Are we living in the last days?

Gen. 6:5-8
Matt. 24:37-39

We are living in a time when much is being said of the Lord’s return.  It seems to be the topic of much conversation. I recently read a poll that said, "Over twenty percent of the people feel that the Lord could return this year."  Many people have gotten in trouble by trying to predict when the Lord will return; some have ruined their ministries by trying to predict the time of His coming.  

In 1988, a best seller was written entitled, Eighty- eight Reasons That the Lord Will Return in 1988.  Needless to say, 1988 has come and gone and the Lord hasn’t come back yet. Though we don't know the time of His coming, we can learn a great deal about His return from the Bible.  We know, for instance, that things will be much like they were in biblical days.  For example, there are two things that the average person doesn't want anymore:  (1) They don't want to be corrected, and (2) They don't want to be convicted.  In other words, the people of today are like the people in Isaiah’s day (read Isaiah 30:8-10).

Now, in regard to His return, if we examine more closely God’s Word, we can learn some very important things to watch for in respect to His coming again.  Therefore, I believe the best way for us to gain the right perspective on this very important event is to contrast the conditions that existed in Noah’s day at the time of the flood with the conditions that will exist at the time of Jesus’ second coming.  

First, what was it like in Noah’s day?  

1.   It was a time of great population explosion (read Gen. 6:1).

            This is very true today also.  There are over 129,000 new births daily. The world’s
           population has doubled since 1961.  Even with the murder of babies (abortion)
           the population is still growing at an alarming rate.  

2.  It was a time of great moral corruption (read Gen. 6:5).  

A person only has to read the paper, watch television, or listen to the news to see that our country has gone the way of Sodom.  For example, when a gay pride parade can garner over 400,000 marchers in New York City , one can easily see where the morals of our country have gone.  

3.   It was a time of great violence (read Gen. 6:11).  

One only has to look on the front page of our newspapers to see how true this is today.  The murder rate in our country has doubled since 1965.  

4.  It was a time of few true believers (read Gen. 6: 8-10).    

Only eight people got on the Ark after it was prepared.  Similarly, we are living in an era of all-time-high church membership; however, church attendance is at an all-time low.  

Now, let’s examine what it will be like when the Lord returns:  

1.    It will be a time of great spiritual decline (read I Tim. 4:1-2, II Tim. 3:1-7).  

             Let me share a few statistics about our churches today:    

                   50% of church members don't attend Sunday school

                   60% of church members don't attend Sunday night services

                   80% of church members don't attend mid-week prayer meetings

                   95% of church members haven’t led one soul to the Lord  

Most of our leading universities such as Harvard, Yale, Princeton, and Columbia were founded by Christians.  All these universities started out to be great schools; unfortunately, they have ended up in apostasy.  Add to this the fact that the Episcopal Church was the first to ordain an openly Gay minister and we can clearly see the continued spiritual decline of this great country.             

2.   It will be a time of shameless depravity (read Titus 1:15-16).  

It seems as if the motto of America is, "If it feels good, do it."  Jeremiah, the prophet, wrote about a time like this in Jer. 6:10-15.  

Since the mini skirt became “fashionable,” rape has gone up over 60%.  We are living in a country that sells 19 million sex magazines a week.  Over $2 billion dollars is spent annually on pornographic materials.  One out of every five Americans believes in astrology.  

3.   It will be a time of sudden destruction (read Gen 7:21).  

Notice it was every person (except Noah and his family) that died in the flood.  We are living in this time today, a time when God could easily destroy the earth and remake it as His Word promises.  And, if we think the atomic bomb was destructive, all the depravity we are experiencing today will make the atom bomb look like a firecracker (read II Peter 3:10).   

In Noah’s day, God gave the people 120 years to repent.  I wonder how long He will give America ?  

4.  It will be a time of little devotion (read  Gen. 7:7).  

In Noah’s day, there was a small remnant of believers just as there is today.  God will always have His people.   

There is only one way to prepare for the Lord’s coming, and that is to accept Him as your personal Lord and Savior.  If you aren’t ready for the Lord’s return, why not get ready today while you have the opportunity?  Click on How to Be Saved to learn how.  

I hope that this message has been of assistance to you.  May God bless you is my prayer.