13 As Jesus was leaving the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher! What massive stones! What magnificent buildings!”
2 “Do you see all these great buildings?” replied Jesus. “Not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”
3 As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John and Andrew asked him privately, 4 “Tell us, when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are all about to be fulfilled?”
5 Jesus said to them: “Watch out that no one deceives you. 6 Many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and will deceive many. 7 When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 8 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places, and famines. These are the beginning of birth pains.
9 “You must be on your guard. You will be handed over to the local councils and flogged in the synagogues. On account of me you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them. 10 And the gospel must first be preached to all nations. 11 Whenever you are arrested and brought to trial, do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit.
12 “Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child. Children will rebel against their parents and have them put to death. 13 Everyone will hate you because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.
14 “When you see ‘the abomination that causes desolation’[a] standing where it[b] does not belong—let the reader understand—then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 15 Let no one on the housetop go down or enter the house to take anything out. 16 Let no one in the field go back to get their cloak. 17 How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! 18 Pray that this will not take place in winter, 19 because those will be days of distress unequaled from the beginning, when God created the world, until now—and never to be equaled again.
20 “If the Lord had not cut short those days, no one would survive. But for the sake of the elect, whom he has chosen, he has shortened them. 21 At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘Look, there he is!’ do not believe it. 22 For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 23 So be on your guard; I have told you everything ahead of time.
24 “But in those days, following that distress,
“‘the sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not give its light;
25 the stars will fall from the sky,
and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’[c]
26 “At that time people will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. 27 And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens.
28 “Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. 29 Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that it[d] is near, right at the door. 30 Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. 31 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
The End Times
Jesus says there will be an end to life on earth as we know it. When will this happen? No one knows, but Jesus gives some clues: He says there will be wars, earthquakes, and famines... "Brother will betray brother to death."
But that's not the worst part. He says people who believe in Him will persecuted, even flogged.
Sometimes it seems our world is on a path to destroy itself. We are living through a global pandemic that has killed over 300,000 people. We are witnesses to racial tension following the death of George Floyd at the hands of a white Minnesota police officer. We see evidence of global warming brought on by our careless regard for God's earth. And if you take a quick look at social media, it seems everybody hates everyone else.
Are these signs of the end?
Maybe. Maybe not.
But Jesus makes a very important statement amidst the gloom: "the one who stands firm to the end will be saved." In other words, those who stay loyal to Jesus and His teachings will be saved.
But how do we make sure we are with Him when this happens? What does it mean to "stand firm"?
Believe it or not, the fact you are reading this devotion right now is part of what it means to stand firm. Standing firm also means living out the faith you have been taught, doing what is right, promoting justice, loving others including those who may not be easy to love, pursuing goals that honor God, resisting what is impure, embracing what is right and good. It's re-centering your life around Jesus.
All of the things I listed might be easier said than done. But remember you're not doing this by yourself. The Bible says there is a "cloud of witnesses" (Hebrews 12:1 ) who have gone before you to encourage you and help show you the way. There are also your Young Life leaders and your pastors and other godly people in your life who want to help you and encourage you. Use them! Use us!
Finally and most importantly there is Jesus Himself. He wants to help us more than we may realize. When the world comes to an end, there will still be Jesus. He says He is the beginning and the end (Revelation 22:13) and that He will be with us always, "even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:20).
Stand firm.
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