Where Are We and Where Are We Headed Regarding the End-times?

“The purpose of prophecy is to wake us up to do mission,” presenter says.

August 9, 2025 | Marcos Paseggi, Adventist Review

“When end-times presentations are given, they are given in a way that almost tries to scare people into getting ready for Jesus’ return because it’s about to happen very soon,” said Adam Ramdin, executive producer for Lineage Journey during a presentation at the 2025 Generation. Youth. Christ. (GYC) Europe Convention in Katowice, Poland, August 1. On the contrary, he called attendees to understand the times we live in—not to be scared or speculate about the future, but to redouble our missionary efforts to reach everyone for Jesus.

In his presentation Ramdin provided a biblical framework to understand how what is happening should inform what Seventh-day Adventists do in living their daily Christian life and in the mission field.

Adam Ramdin, executive producer for the Lineage Journey series, during a presentation at the 2025 Generation. Youth. Christ. (GYC) Europe Convention in Katowice, Poland, August 1. [Photo: Marcos Paseggi, Adventist Review]

First, he reminded his audience that “Sunday churches use fire as a motivation—‘If you don’t give your heart to Jesus, you’ll burn in hell.’ We don’t do that,” he explained, “but we have an Adventist version: ‘Give your heart to Jesus now, because He’s gonna come next week,’ ” he illustrated. “There’s some truth in that, that we have to give our heart to Jesus at the earliest time, but our motivation to give our heart to Jesus should not be a time-based one but a love-based one.”

Ramdin quoted what Ellen G. White wrote in Signs of the Times. “The shortness of time is frequently urged as an incentive for seeking righteousness and making Christ our friend,” she explained. “This should not be the great motive with us; for it savors of selfishness. Is it necessary that the terrors of the day of God should be held before us, that we may be compelled to right action through fear? It ought not to be so.”*

This idea that the shortness of time should make us scared so as to be right with God is not the right motivation, Ramdin emphasized. “We should know where we are in the prophetic timeline, in which times we are living. But that’s only one aspect of a piece in the puzzle of the Christian life that we have.”

Past, Present, and Future

Ramdin reminded the conference attendees that according to the Bible, after 1844 there are no more time prophecies. “If you ever go to an end-time presentation and anyone is mentioning any dates after 1844, you are wasting your time,” he emphasized.

He explained that regarding biblical prophecy there are predictions about events that are already taking place: some are in the present, and some still in the future. Applying to what, in Revelation 13:11, interpreters believe is talking about the United States, he explained that in the American experiment, “church and state should be separate . . . in a way unique and different from Europe.” But, he added, “this point stands in opposition to the next point of speaking like a dragon, so it has been watched carefully.”

“The purpose of prophecy is to wake us up to do mission,” said Adam Ramdin during a presentation at the 2025 Generation. Youth. Christ. (GYC) Europe Convention in Katowice, Poland, August 1. [Photo: Marcos Paseggi, Adventist Review]

Where Are We Today?

“Where are we in Bible prophecy today?” Ramdin asked. Quoting Revelation 13:11 once again, he explained that “we are living in a time when America has two horns like a lamb—church and state are still separate—but we are also living at a time when we can see the beginning of speaking like a dragon.” He summarized: “Has church in America united with the state? No! Is it showing signs of uniting? Yes.” Ramdin reminded his audience that “it’s been uniting for the past . . . 50 or 60 years. It’s getting closer, but it hasn’t united yet.”

In that sense, Ramdin conceded that he could give dozens of examples of how this prophecy is approaching its fulfillment, but it wouldn’t necessarily be of any use. Because “if we are not ready, it won’t make any difference.”

Avoiding Fulfillment Speculation

Several of the events described by prophecy in Revelation, Ramdin emphasized, are still in the future, including the full partnership between the second and the first beasts. “Are we getting closer? Yes, but don’t get too fixated on that, because they have been getting closer for the past 60 years,” he acknowledged.

Ramdin called to avoid speculation, explaining that on how things are really going to be in practice, “the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy are silent. . . . They don’t tell us, for instance, how not buying or selling is going to be enforced. . . . And we get into speculation when we try to guess how it’s going to happen.”

He summarized, “What do we do know? America will unite with the first beast. . . . America and the other beast will have worldwide power. . . . They will enforce somehow that you can’t buy or sell. How? We don’t know. When? We don’t know. We should be clearer about what we do know, and we should also be very clear about what has been left blank and not spend our time in the blank stuff when we should be clear about the solid stuff.”

The Purpose of Prophecy

The purpose of the alarm clock is to wake you up, Ramdin illustrated, to give you a time frame for the day ahead. “The alarm clock does not sustain you throughout the day.” In a similar sense, he emphasized, “the purpose of prophecy is to wake us from spiritual slumber but not to sustain us throughout the day. . . . What really matters is real spirituality.”

Ramdin reminded his audience that there are two sides of the same coin. One side of the coin helps us to be aware of the times we live in, understanding that “the times are getting closer.” At the same time, he said, “what should occupy our mind is the work we have to do.” He emphasized, “We should be more focused on preaching the gospel than to be fixated what [the pope] is going to do. . . . There are whole countries that have barely heard the name of Jesus. . . . The purpose of prophecy is to wake us up to do mission.”

You can watch the whole presentation here.

*Mar. 17, 1887.