According to pastor and author Greg Laurie, Russia’s war on Ukraine could be a portent of the end times as prophesied in Scripture, and Christians can rest easy knowing “God is in control.” People have wondered if the events in Ukraine have any “meaning” to biblical prophecy, Laurie, the senior pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship in California, said in a recent video posted to his social media sites.

“I feel we are in the final days,” he stated. “I believe Christ may return at any time. There are signals of the end times that the Bible warns us to watch for. Indeed, Jesus compared it like labor pangs in a woman about to give birth —

the idea being the closer they get together, the closer you are to the birth, and as we see more signs, more things happening, they’re reminding us: Christ is coming back again.”

Laurie referenced Matthew 24, where Jesus listed signs for the “end of the age.” The war in Ukraine, along with the pandemic, all seem to fit what Jesus said, Laurie said.

“What exactly did Jesus have to say? There will be wars and rumors of wars in the final days. As a result, we are witnessing a battle on a magnitude we haven’t seen in a long time “he stated “It mentions plagues being near us, around us, in the final days. I’m not sure what it is if the coronavirus isn’t a plague – a worldwide plague. Also, the Bible warns of a world leader who will come in and rule and deceive people, only to disclose his true colors in the end. He’s also known as the Antichrist. I feel that much of this government overreach — pushing themselves on their citizens – is a foreshadowing of what is to come when Antichrist appears.”

Laurie believes Russia is mentioned in Ezekiel 38, where a “Gog” and “Magog” are mentioned.

“Many Bible experts feel that the Magog that attacks Israel in Ezekiel 38 is modern-day Russia, and I happen to agree with them,” he stated. “However, according to Ezekiel, the Jewish people would be scattered and re-gathered in their homeland. We know that after the Holocaust, Jewish people from all over the world began to return to their homeland during World War II. Israel was established as a nation on May 14, 1948. As a result, that part of the prophecy has come true.

But then Scripture says a nation from the extreme north of Israel will march on her called Gog and Magog. If you look on any map, you’ll see that is the geographical area of Russia. Ukraine used to be a part of the Russian empire. They broke off in 1991. Are they going to be part of Russia again? Could be. But the one thing that I think of is when I see the aggression of Russia – or Magog, if you will – it’s a reminder that that’s what we’re going to see when Magog attacks Israel.”

Christians, Laurie, concluded, should draw comfort from biblical prophecies.

“Bible prophecies are being fulfilled in our lifetime. It seems like we’re seeing more things happen, in real-time closer together, as the Scripture said they would be. So what should we do? We should look up, and we should remember that God is in control,” he said. “And we’ve read the last page of the Bible – the last page of Revelation – and we win in the end.”Greg Laurie Talks About Ukraine

He also encouraged believers to pray for Ukraine.

“They’re going through a time of great suffering right now,” Laurie said. “Pray for them. Pray that God gives to our leaders wisdom as they’re making very important decisions in the days ahead.”