When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.’ And in the morning, ‘There will be a storm today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ Do you know how to discern the appearance of the sky, but cannot discern the signs of the times?

Matthew 16:2-3

The metaphor of a gathering storm is used by the Lord in in Matthew 16 in a different context than in the Olivet Discourse. He was telling the Pharisees that they should recognize the signs of the times instead of seeking another sign from Him. Jesus had been doing miracles right in front of them all along – healing people and delivering them from demons, and yet it was not enough.

Can the church discern the signs of the times? The Lord reveals signs the disciples (and His church) should look for to indicate the time of His return and the end of the age is near. As you may recall, the Lord already defined the term “end of the age” for his disciples in HIs explanation of the Parable of the Tares. It clearly stuck with them and likely triggered their questions in Matthew 24.

Jesus uses the metaphor of a woman in labor to describe what we need to wisely discern the times. There are 9 signs (listed in Part 2 of this series) referred to by Jesus as “birth pangs”. Birth pangs start gradually, intensify in a short amount of time, and cannot be stopped.

We are commanded to keep watch – to discern the times spiritually, looking for the convergence of the signs Jesus and the Apostles gave us. We must observe, identify individual signs, and assess whether they are all present at the same time with increasing convergence and intensity.

So, I shall attempt to do just that. Lets consider some observations in our world today and see if these signs are present. I will address the first sign in this post and the others in later posts.

Deception of Many

And Jesus began to say to them, “See to it that no one misleads you. Many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am He!’ and will mislead many.

Mark 13:5-6

Who is your Savior? Your savior is the one in whom you have placed your trust in for salvation. What do we need to be saved from? That’s often the beginning of the deception. If you are deceived into believing there are “existential threats” against your peace and safety in this life, then you can also be deceived about who has the solutions.

Of course, the ultimate threat we face is our own sin which bars us from the Kingdom of Heaven until we repent and receive the free gift of God’s salvation through Christ, who was crucified for our sins and raised from the dead.

The prophetic sign of deception is probably the most difficult sign to recognize because of the power of demonic deception. If people are deceived, how can they recognize this sign? People, even Christians, who have accepted demonically energized narratives pushed by the culture, are not capable of recognizing this sign unless the deception is either prevented in the first place or removed. Prevention or removal of deception is only possible through the Word of God and the Holy Spirit. Those who do not know and adhere to God’s Word will indeed be deceived, for there is no protection other than biblical truth and understanding brought by the Spirit of God.

Jesus warns us against deception by those who invoke His Name for their own agenda. We are constantly barraged by media propaganda about the threats that will end civilization as we know it and who can save us. Here are examples from the media:

• Climate change. We are constantly told the climate is changing and threatens our very existence as a species. Rising oceans, wild weather, melting glaciers, thawing tundra. Every problem the world has is tied to one molecule: carbon dioxide. Anything that produces carbon dioxide is demonized and added to the threat list. Our prophets are Greta Thunberg and Al Gore. Our savior is government. Large swaths of western civilization have been convinced a global government has all the answers. They have defined the threats:
• Pandemics. We are also told the next deadly pandemic is just around the corner. Compulsory vaccination using unapproved genetic technology vaccines is required to ensure safety of everyone. People who refuse are marginalized and intimidated even in the church. Who are the prophets of pandemic doom? I won’t name them but you probably know who they are. Our salvation is, once again, global government.
• Over population. The narrative of overpopulation is also pushed by the very same people. Population must be reduced to maybe half a billion or we will run out of resources. So what is to become of the other 7 billion people? Let me put it this way: removing energy and food from the global system will prove effective.
• Biblical Christianity. Isn’t it interesting that the name of Jesus is actually used to support the twisting the basic doctrines and morals of the bible. Biblical Christians who hold fast to the Word and its accurate meaning are characterized as filled with hate and a threat to the culture. Many who claim to be Christian undermine biblical Christianity and the gospel by their focus on politics and their acceptance of that which is wicked. These are the tares growing up with the wheat. More on this in another prophecy Jesus gives in the Olivet Discourse.

People often invoke the name of Jesus to justify their actions. The Lord, in their minds, is on-board with their political and social agenda and solutions. Undiscerning Christians will fall for just about anything or anyone who invoke the name of Jesus. Beware! He said many would come in his name and deceive many and that is exactly what is happening with increased intensity as Christians fall away from the truth of scripture and accept the deceptions of the culture driven by evil spiritual entities.

Only people who understand the truth can recognize deception. If you accept deception as true then how can you recognize this sign or any other sign? Many Christians have bought into deceptions because they don’t know the Word of God. They don’t know the gospel. This sign is the one we should be most concerned about because if we are caught up in deception, we will never be able to recognize any other warning Jesus gives in the Olivet Discourse.

Christians need to stay deeply in God’s Word, in fervent prayer, and connected to a good bible believing, bible preaching, Holy Spirit filled church. If you are in a church that scoffs at biblical prophecy and affirms the wickedness of the culture in the name of “love”, get out of that church.

Sadly, good bible believing churches are not that easy to find any more because of the growing mega church movement that destroys small, local bible believing churches in neighborhoods that need them. But good churches do exist. Find one. Bible churches need to teach their members biblical prophecy and how to recognize the signs of the times in which we live.

Is this sign present? I believe so. The entire world has bought into many snowballing deceptions that are leading to the end times delusion of a false salvation through a global government that will one day be led by a pseudo savior defined in scripture as the beast.