{"id":37547,"date":"2026-07-24T21:48:36","date_gmt":"2026-07-24T20:48:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/?page_id=37547"},"modified":"2026-10-13T19:04:08","modified_gmt":"2026-10-13T18:04:08","slug":"the-unpleasant-truth-about-the-nature-of-man-that-no-faithful-preacher-should-ever-conceal","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/","title":{"rendered":""},"content":{"rendered":"\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Mark 13:37<\/p>\n\n\n\n


Please take a moment to read more about us<\/a> and what we do.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

A SIGN OF THE TIMES<\/span><\/h1>\n\n\n\n

The Lord Jesus once spoke to the people, saying, \u201cCan ye not discern the signs of the times?\u201d  It was necessary work to be practiced by the Jewish people, but it is also very necessary for us and our children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our great God not only speaks to us by His Word, but He speaks also to us in different ways;  He also speaks by the signs of the times.  Did not the Lord speak to a proud and sinful generation before the flood?  How did the Lord speak to the Jewish people before their land and temple was destroyed?  Many signs were given by God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We believe that this world is now in its evening-tide.  The glorified Emmanuel will soon come with great glory to judge the quick and the dead.  Do we not see and hear His coming in the signs of the times?  Shall there not be many more signs in heaven and upon earth to teach and tell us of the coming of this majestic King of kings and Lord of lords?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jesus has spoken:  \u201cBut of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.  But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be.  For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark.  And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be\u201d<\/em> (Matthew 24:36-39).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One very lamentable sign of the times is the hardening of hearts.   It is considered by some as the greatest judgment upon mankind, not excluding churchgoers.  This was a sign of the times before the flood which was brought from heaven upon the people during Noah\u2019s life; the days of Noah are being repeated.  The great God is perfectly just if He leaves sinners over to the hardening of their hearts.  We read in John 12:40: \u201cHe hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart; that they should not see with their eyes, or understand with their heart.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

God is a righteous Sovereign.  He can let a sinner harden himself to the end of his life and then comes the judgment; woe to him who falls into the hands of the living God!  It is truly a great blessing and mercy from heaven if the Lord stops a sinner from hardening his heart and grants him by His Spirit a broken heart and a contrite spirit; then he speaks like David, \u201cI am troubled; I am bowed down greatly; I go mourning all the day.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

So often the Lord warns sinners against hardening their hearts – \u201cHarden not your heart\u201d<\/em> Ps. 95:8.  How inclined is a sinner, however, to reject and despise the warnings and admonitions from God.  How blind and perverse; how unwilling to heed His wise command.  Deeply is he corrupted through leaving God in Paradise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To harden the heart against God, His Word, His warnings and admonitions, indicates a great insensitivity, carelessness and indifference. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When does a sinner harden himself against God, His Word \u2013 even against his own welfare and salvation?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. When he rejects all warnings and admonitions which come directly or indirectly from heaven to him.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. When he despises and abhors the blessed invitations of Christ in the Gospel, saying to the dear Redeemer: \u201cAway with Him! Away with Him!\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. When he will not hearken to the voice of his conscience and will sear it with a hot iron. Many have been quite young when this voice was ignored.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. When they break through all discipline and the rod of correction which the Lord may bring upon them in sickness, poverty, losses, pains, danger of death at home or at war. Many have vowed before God at such times that they would repent and serve Him, but soon they forget these solemn vows or resolutions and harden their hearts in sin and wickedness.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  5. When a sinner seeks and is found at places of worldly amusements, which places are condemned by the Word of God. When he continues in such wickedness as drinking, dancing, swearing, whoring, blaspheming, stealing etc.  How great is His long-suffering in sparing such sinful and deep sunk wretches!  But what if the measure of sin is full?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  6. When a sinner breaks his promises and leaves the blessed truth of God to go his own way, turning his back to all truth and religion, or turning to a false or superficial religion. How many are weak and fall into temptation.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  7. When he despises and mocks God\u2019s dear people, His servants and rewards evil for good. This is what Israel did with the prophets in olden times.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  8. When a sinner forgets the goodness and mercies of God bestowed upon him and does not love, honour and glorify his Creator.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  9. When his whole poor soul is bewitched with TV, computer images and mobile phones and has not the least soul-desire to see King Jesus in His beauty etc.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    May I ask you \u2013 are not the majority of the people hardening their hearts in this evil time?  Do they not walk in their own ways, ways of destruction?  Do we not live in a time when even God\u2019s people do harden themselves to a certain extent and become as the slumbering virgins in Matthew 25?  Jesus asked His disciples, \u201cHave ye your heart yet hardened?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    This great evil, then, is a sign of the times.  This evil is as a fountain of many other evils.  We must warn faithfully against this evil.  God in heaven warns against it saying, \u201cHarden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness\u201d<\/em> Ps. 95:8.  \u201cToday, if ye will hear His voice, harden not your hearts\u201d<\/em> Heb. 3:15.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    May the Almighty God show mercy unto us and our children, to a back-sliding and hardened people; may He fill us with His blessed Spirit and soul-melting grace and love.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \u201cO remember not against us,
    \nEvil by our fathers wrought;
    \nHaste to help us in Thy mercy;
    \nNear to ruin we are brought;
    \nHelp us, God of our salvation;
    \nFor the glory of Thy Name;
    \nFor Thy Name\u2019s sake come and save us;
    \nTake away our sin and shame.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

