“Now learn this
lesson from the fig
tree: as soon as its
twigs get tender and
its leaves come out,
you know that summer
is near. Even so,
when you see all
these things, you
know that it is
near, right at the
door.”
Look at the world
around us. Are not
the signs of the
soon return of our
Lord and Savior, not
displayed according
to God’s Holy Word
on the condition of
this world? What are
those signs? Let’s
list just a few:
1.The moral decay of
this world, The USA
is the last nation
to expound godly
principles.
Unfortunately its
star is fading as
the last great hope
of the world. It was
likened unto a
shining city on a
hill, but moral
decay will bring her
to the pit.
2. The death of 50
million individuals
upon the altar of
convenience through
abortion, or a whole
generation in our
nation alone, not
counting
international. This
is synonymous with
passing the children
through the fires of
Molech in land of
Canaan and ancient
Israel. A practice
God says He loathes.
3. The decay of the
foundation of the
nation, the family.
Homosexuality, same
sex marriage, civil
unions, and adoption
of children into
these families, and
whole generation
void of the
teachings of the
Word of God that’s
found in your Bible.
4. The push recently
for a one-world
government based on
climate change? Who
really buys this
scientific junk?
Catholicism: wanting
all religions to
unite (one world
religion)?
5. The removal by
legislation of God
from all aspects of
legal and civil
proceedings, from
our schools, from
our courts, and from
our lives.
6. The removal of
our basic freedoms
in the USA and a
socialist agenda to
match Europe and the
rest of the world.
These are just a
few, and we could
name many more of
the symptoms of a
world ripe for
judgment and the
return of our Lord
and Savior, Jesus
Christ.
THE RETURN OF
CHRIST IS IMMINENT
As Christians we
should be
cultivating fruit
worthy of
repentance, as we
see the possible end
of days approaching.
We should be aware
of our surroundings,
as Christ commanded
us “to watch.” We
are to be prepared
for what could be
coming on the earth
very soon. We should
be living like He
will come today, and
He just might.
Just think of the
world that we may be
living in.
Even worse
than what we are
witnessing right now
and it’s hard to
imagine. The
symptoms of the end
of the age are
piling up quickly,
but as the old
saying goes, “You
ain’t seen nuttin’
yet!”
Jesus warns in
Matthew 24.24: “For
there shall arise
false christs, and
false prophets, and
shall show great
signs and wonders;
insomuch that, if it
were possible, they
shall deceive the
very elect.”
We see that
happening today, in
our news, on our TV
sets and
publications.
Obviously, unless
you are well
grounded in the Word
of God and sound
doctrine, a person
could be deceived
when counterfeit
miracles are
performed and will
lead the person away
from the truth. If a
true Christian hides
the Word of God in
his heart and his
mind, no manner of
lies that mimic
God’s truth will
fool the redeemed
child of God. But we
must stay close to
God by His Holy
Spirit and grounded
in His Word. That’s
a warning from our
God and Savior.
(Matthew 24:24)
But what should we
be doing as
Christians in these
last days of the
closing Age?
Titus 2.11-14:
“For the grace of
God that bringeth
salvation hath
appeared to all men,
teaching us
that, denying
ungodliness and
worldly lusts, we
should live soberly,
righteously and
godly, in this
present world:
Looking for that
blessed hope, and
the glorious
appearing of the
great God and our
Saviour Jesus
Christ:
Who gave Himself for
us, that He might
redeem us from all
iniquity, and purify
unto himself a
peculiar people,
zealous of good
works.”
And at the same time
Jesus Christ gave us
a command found in
Luke 21.36:
“Watch ye therefore,
and pray always,
that ye may be
accounted worthy to
escape all these
things that shall
come to pass, and to
stand before the Son
of man.”
Jesus commands us to
be watchful, alert,
studying to “show
thyself approved” (2
Timothy 2:15) and
not neglectful,
sticking our heads
in the sand and
trying to blend into
this world. This
should be, for each
of us, a time of
joyous anticipation
of the soon return
of our King, our
Savior, and our
Redeemer. Not a time
to be fearful, but
sharing the Gospel
of Jesus Christ to a
dying world.
ISRAEL’S REBIRTH, AN
ENDTIME EVENT
Jesus gave us hints
in the Word of God
to the time of the
signs of His return.
