LA DEUDA NACIONAL DE ESTADOS UNIDOS EXCEDE LOS 14 BILLONES DE DÓLARES

La deuda nacional de Estados Unidos ha superado los 14 billones de dólares por primera vez, informa el sitio web del Departamento del Tesoro de EE. UU.
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ESTADOUNIDENSES DESCONFÍAN SOBRE LA ESTABILIDAD DE SU ECONOMÍA

 

A tres años del inicio de la crisis global, los estadounidenses siguen hoy pesimistas sobre el estado de su economía, principalmente por las dificultades del mercado laboral, reseñó este domingo la agencia de noticias Prensa Latina.

Según un estudio del Instituto Conference Board, la confianza del consumidor en esta nación bajó en diciembre 52,5% puntos, desde los 54,3% precedentes.

La investigación atribuyó el resultado a las preocupaciones generadas por el elevado desempleo, cercano al 10%.

Igualmente la valoración del mercado laboral por parte de los consumidores empeoró, pues el índice de “trabajos difíciles de conseguir” subió a 46,8%, mientras que el de “trabajos abundantes” cayó a 3,9%.

Analistas opinaron que la situación es especialmente preocupante en un país donde la actividad de los compradores representa el 70% de la economía nacional.

Explicaron que la tendencia se mantendrá porque los estadounidenses restringirán los gastos para ahorrar más, pagar sus deudas y mejorar el estado de sus finanzas.

Mientras se mantenga la modalidad de cautela, es difícil tener un crecimiento saludable, apuntaron.

De acuerdo con la Oficina de Análisis Económico de Estados Unidos, resulta preocupante el hecho de que gran parte de la actual demanda se cubra con productos importados.

Precisó que mientras no se recuperen los pedidos de servicios y productos nacionales, es poco probable una reducción significativa del desempleo.

Como si fuera poco, algunos expertos estiman que las preocupaciones existentes también se manifestaron en el cambio de voto a favor del Partido Republicano en las elecciones legislativas de noviembre.

Los resultados denotaron una clara falta de confianza en las políticas aplicadas hasta ahora para hacer frente de manera convincente a los problemas económicos del país, afirmaron.

El propio presidente Barack Obama, reconoció que no se crean los puestos de trabajo necesarios para enfrentar la elevada desocupación, para lo cual consideró indispensable impulsar el crecimiento empresarial.

Reiteró la urgencia de acelerar el avance, mediante los recortes de impuestos a la clase media y la extensión de los subsidios a los cesantes.

Con dos años en el poder, el alto desempleo sigue siendo uno de los principales retos para la administración Obama y una de las principales causas de la reticencia de los consumidores.

Fuente/AVN

 

La confianza del consumidor en esta nación bajó en diciembre 52,5% puntos, desde los 54,3% precedentes. Analistas opinaron que la situación es especialmente preocupante en un país donde la actividad de los compradores representa el 70% de la economía nacional

ESTADOUNIDENSES SIGUEN SIN CREER EN LA RECUPERACIÓN ECONÓMICA

Prensa Latina / IAR Noticias
10/11/09

La mayoría de los estadounidenses seguirán sin creer en la recuperación de su país, solo posible cuando baje la tasa de desempleo y haya un crecimiento económico sostenido de tres por ciento, aseguraron economistas y analistas.

Integrantes de la firma de investigación Decision Economics consideraron que la mayor economía del mundo seguirá en el limbo, pese a un incremento del Producto Interno Bruto (PIB) de 3,5 en el tercer trimestre.

Luego de cuatro trimestres negativos consecutivos, el alivio alcanzado entre julio y septiembre puede ser la antesala de un estancamiento en los próximos meses, señaló el economista de esa institución Cary Leahey,

Ahora la economía podría estancarse durante varios meses en una tierra de nadie en la que el PIB crece, pero nadie afirmará con certeza que la recesión oficialmente terminó, por la forma en que están definidos los ciclos de negocios en Estados Unidos.

Por mucho tiempo el gobierno estadounidense y la comunidad económica reconocieron a un panel de académicos junto a la oficina nacional de investigación económica (NBER) como árbitro para definir los ciclos de negocios.

El NBER no define una recesión, como sí lo hacen otros países, mediante una caída del PIB durante dos trimestres consecutivos.

Para esa entidad una recesión se confirma por un declive significativo del conjunto de la economía, visible en el PIB, ingresos reales, empleo, producción industrial y ventas mayoristas y minoristas.

En esa situación lo más complicado es el aumento constante del desempleo, que en octubre alcanzó la sorpresiva tasa de 10,2 por ciento, lo cual en la población significa que se extiende la recesión.

Leahey prevé una ralentización en el PIB de dos por ciento en el cuarto trimestre, pues el crecimiento del tercero fue resultado de una reconstitución de los stocks, luego de grandes recortes de producción y de estímulos gubernamentales insostenibles.

El presidente de la Reserva Federal, Ben Bernanke, explicó que técnicamente la crisis parece haber terminado, pero la economía aún tendrá dificultades por las difíciles condiciones del crédito y del desempleo.

El NBER declaró la recesión el 1 de diciembre de 2008, un año después de iniciado el declive y pese al modesto crecimiento en el último trimestre de 2007 y el segundo trimestre de 2008.

