Part 1 of the Mark of the Beast Series

One of the great questions inside and outside of the Christian community is, “Is Jesus’ coming near or will “all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation” [2 Pe 3:3-4]?”.

Some say we can never know the day or the hour [Matt 24:36]. However, He never said never. Furthermore, the same Jesus who said that no one knew the day or the hour also said:

Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.

Matthew 24:32-33, KJV

Just as the fig tree has tender branches and starts producing leaves to indicate the coming of summer, there are certain signs, Christ says, that will indicate that His coming is also near. In fact, not just near but, “at the doors” [Mark 13:29].

The events that lead up to Christ’s second coming were delineated in Matthew 24, Mark 13 and Luke 21 in response to a question from the disciples, “….what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?” [Matt 24:3]. There is, also, another major sign revealed in Revelation 6. However, these signs were simplified and grouped together in the book, “The Great Controversy”, on page 304 for our ease of understanding. Notice the quote below:

Prophecy not only foretells the manner and object of Christ’s coming, but presents tokens by which men are to know when it is near. Said Jesus: “There shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars.” [Luke 21:25.] “The sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken. And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory.” [Mark 13:24-26.] The Revelator thus describes the first of the signs to precede the second advent: “There was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon become as blood.” [Revelation 6:12.] . GC88 304.1

The Great Controversy, Page 304, Paragraph 1

Here is a list of these signs which indicate that Jesus’ coming is near, according to the Bible:

  1. A great earthquake [Revelation 6:12]
  2. The sun and moon are darkened1 [Revelation 6:12; Mark 13:24-26; Luke 21:25]
  3. The stars fall from heaven [Revelation 6:12; Mark 13:24-26; Luke 21:25]
  4. Powers of heaven shall be shaken (unfulfilled yet) [Mark 13:24-26; Luke 21:25]

Three of these signs have been already fulfilled as follows:

  1. Nov 1, 1755 – The earthquake of Lisbon2
  2. May 19, 1780 – The darkening of the sun and moon3
  3. Nov 13, 1833 – The Leonid Meteor Shower of 18334

What does this mean? Out of these 4 signs, there only remains one more. However, the world is no more ready for Christ’s second coming than the Jews were for His first arrival on earth. The world, Christ says, will be like it was right before the flood. People were absorbed in self-indulgence and lust and were willfully inattentive to the fact that a flood would come and destroy them, despite Noah preaching about it, faithfully, for 120 years [Gen 6:3; 2 Pe 2:5]. Likewise, many are unaware of Christ’s second coming which will destroy those who cling to sin and refuse to repent [2 Th 2:8].

“But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 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, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.”

Matthew 24:37-39, KJV

With the realization of the nearness of Christ’s coming, one can ponder the next question, “Who is the man of sin?”. In the book of 2 Thessalonians, Paul expressed that Christ’s coming would happen after the revealing of the “man of sin” [2 Th 2:1-3]. This man of sin, also named “the antichrist”, is prophesied to exalt himself above God and he would do it while sitting in the “temple of God” [2 Th 2:4]! This means that the very antichrist would, actually, be a head of a, seemingly, christian church.

Furthermore, this man of sin, would usher in the “mark of the beast” crisis that many christians have been watching out for. To learn who this “man of sin” is and, eventually, what the mark of the beast is, review the next post in this Mark of the Beast Series.

The Man of Sin is Revealed! (Part 2)
  1. The sun and moon being darkened are one sign because both were “darkened” in my humble opinion. ↩︎
  2. https://www.britannica.com/event/Lisbon-earthquake-of-1755 ↩︎
  3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_England%27s_Dark_Day ↩︎
  4. https://leonid.arc.nasa.gov/history.html ↩︎