THE GREAT HARLOT: THE BEAST & BABYLON

Matthew 24:32-44: "Now learn this parable from the fig tree: When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. So, you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near; at the doors! Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away. "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left. Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your LORD is coming. But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect."Matthew 24:32-44 contains a number of important instructions every disciple of Jesus Christ needs to consider deeply because his salvation may be greatly enhanced by doggedly following it. First, His instruction is not given to the general public but directly to His disciples, so He intends it specifically for us. Second, He specifically says we should know from signs He gave that His return is near, thus the responsibility is directly on us. Third, He emphasizes the element of terrifying surprise: The world will be taken completely by surprise, but we should not. Fourth, His overall instruction is that by being alert to the signs and taking advantage of them, we should be ready. Are we getting anxious about Christ's return? We should not be anxious in terms of being fearful but hopefully and expectantly anticipating it occurring. News reports are getting so alarming that one wonders whether things can get much worse, and the daily pressures of enduring life's sin-sick, wearying culture are mounting. Part of our anticipation exists because we have had it drilled into our minds "to watch" for certain events to happen. Sometimes it looks as though prophesied events indeed are being fulfilled. Currently, though, some of the more important events we have been trained to watch for are just not happening. If they are, they are being worked out in a way we are unprepared for and thus do not see. Jesus meant His admonition to "watch" in the sense of a soldier on guard duty being alert to what is occurring around him, and so we watch. But what if our point of view, the perspective from which we watch, is incorrect?We might be alertly, diligently, and sincerely watching but at best getting only a part of the picture. It is like a soldier on guard duty, alert but looking in the wrong direction, and the enemy sneaks up from a blind spot and surprises him.