End Time Prophecies

While studying the return of our great God and King, it is quite evident that one can get lost in the sea of information on this most important matter. I believe that we as believers need to be “Ready” for His return. For one to be “Ready” they must be informed. It’s not beyond our ability to know His return as some suppose. But as the friend’s of God, He has shared with us His whole plan of redemption. He has also spoken forth “that He will do nothing without first revealing it to His prophets (Amos 3:7). Hidden within His word, recorded by the prophets, is a vast sea of information regarding His plans, which includes His imminent return.

What is foremost in discerning His return is knowing our identity in Christ. What truly is our identity? The whole purpose of our existence is to provide a bride for Jesus. This is revelatory to all that God is doing and has already done. To miss this point, is to add obscurity and speculation to the doctrine , times, and epochs of His return.

Adam was a shadow of Christ and all that God was doing through Adam was a prophetic act of what Jesus was to do on the cross. Adam willing chose to be put to sleep, which is synonymous with death, so as to obtain a bride. He regarded intimacy as being greater than the fear of death. Therefore, he laid down his life and shed his blood in order to have a bride and experience intimacy. Jesus the last Adam did the same thing. A matter of fact, Paul says that what God spoke over Adam right after He brought him his bride, Eve, was nothing other than a visual aid and understanding of the true application of Genesis 2:24 to that of Christ and His bride. “Therefore a man shall leave his mother and father and shall cleave to his wife and the two shall become one flesh. This mystery is great, but I am speaking in reference to Christ and the church (Ephesians 5:32 &32). There is more to this truth which I want get into right now. You can read my book “You Are at the Time for Love” for more information on the bride.

Once we can get a grasp of being created exclusively for God’s pleasure then will we be able to follow this love story and return of Christ for His bride and intimacy with her. We must see that Jesus came to earth as the Bridegroom. Look at these few examples from Scripture. In John chapter two Jesus’ mother asked Him to provide wine for the wedding when it had ran out. He said to her “Woman, what do I have to do with you? My hour has not come” (John 2:4). What did He mean, “My hour has not come”? Some say it was not His hour to perform miracles? But within minutes He turns water into wine, this being His first miracle. If we understand Jewish customs we will see that it was the bridegroom’s responsibility to provide wine for the guest not the guest to provide wine for the bridegroom. At the marriage of the Lamb, Jesus will provide wine for His entire guest. It was not “His hour for marriage”, this is what He was saying to His mother.

Again John’s disciples came to Him and asked, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast bur your disciples do not fast”. He said, “The attendants of the “Bridegroom” can’t mourn as long as the “Bridegroom” is with them, can they (Matthew 9:15)? He answered them not religiously but as a man preparing for a wedding, precisely what He was on earth doing. Now for us to understand the gospel message we must study Jewish marriage customs. You can read this also in my book or search the web. I can’t stress the importance of understanding Jesus’ mission as the Bridegroom to that of His return! Once we can think in terms of Jesus as the Bridegroom and His mission and how He preached in light of the marriage customs of His times, then will we be able to grasp the end time events and theology of His return. This has been the key ingredient in our error of setting dates and events of His return.

There is so much I would like to share and teach on this matter but first I would like to stir up our hearts to this truth of our literal marriage to Christ. Then maybe our hearts will be filled with the thoughts of His coming and prepare our soon consummation with Christ.

When we learn the truth that we are God’s bride first and foremost then everything will line up. Understanding Jewish weddings will help us to see the order of the Lords return. In the wedding we will learn that it correlates and parallels with the seven appointed feast of the Lord. His feast literally means appointed times. God precisely followed the feast and wedding customs of the Jews to the Messiahs first coming and He will follow through with the remaining three feasts in His return! If we take this wedding seriously and know it customs and its order, we want try and guess his return to be Pentecost and Passover knowing these have past but will keep with the order of the marriage.

When Jesus was asked what will be the sign of His coming and of the end of the age, He lists many signs and events for us to watch for (Matthew 25). He continues to answer the question in chapter 26 as well. He says, the kingdom of heaven will be comparable to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. This is what the end time will look like, men who have come to understand their calling as God’s bride. But in His next parable he compares the kingdom of God as slaves to their master. These are the ones who still have yet to see God as their real Bridegroom. Some are faithful and are rewarded a slaves reward. I wander if this could mean there are two companies of people at the coming of Christ.? I’ll leave that for another letter. The question is who will we chose to be, the bride or His slave! See Hose 2:16