Let us look at
Matthew 24.32-33:
“Now learn this
lesson from the fig
tree: as soon as its
twigs get tender and
it’s leaves come
out, you know that
summer is near. Even
so, when you see all
these things, you
know that it is
near, right at the
door.”
I have often
pondered what Jesus
was saying
concerning the fig
tree. What do you
think? Let’s look at
examples in the
Bible where the fig
tree was used, as in
these scripture
passages to prove a
point.
Matthew 21:18-20:
“In the morning, as
Jesus was returning
to Jerusalem, he was
hungry, and he
noticed a fig tree
beside the road. He
went over to see if
there were any figs
on it, but there
were only leaves.
Then he said to it,
‘may you never bear
fruit again!’ And
immediately the fig
tree withered up.
The disciples were
amazed when they saw
this and asked, ‘How
did the fig tree
wither so quickly?’”
At first glance, it
appears that Jesus
was upset and
disappointed because
He was hungry and no
figs were found, but
was that all He
meant? Jesus knew
when He went to the
fig tree that He
would find no figs,
as it was not their
season. Jesus never
did or said anything
that did not have a
deeper meaning. Figs
are symbols of the
nation of Israel and
its faith, or the
lack thereof. Israel
was like the fig
tree with full
leaves. It looked
righteous, and looks
like it was
following Jehovah,
but produced no
fruit of
righteousness,
faith, or obedience.
In other places in
the Bible, Israel is
compared to either a
fig tree or an olive
tree. Let’s go to
Jeremiah chapter 24:
24.1:
“The LORD
shewed me, and,
behold, two baskets
of figs were set
before the temple of
the LORD, after that
Nebuchadnezzar king
of Babylon had
carried away captive
Jeconiah the son of
Jehoiakim king of
Judah, and the
princes of Judah,
with the carpenters
and smiths, from
Jerusalem, and had
brought them to
Babylon.
24:2 “One basket had
very good figs, even
like the figs that
are first ripe: and
the other basket had
very naughty figs,
which could not be
eaten, they were so
bad.”
24:3 “Then said the
LORD unto me, ‘What
seest thou,
Jeremiah? And I
said, Figs; the good
figs, very good; and
the evil, very evil,
that cannot be
eaten, they are so
evil.’”
24.4-5: “Again the
word of the LORD
came unto me,
saying, thus saith
the LORD, the God of
Israel; Like these
good figs, so will I
acknowledge them
that are carried
away captive of
Judah, whom I have
sent out of this
place into the land
of the Chaldeans for
their good.”
The people of Israel
are compared to figs
here, both good and
evil in the
mentioned verses
above.
When Jesus cursed
the fig tree, He
symbolically and
prophetically placed
a curse on Israel
for their unbelief.
The reason for the
curse is
straightforward. The
fig tree, (Israel)
failed to bear fruit
(faith) even though
its leaves indicate
it was in season
(the appointed time
for the coming of
the Messiah). Due to
its lack of fruit,
the fig tree
withered. Likewise,
Israel’s lack of
faith when presented
with her Messiah led
to the eventual
destruction of the
Jewish Temple at the
hands of the Romans
in AD 70.
For 2000
years, the nation of
Israel ceased to
exist and its people
persecuted and
cursed. They were
sent into exile and
dispersed into all
the other nations.
And Israel was no
more.
Let’s look at
another parable
concerning the fig
tree, Jesus
speaking:
In Luke 13.6-9: “He
spake also this
parable; a certain
man had a fig tree
planted in his
vineyard, and he
came and sought
fruit thereon, and
found none then said
he unto the dresser
of his vineyard,
Behold, these three
years I come seeking
fruit on this fig
tree and find none;
cut it down; why
cumbereth it the
ground? And he
answering said unto
him, Lord, let it
alone this year
also, till I shall
dig about it, and
dung it: and if it
bear fruit, well,
and if not, then
after that thou
shalt cut it down.”
For three years,
Jesus spread His
message throughout
Israel performing
miracles, exhibiting
unprecedented
knowledge of the
Scriptures, and
offering ample
evidence of His
claim to be the long
awaited Messiah. Yet
despite three years
of testimony, Israel
refused to believe
in the One whom God
had sent.
But God in His mercy
will give Israel
another chance very
soon and the dung He
speaks of will be
intense persecution,
so He may refine
them as silver in a
hot fire, until He
can see His image in
them. (Malachi 3:3).
