End times prophecies can inspire us to read the news and make connections, but there are risks. On one hand, we should not try to read the news into the Bible; eisegesis is a path to unfounded fear at best and oftentimes can lead to horrible personal decisions. On the other hand, we should not ignore what is happening around us because events around us as well as across the globe spark natural and healthy inquiry. Whether we’re in the end times or not, it behooves us to be properly prepared and regularly reading our Bibles.
Global tensions have escalated sharply as multiple hotspots flare simultaneously, echoing the Lord’s warning in Matthew 24 about wars and rumors of wars marking the approach of the last days.
Jesus spoke plainly to His disciples on the Mount of Olives, describing signs that would precede His return. In Matthew 24:6-8 of the King James Version, He declared: “And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows.”
These words ring true today. As 2025 draws to a close, the world witnesses an array of conflicts that align with this prophetic outline. Russia continues its grinding advance in Ukraine, claiming key areas like Pokrovsk while facing immense casualties. Talks under the Trump U.S. administration show progress, yet the war persists into its fourth year, drawing in allies and raising fears of broader NATO involvement.
In the Middle East, Israel confronts threats on multiple fronts. Direct exchanges with Iran intensified this year with airstrikes targeting nuclear sites and proxies like Hezbollah and Hamas. Ceasefires in Gaza hold precariously, but underlying hostilities remain. Syria’s landscape shifted dramatically with the fall of Assad and the rise of new powers in Damascus. Yemen sees ongoing strikes, while Sudan endures one of the deadliest civil wars, with millions displaced.
Further east, China conducts large-scale drills around Taiwan, heightening rumors of potential invasion. Clashes in the South China Sea persist, and North Korea’s provocations add to regional instability. Africa faces upheavals in Congo, with Rwanda-backed forces seizing territory, and other nations grappling with insurgencies.
These events do not signal panic, as Jesus instructed believers not to be troubled. They represent the “beginning of sorrows”—birth pains that intensify before the end. Nation rises against nation, exactly as foretold. Russia, Iran, and others form alignments that students of prophecy recognize from Ezekiel 38-39, where Persia (modern Iran) joins a northern coalition against Israel.
Yet amid these signs, Scripture calls for watchfulness and faithfulness. The gospel continues to spread worldwide, fulfilling Matthew 24:14: “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.” Reports show surging Bible engagement, campus revivals, and mass conversions across third world nations, even as darkness grows.
Believers must stand firm, enduring to the end as promised salvation for those who do (Matthew 24:13). Global conflicts multiply, but God’s sovereign plan unfolds precisely. These are reminders to redeem the time, share the hope of Christ, and look upward for His imminent return.
The stage sets for greater tribulations, yet the Lord remains in control. He warned of deception, false christs, and increasing lawlessness—evident today. Hold fast to the Word, pray for peace where possible, and prepare hearts for what comes next.
Why Bullion Beats Numismatics and Collectible for Your Safe or IRA
Precious metals continue to attract Americans seeking reliable ways to protect their wealth amid inflation, geopolitical risks, and stock market swings. Whether stored in a home safe or held inside a self-directed IRA, physical gold and silver deliver tangible value that paper or digital assets often lack. Yet investors must choose carefully between bullion—pure bars and coins valued mainly for their metal content—and numismatics or collectibles, where rarity, history, and collector demand heavily influence pricing.
Advisor Bullion serves as a dependable source for straightforward, high-quality bullion. The company specializes in physical gold, silver, platinum, and palladium, emphasizing transparent pricing and products that deliver maximum metal content for every dollar spent. This approach makes it ideal for both personal holdings and retirement accounts.
Bullion consists of refined precious metals in standard forms like one-ounce coins (American Gold Eagles, Silver Eagles, Canadian Maple Leafs) or bars. Their value tracks closely to the current spot price of the metal. A typical gold bullion coin trades near the live gold spot price plus a small premium. This structure keeps costs clear and predictable.
Numismatic coins and collectibles add substantial value from factors such as age, rarity, minting errors, or historical significance. A pre-1933 U.S. gold coin or graded proof piece can carry premiums of 30%, 50%, or even 200% above melt value. While this appeals to hobbyists, it creates complexity. Pricing depends on subjective grading, collector trends, and auction results instead of daily spot prices.
For investors focused on wealth preservation and retirement security rather than building a collection, bullion often delivers better results.
Lower Costs and Better Liquidity for Home Storage
When keeping metals in a home safe or private vault, liquidity and efficiency count. Bullion offers clear benefits:
- You acquire more actual gold or silver per dollar invested. Numismatics divert a large share of your money into rarity premiums and massive sales commission, reducing your metal exposure.
