Greg Laurie - Israel: The Eye of the Hurricane of the End Times (01/05/2018)
- Watch
- Donate
- Become Partner
Pastor Greg Laurie teaches from Matthew 24 and Ezekiel 38 that Israel’s rebirth as a nation in 1948 is the super sign of the end times—like the fig tree budding. He highlights her role at the center of last-days events, including a coming invasion from the north, and urges believers to wake up, sober up, and suit up for Christ’s soon return.
Israel: The Super Sign of the End Times
Alright, I am going to ask you to turn to two passages of Scripture. Matthew 24 and Ezekiel 38. Matthew 24 and Ezekiel 38. Paul, have the monitors on up here? And the title of my message is "Israel, the Eye of the Hurricane of the End Times." Now we have been looking at what the Bible says about the last days together as a part of a series in a series. Our bigger series is called Follow Me in this mini-series. So Matthew 24 has been called Ready or Not. And we have seen that the Bible is the one book that dares to predict the future. And we can look back and see how the Bible has been accurate in what was the future then but is history now as it spoke of the coming of Jesus the first time. And then we can be confident that when the Bible speaks of our future where Scripture promises He will return again that God will indeed keep His promises.
Now we have looked at a lot of the signs of the times. But I have saved what I believe is the most important for last. And I am talking about the nation Israel. And her regathering together in the land again. That is not just a sign of the times. That could be described as a super sign of the times. And the Bible speaks of a number of key events that are related to the Holy Land in the end times. Number one, the Bible predicted that Israel would be scattered throughout the world and then regathered together as a nation. Secondly, the Bible says that the Antichrist, the coming world leader, will make a covenant with Israel and rebuild their temple for them and ultimately desecrate it—what is described by Jesus as the abomination of desolation.
Key End-Times Events Centered on Israel
The Bible predicts that the battle of Armageddon will be fought in the valley of Megiddo in the land of Israel in the end times. The Bible also predicts that a large force from the north of Israel will attack her again in the last days after she is regathered together in the land. And finally the Bible tells us that Christ will come back to Israel setting foot on the Mount of Olives. As a matter of fact the message that we are reading is known as the Olivet Discourse. The words of Matthew 24 were delivered by Christ on the Mount of Olives in response to the question, What will be the sign of your coming? So that is what we have been looking at together.
Today we are going to focus on Matthew 24:32-34. Jesus says, "Now learn the parable from the fig tree. When its branches become tender and puts forth leaves you know that summer is near. So likewise when you see all these things, know that it is near at the doors. Assuredly I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all of these things be fulfilled." So Jesus tells us now to look at a fig tree. Why is that important? What is a fig tree a symbol of? Well it is clear that in Scripture a fig tree is a symbol of the nation Israel. On more than one occasion God compares Israel to a fig tree.
The Fig Tree and Dry Bones Prophecy
In Hosea 9:10 God says, "I found Israel like grapes in the wilderness. I saw your fathers as the firstfruits on the fig tree in its first season." So Jesus is telling us that the rebirth of Israel, or the budding of the fig tree, will be a super sign of the last days. And the prophet Ezekiel told us the same thing. Ezekiel was told to stand over a valley of dry bones. And then God asked Ezekiel a question. "Son of man, can these bones live?" And as Ezekiel stood there, the bones came back together. And flesh returned to the bones. And then God interpreted it for him. And said in Ezekiel 37:11, "Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They indeed say our bones are dry, our hope is lost, and we ourselves are cut off. Therefore prophesy and say to them, Thus says the Lord, Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up from your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel."
So Ezekiel is told to preach to a bunch of people in graves. Talk about a dead audience. They come alive and God says this is my people coming back to their land again. Interesting how it says they will say our hope is lost. One of the greatest tragedies in human history is the holocaust. It took place during World War II. I don't know if the United States understood the full impact of what was happening to the Jewish people throughout Europe. But Hitler had come up with this idea that was implemented by those that assisted him. Men like Adolf Eichmann and Heinrich Himmler and others to bring about what they called the final solution. And that was the incomplete eradication of the Jewish race from Europe.