The coming
Tribulation is a
time of God’s wrath
and judgment on the
earth, and for
refining Israel, as
she has had 4000
years with God
trying to teach and
reach her. A
question to you:
Is it meant
for God’s church to
be caught up between
God’s wrath, and
judgment of the
earth and refining
Israel in the fire?
We will answer that
in a moment.
ISRAEL IS THE KEY
Everyone knows that
Israel became a
nation again after
almost 2000 years of
not being a nation.
Never, I repeat,
NEVER in the history
of mankind, has a
fallen nation
resurrected to
become that nation
again, except
Israel. Israel is
compared to a
flowering fig tree
and putting on new
growth in yet
another parable
found in Luke
chapter 21, starting
in verse 29:
21:29-30 “And he
spake to them a
parable; Behold the
fig tree, and all
the trees;
when they now
shoot forth, ye see
and know of your own
selves that summer
is now nigh at
hand.”
21:31 “So likewise
ye, when ye see
these things come to
pass, know ye that
the kingdom of God
is nigh at hand.”
21:32 “Verily I say
unto you, this
generation shall not
pass away, till all
be fulfilled.”
21:33 “Heaven and
earth shall pass
away: but my words
shall not pass
away.”
21:36 “Watch ye
therefore, and pray
always, that ye may
be accounted worthy
to escape all these
things that shall
come to pass, and to
stand before the Son
of man.”
This whole 21st
chapter is pregnant
with meaning. I see
Jesus putting the
order in reverse and
the fig tree is
stated last, when
time wise, it would
have been stated
first. But I would
like to key on the
word “generation” in
verse 32. What is a
generation? Many
people have tried to
develop a timeline
for the return of
our Lord. The
Jehovah Witnesses
have been doing that
since the late 1800s
and failed. You and
I can’t do that. But
when does a
generation start?
Speculation
had it that a
generation started
in 1948. Makes
sense, as there are
numerous
illustrations found
in your Bible that
shows God deals with
people in lots of 40
years, before
judgment is passed.
But is that
applicable here?
1. So Jesus would
return in 1988, as a
generation was
theorized to be
those 40 years…as
previously
mentioned. Did not
happen.
2. They reasoned
further, that a
generation started
when Jerusalem
became the capital
of Israel again in
1967, so 2007 was
calculated to be the
time of His return.
Wrong again. Those
dates have come and
gone. Symptoms of
the end time are
piling up even
faster, as time goes
on and we’re still
here.
I believe here that
God is speaking of
the life span of
those born around
this time, as some
will be alive to
witness His coming.
The Bible speaks of
that generation
being 70 years, 80
years by strength.
(Psalm 90:10).
The whole point of
the parables about
the fig tree is that
the fig tree is
Israel. It’s been
six decades plus
since Israel was
once again declared
a nation against all
worldly odds. In
Matthew 24, again,
Jesus promises that
the generation which
witnesses the birth
of Israel as a
nation again, will
not die off until
the end of the age
comes to pass…What
is the end of the
age? The return of
Jesus Christ the
Lord and King and
Ruler of this world
for a 1000-year
reign. A lot of you
reading this article
were born in the
1950s or earlier,
right along side the
people who were born
in Israel during
this time of Israel
being gathered and
becoming a nation. I
was born in 1951, so
it is possible that
I will see my Lord
coming in the clouds
for His elect before
Tribulation starts
and so will you.
Given the Bible’s
impeccable track
record, we have
every reason to
expect the soon
return of our Lord
to this earth and a
wise person will
prepare accordingly.
But of this time,
Jesus, God of the
Old and New
Testament gave us
comforting words to
show us that we have
nothing to fear.
Let’s ponder on a
few scriptures that
speak of this
comfort and our hope
in Christ Jesus and
answers my question,
will the church be
caught between the
wrath of God and
refining Israel? :
Let’s go to 1
Thessalonians
4:15-18, but after
we read it, I will
go to Isaiah
26:19-21. After we
have read these two
passages, if you put
them side by side
and look at each
verse, you will see
that Isaiah in the
Old Testament states
in different words
the same thought
pattern that Paul
expressed in 1
Thessalonians:
“For this we say
unto you by the word
of the Lord, that we
which are alive and
remain unto the
coming of the Lord
shall not prevent
them which are
asleep.
For the Lord
himself shall
descend from heaven
with a shout, with
the voice of the
archangel, and with
the trump of God:
and the dead in
Christ shall rise
first:
Then we which
are alive and remain
shall be caught up
together with them
in the clouds, to
meet the Lord in the
air: and so shall we
ever be with the
Lord.
