[The text below represents an edited transcript of this Tomorrow’s World program.]

“Six Areas to Watch in 2020 - Bible Prophecy Update”

Welcome to the year 2020! What does Bible prophecy say about what’s in store? You’re about to find out—RIGHT NOW!

Prophecy Is Important To Understanding God’s Plan

Welcome to Tomorrow’s World—and to the year 2020! I’m excited about today’s program, and excited about the free offer we that have for you today—a free DVD titled, “The Power of Prophecy,” one of our most popular items explaining biblical prophecy. Keep an eye out for information on how to get your copy.

And forgive me for being so blunt, but ask yourself: Doesn’t it seem like the world is on fire?

The state of political discourse is more virulent and savage than it has been in decades, and not just among our politicians and pundits, but among ordinary citizens, as well. Meanwhile, nuclear treaties are dissolving, old alliances are unraveling, and the potential for violent international confrontation seems to grow. And on the cultural front, we seem surrounded by more confusion than ever, as Western civilization is rewriting elements of its norms and moral code that have been in place for generations—even centuries. Truly, a world on fire.

Ironically, many preachers and pastors will tell you that prophecy is a distraction from the important parts of the Bible. But they are astonishingly and dangerously wrong. UNDERSTANDING PROPHECY is a VITAL part of living, breathing, BIBLICAL Christianity!

The Apostle Paul speaks to us through the centuries in his letter to those in Thessalonica, saying bluntly, “(“)Do not despise prophecies.”(”) [1 Thessalonians 5:20.] In fact, the testimony of Jesus Christ is called “(“)...the spirit of prophecy…”...”(”) in Revelation 19:10, and Revelation 1 and verse 1 plainly says that God gave Jesus prophecy to deliver to His followers so that they would UNDERSTAND THINGS THAT ARE SHORTLY TO TAKE PLACE.

Churches and ministries that ignore or minimize Bible prophecy relegate themselves to being mere shadows of what Jesus Christ intended for His Church and they ignore one-fourth to one-third of the Bible!

Now, of course, some avoid one ditch by jumping into another… Desperate to say something relevant about the times they are in, some take personal predictions and thread-bare theories and force them into the Bible, holding God’s word hostage as they try to press it into service to prop up their own, humanly derived ideas.

For instance, how many televangelists or pulpit preachers have you heard proclaim that Jesus might return this very night? I know I’ve heard many! Yet those ministers had no idea what they were talking about! Now, of course, you or I may die today, and, for us then, Jesus Christ’s return may as well BE tonight—none of us have any excuse to rest on our laurels. But will Jesus Christ return tonight, this week, or any time in 2020 to take over the world, resurrect the saints, and begin His millennial reign, or initiate the so-called “Rapture” in 2020? Absolutely not! And those preachers who say that He might, do more harm than good!

I encourage you to go online and look for the Tomorrow’s World program my colleague Gerald Weston produced last year titled “2019 in Bible Prophecy,” in which he boldly proclaimed three things the Bible foretold would NOT happen that year! And they didn’t!

The Apostle Paul tells us plainly that we are to make sure we are “(“) …rightly dividing the word of truth.”(”) [2 Timothy 2:15.] And God’s word has POWERFUL warnings for those who would use His word to proclaim things HE HAS NOT SAID. Proverbs 30:6; Ezekiel 22:28; Revelation 22:18.

So, we ARE to care about prophecy—in fact, it would be foolish to ignore it, given the earth-shattering events that God plainly says lie ahead. Yet, we must not use the Bible to proclaim our OWN ideas. Rather, we must rightly divide it and give GOD’S OWN MESSAGE concerning the days ahead.

And that, dear viewers, is our goal here on Tomorrow’s World! In our next few segments, we are going to let God’s word tell us what you and I need to be watching for in 2020—but before I get started, I want to explain the free DVD we are sending to our viewers today: “The Power of Prophecy.” This DVD will NOT ONLY lay out for you multiple Bible prophecies about what is happening in the world RIGHT NOW, it will also take the time to give you the KEYS YOU NEED so that YOU CAN PERSONALLY UNDERSTAND BIBLE PROPHECY for YOURSELF.

And if you’ve never requested something from Tomorrow’s World before, you’re in for a treat. We aren’t like other ministries on television or the Internet who are constantly asking for money or looking to sell what they have for a suggested “donation”—nor will anyone call you later without your permission. Those guys irritate US as much as they irritate YOU. EVERYTHING we offer on Tomorrow’s World truly is ABSOLUTELY FREE. We take Jesus’ admonition seriously when he commands all of us, “Freely you have received, freely give.” [Matthew 10:8.]