From Holocaust to Israel's Rebirth
They wanted to kill as many Jewish people as possible. They thought of them as subhuman. At first they just had German soldiers shoot them. But they didn't have the stomach for it. They needed a more, shall we say, efficient way of doing it. And they came up with these horrific death camps. These concentration camps with names like Treblinka and Ravensbrück and of course the famed Auschwitz where six million Jewish men, women, and children were gassed, shot, tortured, experimented on, and put to death. This was devastating for the Jewish people globally. But an amazing thing began to happen despite this horrible tragedy. The Jewish people began to realize perhaps for the first time collectively we cannot expect others to protect us. No one will stand up for us. We need to get back to our land.
And the Jews began to return to Israel. On May 14, 1948 history was made when Israel became a nation. That was not the first time she was a nation. She had been a nation for thousands of years. But she was born again as a nation. Reunified as a people. And the prophetic time clock started to tick. A very significant moment. Tim LaHaye, in his book Are We Living in the End Times, said, quote, "The smell of the Holocaust is still fresh in their memories," end quote. In the 1950s Israeli Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion said, quote, "Ezekiel 37 has been fulfilled and the nation Israel is hearing the footsteps of the Messiah," end quote.
Israel at the Center of World Attention
And then on Holocaust Remembrance Day, January 27, 2010, in Auschwitz, Poland, Benjamin Netanyahu, the current Prime Minister of Israel, made this amazing statement, and I quote, "We have returned to our homeland from every corner of the earth. The Jewish people rose from ashes, dry bones became covered with flesh, a spirit filled them, and they lived and stood on their own feet, as Ezekiel prophesied." And then Netanyahu went on to quote Ezekiel 37 verses 11 to 12. Amazing. I mean, if a pastor said that, it is one thing. But for the Prime Minister of Israel to acknowledge that the Jewish people regathered together as a nation is a fulfillment of Bible prophecy, I don't know if Mr. Netanyahu has read Ezekiel 37 and 38. But that is what follows. And we will look at that in a few moments of what is still yet to come for Israel.
But Bible prophecy was fulfilled. But this tiny little piece of real estate known as Israel is practically on the front pages of our newspaper every single day. This tiny sliver of land which at one point is only nine miles wide. The entire country is about the size of New Jersey with a population of 7,441,000. Yet the focus and attention of the world is constantly on Israel. And specifically on Jerusalem. Why? The answer is quite simple. Israel is at the eye of the hurricane of the great events of the end times. She occupies center stage in God's drama of the ages. As my friend Joel Rosenberg says, Jerusalem is the epicenter of world events. And we see that playing out before our very eyes.
God's Promise to Abraham and Jerusalem's Role
God predicted this long ago. And God gave to Abraham a special promise. He said, "I will bless those that bless you and I will curse those that curse you." Get out your history book. And look at any nation that has raised its hand against Israel or against the Jewish people and see how that turned out for them. Nations like Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Rome, and in a more modern time Spain and Germany, and perhaps very soon Russia, have turned against Israel and have paid a price. And one of the reasons that God has blessed our country, the United States of America, has been because of our support of the nation Israel. And that is why it is a big mistake for us to move away from that. Because God said, "I will bless those that bless you," speaking of the Jewish people. "And curse those that curse you."
And God also said that Jerusalem would be the hot spot of the globe. Jerusalem. Ironically the very name means city of peace. Yet more wars have been fought at her gates than any other city on the face of the earth. You remember years ago there was an expression during a presidential campaign, "It's the economy, stupid." Remember that? Now we could say, in current international politics, "It's Jerusalem, stupid." Look at Jerusalem. Why is it such a hot spot? Because it is a city of the past, the present, and the future.
