Av1icii Umviv R8oo,

ARE WE LIVING
IN THE LAST DAYS?
W
oviu ii.uivs .u scii1is1s .vi iv.xiv
frightened by the prospects of the future. They warn
that man now possesses the means of committing
cosmociuisuicide of the whole human raceand even talk
in terms of overkill. They realize something totally unforeseen
must soon occur to stop the present trend of world eventsor
humanity will finally uis1vov itself!
Today, there is mounting speculation that terrorists have
obtained weapons of mass destruction (wmu). Sam Nunn,
co-chairman and chief executive officer of the Nuclear Threat
Initiative and former U.S. senator, after visiting Russia in :oo:
said, It would be a miracle if nuclear materials had not been
smuggled out of Russia to rogue nations and terrorist groups will-
ing to pay top dollar to satisfy their wmu ambitions. According
to Nunn, less than half the material for making nuclear bombs
that Russia inherited from the collapse of the Soviet Union was
adequately protected.
Many other renowned statesmen and analysts speak fear-
fully of the iu oi 1ui woviuthe END of human civilization!
Prophesied Centuries Ago
The sad state of our world was prophesied and written in advance.
About :,ooo years ago, the greatest newscaster the world has
ever known foretold todays chaotic world conditions! He foresaw
todays scientific discoveries and technological advancements,
and the outcome of it all.
This famous newscaster knew that men would produce the
destructive forces that now threaten cosmocide! He warned: For
that will be a time of greater horror than anything the world
has ever seen or will ever see again. In fact, unless that time of
calamity is shortened, the entire human race will be destroyed
(Matthew ::::-::; New Living Translation).
This great newscaster was Jesus Christ of Nazareththe
same Jesus who is coming again to intervene at the last moment
to save humanity from extinction. What He prophesied has been
written in your Bible all these centuries. No other book is as up
to date as your Bible!
Jesus Christ prophesied todays world conditions in vivid
language. He foretold the wars, famines, disease epidemics and
natural disasters that are now occurring increasingly before our
very eyes! Scientists and world leadersmost of whom know little
of Bible prophecy, and even reject the Biblereadily admit that
events He prophesied are taking place right now!
The Last Days
But, some will object, there have always been prophets of
doom. Skeptics have long scoffed at Bible prophecy. The Apostle
Peter warned they would be especially active in the last days
(: Peter ,:,-). Yet how can we know for sure if we have crossed
the threshold into the time of the endthe time shortly preceding
the prophesied return of Jesus Christ: There is one statement in
the Bible that is especially beyond refutation.
:. Did Jesuss disciples ask Him about His Second Coming
and the end of the age: Matthew ::,, New King James Version.
At what specific point in time did Christ declare He would have
to intervene and return to Earth: Verse ::.
commvN1: We need to understand the full import of this
shocking scripture! The Moffatt translation reads: Had not those
days been cut short, not a soul would be saved alive. The Phillips
translation states: Yes, if those days had not been cut short no
human being would survive. The New Living Translation renders
it this way: In fact, unless that time of calamity is shortened, the
entire human race will be destroyed.
Let the gravity of those words sink in. If Jesus Christ does
not return to this Earth, the time is soon coming when every
last man, woman and child on this planet will be exterminated.
Here is mans number-one problem todaythe threat of human
extinctionpredicted almost :,ooo years ago!
This is an irrefutable sign that we are in the last days. Niviv
viiovi has man had the capability to destroy every human being
on Earth! Christs words could never have begun to be under-
stood in correct context until the :oth century when the atomic
bomb, followed by the hydrogen bomb and other weapons of mass
destruction, was invented. In fact, the meaning of many other
end-time prophecies could not be understood until the end time.