Al respecto, el presidente del departamento de economía de la Universidad de California en Los Angeles, Roger Farmer, señaló que el NBER probablemente declarará que la recesión terminó en mayo de 2009.

A WORLD IN TURMOIL

by Mark Finley

Let’s pray together….. Father in heaven, thank You so much for the grace of God. Thank You, Father, that when we were lost through Jesus You reached out to save and redeem us. Father, tonight, as we talk about the world, a world in deep trouble, grant to us eyes to see and ears to hear and hearts to comprehend the reality of the coming of our Lord, to bring hope to this world. In Christ’s name. Amen.

Our topic tonight is «A World in Turmoil, Is Mankind’s End Really Near?»…..

Pilots have a very difficult time navigating if the airport they’re flying into is nestled in the mountains. In fact, on a clear day it can be difficult to land, but if that clear day changes to fog, the dangerous approach becomes even more dangerous. In December of 1995, an American Airlines pilot was flying into Cali in the interior of Colombia. As he flew in, his worst nightmare occurred. The cloud levels were low. The airport was fogged in. It was necessary for him to make an instrument landing and to have clear signals from the control tower. The individual at the control tower spoke Spanish. The American Airlines pilot spoke only English. And as they attempted to communicate, there was a miscommunication. Now, we can’t be exactly sure why the accident took place, but when the FAA investigated, they discovered that there was a garbled message. The airline pilot misunderstood the message, and in the deep fog, banked into the mountains. The plane crashed, and everybody aboard was killed! A garbled message, a misunderstood message, led to a fatality.

Indeed, Planet Earth is spinning through space at some 66,000 miles an hour. The fog is thick. The runway approach before the final touchdown of earth is treacherous. Indeed, it’s important to have signals of where we are and to understand the signs just before that final approach. Jesus’ final message to mankind is a message of hope. It’s a message that speaks to men and women in a society where there is deep trouble. In fact, Jesus said this to His disciples, as He sat on the Mount of Olives: «Let not your heart be troubled.» (John 14:1) Then He went on to say, «Ye believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I to go prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you,» Jesus said, «I will come again and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.» So Jesus said, when you see wars, when you see conflict, when you see strife, when you see famine and earthquake and pestilence, when you see rising crime and violence, when you see difficulties on earth, let not your heart be troubled.

So, Jesus’ message is one that lifts us above what we see. It lifts us above the morning news. It focuses us on the event that’s just about to take place. Jesus said, «I WILL come again,» not ‘maybe’ I’ll come again, not ‘perhaps’ I’ll come again. Jesus’ statement is clear. «I WILL come again.»

Later, seated on the Mount of Olives, Jesus looked over the city of Jerusalem, and He pointed to the temple, that great magnificent temple. And Jesus said that when the Roman armies attacked Jerusalem, they would not leave one stone upon the other. The disciples, looking down at the temple, thought that an event as cataclysmic as the destruction of the temple, an event as earth-shattering as the destruction of the Jewish temple, must surely be the end of the world.

They sat there as Jesus described the Roman armies coming down to attack Jerusalem, an event that would take place in 70 AD. As the disciples heard of that event, they said to Jesus, «Master, we have a question for You.» «Yes?» Jesus responded, as He always does graciously to our questions. They said, «Tell us, when will these things be?» When would Jerusalem be destroyed?
When would Titus’ army come down? When would that destruction occur? And then they said, «What will be the sign of Your coming and the end of the age?» You see, the disciples thought that any event that was as earth-shattering as the destruction of Jerusalem must be the end of the world. So, they said to Jesus, «What will be the sign of Your coming in the end of the age?» Jesus then, in a masterful presentation, described signs that would occur in the first century, that would lead up to the destruction of Jerusalem by Roman soldiers under Titus. Then Jesus outlined to those disciples the fact that those signs in miniature in the first century would be on a universal, global scale in the last century.
Now, let me insert this: Tonight, we’re going to look at the signs Jesus gave of His soon return. And as we look at these signs, you might be led to ask a question. Your question might be, «Haven’t those signs been present in the world since the first century?» Indeed, they have. Jesus said that they would be in miniature in the first century, then be in every century. Then you say, «What’s the difference then? How could they be signs of the end?» Today, those signs are occurring with increasing magnitude. Today, they’re occurring on a universal scale. Today, they are occurring together all at the same time. So it’s not that these signs never occurred before, it is their frequency. It is their increased tempo. It is the fact that they all are happening in one generation. What are those signs, those signs of Jesus’ return, those signs that Christ gave because the disciples said, «What shall be the sign of your coming? And the end of the world?»

Jesus said these signs will occur! Christ lists more than 20 different ones, and tonight we’re going to look at the 15 major signs of Christ’s return…..

1 – False christs and false prophets

Jesus began by talking about false christs and false prophets. He said, in fact, in Matthew 24:5,11,24: «For false christs and false prophets shall arise.» Jesus said just before His return, there would be an explosion of interest in psychic phenomena, an explosion of interest in the ‘new age’ movement, an explosion of interest in the occult, an explosion of interest in the paranormal, an explosion of interest in things like astrology. In fact, there are over 3,000 astrology columns in North American newspapers!

