Pray: 

Jesus, You have overcome death and in You, the faithful will overcome. Let me be found among those who stand true.

Read: 

Matthew 24:26-35

Reflect: 

Do you anticipate Jesus' return?

Jesus said some difficult things in his teachings. He talked about hell; he criticized the religious; he prophesied dark days to come. But in every case, his warnings also contained a lining of hope. Hell can be avoided; the hypocrite can be redeemed; after things get worse, they will get better, at least for God's people.

Having spoken at length with his disciples about the difficulties ahead, Jesus now describes an even more earth-shattering event (29). He does this by using prophetic imagery from Isaiah (Isa. 13:10, 34:4) that would have resonated with his Jewish audience and which sounds to us like the stuff of science fiction. Here's what the future holds: just as the darkness has risen to its peak, the light of God will break through, this time permanently.

This is Jesus' promise to his "generation" (34), including us today: He will have the victory. He wins. While verse 35 reminds us that earth and even heaven have an expiration date, Jesus' promise to us is that our place is with him in eternity, in a new heaven and a new earth (Rev. 21:1).

Apply: 

Consider how you spend your time. Will you be glad of your choices when the events described here are transpiring?

Pray: 

Lord, make me ever more aware of the hope that will be revealed in Your coming.