How Many End-Times Prophecies Have Been Fulfilled?

How many of the end-time biblical prophecies have already been fulfilled?

Lead Astray

When Jesus gave His Olivet Discourse, which was a history lesson written in advance, the Lord said that “many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray” (Matt 24:5). This doesn’t mean many will come saying that they are actually Jesus Christ (a scant few, yes) but rather, they are teaching about Jesus Christ, but having another Jesus, “they will lead many astray,” not a few, preaching another gospel (2 Cor 11:4; Gal 1:8). That’s happened, and is happening! Many refuse to hear the gospel of repentance and faith, as Jesus brought (Mark 1:16). They’d much rather hear a message that makes them feel good about themselves, and there’s no shortage of the health, wealth, and prosperity gospel preachers out there today. There are fewer and fewer preaching repentance and faith.

Violence Increasing

Jesus refers to an end-time violent nature of mankind. For example, “lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold” (Matt 5:12). Violence will be like that of Noah’s day, and Jesus warned about this, saying, “Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man” (Luke 17:6), but why does Jesus refer to Noah’s day? Because as it is today, it was in Noah’s day, when “the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually” (Gen 6:5). Like it is today, it was in Noah’s day, when “the earth was corrupt in God’s sight, and the earth was filled with violence. And God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth” (Gen 6:11-12). Today, as in Noah’s day, all people seemed to think about was new ways to sin (Gen 6:5). That’s happening right now.

Sermon on the Mount by Carl Bloch (1877). Publicl Domain.

Gospel Preached

Many people believe that the vast majority of the world has heard about Christ. The gospel has reached every continent, if not every village, but it appears that the gospel has about reached the whole world. Not everyone has heard the gospel, but we are not told precisely that every person must hear the gospel, but rather, “this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come” (Matt 24:14). It has been proclaimed throughout the whole earth, even though not everyone on the earth’s heard it. It doesn’t matter because people have no excuse to deny God’s existence (Psalm 19:1-2; Rom 1:18-22), so how close are we to having the gospel preached “to all nations?” I have no idea, but it’s being fulfilled as you read this, and it does seem to be getting close to reaching all nations right now, if not every person.

Self-Centeredness

The Apostle Paul warned Timothy before his death, “that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy” (2 Tim 3:1-2). Even worse, today mankind has become “heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God” (2 Tim 3:3-4). Need any evidence of this? Just watch satellite or cable TV or look at the Internet or the latest ads on TV. The more evil it is, the better, and now the better is looked upon as evil. Isaiah the Prophet warned, “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter” (Isaiah 5:20)! No doubt, that day has come.

Business as Usual

When Jesus returns, many people will wail or mourn on account of this (Rev 1:7), knowing that they rejected the gospel in the day of salvation (2 Cor 6:2), and today, many blindly lead a life detached from the things of God. They could care less about Jesus Christ, and just as in Noah’s day, they ignored Noah’s warning about a coming judgment of God…the flood. They just kept right on doing what they had always done before, and that is “they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark” (Matt 24:28). They were so busy living their lives that “they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man” (Matt 24:29). When Christ comes to judge the lost, it will be too late for them too, just as it was for those in Noah’s day. This was “because they formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water” (1 Pet 3:20). Today, millions are still not obeying God, but the flood of God’s judgment is coming…and coming unexpectedly!

Great Tribulation

Prior to Jesus coming, we know that “there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short” (Matt 24:21-22). Even though this chapter likely refers to the fall of Jerusalem in 70 AD, it sounds very much like God must intervene, or no one would be left alive! Those are precarious times Jesus is talking about, and those are the times we live in today. With the nuclear doomsday clock just a couple of minutes from midnight, it may be that Jesus has to intervene and cut short those days. Otherwise, even “the elect” would be destroyed (although, only their physical bodies would be).

Scoffers

There is no shortage of persecution today and it’s getting worse. For most of us, it’s mainly verbal and in print, but this shouldn’t surprise us since “all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Tim 3:12). Every believer must realize that Scripture teaches us “that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. They will say, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation” (2 Pet 3:3-4). Ever been made fun of for your faith? Welcome to the club. A sign of the end times is that this will be an increasing problem for believers.

Falling Away

“…Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing …” Matthew 7:15

Today, we don’t have to do much research to see that church attendance has been plummeting. And we can’t blame these stats on “bad churches” or believer’s hypocrisy, but rather as something that was foretold. The Apostle Paul said that “the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons” (1 Tim 4:1). Those who forsake the assembling of themselves (Heb 10:24-25), accuse Christians of being hypocrites, while they themselves do what they accuse them of (Rom 2:1-2; 1 Tim 4:2).

Conclusion

The best thing we can do is to “stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming” (Matt 24:42), because “the day of the Lord will come like a thief” (2 Pet 3:10), meaning He’ll return when no one expects it. No one knows when a thief might break and enter their home, and neither does anyone know the split second of Jesus’ return. Knowing Bible prophecy can’t help you on the Day of Judgment. You must put your trust in Christ today; repent of your sins, and then take up the Great Commission, reaching your own corner of the world; helping to fulfill the commandment to proclaim “throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come” (Matt 24:14).

Here is some related reading for you: The End Times. Are We Living in the Last Days?

Resource – Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version^® (ESV^®), Crossway Bibles. (2007). ESV: Study Bible: English standard version. Wheaton, Ill: Crossway Bibles. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Tagged as: End Times, Jesus' return, last days