“Immediately after the distress of those days ” ‘the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’ Matthew 24: 29, NIV.
Gracious God, here we are once more in Your presence depending on You to tell us how we are to read the signs of Your coming. Please help us we pray, in the holy name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Yesterday we began looking at the signs in our day, that are announcing the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ in power and glory. The sign we made mention of, was really referring to the early period of, the time of the end, which we have differentiated from, the end of time. About a little less than a year and a half ago, one of our devotionals was dedicated exclusively to the three “signs in the heavens,” mentioned in our Scripture for today. Therefore, we will not be going over them again. I will mention, in passing, the dates that these signs were fulfilled; but our conversation will be primarily about the role these signs played in announcing the time of the end.
In our study yesterday, we spoke about the earthquake of 8.8 magnitude that shook Chile. The impact was so great that it caused the earth to “tilt;” thereby triggering the phenomenon of, shorter days. It is noteworthy that God also used an earthquake to announce to the world that the time of the end was about to begin. This is a partial account of what took place:
“The 1755 Lisbon earthquake, also known as the Great Lisbon Earthquake, took place on 1 November 1755, at around 10:24 in the morning. The earthquake was followed by tsunami and fires, which caused near-total destruction of Lisbon in the Kingdom of Portugal, and adjoining areas. Geologists today estimate the Lisbon earthquake approached magnitude 9 on the moment magnitude scale, with an epicenter in the Atlantic Ocean about 200 km (120 mi) west-southwest of Cape St. Vincent. Estimates place the death toll in Lisbon alone between 10,000 and 100,000 people, making it one of the deadliest earthquakes in history.
. . . As the first earthquake studied scientifically for its effects over a large area, it led to the birth of modern seismology and earthquake engineering” (Wikipedia).
Other signs that marked the time of the end, were, The Dark Day ” ‘the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light[.]’ ” May 19, 1780.
The Falling Of the Stars “the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’ ” November 13, 1833.
You will notice the sequence in the dates of these signs. The last major “sign in the heavens,” was in 1833 – one hundred and seventy-seven years ago! How much longer before the end comes? No one knows. May God help us to get ready, and, by His grace, stay ready, because “we know not the hour of the Master’s appearing” (F. E. Belden)!