Mark 13:14-23 “When you see ‘the abomination that causes desolation’ standing where it does not belong — let the reader understand — then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountain. Let no one on the roof of his house go down or enter the house to take anything out. Let no one in the field go back to get his cloak. How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! Pray that this will not take place in winter, because those will be days of distress unequaled from the beginning, when God created the world, until now — and never to be equaled again. 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. At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or, ‘Look, there he is!’ do not believe it. For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and miracles to deceive the elect — if that were possible. So be on your guard; I have told you everything ahead of time."
There are many theories about the above passage. Some believe the fulfillment of Daniel's prophecy, that Jesus was referring to at this time, had already begun in 167 BC when a representative of Antiochus IV, Epiphanes, defiled the temple by sacrificing a pig. This defilement opened the door to future calamitous events that Jesus is referring to in his teaching. Other people believe that Jesus is referring to the events that took place in 70 AD when the Roman Empire destroyed Jerusalem and tore down the temple. At that time, the Christians did flee in haste into the desert. Also, the Jewish people were scattered throughout the world following those events. Many in our day believe that Jesus' words refer to the very last days before the end of time. At this time, Jerusalem will once again be surrounded by hostile countries, determined to wipe the Jewish nation off the face of the earth. But God will intervene to save his chosen people of Abraham's lineage. Daniel's prophecies and the book of Revelation are used to support this supposition. Regardless of one's belief about Jesus' words, we know that in the above passage, He is describing trying times, times when one needs a savior, a safe harbor. We also know concerning what Jesus said about the last times and his return, No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. (Matthew 24:36)
As believers, we have hope in the darkest nights. This hope comes through faith in Jesus Christ. As Paul told the church, May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Romans 15:13) Some people fear the end; but when the end comes, Jesus will appear. As a child, Dad often wondered why mature Christians, who supposedly wanted to see Jesus, were so afraid of the end times. In fact, many seemed to infer in their teachings that we should be better people so that the end times would not come on us so quickly. After the preaching, many people would be at the altars rededicating their lives so the end times would be postponed, keeping Jesus from arriving so soon. Yes, we all should be rededicating our lives to Jesus daily, and all of us should not be looking forward to calamity, but we need to understand that Jesus is even greater than death. There should be no weeping but rejoicing if the return of our Lord is near. Paul told Titus to live a righteous and godly life, Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ. (Titus 2:13 KJV)
This morning Dad was singing some words as he moved through the house, emptying wastebaskets into a trash bag. He was singing the words from this breakfast: "In the darkest of nights there will be hope." These words are not from any song he knows, but the Spirit was singing to him through his consciousness and his lips. How true and blessed those words are. Even if heaven and earth were obliterated today, there would be hope in Christ our Lord. God's word extends beyond what we see and know. His word is eternal, lasting beyond the sun and the stars, the galaxies, and more than we can imagine. God is and was and is to come. Yes, heaven and earth will pass away but his words will never pass away. What is the hope of a Christian, who is but a biological entity, existing for a moment in time as a wisp of fog on one of a million mornings? What is the hope of a saint who labors out his last breath this day, never to fill his lungs again with the air of this earth? That saint will turn back to the dust of this earth, but his spirit will rise, ever to be with the Lord, known as his child, joint heir with Christ himself, forever in the bosom of the Lord.
When we think of our impermanence and our feeble estate, we might say with the psalmist, What is man, that thou art mindful of him? (Psalm 8:4 KJV) Yet because of God's great love for us and Jesus' death on the cross, our hope rests in Christ alone, our cornerstone. We do not fear the coming of the Lord because we know the Word: For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words. (1 Thessalonians 4:16-18) Until the coming of the Lord, we who are alive in him shall never face death. Yes, we all proceed through the shadow of death, biological extinction. But our lives are hid with CHRIST in GOD. (Colossians 3:3) Jesus ascended; we shall ascend with the same power that was resident in him: the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost has taken up residence in every believer. In us abides the power to resurrect our lives. Christ cleansed us; the Spirit now abides in that cleansed temple. The Spirit's power in us is our hope of Glory, of eternal life. That is why it is so dangerous to talk against the work of the Spirit. The Spirit is the eternal life in each of us. He is not only the Comforter, He is the power of God to save our lives eternally, to deliver us into the presence of God, our Abba Father. Without him, we are earth-bound. The message of the last days should terrify us if we have no relationship with Christ, for outside of him, we have no eternal dwelling place with God. We are then alone in existence, without hope of eternal life. But we who are IN CHRIST, remember what the Spirit is singing this morning to each of us: "In the darkest of nights there will be hope." That hope always resides exclusively IN CHRIST.
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