Are these the Last Days?

 

Acts 2:14-20

I bet you have heard someone say that they believe we are in the last days, and your question may be “the last days of what?”  In my profession the last days of the quarter were always important if you had not reached your quota, and it always seem to bring with it expectation, anticipation, (hope), and frustrations.  We have many last day experiences in our lives, the last day of school, the last day before we move to a new area, the last day before coming back from a great holiday or vacation, the last day before being locked up in prison, but none of these is what Scripture is making reference to.

If you look at Acts 2:14-16, you see Peter addressing the men of Judea with this announcement; “‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.  And I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke; the sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day.” (Acts 2:17-20 ESV)

What Peter is quoting is from the prophet Joel and the name Joel means “Jehovah is God.”  This took place about 800 BC, and the key thought is national repentance so that the nation of Israel would receive blessing and not curses from God.  He used the phrase, “The day of the Lord,” in 1:15; 2:1, 11, 31; 3:14, and it is clear that Joel is looking to a special day.  It is in keeping with the Scripture that the Holy Spirit spoke truth of what was to come.  Hebrews 1:1-3, “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.”  And the apostle Peter makes this very clear in these verses; “knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone's own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. (2 Peter 1:20-21 ESV)

Jesus the Son of God also spoke of this day, “The one who rejects me and does not receive my words has a judge; the word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day. For I have not spoken on my own authority, but the Father who sent me has himself given me a commandment—what to say and what to speak. And I know that his commandment is eternal life. What I say, therefore, I say as the Father has told me.” (John 12:48-50 ESV)  Has Jesus spoken else where in Scripture and the answer is in many places, but the church and especially the American church has come up with a doctrine that has an escape clause to what Jesus, the Author and Creator, has spoken to us about in the gospel of Matthew 24.  And we would be wise to take these words to heart; “See that no one leads you astray.”  My fellow Christians, it is your job to ask the “Helper” to guide you into all truth, do not take my word for it or any other man’s, God has promised that the Holy Spirit will guide you into all truth.  As you read Matthew 24, pay attention to verses 4-8, and with that insight look at what Jesus has said: “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name's sake. And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.”

(Matthew 24:9-14 ESV)

In that I am often a coward, and especially when it comes to pain, I’m hoping that I’ve missed something, and the guys who teach blessing with no pain or suffering are right.  But stop and examine these last four years in the United States, the land of the free, and what do you see; at every door is some group that hates Christians, and it is being encouraged from the President and his administration.  Could it be said, and I believe it could, that the church in the United States as a whole, and there are exceptions, is much like the church Jesus referred to in Revelation 3, “‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.” (Revelation 3:15-17 ESV)  If that is were you find yourself, part of one of these churches, ask your “Helper” to guide you into all truth, because we are living in the last days.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice