The Bible Lets Us Know What Is Coming 

One day recently I was surprised to receive my Wednesday local newspaper in the mail on Tuesday. My first thought was that someone had made a mistake, but then I remembered that the following day was a holiday in which the post office would be closed. However, it still was a little eerie to read the news that was dated for the next day. It reminded me of the old TV show in which a man regularly received what was described as “tomorrow’s newspaper today.” He was supernaturally given advanced notice of events and used that knowledge to avert certain disasters, save people from harm, or help prepare for some occurrence. I was a little disappointed when I examined my day-early newspaper and didn’t find any such prognostications that I could use to make a difference, alter the future, or make advance preparations.

While we rightly categorize such a concept as a fantasy, there is a sense in which we actually have received “tomorrow’s newspaper today.” We don’t receive such a supernatural communication on our doorstep or in our mailbox each day. However, God has provided us with some revelation in the Bible about what the future holds. It typically doesn’t provide us with specific dates, but it does give us a clear picture of certain trends we can expect, along with some definite events. Are we paying attention to what it reveals about what is ahead for us? Are we responding appropriately by trying to avoid disasters, warning others, and preparing for what is to come?

One of the most significant events the Bible foretells is the glorious return of Jesus. He will come back to earth to receive His faithful followers to a wonderful destiny of spending eternity with Him while ushering in a time of final judgment on those who have refused to put their trust in Him. If we truly believe that future headline, shouldn’t we be preparing for it? In connection with that truth, the Bible instructs us to watch and be ready. We need to make sure our hearts are right with God and that we are faithfully living for Him. However, it should also motivate us to urgently be warning others, praying for them, and witnessing to them. If we knew in advance that some disaster was going to befall certain people, wouldn’t we make an effort to help them avoid it if we could? Shouldn’t we be doing that in light of our knowledge of Christ’s return?

There are precursors to that main event of which we also need to be aware and be taking appropriate action. The Bible lets us know that leading up to the return of Jesus there will be hardships and persecution for His people. Therefore we need to be getting so grounded in our faith that such tribulation and opposition will be less likely to cause us to stumble. Some of us need to focus less on the hope of escaping such adversities by means of a “rapture” and put more effort into spiritually preparing for the possibility of our having to suffer or even die for our faith before Jesus comes back. The Bible also reveals that many will be deceived by false prophets and their teachings. What are we doing to avoid falling victim to such deception? We need to be spending time in God’s Word, becoming more familiar with the truth, and teaching those truths to others. Between cultural pressures and new technology such as artificial intelligence, along with Satan working to blind people’s hearts and minds, it is getting more difficult to discern truth and will be easier to be deceived.

So let’s study tomorrow’s newspaper. God has given us warning and an opportunity to get ready. Let’s make good use of it.