Today I was talking a little earlier to our translators, translating this message into German, Romanian, Yugoslavian, Croatian and Serbian, talking to the translators from Europe and around the world…..and I said to them, «Is there an upsurge of interest in your country in astrology, in the occult, in the ‘dark’ sciences?» They said, «Yes, those occult magical arts are exploding in our countries!» Indeed, 3,000 astrology columns in newspaper!

You know, a friend of mine, Ralph Blodgett, in the (formerly ‘These Times’) now ‘Signs of the Times’ magazine, did a survey of astrologers’ predictions. This is what he discovered: He studied 250 specific published predictions of the astrologers. He found that less than 3%, or 6 out of 250, might be reasonably listed as fulfilled, but that 97% missed the mark completely! Now, look, I don’t care who you are, but I think you could guess better than that! What do you say, friend? Jesus said there would be an explosion of interest in psychic phenomenon, an explosion of interest in the occult arts.

You know, I live in Thousand Oaks, California, not far from Hollywood…..and there is a rage now in Hollywood. Many of the Hollywood personalities have really troubled lives. They have marriages that are in deep trouble. Many of them have problems with alcohol, drugs, and other problems…..it’s well-known in Hollywood that many of the Hollywood personalities have these problems, and so alot of them are turning now to spirit guides to tap into the occult or spiritualistic or ‘new age’ movement. One rage in Hollywood is seeking spirit guides like Mafu, Ramtha and Lazaris. This spirit guide, Lazaris, has a two-year waiting list for private consultations at $93 an hour! And now you can ‘reach out and touch’ Lazaris by phone and have $53 billed to your credit card! I don’t recommend it, friend, and neither does Jesus.

We have a sure word of guidance in God’s word, but these are indications of the coming of Jesus: false christs and false prophets. The ‘new age’ movement is taking the world by storm, with its false concepts of meditation where people try to meditate on the God within themselves. The only meditation I want to do is meditating on the Word of God, meditating on the Scriptures, on the Psalms and Proverbs. The Bible says these signs indeed would be signs just before the coming of Jesus Christ.

2 – International conflict

Secondly, there would be international conflict. Jesus predicted: «You shall hear of wars and rumors of wars.» Now, notice that Jesus doesn’t say there will be a war. Folks, haven’t there been wars down through the centuries? Yes, but what did Jesus say?

There will be not a war, but wars and rumors of wars. «For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.» Universal war, conflict on a global scale, conflict on an international scale.

As you and I look out over our world today, it’s well to remember that in this century, we have seen World War I and World War II. In World War I, there were some 20 million deaths. In World War II, some 50 million deaths. This century has experienced the Korean conflict, the Vietnam war with a million South Vietnamese, half a million North Vietnamese, and thousands of Americans killed. In fact, with the Indochina war, taking tens of thousands of lives, the Algerian war, the Bosnia-Herzegovina war, and tribal wars in Africa, the 20th century is the bloodiest century of them all!

Ladies and gentlemen, these prophecies are indeed being fulfilled before our very eyes. Wars and rumors of wars exploding in this century. Jesus’ sign that false christs and false prophets will arise are indeed being fulfilled in the occult, spiritualism and the ‘new age’ movements. Jesus’ sign of wars and rumors of wars and conflict and strife are indeed occurring around the world. Jesus goes on, as He discusses it with His disciples, in Luke 21:25: «And there shall be…..upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring.» Distress of nations! The marching feet of the armies throughout the world indicate that we are on the verge of the kingdom of God.

3 – Potential for worldwide destruction

Sign number three: Jesus would come at a time in which the world would have the potential for world destruction. Never before in history has the human race had the capacity to destroy itself, never before in history have we armed ourselves to the teeth! Only in this century could the human race destroy itself. Thermonuclear warfare is a new introduction into our society. And the Bible says, in the book of Revelation (Revelation is the last book in the Bible, written to the last generation of men and women that would live on Planet Earth) in Revelation 11:18, that Christ would come to — do what, friends? (read it with me, please) — to «destroy them which destroy the earth.» So, Jesus would come at a time in which the human race would have that capacity. Jesus would come at a time when the human race would have the wherewithal, the scientific technology, to destroy all life on our planet called Earth.

Indeed, we have that capacity tonight. Never before in history have we had the kind of nuclear potential that we have tonight. In fact, Sir Charles Snow said this: «We know with certainty of statistical truth that if enough of these weapons are made by enough states, some of them are going to blow up through accident, folly, or madness. You cannot continue to build nuclear weapons without some nation using them.» At least five nations are known to have nuclear capacity, and many other nations are developing that nuclear capacity. You say, «But I thought that we have defused the nuclear threat!» Well, if you have 11,500 nuclear warheads, and you drop it down by 3,500, and you still have 8,500 left, it’s like saying, «Well, you got on an airplane and they had eleven bombs but you took three away, so you have a lot of confidence flying now because they only have eight, right?» I praise God for all efforts toward peace, but the truth of the matter is, this world is a very dangerous place. But Jesus says, «Let not your heart be — what, everybody? Let not your heart be what? — troubled.» We are defusing the nuclear threat. But there is a concern, and I would like to suggest to you that the world is less safe tonight than it was ten years ago.