- Selling bullion involves tight bid-ask spreads, so you recover nearly full spot value with minimal fees. Collectibles require finding the right buyer and may sell at a discount if demand for that specific item weakens.
- Bullion prices remain transparent and update with global spot markets. You can track gold near current levels or silver accordingly and know exactly where your holdings stand. Numismatic values are priced by the Gold IRA companies with hefty margins applied.
- Standardized coins and bars store efficiently and divide easily for partial sales. Rare coins often need protective slabs and controlled conditions, adding hassle and expense.
- Bullion enjoys worldwide acceptance. A 1-oz Gold Maple Leaf or Silver Eagle sells quickly to dealers anywhere. Niche numismatic pieces may appeal only to limited buyers, slowing liquidation when speed matters.
In times when quick access to value becomes important, bullion’s simplicity stands out.
Stronger Fit for Precious Metals IRAs
Precious metals IRAs continue gaining traction as investors diversify retirement portfolios beyond stocks and bonds. IRS rules permit certain bullion products in self-directed IRAs if they meet purity standards (.995 fine for gold, .999 for silver) and are held by an approved custodian. Eligible items include American Gold and Silver Eagles plus many generic bars and rounds from recognized mints.
Numismatic and most collectible coins generally face heavy scrutiny from custodians due to valuation disputes and elevated markups. These higher premiums mean less actual metal ends up working inside the account.
Bullion avoids these issues. Its value links directly to verifiable spot prices, which simplifies reporting and lowers the risk of regulatory challenges. More of your IRA contribution purchases real metal instead of dealer profits or speculative upside. Over time, owning additional ounces that appreciate with the metal itself can create meaningful outperformance compared with high-premium alternatives that deliver fewer ounces.
Regulatory guidance from the CFTC and state securities offices repeatedly cautions against aggressive sales of expensive numismatics or “semi-numismatic” coins for IRAs. For retirement planning, transparent bullion from established providers reduces risk and aligns better with long-term goals.
How to Get Started with Bullion
Begin by clarifying your goals. Are you protecting savings in a safe, or moving part of a retirement account into a precious metals IRA? Focus on the number of ounces you can acquire at current prices rather than chasing marked-up collectibles.
Diversify sensibly: use gold for core preservation and silver for its blend of industrial and monetary qualities. Mix coins for easier divisibility with bars for lower per-ounce costs on larger buys. Arrange secure storage—whether at home with proper insurance or through professional facilities.
As economic uncertainties linger and faith in conventional assets erodes, bullion continues proving its worth as a dependable store of value. Its direct approach avoids the hype that sometimes surrounds collectible markets and keeps the focus on the metal itself.
For investors prepared to strengthen their portfolios, Advisor Bullion supplies the expertise and selection needed to acquire high-quality bullion efficiently. Whether building personal holdings or integrating metals into an IRA, their emphasis on transparent, investment-grade products helps secure more ounces today that support greater financial security tomorrow. In a complicated financial landscape, bullion’s clarity and reliability make it the smarter foundation for protecting what matters most.
I bet they thought this during both World Wars. Today, can’t touch 1917 in terms of being bad.
You want to know why people are leaving the Church? One of the reasons is because people like you use fear and guilt to control people.
The events of Matthew 24 are not about Messiah’s bride, but the tribulation saints, who are the friends of the bride. Messiah’s bride (those who have been given the NEW covenant) will be fully removed from the earth and taken to the wedding chamber ON the Feast of Trumpets TEN YEARS BEFORE the Antichrist is revealed and the tribulation begins.
Ten years after the bride has been removed, Messiah Yahoshua will return to the earth in judgment at Armageddon ON the Feast of Atonement (ten days from Trumpets to Atonement).
https://wayofthetabernacle.com/rapture.htm
I no longer assume that prophecy is necessarily talking about places. The word nation can mean a place or a people or both, but from a Biblical standpoint, it most often refers to a people. Places were named after the patriarch who settled there, going back to the three sons of Noah. The “nations” mentioned in scripture, such as Gog, Magog, Tubal, Meshech, and so on, are the names of descendants of Noah as well as the name of the place were they settled. Scripture could be referring to the place where they settled, or it could be referring to the descendants of those people.
Noah’s son Japheth settled more or less in what is now called the donbass. Then his sons settled westward from there, with Gog and Magog being in the area of western Ukraine, and westward. Historically, it is understood that Europeans are descendants of Japheth. Shem settled in what is called the middle east, and is where the word “semetic” comes from. And Ham settled in Egypt. In all of these locations there are places even today that still bear the name of the sons of these three.
