From a Letter
1914 175 Judging from Scripture, my own feeling is that this war is certainly not one of those spoken of in Matthew 22. Those wars are after the church is gone — when the Jewish remnant has been developed, and False Christs are presenting themselves to the Jews: see Matthew 24:3-8; but especially verse 6: "Ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars … these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet": so that if this were one of the wars and rumours of wars of Matthew 24, that would be rather a proof that the end is not yet. The present war, to my apprehension, is only just such another as that at the time of Waterloo.
It is strange how readily people will give attention to any earthly events, but will pay no heed, to one far more vast, and which may take place at any moment — the Lord's coming for the church, when the dead in Christ will be raised, and the living caught up to meet Him in the air; but this is a heavenly event, and as such, has no interest for men of the world, or for Christians who are worldly (1 Cor. 1). If you ask me, What will be a sign of the End? Scripture replies clearly: when the gospel of the kingdom (not the present gospel — see "The Time of the End, but the End not Yet" pp. 19, 83), is preached in the whole world for a witness unto all the nations, "Then shall the End come" (Matthew 24:14).
But prior to that, the church will have been removed from this scene, and its place in testimony in the world will have been taken by converted Jews, who will be hated by the Gentiles for the name's sake of Christ (Matthew 24:9). From this it appears clear that the name of Christ will have been given up by the nations who now profess it: in other and Scriptural words, the Apostasy will have come (2 Thess. 2:3), that is, the full abandonment of Christianity. It is approaching at a galloping pace already.
The first prophetic event then, to be looked for, is the taking of the church to heaven. When that has been accomplished, there will be the Temptation of Rev. 3:10; the Apostasy; and the preliminary troubles called the "Beginning of sorrows" (Matthew 24:5-13), and a converted remnant of Jews will preach the gospel of the kingdom in the whole world, for a witness to all nations. "Then," and not till then, "will the End come" (verse 14).
"The End," however, is not a moment of time, but an extended era, within which great events happen (e.g., Dan. 11:40; Dan. 12:1, etc). The ancient Roman Empire will be re-constituted in augmented splendour. It is during the Time of the End that the Great Tribulation takes place, surpassing the Reign of Terror of the French Revolution; excelling indeed any time of trouble that ever has been, or ever will be again (Matthew 24:21).
Sweet is it to know that we shall be far from this scene, when these terrors sweep over the earth; and we do not know how near — perhaps at the very door — our translation may be.
Melbourne, [E.J.T.] Sept., 1914