The only solution to our world's dilemma lies with God. The Prince of Peace stands at the door of men's hearts while men vainly seek for peace. Soon God will say, "It is finished!" And to this generation God has sent a warning message, and also a message of hope.

John 14:1-3 "^[1]Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. ^[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. ^[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."

     This is the answer to our world's problems! The blessed hope of Christ's return! Christ "will" return and that alone will end all of earth's problems. These verses are the theme of the Bible. First we see Christ as a sin-pardoning Saviour, secondly as a risen Saviour who "is coming back!" The blessed hope of the New Testament - Titus 2:13! The blessed hope of the Old Testament - Job 19:25-27! Now you may say, "How do we know that He is coming and the world will end?"

In Matthew the disciples had the same question:

Matthew 24:3 "And as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came unto Him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? And what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?"

Jesus answered in verse 36:

Matthew 24:36 "But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only."

     We can't set times and dates. However, Christ then answered His disciples in Matthew 24 and gave 20 clear signs, and prophecies that were to take place to let us know when it's "near." You will find to your amazement that nearly all of these signs have been fulfilled, many in the last few years. The Bible prophecies point to one great fact, Jesus is coming "soon!" Verses 32-33 illustrate this:

Matthew 24:32-33 "^[32]Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branches is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: ^[33] So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors."

     The reason Christ gave these signs is found in Luke:

Luke 21:34 "And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares."

     Through His Word God is drawing back the curtain to let His people see what's coming. These signs will take place on a worldwide scale. Let's look and see their fulfilment.

Matthew 24:5,11 "^[5]For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. ^[11] And many false prophets shall arise, and shall deceive many."

     There would be confusion in the religious world and a rise in false religions, false Christs, and false prophets. Today we see more of this than ever in our world's history. Look now at verse 24:

Matthew 24:24 "For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect."

     Then in II Timothy 3:1,5 we read another sign of a form of religion without power.

2 Timothy 3:1,5 "^[1]This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come... ^[5] Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away."

Statistics prove these verses true. A radio commentator recently said:

     "There are one hundred and sixteen million churchgoers in the United States, more than ever before. We have more church members today than ever before in the history of America. This is an increase of 30 percent in the last ten years. But illegitimacy has increased 300 percent. Pornography has become a five billion dollar a year business. Venereal disease has increased 72 percent in one year. Our crime bill is billions of dollars a year and crime is increasing five times faster than our population. For every dollar that we spend on churches, we spend $20 on crime. Our nation now has five million alcoholics and three-and-a-half million problem drinkers. You combine all of our churches, all of our synagogues, and all the temples and they're outnumbered by taverns by 213,955!"

     According to the Census Bureau our nation now counts "193,000 bartenders" and only "167,000 ministers" of the gospel. If you combine all the money that we spend on religion, education, medicine, and automobiles it still doesn't equal what is spent by gamblers alone. Ours is the most civilized, the most Christianized nation on earth, yet "37 million of our own children receive absolutely no religious instruction."

     A recent poll of Protestant clergymen conducted by sociologist Jeffrey Hadden revealed the following (10,000 clergymen, of whom 7,441 replied, were asked four questions):

1. Do you accept Jesus' physical resurrection as a fact?
   51 % of Methodist said, "No."
   35 % of United Presbyterians said "No."
   30 % of Episcopalians said, "No".
   33 % of American Baptist said, "No."
   13 % of American Lutherans said, "No."
     7 % of Missouri Synod Lutherans said, "No."

2. Do you believe in the virgin birth of Jesus?
   60 % of Methodists said, "No."
   44 % of Episcopalians said, "No."
   49 % of Presbyterians said, "No."
   34 % of Baptists said, "No."
   19 % of American Lutherans said, "No."
     5 % of Missouri Synod Lutherans said, "No."

