Introduction – This paper was written by a high school and college mathematics instructor.  It was not written or produced by any particular church or denomination.  It is provided free of charge as an expression of God’s love for mankind.
 
Sir Isaac Newton was one of the greatest scientists and mathematicians of all time.  Isaac Newton and Gottfried von Leibniz are largely credited with the development of the field of Calculus.  Many people are most familiar with Newton’s Laws of Motion.  However, his work in the scientific realm was amazingly extensive.  His studies and publications included laws of temperature change, fluid mechanics and viscosity, the reflecting telescope, prisms and the visible spectrum of light, gravity, the motion of planets, the shape of the earth (an oblate spheroid), the speed of sound, and the trajectory of comets.  Perhaps Newton may have influenced the course of history with his contribution to the scientific and industrial revolution.
 
Although it is not frequently mentioned in scientific context, Sir Isaac Newton was a devoted believer in Jesus Christ and spent a great amount of time studying the Bible.  He was particularly interested in the return of Christ.  His writings and letters were sold by his heirs at auction in 1936.  Newton wrote more than two million words in articles, books, tracts, and pamphlets concerning his Bible studies, including, Observations Upon the Prophecies of Daniel and the Apocalypse of St. John (1733).  In summary, Newton calculated the return of Christ toward the year 2060.  Interestingly, Newton’s  purpose for writing this book was “not to assert when the time of the end shall be, but to put a stop to the rash conjectures of fanciful men who are frequently predicting the time of the end, and by doing so bring the sacred prophecies into discredit as often as their predictions fail.”  He believed in the literal return of Christ and did not want false teachers to discredit Bible prophecy by their sensationalism and speculation.
 
Let us be clear on two points.  First, Jesus Christ will certainly return to this earth.  After His crucifixion and resurrection, Christ ascended into heaven with the promise that He would return.  Jesus said, “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also” (John 14:3 KJV).  “⁹And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.  ¹⁰And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; ¹¹Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven?  This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven” (Acts 1:9-11 KJV).
 
Second, no person, denomination, cult, or group knows the exact day or hour of His return.  Since the day of His ascension, people have tried to set a day for the return of Christ, even though the Bible specifically warns against all such speculation.  “⁶When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?  ⁷And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power” (Acts 1:6-7 KJV).  “But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only” (Matthew 24:36 KJV).  Sadly, the Bible says that many people will be deceived by counterfeit teachers, “For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many” (Matthew 24:5 KJV).
 
People frequently ask, “Why doesn’t God do something about all the problems and suffering in the world?”  In truth, God is far more patient than any man.  “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9 KJV).  In these last days, millions of souls are turning to Christ throughout the world.  Hell was made for the devil and his angels.  Man goes there by choice.  In His love and patience, God is allowing time for mankind to repent and turn to Him.  Even where there is little religious freedom, God’s Spirit is still moving in a powerful way as believers are sharing the love of Christ and meeting together in spite of persecution.  From a historical view, prosperity has often been more damaging to the church than persecution.  Meanwhile, good and evil grow together until the end.  The disciples asked Jesus to explain the parable of the wheat and the tares.  "³⁷He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; ³⁸The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; ³⁹The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels.  ⁴⁰As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world.  ⁴¹The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; ⁴²And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.  ⁴³Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.  Who hath ears to hear, let him hear” (Matthew 13:37-43 KJV).
 
At some point, a popular world leader will arise. He is probably living today.  He will seem to bring peace and mislead many.  An agreement will be reached in the middle east, including Israel.  The temple in Jerusalem will be rebuilt and this corrupt leader will desecrate the temple by setting up his image.  “¹⁶And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:  ¹⁷And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.  ¹⁸Here is wisdom.  Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six” (Revelation 13:16-18 KJV).  Many say that 666 can be found in the alignment bars of the UPC marketing code, while others deny the claim and say that it is just a coincidence.  Nevertheless, any sane person must recognize that technology has brought an unprecedented global economic network that has never existed in the history of the world.  The network and data processing are in place, worldwide.  It will only be necessary to change the scanning devices.  Billions of dollars are being lost to fraud and identity theft.  Already, there are calls for identification marks or electronic implants.
 
However, the return of Christ will not be doomsday, if your hope is in Christ and you are looking for His appearing.  “²⁷Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you.  Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.  ²⁸Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you.  If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.  ²⁹And now I have told you before it come to pass, that, when it is come to pass, ye might believe” (John 14:27-29 KJV).

If the Spirit of God is speaking to you today, then today is your day of salvation.  Second Corinthians 6:2 says that at just the right time, God heard you.  If you cry out to God, He will hear you.  On the day of salvation, He will help you.  He will send the Holy Spirit to guide you and draw you to Him.  Certainly, the "right time" is now.  Today is the day of salvation!  There is no guarantee of tomorrow.  Your heart may become hard and your ears deaf to His call.  Today, if you are fortunate enough to hear His voice, I urge you to say yes to Christ and His love.
 
You can experience a spiritual rebirth today.  Romans 10:9 (KJV) says, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”
 
Will you pray today and begin your journey with Christ?  “Lord Jesus, I confess with my mouth today that You are the only begotten Son of the living God.  I repent and turn from my sins.  I believe that You died on the cross to save me from my punishment and I receive You as Savior and Lord of my life.  Please help me to grow in Your fellowship and serve You all the days of my life.  I ask these things in Jesus’ name.  Amen.”
 
If you prayed that prayer today from your heart, then you have become a child of God.  You have been born again and your adventure with Christ begins.  Read the Bible each day, beginning with the book of John.  Talk to God each day and ask for His help.  Find a church that loves Jesus, loves people, worships God with enthusiasm, and teaches the Bible.  They will help and encourage you on your journey with Christ.

May God bless you,