The Raging Signs of the Times

By Kobina Amissah-Fynn

That the world is undergoing tremendous change there can be no doubt. Just take a look at the long list below:

 

Aerospace industry, air conditioner, aircraft carrier, artificial intelligence (AI), astronaut, Big Bang theory, biometric details, bionic limbs, bullet train, carbon trading, CCTV, cinematography, cloning, crypto-currency, Darwin's Theory of Evolution, Digital Age, drones, DVD, DNA profiling, eBook, electronic microscope, email, eye surgery, face recognition technology, fax machine, fluorescent lamp, flying car prototype, FM radio, gender parity index, genetic engineering, helicopter, hologram video call, Human Genome Project, hypersonic missile, In Vitro Fertilization (IVF), infrared photography, Intercontinental Ballistic Missile, International Criminal Court, International Monetary Fund (IMF), internet search engine, Interpol, jet airliner,  laser beam, lunar landing, Mars rover lander, messaging app, microchip, microwave oven, Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD), nanotechnology, neon lights, night vision goggles, Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, Olympic Games, online shopping, orbiting space station, organ transplant, particle accelerator, plastic surgery, podcast, planned settlement of men on Mars, radio telescope, refrigerator, remote control, robotics, satellite communication, Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI), smartphone, social media, radar-evading stealth bomber, submarine, supercomputer, surrogacy, 3D printing, Taser, television, test tube babies, Theory of Relativity, thermal imaging camera, thermonuclear bomb, United Nations, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, unmanned space explorer, video conference, video streaming service, vlogging, weapons of mass destruction, Wi-Fi, Women's World Cup, World Bank, World Health Organization, World Heritage sites, World Trade Organization, World War, World Wide Web, X-ray.

What do the items have in common? One obvious commonality is that they have all come to exist since the mid-19th century. In spite of all the amazing prophecies to be found in the Bible concerning the Last Day, a question that needs asking, though, is how come these very extraordinary inventions, processes and developments (extraordinary by the standards of pre-modern times, no doubt) have no mention whatsoever in these prophecies, while mundane, every-day scourges like wars, earthquakes, famine, and diseases are prominently foreshadowed?

Beyond that, what is the impulse behind these phenomenal technologies, events, and developments? What is the source of man's newfound energy, creativity, this unbridled burst of knowledge? Do these items presage the "end" of time (as long foreshadowed in scripture) or they rather signalize the "beginning" of a new day – an era of unprecedented change and renewal characterized by the explosion of knowledge, an ongoing technological revolution, and an ever-deepening globalizing process?

Why is the contemporary world showing unmistakable signs of disintegration and decay while also engaged in a far-reaching integration of new concepts, designs, discoveries, inventions, technologies, organizations, institutions, and endeavours? What is behind man's ability to travel to and from the moon, to easily connect to his kind no matter in which part of the world he lives, while also equipped with the wherewithal to instantly obliterate all life on the planet if he so chooses? Are these and other developments leading us to heaven on earth, or we are rather being driven along a blind alley, on the dreaded Day of Judgment, into the fire of hell?

Finally, the list speaks to a remarkable efflorescence, in the past century or two, in the realm of mind and thought; but does it offer the prospect of a revolution in the sphere of religion?

It is questions such as these that "The Raging Signs of the Times" attempts to answer.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Hope Books
• Release date: Dec 29, 2020
• ISBN: 9781393701972

Book preview

The Raging Signs of

the Times

Kobina Amissah-Fynn

THE RAGING SIGNS OF THE TIMES

Copyright © K. Amissah-Fynn 2019

All Rights Reserved

Other Books by the Author

Nonfiction:

CHRIST JESUS AND HIS SECOND COMING: According to the Divine Promise and not the Popular Expectation

PLAGUES AND PROMISE LIKE NO OTHER

THE BLACK MAN’S BURDEN – in Black and White

WHO AM I? The Interrelationships of Body, Soul, Mind, Heart and Spirit

Religious Fiction:

REAWAKENING: A Tale of Death, the Afterlife & a Mission

SO GREAT AN ANNOUNCEMENT

STEALER OF HEARTS

THE NIGHT OF TRANSITION

THE TRIBULATION

Other Fiction:

VERY SHORT FUNNY STORIES, Vol. I

CONTENTS

I. The Promise of Another Day

II. Burgeoning Signs of the Times

1. The Explosion of Knowledge

2. Diffusion of a Potent Message

3. Gathering of Nations

4. Cataclysmic Events

5. The Battle of Armageddon

6. The Return of a People

7. Scattering Angels

8. The Emergence of Sodom

III. The Season of Spring

1. The Lesson of a Tree

IV. Dawn of a New Day

1. The Technological Revolution

2. The Nuclear Age

3. The Space Age

4. The Digital Age

5. The Age of Globalization

6. A Post-Christian Era?

7. A True Paradigm Shift

V. New Realms of Understanding

1. The Return of Jesus

2. The Elect

3. Descent from the Sky

4. The Trumpet Blast

5. The Day of Resurrection

6. The Rapture

VI. A Time to Watch

1. In Search of Treasure

2. A Heart on Fire

I. The Promise of Another Day

Religion is cyclic and progressive in nature. It begins as a small seed; it grows gradually; eventually it becomes a mighty tree able to give shade to all living creations—birds, mammals, humans. Jesus[1] explained this interesting phenomenon in the form of a parable:[2]

Whereunto shall we liken the kingdom of God? or with what comparison shall we compare it? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth: But when it is sown, it groweth up, and becometh greater than all herbs, and shooteth out great branches; so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it. (Mark 4:30-32)

And the kingdom of God here mentioned is nothing less than the godly, heavenly society destined to rise on the back of the worldwide religious enterprise.  

But the tree of religion does not remain the same forever. At some point it grows old and begins to decay.[3]Then it is no more useful except as firewood.[4]This is the time when the adherents of the religion display an inordinate attachment to the outward observances of their faith—the traditions, ceremonies, rituals, incantations, etc.—while paying lip service, for the most part, to the inner life—the spiritual teachings, the virtuous life and practice of godly attributes like love, mercy, forgiveness, truthfulness, trustworthiness, justice, forbearance, sacrifice, etc., etc.[5]It is at this gloomy stage in religious life that a Mediator of God appears among the people, by the will of the Supreme Being, to plant another seed in the fertile soil of hearts that are receptive, and soon another tree germinates and begins to grow—and grow it will, over centuries and centuries, until it ends up a mighty tree like before.

As already indicated, the tree in question is none other than the tree of religion. It is because of the progressive and cyclic nature of this tree that Moses promised the Jews that at some point after His departure, God would send them a Prophet like Himself, to guide and carry them into the future, into another Age and dispensation. Moses revealed:

The LORD thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken... And the LORD said unto me... I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him. (Deut 18:15-19)

No need to explain that the Prophet Moses was referring to was none other than the One who appeared in the land of Israel a millennium and a half later in the person of Jesus the Christ. Jesus brought a new independent religion which He initially planted as a small seed in few hearts that had been fertilized by the Mosaic teachings. Over the course of two odd millennia it grew into a mighty tree and, with branches stretching over every region of the earth, was able to give shade to multitudes of people the world over.

But like the Mosaic tree, the tree of Christianity has reached a stage whereby it is losing its inner spirit and crying out for renewal; and this is precisely why Jesus Christ had alerted His followers to the no-small matter of His return. For if Jesus had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day. (Heb 4:8)

Little wonder then that the return of Christ Jesus has become such a burning issue in our time, as it has ever been throughout the entire dispensation of the Christian faith. For Jesus did not just promise a return; He gave a long and detailed description of the circumstances of that return, outlining how the faithful would know it had occurred or was about to occur. While Christians are yet expectant and hopeful (and by Christians is meant those who are still active and reasonably enthusiastic within the religion, bearing in mind that many a believer has given up and retired quietly to the sidelines), they are struggling to make sense of the delay in the Advent, for their reading of events in today’s world does give strong indication that the Advent should have occurred. Or does it?

We shall look at some of these prophecies to see to what extent they have been fulfilled in our day.

