The signs of Christ's Second Coming

"Just so, when you see the events I've described beginning to happen, you can know his return is

very near, right at the door." 

2010? 2011? 2012? As the new year begins, many wonder whether this will be the year of Christ’s return. Ever since He ascended to heaven, many throughout the ages have anticipated His return, His Second coming when He will bring salvation to His faithful servants and condemnation to the rest of the world. Despite Christ’s teaching that even He does not know the day or hour of His return—the omniscient Father being the only one possessing this knowledge (Matt. 24:36)—some have dared to predict the time of Christ’s coming using ingenious codes or basing their claim on some kind of cryptic knowledge or allegedly divine communication revealed only to them.

When anticipated arrival failed to happen, they reinterpreted the events complaining that they were misunderstood, or claiming that Christ did in fact come back but in some other esoteric sense. These people have only brought ridicule and scorn upon themselves.

Others cite the fact that almost 2,000 years have passed without the day of Judgment coming as proof that it will never occur. This challenge to the authenticity of the Scripture and Christ’s promise was foretold long ago:

“First, I want to remind you that in the last days there will come scoffers who will do every wrong they can think of, and laugh at the truth. This will be their line of argument: So Jesus promised to come back, did he? Then where is he? He’ll never come! Why, as far back as anyone can remember everything has remained exactly as it was since the first day of creation.” (II Pt. 3:1-4, New International Version)

Others believe that if the end of the world ever comes, it will not be because of God’s act of vengeance, but because of some colossal comet, global disaster, or nuclear holocaust. These people, according to Apostle Peter, have forgotten a basic fact:

“They deliberately ignore this fact, that by the word of God heavens existed long ago, and an earth formed out of water and by means of water, through which the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished. But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist have been stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.” (II Pt. 3:5-7, Revised Standard Version)

Therefore, the world will not end by the act of man or nature, but by the word of God. As God destroyed the first civilizations which were wicked in His sight—saving only eight people from the great flood—He will destroy the ungodly with fire on Judgment Day.

The signs of His coming

“How near are we to the end of the world?” This question is often asked and debated about in our present era. Even though the Lord Jesus Christ does not know the date of His return (Mt. 24:36), He gave His signs which would signal that His coming is near:

“Just so, when you see the events I’ve described beginning to happen, you can know his return is very near, right at the door.” (Mt. 24:33, New Living Translation)

What are these events or signs that, when they occur, would herald that the day of Judgment is near?

“You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains.” (Mt. 24:6-8, NIV)

Wars and rumors of wars; information explosion

Although many amusedly point out that wars have always occurred during man’s tenure here on earth, we must notice that this was a definitive sign that Christ gave in answer to His disciples’ question concerning the time of His second Coming. An everyday occurrence would not be significant enough for Christ to mention as a sign that the end is near.

Why did Christ specifically mention that this war will be heard and rumored? Because during this time, God had told the prophet Daniel that “travel and education shall be vastly increased!” (Dan. 12:4, Living Bible)

In the last days or “end times” all knowledge will increase to the point that not only people but information will be able to reach far off places at speeds never before imagined.

This increase in knowledge resulted in the ability of people and information to travel to great distances, making the world seem a smaller place. The fastest way to travel during the time of the prophet Daniel was by the aid of certain animals like horses and camels. Though they also traveled by sea, the ships of the past were not as fast as those of today, taking months to traverse the same water routes which today could take only a matter of days. Communication was severely limited, but after the advent of the industrial revolution, there was a transportation and communication explosion—the telegraph, telephone, automobile, and the airplane were all invented within a short span of time:

“The electric telegraph was the product of many minds in many lands, but it became a practical success in the hands of the American, Morse, in 1844. A submarine cable was laid between England and France in 1851 … and telephone entered commerce with the American inventor, Bell, in 1876. The Italian, Marconi, succeeded with wireless telegraphy around 1896. Radio was invented shortly before the First World War… In 1896, when a pace of twenty miles an hour was fast, automobiles were built much like buggies or carriages.” (World History, vol. 2, pp. 543, 544)

First World War: a war unlike any other war

Many of these inventions happened right before the First World War making it a truly unique war:

“The First World War was unlike any war in the past … This was the first war ‘in three dimensions’, the first war in which cities were bombed from the air and winged warriors fought among the clouds. Of course the airplanes of 1914 were not so fast, so formidable, nor so numerous as those of today. They were really more important as scouts (a kind of aerial ‘cavalry’), photographing enemy movements from above, … the soldiers had to turn themselves into beavers and moles and dig deep trenches … the British had invented the tank, or land battleship—an armored automobile which could move on rough ground because it was built like a tractor.” (Ibid., pp. 478-479)

Many are surprised to find out that the Bible long ago foretold that these instruments of destruction—tanks and planes—would be used in this war:

“Behold, he comes up like clouds, his chariots like the whirlwind; his horses are swifter than eagles—woe to us, for we are ruined!

“My anguish, my anguish! I writhe in pain! Oh, the walls of my heart! My heart is beating wildly; I cannot keep silent; for I hear the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war.” (Jer. 4:13, 19, RSV)

The First World War was so much different from the wars preceeding it that it was known as the “Great War.” Not only was it a war that used planes (horses swifter than eagles) and tanks (chariots like whirlwind), but it was the first war which involved the whole world:

“The first terrible war, which involved the whole world and caused so much death and destruction, was World War I.” (World History In An Oriental Setting, p. 850)

God had foretold this event:

“Come here and listen, O nations of the earth. Let the world and everything in it hear my words. For the LORD is enraged against the nations. His fury is against all their armies. He will completely destroy them, bringing about their slaughter.” (Is. 34:1-2, NLT)

The whole world took notice when Word War I ignited for it was broadcast all over the world. This war was forever chiseled into the history books as a major turning point. Even the political landscape of many nations had changed in the aftermath of this war. This is the reason this war fulfills Christ’s prophecy as the beginning of the end times or the “end of the earth”—a wake up call to all that His coming is fast approaching.

We know, moreover, from hindsight that the First World War was not the war to end all wars. The Lord Jesus Christ proved this also when he said that “the end is not yet”. There would be other wars including another war wherein nations would rise against nations and kingdoms against kingdoms. This was fulfilled with the advent of the Second World War in September 1939.

And there will be famines

The occurrence of famines in various places is another sign that Christ’s Second Coming is near. Many newspapers report that many countries are facing food emergency situations. One major reason often cited was the El Niño and La Niña related droughts and floods. This, coupled with the Asian financial crisis which has now become a world economic crisis, is having significant adverse impacts on the food security of many countries.

Another reason for the lack of food is that the diet of the most third world countries consists mainly of fish, but according to National Geographic in an article entitled, Diminishing Returns: Exploiting the Ocean’s Bounty, fewer and fewer fish are being caught:

“The wealth of oceans, once deemed inexhaustible, has proven finite, and fish, once dubbed ‘the poor man’s protein’, have become a resource coveted—and fought over—by nations.”

Although technology has helped quadruple the word’s catch of seafood since 1950, “in many places fish stocks are being damaged by pollution by destruction of wetlands that serve as nurseries and provide food, by the waste of unprofitable fish (called ‘bycatch’), and above all, simply by overfishing. As a result of these changes, some fish rocks have collapsed, and many important groups of fish are fished either to the sustainable capacity or beyond it” (Ibid., p. 9).

This scarcity of food is only being exacerbated by the evergrowing world population. With less food and more people, the famine is only getting worse.

Earthquakes in many parts of the world

While it is indeed true that the earthquakes have occurred ever since the world was first created, Christ said that there will be great earthquakes everywhere when His Second Coming is near (Lk. 21:11). In this century, major earthquakes are neither special nor rare. But what was once so infrequent—perhaps, only a few times per century—now seems to be monthly event. In fact, toward the end of 1999, major earthquakes in rapid succession devastated the countries of Turkey, Greece, Mexico, Indonesia, and Taiwan, leaving thousands dead and causing billions in damages.

Reading the headlines today can make one depressed: “Poverty rate shockingly high,” “414 lose their jobs everyday,” “Another savings bank goes under,” “eight women are being raped every 24 hours.” “With calamities, an ever increasing crime rate, despicable acts of terrorism, new and deadlier forms of viruses springing up, gang wars, and a global economy gone haywire, is there a country unaffected by all these things?

Many have even noticed how much deeper countries are affecting one another through television and the mass media; children are imitating the promiscuous and untempered practices of other nations even adopting their attire, vices, and slang. More and more children are unruly, disrespecting their parents and other figures of authority. Hedonism is on the rise as people reason out that as long as it feels good and satisfies their base natural desires, it must be alright, What does this disintegration of culture indicate? Apostle Paul, in his second letter to Timothy wrote that:

“In the last days there will be very difficult times. For people will love only themselves and their money. They will be boastful and proud, scoffing at God, disobedient to their parents, and ungrateful. They will consider nothing sacred. They will be unloving and unforgiving; they will slander others and have no self-control; they will be cruel and have no interest in what is good. They will betray their friends, be reckless, be puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God. They will act as if they are religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly. You must stay away from people like that.” (II Tim. 3:1-5, NLT)

With the fulfillment of all these signs—the world wars, earthquakes, famines, sorrows, increase of knowledge, evil of mankind—there can be no doubt that we are heading toward the final chapter, the climax of human existence as we know it.

Those who will be saved

Fortunately, not everyone will be destroyed by fire on the day of Judgment:

“For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the call of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, all the Christians who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air and remain with him forever.” (I Thess. 4:16-17, Ibid.)

Christians who are alive during Christ’s return, together with those who have died in Christ, will be saved. However, not all those who claim to be Christian are true Christians, but only those who obey the commandments of the Lord Jesus Christ (Lk. 6:46)

What was Christ’s command which must be obeyed for one to be a true Christian? The Savior said:

“I am the door; anyone who comes into the fold through me shall be safe.” (Jn. 10:9, New English Bible)

The fold or the flock is the Church of Christ:

“Take heed therefore to yourselves and to all the flock over which the Holy Spirit has appointed you overseers, to feed the church of Christ which he has purchased with his blood.” (Acts 20:28, Lamsa Translation)

Therefore, to be a true Christian, one must become a member of the true Church of Christ. This is the only way to be saved from destruction on Judgment Day.

All signs have been fulfilled! Enter in Christ before it’s too late.

"And call no man your Father..." (Matthew 23:9)

Catholic priests are called “Fathers” although they are forbidden to marry and are thus theologically forbidden to have children. They are called fathers in spite of the biblical prohibition which we can read in Matthew 23:9. He can even claim that the term “father” is used more than 360 times in the Bible but not in reference to God.

 

“Father”

What does the term “father” mean? When is a man called “father”? How is God a “Father”? Why did our Lord Jesus Christ forbid the use the term “father” in reference to any man when God had commanded, “Honor your father and your mother”?

Webster’s New Universal Unabridged Dictionary contains an exhaustive list of meanings for the term. The first set of meaning is, “he who begets a child; the nearest male ancestor; a male parent.” This meaning is not what our Lord Jesus Christ alluded to in Matthew 23:9, because in Matthew 15:4 God commanded “Honor thy father and mother…” In this verse, the father to be honored is not the same “father” which is forbidden to be called on any man on Matthew 23:9. The term refers to God the Father in heaven, as the verse indicates. Obviously, the term “father” used in “Honor your father and mother” does not apply to any Catholic priest who practices celibacy.

Another set of meaning given by Webster’s Dictionary, usually in plural, is “a forefather or forebear; a lineal male ancestor; especially, the progenitor of a race or family.” This meaning is not referred to in Jesus’ prohibition, because the Bible speaks of Abraham as the father of Israelites.

The term also may refer to the “oldest member of any profession of body; as the father of the bar.” This does not refer in any way to God, and thus is not included in Christ intended meaning.

The senators in ancient Rome were also called by this term. In fact, they were called “Conscript Fathers,” the term also being used to mean the legislators of any nation or state. We often read in the newspapers “city dads” to refer to the members of the legislative body of a city. This apparently not referred to by our Lord Jesus Christ, since God, being the Father, is not even alluded to here.

The term “father” is also attached to “one who creates, invents, makes, originates, or composes anything; the author, former, or contriver; a founder, director, or instructor; the first to practice any art; as Homer is the father of epic poetry; Gutenberg is the father of printing; the pilgrim fathers.” This meaning is not what Christ had in mind in Matthew 23:9, because He was thinking of the term in reference to God.

