Let not your heart be troubled!
When Jesus was asked what the signs of His return would be, He began with a litany of things to look for that He called “the beginning of sorrows.” They included false Christs and prophets, local and world wars, famines, pestilences (plagues), and earthquakes in many places (Matt 24:4-12).
Jesus footnoted these predictions with the words, “but the end is not yet.” So these signs do not signal the end, they signal that “the end is not yet.”
The sad story of planet earth has been one of endless wars, famines, earthquakes, and yes, plagues. We know that plagues swept through the Middle East following Jesus’ ascension back to heaven. As did earthquakes and a great proliferation of false prophets and Christs. And they have been with us ever since.
The KEY is found in the words, “All these are the beginning of sorrows.” The word “sorrows” is from a Greek word meaning “birth pang.” Though these things have always been with us, Jesus is saying that when you see them increasing in intensity and number, you can know that something is up.
As I write, our world is being rocked with plague, wars, false Christs, many earthquakes, persecution, Christian martyrdom, and widespread famine. Are they increasing like birth pangs? Statistics suggest yes. If they are, a new world will soon be born where Christ Himself will rule in righteousness and peace.
So let not your heart be troubled by these things. GOD HAS EVERYTHING UNDER CONTROL!