When you see signs of my return, do not be terrified, but take heart.
“When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for such things must happen first, but it will not immediately be the end.” Then he said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues from place to place; and awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky.” Luke 21:9-11
“There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on earth nations will be in dismay, perplexed by the roaring of the sea and the waves. People will die of fright in anticipation of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. But when these signs begin to happen, stand erect and raise your heads because your redemption is at hand.” Luke 21:25-31
You will hear of wars and reports of wars; see that you are not alarmed, for these things must happen, but it will not yet be the end. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be famines and earthquakes from place to place. All these are the beginning of the labor pains. Then they will hand you over to persecution, and they will kill you. You will be hated by all nations because of my name. And then many will be led into sin; they will betray and hate one another. Many false prophets will arise and deceive many and because of the increase of evildoing, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who perseveres to the end will be saved. Matthew 24:6-13
When you hear of wars and reports of wars do not be alarmed; such things must happen, but it will not yet be the end. Nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes from place to place and there will be famines. These are the beginnings of the labor pains. Mark 13:7-8
There is a saying, “It is darkest just before the dawn.” Jesus was saying something like that in these passages. There will be tragedies and hard times before Jesus’ triumphant return. We are not to grieve or fear these hardships as those who have no hope. We are to look beyond them to our promised reward and fellowship with our loving Lord for all eternity. Our hope gives us strength. We are not to respond out of fear but out of faith and so remain faithful to the end.