Put us to the test and take a brief moment to request your own copy of this free DVD, “The Power of Prophecy.” And when we come back, we’ll begin a whirlwind look at six specific areas of world news and current events that you need to watch in 2020 as prophecy marches forward!

What Events And Trends To Watch Out For In 2020

Welcome back! As we begin, please keep in mind that we aren’t setting dates for when all of these things will ultimately be fulfilled. Those details are revealed in God’s own good time, and it will come upon many as a thief in the night! Yet if we are familiar with the overall arc of Bible prophecy, we CAN see the Almighty setting the stage for the day of Jesus Christ’s return. As Paul tells us:

“But you, brethren, are not in darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief. You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us WATCH and be sober.” [1 Thessalonians 5:4–6]

Let us not sleep! But what should you and I be WATCHING in 2020? Let’s jump in!

First: Keep an eye on EUROPE’S ACCELERATING IDENTITY CRISIS.

Of course, many in the United States are so used to having no need to focus on anything but their own politics and affairs, they often fail to pay attention to events across the oceans. However, the identity crisis growing in Europe is prophesied to impact the entire world and every single human being living in the end times.

The book of Daniel records a marvelous prophecy given by God Almighty to ancient King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. In it, he saw a statue made of various materials—gold at the top, silver just below, descending in quality until the feet, which were composed of a mixture of iron and clay. The prophet Daniel interpreted that dream, explaining that it represented a succession of world-ruling kingdoms, beginning with Nebuchadnezzar’s Babylon and continuing down through time, each inferior in some ways to the previous one, until the final kingdom—symbolized by the feet of iron and clay. Concerning this last worldly kingdom, Daniel explains:

Whereas you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; yet the strength of the iron shall be in it, just as you saw the iron mixed with ceramic clay. And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly fragile. As you saw iron mixed with ceramic clay, they will mingle with the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, just as iron does not mix with clay. [Daniel 2:41–43]

This last Kingdom is a collection of peoples or nations hard to keep together—not naturally adhering to one another, just as iron and clay do not mix.

As the vision and Daniel’s interpretation make plain, this is the last global kingdom of men to exist before the return of Jesus Christ and the establishment of HIS kingdom, which will SMASH the worldly kingdom before growing to fill the whole world. [vv. 44–45]

My friends, the beginning of this kingdom—the feet and toes of iron and clay—exists today in the form of the European Union.

Just as the iron and clay of the vision do not naturally adhere to one another, Europe continues to struggle with its identity, attempting to keep together its collection of various nation-states and peoples, each with their own national identities, plans, and desires. The departure of the United Kingdom and Brexit has rocked that Union in ways that are still being understood.

As historian Ian Kershaw noted in the pages of the New York Times,

If there is a common thread in all of these problems, it is the interplay of national interests and identities with the demands of an increasingly integrated continent, and an increasingly global world (“Europe’s Crisis of Integration,” Ian Kershaw, The New York Times, April 29, 2019).

These difficulties will eventually be resolved in the most DRAMATIC of ways, and the result will impact the lives of every human being on the planet! Watch developments in Europe in 2020!

And not only Europe! Watch the CHANGING POWER DYNAMIC AMONG ARABIC NATIONS.

The Bible prophesies dramatic changes in the Arab world, eventually resulting in a coalition or confederacy of nations actively plotting the destruction of Israel and, when you understand prophecy, the United States and nations descended from Great Britain. We see this coalition described in Psalm 83:

They have taken crafty counsel against Your people, and consulted together against Your sheltered ones. They have said, “Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation, that the name of Israel may be remembered no more.” For they have consulted together with one consent; they form a CONFEDERACY against You: the tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites; Moab and the Hagrites; Gebal, Ammon, and Amalek; Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre…. [Psalm 83:3–7]

Eventually a world power will arise, called in the book of Daniel the King of the South. And while common enemies often bind rivals together temporarily, the Bible makes it clear that in the years ahead of us these Arabic nations, the European superpower, and additional military titans of the east will clash against each other with such ferocity that the survival of mankind itself will be in doubt. Those times lie yet ahead, but the savvy student of Bible prophecy can see the groundwork being laid TODAY in 2020. Watch for it!

Now, you might ask where are the United States and the United Kingdom in all of this? You’ll find out in the NEXT area to watch in 2020! But first, let me pause very briefly and give you an opportunity to request our free DVD, “The Power of Prophecy.

