Warning
The end comes without warning.
“But when you see the desolating sacrilege set up where it ought not to be (let the reader understand), then those in Judea must flee to the mountains; the one on the housetop must not go down or enter the house to take anything away; the one in the field must not turn back to get a coat. Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing infants in those days! Pray that it may not be in winter. For in those days there will be suffering, such as has not been from the beginning of the creation that God created until now, no, and never will be. And if the Lord had not cut short those days, no one would be saved; but for the sake of the elect, whom he chose, he has cut short those days. And if anyone says to you at that time, ‘Look! Here is the Messiah!’ or ‘Look! There he is!’ do not believe it. False messiahs and false prophets will appear and produce signs and omens, to lead astray, if possible, the elect. But be alert; I have already told you everything. - Mark 13:14-27
It was not very encouraging to hear what Jesus had to say.
There will be great suffering in the days to come, and all will be taken by surprise.
Who wants to hear that? Don't we all want to believe life gets better, not worse?
Jesus is giving us a warning, and that actually may be something positive, though it doesn't sound like it at all.
If we are prepared for the worst to come, we will do our best to be true and faithful every day.
We tend to take things for granted, don't we? Life just goes on, day after day. We make our plans and don't give a thought to the end time.
In Jesus' day, his disciples thought it was coming any day, and he prepared them for it. But after all this time, who gives it a thought?
Is it better to think nothing bad will happen today, or to think this could be the last day I live on this earth?
Maybe a little reminder each morning wouldn't be so bad. Then we might let the minor annoyances go, and treat each other a little better.
After all, what difference does it make, if today is our last chance to enjoy life?
More to come...