II. Burgeoning Signs of the Times

1. The Explosion of Knowledge

According to the Old Testament Book of Daniel, one thing that is certain to happen at the time of the end—which obviously coincides with the time of the Return—is that knowledge shall be increased (Dan 12:4). And who can dispute that this prediction has been fulfilled many times over in our time? Truly phenomenal and unprecedented in the entire history of mankind is the explosion of knowledge in all fields of human endeavour—in the arts and the sciences—including knowledge about the world, its diverse peoples, and what goes on in every corner of the globe. With the technological innovations that are coming to the fore day after day as a result, we see the secrets of existence being unfolded before our very eyes. Man has acquired the tool to probe the innermost mysteries of life, of nature and even of the universe. His inventions and discoveries have made it possible for him to fly in the air like a bird, to explore the depths of the oceans like a fish, easily communicate with others like himself in different parts of the globe, and heal the many diseases afflicting the human race. And how extraordinary it is that man has even succeeded in walking on the moon and in launching spacecrafts to explore other planets and celestial bodies in and beyond our solar system! The fast-accelerating pace of the technological revolution that began in the 19th century has truly helped to bring isolated parts of the globe together and ensured the integration of the earth as humanity’s common homeland. It has brought about a veritable shift in the world, a verifiable transition in the affairs of mankind and carried us to the stage whereby we can say with poise and confidence that we are now a truly global society. Nor can we lose sight of the fact that we are also living at the time of the end—or should we rather say, at the beginning of a new epoch in human history?

Finding ourselves thus at the dawn of globalization should be seen as an exceptionally significant development in and of itself, but of even greater significance is the fact that it has brought us to the stage whereby we are able to witness and acknowledge the fulfilment of one prophecy of the Return after another, as can be seen in the pages that follow.

2. Diffusion of a Potent Message

Over the course of the three-and-a-half years of His earthly ministry, Jesus interacted closely with His Apostles and guided them into a deeper understanding of the divine truths He had been commissioned to deliver to mankind. Having fully prepared them to carry forward the spiritual enterprise He had set in motion, He gave a far-reaching command, shortly before His departure to the realms above, for these same Apostles and the other disciples, all those receptive to His cause, to be His witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth (Acts 1:8), directing them to Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature (Mark 16:15). Fired by the vision of the future, the disciples, and the generation of believers that followed after them, toiled to implement the teachings and commandments of Jesus and to extend His message as far afield as was humanly possible.

So it was that by the end of the 19th century of the Christian era, at the very time when knowledge was increasing exponentially and becoming accessible to the generality of mankind, all parts of the globe had also been opened up in one form or the other and, where possible, colonized by Western European powers—notably the Belgian, British, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish powers (all Christian).[6]Not even Muslim-majority societies would be spared subjugation by these Christian powers! But of exceptional interest is the fact that by bringing all the far-flung territories of the planet under the authority of Christian nations, the message of Jesus became accessible to people everywhere and thus brought to fulfillment an important prophecy of the Return.

It may be relevant to point out at this stage that the apparent superiority of western civilization and culture, which enabled Europeans to project their dominance and power across the entire globe, was not because of any inherent superiority of their race above every other race on earth. What gave them such predominance in shaping the destiny of the world, unknown perhaps even to their own selves, was down to two main interrelated factors. The first was that Europe was the heartland and bastion of Christianity. It was from this part of the world, therefore, that the message of Jesus would be broadcast to the far corners of the globe. Nor was it a coincidence that the same Christian nations were the very ones at the forefront of the world-shaping scientific and technological revolution. The second factor was that, as the fervent adherents of the Christian faith (at the time), Europeans had the lion’s share of responsibility for bringing about the fulfilment of this explicit promise of Jesus:

And the gospel must first be published among all nations. (Mark 13:10)

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. (Matt 24:14)

The authority, the leverage and hegemony required to carry out such a huge mandate became the birthright of Christian nations, so to speak, in order that through them the gospel might effectively be published and preached in all nations in fulfillment of the above prophecy. No other religion had such an explicit mission of reaching the entire world. And it was in response to such a divine mandate[7] that 80% of the planet, involving whole continents, would be taken over and their societies re-moulded in the European image and according to Christian principles that had evolved in Europe over the centuries, all this to ensure the publication of the Gospel—in the pages of books, in the hearts of people, and in the character of nations.