Jerusalem: Past, Present, and Future
First of all Jerusalem is a city of the past. It became the capital of Israel under King David. It was actually known as the city of David. It was there in Jerusalem that the first and the second temple were built. It was there in Jerusalem at Mount Moriah, which is the area that we know now as the Temple Mount, that Abraham was willing to offer his son Isaac to the Lord. It is a city of the past. But Jerusalem is also the city of the present. After the modern state of Israel was declared in 1948 a war of independence left the city of Jerusalem divided, with Jordan maintaining control over the old city including the Temple Mount and most of the historic sites. But during the Six-Day War in 1967, and I might add when Israel was attacked, they were able to regain control of all of Jerusalem. And for the first time in many centuries Jerusalem was under control of the Jewish people again, and the prophetic clock was ticking.
The city of the past. The city of the present. Listen. Jerusalem is the city of the future. The Bible tells us that the final conflict of mankind is not going to be fought over Paris, or Rome, or Los Angeles, or New York City, or San Bernardino, or Pedalee, or any other city like that. It is going to be Jerusalem. That is why the Bible says pay attention to Jerusalem. In Luke 21:20 Jesus says, "When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies you will know that the time of its destruction has arrived." In Zechariah 12:2 God says, "I will make Jerusalem like an intoxicating drink to all the nearby nations and send their armies to besiege Jerusalem. I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone, a burden for the whole world."
Current Threats and Israel's Defenders
Now right now there is turmoil in the Middle East. Egypt is in chaos. Mubarak is gone. The people are still rioting in the streets. And then you have Libya which is in turmoil right now. And we wonder what is going to happen. And the concern is that radical Islamic elements might move in and do in Egypt and Libya what has already happened in Iran. There is one group that is touted as being moderate that call themselves the Muslim Brotherhood. Inexplicably our government is negotiating with them right now. However the Muslim Brotherhood has come out clearly and spoken of their desire for the eradication of Israel.
A leader of this group said that what they need in Egypt now is what they have in Iran. A true Islamic state. He said Egypt and the world of Islam as a whole needs leaders like Mahmoud Ahmadinejad which is the president of Iran. And we need a new world order with Iran and Venezuela of all people plus Hezbollah and Hamas to chase away the Americans. And this statement is made constantly. He also went on to say every day, every night brother, when I go to bed I pray to wake up the next day and say Israel wiped off the map. The Brotherhood leader said. This doesn't sound very moderate to me.
Ezekiel 38: The Coming Invasion from the North
And then you look at the president of Iran who continually speaks of wiping Israel off the face of the map. He says, "Is it possible for us to witness a world without America and Zionism? You had best know this slogan and goal are attainable and can be achieved. The regime that is occupying Jerusalem must be wiped off the map." Now you can dismiss this and say this is ridiculous but wait a second. They are developing nuclear weapons in Iran right now. They may even have them already. And so Israel is in a very difficult situation because they take these threats seriously.
I had the opportunity this last week to interview Jacob Dayan. He is the Consul General of Israel. An ambassador from Israel representing their country. And I was able to ask him a number of questions and we are going to post this entire interview on our website tomorrow if you want to watch it. But here is just a little excerpt from the interview where I talked to him about this whole situation in Iran today. (video excerpt plays) So Israel is gathering together in her land, just as the Bible predicted. But then the scripture speaks in Ezekiel 38 of a large force from the extreme north of Israel, attacking her. The Bible is very clear in pointing out this will happen in the last days, in the latter years.
Identifying Magog and Its Allies
Ezekiel 38:1, "The word of the Lord came to me saying, Son of man, set your face against Gog in the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal. Prophesy against him and say, Thus says the Lord, I am against you, O Gog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal. And I will turn you around and put hooks in your jaws and lead you out with all of your armies, horses, all splendidly clothed. Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya are with them, all with shield and helmet." Then God says in verse 8, this will happen in the latter days.
So who is Magog, this large force that will attack Israel? Well Magog biblically was the second son of Japheth who according to the Jewish historian Josephus settled north of the Black Sea. Tubal and Meshech were the fifth and sixth sons of Japheth whose descendants settled south of the Black Sea. These people came together and were known as Magog. And in Ezekiel 39:2 God says they are at the north of Israel. Any map would show that if you go to the extreme north of Israel today there sits Russia. Is Russia Magog? Well no one can say with certainty. But there are some interesting things happening that cause us to wonder if they are.