A Sign of Christs Coming
:. While sitting on the Mount of Olives, Christs disciples ques-
tioned Him about His Second Coming (Matthew ::,). Did Jesus
foretell that m.v deceivers would arise to deceive m.v people
before His return: Verses -,, ::, :. Are they the ministers of the
archdeceiver himself: : Corinthians ::::,-:,. Is the whole world
deceived as a result of their activities: Revelation :::.
i. What else did Jesus say would occur in the end time:
Matthew ::o-,.
commvN1: The :oth century was the bloodiest in human
history. World War i commenced in :: and claimed 8., million
Reprinted from the Philadelphia Trumpet, September
Even prominent leaders and news outlets are now issuing serious and sober warnings about the state of our world.
T n v T n c m v v 1 Dn : : v S v n : v s
COPYRIGHT 2011 PHILADELPHIA CHURCH OF GOD
Are We Living in the Last Days? 1ui TvUmvi1 D.iiv Rivvi1 Siviis i
lives. Then World War ii resulted in ,, million deaths. Moreover,
according to author and professor of political science R. J. Rummel,
totalitarian governments slaughtered :,o million people for ethnic,
racial, tribal, religious or political reasons. Nation has continued
to rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. Just since
World War ii alone, there have been over ::, armed conflicts in
:8 countries!
. Is famine one of the major signs indicating that Christs
intervention in world affairs is near: Matthew ::,.
commvN1: About , billion people live in the developing
world, and at the turn of the century, almost 8oo million of them
were undernourished. Today, multiple millions die of starvation
each year. Others are severely stunted. Yet many experts believe
the worst is yet to come.
{. What else was prophesied to occur: Matthew ::,.
commvN1: Primarily a consequence of fornication and
adultery, .ius has become one of the deadliest diseases of these
last days. According to U.ius/wuo estimates, it has claimed
:, million lives, and each year is adding about : million to that
total. Those infected with uiv/.ius number about ,, million, and
another :., million are newly infected each year. The disease has
plagued Africa most of all, but it is rapidly spreading in the rest
of the world.
Pestilence is also partly the natural result of food shortages
and consequent malnutrition, which breaks down the bodys
natural defenses. In addition, huge concentrations of population
are ready-made tinder boxes of potential disease epidemics. More
and more crowding means more waste and refuse, more garbage,
more pollution of the water, air and land.u more disease!
Under crowded conditions, an epidemic can spread from person
to person like wildfire. All the great pestilences of the past were
just such contagious diseases.
Remember also that modern man already lives in an envi-
ronment of poisons. He inhales dangerously polluted air, drinks
contaminated water, and eats pesticide-laden foods. The inevitable
result is that the heart, lungs and the entire body in general are
weakened, thus lowering resistance to disease, which nearly always
strikes the weakest first!
. What else wil l happen with increasing severity:
Matthew::,. When earthquake activity reaches a peak, will men
at last begin to recognize that Gou is intervening: Isaiah :::-::.
commvN1: Whenever catastrophic natural disasters strike,
it seems to drive some to contemplate God. In the case of the
cyclone that hit Myanmar and earthquake that struck China in
May :oo8, killing around :oo,ooo, many people were forced to
reevaluate their shallow, self-made concepts of a loving God.
As such disasters intensify, people will increasingly come to
recognize the hand of the great God of judgment.
o. Are the signs Jesus foretold only the beginning of sor-
rows: Matthew ::8. If this prophesied time of world trouble
were allowed to continue, would there be anyone left alive:
Verses ::-::.
commvN1: Famine, disease, pestilence, earthquakes and
other disruptions of nature are taking an increasing toll in human
life today. World leaders everywhere are afraid that mans destruc-
tive capability will annihilate all life on Earth!
When we take a hard, cold, realistic look at present world
conditions and trends, they uo point to a fast-approaching woviu
cvisis of war, starvation, uncontrollable disease epidemics, and
the extinction of human life on this planet!
Some analysts look at this terrifying world picture and admit
they are frightened! They warn us that mans only hope lies in the
formation of a sUviv woviu covivmi1 wielding all authority
and power over the nations.
But the nations, hostile to one another, could never form
such a government.
