The Christ in Prophecy Journal

Jesus is Returning in Our Time: The Key Sign

Whenever I present an overview of the signs of the times that point to the soon return of Jesus, I am often confronted by someone — often a professing Christian — who will say, “Come on David, these signs you are talking about have always existed in one degree or another, so what else is new?” They will then proceed to point out that there have always been wars and rumors of war, there have always been natural calamities, and throughout history Christians have always been persecuted. Then comes the inevitable challenge: “Show me something really new and unique that clearly points to our day and time as the season of the Lord’s return.”

The challenge is understandable, but it is not entirely legitimate. That’s because Jesus said the end time signs would be like “birth pangs” (Matthew 24:8). In other words, the signs would increase in frequency and intensity as the time draws near for Jesus to return. There would be more earthquakes, and more intense ones. Wars would be more frequent and more horrible in their degree of devastation. And that, of course, is exactly what happened in the 20th Century. The signs began to increase exponentially in both frequency and intensity, and they continue to do so to this day.

But still, it is legitimate to ask if there are any signs that are truly unique to our day and time — signs that have never existed before. Are there new signs that clearly point to this period of history as the time of the Lord’s return? The answer is yes.

A Key Prophecy

A verse that immediately comes to mind in this regard is found in Daniel 12. Daniel was given many prophecies by the Lord. Those relating to his day and time he clearly understood. He even seemed to understand prophecies that the Lord gave him relating to distant times, such as the succession of Gentile empires that would ultimately lead to the establishment of the Roman Empire. But when it came to prophecies about the end times — the period leading up to the Lord’s return as King of kings and Lord of lords — Daniel did not understand what was revealed to him.

He wrestled mightily with the prophecies and finally cried out to the Lord in despair. “I have heard,” he said, “but I do not understand! What do these events mean?” (Daniel 12:8). The Lord, in effect, responded by saying, “Cool it, Daniel, because it is not for you to understand!” The Lord’s actual words were: “Go your way, Daniel, for these words are concealed and sealed up until the end time” (Daniel 12:9). It was Daniel’s responsibility to deliver the prophecies, not to understand them.

Note that Daniel was told the prophecies would not be understood “until the end time.” In fact, in the very next verse the Lord told Daniel that at the proper time “those who have insight will understand” (Daniel 12:10).

Accordingly, there are many end time prophecies that have never been understood until now, either because their understanding depended on historical events or because they were dependent upon technological developments. The fact that these prophecies have become understandable in recent years for the first time ever is proof positive that we are living in the end times.

The next article will look at examples of modern day signs that Jesus is returning in our time from the book of Revelation.

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Dr. David Reagan

Dr. David Reagan is the Founder and Evangelist Emeritus of Lamb & Lion Ministries. He is a life-long Bible student, teacher, and preacher and he led over 45 pilgrimages to Israel. Dr. Reagan was the host of the radio then television program Christ in Prophecy for nearly 40 years.

4 CommentsLeave a Comment

  • Hello Dr. Reagan

    “Come on David, these signs you are talking about have always existed in one degree or another, so what else is new?”

    Given that my first name is David too, the above statement was made to me almost verbatim just last month when I said how amazed I was that prophetic events were lining up, and that I really believed that we were drawing very close to major end times events.

    The prophetic, Biblical framework of your article is very nicely laid out, and the urgency with which it speaks to us that time is short should spur us all on to reach out more earnestly than ever to the lost with the gospel of Jesus Christ.

    Just last week I viewed a brand new web site that boldly claims to be Christian. It has Christian symbolism attractively displayed, uses Christian “terminology”, and invites people to make use their vast amounts of information. As a follower of the Jesus Christ of the Bible, it only took a few short moments to determine that this was a cult web site, and not Christian at all.

    The president’s chief of staff said the no crisis should be wasted. While I do not share a belief in the context in which this sentiment was expressed, I certainly think it applies in our context as believers in these days in which we live.

    Things are moving quickly, and there will be people looking for the answer to their questions. We have Him. I pray that these tumultuous times will not be wasted.

    Your ministry magazine has been a vast help to myself and I am sure to many others.

    Thank you, and blessings.
    David

  • The context of the former senator’s chief of staff was “lets exploit this crisis to do things we would never would have been able to get away with in the past”. This is one Christian that doesn’t see the coming of Christ as an opportunity for exploitation. Very bad analogy.

  • Yeah, the word “exploit” just sounds bad. It’s first meaning means to take unfair advantage of and can mean to abuse; As in “Let’s exploite some children to entertain some pediphiles because we can.”

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