Others are mentioned. Allies that march with Magog against Israel. Ethiopia—that would be the modern day Sudan. Libya would be Libya. They haven't changed. Persia is modern Iran. Iran changed their name from Persia in 1935. These are all Islamic cultures today. And they are all anti-Israel. Now until very recently there was no real alliance to speak of between Russia and Iran. And why would there be? But yet recent developments have happened. And Russia recently signed a billion dollar deal to sell missiles and other weapons to Iran. And presently there are a thousand Iranian nuclear scientists who have been trained in Russia by Russian scientists.
God's Intervention and Israel's Future Revival
And so you have them getting together. And talking. And negotiating. And this alliance, whatever it is, whoever it is, will come against Israel. No one can say with absolute certainty Magog is Russia. But this much we know. A force known as Magog from the north of Israel will attack her. And when they attack God is going to step in. And He is going to save Israel. He is going to save the armies of Israel. He is going to save the Jewish people. Five-sixths of this invading force will be turned back. And then the Holy Spirit is going to be poured out upon Israel. And a great revival will sweep the nation. And they will turn to God. The God of Abraham. The God of Isaac. The God of Jacob. And they will turn to Jesus as Messiah. Yeshua HaMashiach. It will be a great revival.
But this cannot happen until something else happens first. You see right now we are in what the Bible describes as the times of the Gentiles. I am not a Jewish person by birth. Most of you probably are not. And I have been grafted into the promises of Israel. See that is what the Bible says. And so God has been working in this era called the church age among believers. People like us. And the Lord is waiting to bring those last few believers in before He pours His Spirit out upon Israel again.
The Rapture and Readiness for Christ's Return
In fact Romans 11:25 Paul says, "I want you to understand this mystery dear friends so you are not proud and bragging. Some of the Jews have hard hearts. But this will last only until the complete number of Gentiles come to Christ." Once that last believer comes to faith the Lord catches all Christians up into heaven in the rapture. And then He can pour His Spirit out upon Israel and not before. Can you imagine if you knew who that last person was? So you are the one that is holding this all up. Will you get saved now? You know. It is a good thing we don't know. But when that person believes. We are caught up to meet the Lord.
Therefore I think the invasion of Magog against Israel could happen right before the rapture. Right after the rapture. We will see. I don't know. Well maybe we won't see. Because I don't expect to be here for it. I expect to be in heaven. Alright. So in light of all of this what are we supposed to do? In light of the fact that Christ could be coming back at any moment. How should we react? How should this impact us in day to day living? Let's go to one more passage. 1 Thessalonians 5. If you don't know where that is it is right before 2 Thessalonians.
How to Live in Light of Christ's Return
And in these verses that we will look at briefly Paul tells us there are three things we ought to be doing. 1 Thessalonians 5:6. Listen. The teaching of the imminent return of Jesus is a real litmus test of where you are at spiritually. If you are right with God you look forward to this day. If you are not right with God you dread this day. But for the person who is close to the Lord they welcome His return. So how are we to live in light of the fact that Christ could come back? According to Paul we are to wake up. We are to sober up. And finally we are to suit up.
First we are to wake up. Verse 6. "Let us not sleep as others do." Who are these words addressed to? Christians or non-Christians? Christians. Did you know it is possible to fall asleep in the light? Did you know it is possible to be asleep in the church? And I don't know about you but one of the times that I want to sleep more than any other is after I have had a big meal. Right? Like if you have, you know, two burritos for lunch. I need to take a nap. And when I say a nap I am talking about a coma of sorts. I mean I am dead to the world. I don't sleep long. Maybe eight, nine minutes at the most. But I just have to sleep the thing off. Because for me I feel sluggish. I feel dull. My brain is not firing as it needs to.
