Are prophecies in Scripture meant to be simple warning?

Several years ago, a book came out called the Bible code.  A mathematician had discovered that you could take the Torah as it was originally written in Hebrew, and you could find different codes encrypted within it.  They found codes predicting the 2000 election and how a judge would decide it's outcome, to more ominous codes about 9/11 and world wars.  The writer of the book decided that prophecies and codes found in Scripture were meant to be warnings about what might be.

While I don't know how much stock I put into these "Bible Codes," I do know that the Bible is a prophetic book.  It is full of prophecies which we have already seen fulfilled and others which are yet to be fulfilled. In fact, approximately one-fourth of the Bible was prophetic at the time it was written.  There are enough prophecies right before our eyes to be concerned with, without searching for hidden codes and mysteries encrypted in the original texts.  I'm not knocking groups and individuals who have made them a hobby.  They are very interesting! I'm just saying we can keep ourselves occupied with the prophecies before our eyes on the pages of Scripture.

But let's deal a moment with the premise that prophecies were just warnings.  THAT IS ILLOGICAL AND INACCURATE! It is illogical because true prophecy is "History written in advance." According to Scripture, the litmus test for a prophet is whether his/her prophecies come true! The very nature of a prophet and prophecy is that there is an element of foretelling the future.  And from Scripture and History, we see that prophecies have already been fulfilled, EXACTLY as the prophet said it would!

So, on this blog, when we deal with prophecy, we will approach it from the standpoint of what it says will happen, and then apply it to current events to see that we are possibly seeing their fulfillment in our lifetime.  If there is a warning to be given from studying prophecy, it is that as we see the day approaching of Christ's return, we should purify ourselves (making sure we're right with God) and occupy ourselves (telling others about Jesus) with Greater Urgency knowing that our time is short.  If you're not saved, you must repent (turn from your sin) and receive Jesus as your Savior and Lord, or you will perish in the Wrath to Come!

As for prophecies that we are seeing fulfilled in our lifetime, which point to the soon return of the Lord and the fact that we're living in the Last Days, we go to the words of our Lord Jesus.  In Matthew 24:3, it is recorded that the Disciples asked Him to "Tell us when these things shall be (speaking of the destruction of the Temple in 70 A.D.); and WHAT SHALL BE THE SIGN OF THY COMING, and of the end of the world." They wanted to know what it would be like before the Temple was destroyed, and because they listened to Jesus, History tells us that they fled to the Mountains when Jerusalem was surrounded by Armies and not a Christian was killed when the Romans destroyed it. GLAD THEY LISTENED TO AND STUDIED PROPHECY!  But they also wanted to know what it would be like when Christ returned.  History does repeat itself, and so the signs given were both for the immediate future when the Temple would be destroyed and the distant future when Christ would return.  SO WHAT ARE THE SIGNS JESUS GAVE?

In verses 4 and 5, He said it would be a time of deception where many would come saying they were Christ.  We've lived to see that, whether from cult leaders like David Koresh and Jim Jones, or from the Christ Consciousness of the New Age Movement with leaders like Oprah Winfrey, Eckhart Tolley, Deepak Chopra and others. 

In verse 6, He said it would be a time of trouble with wars and rumors of wars.  We know from other Scriptures [go to the blog about the Epicenter and read more], we know that these end times battles have to do with Israel, oil, and religion.  Zechariah 12:3, from which this blog gets its name, tells us that in particular the last battles will be over the City of Jerusalem.  And what do we see occurring in recent weeks and the last year? We see conflicts involving Israel and the Arabs.  We see the Muslim world becoming more radical; and we see Russia and the Arabs forging coalitions against America and Israel.  Just as the Prophet Ezekiel said would happen 2,500+ years ago! What is this screaming?  JESUS IS COMING SOON! PREPARE! GET READY!!!

In verse 7, he said that there would be famines, earthquakes and pestilences (diseases).  We see each of these on an almost daily basis as we open our newspapers or turn on the TV News channels!  We could go on verse by verse through the rest of the Chapter, but for sake of time, I'll just encourage you to do that! PROPHECY IS BEING FULFILLED IN FRONT OF OUR EYES AS WE WATCH IT ON THE NIGHTLY NEWS!!!

Friend, as plainly as I can make it, I DON'T BELIEVE WE HAVE MUCH TIME! If you've been riding the Fence about Jesus, it's time to choose which side you're going to be on in this end times battle.  Have you repented of your sins and turned your life over to Jesus Christ as Lord?  If not, you need to make preparation today by doing that! And saved friends, are you living for Jesus and sharing Him with a lost world in light of His soon return? If not, GET BUSY! Let's redeem the time and make every day count for Jesus as if it would be our last! IT JUST MIGHT BE!!! GOD BLESS & MARANATHA!!!