Matthew 24
“You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains.” Matthew 24:6-8 NIV
Jesus tells us that there will be wars, rumors of wars, famines and earthquakes in the end times. Most Christians understand that we are currently in the end times right now. No one except God knows when Jesus is coming back. It might happen in our lifetime, or it may be hundreds of years from now. Regardless of when it happens, the warning is clear: we need to be ready at all times because He will come when it is least expected. “So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect Him” (Matthew 24:44 NIV). We need to remain focused on God and His purposes and plans at all times. As a large part of His plan, we must always be looking for opportunities to tell others about Jesus.
“Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold,” Matthew 24:12 NIV
One significant sign of the end times will be that “the love of most will grow cold.” We need to be very careful that we do not let temptation from sin, our busy schedules, our love of money/possessions, or difficult circumstances distract us from our love for God and for others. Remember that we are called to love God and love others above every other commandment (see Matthew 22:36-40). God does not want us to selfishly love only ourselves and focus on our own problems and needs. We are called to willingly reach out to those in need in order to help them, comfort them, support them, etc., and trust that God will take care of our own problems. We need to ask God to show us ways to exhibit love to our spouses, family, friends, neighbors, and co-workers. This may be a good place to start: Ask God each morning to show you someone who needs your help, and a way that you could bless them.
“but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’ spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand— then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let no one on the housetop go down to take anything out of the house. Let no one in the field go back to get their cloak. How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath. For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again. If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened. At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘There He is!’ do not believe it. For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you ahead of time. So if anyone tells you, ‘There He is, out in the wilderness,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here He is, in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather. Immediately after the distress of those days ‘the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’ Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. And then all the peoples of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. And He will send His angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.” Matthew 24:13-31 NIV
Who are the chosen ones? According to Colossians 3:12 and 1 Peter 2:9, Christians are the chosen ones. If you have given your life to Christ, you do not have to fear the end times. It will be a joyful time for all believers, when the truth is finally revealed to all people. Many people will mourn when they realize they have chosen foolishly by not believing in Jesus (verse 30). But, if we maintain our love for God until the end, we will be rewarded with eternity in heaven.
“But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” Matthew 24:36 NIV
There have been several religious leaders in recent years that have foolishly and boldly predicted the exact date of Jesus’ return. This verse clearly states that only God knows when Jesus is coming back to Earth. In fact, none of us knows anything about what the future may hold. The book of Proverbs tells us “Don’t brag about tomorrow, since you don’t know what the day will bring” (Proverbs 27:1). The apostle James writes: “Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. Instead, you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.’ But as it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil” (James 4:14-16). We need to trust that God is in complete control and not worry about what we think is going to happen in the future, or when something is going to occur. Instead we need to keep our focus on God and our faith in the One who died for our salvation.