We're approaching the end of the Church Year, and some think also the end of the world.  The End Times is a difficult topic, because of the many unknowns and misleading information about it.  Christian writers have recently painted realistic but fictional pictures, and Christian readers are believing that fiction to be fact.  Now more than ever, we must take great care to rely on what God's Word says, not human authors.  We must view this topic through God's eyes, not our own.  We must stand firm on the truth.

          Danish philosopher, Soren Kierkegaard, tells a parable of a theater where a variety show is proceeding.  Each show is more fantastic than the last, and each one is applauded by the audience.  Suddenly the manager comes forward.  He apologizes for the interruption, but says the theater is on fire, and he begs his patrons to leave in an orderly fashion.  The audience thinks this is the most amusing act of the evening, and cheers thunderously.  The manager implores them to leave the burning building, and he is again applauded vigorously.  Finally, he can do no more and himself runs out of the building.  The fire races through the whole building and the fun-loving audience is burned up with it.  "And so," concludes Kierkegaard, "will our age go down in fiery destruction to the applause of a crowded house of cheering spectators."  For they couldn't separate fiction from fact.

          In Matthew 24, our Lord and His disciples were taking a walk together through Jerusalem.  It was a beautiful city with magnificent buildings, plazas and many fine streets.  Those Galilean country boys were rightfully impressed.  Herod's Master Facilities Plan had made Jerusalem the jewel of the eastern Mediterranean, and if we'd been there, we'd have been just as amazed as they were.  Jerusalem was and still is a breathtaking city.

          But in the midst of their city tour, Jesus said sounds an alarm:  "Not one stone here will be left...every one will be thrown down."  The disciples caught some of the impact of His words, because when they reached the Mt. of Olives, overlooking the city about a mile to the east, they asked, "When will this happen, and what will be the sign of the end of the age?"  Jesus then spoke the most alarming monologue of His ministry.  Among the many things He said would happen were these:  "Deceivers will come...there will be wars and rumors of wars...famines, floods and earthquakes will appear...persecution and death and hatred will come to believers ...many will fall away and betray each other...false prophets and deceivers will come... wickedness will increase and love will grow cold...there will be distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now...false messiahs will appear and deceive even the elect...the sun and moon will be darkened and stars fall from the sky...the end will come like lightning and at an hour you do not expect."

          What a picture!  Not only was it alarming for them, it's chilling for us today, because it sounds as if Jesus is talking about today.  Deceivers are everywhere.  Serious wars do continue.  Nations are against nations.  False prophets are blowing themselves up and killing many.  Floods and famines and hurricanes and earthquakes shake the nations of the world.  Hatred is growing towards Christians, and even between Christians.  And the truth is being trashed.  Christianity is facing its greatest challenge since the heresies of First Century, and most Christians don't care.  Entire nations are looking truth squarely in the face -- and denying it!

          Do you know what the most common name in the world is today?  It's not Smith or Jones or Michael or Sarah.  It's Mohammed.  Millions of the world are named after Christianity's greatest enemy.  Satan's right hand man is Allah.  Millions of Muslims want Christ and His followers erased from the earth.  Allah is the modern anti-Christ, the one against Christ at all costs.  It might give you chills just to hear it: "Allah is the anti-Christ."  Some will be offended at my saying this.  But it doesn't erase the fact that all over the world, followers of Mohammed are calling for the destruction of Christians.  And they are doing it in horrific ways.

          So what should we do?  Take up arms?  Run and hide?  Attend a sensitivity seminar?  Kill the enemy with kindness?  Hear what Jesus says:  "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.  Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.  There will be famines and earthquakes in various places.  All these are [only] the beginning of birth pains." (Matthew 24:6-8)  Jesus is telling us, "Hang in there!  It all must happen before the end comes.  Don't give in to evil!  Don't give up the faith!"  "He who stands firm to the end will be saved."

          Sometimes life is hard, sometimes not, but in our relationship with God, it's always true, "He who endures to the end will be saved."

          As they walked around Jerusalem, Jesus told His followers, "See, I have told you this ahead of time - be warned!"  He wanted them to know the coming days would be hard.  Life would require faith and faithfulness.  Jesus is telling us the same.  Things will get worse, harder to understand, harder to handle.  We'll get angry because we can't understand life or control it.  So hang in there with the Lord!  "He who stands firm to the end will be saved."

          Jesus also said,  "Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away."  Jesus' words are truth.  There is a truth of God that overrides everything, greater than all we can come up with.  It's the truth that will set us free. (John 8:32)   Jesus is that Truth, and He is God talking.  Listen to what the Bible has to say about Him.

          Jesus gave up His life on Calvary's cross so that people might live with God forever.  We must trust in Him, not in ourselves.  Human abilities are good, but they won't get us to heaven.  Jesus has paved the way for us.  His death, His rising again, His forgiveness - that's what we need.  He gives us heaven, so hang in there, trust in Jesus, and heaven will be ours.

          Wilma had a poor start in life.  Polio made her left leg crooked so she wore leg braces for years.  At age 12 she tried out for a girls basketball team, but failed, so she practiced every day and the next year made the team.  A college track coach talked her into training as a runner, and by age 14 she had outrun some of the fastest sprinters in the U.S.  In 1956 Wilma made the Olympic team, but did poorly.  She worked harder for the 1960 Rome Olympics--and there Wilma Rudolph won 3 gold medals, the most a woman had ever won.  All because she stuck with it.

          But we need to hang in there together.  Now is not the time to go it on our own.  During the American Revolution, Benjamin Franklin spoke of working together, when he said, "We must all hang together, or we will certainly all hang separately."  Now is not the time for separation, but for unity.  Now is the time to worship together, to serve God together, to share our faith together, and to work together in Christian love.

          You and I need not fear what is happening - God will take care of it.  We just need to hang in there together.  The Greeks in their early Olympics had a unique race, the "Torch Race."  The winner was not the runner who finished first, but the runner who finished first with his torch still lit.  In our race of life we must keep our torches lit.  Don't give up the faith and letting it show.  Hang in there!  Whoever stands firm to the end will be saved.

          There was once a man who failed in business at age 22.  He ran for public office and was defeated at age 23.  He failed in business again at age 24.  He won an election at age 25, but his sweetheart died, so he had a nervous breakdown at age 27.  He ran for the State and US government but was defeated both times.  He was finally elected to Congress at age 37, but lost re-election two years later.  He was defeated for the Senate at age 46, defeated for Vice President at age 47 and defeated for Senate again at age 49.  But then a miracle happened.  After all those defeats, he was elected president of the United States at age 51.  You see, Abraham Lincoln never gave up.  Although felled by an assassin five years later, he had kept the United States together during the Civil War.  And he rid our country of slavery.  God had something special in mind for Lincoln and He has something special in mind for us.

          Last Friday was Veterans Day and Armistice Day.  In 1919, on the 11th day of the 11th month at the 11th hour, the First World War ended and simultaneously soldiers were buried in tombs of the unknown in America, England and France.  The veterans of WWI have all died, and veterans of WWII, Korea and Viet Nam are dying by the hundreds each day.  Let us ever give God thanks for all who have served our nation that we might be a free people.  No other nation has given the lives of its sons and daughters to give freedom to the people of other nations.  So let us honor all our soldiers, especially those currently serving from Epiphany:  PFC Jason Timms, LCpl Brandon Leavitt, Maj. Don Beplay, Maj. Eric Monteith.  And let us always honor the most important person of all, Jesus Christ, who said, "He who stands firm to the end will be saved."  Amen

Copyright © 2005 by Pastor Bob Tasler.  All rights reserved.