Now you may want to debate that question, but follow my reasoning…..in ‘Time’ magazine’s article, «What About the Nukes?» Under the former Soviet Union, before the breakup of the Soviet Union, nuclear arsenals were guarded carefully. Since the break up of the Soviet Union, there are nuclear missiles, of course, still in Russia. There are nuclear missiles in Kazakstan, and there are nuclear missiles in the Ukraine. Since the breakup of the former Soviet Union, there has been some laxness in security, and there is evidence that some nuclear-grade material has been sold, possibly to Iran, according to ‘U.S. News and World Report.’ Did you read the report about some nuclear material getting in the hands of undesirables, who were arrested in Munich, Germany? What about that nuclear cache that was being sold in the Baltic States? In fact, ‘Popular Mechanics’ had a front page article called, «When Terrorists Go Nuclear.» Now this is frightening! In fact, January 1996, ‘Popular Mechanics’ said, «If a terrorist group or rogue state gets a hold of such material from smugglers, it may solve the single most difficult problem in building a bomb. What if certain officials in the cash-starved former Soviet Union sold their plutonium and other nuclear-grade material? What if it went into the hands of terrorist states in the Middle East or other parts of the world? Radicals…..what if they held some western states hostage? That scenario, according to some leading thinkers, is very possible.

But, friend of mine, Jesus says that He will come at a time that the human race has the capacity to destroy itself and that things will become unwieldy before the time of the end. But, thank God, Jesus says, «Let not your heart be troubled!» No, this world will not be destroyed in some spinning global blast, although Walter Lippmann, the columnist, says, «We are poised on the brink of the most calamitous conflict that can be imagined. Indeed, it cannot even BE imagined.» The good news is that Christ is on the way. The good news is that the second coming of Jesus is the blessed hope for a world that is in deep trouble.

4 – Fragile peace agreements

The Bible then lists the next sign, sign number four: Fragile peace agreements. The Bible says in 1 Thessalonians 5:3 (please read it with me): «When they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them…..and they shall not escape.» They will be saying, «Peace and safety.» That word «safety» comes from a Greek word meaning ‘security.’ Security at home and peace abroad? The nations will be signing peace treaties, but as soon as the ink on the treaties is dry, there will be more conflagration. Look around the world tonight: a shaky peace. Would you agree with me that the peace in the Middle East is shaky at best? Would you agree with me that the peace in Northern Ireland is shaky tonight? Look at what happened in the last day or two: more car bombs going off in Ireland! A shaky peace. In the former Yugoslavia, we pray for peace. We thank God that in Bosnia that Croatians and Serbians are studying the word of God in these meetings together! We believe that Jesus, the Prince of Peace, can bring peace to any land. In Rwanda, the Hutus and Tutsis: shaky peace. The former USSR, Chechnya, Armenia: shaky peace. Around the world, in the African nations: shaky peace. Some places in south America: shaky peace. We see it around the world. Jesus says, «When they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them.»

5 – Famines

Sign number five: Famines. The Bible describes our day. Jesus said in Matthew 24:6,7: «There shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes in various places.» Famines. The truth of the matter is, although many of us each day get adequate food, we sometimes forget that around the world little children with distended bellies are starving. According to the United Nations environmental studies, three billion acres of productive land has been damaged by human activity since 1945. Technology, and industrialization is destroying it. In some areas, the ability to keep up with food production is being destroyed. Environmentalists are concerned about it. Look at some of the nations in Africa! Lester Brown, the president of the World Watch Institute in Washington, D.C., says, «The entire world is living hand to mouth, trying to make it from one harvest to the next. One bad harvest could plunge millions into famine.»

Take a look at the figures around the world: Approximately 57 million people die each year because of famine. This amounts to 156,000 people every day! Let your mind grasp that! One hundred fifty six thousand people a day dying of famine! Of the world’s population of five billion, 60 percent are malnourished and 20 percent, according to the UN, are starving! Jesus said that there will be famines, not A famine, and around the world tonight, these prophecies are being fulfilled. Now, the problem is that with a growing population in the world, with an increased population, these countries can’t feed their multitudes, and the problem gets worse. By the year 2050, the earth’s population will be 9.5 billion. (Today it ranges somewhat over 5 billion.) Estimates are by the year 2120 it will be 12 billion! The problem of feeding earth’s multitudes is growing greater and greater. The problem of famine, the problem of world hunger, indeed, is a major significant problem. The Bible says that there will be famines and that there will be earthquakes in diverse places. Indeed, when you look out at the world tonight, there are famines that are devastating this world. How long will Jesus allow this to go on? Jesus, come quickly, and save the little children from starvation!