                                                                                                                                                    J.V.Z.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n The Banner of Truth
    \n Grand Rapids, Michigan<\/b>\n<\/p>\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Mark 13:37 Please take a moment to read more about us and what we do. A SIGN OF THE TIMES The Lord Jesus once spoke to the people, saying, \u201cCan ye not discern the signs of the times?\u201d  It was necessary work to be practiced by the Jewish people, but it is also very necessary … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-37547","page","type-page","status-publish"],"yoast_head":"\nChristain Watch | Protestant Biblical Witness | KJV<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Showing the state of our nation in the light of God\u2019s Holy Word and informing Christians about the possible loss of their religious liberties\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Christain Watch | Protestant Biblical Witness | KJV\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Showing the state of our nation in the light of God\u2019s Holy Word and informing Christians about the possible loss of their religious liberties\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Christian Watch\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Christian-Watch-107588080931354\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-10-13T18:04:08+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Showing-the-state-of-our-nation.png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\\\/\",\"name\":\"Christain Watch | Protestant Biblical Witness | KJV\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/Showing-the-state-of-our-nation.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-24T20:48:36+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-10-13T18:04:08+00:00\",\"description\":\"Showing the state of our nation in the light of God\u2019s Holy Word and informing Christians about the possible loss of their religious liberties\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/Showing-the-state-of-our-nation.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/Showing-the-state-of-our-nation.png\"},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\\\/\",\"name\":\"Christain Watch a Protestant Biblical Witness\",\"description\":\"A Protestant Biblical Witness\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Christain Watch a Protestant Biblical Witness\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/05\\\/Old-Paths.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/05\\\/Old-Paths.jpg\",\"width\":1122,\"height\":566,\"caption\":\"Christain Watch a Protestant Biblical Witness\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/Christian-Watch-107588080931354\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Christain Watch | Protestant Biblical Witness | KJV","description":"Showing the state of our nation in the light of God\u2019s Holy Word and informing Christians about the possible loss of their religious liberties","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"Christain Watch | Protestant Biblical Witness | KJV","og_description":"Showing the state of our nation in the light of God\u2019s Holy Word and informing Christians about the possible loss of their religious liberties","og_url":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/","og_site_name":"Christian Watch","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Christian-Watch-107588080931354","article_modified_time":"2026-10-13T18:04:08+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Showing-the-state-of-our-nation.png","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Estimated reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/","url":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/","name":"Christain Watch | Protestant Biblical Witness | KJV","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Showing-the-state-of-our-nation.png","datePublished":"2026-07-24T20:48:36+00:00","dateModified":"2026-10-13T18:04:08+00:00","description":"Showing the state of our nation in the light of God\u2019s Holy Word and informing Christians about the possible loss of their religious liberties","inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Showing-the-state-of-our-nation.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Showing-the-state-of-our-nation.png"},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/","name":"Christain Watch a Protestant Biblical Witness","description":"A Protestant Biblical Witness","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/#organization","name":"Christain Watch a Protestant Biblical Witness","url":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Old-Paths.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Old-Paths.jpg","width":1122,"height":566,"caption":"Christain Watch a Protestant Biblical Witness"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Christian-Watch-107588080931354"]}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/37547","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=37547"}],"version-history":[{"count":29,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/37547\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":38168,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/37547\/revisions\/38168"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.christianwatch.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=37547"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}