Webster’s Dictionary includes the terms “Father of Waters” to refer to the Mississippi River, a translation of the Indian name; “Father Time” where time is personified as a very old man carrying a scythe and an hourglass. There is also the phrase “gather into one’s fathers” which means to die. Such meanings are not in the statement of Christ’s prohibition.

 

Christ’s meaning of “Father” in Matthew 23:9

Matthew 23:9 reads: “And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.” In what sense is God the “Father”? In an all-embracing sense, He is the Father because He is the creator of all things. Isaiah stated: “ But now, O Lord, thou art our Father, we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand” (Is. 64:8). The Prophet Malachi also said this: “Have we not all one father? hath not one God created us?...(Mal. 2:10).

God is also our spiritual Father or “Father of spirits”:

“Furthermore, we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?” (Heb. 12:9)

In a narrower sense, God is Father to His chosen people who are specifically referred to as the children of God. He is “a father to Israel” (Jer. 31:9). We know that Israel was God’s chosen people in the Old Testament of the Bible.

God is the Father to Christians in the New Testament. Christians are those who receive Christ and are given the power to become sons of God:

“But as many as received him, to them gave the power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.” (Jn. 1:12)

This power to become sons of God is the Spirit of adoption:

“For as many as are led by the Spirit of God. For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God.” (Rom. 8:14-16)

In summary, God is the Father in all-embracing sense that He is the Creator of all men and Father of Spirits. In the narrower sense, He is Father to the people, who obey all of His commandments, namely, His Chosen people, both of the Old and of the New Testaments—the Israelites and the Christians, respectively. This is the fatherhood that Christ forbade to be addressed to any man on earth, for there is only one father of this kind, the Father in heaven.

 

The apostles were never called “fathers” the way Catholic priests are

Our Lord Jesus Christ forbade the use of the title “father” to refer to any man who does the functions of God. Catholic priests, who are called “fathers” by their followers, justify this by saying that since Apostle Paul Called Timothy “my own son” (I Tim. 1:2) and the Christians of Galatia “my little children” (Gal. 4:19), then he must have been called by them “father.” This is mere assumption, without basis of fact. Nowhere in the New Testament does it say that the apostles were called by the title “father.” What is evident in the Bible is that their role was only likened to that of a “father”, but not as a real father. Such role is even is even likened to that of a mother, too: “even though as apostles of Christ we could have made demands on you, like mother taking care of her children… You know that we treated each one of you just as a father treats his own children.” (I Thess. 2:7, 11, Today’s English Version)

Thus, this claim by the Catholic priests that they should be called “fathers” because the apostles called the Christians “their children” is baseless. The apostles were only likened to “fathers” and “mothers.” Would any priest agree to be called “Reverend Mother”?

Is there any verse in the Bible that states definitely that the apostles were never called “father” in the Catholic sense?

Christ states, categorically, that there is only one Father who is in heaven. When Apostle Paul, in his letter to the Corinthians, said that “…I have become your father by bringing the Good News to you.” (I Cor. 4:15, TEV), did this mean he was likening himself to the Father in heaven? No, but since he called Timothy “my true son in faith”. Apostle Paul became a father in the faith by preaching the Gospel. This was why Gentile converts of the apostles who were Jews were considered their children in the faith. This fatherhood is not the same as the Fatherhood of God.

 

The fatherhood of the Catholic priest

In what sense is the Catholic priest a “father”? Surely, not in the physical sense for a priest is theoretically bound by the law of celibacy. A Catholic priest, Rev. Leslie Rumble, in his work, Another Thousand Radio Replies, third volume, has this to say:

“Catholics rightly, therefore call the priest ‘father’, not to the exclusion of their Father in Heaven, but as a manifestation on earth of the supreme Fatherhood of God in the spiritual order, even as an earthly parent is a similar manifestation of the same Fatherhood in the natural order.” (p. 75)

Rev. Rumble thus asserts that a priest is a spiritual father like God who is the Father of spirits. This is forbidden by Christ—to call any man a father in the sense of God’s fatherhood because that sense is exclusively of God’s alone.

We know that God is not only our Father. He is the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, too, as we can read in John 20:17:

“Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended unto my Father: but go to brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God.”

