We Cannot Be Certain......But We Can And Should Continue To Meditate Upon

                  A couple of quick thoughts here on Bible prophecy.....in doing this I'm comparing two future events. We know....100%.....that Jesus Christ is returning in power and glory and judgment. There is no gray area here. There are other such future events that we know....in absolute certainty.....that they will happen. There are other events in which we do not....by any means....have that certainty. I'll mention a major one....one that many believe that they do know with certainty what will will happen....but they do not.....for none of us do.
                   Picking something at random.....we do not know if there is a literal millennial age on earth....or not. This is a random pick folks....it is not a soap box on what happens next. It is the principle. There is no way that we can know for sure on this.....because God's Word does not put this in the.....'for sure'....category.
                       Now common sense will say that it will turn out that many.....on one side or the other.....will have proven to be correct....but that does not prove that they knew in certainty at the time...it proves only that they picked the right straw! On future events such as the timing of a rapture....or what 666 means....or what Mystery Babylon turns out to be.....we cannot absolutely know....but we can speculate....indeed we should meditate upon....and study....and even speculate. Men can teach....seminaries can put forth their belief system....and books can be written. That is expected....and there is nothing inherently wrong in that....but it can be very problematic if we do not humble ourselves before the Word of God....living for defense of some truths....but making no place for pride to enter in on others that can be no more than speculation.
                      I want so say this also....and I know that I've mentioned this in past posts....one can study Bible prophesy for a lifetime.....reading and meditating and praying every day....even in humility....but it does not guarantee that they will even be close to the truth. There is no guarantee there. On the other hand....if one does not study God's Word on the warnings on what will happen in the future....if this is not part of that Christian's life.....it will guarantee one thing. If one had no interest....or no care to be warned from God's Word....it guarantees that God will give them little to no discernment. Once again....they may....in their lethargy and lack of interest....make declarative statements that turn out to be correct....but that only shows that their impious and disinterested mind....fell into the right answer.
                      So....I believe with all of my heart....that Jesus is returning soon.....Webster's definition of 'soon'....and I believe that Israel's return in 1948 was a sign and a warning for us to prepare....but I cannot know these things in absolute certainty. I do know that Jesus wants us to look for His return....I do know that in absolute certainty....for His Word makes that clear.  If I were a teacher in some capacity....which I am not....I would put these thoughts to students.....and we would talk them out. That's all that I am doing here. You and I cannot talk these things over....but you can bring them up with Christian friends.

               One last thing....the Bible makes clear that a time will indeed come when we will know in absolute certainty that Jesus is at the very door. All these things are becoming a little more clear as time goes on. Speculate....search the Scriptures....hope and desire....encourage and even warn....all these things we must do....for God will bless them....but let's do them in the knowledge that God is sovereign....an we are a work in progress.