Wherefore
comfort one another
with these words.”
Now compare these
verses with Isaiah:
“Thy dead men shall
live, together with
my dead body shall
they arise. Awake
and sing, ye that
dwell in dust: for
thy dew is as the
dew of herbs, and
the earth shall cast
out the dead.
Come, my
people, enter thou
into thy chambers,
and shut thy doors
about thee: hide
thyself as it were
for a little moment,
until the
indignation be over
past. For, behold,
the LORD cometh out
of his place to
punish the
inhabitants of the
earth for their
iniquity: the earth
also shall disclose
her blood, and shall
no more cover her
slain.”
Just as God
protected His people
during the Passover
in Egypt, by the
sign of the blood
over their doors,
God in His wrath
will pass over us
because of the blood
of His Son and
remove us to where
He is. In the first
part of verse 20 in
Isaiah 26, the
prophet speaks of
chambers and
shutting thy doors
about thee. And
about hiding till He
passes by. What does
it mean?
I believe it
is explained in John
14, when Jesus said:
14:1 “Let not your
heart be troubled:
ye believe in God,
believe also in me.”
14:2 “In my Father's
house are many
mansions: if it were
not so, I would have
told you. I go to
prepare a place for
you.”
14:3 “And if I go
and prepare a place
for you, I will come
again, and receive
you unto myself;
that where I am,
there ye may be
also.”
Again in Revelation
3:10, when He speaks
to he church in
Philadelphia:
“Because thou hast
kept the word of my
patience, I also
will keep thee from
the hour of
temptation, which
shall come upon all
the world, to try
them that dwell upon
the earth.”
Until He comes
again, He tells us
how to be ready and
not be found
wanting:
1 Thessalonians
5.1-10, Paul writes
under the guidance
of the Holy Spirit:
V1. “But of the
times and the
seasons, brethren,
ye have no need that
I write unto you.”
V2. “For yourselves
know perfectly that
the day of the Lord
so cometh as a thief
in the night.”
V3. “For when they
shall say, peace and
safety; then sudden
destruction cometh
upon them, as
travail upon a woman
with child; and they
shall not escape.”
V4. “But ye,
brethren, are not in
darkness, that that
day should overtake
you as a thief.”
V5. “Ye are all the
children of light,
and the children of
the day: we are not
of the night, nor of
darkness.”
V6. “Therefore let
us not sleep, as do
others; but let us
watch and be sober.”
V7. “For they that
sleep in the night;
and they that be
drunken are drunken
in the night.”
V8. “But let us, who
are of the day, be
sober, putting on
the breastplate of
faith and love; and
for an helmet, the
hope of salvation.”
V9-10 “For God hath
not appointed us to
wrath, but to obtain
salvation by our
Lord Jesus Christ
Who died for us,
that, whether we
wake or sleep, we
should live together
with him.”
I have heard sermon
after sermon dealing
with these
Scriptures and you
could go into great
detail of doctrinal
teachings of their
meaning, but without
rambling on the
subject and just
letting the Words of
the living God speak
for itself, we can
read these verses
and see that in the
first three chapters
of Revelation, that
God is dealing with
His church. Then
taking all the other
Scriptures that I
have quoted,
supports that God
will remove us from
His coming wrath and
move us out of the
way, as many
examples shown in
the Word of God.
These examples show
God’s people being
removed before His
Wrath is unleashed.
When will that be?
Many have tried to
speculate the Lord's
return just as the
Jehovah Witnesses
have done to their
error.
We don’t know for
sure, not with any
certainty, as Jesus
told us. Only the
Father knows the
exact date and the
exact hour, BUT we
know the season. And
my brethren, we are
living in the last
days of that season.
Are you prepared and
waiting for His
blessed return? Have
you put on the
likeness of our Lord
and Savior Jesus
Christ? Have you put
on the whole armor
of God
(Ephesians
6:11-18) seeking to
endure to the end?
If not, I believe
it’s time to get
prepared based on
the clear
instruction of our
Lord and Savior
Jesus Christ.
This is Pastor Mike
Taylor, praying
God’s mercy on all
who seek Him. If you
have troubles, need
counseling, prayer,
or just a listening
ear, email me at
realteam1999@sbcglobal.net,
or visit me online
for more biblical
commentary at
www.churchofgod-usa.org.
God bless ‘till we
meet at Jesus’ feet.