The Main Indication We Are Living in the End-Times?
Look to Israel
How do we know we're living in the end times? It's a great question.
One way to know is by looking at the indicators. One of those indicators that we are approaching the end-times is that God's Word tells us that the Jewish people would return to Israel. This is exactly what has taken place over the past 130 years. The fact that the Jewish people are back in their own land is the primary indicator that we are in the end-times. The end-times is that period leading up to the second coming of Christ, the Rapture of the Church, and the redemption of the Jewish people.
Let me explain more fully.
From 750 B.C. to 440 B.C., many Old Testament prophets pronounced that the Jewish people would be gathered back to their land. Isaiah 11:11 says: And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people …
Jeremiah 32:37-38: Behold, I will gather them out of all countries, whither I have driven them in mine anger, and in my fury, and in great wrath; and I will bring them again unto this place, and I will cause them to dwell safely: And they shall be my people, and I will be their God.
Zechariah 8:7-8: I will save my people from the east country, and from the west country; And I will bring them, and they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God, in truth and in righteousness.
Ezekiel 36:24, 26: For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land … A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you.
Hosea 1:11, Amos 9:14-15, Micah 4:6-7, and Zephaniah 3:14-20 also speak of this great gathering.
Fulfillment
It was around 1880 that all these predictions started coming true, for that was the beginning of this gathering of Jewish people back to Israel. First there were thousands, then tens of thousands, then hundreds of thousands, then millions, and finally almost 6.6 million today.
This is a miracle of God! It is unheard of for a people group to be gone from their land for so long and then return with their same identity, same language, same culture, and same religion… twice. Nothing like this has ever happened! God's promise regarding the Jewish people has been and is coming true, just as He said, and this cannot be denied. Indeed, we are seeing a miraculous and glorious work of God!
What about the Church?
But you say, This is about the Jewish people, but what about the Church? Let me make the connection.
Matthew 24:9-26; Mark 13:9-23; Luke 21:12-24; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-10; and Revelation 7:1-17 are all prophecy passages. By examining these passages, it's obvious that God's work with the Jewish people in the end times is coinciding, and in conjunction with, His work with the Church.
This tells us that God will not fulfill His prophetic work with the Jewish people apart from His prophetic work with the Church. And since the Jewish people are back in their land, we know this age – the Church Age – is coming to an end. It will not be long before Christ returns to carry out this work, fulfilling God's promises for the Church and for the Jewish people.
Israel's Return
Do you see this? More than 2,500 years ago God proclaimed that the Jewish people would return to their land. The fact that God has gathered them back to Israel is a clear and obvious sign that we are living in the end times. Daniel 12:4 reads … seal the book, even to the time of the end. The book has now been unsealed, for the Jewish are back in their land.
Here is another startling passage:
And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land: And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all (Ezekiel 37:21-22).
The first part of this verse has come true for the Jewish people, and soon the second part will come to fruition. Israel will be saved from its sins, will have Jesus as their King, and will be blessed in their land.
Now that we're in the end times, all the other prophecies with regard to Christ's second coming will soon take place – there will be birth pains, a peace treaty, a new Jewish temple, the rise of the Antichrist, the mark of the beast, the great persecution, the Rapture of the Church, the Day of the Lord, the salvation of the Jewish people, and finally the beginning of Christ's reign over the earth!
It was only 150 years ago that the Jews were out of their land, but now they are back home. The prophetic alarm clock is ringing, and God is telling us to wake up, for Christ's coming is right around the corner.
Be encouraged, be excited, learn what you need to learn, do what you need to do, and look forward to seeing your Lord, Savior and King!
Steven J. Hogan has been a pastor-teacher for the past 25 years, and at Hope Bible Church of Tampa since 2003.