6 – Pestilences

Sign number six: there will be pestilences. In fact, the Bible says in Matthew 24:7: «And there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes in various places.» What is a pestilence? How do you define pestilence? The original word in the Greek language for pestilence (and the language of the New Testament is Greek) is the word ‘plague’ or ‘disease.’ So we might read in the text that there will be famines and strange diseases, diseases that antibiotics in particular don’t seem to touch. Just before the time of the end, you can expect unusually strange diseases…..new plagues of AIDS, malaria, Lyme disease, the marbug virus, legionnaire’s disease, the hanta virus. New forms of syphilis and gonorrhea and cholera are all breaking out randomly. Around the world tonight, there are pestilences, strange diseases that seem to be baffling scientific technology. We create antibiotics, but there are strains of diseases that are resistant to those antibiotics. Jesus said, false christs and false prophets…..we see them. An explosion in the occult world…..we see it. Jesus said, wars and rumors of wars, World War I, World War II, instability…..we see it. Jesus said, the capacity to destroy ourselves, nuclear weaponry…..it is here. Jesus said, movements of peace occurring in our world. Jesus said, famines…..indeed, before our very eyes, a hungry world. Jesus said, pestilences, strange diseases around the world…..they are occurring. The World Health Organization predicts 40
million cases of HIV by the year 2000! These prophecies are being fulfilledbefore our very eyes.

7 – Environmental pollution

Sign number seven: environmental pollution. The book of Isaiah, talking about the end of time, talking about the coming of Jesus, says, in Isaiah 51:6, «The earth will grow old like a garment.» Now when a garment gets old, what happens? Well, it might be frayed, it might have some holes in it, it might lose its color. It loses its freshness and newness. Is the earth losing its freshness and newness? Is the air like it was in the Garden of Eden, fresh and clean? Is the water pure, or do you even have to have a water filter at your house? What about the food? Is it free from pesticides?
Remember, the Bible says that Christ would destroy those who destroy the earth!

One way to destroy the earth is through nuclear weaponry. Another way is through industrial technology, polluting the atmosphere. Remember not long ago there was in Rio de Janeiro a world conference on the environment called «Save the Earth.» So while human beings are talking about saving the earth, cleaning up the air, cleaning up the water, cleaning up the food, Jesus talks about saving the earth. He says, let not your heart be troubled, when the earth is polluted. Let not your heart be troubled, when you can’t breathe the air, when you can’t drink the water. Let not your heart be troubled because the solution is not in the hands of man. Jesus said, «I will come again.»
When the oceans are being polluted, «I will come again.» When the atmosphere is difficult to breathe, «I will come again.»

A warning: In Los Angeles in a playground for children, do not exercise strenuously…..or breathe deeply during heavy smog conditions. In Tokyo, in fact, some traffic police now have actually begun to wear gas masks! Scientists frankly warn of the possible death of our planet. But yet, when for many our planet is deteriorating, there is a blessed hope, the blessed hope of the coming of the Lord that will create a new planet of this earth.

You know, one of the greatest contaminants, greatest pollutants, is nuclear waste. What do you do with nuclear waste? Where do you dump it? This scientific article on the screen was entitled «Nuclear Garbage, the Deadly Potential.» Here is a map, a map of the United States. Each of the green circles you see on the map are places where the United States government has buried nuclear reactive material. Now look at the eastern seaboard, for example. Nuclear waste site after nuclear waste site! Look at the Midwest, look at the west coast….. Now, we are told that this nuclear material encased in protective lead containers is safe. But what if there were an earthquake? Or some freak of nature released that radioactivity? I am not a scientist, I am not smart enough to know exactly how that would occur, but I know this: the potential exists. Jesus said He would come, at a time when menand women have the capacity to destroy themselves. And Jesus would say,»Gentlemen, ladies, it is closing time!»

8 – Earthquakes

Sign number eight: Jesus said that there would be — what is it, everybody? — earthquakes. There is a whole lot of shaking going on! Somebody said to me recently, «Well, Mark, I really question whether earthquakes have gone up.
I think your statistics are out of date.» So we checked with the geophysicists at the Geological Science Center in Washington. Each year, we have 6,000+ major earthquakes in the world! In fact, fatalities in the last 90 years have totalled 1.5 million, from earthquakes alone. And the number of earthquakes are on the rise. Jesus said in Matthew chapter 24: «And there will be earthquakes.» It was in January, a couple of years back, that I went to sleep one night in my home outside of Los Angeles, at nine o’clock in the evening, 9:30…..and at 4:17 in the morning, my wife grabbed me and said, «Mark, Mark, wake up!» I mean, I even could sleep through an earthquake! She said, «Something is going on!» The chandeliers were dancing, and the windows were crashing…..amazing…..our house was shaking! And so I got up out of bed and ran to my son…..the bookcase had crashed down on his bed! And so we went through that Los Angeles earthquake….. Indeed, the Bible says, there would be earthquakes, not only in Los Angeles, but in Japan, in Mexico, in Alaska. Earthquakes around the world indicate that all of nature has been thrown off its course. Something strange is happening. Why this upsurge in earthquakes with their resultant broken gas mains and fires?

