Thank you, friend @timothyb, for your encouraging comments. I greatly appreciate being reminded of these other supporting scriptures. It has been a while since I have studied this all in depth, but I've come back to it for the sake of my "Curmudgeon's Bible" series.
One of my concerns, however, is this:
"For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect."
- Matthew 24:24
Jesus warned us not to believe it in the context of his second coming.