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SCRIPTURE READINGS: MICAH 3:5-12, 1 THESSALONIANS 2:9-13, MATTHEW 24:1-4

SUNDAY REFLECTION
The theme for our reflection is “Beware of the signs of the end times” To beware means to be cautious and alert to risks or dangers. Christians are being called upon to be cautious or alert so that they can identify events or occurrences that precede the day of the Lord’s coming. We all know that before it rains thick dark clouds are formed. The formation of the clouds is a sign to warn us to take precautions against impending storms or rain. Similarly, since the world was created by God, it will surely come to an end and as it comes to an end, some signs will precede the end times. We shall reflect on the fact that before the end times, we must beware of the following signs which would happen concurrently:
1. We must beware of the great deception
2. We must be aware of the great disorder and confusion in the world.
3. We must beware of the great persecution of the faithful and apostasy of the unfaithful.
4. It takes faith and the Word of God to sustain believers through the event that precedes the end.

Firstly, one of the signs that will precede the end times for which believers must seriously be alert or be cautious is the great deception. Jesus warns us that ““Watch out that no one deceives you. ⁵ For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many.”(Matthew 24:4-5). The end times will be characterised by great deception by the agents of Satan to lure God’s people from the path of salvation. Satan will use fake prophets to deceive God’s people. Prophet Micah warns such Prophet when he said ” This is what the LORD says: “As for the prophets who lead my people astray, they proclaim ‘peace’ if they have something to eat, but prepare to wage war against anyone who refuses to feed them. (Micah 3:5) Jesus had taught us that “By their fruit, you will recognize them.” (Matthew 7:16) It is for this reason, John cautions us, “Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. ² This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, ³ but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world. (1 John 4:1-3). In our times, we still have some people who claim to be sent by God but their deeds and teachings are misleading. Christians must beware of the era of the great deception so that we are not misled or lured away from the path of salvation by fake prophets of the antichrist and the antichrist himself.

Secondly, we must beware of the great cosmic disorder and confusion which will be occasioned by wars among countries and further worsened by natural disasters. Jesus forwarns us when He said “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. ⁷ Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. ⁸ All these are the beginning of birth pains. (Matthew 24:6-8) Nations go to war when they feel oppressed and unjustly treated by other nations. Usually, these bad decisions are taken by ungodly leaders who create chaos among nations. For instance, we are witnessing instability in some African countries and war between Russia and Ukraine, Palestine and Israel where innocent lives continue to be destroyed.

Thirdly, one of the great signs that will accompany the end times is the mass persecution of God’s people and this will be done and supervised by ungodly and wicked leaders. Jesus revealed, “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me.” (Matthew 24:9) Most leaders will become wicked and careless like the leaders in the time of Micah when he said, “you leaders of Jacob, you rulers of Israel, who despise justice and distort all that is right; ¹⁰ who build Zion with bloodshed, and Jerusalem with wickedness. ¹¹ Her leaders judge for a bribe, her priests teach for a price, (Micah 3:9-11). Believers will be persecuted unjustly, their blood will be innocently shed and wickedness will abound against them. Jesus himself was a victim of persecution that was supervised and perpetuated by ungodly and wicked rulers. Jesus explained to us why we must go through persecution as part of the signs of the end time when said “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. ¹⁹ If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. ²⁰ Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. (John 15:18-20). The persecutions will separate the faithful from the apostates. An apostate is a person who denounces or abandons his or her faith. Many will abandon or denounce their faith in Jesus Christ as part of the signs of the end times. It is for this reason Jesus said “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.” (Matthew 24:10-11) Dear friend, when the time of persecution comes, will you confess your faith in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour or will you save your life and become an apostate? Jesus admonishes us that ““Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. ²⁴ For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. ²⁵ What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self? ²⁶ Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.”(Luke 9:23-26). Jesus further assures us that ““Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” (Matthew 5:11-12)

Fourthly, what must we do to endure or withstand all the unpleasurable and challenging signs of the end times? It takes faith and the Word of God through the empowerment of the Holy Spirit for believers to endure the events that will precede the end times. Jesus says, “Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, ¹³ but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. (Matthew 24:12-13). We can only stand firm in times of tribulations when we have faith in Jesus Christ. Paul teaches us that “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.” (Romans 10:17) It is for this reason Paul expressed his joy and gratitude when he learned that the Word of God continued to be productive in the life of the Thessalonians after they had received the Gospel from Him, “we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human word, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is indeed at work in you who believe. (1 Thessalonians 2:13). Beloved in the Lord, it is impossible to sustain our faith and build resistance in the face of persecution if we do not feed on the Word of God daily and live by it. Our faith will endure the signs of the end times if we have the Word of God alive or active in us. No condition is permanent, the signs of the end time will not last forever, therefore, our faith in the Lord must encourage us to keep preaching the Gospel and be faithful to the end. It is Jesus’s desire for the Gospel or the message of Salvation to reach every corner of the world before His second coming, therefore He assured us, “… this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” (Matthew 24:14) What are we Christians of the Twenty-first century doing to ensure that regardless of the signs of the end times we shall ensure that the Gospel reaches every corner of the world. Paul and others have left a great example for us to follow when he wrote, “Surely you remember, brothers and sisters, our toil and hardship; we worked night and day in order not to be a burden to anyone while we preached the gospel of God to you. (1 Thessalonians 2:9). As we prepare to endure the great signs of the end times let us not relent but “… be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.” (Luke 12:40)

In summary, we have deliberated on the theme ” Beware of the signs of the end times” In our reflection we have discovered that We must beware of the great deception, we must beware of the great disorder and confusion in the world, we must beware of the great persecution of the faithful and apostasy of the unfaithful, last but not least, It takes faith and the Word of God to sustain believers through the event that precedes the end times. May the Holy Spirit strengthen our faith to withstand the signs of the end times even as we continue to spread the Gospel to the ends of the world and await the final appearance of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.