So apart from Asia, which already had major, well-established religions of its own[8] and which responded coolly to the Christian message, all other continents succumbed in large part to the soul-stirring message of Christ Jesus, enabling their inhabitants to be shepherded in droves into the protective shelter of the Christian cause. That is how come Christianity became the dominant religion on earth—the first religion to become truly global. 

And even if Christianity did not receive universal acceptance in some areas of the world—not only in Asia but even in large parts of Africa—just by disseminating the Christian message far and wide, as the colonizers had done, ensured that certain minimum commonalities would be established everywhere in the world, and this became the basis for the cooperation and peaceful coexistence of the diverse tribes and nations of the earth as well as the foundation of an emerging global society inexorably finding its way into a glorious new age.

It could be said that mid-nineteenth century it was that the European powers managed to effectively established a foothold in every region of the earth. By this unprecedented attainment, the message of the Gospel could be said to have gone round the globe, although some may argue that the publication and preaching of the gospel in all the world is a process that is still ongoing. The crucial thing though is that once powerful Christian nations had opened up the entire world and taken possession of all major regions of the earth or were in a position to exert influence over them, the prophecy would have been consummated—simply because the military, political, commercial, and the evangelic processes were running concurrently and at times indistinguishably.  

And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations, Jesus had predicted; and then, He added, "shall the end come." (Matt 24:14)

3. Gathering of Nations

The European campaign to explore the world, to trade and disseminate the message of Jesus was not without its dark side though, as is well known. The Europeans would often arrive in foreign lands with a Bible in one hand and a sword in the other, except that as time went by the sword became bigger and bigger and was soon replaced by more lethal weaponry. Populations were obliterated in some cases, diverse tribes and races subjugated and aspects of their cultures adulterated, misappropriated, or sometimes even eradicated; and along the way, evils like slavery, colonial exploitation and apartheid resulted. In time, God would transform these negative episodes into an outcome that would be positive for the future of the world: So it was that slavery, and later apartheid, would bring to the fore issues that led to their abolition, and in time to the worldwide recognition that we are all one people for which reason racism was unacceptable anywhere in the world. Colonialism inevitably resulted in nation-building, and in time independent nations would come into being all across the globe, fulfilling yet another prophecy of Jesus that before him, on His return, shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats... (Matt 25:32). Like it also says in the Book of Revelation: I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne... (Rev 7:9)

Interestingly, citizens of the nations that were newly born on the ashes of colonialism would often be as nationalistic as, if not more so than, the colonizers themselves. The winding down of the colonial enterprise, which occurred more or less towards the end of the twentieth century, also synchronized with the end of nation-building around the globe. The lists below will illustrate how the nation-building process was unfolding around the world over the last two centuries:

A. Some of the modern states which considered themselves independent before the nineteenth century (in other words, were not under the effective, long-term governance of a foreign power) are: Andorra, Austria, China, Denmark, Ethiopia, France, Hungary, Iran, Japan, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Mongolia, Nepal, Netherlands, Oman, Portugal, Russia, San Marino, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom, and the United States of America.

B. A significant number of countries gained their independence during the 19th century, such as the following:[9]

1804 – Haiti

1810 – Chile, Colombia, Mexico 

1811 – Paraguay, Venezuela 

1816 – Argentina

1821 – Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Peru 

1822 – Brazil, Ecuador   

1825 – Bolivia, Uruguay 

1830 – Belgium

1839 – Luxembourg

1844 – Dominican Republic

1847 – Liberia

1867 – Canada

1877 – Romania

1878 – Bulgaria

1898 – Philippines

C. The twentieth century was a really busy period for the world, as almost every other nation on earth gained its independence during those 100 years, in the first half but especially during the second half:

1901 – Australia

1902 – Cuba

1903 – Panama

1905 – Norway

1907 – New Zealand 

1910 – South Africa

1912 – Albania

1917 – Finland

1918 – Poland

1919 – Afghanistan

1921 – Ireland

1922 – Egypt

1932 – Iraq

1943 – Lebanon  

1944 – Iceland

1945 – Indonesia, North Korea, South Korea, Vietnam

1946 – Jordan, Syria

1947 – India, Pakistan

1948 – Israel, Myanmar, Sri Lanka

1949 – Bhutan, Laos

1951 – Libya

1953 – Cambodia

1956 –