But Catholic priest claim this honor, because they are called the “parents of Jesus Christ,” (Dignity and Duties of the Priest by St. Alphonsus De Liguori, p.32). In the same book, on page 33, it is stated that “the words of a priest create Jesus Christ.” Such honor belongs to God alone, the Creator of all men, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, and our Father as stated by our Lord Jesus Christ Himself.

What about the pope, the allegedly highest father of souls, who is called “Holy Father”? The title “Holy Father” is used by our Lord Jesus Christ to refer to God:

“And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.” (Jn. 17:11)

Thus the term “Holy Father,” referring to a man, the pope of the Catholic Church, is used in defiance of Christ’s command in Matthew 23:9.

 

Who actually is personified by the Catholic priest?

The use of the term “father” to refer to any man in the meanings of our Lord Jesus Christ in Matthew 23:9 is a usurpation of the honors that belong to God alone. The meanings of the term “father” as “Creator of all,” as “father of spirits,” as “Father of Jesus Christ,” and as “Holy Father” refer to God alone. Using those meanings to refer to a man is what our Lord Jesus Christ prohibited. The Catholic priests usurp this title. They are the personifications of that “son of perdition; who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God” (II Thess. 2:3-4) This is emphasized by De Liguori in his book, Dignity and Duties of the Priest:

“St. Clement, then, had reason to say that the priest is, as it were, a God on earth.” (p.36)

The Prophet Isaiah spoke of an individual who had tried to usurp the prerogatives of God:

“How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!

“For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:

“I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the Most High.

“Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to sides of the pit.” (Is. 14:12-15)

We know that this Lucifer became Satan, the enemy of God, the head of devils who upholds the teachings, “forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth.” (I Tim. 4:3)

Incidentally, these same teachings are given to the Catholic priests who are called “fathers.” They are forbidden to marry by the pope. All Catholics are also commanded by the pope to abstain from meats during certain days of the year in the Lenten Season.

The title “father”, in the meanings reserved for God alone, should not be used for any man. Other meanings such as procreator, ancestor, reverence due to age or position, inventor, author, contriver, source etc. are not included in Christ’s prohibition.

THE POPE, NERO OR DIOCLETIAN: Who is the 666?

      

The Pope’s official title in Latin is VICARIVS FILII DEI (Vicar of the Son of God). These are words composed of letters and when you spell them out you have to take them letter by separate letter, not by group of letters. Take the letters one by one, assign the Arabic numeral equivalent to each one and we have: V=5; I=1; C=100; A=0; R=0; I=1; U or V=5; S=0; F=0; I=1; L=50; I=1; I=1; D=500; E=0; I=1; for a total of 666. Codes and riddles were both Greek and Hebrew by using numbers for letters according to their order in the alphabet. Thus, some commentators have claimed that 666 is also the total number values of the name of Roman Emperor Nero who launched the first persecution against the Christians in the Roman Empire. In the Hebrew alphabet, the name Nero is written thus: NRON QSR. Putting numbers of Hebrew equivalent on the letters we have: N=50; R=200; O=6; N=50; Q=100; S=60; R=200 for a total of 666. Emperor Diocletian, the last Roman emperor to persecute the Christians has the name DIOCLES AVGVSTVS and again putting numerical equivalents to his name we have: D=500; I=1; O=0; C=100; L=50; E=0; S=0; A=0; V=5; G=0; V=5; S=0; T=0; V=5; S=0 for a total of 666. Which of the three: the Pope, Nero, or Diocletian, is the biblical beast 666? The beast has many attributes enumerated in Revelation 13:11-18. This beast has two horns, like a lamb, and spoke like a dragon (Rev. 13:11). Beast means king (Dan. 7:17, KJV) and horns means power or authority (Amos 6:13). The Pope is the temporal ruler of the Vatican state crowned with a tiara and also the spiritual head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is Pontifex Maximus, just as Nero and Diocletian were. Pontifex Maximus is the title or name of the supreme high priest of the state religion of pagan Rome, the same title appropriated by the Pope. Thus, all the three rulers with the number 666 can still be said to have two horns, two powers—political (temporal) and religious. The beast is like a lamb (not any other two-horned animal) and the Lamb is Christ (John 1:29) and the Pope who is a priest is dressed like Christ. The beast spoke like a dragon. The dragon is Satan, the Devil (Rev. 12:9). The Devil has doctrines (I Tim. 4:1-3) two of which are taught and imposed by the Pope, namely, forbidding to marry (celibacy) for priest and nuns and commanding to abstain from meats for all Catholics during the Lenten season. In these ways the beast spoke like a dragon—taught lies and doctrines of devils, done by the Pope and not by the Roman Emperor Nero and Diocletian. Thus, Nero and Diocletian are not the beast 666!

