Monday, May 14
Read Matthew 24:9 and Revelation 13:11-17. What parallels exist between what Jesus said here in Matthew and what He inspired John to write about in Revelation?
Christ’s concern for His people in the end time includes a global deception that causes nations to oppose the true faith and to impose a false worship on the world. Those who stand firm will face hatred, tribulation, and even death.
Read Matthew 24:13. What is the key to being saved, to being faithful, even amid worldwide opposition?
“None but those who have fortified the mind with the truths of the Bible will stand through the last great conflict.” — Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, p. 593. This statement means that all who fortify their minds with biblical truths will not be swept away in any of the end-time deceptions. They have to be grounded in what truth is for this time; otherwise, the deceptions will overwhelm them.
Read Matthew 7:24-27. What else is crucial for staying faithful to God?
As important as it is to be grounded intellectually in the Word of God, according to Jesus that is still not enough to be able to stand amid the trials that we will face. We have to do what we have learned; that is, we have to obey the truth as it is in Jesus. In the parable above, both builders heard the sayings of Jesus. The difference between them, between enduring and not enduring, was obeying what Jesus had taught.
Why does the one who obeys stand and the one who doesn’t obey fall? What difference does obedience make in keeping a person steady in the faith?
