In the second chapter of my book on heaven I write on the timeline of events, ten events, progressing toward heaven. The church age is the first event—or the first period of time, from where we are now.

The Church Age

The church age, from Pentecost until now (for over 2,000 years) has been built on a firm foundation of faithful Old Testament believers—like Abraham, whom God chose to bless and to make of him a great nation. And it was Abraham who was looking for the city of God (Heb. 10:14); amazing isn’t it, that way back then he was looking for the city that we still have in view. And there are so many others that were also strong in faith, like Joseph who against all odds believed in God to preserve many people alive—the Jewish nation (Gen. 5:20). And then, of course, there was Moses who refused to enjoy the pleasures of Egypt in order to follow a greater calling—to lead God’s people out of Egypt. And we could not forget Joshua and Caleb who when they spied out the land of Canaan and saw that there were giants living there, they alone believed in God that he would go with them and deliver them. And there were so many others who were great in faith; but king David stands out as one of the greatest who had a heart for God all his life. And besides David there was Samuel, Elijah and Elisha, and so many other great prophets like Isaiah and Jeremiah and Ezekiel and Daniel.

In the New Testament era, the beginning of the church age, there were those who Jesus discipled—the twelve apostles, plus Paul. They, according to God’s design were the ones who were the pillars of the church. And we see in the book of Acts how after Pentecost, many were added to the church. And though there was great persecution (and martyrs) in those early days, the church grew and grew.

In more recent years, from the 1500’s and on into the 1900’s, mainly in Europe and America, holy men who were called puritans and great preachers began to be used by God. The first of these were men like Martin Luther and William Tyndale who had the calling of God to reform the church (as it had been corrupted by Babylonialism and the Catholic church), and to translate the bible into the language of the people. These great warriors were those who were brutally persecuted and even burned alive for their faith—thousands of them.

Following them, from the 1700’s on, were the great ones like John Wesley, Charles Finney, Jonathan Edwards, George Whitefield, J. B. Lightfoot, Hudson Taylor, Charles H. Spurgeon, Dwight L. Moody, F. B. Meyer, and R. A. Torrey. They were the great preachers and writers who sparked revivals. They were the movers of the Holy Spirit that kept the church alive.

Today, because of those who have gone before them, we have a great many churches in the world, especially in England and in America.  In most cities there is a church on just about every corner. However, most churches have lost their holy zeal that once existed; and with so many denominations, it is hard to find a church that is bible-believing and God-loving.

And even though the church age by definition is a time for believers (the bride of Christ) to excel in faith, we live in an age of evil and war and lawlessness. Hence we find ourselves surrounded on every side with those who are against us. Here, in ten points, is what this age of the church is facing today.

1. False prophets misleading many (1 Tim. 4:1; Matt. 24:11).This may be the most evident indication of the last days.

2. A great proliferation of evil (2 Tim. 3:1-5, 13). This will be the greatest during the tribulation, but we are beginning to see it now, and the result is a great deception and a loss of the truth.

3. Wars breaking out all over the world (Matt. 24:6). The more people are infected with evil the more they will choose war and crime.

4. Famine (Matt. 24:7; Rev. 6:5-6). Severe hunger and starvation due to drought and war is growing worse and worse every day and is a constant sign that His coming is near.

5. Earthquakes (Matt. 24:7; Lu. 21:11). Some of us do not experience earthquakes (like where I live in Minnesota). However, according to geological reports, this world on the whole, has seen both an increase in the frequency and the intensity of earthquakes in the last few decades, which is a definite sign of His soon coming.

6. Lawlessness (Matt. 24:12). This is a term that describes the Antichrist—the “man of lawlessness.” We can expect this behavior more and more in these last days.

7. False religious unity (Rev. 17). After the Rapture and into the Tribulation there will be an effort to set up a new global religion; but it will be a false religion. Even now in this church there is efforts by false teachers to push ahead this false religion and to create a false religious unity.

8. Efforts to create a global government (Dan. 7; Rev. 13 and 17). For the last few decades all the world’s technology, such as the internet, email, social networking, and central banking has been geared toward globalization. It will be here sooner than we think.

9. The persecution of believers (Matt. 10:22; 24:9; 2 Tim. 3:12; Rev. 6:9-11). This has always been an issue in the world; but it is definitely intensifying as we draw near to the antichrist system.

10. An alignment of nations against Israel (Isa. 17:1; Ezek. 38 and 39). Oh, we definitely see this happening as we hear the news! It is shocking!