Jesus said Watch therefore, for you do not know when the master of the house is coming , in the evening, at midnight, at the crowing of the rooster, or in the morning lest, coming suddenly, he find you sleeping. And what I say to you, I say to all: Watch! Mark 13.35-37.
Jesus gave us warnings that are letting us know the great tribulation is well on it’s way. We have heard the end of the age is coming for years and years,and everyone thinks because so many have looked for it for such a long period of time that it will be a long way off. I beg to differ. All the signs are happening now all around us.
Some people say I am crazy for thinking that, the end of the age is almost on our doorstep. That the things the bible has prophesied for thousands of years are now happening. They think I am crazy for looking forward to my Messiahs arrival.That I must have a death wish, and have stopped living my life in anticipation of the Lord coming. But I am here to tell you I am alive,and excited,and am working constantly for the kingdom of the Lord. I am loving life, but as the Lord said, do not love your life so much or you will lose it.
I do not love my life so much as to work towards keeping it. I would willingly give up life on earth for a place alongside my savior,as a joint heir with Him for the kingdom of God. I am even now as I write this, living a real honest to goodness life. I am even now working to build the kingdom of God up. Every moment of every day I am working towards filling the eternal kingdom. How successful I am, I will not know until we have all reached judgment.
I am not working on earth for any treasures here. My treasure I know without a doubt, rests in the hands of the Lord,and in His home, and kingdom. I am working to amass crowns, that I may lay at the feet of my Lord. What will I need crowns for there? Not a thing I just want as many as possible to leave them at the feet of the one who deserves them all, Jesus! So though I do not have a job here on earth, at least according to some,I am working every day!!As well as working a real job here on earth, and that is taking care of my grand babies. Don’t think that is a real job? Hah I laugh at that it is a very demanding job, and I would not trade it for anything.
Now that I have that all out of my system, let’s get on with this particular article.
Matthew 24:3 Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” Jesus goes on from here to tell them of the signs of his second coming.4 And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. So what does that mean, many will come in my name? Well it means that false preachers and teachers will be plenty through out the times we are living in now. Sadly this is happening now a days,and there is plenty all around who are all too willing to teach doctrines of demons.
6 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. This here says the end is not yet. Meaning there is still so much more that must happen before the end of the age. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.We see many countries coming against their own country men. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. We can see and have seen for many years famines across the earth,but it will be 1/4 of the world who dies from famine, in the tribulation. We see here that there will be earthquakes in various places.We see even now some places that have never had this particular problem before, are experiencing earthquakes. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows. We see this is merely the start to our major problems. Not the end times as of these verses,but the next ones are during the last 7 year period of this age.
9 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. What exactly does it mean to be delivered up to tribulation? Sadly it means persecution for loving Jesus,and living in God’s laws and statutes. 10 And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. 11 Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. 12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.
The other day on my face book page I said, “being offended all the time, makes satan have a fertile garden to grow deceit into”. Here it says many will be offended,when we are offended,(and let’s face it we all get offended,and some just harp on that offense for a long while) Satan finds a very willing participant to imagine vengeance and such things. Satan grows our offenses into defensive and sometimes aggressive behaviors. He is a master at what he does, and that is lie to us on a constant basis. Using our own imaginations against us. Offenses can so easily be turned into hatred,with the help of satan. So do not dwell on offenses. Let them go, because seriously, most people did not mean to offend you in the first place.
See here on verse 11 Jesus warns again of false teachers and preachers. It is so important to see this and know it first hand,so you will not be deceived. How can you know who is a false teacher or preacher you ask? Well let me tell you, by knowing your word!! Meaning knowing your bible. You have got to get to know your bible, while there is still time. The bible itself warns us that people in the end times are going to be starving for the word of the Lord. I can only personally assume that means the word of the Lord is going to be outlawed, in the coming times. That right there is enough to scare me half to death. I depend on the word so very much to help me through all of my troubles and toils, and to avoid the snares put in my way.
Lawlessness is really growing all around us. Verse 12 says lawlessness will abound, and the love of many will grow cold because of that lawlessness. How can that be? Because when someone does something horrific, to someone we love or someone we know,or on a constant basis all around us, it tends to make us jaded. Jaded = worn out or wearied, as by overwork or overuse. When we become jaded then we become complacent, or just down right get nasty and hateful ourselves. In Isaiah chapter 5, it says good will be bad and bad will be good in those times. Already we begin to see that bad is good and good is bad.
For instance,foster parenting. Many places in the world will now, not allow Christians,(even those who have been foster parenting for years) to foster anymore. Why you ask? Because they are teaching the children morals,and not teaching about homosexuality. They say this is damaging children all across the world, and that children must be taught about homosexuality, so they wont become homophobes. This is so abhorrent to many Christians,and they feel shunned and persecuted, and feel as though they have prejudices against them. Which truly it is a prejudice.
The crazy part of all that is, if your Muslim and want to foster parent,(which most do not foster others children,and or adopt, but if they wanted to do so they can do it.) Even though they would have the right under their religion and sharia law, to kill the children if they became, or showed homosexual tendencies. Yeah that’s just lovely now isn’t it? I get my news from conservative world news. I do not bother with secular media.
verses 13 and 14 I wont say much on. Only that we must stay loving and kind and not adhere to the hatred and the coldness of the world. Remember we are not of this world any longer,but of the kingdom of God. And the word being preached to the whole world,well if that mission has not been completed yet,it is very near completion. I mean with technology what it is,it would be hard not to have heard of the Lord,and His saving grace.