3. Do you believe in an evil demon power in the world today?
   62 % of Methodists said, "No."
   37 % of Episcopalians said, "No."
   47 % of Presbyterians said, "No."
   33 % of Baptists said, "No."
   14 % of American Lutherans said, "No."
     9 % of Missouri Synod Lutherans said, "No."

4. Do you believe that the Scriptures are the inspired and inerrant Word of God in faith, history, and secular matters?
   87 % of Methodists said, "No."
   95 % of Episcopalians said, "No."
   82 % of Presbyterians said, "No."
   67 % of American Baptists said, "No."
   77 % of American Lutherans said, "No."
   24 % of Missouri Synod Lutherans said, "No."

Matthew 24:6-7 "^[6]And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. ^[7] For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places."

     Jesus here turns from the religious world to prophecy about the political and natural world. We see around us wars and strife. The world's nations are in constant battle with no end in site. TV and media daily show the horrors of war all around us. America is spending billions of dollars each year on arms and defence, and we have now seen two world wars. The United Nations recently held 81 sessions in 18 months to resolve the problems of war but "not one single problem was settled." Never have these words of Jesus been so fulfilled as today.

Matthew 24:7 "For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places."

     "Famines". Bangladesh, a country the size of Florida, has over 100,000,000 people in it and no food. India has 638 million, 618 million are malnourished, and starving. Ninety percent of earth's nations produce less food than it takes to feed themselves. Weekly we see on TV and in magazines, graphic pictures illustrating this prophecy.

     "Pestilences". Pestilences continue to grow worldwide as science continues to uneffectively combat them.

     "Earthquakes." Recent statistics stated: There have been more earthquakes in the last 15 years than in the previous 50 years. All in diverse places of the earth. From California, Guatemala, Alaska, Turkey, China and Russia, with increasing frequency we hear of another one somewhere on earth. "Never has it been like this before in earth's history."

Matthew 24:37-39 "^[37]But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. ^[38] For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, ^[39] And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall the coming of the Son of man be."

     What does it mean, they "knew not"? They had opportunity to know for 120 years! Yet so conditioned were these people by the signs of the times that they "knew not."

     Is it possible today that the signs of false Christs, war, earthquakes, pestilence, and famine are also all around us and we "know not?"

Jesus said, "like the days of Noah." What was Noah's day like?

Genesis 6:5,11 "^[5] And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually... ^[11] The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence."

     It was characterized by violence, crime, and lawlessness. "That's exactly like our world today." Crime is climbing fast. In 1960 there were 3,400,000 major crimes committed in the United States each year. By 1974 it went up to 10,000,000! And today 60% of all Americans have been victims of a major crime. 58% of those people have been victimized twice. 30,000 people a year commit suicide, 60% steal things from work, 29% shoplift, 35% have had a car stolen, and 27% have dealt drugs. Today it's like Noah's day in that only eight people were saved.

Luke 17:28 "Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded."

     The principle sins of Lot's cities, Sodom and Gomorrah, were immorality, homosexuality, and lesbianism. Again we see the same in our world today. Almost one-third of all married Americans (31%) have had or are now having an affair.

     Millions of Americans have AIDS. Millions of others see themselves as being at very high risk for AIDS. The "majority" of those people, both those who are certain and those who believe that they are at high risk, are "heterosexuals."

     Next the Bible prophesies what the people will be like in the last days:

II Timothy 3:1-4 "^[1] This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. ^[2] For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, ^[3] without natural affection, truce breakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, ^[4] traitors, heady, high minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God."

     Let's look at verse 2, "Disobedient to parents." Paul said there would be a generation gap.

     Let's look at verse 3, "Truce breakers." One out of two marriages ends in divorce. In 1918 the national average was one in every 33. Recently in Tulsa, Oklahoma there were more divorce applications than marriage applications!

