- the Temple will fall
- deceivers will come
- leaders with forged identities will claim to be Christ the Messiah
- wars and rumours of wars
- nation will fight against nation
- ruler will fight against ruler
- famines
- earthquakes
- thrown to the wolves and killed
- hated for carrying the name of Jesus
- everyone will be at each other's throat, hating each other
- lying preachers will deceive many
- overwhelming spread of evil causing love to grow cold
Keep your head in all this and don't panic. This is routine history. It is not the end.
- stay with God
- endure to the end
- the Gospel of the kingdom will be preached all over the world
You will be saved. Then the end will come.
Beware of preachers with impressive credentials and fancy performances - they will pull the wool over the eyes of those who ought to know better. You have been warned.
The arrival of Jesus will surprise everyone. It will fill the skies and no one will miss it. Unready people will raise a huge lament as they watch the Son of Man blazing out of heaven. The ready will be taken with the sound of a trumpet-blast.
Just as we anticipate the changing of seasons, we must also anticipate the return of Christ. Jesus is right around the corner. Like in Noah's day, people will be carrying on as usual and having a good time, then the flood hit. The ready was safe and the unready was swept away.
Stay awake! Stay alert! Always be ready! We have no idea when the Son of Man is going to show up.
Imagine being the supervisor in a kitchen. The Master depends on him to feed the workers on time each day. The Master can drop in at any time and always find him doing his job. Because of his faithfulness, the Master will soon give him more responsibility.
However, if that person only looks out for himself, the minute the Master is away, he does whatever he wants to do - abusing the other workers and throwing drunken parties for his friends. When the Master shows us unexpectedly, it won't be pretty. The Master will throw him out in the cold with the hypocrites.
Yesterday we celebrated the first arrival of Jesus. We now await His second arrival. The first time, very few people knew when He got here. The second time, everyone will know. He won't come as a baby in a manger but as a blaze in the sky.
Be a faithful servant. Even though the Master is away right now, continue to do what He has called you to do. Don't slack off. Stay diligent. Stay awake. Stay alert.