Our Daily Scripture – 3/22/25 (Saturday)

SCRIPTURE:  MATTHEW 24

SIGNS OF THE END OF THE AGE (vs.1-35)

  1.  Watch out that no one deceives you. (v. 4)
  2.  Many will come in my name claiming, “I am the Christ” and will deceive many. (v. 5)
  3.  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. (v. 6)
  4.  Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.  (v. 7a)
  5.  There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. (v. 7b)
  6.  You will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death and you will be hated by all nations because of me. (v. 9)
  7.  Many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other. (v. 10)
  8.  Many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. (v. 11)
  9.  Due to the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold. (v. 12)
  10.  He who stands firm to the end will be saved. (v. 13)
  11.  The gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations and then the end will come. (v. 14)
  12.  False Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect. (v. 24)
  13.  The coming of the Son of Man will be like lightning that comes from the east and visible in the west.  (v. 27)
  14.  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. (v. 29)
  15.  The sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn.  They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory. (v. 30)
  16.  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. (v. 31)
  17.  As soon as the twigs of the fig tree get tender and its leaves come out, you know that it is near, right at the door. (v. 32-33)
  18.  This generation will certainly see all these things that will happen. (v. 34)
  19.  Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away. (v. 35)

 ADVICES OF JESUS:

  1.  Let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. (v. 16)
  2.  Let no one on the roof of his house go down to take anything out of the house. (v. 17)
  3.  Let no one in the field go back to get his cloak. (v. 18)
  4.  Those days will be dreadful for the pregnant women and nursing mother. (v. 19)
  5.  Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath. (v. 20)
  6.  If anyone says to you, “Look, here is the Christ!”, or, ‘There he is’, do not believe it. (v. 23)
  7.  If anyone tells you, ‘There he is, out in the desert,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here he is, in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. (v. 26)

THE DAY AND HOUR UNKNOWN (vs. 36-51)

No one knows about what day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son but only the Father.  The coming of the Son of Man will be like the days of Noah when people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage until Noah entered the ark and the flood occurred.  This is how it will be at the coming of the Son of man.  Two men will be in the field, one will be taken and the other left.  Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left. (vs,. 36-41)

Therefore, keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come.  For example:  If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let the house be broken into.  So you must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him. (vs. 42-44)

A faithful and wise servant will give food at the proper time.  When the master finds him doing so, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.  But if a wicked servant beat his fellow servants and starts to eat and drink with drunkards when his master is away, and his master comes on a day he does not expect, the master will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. (vs. 45-51)

THOUGHTS:   

WARNINGS THAT THE LORD GAVE:

  1.  Do not be deceived  (v. 4, 11) – Do not be deceived by false prophets, grand claims and promises.  Let the Word of God teach you and the Holy Spirit enlighten you so that you will not go astray.
  2.  Do not be alarmed (v. 6) – There will be wars among nations and kingdoms.  There will be famines and earthquakes in many places.  All these are just the beginnings of birth pains.  But God is still on the throne.
  3.  Do not be defeated (v. 13) – Stand firm until the end.  Continue to live for Christ and you will be saved.
  4.  Do not be doubtful (v. 34-35) – Believe in the eternal word of God.  He said: “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.”
  5.  Do not be distracted (v. 42) – Keep watch and stay alert because Christ may come at any time.  Be ready to meet Him at any hour.