Wake Up, Sober Up, Suit Up
You know, and in a way when we are in a church where we are taught the Word of God as we are here at Harvest we can become kind of fat and sassy and lazy. And we want to be alert. And we want to be awake. Instead of being sermon connoisseurs we need to be fishers of men. We need to wake up. Wake up to the fact that Christ is coming. Wake up to the fact that time is short. Wake up to the fact that your redemption is drawing near. Number two. You need to sober up. Verse 8. "Let those of us who are of the day be sober."
Now having spent the first seventeen years of my life around drunk people, I think I can speak somewhat authoritatively to this topic. I have watched people get drunk a lot. More than anyone should. And different people react in different ways to alcohol. You know some people they become happy drunks. You know they have a few drinks. "I love you. I love you. Give me a hug." Oh gee. Other people become mean drunks. They yell. They scream. They throw things. Some people just completely lose control. Don't remember anything of what happened the night before.
So the Bible is saying don't be drunk. Now let's take this at face value. Do I need to actually say that no Christian should ever be under the influence of alcohol? Here is a news flash for you. If you don't drink you will never get drunk. But if you do drink you could get drunk. I don't know about you but I don't want to be under the influence of anyone or anything but Jesus Christ. I don't want to be controlled by anything. I want to be filled with the Holy Spirit. And the Bible says don't be drunk with wine, which will only ruin your life, but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to yourself in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. And so forth.
Protecting Your Mind in the Battle
So sober up. But then another way to look at this is there are a lot of things that can intoxicate us besides alcohol or drugs. Jesus said in Luke 21:34, "Take heed to yourself. Let your hearts be weighed down with carousing drunkenness and the cares of this life. And that day, the day of the Lord, come upon you unexpectedly." Another translation says, "Take heed to yourselves and be on guard. Lest your hearts be overburdened and weighed down with a giddiness, headache, and nausea of self-indulgence, drunkenness, and worldly worries." See, it is not always bad things that distract us. Sometimes it is good things.
There is nothing wrong with being married. There is nothing wrong with having children. Nothing wrong with having a home, a career. Those are good things. God can even bless those things. But let's keep our priorities in order. The number one priority in the life of the Christian is God. God is first. Then comes family. And then comes career slash ministry. Career should not be number one. Listen, even family should not be number one. God should be number one in everything that you say and do. And sometimes good things out of their proper place can become bad things because they take the place of the best thing. And this is what Jesus is warning about. He is saying, I want you to be sober. And I want you to be alert. And I don't want anything to distract you. So keep your focus clear.
So we are to wake up. We are to sober up. And lastly we are to suit up. Verse 8. "Put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation." Listen. We are in a spiritual battle. It started at the day of our conversion. And it will rage on until we get to heaven. Satan does not want us to follow Christ. He will do everything he can to stop us from coming to faith. And if we have already believed in Jesus he will try to neutralize us through compromise. We are in a spiritual battle. And we need spiritual weapons.
Are You Ready for Christ's Return?
That is why Paul tells us in Ephesians 6 to put on all of the armor of God that we may be able to stand in that wicked day. So what is that armor? Well he tells us to put on a breastplate. And we are to put on a helmet. Now the helmet would protect the head of the Roman soldier. The Roman soldier's helmet was carefully designed. Generally bronze on the outside. Sometimes it was leather over an iron skull cap. It was designed to withstand a crushing blow to the head and still protect it. We need to protect our minds. It is sort of like when you are out riding your skateboard. You ought to wear a helmet. Definitely when you are riding a motorcycle you should wear a helmet.
Now not everybody is for helmet laws. I read a sad thing in the paper the other day about a biker in upstate New York who was participating in a ride to protest helmet laws who died after he crashed his motorcycle and hit his head. People said if he had been wearing a helmet he would have survived. And so we need to put our helmet on. What does that mean? We need to protect our minds. The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 10:5 we are to cast down arguments bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Jesus Christ. Because Satan recognizes the value of first getting a foothold in the realm of the thoughts and imagination. As this will prepare the way for that thought to translate into an action.