The beast exercises all the power of the first beast before him (Rev. 13:12). The Pope became as powerful as the Roman Emperor whom he succeeded and whose administrative system he adopted. The beast does great wonders or miracles, by means of which he deceives people, make them worship the image of the beast, and kills those who refuse to follow (Rev. 13:13-15). The Catholic Church, headed by the Pope, is noted for many miracles and images and its Holy Inquisition killed millions of what it called heretics. F.H.Sills, in his book Roman Catholicism Investigated and Exposed, page 16, says that the Catholic Church headed by the Pope has killed 50 million people!

The beast forced a mark on the right hand or forehead of all levels of people and no one can buy or sell unless he has that mark (Rev. 13:16-17). Catholics who obey the Pope have a mark on their foreheads, visible on Ash Wednesday, the sign of the cross which they make with the use of their right hands. History tells of how Catholic missionaries, accompanied by soldiers in the Middle Ages, forced people at swordpoint to become Catholics. The Philippine experience showed how the Spaniards came armed with sword on their right hands and the cross on their left to propagate Catholicism. During the Middle Ages, a Catholic who had sinned but reconciled on Holy Thursday was still bound by certain disabilities; for example he was not free to marry, or if he was already married, he could not resume marital relations; he was not permitted to engaged in public trade. The same period portrays how the Spanish Inquisition drove out highly skilled Moorish artisans and Jewish merchants from Spain because of economic and trade restrictions imposed on them due to their being non-Catholics.

Thus, all the characteristics of the Beast enumerated in the Book of Revelation are found in the Pope of the Catholic Church. He is, thus, the fulfillment of the Beast whose number is 666. Catholics feel hurt when they learned about this, but the truth is the truth and sometimes it hurts.

Unraveling the scriptural testimonies regarding God's messenger in these last days

  From time to time, God sends messengers to preach His message to people for their salvation. On one way to which God heralds the coming of His messengers is through prophecy. For instance, the sending of John the Baptist to prepare the way for the Lord Jesus was prophesied by Isaiah:

   “A voice cries out: ‘In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord’.” (Is. 40:3, New Revised Standard Version)

   It should be noted that the prophesy does not mention the name of the messenger who will “prepare the way of the Lord.” This prophesy was fulfilled in John the Baptist who himself unraveled what Isaiah prophesied concerning his authority to preach, paving the way of the Lord:

   “This is the testimony given by John when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, ‘Who are you?’

   “He confessed and did not deny it, but confessed, ‘I am not the Messiah’.
  “And they asked him, ‘What then? Are you Elijah?’ He said, ‘I am not’. ‘Are you the prophet?’ He answered, ‘No’.

   “Then they said to him, ‘Who are you?’ Let us have an answer for those who sent us. What do say about yourself?’

   “He said, ‘I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, “Make straight the way of the Lord”, ‘as the prophet Isaiah said.” (Jn. 1:19-23, NRSV)

   The priests and Levites then knew that a true preacher must have the authority from God. Hence, they demanded that John prove his authority. John replied by citing Isaiah’s prophesy: “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness.”

   Apostle Paul, also a messenger of God, preached the gospel of salvation to the Gentiles. By what authority did he preach? Isaiah prophesied in 49:6 thus:

   “He says, ‘It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the survivors of Israel; I will give you as a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth’.” (NRSV)

   Paul’s mission of salvation to the Gentiles was anchored upon the prophecy of Isaiah, the Hebrew prophet: I will give you as a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.” Notice also that in this prophecy, Paul’s name is not even mentioned. The only time his name is mentioned in connection with this prophecy is when he himself revealed that he was indeed the fulfillment (Acts 13:46-47).

The greatest messenger prophesied

   The greatest messenger of God, Jesus Christ, was also prophesied by Isaiah. The gospel of Luke narrates how Christ unraveled Isaiah’s prophecy regarding His commission:

   “When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read,

   “and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written:

   “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let  the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.

