Acts 22:1-8

When you come face to face with Jesus everything changes. In the light of His presence we can see only Him. In Him the traditions of men fade and the wholeness of the Trinity to save us and make us whole is revealed.

Paul shared his personal testimony. God has given to each of us a testimony of how He has changed our lives. We must share that testimony to everyone who will listen.

Paul explained to the crowd that he understood why they were beating him and wanted him dead. They were zealous for God. Paul was not blaming them for what they had done to him. He pointed out that in his former zeal he would have done the same thing. Paul showed compassion even to his attackers; we should model that same type of compassion for all people who have not yet placed their faith in Jesus.

Acts 22:1-8

22 “Brethren and fathers, hear my defense before you now.” ² And when they heard that he spoke to them in the Hebrew language, they kept all the more silent. 

Then he said: ³ “I am indeed a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, taught according to the strictness of our fathers’ law, and was zealous toward God as you all are today. ⁴ I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women, ⁵ as also the high priest bears me witness, and all the council of the elders, from whom I also received letters to the brethren, and went to Damascus to bring in chains even those who were there to Jerusalem to be punished. 

⁶ “Now it happened, as I journeyed and came near Damascus at about noon, suddenly a great light from heaven shone around me. ⁷ And I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me,  ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?’ ⁸ So I answered, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said to me,  ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting.’ 

Proverbs 17:5

⁵ He who mocks the poor reproaches his Maker; 
He who is glad at calamity will not go unpunished. 

Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called sons of  God. When we care for the poor we care for Christ. In our nations peace we have peace and prosperity. We should pray for harmony in our nation and in the world. In a Christian nation our actions and votes should support those who cannot support themselves.

"To make peace, establish harmony"  Strong's Lexicon 1517

"To be at peace, live in peace"  Strong's Lexicon 1514

Leviticus 25:35-38 
³⁵ ‘If one of your brethren becomes poor, and falls into poverty among you, then you shall help him, like a stranger or a sojourner, that he may live with you. ³⁶ Take no usury or interest from him; but fear your God, that your brother may live with you. ³⁷ You shall not lend him your money for usury, nor lend him your food at a profit. ³⁸ I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to give you the land of Canaan and to be your God. 

Luke 1:34-38

Faith alone pleases God. When we act in faith even when we don’t fully understand all the details to what the Holy Spirit reveals to us we are blessed.  We cannot let fear of misunderstanding Him stop us from doing what He calls us to do. His mercy and grace follow us on His path of redemption. With Him all things are possible!

Mary did not ask for a sign, so this remark does not reflect unbelief. She accepts her role without question, and thus is a model of faith even though she does not fully understand everything. The work of God in Mary introduces something unknown before or after: the birth into the human race of One who is both God and man. 
This is a direct declaration of Jesus’ divine conception. 

God keeps His promises regardless of how difficult the circumstances may seem. Gabriel’s statement about God should be our statement of faith: Nothing is impossible with God.

Luke 1:34-38

³⁴ Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?” 

³⁵ And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God. ³⁶ Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren. ³⁷ For with God nothing will be impossible.” 

³⁸ Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her. 

The Gospel of Luke

God’s ways are not ours. Jesus cared for the underclass and He did what was right in God's eyes! We are His hands and His feet and He is our example. We should strive to be like Him without caring what others think!

Luke 1:74-75 ⁷⁴
To grant us that we, 
Being delivered from the hand of our enemies, 
Might serve Him without fear, 
⁷⁵ In holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our                  life. 

Luke 11:34-37

The Book of Luke highlights Jesus’ love for a variety of groups who were not esteemed in His day. It speaks on the truth of the Word of God, Jesus the Christ, to cleanse and heal us and to show us what is important in life. If we keep our minds focused on the things of God, the things of the world that our society considers important will lose their chains on us.

A person who concentrates on what is good (God’s teaching) is healthy. But a person who focuses on what is bad (the false teaching of the world) is full of darkness.

A person can become like light, a living picture of what God’s Word teaches, by concentrating on the light of the truth.

Luke 11:34-37

The lamp of the body is the eye. Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light. But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness. ³⁵ Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness. ³⁶ If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, the whole body will be full of light, as when the bright shining of a lamp gives you light.” 

Philippians 1:9-11

Spring is here! The renewing of the seasons and let us pray for a renewing of our hearts and minds in Christ. In this message Paul gives us the parameters of a loving Christian fellowship: keeping others in our thoughts and prayers and following it up with action such as writing them a letter of encouragement and hope. To know God is to love those whom He created.

The fruit of the Spirit is love!

In the first few verses, Paul reveals his great love for the Philippians. He thinks of them often, he is concerned about them, and he regularly prays for them. These verses not only reveal Paul’s relation to the Philippians but also his view of God. The Lord does not merely start a wonderful work in us; He finishes what He starts. 

The first of two terms on which a directed love is built, knowledge suggests an intimate understanding based on a relationship with the person. Here the focus of this knowledge is God. Found only here in the NT, the Greek word means moral or ethical understanding based on both the intellect and the senses. The word implies perception or insight into social situations.

Philippians 1:9-11

⁹ And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, ¹⁰ that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, ¹¹ being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God. 