     Let's look at verse 4, "Lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God." In the last days the theatres would be full. The sports arenas "are" full. That's why today you can get 150,000 people to pay $50 to watch a football game in the rain or snow, and yet people think they are doing you a favor when they come to a heated building with padded chairs to hear the Word of God for "free!" In the love of pleasure, Americans spend 36 billion dollars a year on alcohol! That's over $1,000 per second all year! Truly we have seen each of these prophecies fulfilled in our life time!

The Bible covers it all!

Daniel 12:4 "But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased."

     Recent statistics documented that in 70 years we have come farther in technical knowledge than in the previous 5,000 years! I'm sure some of you can remember when your family first got electricity or their first automobile? In your lifetime we now have computers, television, telecommunications and jet planes. The Concord, in two hours, flies between America and Europe. The space shuttle now travels at 25,000 miles per hour. Today this Scripture has been fulfilled before our very eyes!

     Signs of the times are fulfilled and Christ's coming is near, even at the door. There are also many practical reasons Christ has to come. Let's cover a few:

1. The vast store of weapons we have.

        Notice what the world-leading scientists who develop these bombs have to say. Sir Charles Snow said, "We know with the certainty of statistical truth, if enough of these bombs are made, in enough countries, some will blow up through accident, folly, or madness." Dr. Harold Uray (developer of the Atomic Bomb) said, "A flaming end seems inevitable. Someday there will be at the head of a government, someone crazy enough to use this bomb."

2. Newsweek recently called population explosion the "World's Greatest Problem."

        It took 5,000 years to get the first billion people on earth. It took only 100 years for the second billion, 35 years to get the third billion and only 15 years to get the forth billion. At the current growth rate, by the year 2020 there will be an estimated 16 billion people on earth! Earth is not big enough to sustain more than 7 billion and we will be there soon! "Christ has to come, and Soon!"

3. The problem of famine.

        Scientists say it will be impossible to feed everyone by 2020. Millions today are already going hungry every day!

4. The problem of pollution.

        Forty million people in Latin America can't use their water due to pollution and it has to be shipped in daily. Our water in most major cities comes from sewer pipes, where, after careful treatment it is piped back into the homes. We have acid rain, smog, oil spills, hazardous waste, the disappearing ozone layer, and hundreds of other problems too great for man to take care of! "But I'm happy to tell you that Christ's coming will take care of it all! This is the good news of Revelation. Let's read it!"

Solution to problem 1:

Revelation 11:18 "And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth."

     You don't have to worry about nuclear annihilation of the earth! Christ will come when they have the potential to destroy the earth, and "He will settle it!"

Solution to problem 2:

     You don't have to worry about population explosion.

Revelation 21:16 "And the city lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal."

      The Holy City is 375 miles square! And there will be no jails, theatres, funeral homes, or hospitals. There will be plenty of room for all!

Solution to problems 3 & 4:

     You don't have to worry about food and famine.

Revelation 7:16-17 "^[16] They shall hunger no more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. ^[17] For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes."

     The tree of life shall feed them. There will never be an end of food and water. God's coming will take care of it all! And today is the time to decide you're going to spend eternity with God.

     "God is for you! The devil is against you, each casts a vote!". Then you also cast a vote and you are the tie breaker. When Jesus says, "It's done," He will throw aside His priestly robes and put on the royal garments of King of Kings, and come again. There will be two groups on earth at that time:

The first group will "not" be happy to see Him:

Revelation 6:14-16 "^[14] And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. ^[15] And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; ^[16] And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of Him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb."

Let's not be in that number!

The second group "will be" happy to see Jesus Christ come:

Isaiah 25:9 "And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for Him, and He will save us: this is the LORD; we have waited for Him, we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation."

     I want to be in that number don't you? Christ said, "Be ye also ready, for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh."

     Noah's generation didn't think it would happen. Sodom didn't think it would happen. And now our world doesn't think it will happen. "But it's coming!" Those that are wise will be aware of the signs and prophecies. They will be ready. I invite you to make a decision today to be ready for Jesus to come.