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#DailyDevotion Jesus Lets Us Know What To Expect In These Last Days

#DailyDevotion Jesus Lets Us Know What To Expect In These Last Days

Luke 215Some were saying about the temple, “It is beautifully constructed with fine stones and gifts.” 6“About these things that you see,” He said, “the time will come when not a stone will be left on another here but will be torn down.” 7“Teacher,” they asked Him, “when will this be, and how can we tell when this will happen?” 8“Be careful not to let anyone deceive you,” Jesus said. “Many will come using My name and saying, ‘I am He” and, “The time has come.’ Don’t follow them. 9“When you hear of wars and revolutions, don’t get alarmed. These things must happen first, but the end won’t come right away.” 10 Then He told them, “Nation will fight against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 11There will be great earthquakes and famines and pestilences in different places, terrible sights and great signs coming from heaven. 12“Before all these things happen, men will arrest you and persecute you, hand you over to church councils, and put you in prisons. They’ll bring you before kings and governors on account of My name. 13It will be your chance to tell them the truth. 14So make up your minds not to worry beforehand how you’ll defend yourselves. 15I’ll give you such speech and wisdom none of your enemies will be able to oppose it or talk against it. 16“Even parents, brothers, relatives, and friends will betray you and kill some of you, 17and everyone will hate you because of My name. 18But not a hair on your head will be lost. 19Endure patiently, and you’ll win your lives.”

Ask Jesus a question and you’ll get more than your bargained for. Jesus comments on the disciples admiring the temple and they ask when will the temple be torn down. Jesus eventually gets around to answering that question but first he lets them know about last days and what is going to happen to them and all believers before the Last Day and before the temple is torn down.

So verses eight through eleven are things you can expect to happened before the Last Day, Judgment Day. When we see these things happening, we shouldn’t get too stirred up. None of them in particular or even grouped together is saying, “This is it!” Rather as we see these things, false prophets, wars, earthquakes, famines, pestilences, floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, and tsunamis we should take them to heart, examine ourselves, repent of our sins and trust Jesus Christ all the more for our lives now and for the resurrection to come. The devil wants us to get all worked up about such things, but Jesus tells us these things will happen so we don’t get worked up. We shouldn’t be running around like chickens with their heads cut off or be afraid the sky is falling—it is. We should, as Christians, be the most calm about it because we believe Jesus is Lord and these are just signs of his future coming.

Now Jesus lets his disciples know that before any of that stuff even gets started, even before the fall of Jerusalem, they should get ready to suffer persecution for his name’s sake. This persecution will before Jerusalem’s fall and after the fall until the Last Day when Christ is revealed in judgment. They indeed stood before the Jewish councils, before kings and even before the emperors of Rome themselves because of their witness to Jesus Christ. They didn’t and we don’t have to worry about what we’re going to say as we stand faithful to our Lord. He will give us the Holy Spirit and the Spirit will put the words in our mouths as we testify to Jesus Christ. We may be betrayed by those closest to us, mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, and children. We have been betrayed and killed by these throughout the centuries. We need not lose heart. Jesus promises not a hair on our heads will be lost. We, like the apostles and disciples before us, are simply called to be faithful and endure all things. We may lose family, friends, worldly possessions, health, comfort, any and all things that pertain to his age, but we will win our lives for all eternity. We will receive the kingdom of God on the Last Day even as eternal life is already a present possession for us now in our hearts.

Almighty God and Father, you have forewarned us through Jesus of the things to come. Give us courage in the midst of trials and tribulations to not lose heart but to trust in the promises of Jesus when these things happen so we will win our lives in Christ. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

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Rev. Guillaume J. S. Williams, Sr.

The Reverend Guillaume Williams is the Pastor of Hope Lutheran Chapel of Osage Beach, Missouri. His pastoral ministry with Hope began in 2005 where he preaches the Christ crucified.

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