In What Times Are We?

[OrangeHope]

Hi All!
I'm wondering in what times are we in right now?
Some say we're near in the end of time so say we're already there. I'm a new christian and this all confusses me but I continue to read the Bible and see for myself. I'm asking since lots of other generations thought they too where in the end of times but the end never came...

So I ask you guys, what are your thought and in what times do you think we're in now? (please give a Bible verse to state your thought on why you think what time we're in)


OrangeHope

 

[Beasley]

We are in a time period governed by the mystery doctrine of the church, theologically we call this 'the church age'. You might want to consider Ephesians 3. Christ as the Lord tabernacled in the tent in the wilderness, the Shekinah Glory, and then in the Tabernacle in Jerusalem, then he tabernacled among 'us', then he took up residence in the body of the believer. The 'church' is the only time in history that God permanently indwells the believer. When He tabernacled among 'us', he demonstrated how the coming church would function by divine power and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. The church is given the same power Christ had to endure the Cross, the Word and the Spirit.

 

[vinsight4u]

/

 

[FearAndTrembeling]

http://www.timehasanend.org/public/en_time_has_an_end_cont.html

We're in the End Times.

 

[ladybugforJesus]

We are definitely in the end times.
First of all, we are told that the signs will come on like the birth pains of a mother. Faster and stronger. And all of the things we are warned about are doing just that.
Jesus gave us so many warning signs. Luke 21:7-33 is a good place to look.

"many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ"
-many have already done this...Marshall Applewhite, David Koresh, Jim Jones, Sun Myung Moon, etc. And I am sure many still are, on a smaller scale. I would imagine convincing hundreads of people that you are Jesus is not an easy thing to do.

"you shall hear of wars and commotions...nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom"
I don't know how much you pay attention to our foreign affairs, But this whole Middle Eastern conflict is just starting. It is going to be BIG. You basically have all these "super power" nations in bed together overseas, basically the WHOLE of Asia, and they are rising up against God's people, Israel...and the US, I don't think anybody really likes us anyways! Except Israel. But you have the leader of Iran, Amadinejad, who is about to go Nuclear, saying that he is going to wipe Israel off the map. And he has said it on more than one occasion.

"and great earthquakes shall be in diverse places, and famines and pestilences." and "and there shall be signs in the sun and the moon and the stars, and and upon the earth distress of nations with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring"
Think of all the recent news of the weather phenomenon. Just this week I have heard about MANY tornadoes, a volcano eruption, and the HUGE amounts of snow people are getting. If you think about all the earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, vocanoes, etc. that have happened recently, they woudn't even come CLOSE to what they had 100 years ago. The bad weather is coming on faster and stronger, killing more and more people.

"they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name's sake."
I can't even tell you how many times I have heard about christian persecution recently, especially in this recent Christmas season, and all going before the courts. I mean, you can't have a nativity scene, you can't say merry christmas, you can't have trees in airports...it goes on. And aside from Christmas, they have COMPLETELY removed God from schools, not only do they not teach Him, but you can't even pray! I heard of an incident where the Valadictorian was giving her speach and they cut her off when she was about to thank God. A student can't even lead his team in prayer before a game. And in the workplace, I recently heard of a woman that got fired for wearing a cross necklace, yet they let muslim employees where there turbins. It comes from everywhere. Nobody wants to hear about christians, about Jesus, God, the Spirit, or the Bible. It has all become taboo! And people are dying for it! It has become harder to be a follower of Christ in the US than it is to be ANY other minority or religion!

"And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh!"

PRAISE THE LORD! HE'S ALMOST HERE!!!!!

 

[thereselittleflower]

OrangeHope, as you wisely noted, the belief that we are in the end times has been with us for 2000 years. The early Christians believed they were in the end times, and it tells us that they were in scripture, so the end times have been going on for almost 2000 years.

The time of the end, the end of all things, is anyone's guess. Throughout the centuries, especially near the turn of the century, the fervor picks up, and most especially at the turn of the millenium.

Truth is, we do not know when the time of the end will be, when Jesus will return. It is a popular notion among SOME groups that the bible gives us very intimate details of this time period, such as there will be a 7 Year Great Tribulation, a secret coming of Jesus (ie not every eye will see Him) and Rapture where all believers will be wisked away and suddenly "poof", they are gone, then when the 7 years are over Jesus returns to reign on earth for a literal 1000 years.

However, the above end times belief system is a new comer on the scene, being less than 200 years old. It is a resurrection and retooling of a millenialism (a thousand year reign of Christ) that has come up now and then, but has always been associated with heresie and strange beliefs and has been rejected by Christianity for almost 2000 years. It is rejected by the vast majority of Christians today as well, only finding a foothold in the most properous and least persecuting of christians, nation on earth. . . so, in effect we have it easy.

But those christians elsewhere, especially in nations where they face hardship, cruetly and persecution for their beliefs, they will tell you that the above end times belief system has no substance, that they are living in tribulation now - it is very real to them.

The long standing belief of the Christian Church has been that we have been in the end times since Jesus came. That we are not to be overly preoccupied with the mysteries of end time events or when they will occur, as our own PERSONAL end time can occur at any mommment. And then it is not going to be important when the actual end of all things will occur, for this will be our point of entering eternity.

So, our focus as christians is to be on the here and now and our present momment relationship with Jesus and our fellow man, loving God with all we have within us and loving our neighbor as ourselves.

Whether we are in the actual end of days, or extremely near, or whether it is yet thousands of years in the future, our daily denying ourselves, taking up our crosses and following Him is what matters.


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[ladybugforJesus]

Three of the four of the Gospels quote Jesus as telling us to remain watchful of the end times. (Mt 24:42, Mt 25:13, Mk 13:33,35, Lk 21:36)

We are also told that God took 6 days to create, and 1 day of rest.

And, we are told in 2 Peter 3:8, that to God, one day is as 1000 years to God, and 1000 years, one day.'

In fact, the whole of 2 Peter 3 speaks on this principle and on the end times. With this being said, the 1000 year reign of Christ will be that 1 day of rest, as in creation. If you count from the days of Adam and Eve, to today, we are at 6000 years. It is time for the day of rest. For the 1000 year reign. And why wouldn't God do it as in His creation? 7 is His perfect number.

And though we don't know the exact day or hour that He will come, we are also told that we will know when His coming is at the door (I am having trouble finding the exact verse on this one). So it only makes sense that with all the warnings the Lord has given us, and all the obvious signs, that it could truly be any day now.

I have also read that historians have established the days that Jesus has performed his major events (birth, death, resurrection, etc.) all on major Jewish holidays. All but 2. The second coming, and when He puts His foot down on the Mt of Olives and reigns. These 2 feast days are Rosh Hashanah, and the Feast of Tabernacles.
I personally believe that His second coming will be on Rosh Hashanah one year soon.

Now before you come back at me with "No man knows the day or hour", let me say that Rosh Hashanah is not a single day, it is a period, 2 or 3 days (I think just 2 actually). So, I don't know what day, or even what year. But I do know that his coming is at the door, and I am looking up because my redemption draweth nigh!