Lets face it! Either there does exist a living GOD of supreme
mind and total vowiv who very soon will step in and intervene in
the affairs of this world to s.vi uUm.i1v ivom i1siiior else
the ix1ic1io of all life will inevitably occur as man unleashes
the awesome forces at his control upon his neighbor!
There Is Hope!
:. Will Jesus Christ return with great power and glory:
Matthew ::,o. Will He come to rule the entire Earth:
Revelation:::,-:o.
i. Will there be warfare then as there is now among nations:
Isaiah ::. Will people be taught the way to peace and productiv-
ity: Same verse.
commvN1: The very one who created man is coming to
establish the covivmi1 oi Gou on Earth and to teach man
the way to peaceto guide his inventive genius entirely into
peaceful channels.
. Did Micah also foretell the establishment of Gods Kingdom
on Earth: Micah ::-.
commvN1: Your Bible shows there is hope for mankind! God
will not allow misguided mankind to annihilate life on Earth! He
is soon going to send Jesus Christ againthis time to establish an
all-powerful, world-ruling government to save us from ourselves!
It will be a government ruled not by carnal men, but by the living,
all-powerful Creator of the universe!
1ui TvUmvi1 D.iiv Rivvi1 Siviis Are We Living in the Last Days?
WHERE ARE WE
NOW IN PROPHECY?
By Gerald Flurry
Reprinted from the Philadelphia Trumpet, November,
I
M.v :oo:, I c.vi . miss.ci 1o oUv CuUvcu mimvivs
that we are living in the last hour of this present age. About
four months later, the United States suffered the worst ter-
rorist attack ever. Is this a sign of the times: Will things in this
world ever be the same again: Where are we now in prophecy:
The last hour prophecy was recorded by the Apostle John:
Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that anti-
christ shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby
we know that it is the last time (: John :::8). Time is translated
from the Greek hora, which literally means hour (it reads this
way in the Revised Standard Version). This is the only place this
expression is used in the New Testament. We are living in what
God terms the i.s1 uoUv of this evil world!
John thought it was the last hour before Christs Second
Coming, then, in his time. He was, as we know today, nearly :,ooo
years off. He was off in his timing, but every explicit detail of this
prophecy is ow viic iUiiiiiiu. Jesus Christ, the one giving
this revelation, allowed John to write it under this impression so
it was recorded prophecy for oUv u.v.
When Herbert W. Armstrong came on the scene, he pro-
claimed that we were living in the end time. Now wivi vicu1
uow 1o 1ui i.s1 uoUv. John is talking about the last hour of
the last day. I believe that this last hour specifically began when
God recently revealed to His people what is in :, : and , John.
In a sermon in May :oo:, I said we should expect this last hour
to be different than any other hour in the history of man! Just four
months later, the face of the world changed dramatically. The
terrorist attack of September ::, :oo: changed so much. Many
people have mentioned how the world will never be the same
againhow its almost as if we are in a new world. Tui woviu
HAS i1iviu i1s i.s1 uoUv: I1 is vi.i iov .ii 1o sii:
This is one of the darkest times in the history of the land of
America. It is the last hour. There is nothing in history to measure
it by. Its going to be that bad.
However, at the end of the last hour will come the greatest
news this world has ever heard.
The terrorist attacks of September ::, :oo: were quite unset-
tling to me. Yet, I know what God says is coming, and it will
be many times worse than those attacks. Its been said that the
devastation at the World Trade Center (w1c) looked like a nuclear
winter. We are about to see a real nuclear winter that we cannot
even imagineif our people dont repent.
Satan is about to inflict a great tribulation (Matthew ::::)
on the nations of modern Israel (which include the United States
and Britain). But there is a preliminary stage that will bring these
countries down. A dreadful, horrendous time is coming upon
this Earth, even before the Great Tribulation.
And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came
unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be:
and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the
world: And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed
that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name,
saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. And ye shall hear
of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for
all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For
nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:
and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes,
in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows. And
this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world
for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come
(Matthew ::,-8, :).
