It is Certain!

Indeed, the Sovereign Lord never does anything until he reveals his plans to his servants the prophets. Amos 3:7 (NLT)

Prophets are simply spokespersons for God, and they deliver the message just as they received it. The very nature of prophecies is they sometimes lack clear details. The process by which a prophecy comes to pass is not often made known or clear to its audience. The events that happen between when a prophecy is given, and the fulfilment of that prophecy are often missing in the message. One common theme about many prophecies in the bible is their apparent lack of details of how the prophecy will eventually unfold.

For example, Abraham: “Then the Lord said to Abram, ‘You can be sure that your descendants will be strangers in a foreign land, where they will be oppressed as slaves for 400 years. But I will punish the nation that enslaves them, and in the end they will come away with great wealth.’” Genesis 15:13-14 (NLT)

Now God did not tell Abraham the name of the country or why or how his descendants will end up in this foreign country which turned out to be Egypt.

But we know that Abraham went on to have Isaac. His grandson Jacob had 12 sons and a series of events led to Joseph, one of Jacob’s sons, ending up in Egypt. The famine in Canaan forced Jacob and his entire family emigrating to Egypt. Joseph’s death and another Pharaoh coming on the scene, who did not or chose not to recognise Joseph’s legacy in Egypt. From then on the Israelites were dealt with severely for 400 years. Moses’ encounter with Pharaoh and then leading the Israelites out with great wealth. The rest as they say is history.

Although there were no specifics in God’s words to Abraham, but at the right time and through a series of events, the prophecy came to pass.

Another example is Mary and Joseph: “All right then, the Lord himself will give you the sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’)”. Isaiah 7:14 (NLT)

Note there was no mention of names or places, no mention of Mary or Joseph. But we all know the story of the birth of Jesus.

So why would God choose to sometimes keep the details from us?

I believe that if God should give us the full details of how and when prophecies will happen, there will be chaos. There will be all sorts of fakes and people will work hard to stop prophecies from coming to pass.

The Bible is full of incidents and stories where people tried to suppress, ridicule, make light, destroy, or completely kill a prophecy.

For example:

• Abraham tried to persuade God to forget about the “child of promise” and instead bless Ishmael (Genesis 17:15-19).

• King Herod tried to stop the Messiah from living by killing all male toddlers from age two and under (Matthew 2:16-18).

• But the most significant one is when Jesus predicted his death and Satan through Peter, tried to stop him. The Bible said Peter took Jesus aside and began to reprimand or rebuke him saying “…This will never happen to you!”. Matthew 16:21-23 (NLT)

These few examples give you a sense of what reaction we could show or display if we know the full details of a prophecy. If we don’t like the way it sounds or we’re uncomfortable about it, we will most likely fight it.

There are prophecies about the second coming of Jesus Christ, sometimes referred to as “the day of the LORD”. A series of events will happen which will lead to the fulfilment of the prophecies.

If God said he will do something, no one can stop it from happening. Regardless of whether I like it or not, whether I believe it or not, the word of God will and shall come to pass. Just because you don’t believe it, does not make God’s word irrelevant. It will not stop Jesus returning!

Jesus’ return is certain, and it is imminent. The Lord says, “Turn to me now, while there is time. Give me your hearts…” Joel 2:12 (NLT)

Are you ready for the return of King Jesus? Are you ready to meet Him?

Stay blessed,

Alex