Prophecies is the way God communicates with people and they are clearly revealed to us in the Bible to know who God is, his nature and his will so that believers will know and understand him and how to receive his promises and one being ready when his Son returns.
Matthew 24: 29 "Immediately after the distress of those days " 'the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.' 30 "At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory. 31 And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.
Jesus will reappear in the clouds the way his disciples watched him leave in Acts 1 and 2 men in white told them that Jesus will reappear in the same way.
When Jesus reappear, he will send his angels to gather his elect from all over the earth and take them home. Paul also said this in:
1 Thessalonians 4: 16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. 18 Therefore encourage each other with these words.
Paul said believers should always encourage each other of Jesus return for it is the hope that gives us the spiritual strength to overcome this world.
When Jesus said all nations of the earth will mourn, he is not talking about the world he is talking about Christendom, the church. Nations means a large body of people united by common descent, history, or culture. So, Jesus is saying there will be a distinction made between people in the church, one who are his elect and those who will mourn for not making him their Lord.
Jesus tells of another gathering by his angels to weed out those who are not his elect in his kingdom.
Matthew 13: 41 The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. 42 They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.
These are those who call Jesus their Lord but never do what he tells them to do.
Luke 4: 6 "Why do you call me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say?
Jesus describes in his parables in Matthew 25, who are his elect and who were wicked by what they did and did not do.
The foolish virgins did not bring extra oil and the wicked and lazy servant buried the Lord’s one talent. The oil and talent are metaphors of spiritual things the Lord Jesus wants us to do.
In the last parable, Jesus divides his sheep from the goats because one did what he wanted, and the other did not.
Matthew 25: 34 "Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'
In this parable it is natural to believe that Jesus is speaking about the physical needs of those in need in the church.
But we should remember that Jesus speaks in spiritual words in his parables. So, Jesus wants us to help those who have spiritual needs. Those who are spiritually hungry and thirsty for God’s righteousness and needs to be fed and drink God’s word, those who feel like a stranger in church and need to be spiritually invited to be one in church, those who feel spiritually naked and need to be clothed with the Holy Spirit and those who feel spiritually sick or imprisoned by their sins and needs someone spiritually wise to spend time to teach them God’s grace and love through faith in Jesus.
Helping with physical needs believers are quick to help, even unbelievers do that, but only believers can help those with their spiritual needs, so that they can repent and be saved.
Jesus said when he comes no one will expect it.
Matthew 24: 37 As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; 39 and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.
Paul also taught that in:
1 Thessalonians 5: 1 Now, brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, 2 for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 While people are saying, "Peace and safety," destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.
Even Jesus does not know when he will return to gather his elect, only his Father knows.
Matthew 24: 36 "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.
So, the Father will tell his Son when to go and gather his elect and the wicked but there will be signs that will indicate his return.
Jesus said at that time when he returns there will be a time of distress and a signs in heaven. (Matthew 24:29)
So, will both signs be seen by believers before we are gathered to Jesus. One is and the other which you will find in:
Revelations 6: 9 When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained. 10 They called out in a loud voice, "How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?" 11 Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and brothers who were to be killed as they had been was completed.
The time of distress is when believers will be martyred by the anti-Christ for remaining true to the gospel of Jesus.
Revelations 13: 14 Because of the signs he was given power to do on behalf of the first beast, he deceived the inhabitants of the earth. He ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived. 15He was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that it could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed.
This is what Paul said we should be watching for to know that Jesus coming is near.
2 Thessalonians 2: Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him, we ask you, brothers, 2not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by some prophecy, report or letter supposed to have come from us, saying that the day of the Lord has already come. 3 Don't let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. 4 He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God's temple, proclaiming himself to be God. 5 Don't you remember that when I was with you I used to tell you these things? 6 And now you know what is holding him back, so that he may be revealed at the proper time. 7 For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by the splendor of his coming. 9 The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders, 10 and in every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. 11 For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie 12 and so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness.
The rebellion in church and the coming of the anti-Christ in Revelations 13.
Revelations tells of Jesus gathering of the elect after martyrdom of the saints in:
Revelations 14: 13 Then I heard a voice from heaven say, "Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on." "Yes," says the Spirit, "they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them." 14 I looked, and there before me was a white cloud, and seated on the cloud was one "like a son of man" with a crown of gold on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand. 15 Then another angel came out of the temple and called in a loud voice to him who was sitting on the cloud, "Take your sickle and reap, because the time to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is ripe." 16 So he who was seated on the cloud swung his sickle over the earth, and the earth was harvested.
And a 2nd harvesting of the wicked who were part of God’s vine on earth, the church.
Revelations 14: 17 Another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle. 18 Still another angel, who had charge of the fire, came from the altar and called in a loud voice to him who had the sharp sickle, "Take your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of grapes from the earth's vine, because its grapes are ripe." 19 The angel swung his sickle on the earth, gathered its grapes and threw them into the great winepress of God's wrath.
After the number of Martyrs are completed in Revelations 6 in the 5th seal then the 6th seal is open.
Revelations 6: 12 I watched as he opened the sixth seal. There was a great earthquake. The sun turned black like sackcloth made of goat hair, the whole moon turned blood red, 13 and the stars in the sky fell to earth, as late figs drop from a fig tree when shaken by a strong wind. 14 The sky receded like a scroll, rolling up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place.
So, the sign of the sixth seal is after the harvesting of his elect by Jesus. The sign of the 6th seal is for the world to witness.
I pray my understanding of Scripture is from the Holy Spirit and is true to Jesus and as disciples you need to discern what is true to God’s word by the teaching of his Spirit, so that we are united in our faith in Jesus.
Let me know if you have questions or discern something else from Scripture.
Be Safe in Jesus, Ps. Glenn