Daily Devotional, Year 2 – DECEMBER 22 (Apocalypse NOW! Part 13: “The Signs of the Times?”)
By admin On February 9th, 2021.
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Daily Devotional, Year 2 – DECEMBER 22
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Apocalypse NOW!
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Part 13:
“The Signs of the Times?”
To read Part 1, click here…AUGUST 3 (Apocalypse Now! Part 1: Silencing the Gospel!)
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“The Pharisees also with the Sadducees came,
and tempting desired Him that He would show them a sign from heaven.
He answered and said unto them,
‘When it is evening, ye say,
‘It will be fair weather: for the sky is red.
And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day:
for the sky is red and lowering.’
O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky;
but can ye not discern the signs of the times?'”
Matthew 6:1-3
Jesus Teaching – Luke 4:31-32 – jesus talks about heaven – www.lavistachurchofchrist.org – public-domain
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Jesus, in this above passage, was upbraiding the Pharisees and Sadducees for their lack of discernment in asking Him for a sign from Heaven.
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And then He plainly told them…“O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?” Matthew 6:3
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And so, Christ called out their hypocrisy in being able to discern the weather signs in the sky, but not able to discern the “signs of the times”.
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Jesus – James Tissot – US Public Domain – Brooklyn Museum – Wikimedia
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ARE WE ALSO GUILTY?
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But are we discerning the signs of the times in this current world?
Are we really awake to the fearfulness of the present hour?
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Or instead, are we like the inhabitants of the wicked cities of old…
“They married wives, they were given in marriage…
they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded;
But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom
it rained fire and brimstone from heaven,
and destroyed them all.
Even thus shall it be in the day
when the Son of man is revealed.”
Luke 17:27-30
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Yes, as this above passage reveals, this very same error of Sodom will be repeated in these Last Days…both in the world and in the churches too!
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WORLD IN BLINDNESS
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Now, nobody denies that the lost multitudes around the world are not seeing the signs of the times.
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Yes, the unsaved peoples of the world are in spiritual darkness and unbelief!
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There’s no debate concerning that!
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Shoppers in Toronto – cropped image – Wikimedia – share-alike license
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FOR OUR ADMONITION!
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But let’s not forget our opening passage, in which Jesus was rebuking His very own professed people, when He said…
“O ye hypocrites,
ye can discern the face of the sky;
but can ye not discern the signs of the times?”
Matthew 6:3
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But we must not forget what Paul tells us concerning the various Old Testament accounts…
“Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples:
and they are written for our admonition,
upon whom the ends of the world are come.”
1st Corinthians 10:11
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Yes, all those supposed, “dusty, old, and irrelevant Old Testament stories”, are as current as today’s and even tomorrow’s newspapers!
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Even more so, since today’s newspapers completely miss the real news!
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NEWS REVEALS HORROR!
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Oh yes, today’s news organizations reveal just how sin-sick and abjectly evil this current-day world really is!
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And the horrific atrocities which are now occurring around the world are sounding a clear and present trumpet blast, that we have reached the end!
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But the Bible is the real “newspaper” we should be reading!
It reveals the true condition of the world today!
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It goes beyond the mere surface of the news and gets to the very heart of today’s world issues!
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TV – ABC-Good Morning America – Wikipedia – Share-alike License
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“Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton; ye have nourished your hearts, as in a day of slaughter!”
James 5:5
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And what evidence is there that God’s people are not taking these signs of the times to heart?
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As James 5:5 so aptly says…
“Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth,
and been wanton;
ye have nourished your hearts,
as in a day of slaughter!”
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Yes, God’s professed people are mostly trying to squeeze as much out of this world as we possibly can!
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We’re eating, drinking, planting, building, marrying, buying and selling, as in the Great Day of Slaughter!
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IMMERSED IN WORLDLY PLEASURES & PURSUITS
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And instead of immersing ourselves in a 24/7 contemplation of the Bible and in unceasing prayer…
…we are rather immersing ourselves in television…
…radio, secular Internet surfing, clubs…
…parties, sports, costly vacation resorts…
…needlessly expensive vehicles, lavish home and garden adornments…
…time-consuming and energy-sapping careers, etc…!
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And if the world wants to pursue these things, that’s fine!
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But God’s Church? No!
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New York Times Square – terabass – cropped image – Wikipedia – Share-alike License
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“FLEE TO THE MOUNTAINS!”
Mark 13:14 & Luke 21:21
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So let every man, woman, and child who claims to love the Lord’s appearing, cease from our leisurely pre-occupation with the world…
…and flee to the spiritual mountain which is our stronghold and our hiding-place of refuge…
“Go ye forth out of Babylon,
flee ye from the Chaldeans…
Flee, save your lives,
and be like the heath in the wilderness.”
Isaiah 48:20 & Jeremiah 48:6
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Picture – Lot Escapes Sodom – www.thebiblerevival.com offers free Bible clipart – Public Domain.
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TO READ PART 14, GO HERE…
April 3 (Apocalypse NOW! Part 14: “Has The King Left The Building?”)
Elvis – Wax Museum – Wikimedia – Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.
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TODAY’S PRAYER…
“Dear Lord, Help me to see the signs all around…
…which declare that we are at the Last Hour…
…And help me to prepare for the hour just ahead…
Woman Praying – cropped image – Wikimedia – Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license
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READ MORE…
To explore deeper into this subject, please read…JANUARY 7 (TIME TO GET OUT OF DODGE!)…
… or you can also read this…August 11th (Habakkuk Says “Run!”)
Question book magnify svg – Wikimedia – GNU license
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THE END
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TODAY’S FEATURED HEAVENLY SIGN
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MICHAEL, THE SOLDIER
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Michael the Soldier battles against the Dragon…
“And there was war in heaven:
Michael and his angels fought against the dragon;
and the dragon fought and his angels,
And prevailed not;
neither was their place found any more in heaven.”
Revelation 12:7, 8.
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Contrary to popular opinion, Michael here represents Christ as He battles this dragon.
No, Christ is not merely an angel.
Christ is very eternal God.
But Christ is often represented as various entities, such as a rose, or a burning bush, as well as many other things in the Bible.
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READ MORE…
To explore deeper into this subject, please read… Flood Waters of Satan-Introduction
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TOMORROW…
DECEMBER 23 (Come Out of Her, My People! Part 32: “What Good Is Church, If The Holy Spirit Has Been Removed?”)
Girls celebrate at Camp Worship Wikimedia Commons Creative Commons lic.
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EXCERPTS FROM THE OPEN FORUM 
QUESTION/ANSWER RADIO TALK-SHOW…
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ALL ‘NOBLE BEREANS’ (open-minded seekers of Bible truth) are invited to listen to this is small 30 minute sampling of the late Harold Camping’s nearly 50 year-long series of 90 minute nightly talk shows…
This is Open Forum Show #39
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ABOVE PICTURE: Holy bible – Wikimedia – Creative Commons lic.