This DVD contains four Tomorrow’s World programs designed to unlock the power of Bible prophecy for you to unleash in your own life. These programs are designed to answer some of the most important questions concerning Bible prophecy, such as

• What is the mysterious Beast of Revelation?
• What are the Five Keys to Understanding Prophecy?
• What are the Six Greatest Perils facing the United States?
• What does the Bible say about the future of Russia, China, Iran, and other nations?
• How can I personally prepare for what is to come and protect my family?

Order this completely free DVD right now—no strings attached. And I’ll be right back to discuss what the Bible says about the United States and the U.K., as well as three additional areas you need to watch in 2020!

Life-Changing World Events To Occur Soon

Welcome back!

So, where in all of this is the United States and the United Kingdom? What should we watch for concerning these nations in 2020? Regrettably, the news is not good.

In 2020, watch for the continuing DECLINE OF THE UNITED STATES AND THE BRITISH-DESCENDED NATIONS of the world.

Many ministers and preachers will tell you that the U.S. and the U.K. can’t be found in the Bible. Well, I will tell you that they are FLAT OUT WRONG. If you don’t believe me, you really need our free DVD! We have more material explaining how to find them in prophecy both in our DVD and on our website at TomorrowsWorld.org, but for now, let me simply explain that prophecy portends abject POLITICAL, CULTURAL, and MORAL decline for these once-great nations.

On the political front, the prophet Jeremiah speaks to the relationships between the U.S. and the U.K. and the nations of the world that they have allied with in the past:

There is no one to plead your cause, that you may be bound up; you have no healing medicines. ALL YOUR LOVERS HAVE FORGOTTEN YOU; they do not seek you; for I have wounded you with the wound of an enemy, with the chastisement of a cruel one, for the multitude of your iniquities, because your sins have increased. [Jeremiah 30:13–14.]

The international relations and support that the U.S. and the U.K. have built up since the end of World War II will unravel in the years ahead of us—but note why… God doesn’t say the cause is anything truly political or economic. Fundamentally it is because of the SINS of these nations! Because their decline is not simply political or financial, but MORAL.

If you are paying attention today, you see it, don’t you?

In our halls of government, on our movie screens, and in our classrooms, the growing moral rot of the United States, and the United Kingdom, and other nations of the Anglosphere is on depressing display for all the world to see—all while the Ten Commandments can hardly be found.

That decline will continue in 2020—watch for it.

Watch, too,DEVELOPMENTS IN THE WORLD OF ORGANIZED RELIGION.

With the rise of the so-called “nones”—that is, those who answer “none of the above” when asked what religious affiliation they possess—the world of organized religion is doing a lot of soul searching.

The Roman Catholic Church continues to be rocked by the scandals of child abuse among its priests, and the Roman Pontiff, Pope Francis, once the darling of media and those looking for signs of a changing Catholic Church, has faced criticism from multiple quarters—both from Catholic conservatives who see him as watering down doctrine and from Catholic and worldly liberals who see him as reacting too slowly to claims of abuse, perpetuating a culture of protection for abusers.

Yet, while it seems old fashioned in an era of loose, modern “spiritualism” to talk about global roles for the Roman Catholic Church and the Protestant denominations that have descended from that organization, the Bible says that their relevancy will increase in the days ahead.

In fact, prophecy speaks of a “mother church” wielding a false, deceptive counterfeit of Christianity in the end times, described as “Babylon” and possessing daughter churches that are just as deceptive. Symbolized by a woman, drinking the blood of TRUE saints of God, who are true to the teachings of Jesus Christ and the commandments of God, Revelation describes this religious system:

The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, having in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the filthiness of her fornication. And on her forehead a name was written: MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. [Revelation 17:4–5.]

Watch in 2020 for changes to continue in the Catholic Church and its daughter churches in the Protestant world as organized religion progresses, step-by-step, toward a dangerous condition to come.

And watch in 2020 for GROWING VULNERABILITY TO NATURAL DISASTER.

And we mean natural disasters of all sorts—such as weather, earthquakes, famine, flood, and disease.

Now of course, it is easy to feel with every disaster in the news that we are living in the worst times mankind has ever seen. Frankly, most of this is an exaggeration, as anyone who has studied the American Dust Bowl of the 1930s or the Spanish Flu of 1918 can tell you.

However, it is dangerous to say too quickly “all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.” 2 Peter 3:4.

