Standing Firm in the End Times (Part 2)
Matthew 24:9-14
March 22, 2009
NOTE: THE ME/WE/GOD/YOU/WE FORMAT IS FROM ANDY STANLEY’S BOOK, "COMMUNICATING FOR A CHANGE."
Me: I mentioned last week that when faced with a situation in which I’d lost my job, and bleak prospects for providing for my family, I was kinda scared.
Despairing, really, at least for a few hours, because I felt I had let my family down.
But God spoke to my heart during those dark hours, and reminded me of His care for me at what was at that point, the lowest valley I’d ever gone through.
I’ve had other low points since then, and even a few times when I’ve been lower than that time in Florida.
Losing two children to miscarriage, coming face to face with my short-comings, of which I have many, and a lot of other things have come to my family and me.
And I think I can say that if it hadn’t been for Christ in my life, I could have easily given up and allowed myself to be tossed around by my circumstances, living completely in despair, and never acting with the help of God to overcome those things.
And then I look at what Jesus says about the things to come, and I could very easily live in fear.
Standing firm, as Jesus mentions in this passage of Scripture, wouldn’t exactly be on my “to-do list” for those times.
We: I wonder how many here have been through times when you just weren’t sure you’d make it.
You don’t need to raise your hands, but I think I’m in good company today.
Many of you have faced situations that made you wonder if you’d really make it through.
And if it weren’t for God working in you to give you that strength you so desperately needed, you’d have given up.
And then you, like me, look at these words of Jesus and you think, “God, will it ever get any better for me? How will I ever be able to meet the challenge of living for You in a world that hates you so much?”
Today, I hope to give you some stuff that will encourage you, especially in terms of standing firm for Jesus in the end times, but also for those times when life is just too much to bear.
God/You:
Matthew 24:9-14 (p. 701) –
9 "Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. 10 At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11 and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13 but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
Last week we talked about these five indications that the end times were on their way, and spent some time on each of them, but today the main thing I want to discuss is verse 13 –
“… but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.”
In the midst of all this stuff, our job is to stand firm.
That’s easy to say, and I could say, “Let’s pray” and then send you on home.
I want to talk about just how to stand firm. I’d like to share four strategies that we can implement into our lives that can help us stand firm when the hard times come.
And I’m not just talking about if the end times come in our lifetimes, but really, these are things that are applicable right now, in whatever situation you find yourself.
So while my comments will be geared specifically to the end times, keep in mind that this isn’t just “end times” stuff, it’s “all the time stuff.”
1. Be aware of what’s to come.
That was the main emphasis of last week’s message.
I love the fact that Jesus lays it out for us in Scripture.
No believer should be caught unaware of what is coming. It’s all in here. Natural disasters, famine, war, persecution, the whole bit.
No one should be able to say, “What? Persecution? What do I do? I didn’t get the memo!”
The real value of having this information is that it gives us power over fear.
Fear of the unknown is a huge deal for most people. It can paralyze us and drive us to despair.
But the Scriptures tell us what’s coming, and even how to handle it.
So we don’t have to suffer from fear of the unknown.
By the way, the Scriptures also tell of the rewards for perseverance of the joys of heaven.
It’s not all gloom and doom. All the gloom and doom is just the icky stuff we have to go through until we meet Jesus.
And I think I can safely guarantee that it’ll be worth everything we have to go through just to meet Jesus and be with Him forever.
How can I guarantee that? Because Jesus tells us so. And I think He knows what He’s talking about, don’t you?
Here’s the second strategy we can use in becoming people who will stand firm to the end:
2. Rejoice in trials.
No really. I mean it.
Listen to this from James 1:2-4:
2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4 Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
Consider it a joy when we face trials? No way!
Well, yes way, according to the Scriptures.
I think just about all of us have gone through hard times and trials, right?
Some are worse than others, and some have left some scarring on our hearts and maybe even our bodies.
A lot of trials can come and they can test our faith by making us wonder if God’s really out there and if He’s listening to us.
And the fact is, He is listening. And not only is He listening, He’s with us in our trials.
And not only is He listening and with us, He’s using these trials to build our perseverance which plays a part in our spiritual maturity.
Most of us are familiar with Romans 8:28. You know, “All things work together for good…”
Well, let’s see what it really says, along with verse 29, because I want you to notice something about how God uses trials in our lives.
