It has been years since I first learned about the Bible prophecies of the end-times. As is commonly the case, I've found myself growing complacent over time even when actual fulfillments of prophecy take place before my very eyes. I am not usually prone to sensationalism, but the recent developments in the Papacy are simply too striking to ignore.

Climate Change and Sunday

Last week the Pope released his encyclical on climate change, in which (amongst other things), he argued for the importance of keeping Sunday in order to preserve the planet.

This is what’s stated in The Great Controversy, pages 589-590:

In accidents and calamities by sea and by land, in great conflagrations, in fierce tornadoes and terrific hailstorms, in tempests, floods, cyclones, tidal waves, and earthquakes, in every place and in a thousand forms, Satan is exercising his power. He sweeps away the ripening harvest, and famine and distress follow. He imparts to the air a deadly taint, and thousands perish by the pestilence. These visitations are to become more and more frequent and disastrous.…

And then the great deceiver will persuade men that those who serve God are causing these evils…It will be declared that men are offending God by the violation of the Sunday sabbath; that this sin has brought calamities which will not cease until Sunday observance shall be strictly enforced; and that those who present the claims of the fourth commandment, thus destroying reverence for Sunday, are troublers of the people, preventing their restoration to divine favor and temporal prosperity.

Apologies to the Waldensians

Then this past weekend, the Pope became the first pontiff ever to visit a Waldensian Christian church, and in a speech there, asked for their forgiveness for past persecutions.

The Great Controversy on page 571 has this to say:

The Roman Church now presents a fair front to the world, covering with apologies her record of horrible cruelties. She has clothed herself in Christlike garments; but she is unchanged. Every principle of the papacy that existed in past ages exists today. The doctrines devised in the darkest ages are still held. Let none deceive themselves. The papacy that Protestants are now so ready to honor is the same that ruled the world in the days of the Reformation, when men of God stood up, at the peril of their lives, to expose her iniquity. She possesses the same pride and arrogant assumption that lorded it over kings and princes, and claimed the prerogatives of God. Her spirit is no less cruel and despotic now than when she crushed out human liberty and slew the saints of the Most High.

And all this happened within just the last seven days! Then of course, history will be made once more when the Pope, for the first time in history, speaks to a joint session of the US Congress this September.

We are now living in the closing scenes of this world's history. Let men tremble with the sense of the responsibility of knowing the truth. The ends of the world are come. Proper consideration of these things will lead all to make an entire consecration of all that they have and are to their God. - Evangelism, p. 16

Indeed!

Jesus is Coming!

As we are reminded by the theme selected for this year’s General Conference session beginning in just one week, “Arise! Shine! Jesus is Coming!” One thought comes to my mind when considering the shortness of time: There’s still so much work to be done!

We read this in Testimonies for the Church, Vol. 9, page 135:

The end is near, stealing upon us stealthily, imperceptibly, like the noiseless approach of a thief in the night. May the Lord grant that we shall no longer sleep as do others, but that we shall watch and be sober. The truth is soon to triumph gloriously, and all who now choose to be laborers together with God, will triumph with it. The time is short; the night soon cometh when no man can work.

The urgency of the times demands that we work with greater earnestness and diligence for the finishing of God’s work. As we consider the momentous events taking place around us and the imminent return of Jesus, consider becoming a financial partner with AudioVerse to enable this ministry to present the Three Angels’ Message to more people, in more places, so that the end may come more quickly! As a ministry entirely supported by the generosity of people like you, your financial gift will make a big difference in enabling the mission of this ministry to go forward swiftly.

You may give by check to the address below, or online at our donate page. You may also consider becoming a recurring donor to be an ongoing partner as well.

Thank you for your financial partnership, and may we together labor for the triumph of the Truth!

Your fellow worker,

Alistair Huong
Executive Director

P.S. The signs of the times are telling us that Jesus is coming soon! Partner with AudioVerse financially to enable the Word to go farther and faster! You may donate by check or online.

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