The Pharisees and Sadducees came and, testing Him, asked Him to show them a sign from heaven. He answered them, “When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,’ and in the morning, ‘It will be foul weather today, for the sky is red and overcast.’ O you hypocrites, you can discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times. A wicked and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.” So He left them and departed.-Matthew 16:1-4
And the Lord also chastises his own for not understanding scripture:
From that time on, Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised on the third day. Then Peter took Him and began rebuking Him, saying, “Far be it from You, Lord! This shall not happen to You.” But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things that are of God, but those that are of men.”
-Matthew 16:21-23
As this is Matthew 16, I’m inclined to believe it is a warning to the disciples as the future kings in Israel ruling over the restored Kingdom of Israel (Mt 19:28, Ac 1:6). This is also the chapter in which the Lord tells them he is going to Jerusalem to be put to death. They don’t believe him (BONUS: this is another reason we know “the gospel of the Kingdom” is not the gospel we preach today). They missed the signs of the coming Messiah. They didn’t understand the suffering servant. They didn’t see the death, burial, and resurrection until their understanding was opened after the resurrection (Luke 24).
They were chastised for missing all that.
We are told by Paul to look for the “epiphenea", (the sudden appearing of the Lord. This is not connected directly to the return of the King (the biblical event or the movie). Although, some things might occur simultaneously (the “falling away,” for example, could begin any time in earnest and keep growing). But that’s a matter of opinion… the greater point is that Paul did give us some things to look for:
But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of stress. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, inhuman, implacable, slanderers, profligates, fierce, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding the form of godliness [piety] but denying the power of it. Avoid such people. For among them are those who make their way into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and swayed by various impulses, who will listen to anybody and can never arrive at a knowledge of the truth. As Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men of corrupt mind and counterfeit faith; but they will not get very far, for their folly will be plain to all, as was that of those two men.-2 Tim 3:1-9
I like this translation of verse 5:
They act as if they worshipped God, yet they do not let God's power work in their lives.
-2 Tim 3:5 (Worldwide English)
So many professed Christians think God is impressed with their acts of piety. Yet God desires faithfulness. Many think God is pleased with their religious activities and fervor merely because they are religious acts. Yet God desires faith.
I believe the distinguishing characteristic of the last days in terms of the spiritual will be the rejection of those who hold to the true faith… and that rejection will come from those who claim they have the true faith.
It’s one thing to be persecuted by pagans or Muslims or communists… it’ll be quite a different thing when the persecution of those who hold to Christ alone will be done by those who claim the name of Christ and who claim to believe the same gospel. I believe we are already seeing this. I believe this is historically new and has never been seen on this scale in history. And it will only get worse.
I believe the distinguishing characteristic of the last days in terms of the spiritual will be the rejection of those who hold to the true faith… and that rejection will come from those who claim they have the true faith.
It’s one thing to be persecuted by pagans or Muslims or communists… it’ll be quite a different thing when the persecution of those who hold to Christ alone will be done by those who claim the name of Christ and who claim to believe the same gospel. I believe we are already seeing this. I believe this is historically new and has never been seen on this scale in history. And it will only get worse.
The Catholic Church slaughtered its thousands (and celebrated those deaths with great pomp). A day is coming when many professed Christians, who claim the gospel of grace alone, will be in league with Rome to persecute and execute the few who will hold onto the gospel of Christ alone.
NOTE: We do not hold the doctrine of the Rapture, or any of the Rapture timelines, while do hold that there is a coming Tribulation and a coming Kingdom in Israel.