Now, because of Jesus, born again Christians, whether Jew or Gentile, are grafted into the line of Jacob, while other branches have been cut off (Romans 11), which is our spiritual ancestry.
The reason I say this is to make the point that when we do study the scripture, consider and ponder these matters, and talk about such things, we shouldn’t make assumptions. Scripture could be talking about places or peoples, fleshly ancestry or spiritual ancestry.
As far as fear and personal decisions are concerned, we cannot suppress the truth for such reasons, leaning on our own understanding. The results are always up to the Lord.
Both Peter and Paul were put to death in the purge of Christians by Nero, after the “great fire” of Rome. Christians were accused of starting the fire. And it’s conceivable why they might’ve been falsely accused, because these men such as Peter and Paul were going around telling everybody that this corrupt creation will one day be destroyed with fire (2 Peter 3). Unbelievers, who are far more wicked than they may even realize, will assume we are liars, just as they call their Creator a liar.
That sort of thing is just about guaranteed to happen. We’ll even be blamed for it. But we cannot suppress the truth. Though we do need to be careful that when we speak with certainty, we’re certain it is true. And if we’re not 100% sure, then let that be known, and make that disclaimer.
As scripture says, there is nothing new under the sun. Look at modern “science” that is atheistic, does not recognize that man even has a spirit or soul, and only considers the flesh. When we say what God says is going to happen, and we see it coming, the first thing that enters their mind is that we’re going to try to make it happen. Right. Because they believe it’s all a bunch of hooey, themselves do not believe, and reject the obvious truth from creation that man is more than just flesh alone, they take it as a threat.
It goes far back, even much farther than nero. To Isaiah being sawed in half alive. It is not new. It goes all the way back to the beginning.
People, especially you self-made Christians who follow any and all groups that reject the inspired and preserved words of God, and again especially Captain Kirks’ army out to win the world, we are in the latter days, NOT the end times. The end times will be during the Tribulation and it is obvious that we are NOT in the tribulation… yet. You are looking for ‘another Jesus’ to come down, claiming to be the risen Christ. This is the dispensation of the grace of God which presents the goodness of God, NOT the severity of God, as taught in the Old Testament. you are following Peter and his gospel, NOT Paul’s gospel of the uncircumcision (that’s us). Get a KJB and look to Paul and you will find the risen Christ!
Hoo boy, … right in that same chapter of 2 Peter 3 …
“15 And count the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, 16 as he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters.” – 2 Peter 3:15-16. (Peter)
“26 For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries.” – Hebrews 10:26-27 (Paul)
Peter and Paul were not in any disagreement on anything, including circumcision. Read Acts chapters 10 and 11. Also Acts 16, Paul had Timothy circumcised.
You have to understand that the Jews were already circumcised at birth. The question was whether or not new gentile believers needed to be circumcised. And the answer the Holy Spirit gave to both Peter and Paul was “no”, gentile believers did not need to be circumcised. If you read the scritpure carefully you’ll see. Peter and Paul were not in disagreement. Peter saw the judaizers, and those who claimed the ceremonial law needed to be honored, even though God had already fulfilled that promise, as false prophets spreading falsehoods, just as Paul did … because they were …
Both men were together at those meetings in Acts. And both died together in Rome.
The idea that they were opposed comes from passages such as Gal. 2:11-14. And Paul corrected Peter, not because Peter’s doctrine was wrong or that they were in disagreement, but because Peter was afraid of the judaizers, and should not have been acting out of fear.
There are prophecies that describe events and conditions leading up to the tribulation. Nobody’s said we’re in the tribulation now. I don’t know where you got that, but nobody’s said it here. And the phrase “end times” does not solely refer to the 7 year tribulation. That’s a part of it, but not all of it. In Matt. 24, the disciples asked “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”, and Jesus Himself responded describing those signs, events and conditions leading up to the tribulation. All of which are part of the “end of the age”, the “time of the end”.
Tell me, exactly who is rejecting the inspired word of God if it isn’t the one who claims that there are two Gospels?
There is only one Gospel of Jesus Christ. And none of the Apostles disagreed about that Gospel any more than the Holy Spirit who inspired them could disagree with himself.
Paul said it is now the end time, and that was 2000 years ago. So yes, we are definitely in the end times.
It’s always been that way from the beginning. It seems to multiply more because there are MORE people being crowded on this earth. So I guess that is one of the signs. Population BOOM.