9 – Natural disasters

Sign number nine: the Bible teaches that just before the coming of Jesus there would be strange phenomena in weather patterns. Notice: earthquakes, that’s natural disaster…..famine, that’s partially natural disaster…..pestilences,drought, diseases, «fearful sights and great signs from heaven.» Could thosebe tornadoes? Could that be a hurricane? Natural disasters «upon the earth,distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and waves roaring.» If you havebeen through a hurricane and you live on the coast, you know that the waves areroaring! The Bible says that there would be upsurge in nature. Look at ‘Life ‘magazine, and see that what we read in the Bible, you can read in the newsjournals today. «The Year of Killer Weather.» ‘Life’ says, «Why has naturegone mad?» In 1993, there was weather damage in the United States from arecord 1297 tornadoes! Well, add three more, because three came by here in Florida yesterday! Every year, there is an increase in natural disasters. This old world, friend, is groaning to be delivered. We’re on the verge of thecoming of Jesus. Did you read that article in ‘Life’ magazine, «When the BigOne Hits,» talking about a volcano?

Look, it says that it will have the power of a million atom bombs! It says that it will be heard a thousand miles away! It could happen, ‘Life’ said, sooner than you think. «Let not your heart be — what, everybody? — troubled.» If I look around me, my heart is troubled. But if I look above me, there is peace and confidence, because these signs indicate the birth pangs of a world ready to be delivered. There will be increased natural disasters, fires, floods…..strange Midwest flooding…..torrential rains that come, weather patterns that are bizarre, upheaval in nature, increased tornadoes…..buildings blown apart. There is no security on earth. Increased natural disasters indicate that your home can be gone in a moment, flooded out, destroyed by a hurricane or tornado. The only security is Jesus Christ. The only security is knowing Him. The only security is the fact that when the winds of the storm blow, Jesus is the Peacegiver, the Peacemaker. He who calmed the storm can calm our troubled hearts. He says, «Let not your heart be troubled.» Jesus Christ pointed forward to our day, He points beyond the headlines, and He points to His return.

10 – Moral Decay

Sign number ten: moral decay. Jesus said that before His coming, there would be a moral deterioration in our society. Jesus talked about the days of Noah. He pointed us back to Noah’s day in Matthew 24:37: «But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.» Just like the days of Noah…..the world was destroyed by water then, but it will be destroyed by fire the second time. What were the days of Noah like? The Bible says, in Genesis 6:6: «And God saw the wickedness of man was great in the earth.» There was widespread wickedness, widespread crime and wide spread violence in Noah’s day…..and then the rain fell. God said, «This is enough.» Earth was weighed in the judgment scale of heaven. There is a boundary beyond which God does not allow nations to go. The Bible says, «As the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.

For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. Now what does the Bible mean when it says ‘they are marrying and giving in marriage?’ Anything wrong with marrying? Of course not. But, the Bible says, ‘marrying and giving in marriage’, in other words, with a looseness of marriage. Somebody said, «Marriage is like a belt. You put it on and if it’s too tight, you take it off and try another belt, another marriage. In fact, the marriage statistics today are absolutely staggering!
The statistics for our day indicate that husbands and wives are having deep trouble, trouble so deep, that many differences apparently become irreconcilable. We are living in an age of rampant divorce. We are living in an age when the institution of marriage is falling apart. In 1900, there was one divorce in 12 marriages. In 1930, one divorce in six. In 1978, one divorce in three. In 1995, one divorce in two marriages! Jesus said «marrying and giving in marriage.» Teenage pregnancy is off the chart…..young people out of wedlock getting pregnant…..sexual immorality on television…..nudity paraded across the screen. The Bible says in Genesis 6:5, «The wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.» Jesus said, «Enough immorality, enough sexual exploitation, enough degrading that which is pure and holy.» The thoughts of their hearts evil continually…..

Did you notice that recent article in ‘Time’ magazine called «Cyberporn,» talking about the computer and the Internet? Carnegie Mellon researchers did a study and said, «Porn is immensely popular!» In an eighteen-month study, the Carnegie Mellon researchers found 917,410 sexually explicit pictures, short stories and film clips online! Oh, Jesus, our hearts have wandered from You! Our natures are fallen, and they turn toward evil. Oh, Jesus, change our hearts, change our minds. And oh, Jesus, come quickly, and put an end to this filth and this smut on earth. The signs of the times are clear, and the Bible describes that Christ coming is near.

11 – Rising crime and violence

Sign number eleven: rising crime and violence. The United States is in themidst of a political election. Incidentally, I would much rather know the wordof God than to know the outcome of some election. That’s why I think it’sbetter to be here than just eavesdropping on some debate. But I know none ofyou would stay away from my meetings to go to any political debate or even watch it on TV! You better be here tomorrow night — we’re going to takeattendance! No…..excuse me…..

Sign number eleven…..rising crime and violence. (I’ll see where your loyalty is tomorrow night!) Rising crime and violence…..the Bible talks about the days of Noah. There in the days of Noah, it says in Genesis 6:11: «The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.» The earth was filled with violence in Noah’s day, and today, the earth is filled with violence. In ‘U.S. News and World Report,’ a feature article, «Kids Who Kill.» In fact, my son happened to be playing basketball at a school in Los Angeles, so I went with him to watch him play. And when we entered in through a very narrow, gated passageway, there was a sign that said: «Students, please, if you have any weapons, check them at the office. No guns are allowed on campus.» You know, one news magazine said, «Disputes once settled with fists between kids are now settled with guns.» Every hundred hours more youth die in the streets in the United States than were killed in the Persian Gulf warfare. Our schools are becoming battle zones! In fact, in North America including Canada and the United States, over 33 million violent crimes are committed each year. Crime is exploding!

