Luke 21:23-24
Alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! For there will be great distress upon the earth and wrath against this people. 24 They will fall by the edge of the sword and be led captive among all nations, and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
Our daughter Lauren said as a young girl that she hoped Jesus wouldn’t return until she became a mother. Now she has just had her third girl and still the Lord tarries but she is ready. Before that time comes though, times will get hard, whether that is a seven year period or the world just gets worse, it is hard to argue with the evidence. In certain parts of the world, Christians are suffering the same fate that the early Christians suffered under the Roman Empire. We have been largely insulated from that, which may explain the softness at the core of the church.
It would be interesting to see what would happen to the church if real persecution of this nature occurred today. There are many possibilities but I think this would be the dominant reaction. The church would get smaller. The dross and impurities would fall away. What would be left is a rare jewel that people would gaze at in astonishment and want for their very own. They would long to see Jesus and would go about getting ready to see him. That is our response to what he did for us. Get ready for his return in triumph!
O Heavenly Father, you love us and protect us through all trials. We pray we will be ready for whatever is in store for us. In Jesus’ name. Amen.