Any person who has ever committed a sin. Quick poll. How many of you have ever sinned? Raise your hand. Okay. Good. Okay. I am speaking to the right people. Any person who has ever committed a sin. That would be us. First thought about it. Probably in depth. Maybe fantasized about it. Imagine it. Fed this idea that turned into an action. It has been summed up this way. Sow a thought. Reap an act. Sow an act. Reap a habit. Sow a habit. Reap a character. Sow a character. Reap a destiny.
You know my computer that is overloaded right now with pictures and songs. I can't put any new programs on. I tried the other day. It said, "Your memory is full." There is no room on my computer for anything new. So I have to get rid of things. I don't want to get rid of anything. I need those pictures. I don't want to get rid of that song. And I need this other thing. So it is hard. But it is kind of a good thing. So when the devil comes with his wicked thoughts, we need to just put up a sign. Memory full. No room. Full of the Word of God. Full of the things that matter. There is no room for the idle ideas and thoughts and wicked things you would bring my way. Protect yourself. Wake up. Sober up. Suit up.
Here is my question to you in closing. Are you ready for the return of Jesus Christ? Listen. Signs of the times are around. You can pick up your newspaper tomorrow and read that there is a threat against Israel. There is an attack on Israel. And I tell you, if you read that, get ready buckaroo. Because the Bible says this is a super sign of the end times. Are you ready to meet God? You say, Well I am not sure if I believe all this stuff about the end times, Greg. That is just your interpretation. Okay. Just to make a point. Let us say that is true. It is just my interpretation. I am all wrong and you are right. But what if I am right? More than if I am right. What if millions are right who happen to believe these truths?
But here is another way to look at it. Let us just take the whole prophecy idea off the table for a moment and look at it another way. The end of the world. Guess what? It is coming. To every man and to every woman. By that I mean the end of their world as they know it. You think you are going to live forever on this earth? Life is going to come to an end. Are you going to be ready to step into eternity? Will you have your faith in Jesus Christ? Or will you be standing before God and have Him say, Depart from me. I never knew you.
Invitation to Receive Christ
The only way that we can be ready for the return of Jesus. The only way we can be certain we will go to heaven. The only way we can know that we are right with God is if we have asked Him to forgive us of our sin. And we put our faith in Jesus Christ to be our Savior and Lord. Have you done that? If not, would you like to? We are going to pray right now. And I am going to give you an opportunity to ask Christ to come into your life. So if you need to make this commitment or recommitment to Jesus do it right now wherever you are.
Let us all bow our heads if you would please. Father, thank You for Your Word to us. Thank You for the promise and accuracy of Scripture. Thank You for the hope that it provides. I pray for everyone hearing this message right now. If they do not have a relationship with You, help them to come to You and believe we pray. While our heads are bowed and our eyes are closed and we are praying. If you want Jesus Christ to come into your life. If you want Him to forgive you of your sin. If you want to know that when you die you will go to Heaven. If you want to be ready for the Lord's return. Wherever you are right now, I want you to stand to your feet. And I am going to lead you in a prayer. Just stand up wherever you are if you want Christ to come into your life. God bless you. Just stand up. Stand up. Outside in the amphitheater. Stand to your feet. If you want Jesus to come into your life. Up in the court building. You stand up there at Harvest Orange County. Stand up.
And I am going to lead you in a prayer. God bless you. People are standing here in the sanctuary. Others are standing as well. If you want to make this commitment or recommitment to Jesus stand up right now. And we are going to pray together. Anybody else? God bless you. Just stand up. God bless you. Stand up. Wherever you are. Wherever you are seeing me right now. Stand up. One final moment. If you are going to stand, stand now. Anybody else? Stand up now. All right. You that are standing. God bless you. And you. And you. You that are standing. And you guys. God bless you. You that are standing. I am going to lead you in a prayer. And I want you to pray this out loud after me. Again as I pray. Pray this out loud after me. Pray this now. Now, Lord Jesus, I know I am a sinner. But you died on the cross for me. And rose again from the dead. And you are coming back again. I want to be ready for your return. I want to follow you, Lord. As your disciple. As your child. As your friend. So I turn from my sin and choose to follow you now. Thank you for loving me. And calling me. And forgiving me. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.