The End

How many times do we get caught up talking about the end of a matter. Of course the end of a matter is better than the beginning, but is it better than where we are right now? If we're constantly trying to discern the end of something, how will we hear what the Lord has to teach us in the present time?

There is one thing for certain and that is that the time is now and now is all that we are allowed to know unless we're a prophet....in which case Daniel shows us that it’s good to keep what the Lord says to ourselves, lest we encourage fear, prophesy falsely or accidentally encourage others to do things that the Lord does not have for them to be doing.

Dan 7:28 "This is the end of the matter. I, Daniel, was deeply troubled by my thoughts, and my face turned pale, but I kept the matter to myself."

Matthew Henry comments regarding Daniel 7 that some believe these scriptures are prophesies regarding the end of the world and that the concepts are “…many things dark and hard to be understood, which we dare not to positively determine the sense of….” And Paul warns us not to jump to conclusions about the end in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-2 “…we ask you, brothers, not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by some prophecy, report or letter supposed to have come from us, saying that the day of the Lord has already come.”

Our focus should be on gathering the remnant chosen by grace and our eternal salvation in the present time...Rom 11:5 “So too, at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace.” And in that choosing our salvation is at hand. Matthew Henry comments on 2 Corinthians 6 in that “The morrow is none of ours: we know not what will be on the morrow, nor where we shall be; and we should remember that present seasons of grace are short and uncertain, and cannot be recalled when they are past. It is therefore our duty and interest to improve them while we have them, and no less than our salvation depends upon our so doing.” 2Cr 6:2 “For he says, ‘In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you.’ I tell you,
now is the time of God's favor, now is the day of salvation.”

Scripture for further study:
Psalm 131
A song of ascents. Of David. My heart is not proud, O Lord, my eyes are not haughty;
I do not concern myself with great matters or things too wonderful for me. But I have stilled and quieted my soul; like a weaned child with its mother, like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, put your hope in the Lord. both now and forevermore.

Ecc 7:8 The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride.
Luk 12:56 Hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky. How is it that you don't know how to interpret this present time?
Rom 13:11 And do this, understanding the present time. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.
Jhn 4:23 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.
Jhn 5:25 I tell you the truth, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live.
Jhn 12:31 Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out.
Jhn 16:22 So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy.
Rom 13:11 And do this, understanding the present time. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.
1Cr 7:29 What I mean, brothers, is that the time is short. From now on those who have wives should live as if they had none;

2 Thessalonians 2
Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him, we ask you, brothers, not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by some prophecy, report or letter supposed to have come from us, saying that the day of the Lord has already come. Don't let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God's temple, proclaiming himself to be God. Don't you remember that when I was with you I used to tell you these things? And now you know what is holding him back, so that he may be revealed at the proper time. For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by the splendor of his coming. The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders, and in every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie and so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness. But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because from the beginning God chose you to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth. He called you to this through our gospel, that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the teachings we passed on to you, whether by word of mouth or by letter. May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word.

All scripture and commentary references retrieved on July 21, 2008 from http://www.blueletterbible.org