Franklin Graham, president of Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and Samaritan's Purse, recently wrote in a September article that he "can't help but wonder if we are in the last hours before our Lord Jesus Christ returns to rescue His Church."
The barrage of "bad news" reports, including the torture and killing of Christians in the Middle East and Africa, the tearing down of church buildings in China, and even the growing wave of secularism and opposition to the Church in America, are among the reasons Graham thinks the end is near.
Graham mentioned Jesus' warning about the signs of the end of the age in Matthew 24:9 , which states: "Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you; and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake."
In response, Graham said that Christians should "warn sinners of the consequences of sin" and "preach Jesus Christ, dead, buried and risen."
Regarding Ebola, Graham exhorted, "We have seen firsthand the pestilence of Ebola. ... A medical doctor serving with Samaritan's Purse in Liberia was infected with this deadly virus, but through the prayers of many righteous, God spared his life."
All of this points to "the urgency of preaching the gospel while we have the opportunity", explained Graham, as he cited John 9:4, which states: "As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work."
Some church leaders in Liberia, however, are claiming the deadly outbreak is God's punishment to the nation for "immoral acts".
According to Liberia's Daily Observer, over a hundred Christian leaders who are a part of the Liberia Council of Churches, resolved, "God is angry with Liberia... Liberians have to pray and seek God's forgiveness over the corruption and immoral acts (such as homosexualism) that continue to penetrate our society. As Christians, we must repent and seek God's forgiveness."