28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. 29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.
Notice first of all that God is the one doing the working. It’s not the situation we’re facing or anything else. It’s God working in and through our circumstances.
And why is He doing that? To make us more like Jesus.
Really? How many of you here today are thinking, “There’s got to be a better way to make me more like Jesus than to make me suffer. What does having teenagers have to do with making more like Jesus?”
More than you might know!
Our trials, then, serve a couple purposes: to make us more like Jesus and to build our perseverance so we can stand firm when the hard times come.
So James says we should rejoice in our trials.
When we get into the habit of rejoicing in trials now, God uses that to develop our own perseverance so we can face greater trials to come, such as increased persecution.
By the way, I don’t think the Scriptures are saying we’re suppose to enjoy trials and suffering.
It says we’re to be glad for them because of what God does in our life through our suffering. Did that make sense?
Let’s look at the third strategy we can use to help us stand firm to the end:
3. Focus on Jesus.
Hebrews 12:2-3 –
2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
And here’s the part I want you to really notice, particularly as it pertains to the whole issue of persecution:
3Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
I mentioned at the end of the message last week that the key to standing firm in the end times is to cling to Christ.
This is what I meant by that. Hold on to Him. Fix your eyes on Him. Remember Him who went through it all before us and on our behalf and came through it victoriously.
You know one of the things I like most about Jesus? He knows what I’m going through. He knows what you’re going through. Because He’s been there and gone through it all.
He’s been tempted and He’s suffered unjustly, just like His people will.
And so because He knows what we’re going through because He’s been there, and because He is in us and will be with us through it all, then we can look to Him for the help and strength to persevere and stand firm.
He’s there for us as we go through it.
He will strengthen us and comfort us when we don’t think we can go on.
And He will encourage us to keep going until we see Him face to face.
But folks, remember that this isn’t just for when persecution hits.
We should always be keeping our eyes on Jesus. During the good times and the bad times.
Tomorrow when you go to work and you face an angry boss, an angry co-worker, or an angry customer, fix your eyes on Jesus.
When you get a bill in the mail that you weren’t expecting, look in the Jesus.
When your daughter brings home a guy that looks like someone you just saw on “America’s Most Wanted,” look to Jesus. Then obtain a DNA sample so you can do a background check…
When the car breaks down one more time and you don’t think you can afford to fix it, look to Jesus.
When times get tough, and you’re not even sure you can pay the bills, look to Jesus.
When you’re sick and you’re lonely, wondering if there’s anyone who cares for you, look to Jesus. You can be sure that He cares.
4. Model it for your children.
One of the things that I’ve found myself taking to heart more and more as I study the Scriptures and get a better grasp on the idea that I may be around for the end times is that I need to not only prepare myself, I also need to prepare my children.
And probably the biggest way to do that is to show them how I’m preparing and modeling it for them.
If you’re a parent, you have an awesome responsibility to model to your kids how to love Christ and how to find security in Him in your everyday living outside of this building.
If your children see you living in fear, you’re teaching them that there’s no hope – in Christ or anything else.
Is that what you want to teach them?
I say “model” and not “teach” because I think we all know that more is caught than taught, right?
You can teach about having peace in God and confidence in trials, but if they see you panicking, then all your words are just going to be found to be empty.
And that will harm them, not help them.
Let your children see your confidence in Christ in how you respond to adversity now so that if the end times come, they’ll be prepared to stand firm as well.
We: You know what I’ve noticed as I look at our nation?
We’ve become a nation where fear is rampant. People are scared of everything it seems.
They’re scared of global warming, of the ozone hole, of increasing government control, of greedy corporate executives, and all sorts of things.
I think that what our nation needs to see is people who aren’t scared because we belong to the One who’s got it under control.
They need to see people whose faith in Christ is so strong that when the hard times come, we’re confident, even when things are going against us.
Scaredy-cat Christians don’t help the situation, do they?
I think we need to model a bold confidence in God as these end times draw nearer.
Not arrogance. There’s already too much of that in the Church.
A bold confidence that God is the Master, that nothing takes Him by surprise, and that all this is pointing to the day when Jesus returns in glory.
Are you confident in this, and are you confident that with God’s help, you’ll be able to stand firm to the end?
I believe that if you are, you will find doors opening for you to help others find Christ so they can be able to stand firm as well.
Let it be said of us! Let’s pray.