And we do see changes taking place. Overuse and misuse of antibiotics and antivirals and the resulting mutations in dangerous strains of bacteria have resulted, for instance, in the risk of “superbugs”—diseases against which mankind has no defenses.

The U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, Alex Azar, explained the situation in a speech in New York City. After praising all of the progress that has been made in modern medicine, he noted,

“The emergence and rapid spread of antimicrobial resistance threatens to undo this progress, at enormous human and economic cost. No one is immune from this threat…. Indeed, part of the promise of modern medicine itself is at stake” (“Remarks at AMR Challenge Lunch,” Alex M. Azar II, HHS.gov, September 25, 2018).

Perhaps mankind will find new ways to stop these devastating infections—we should certainly hope so. But prophecy is clear that—eventually—diseases, natural disasters, and famines will begin to get the better of us, and they will devastate life on earth in the last days—including a special level of devastation in the United States and British-descended nations. [On-screen list: Revelation 6:5–8; Luke 21:11; Deuteronomy 28:21–22.

How these things will develop remains to be seen, but this area is definitely one to watch in 2020.

We have one more area to pay attention to this year, but before we explain that, let me pause briefly one more time to give you the opportunity to request today’s free DVD “The Power of Prophecy.” If you have ever felt that Bible prophecy was somehow “beyond” you or inaccessible, this free DVD will show you that you CAN understand it—both what it says about the days in which we’re living, AND what it says about the days just ahead of us. This DVD includes the vital message, “Five Keys to Understanding Prophecy.” Don’t regret allowing this free DVD to pass you by.

It’s already paid for—Just click the link in the description and order your own copy right now. Also, be sure to subscribe to our channel so you don’t miss another Tomorrow’s World video, and I’ll be right back to give you one more area to watch in 2020!

God Has A Gospel Work That Must Continue To The End

Today, we’ve looked at five areas of world news and current events that you need to watch develop in 2020 as prophecy continues to unfold.

The sixth area to watch is the EXPANDING EFFORT TO PREACH THE GOSPEL OF THE KINGDOM TO THE WORLD.

Note: Not a false, shallow “gospel” that discusses nothing but the life of Jesus Christ and some of His teachings, but a full-throated preaching of the FULL, TRUE Gospel message that Jesus brought to the world, including the coming Kingdom of God!

The preaching of THAT Gospel, the TRUE Gospel of Jesus Christ, is a sign of the prophesied end times, as we see in Matthew 24 and verse 14: “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.”

Again, not just ANY “gospel”… Jesus says SPECIFICALLY, “this gospel of the KINGDOM”—the GOSPEL OF THE COMING KINGDOM OF GOD!

The coming of Jesus Christ will not take place until AFTER the gospel you hear being preached on the Tomorrow’s World program and in our free magazine and materials goes out to all the world as a witness to all the nations! So, what does that imply for 2020? All I can say is “Watch this space!” We live in a world where preaching the Bible truth is getting harder and harder, as restrictions on speech, enforced by governments and societies who don’t want to hear what God has to say about their lifestyles and choices, seek to silence God’s counsel and His warnings of the times ahead.

Yet His word is sure, and one way or another, this Gospel WILL grow and go out in power! So, again, watch this space!

It would be foolish to say that all of these things will come to a climax IN 2020. In fact, we are guaranteed that they will not. Christ will not return in 2020, and there are still prophetic pieces being moved into place by God on the great chessboard of history. However, it would be JUST as foolish to ignore these developments and assume that prophecy is NOT moving forward!

Quite the contrary. For those of us who labor for you on this program—as well as the members of the hundreds of Living Church of God congregations around the world who have already paid for the all of the free materials that we offer so that you can have them at no cost whatsoever—every year that passes, we see a growing number of signs that the end-times are near.

And though the times between now and the return of Jesus Christ will be troubling, for those who submit themselves to Him now, in this life, the signs of the times ahead are also beacons of hope!

As our Savior Himself tells us, “Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near.” [Luke 21:28.]

Our prayer here at Tomorrow’s World is that you, too, will seek God and embrace the way of life He commands so that these signs may encourage you the same way they encourage us.

Don’t miss out on today’s free DVD, “The Power of Prophecy,” and don’t forget to join us again next week. Gerald Weston, Richard Ames, and I, along with guest presenter Rod McNair, will be here waiting for you—eager to share truths about Bible prophecy, the Kingdom of God, and the teachings of Jesus Christ that you will hear nowhere else. Please take care, and we’ll see you next time.