Matthew 24:3 (NKJV)
Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?”
There are two things in question in our Success Scripture this week: the sign of Jesus’ second coming and the end of the age.
First, the sign of Jesus’ second coming is the return of Jerusalem to Jewish control, which is the sign that we are in the end of the age. Second, the end of the age is the last part of the end times, which is the time that immediately precedes the second coming of Christ. The end of the age is the period between the return of Jerusalem to Jewish control and the return of the Lord Jesus.
Since Jerusalem returned to Jewish control in 1967, we know that the end of the age began in 1967. Therefore, we are the first generation to be living at that time, and this is the last generation to live on the earth before Jesus returns! Let’s prove that last “whopping” statement with some prophetic scriptures.
Psalm 102:16 (NKJV)
For the Lord shall build up Zion; He shall appear in His glory.
Psalm 102:16 says that when Zion is built up, Jesus shall appear in glory. Zion is another name for Jerusalem. When this event happens, which it did in 1967, the Lord shall appear in glory.
Now let’s turn to Daniel chapter 8:
Daniel 8:13-14 (NKJV)
13 Then I heard a holy one speaking; and another holy one said to that certain one who was speaking, “How long will the vision be, concerning the daily sacrifices and the transgression of desolation, the giving of both the sanctuary and the host to be trampled underfoot?”
14 And he said to me, “For two thousand three hundred days; then the sanctuary shall be cleansed.”
First, Daniel’s prophecies deal primarily with the fate of Israel. The angel Gabriel interprets the vision for Daniel and tells how it refers to the time of the end, which is the end of the age.
One possible interpretation goes this way: Daniel was told in a vision that Jerusalem was to be under Gentile domination for 2300 days. Here, days can be interpreted as years as they are elsewhere in some of Daniel’s prophecies. Next, a Greek king (Alexander the Great – the goat from the west referred to in Daniel 8:5) conquered the Middle East in 334 BC. This prophecy indicates that Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles for 2300 years from Alexander the Great’s conquest. This takes us to exactly 1967. (Since there is no year 0 so we subtract 1)
Jesus not only prophesied the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD, but He also understood that Jerusalem would come back under Jewish control 2300 years after Alexander’s conquest. Jesus may have been responding to the vision in Daniel 8:14 when He said in Luke 21:24:
Luke 21:24 (NKJV)
And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
The first part of Luke 21:24 refers to the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. The second part of this verse refers to Jerusalem being returned to Jewish control.
According to Jesus, the return of Jerusalem to Jewish control is THE SIGN that we are in the end of the age – the time that immediately precedes the return of Jesus. The end of the age began in 1967; therefore, we are the first generation of people to be living at the end of the age.
This article is an excerpt from a message I shared with our church on September 27, 2015. Please listen to the entire message and then draw your own conclusion. You can listen to and download the entire message at: http://www.victoryinchrist.us/Sermons.html