MESSAGES AND BIBLE STUDIES


BIBLE STUDY
The End Times and the Signs “Earthquakes”
(Matthew 24:1-35)
June 9, 2021

Scripture Reading: Matthew 24:7 “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdoms against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places” v. 7.

Introduction “But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days.” (2 Timothy 3:1) Have you marked, assessed, and evaluated the times we are living in? We must. We hear about killings and murders every day, and we forget that such occurrences could happen to our families and each of us. We see the chaos. Mark these days! The Bible says that terrible times will come, and they are here. This is translated grievous times and can be translated dangerous times. The Greek word chelepos means “hard to bear” or “fierce” times. (Vine 179) This means that times will be violent and disturbing. People will be difficult, brutal, violent, intense, and angry. Times will also be chaotic and confusing. We want to look at some of the characteristics, trends and signs in a postmodern world. We will look at “The End Times and the Sign.” Our Savior, the prophets and apostles spoke of these last times. Our next sign is earthquakes. Earthquakes are very real in our contemporary world.

1. Earthquakes: What are they?“There will be famine and earthquakes in various places” (Matthew 24:7). “There will be earthquakes in various places” (Mark 13:8). “There will be great earthquakes” (Luke 21:11). Earthquakes are “a shaking or a trembling the earth.” (Webster New Dictionary) they have been mentioned and recorded throughout history.

2. Facts about Earthquakes. According to Fact Finders: A. “The National Earthquake Center records about 20,000 earthquakes a year. (50 a day)” (Do Something) B.“Each year the Southern California area has about 10,000 earthquakes generally unnoticed.” (Do Something) C. “About 80% of the earthquakes occur along the rim of the Pacific Ocean call the “Ring of Fire.” A region that encircles the Pacific Ocean and is the home of 452 volcanos.” (Do Something)

3. Other facts Fact Retriever reports the following: D. “A massive earthquake in Chile moved the city of Concepcion 10 feet to the west on February 27, 2010. E.This quake also shortened earth’s day and slightly changed the rotation of the planet.” F. “The deadliest earthquake was known to hit Shansi China on January 23, 1956. An estimated 830 million died.” G. “Earthquakes kill approximately 8,000 people a year and an estimated 13 million have died of earthquakes over the last 4,000 years.” H. “The Indian ocean earthquake in 2004 generated enough energy to power all the homes and business in the United States for three days.” I. “An average earthquake lasts a minute.” J.“Earthquakes are mostly caused by geological faults but can be also caused by landslides, nuclear testing, mine tests, and volcanic activity.” (In addition, as in Oklahoma, earthquakes may be caused by methods of oil and gas fracking). K.“The focus or the ‘hypocenter’ is the initial point of rupture. Its ‘epicenter’ is the point at ground level above the hypocenter.” L. “An earthquake in the ocean can cause tsunami that travels outward in all directions up to 600 miles an hour (970 km), the speed of a jet.  When the tsunami reaches the shoreline, it suddenly reaches heights of over 100 feet (30 meters) causing massive destruction.” M. “Parkfield California is known as ‘The Earthquake Capital of the World’ and has a bridge that spans two tectonic plates.” N.“The world’s worst avalanche started by an earthquake occurring in Peru in 1970. 800 meters of ice and snow came down the mountain… killing 18,000 people.” O. “The world’s worst land slide started by an earthquake occurred in 1920 in the Kansu providence of China. The landslide killed 200,000 people.” P. “The highest tsunami caused by an earthquake happened in Japan in 1971. A tsunami 278 feet (85 meters) high struck Ishigaki Island.” Q. The United States Geological Survey gives a list of the latest earthquakes. They also give a map of the latest earthquakes.

Conclusion Jesus shows us these signs for several reasons: 1.To prepare for His return 2. To understand (truth and discernment) 3.To comfort us 4. To prepare others