Our paragraph topic is: (He tells them of trials and hard times to come) Part 1.
Christ has shattered the dreams of his disciples concerning their precious Jerusalem. He has given them a vision of the destruction that will take place with all the beauty and wonder that has taken years to build. They wanted him to see what they saw in the beauty and majesty of Jerusalem through their eyes but all he saw was death and destruction. So he had to open the eyes of his disciples so that they would be able to understand what was taking place and what would happen in the end of days.
But before the end would come they, the disciples, needed to know the part they would play in all of this. He opened their eyes and told them what would happen so that they would not be led astray by all the fear that would flood the land. He wanted them to stand fast during the storm that would come. But more than that he had to let them know what would happen to them. Christ told his disciples: "Then they will deliver you up to tribulation."
You see, they did not know. They did not understand. Christ had not been sacrificed yet. He had not suffered yet. He had not risen yet or been glorified. He had not ascended into heaven to his father yet and they had not received the Holy Spirit. So the idea that they would be delivered up to tribulation was new and shocking to them. They knew that they were with him and he would protect and provide for them as he had always. They knew that he had the power to do so because they were witnesses to the many miracles he performed. So their minds were at ease when he told them so. Yet this was something new to them that they would suffer hurt and pain, sorrows and oppression being delivered up to the powers that be.
Is this the fate that we follow if we become disciples of Christ? Will we be delivered up to tribulation? Will we suffer for being his followers? What price will we pay just to be a follower? What does it mean to be a follower of Christ? What does it mean to be a Christian? We go to church on a regular basis, we practice Christian principles, we pray, we read the Bible, we give tithes and alms, we help our brothers and strangers in need. We try to follow all that Christ has given us through the church that he left here on earth.
We believe that he is the son of the living God and that he will return one day to reign over all the earth. We believe that there is life after death and that there is a heaven and a hell. Our hope and faith is that we will attain heaven when our time ends here on earth. God is merciful and we pray that he will hear our prayer and grant us eternal life with Christ Jesus. Amen.
Read the sign of the times! Read the Highlighted New Testament Bible and lift the scales from your eyes that you may see, that you may know, that you may find the truth of who you are in Christ. Read it as though you would read a good book, from cover to cover, and see for yourself. Do not study it in parts reading one passage nd then skipping to another, but read it for understanding. Read it for knowledge. Read it for faith. Read it that your eyes may be opened, that your ears may hear, that your heart may be filled with the light of Christ . The Holy Spirit awaits you. Christ seeks to know you. Open the door and let him in.
