Go! And Be Ready: Living in the Last Days with Faith and Urgency
INTRODUCTION: A WAKE-UP CALL FOR OUR TIMES
We are not living in ordinary days.
The world feels heavy with uncertainty, like the calm before a storm. Many are asking, “Are we living in the last days?”
The Bible answers with clarity: Yes.
The last days began with the first coming of Jesus Christ and continue until His return.
That means we are living in the last days—the time between His resurrection and His return.
So the question is not simply “Are we in the last days?” but “Are you ready?”
Today, I want to take you deep into Scripture so that we do not merely observe the signs but prepare our hearts. I want to invite you to open your eyes, open your Bibles, and open your lives to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.
Let us begin by reading our anchor passage for today.
2 Timothy 3:1–5 (NLT): “You should know this, Timothy, that in the last days there will be very difficult times. For people will love only themselves and their money. They will be boastful and proud, scoffing at God, disobedient to their parents, and ungrateful. They will consider nothing sacred. They will be unloving and unforgiving; they will slander others and have no self-control. They will be cruel and hate what is good. They will betray their friends, be reckless, be puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God. They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly. Stay away from people like that!”
1. DIFFICULT TIMES AND DANGEROUS HEARTS
Paul is warning Timothy, his spiritual son in the faith, about the spiritual climate of the eschatais hemerais—Greek for “last days.” The phrase refers not just to the final moments before Christ returns, but to the entire age of the Church.
We see this echoed in Acts 2:17, where Peter quotes Joel:
Acts 2:17 (NLT): “‘‘In the last days,’ God says, ‘I will pour out my Spirit upon all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions, and your old men will dream dreams.”
That outpouring began at Pentecost—so the last days are now.
Paul doesn’t merely warn about external circumstances, but about the internal condition of the human heart. This is not a list of crimes—it is a mirror for society.
The Greek word “philautos” means “lovers of self.” That’s where the danger begins—self-love displaces God-love.
When the throne of our hearts is occupied by ego, there’s no room left for the King of Kings.
Max Lucado wrote, “God never said that the journey would be easy, but He did say that the arrival would be worthwhile.”
That quote reminds us that though the last days are marked by chaos, we are moving toward glory. Are you focused on the chaos—or the coming King?
2. SIGNS OF THE TIMES: A WORLD GONE AWRY
Paul gives us 19 traits of people in the last days—each a symptom of a culture that has abandoned God.
Let’s examine three in particular:
A. “They will love pleasure rather than God”
This is hedonism—the elevation of feeling above faith.
Luke 17:26–30 (NLT): “When the Son of Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah’s day. In those days, the people enjoyed banquets and parties and weddings right up to the time Noah entered his boat and the flood came and destroyed them all.
“And the world will be as it was in the days of Lot. People went about their daily business—eating and drinking, buying and selling, farming and building— until the morning Lot left Sodom. Then fire and burning sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all. Yes, it will be ‘business as usual’ right up to the day when the Son of Man is revealed.”
Jesus compares the last days to Noah’s and Lot’s times—days of moral apathy, indulgence, and blindness to coming judgment. People were too busy having fun to see the flood or fire coming.
John Piper wrote, “The greatest enemy of hunger for God is not poison but apple pie. It is not the banquet of the wicked that dulls our appetite for heaven, but endless nibbling at the table of the world.”
In the last days, we can get so comfortable in culture that we forget eternity.
Are you feasting on this world—or preparing for the wedding supper of the Lamb?
B. “They will act religious, but they will reject the power…”
Religion without transformation is hollow.
The Greek “morphosis eusebeias” means “an outward form of godliness.”
Matthew 7:21–23 (NLT): “Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. On judgment day many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’ But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’
There is a difference between knowing about Jesus and knowing Jesus.
You can sing songs, attend services, even carry a Bible—and still be spiritually lost.
R.T. Kendall wrote, “The greatest deception is to think you are born again when you are not.”
Let that quote sober your heart.
Does Jesus know you? Not just do you know about Him—but does He live in you?
3. THE RETURN OF JESUS: A CERTAIN HOPE
The last days are not just about growing darkness—they’re about coming light. Jesus will return. That is the Christian hope.
Matthew 24:42–44 (NLT): “So you, too, must keep watch! For you don’t know what day your Lord is coming. Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when a burglar was coming, he would keep watch and not permit his house to be broken into. You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.
The Greek word “gregoreo” means “to be watchful, awake, alert.”
Christians are not meant to sleep through the signs—we are called to wake up and live ready.
Charles Stanley once said, “Our heavenly Father understands our disappointment, suffering, pain, fear, and doubt. He is always there to encourage our hearts and help us understand that He’s sufficient for all of our needs.”
We don’t live in fear of the end. We live in faith in the One who is the Beginning and the End.
4. THE WEDDING GARMENT
Jesus told a parable in Matthew 22 about a wedding feast. Many were invited, but one guest came without a wedding garment and was cast out.
The wedding garment represents the righteousness of Christ. It is not enough to show up—we must be clothed in Christ.
Imagine being invited to the wedding of a King, but showing up in filthy clothes. That’s what it’s like to come before God in your own goodness. We need the covering of Jesus.
Are you wearing the righteousness of Christ—or the rags of religion?
5. THE GOSPEL: THE GOOD NEWS FOR THE LAST DAYS
In the face of judgment and wrath, here is the Good News:
1 Corinthians 15:3–4 (NLT): “I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. He was buried, and He was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said.”
Jesus took your place.
He bore your sin.
He faced your judgment.
And He rose again to give you life.
The cross is not a decoration—it is the divine transaction where your guilt was traded for His grace.
The resurrection is not a myth—it is the miracle that proves death is defeated.
6. CALL TO ACTION: GET READY—AND STAY READY
Romans 13:11–12 (NLT): “This is all the more urgent, for you know how late it is; time is running out. Wake up, for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is almost gone; the day of salvation will soon be here. So remove your dark deeds like dirty clothes, and put on the shining armor of right living.”
Now is the time to turn to Jesus.
Don’t delay.
Don’t gamble with eternity.
Repent of your sin.
Put your trust in Christ.
Surrender your life to Him.
Tim Keller wrote, “If Jesus rose from the dead, then you have to accept all that He said; if He didn’t rise from the dead, then why worry about any of what He said?”
Jesus is risen. Jesus is returning. Are you ready?
THE LIFEBOAT IS HERE
Imagine a ship sinking. The lifeboat arrives. Some say, “I’m not ready yet. I want to finish my dinner first.” Others say, “I don’t believe the ship is sinking.”
But the wise climb into the lifeboat, even if they don’t have all the answers—because they know it’s their only hope.
Jesus is your only hope. Step into His grace. Be saved.
INVITATION TO SALVATION:
Today, I invite you:
Confess your sin.
Believe in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead.
Confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord.
Be born again. Be made new. Be ready.
Let’s pray:
“Lord Jesus, I admit I am a sinner. I need Your mercy. I believe You died for me and rose again. I confess You as my Saviour and my Lord. Help me to live for You, from this day on. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.”
IN CONCLUSION & BENEDICTION:
Beloved, we are living in the last days. But we are not afraid—we are ready. Jesus is coming soon. Let us live each moment as a people prepared, a people proclaiming, a people persevering.
Jude 1:24–25 (NLT): Now all glory to God, who is able to keep you from falling away and will bring you with great joy into His glorious presence without a single fault. All glory to Him who alone is God, our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord. All glory, majesty, power, and authority are his before all time, and in the present, and beyond all time! Amen.
May you be watchful, wise, and willing.
Go! And be ready. Jesus is coming.
