JD: David, I think one of the reasons so many seem to be taking this seriously is because they are connecting it to the end times judgments of God.
DJ: God's prophetic clock is currently on pause until the Rapture of the church. That means God is sovereignly moving history toward the time when all remaining prophecies will be fulfilled even though no specific prophecies must be fulfilled until after the Rapture.
So when people say prophecy is being fulfilled right now there usually thinking about the Olivet Discourse in Matthew 24. Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives the disciples came to Him privately saying, tell us when will these things be and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age. So the answer Jesus gives is about the period of time just prior to His return which we refer to as the Tribulation. It's obvious why people think prophecy is currently being fulfilled but I would say there's a difference between what's happening now and the things that Jesus was warning about.
JD: Explain to us how would you tell the differences between these global events we're watching right now and God's coming judgments.
DJ: First of all earthquakes, volcanos, storms, famines, diseases and disasters in general and the suffering and deaths they bring are just a part of life in a sinful fallen world and have been since the fall in the Garden of Eden for millennia. We also know that believers in the church have been persecuted, tortured, and killed for their faith beginning in the first century. But what's coming after the Rapture of the church will make those things pale in comparison. Jesus said that the seven year Tribulation will be like nothing the world has ever seen. Perhaps the most important difference is that the prophesied future events will be a result of God's intentional and direct intervention in the affairs of men when He begins pouring out His wrath and judgment against the world. We've then promised that we won't experience a wrath in judgment of God. There will be international conflict, war, destruction, and famine that results in the death of one-fourth of the worlds population. Things are going to get progressively worse over those seven years until the world becomes uninhabitable just prior to Jesus's return and no one wants to be around for that.
JD: David James explaining on why many Americans believe that the coronavirus pandemic is indeed a wakeup call from God.
We report this information because it is setting the stage for Bible prophecy to be fulfilled.
The article that Dave used for his report is truly though provoking. The entire world seems to be alert to what the Lord is doing as He uses the coronavirus pandemic as a wake up call for each of us. I admit that the Lord has my attention. I realize that the pandemic Jesus spoke of in Matthew 24:7 is yet in the future. However, that excite me about the next event on God's calendar the Rapture of the church which by the way could happen today.