   “And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him.
   “Then he begun to say to them, ‘Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing’.” (Lk. 4:16-21, NRSV)

   Take note that God’s messengers, among them John the Baptist, Apostle Paul, and the Lord Jesus Christ, were commissioned by God through the prophecies of Isaiah, the Hebrew prophet. This does not imply, however, that unless there is a prophecy of Isaiah one is not a messenger of God.

   As for the Lord Jesus Christ, there are so many prophecies concerning His commission. Even Moses prophesied concerning Christ:

   “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you shall heed such a prophet.” (Dt. 18:15, NRSV, Acts 3:22-23, 20)

   David, in his psalms, also declared so many things concerning Christ, one of which says:

   “The Lord says to my Lord, ‘Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool’.” (Ps. 110:1, NRSV, Lk. 20:41-44)

   It is, therefore, evident that the messengers themselves are the ones who unravel the prophecies regarding their devine authority, although these prophecies do not expressly mention their personal names.

God’s messenger in these last days

   In these last days, we believe that God had sent His messenger through the prophecy of Prophet Isaiah. Says the Hebrew prophet:

   “Who has performed and done this, calling the generations from the beginning? I, the Lord, am the first, and will be with the last.

   “But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, the offspring of Abraham, my friend;

   “you, whom I took from the ends of the earth, and called from its farthest corners, saying to you, ‘You are my servant, I have chosen you and not cast you off’;

   “do not fear, for I am with you, do not be afraid, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my victorious right hand.” (Is. 41:4, 8-10, NRSV)

   The “Jacob” and “Israel” mentioned in the prophecy are from the “ends of the earth” and are recognized as the seed of Abraham. We believe that Brother Felix Y. Manalo and the Church of Christ in these last days are the fulfillment of the prophecy.

   Our critics, however, argue that this prophecy refers to Jacob and Israel of ancient times, that is, the descendants of Abraham. Their argument, however, is not valid. We should take note of the fact that the above-cited verses are a prophecy. Prophecies, needles to say, are supposed to tell the future and not the past. The book of Isaiah was written sometime around 740 or 710 B.C. Whereas, some Bible scholars estimate that the death of Jacob was sometime between 1,700 and 1,600 B.C. More or less, a thousand-year-gap lies between the time this particular prophecy was told, Jacob had long been dead. His death was recorded in the book of Genesis, thus:

   “When Jacob ended his charge to his sons, he drew up his feet into the bed, breathed his last, and was gathered to his people.” (Gen. 49:33, NRSV)

   Thus, old Jacob and ancient Israel could not have been the ones referred to in the prophecy. According to this prophecy of Isaiah, God will be with the last. “The last” refers to God’s servant from the “ends of the earth.” God pronounced that He had chosen this servant, His messenger from “ends of the earth.”

   “Ends of the earth” is that period which covers the time from from the First World War, which broke out on July 27, 1914, to the second advent of the Lord Jesus. The beginning of the “ends of the earth” is likewise the time when the Roman Catholic Church and Various Protestant churches were very much entrenched in various parts of the world. Hence, God said concerning His messenger in these last days: “do not fear… do not be afraid, for I am your God.” The Almighty likewise promised that He will strengthen, help, and uphold His messenger with His victorious right hand.

   The task entrusted by God to him is to “…bring my sons from far, and my daughters from the ends of the earth” (Is. 43:6, King James Version). These sons and daughters are from the Far East (Is. 43:6, Moffat Translation). This was fulfilled when Brother Felix Y. Manalo preached the Iglesia ni Cristo in the Philippines, a country in the Far East.

   When God’s messenger in these last days fulfilled his ministerial function of gathering God’s children from the Far East, the Church of Christ or Iglesia ni Cristo reemerged. We must remember that when the Church of Christ had apostatized, the members possessing the true faith disappeared. However, the Church’s founder, Christ, and His gospel remained. Hence, when God’s sons and daughters were gathered as an organization of true believers, the Church of Christ was once again established. These people, who are the other sheep of Christ (Jn. 10:16), do not constitute another church but were brought into the fold or flock which is the Church of Christ (Jn. 10:16, Acts 20:28, Lamsa Translation).

   The fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy in Brother Felix Y. Manalo proves beyond any reasonable doubt that He is indeed God’s last messenger!