Will Your Anchor Hold?
by Jill Southern
So what do we believe about the end times? The raging storm of world events will get worse rather than better, until every part of the world is affected. I believe our attitude to the future and the end times as believers can be a mixture of fear and fascination, part of us wanting to know what will happen, and when, and part of us definitely not.
Most people want to live in the present with as much purpose and pleasure as possible. It’s not only the world now that is saying ‘Let us eat drink and be merry for tomorrow we die!’ (Isaiah 22:13).
I’m told that six out of ten men and seven out of ten women read their horoscope every day. No popular magazine or newspaper ignores the stars. But the Bible reveals its secrets to those who read it in a humble and teachable spirit, for it’s the infallible Word of the Lord.
The Lord is the only person who’s in the position to make known the end from the beginning, and from ancient times what is still to come (Isaiah 46:10). The Lord is the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end.
Do you know that over a quarter of all verses in the bible contain a prediction about the future? 737 separate forecasts are made, of these 594, that is over 80% of the total, have already come true. My statistics come from the Encyclopedia of Biblical Prophecy by J Barton Payne, published by Hodder & Stoughton in 1973.
How extraordinary it is, then, that people would rather look to satanic rigmarole or human reason than to divine revelation! History will be brought to its conclusion not by a man pressing the button, but the breaking of the seals of a scroll in heaven, on which is already written the countdown to world events (Revelation 5:1 and 6:1).
Jesus Himself will reappear on the world stage to take personal control of the last events. This is the heart of the Christian’s hope for the future. Jesus Christ is the only hope for this world. We can’t save the planet (though of course we should steward it wisely), but this planet will completely pass away, and there’ll be a new heaven and a new earth.
The Bible describes unbelievers as ‘without hope and without God in the world’ (Ephesians 2:12). In the terrible darkness, which we read of every day in our newspapers, we should be shining beacons of hope and light in a sick, sad and sinful world.
After all, we’re the only ones who know how it will all end. The Lord Jesus Christ will defeat the devil, and the kingdom of God will come on earth as it is in heaven. Jesus, as the bridegroom, is returning for His bride. That is us. This hope is an anchor. In fact it’s the only anchor for your soul today; firm and secure.
Are you sure you know your eternal destination? Do you truly know the Lord? Are you anchored steadfast and sure in all that’s happening around you in the world today?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, You’ve said that those who seek You with all their heart will surely find You. Help me today to seek You afresh. Give me a new assurance of Your salvation. Help me to be completely anchored in You, my living hope. Enable me today to be a beacon of light in my world. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Jill Southern is the founder of Ellel Ministries Pierrepont and directed the work for 21 years. She has recently stood down from that role but still teaches on the NETS programme and has the passion to train and equip God`s people to fully walk in their destiny and calling. She is the Regional Director for Ellel Ministries International in South East Asia and China and is also on the Executive Leadership of the ministry.
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