One day soon, we heard…

The voice of the local radio broadcaster was frantic: “It’s horrendous!  This cannot be happening, yet even as I speak, the situation worsens.  Tonight, approximately fifteen minutes ago, a gigantic fissure opened in the earth near Lake Crowley, otherwise known as the Long Valley Reservoir, in the Mammoth Lakes region of the eastern Sierra Nevada area. According to eyewitness reports from individuals who observed the lake from nearby higher ground, the lake seemed to heave into the air, virtually catapulting its contents out of the lake basin.  

Apparently coinciding with the earthquake—or perhaps causing it—is a volcanic eruption in the area, spewing lava, steam, and volcanic ash into the sky. According to the state’s Department of Water and Power, increased activity has been detected for the past several years, and although seismic activity has recently increased in frequency and intensity, nobody could have predicted this sort of disaster.

“State emergency officials are warning people in Southern California not to drink your tap water. Repeat: do not drink your tap water. It has been contaminated. Lake Crowley formerly rested in a twenty-by-ten-mile crater that is thought to have been formed by a volcanic eruption seven hundred years ago. The lake is one of Southern California’s main water supply sources, collecting mountain runoff, which flows hundreds of miles south by way of aqueducts to Los Angeles. But the catastrophic explosion caused massive amounts of toxic ash to fall into the water, thus contaminating the water supply. Adding to the problem, the volcano has caused rapid melting of snow in the mountains, and flash floods are ripping through the area even as I speak. The floodwater is teeming with potentially hazardous volcanic debris known as lahar. If at all possible, residents should avoid any unnecessary contact with the floodwater until its toxicity can be determined.”

The announcer took a breath and then broke from his professional protocol. “It’s awful,” he gasped. “This is the worst disaster I’ve ever seen. There is no electricity throughout most of the state. Water is rushing through the valley like the Johnstown flood, and our drinking water supply is contaminated. The earth is shaking beneath our feet, its pitch black outside, getting colder by the hour, and we still have nine hours before sunrise. God help us all.”

(From the book “The Refuge” by Jim Bakker)

Interestingly, it is the scientific community, not Christian theologians, announcing that we are living on the precipice of destruction.  Hollywood is heralding the news that the earth is about to encounter something cataclysmic.

A few brave prophetic voices are being heard, crying out in the wilderness of our world, warning us that our days are numbered.  The earth itself is groaning and creaking, seemingly in anticipation of a major shakeup of the status quo.

Ironically, the one group with relatively little to say about Christ’s soon return is the evangelical church.  Instead, we spend most of our time and energy trying to help people succeed in this life, rather than getting them ready for eternity.

Now is the time to get our lives aligned with God’s Word, to establish correct priorities, to invest in those things that will last a million years from now, rather than fickle, foolish, transitory material things. Even more important, now is the time for the Church, that group of true believers from every denomination, to begin functioning as the true body of Christ, caring for one another, helping one another as the family of God.

Knowledge that we are truly living in what the Bible refers to as “the last days” should also motivate Christians to more actively seek out opportunities to share the gospel with their unsaved friends and family members. In a very real way, the clock is ticking and time is running out.

If you are astounded that more than two hundred specific prophecies were fulfilled regarding the first coming of Christ, get ready for a surprise.

Over three hundred Scripture references point to the Second Coming.

But when Jesus Christ returns, He will not come as the Babe in Bethlehem’s manger.

The first time He came to Earth, Jesus came as the Man of Sorrows; at His Second Coming, He will appear as Almighty God.

He came first as the Lamb of God; when He returns, He will be the Lion of Judah.

At His incarnation, Jesus came as the Prince of Peace; when He comes again, it will be as King of kings and Lord of lords.

He came the first time to atone for sin.  When Jesus Christ returns the second time, He will judge sinners.

The signs of His appearing are all around us; you needn’t be a Bible scholar to sense that something unusual is happening on Earth.  Newspapers and news magazines practically shout from their pages, “These are getting – ready days!”