Watch!

Below is the daily Bible reading I am doing for the West Side Church. Please feel free to follow along.

Today’s reading (Mark 13) is one of those highly debated subjects in Scripture. There are many ideas out there as to what Jesus is talking about. Some believe it shows how thing are going to take place when the time is ready for Jesus to return and call his children home. Other believe that this is talking about the beginning of the tribulation. Still other believe this has already happened in the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in A.D. 70. I tend to stand on the last statement that Jesus is talking about the destruction of the temple and of Jerusalem.

Since we were not there we may never fully know, however, there is still something we can learn. No matter what view you hold about eschatology (The study of end times) there is one constant theme you see in all the theories … we do not know when it is going to start. That being the case we must always be prepared. Jesus ends the discussion here with this “What is say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!” That is something we must all do. Watch for the day and the hour is unknown. Watch for Christ return will be like a thief in the night. Watch for the end will be sudden and abrupt. Watch that your life and doctrine are in accordance with God’s will. Watch that you have received the grace and forgiveness that only comes through faith in Christ. No matter where you stand on your understanding of this passage, it is certain that you must continually watch!