I was wondering when do the birth pangs begin? Is it when the tribulation starts or before? I heard a teacher say it’s when the tribulation starts and that confused me. I always thought it was when Israel became a nation but now I am hearing that a lot of pastors do not teach this theory.
In effect, Jesus said that the things He called birth pangs would be characteristic of the entire Church age, not just one generation (Matt. 24:6-8). In other words, they’d be present throughout, but as the end gets closer they would become more frequent and more intense, like the labor pains of a pregnant woman. He said the only clear sign that people on Earth would get that the Great Tribulation is about to begin is the Abomination of Desolation (Matt. 24:15-21). When that happens the people in Judea (Israel) are to immediately flee for their lives.