evaluate where you stand regarding Jesus. If you have not already done so,
we pray you will surrender your life to Jesus’s control and be able to
confidently anticipate the joy of His return.
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