After the gospel has been preached, an end comesthe end
of the Philadelphia era of Gods true Church (see Revelation,:,-
:,). After Mr. Armstrong, the leader of that era, died in :8o,
antichrists came on the scene (termed the synagogue of Satan
in Revelation ,:).
Continue the flow in Matthew : to see the next event that
will begin to take shape on the world scene. When ye therefore
shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the
prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him under-
stand) (Matthew :::,). When Mr. Armstrong died, Germany
and the Vatican really began to gain power. (For more informa-
tion, write for our booklet Germany and the Holy Roman Empire.)
Now they are leading Europe.
For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the
beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except
those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved
[alive]: but for the elects sake those days shall be shortened (verses.
::-::). God will shorten those days so that there will be some flesh
saved alive. Anybody who sees this mad world, with all of these
enormously destructive weapons, can see where humanity is headed.
God really knows how to get peoples attention. The Twin
Towers were the tallest buildings in New York; the Pentagon is
the largest office building in the world. These were citadels of
the greatest financial and military power in the world. They
symbolized Americas greatness. But their destruction is just the
beginning of sorrows.
The w1c attacks caused panic in a lot of people around the
U.S. What do you think they will do when the sorrows get worse
and worse: What kind of panic will we see then: What kind of
panic will we experience if we are in it: Its not something we
can take lightly.
Worse Curses Coming
The w1c attacks were a little taste of the Great Tribulation. What
we saw is just a tiny little problem compared to what is coming.
Multiply what happened on September ::, :oo: by maybe ,o or
o thousand to begin to get a picture of what it will be like in
the future, with all the blaring sirens and the bleeding nation.
It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God
(Hebrews :o:,:). In the future, it will get so bad that they wont
Are We Living in the Last Days? 1ui TvUmvi1 D.iiv Rivvi1 Siviis {
even be able to take care of all the dead. God is going to get our
attention.
God is telling us that we are in the last hour. The present
world is almost over. But understandthe devil also knows it
is the last hour! That means he has only one hour left to wreak
havoc on the world, and that fills him with violent rage! Woe
to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come
down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that
he hath but a short time (Revelation :::::). He is the real power
behind those instigating the terror, as they fulfill their bloodlust.
Mankind has never seen anything like this.
The fire in the w1c was so hot that it caused the steel to lose
all of its strength. It melted faster than ice cream in hot weather.
It was so hot, people were jumping from :oo stories high. But as
bad as that was, it was just the beginning of sorrows. The future
will be much worse. Thats what it will take to wake up America
so that God can bless them.
After the Last Hour Good News
But realize also the positive side of thisthere is a voice out there
warning our people. The Philadelphia Church of God is the only
voice telling the world what is going to happen. Though it comes
with a lot of bad newsso much so that the land will eventually
not be able to bear our words (Amos ,::o)it also comes with
the greatest news mankind has ever heard.
Notice Revelation ::,: Biuoiu, ui comi1u with clouds; and
every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all
kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him.
Behold He comes! This is overwhelmingly good news.
Thayers Lexicon and Strongs Concordance state that behold
can be translated, and in this context should be translated,
Behold! See! Lo! He comes! Pay attention! Hi is vi.iiv
comic:
And it is in present tense: He comes! So who is God really
talking to, if this is in the present tense: Hes addressing the people
that are there when its all going to happen, the people who will
have the honor and privilege to see Christ return to this Earth!
Christ is coming. That is the only hope of man.
The terrorist attack is truly ugly news. But it is tied to this
mind-staggering event!
And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall
appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him
at his coming (: John :::8). We are in the last hour. A1 1ui iu
oi 1uis uoUv, JisUs Cuvis1 wiii vi1Uv 1o 1ui E.v1u: We
are so close to this awesome event!
When the last hour runs its course, then behold! See! Lo!
Jesus Christ comes!