15 “Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place” (whoever reads, let him understand), 16 “then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 17 Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house. 18 And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes. 19 But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! 20 And pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath. 21 For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. 22 And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened.
What exactly is the abomination that causes desolation? Who really knows? I do not know for sure what that is. I know it will take place in some sort of rebuilt temple or shrine in Jerusalem, in the coming times. We have no idea of how large this temple will be. We do know that there will be one built so that Jews can again make sacrifices to the Lord. But in the middle of this 7 year treaty made with Israel,or we think it is a 7 year treaty. In the book of Daniel it is called the 70th week. We know in other places in the bible when it talks of a week that is actually 7 years it speaks of. In revelation it speaks of 42 weeks which is actually 3.5 years,that the a/c will stop the sacrifices made to God and will call himself God. He will go back on his treaty half way through the period of time he promised Israel.
So much to say,so little want of losing your attention. So I will try in this paragraph to say all I can about verses 16-22. Those who are to flee to the mountain I do believe are some of the chosen ones whom God is going to hide away in the hidden place, prepared just for them. The word tells us God will preserve a tenth of the chosen ones to repopulate the earth in the millennial kingdom. Since we who get taken out of the earth in the so called rapture, will be spiritual beings rather than human beings, and totally immortal, we would not be able to make babies. In the thousand year reign of Christ on the earth in the millennial kingdom,the word tells us there will be so many people born, they will be more than the sands of the seas. Verses 17 and 18 go on to explain there will be no time to get anything just go run for your life and get to the secret place. Once the abomination takes place in the temple.
Well I failed that!! Laughing at myself. This next verse 19 makes me want to be very fearful for babies in those days. I pray that I have no grand or great grand babies who are suckling in those days. Nor anyone who is pregnant in those days either. Jesus says woe to those who are pregnant and or suckling babies in those days. Why? I ask this all the time and have no answer,I guess we are just not to know that answer for now. But that makes for a very nerve wracking thing. Yes I said it ok!! I am fearful of what exactly that means. I just cannot think of babies suffering horribly. It makes me grieve in my spirit. In turn if a mothers child is suffering you know she will be suffering along with the child.
Verses 20,21,and 22 simply put, pray your flight is not in winter. I can only guess that those is speaks of, will be running for their lives, and will have to not even think about getting anything to keep warm with, just running. Greater tribulation than has already occurred at that time means the mark of the beast or antichrists number being absolutely mandatory,or you will get your head cut off,and so much worse than that will be done to you. Personally if I am still alive at that time,let them do their worst. I am Christs own and I will not give up that status for any torture or person on this earth. The time being shortened for the elects sake, Christs own, praise His Glorious name and shout Hallelujah!!!
23 “Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There!’ do not believe it. 24 For false Christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 25 See, I have told you beforehand. 26 “Therefore if they say to you, ‘Look, He is in the desert!’ do not go out; or ‘Look, He is in the inner rooms!’ do not believe it. 27 For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 28 For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together.
Again Christ is warning us to not pay attention to the false teachers and preachers who say look here He is or there He is, (Christ) it is not true. We will all (the whole world) See Christs return to first gather His elect to Him that where He is we will be forever more. Just like Lightning is seen in the sky flashing so will we see Christ. On the great and mighty day of the Lord the eagles and the vultures, all the birds of prey, will be gathered together for the feast of flesh the Lord is preparing for them, at the battle of Armageddon. This particular verse jumps ahead of the next verses. It jumps ahead of the few verses before it too.
29 “Immediately (after the tribulation of those days)( I put that in parentheses because it says after those days of tribulation. Not before as so many many people think of the rapture. These are Jesus words none others, but the Lords.) the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
This is Christ coming for His church. Because while the word tells us always,that we will suffer many and varied tribulations,it also tells us we are not due the wrath of God. The tribulation is the nations anger directed towards God, Christ,and his children, God’s wrath is like nothing before it. He will mix it up with all his anger and indignation at those who persecute even to death, His own. His chosen ones,those who have truly and completely accepted Christ as their savior. He is going to give them more hell than anyone can bear.
And then the ones who have not died from all of the anger God pours out undiluted,Christ comes and fillets them with just the word that pours forth out of His mouth like a double edged sword. We who are His own will be seated on white horses cheering on, our wonderful Savior. Our King of Kings. He will need no help, we are simply there to watch our persecutors get what we have cried out for for centuries,Vengeance. But it is not our duty to reep the vengeance,it is the Job of God,through Christ.
There is tons more I could say right now,but this is a very long article already. So I will end it for now. We will revisit Matthew chapter 24 later on in the study. I seriously could write a very long and winded book, on chapter 24 of Matthew, and give you all the other verses that show you the same picture as these particular verses portray. As we go along I will share more insights with you, as I will be writing from those very books that have the verses that show you this same exact scenario.
God Bless you all, and I really hope you enjoy what I write each week, or every other week as time permits.
Love in Christ Jesus, Tammy