Now, you may read some statistics that indicate that crime is going down, but that is not violent crime. The statistics indicate that violent crime continues to explode. In fact, 6250 teachers suffer bodily injury each year at the hands of their students. Two hundred thousand students miss classes because of being maimed or in fights or some violent activity. In Noah’s day — what did the Bible say? — the earth was filled with violence. This is not a North American phenomenon. You can see that, in any major city, immorality and violence fill the world. Today, corruption and violence…..you ask the Russians about corruption, it’s there. You ask eastern Europe about corruption, it’s there. Immorality, it’s there. Crime, it’s there. Violence, it’s there. Indeed, these Bible prophecies are being fulfilled before our very eyes. Jesus, through the apostle Paul put it this way in Matthew 24:12: «And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. Men’s love for one another will grow cold…..lawlessness will spread in our society.
The USA’s 1990 murder toll, this headline said, may be the worst ever.

12 – Attitudes of skepticism

Sign number twelve: An attitude of skepticism. There would be prevalent in our world before the coming of Christ, as there was before the flood, an attitude of skepticism. Remember that the prophecy that Jesus gave in Matthew 24:39 said that «they did not know until the flood came and took them all away.» That is, they could have known ( Noah preached decade after decade) but they closed their ears, they shut their eyes, they closed their minds to truth. The Bible says in 2 Peter 3:3,4: «Scoffers will come in the last days.» What days? The last days. And who will come? Scoffers, saying, «Where is the promise of His coming?» They say, «Oh, we’ve always had wars.
There have always been movements of peace. There have always been famines,earthquakes, crime and violence.» They fail to see the increased frequency of the signs. They fail to see that all the signs are currently present andcombined. The Bible says that those with an attitude of skepticism, those with an attitude of unbelief, actually without their knowledge are fulfilling Bibleprophecy, because the ones who are scoffing are mentioned in the Bible. They will come in the last days, saying, «Where is the promise of His coming?» So, around the world, just like it was in Noah’s day, they say, «Oh, Jesus not going to come. What are you, crazy? I mean, come on now…..are you some wild-eyed fanatic? Do you actually believe that Jesus is going to come?» Do you have a better solution for the world’s problems, brother? Sister? Ma’am? Sir? Ladies? Gentlemen? Do you have a better solution? The best solution that I know of is the blessed hope. There is hope for this wartorn weary world. There is hope for this confused, chaotic planet. There is hope for ourchildren in trouble. There is hope for this polluted earth. This is hope in the coming of Jesus Christ.

13 – Lovers of Pleasure

Sign number thirteen: lovers of pleasure. The Bible says that while they’re scoffing (2 Timothy 3:4) they will be «lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God.» The sports stadiums are jammed, the casinos are jammed. In the United States, Las Vegas is the number one tourist attraction. It actually beat out Orlando! In fact, night spots are jammed…..bars, parties, amusement centers, all jammed. Lovers of, what? — «Pleasure more than lovers of God,» a characteristic of our time. The Bible says that men and women in the last days would treat their bodies as a fun house rather than as the temple of God. «Lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God»…..28% of all alcoholics are under the age of 18. «Lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God»…..In the past ten years, cocaine use by teens has risen 400%. Why? Because when your life is miserable, you need some temporary high, at least people think they need a temporary high. Mass media has glorified sex and immorality. «Lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God.» Bible prophecies are being fulfilled before our very eyes. As you and I look, those Bible prophecies are coming to pass. For this generation, God says, «Look up, My coming is near!» God says that the sands in the hourglass of time are running out.

14 – Economic uncertainty

Sign number fouteen: economic uncertainty. Jesus said that before His coming there would be signs in the economic world, signs in the financial quarter. Now notice, each of the texts I’ve read to you tonight are in the context of the second coming of Christ. So, in the book of James, chapter 5:1-4: «Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming upon you.» If misery is coming upon the financially wealthy, that must indicate some economic collapse. Notice, «Your wealth has rotted. Moths have eaten your clothes. Your gold and silver is corroded.» In other words, there will be quick devaluation of currency. And we go on, «You have hoarded wealth together in the last days.» This is in the context of the second coming of Christ. Look, «The wages you failed to pay the workers who mowed your fields are crying out against you.» The text goes on, «The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Almighty. You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence.»

There will be a wide disparity between those that have and those that have not. There will be ultimately, according to James, a period of economic difficulty. Our economy in the United States right now is in a better economic condition than it was a short time ago, but these spirals come and go. Look at our national debt: according to the Statistical Forecast of the United States, James Pierson, 1993….. In 1989, the United States owed three trillion dollars. The forecast was that by 1999, we would owe $5 trillion.
The truth is that, right now, we owe about $4.5 trillion. How can we possibly continue in any society when the debt gets so high and our debt service interest payments are so great?

What if a couple of major nations defaulted? What if inflation went ‘runaway’? Notice an article,»The Economic Perils Ahead,» from ‘Time’ magazine: The forecasters are concerned that the economy of Germany that was so stable a few years ago, with the union of East and West Germany is much less stable today. The economy of the Japanese yen was a standard, but now Japan is having its economic difficulties…..around the world, a shaky economy. Howard Ruff wrote a book, «How to Prosper in the Coming Bad Years.» The way to prosper: «Let not your heart be troubled. You believe in God, believe also in Me,» Jesus said, «I will come again.» There is a solution for the problems of this weary world, for the world facing catastrophe.

