“Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.” (Isa 60:1-3 AV)
This is a very familiar passage. It is quoted in the New Testament as well. This verse speaks of a time when the Gentiles will turn to the light of the Jewish Messiah. This passage has a dual application. It was fulfilled in the incarnation of Christ. The vast majority of those who worship Jehovah are Gentile. Those who have trusted Jesus Christ as LORD and Savior are overwhelmingly Gentile. There is another application here as well. The promise above also applies to the millennial reign of Christ. In fact, it might be argued the promise started with Jesus’ first coming and will culminate at His second coming. The truth that a ‘great darkness’ will cover the earth just prior to His second coming, is supported by Paul’s mention of a ‘falling away’ prior to the coming of Christ. This ‘falling away’ is a great darkness. “He that now letteth will let, until He be taken out of the way” speaks of the Holy Spirit, who hinders evil but will significantly reduce His ministry to mankind during the Tribulation. The key is to remain encouraged as we see this darkness envelop the earth.
I have never lived through a tornado. I’ve come close a few times. Twice, while living in the Midwest, tornados got really close. It is quite something to see the sky lower and the clouds overwhelm you. This happened while looking out a second-story balcony window. As I looked out that patio door, I noticed the clouds getting awfully close. It’s different from fog. Fog seems to settle. Lowering storm clouds seem to encroach. Anyway, I was watching this, and they got so close to the ground I felt I could throw a stone or ball in the air and it would disappear into the abyss. To say this experience was surreal is an understatement. We lived in an area not normally prone to a lot of tornados. No sirens went off. No warnings were issued. But that it was! A foreboding lowering of the clouds. Twisting as they might and fingers falling to the earth, I knew what I was looking at. There was a part of me enraptured by what I was seeing. Because it went right over my house and never touched down, safety was not a concern. I knew we were safe. This twister touched down five miles to our south. But the feeling one gets when a storm rapidly descends is not a comforting one. What usually follows a tornado is a breaking in the clouds and a blue sky to follow. When watch coverage of a tornado, I cannot help but notice the puffy clouds and blue sky behind the reporter. What a picture of what Isaiah states above.
Anyone with any kind of spiritual sensitivity can sense the spiritual darkness coming upon mankind. It is obvious. Wickedness is getting worse and worse. What we thought impossible just a generation ago has come to pass. The absolute filth that mankind pursues is astounding. Mankind has always rejected Jesus Christ. The world has always been antagonistic against the grace of God. But not since the first century AD have we seen the global hatred of God expressed to the degree we see it now. There isn’t a nation on earth that will show and difference to the cause of Christ. It seems the world is united against God and His people. Perhaps the most telling of all indicators that this darkness is coming is the decline of Christian witness throughout the world. Churches are not growing. They are shrinking. We are not seeing new ministries come into being. We are not seeing additions to church building being erected. We are not seeing a massive amount of interest in the word of God. There is spiritual decline and darkness falling upon the earth. But Jesus is coming back! Praise be to God. Just like the sunshine after rain, Jesus is coming! The light of hope for mankind will not tarry. He will return. He will bring righteousness. He will bring reconciliation and regeneration! Don’t get discouraged by the black clouds falling. It is merely an indication Jesus is soon to appear!
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