15 – The gospel going to the world

Sign number fifteen: Jesus said that this is the final sign. Jesus said, «When you see this sign, know that My coming is near.» Jesus said that this is the last one, the final one. Please read Matthew 24:14 with me: «And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.» The final sign, the last sign before the coming of Jesus, is the gospel going to the world. Revelation 14:6 says, «I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven»….. (an ‘angel’ is a message, and the message would fly in ‘midheaven’ via satellite technology, via radio, via television) …..»having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth, to every nation, tribe, tongue, and people.» Tonight, witness this experience: satellite technology to proclaim the gospel is a fulfillment of revelation, and it is Jesus lovingly proclaiming His biblical message to the world. Christ wants to get the message out! And He is using every way possible to get that message out.

Have you noticed the marvelous events of the last few years? Have you noticed the fall of the Berlin Wall? After 70 years of communism, 70 years of oppression, yet almost in an instant, the prayers of God’s people in East and West Germany were answered! And the prayers of God’s people in Romania were answered, and those of God’s people in Yugoslavia and Poland and Croatia. The tyranny of the past came crumbling down! I was in Hungary the night that the Berlin wall fell, in Hungary holding meetings when 100,000 people marched in the streets there. Yes, during the tyranny of the past, the militaristic regime of the past, the people did not have the opportunity to hear the word of God. But God said, «That’s enough.» God said, «My people have suffered tyranny and atheism enough!» So, men and women coming to Christ (you’re looking at Moscow’s Olympic stadium) thousands came there to be baptized in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

All across Eastern Europe today, God is opening doors. Men and women are accepting Christ. And you talk about eastern Europe, talk about China! I was in China recently…..again, doors are opening for the gospel! Underground presses are printing literature with thousands of pages going out, there are house churches by the hundreds and thousands. Men and women are accepting Christ, following Him, being baptized, around the world into this gospel of the Kingdom. In the continent of Africa, some countries are experiencing a spiritual revival. In some countries in South America, the gospel is going out powerfully. There is spiritual revival with thousands coming to Christ in Brazil, thousands coming to Christ in Mexico. There are large radio transmitters, with one radio transmitter in Siberia covering a good portion the world. Indeed, thousands are hearing the gospel! We are getting reports all over the world that it’s closing time. Men and women are accepting Jesus, men and women coming to Christ. We’re living on the verge of the kingdom of God, and tonight, our hearts cry out, in the sorrows of our lives, in the disappointments of our lives. Oh, Jesus, come quickly! Every time we lay a wife to rest, oh, Jesus, come quickly! Every time we lay a husband to rest, oh, Jesus, come quickly! Every time a child dies, oh, Jesus come quickly!
Reading those reports of famine, distended bellies in those little children, Jesus, come quickly! Reading those reports of the suffering because of violence and drive-by shootings, Jesus come quickly! Reading those reports of earthquakes shaking homes and hundreds dying, Jesus, come quickly! Reading those reports of hurricanes and tornadoes, Jesus, come quickly! Reading those reports of broken homes and broken hearts and broken lives and shattered dreams and divorces, oh, Jesus, come quickly!

Listen, as Ralph sings…..

A father and his children see their mother die in pain, and as they stand beside her bed and watch her slip away, he looks into their eyes and wonders how he can explain in this world we live in why there’s so much pain. But when Jesus comes in clouds of glory, He’ll take the suffering away. When Jesus comes, we’ll live in glory. There will be no sin, there will be no pain forever and a day. A broken hearted housewife sees her husband walk away. All those years together vanished in just one day. As she turns with tear-filled eyes to her little one so dear, how will she answer, «Mommy, why isn’t daddy here?» But when Jesus comes in clouds of glory, He’ll take the suffering away. When Jesus comes, we’ll live in glory. There will be no sin, there will be no pain forever and a day. The signs are all around us, that His coming’s very near, in a world that fills our hearts with fear. Let not your heart be troubled, just keep the Savior near. He promised to come take us home, the time is nearly here. And when Jesus comes in clouds of glory, He’ll take the suffering away. When Jesus comes, we’ll live in glory. There will be no sin, there will be no pain forever and a day. There will be no sin, there will be no pain forever and a day.

Mark Finley:
I want to go, don’t you? Let’s pray together. Tonight, as we pray, is there anything in your life that would keep you from being ready for the coming of Jesus…..any habit in your life, any attitude in your life? Have you surrendered your life to Him? Are you Christ’s man, Christ’s woman? Tonight, as we bow our heads to pray quietly, would you like to just hold up your hand and say, «Jesus, take me. I’m yours. Jesus, take me, I’m yours.» Just slip up your hand…..I’ll pray for you. O, Jesus, just now we give our lives to you. The signs indicate that Your coming is near, so near, but You’ve told us «Let not your heart be troubled.» We’re thankful that forever and ever and ever,
we can live with You throughout all eternity. In Christ’s name, Amen.