John 12:1-11

The Harmony of the Gospels should give comfort to us knowing that  all things happen for a higher purpose. We need to rest in the knowledge that the Lord cares for those who place their trust in Him and their lives are orchestrated by Him. The love and mercy that we show others should reflect our gratitude for the love and mercy we have been shown by God. When we hold up Christ others will be drawn to Him.

If Jesus’ crucifixion took place on a Friday, this dinner occurred during the evening of the previous Saturday. The inhabitants of Bethany wished to express their thanks to Jesus, who by a glorious miracle had honored their obscure village. Lazarus was the guest of honor. Anointing Jesus’ head was an act of honor; anointing His feet was a display of devotion. The ultimate motivation for wanting to kill Lazarus was that because of him many were believing in Jesus.

John 12:1-11

12 Then, six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was who had been dead, whom He had raised from the dead. ² There they made Him a supper; and Martha served, but Lazarus was one of those who sat at the table with Him. ³ Then Mary took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard, anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil. 

⁴ But one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, who would betray Him, said, ⁵ “Why was this fragrant oil not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?” ⁶ This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and had the money box; and he used to take what was put in it. 

⁷ But Jesus said,  “Let her alone; she has kept this for the day of My burial. ⁸ For the poor you have with you always, but Me you do not have always.” 

⁹ Now a great many of the Jews knew that He was there; and they came, not for Jesus’ sake only, but that they might also see Lazarus, whom He had raised from the dead. ¹⁰ But the chief priests plotted to put Lazarus to death also, ¹¹ because on account of him many of the Jews went away and believed in Jesus. 

1 Corinthians 15:3-8

Christ overcame death to give eternal life. He who was sinless became our sacrifice for sin so that we who believe could be washed clean. In Him and in His righteousness we can stand before God. Through God’s mercy and grace in Jesus Christ we live!

Paul viewed himself as a link in a long chain of witnesses to the truth of the death and resurrection of Christ. Paul became an apostle abruptly, with no opportunity for earthly contact with Christ or His teaching.

Christ’s death dealt decisively with our sins. He suffered in our place to endure the just wrath of God against us. 

The Resurrection verifies the fact that Christ’s death paid the full price for sin. The Greek term translated rose here is in the perfect tense, emphasizing the ongoing effects of this historical event. Christ is a risen Savior today.

1 Corinthians 15:3-8

³ For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, ⁴ and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, ⁵ and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve. ⁶ After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. ⁷ After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles. ⁸ Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time. 

Luke 11:52

⁵² “Woe to you lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge. You did not enter in yourselves, and those who were entering in you hindered.” 

The key to knowing God is reverence and this fear of Him is the beginning of knowledge. When you seek Him He promises that you will find Him and He will refine you in your victories and in your failures in order to make you complete. Nothing happens by chance. When you turn your life over to the Triune Godhead your life is orchestrated by the One who loves you most!

Jesus charged the lawyers with doing the opposite of what they claimed their calling to be. Rather than bringing people nearer to God, they had removed the possibility of their entering into that knowledge, and had prevented others from understanding as well.

Proverbs 1:7  The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.... 

Daniel 11:35  And some of those of understanding shall fall, to refine them, purify them, and make them white, until the time of the end; because it is still for the appointed time. 

Malachi 3:16 Then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another, 
And the Lord listened and heard them; 
So a book of remembrance was written before Him 
For those who fear the Lord 
And who meditate on His name. 

 John 17:3 And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. 

Mark 2:21-22

Make me new Lord! 

In the Old Testament things were worked out in the physical world...there were always battles to be fought, women and children were considered objects or subjects and violence was common. When God came to them it was on the outside and He worked within the parameters that their minds could grasp. He had to give them written commandments to follow and yearly animal sacrifices for their sins. 

In the New Testament.....Christ became our blood sacrifice a free gift for all who choose to accept Him. We have Christ within us and the Holy Spirit to teach and guide us.....our battles are spiritual. Christ and His followers denounced violence and were often martyred for their beliefs. He gave freedom to all people regardless of race, gender or nationality. He cared for the outcasts of society...the poor, the mentally and physically ill, and the alien. He is an equal opportunity employer His only desire is to give eternal life. All who seek Him find Him, all who knock He invites in and everyone who asks receives!

All Scripture is beneficial for the Christian but we must live in the NT because the Christ within us will show us the intentions of the Father when He created the world....to create a people who would love Him with all their heart, mind and spirit AND  love others as  much as they love themselves. We are to be examples of His perfect love for His creation and His desire that no one perish. He will rule the world!

Mark records only four of Jesus’ parables—two of which he includes here. The comparison implies that the newness of His message, and of the new covenant to follow, cannot fit into the old molds of Judaism. The OT was preparation for the NT.

Mark 2:21-22

²¹ No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; or else the new piece pulls away from the old, and the tear is made worse. ²² And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine bursts the wineskins, the wine is spilled, and the wineskins are ruined. But new wine must be put into new wineskins.” 

Daniel 7:13-14

In the end truth is revealed......good wins! Open all of our eyes to Your glory and majesty Lord.

Son of Man is Semitic for “human being.” Daniel saw One like the “Son of Man,” indicating that He is not a man in the strict sense, but rather the perfect representation of humanity. Jewish and Christian expositors have identified this individual as the Messiah. Jesus Himself used this name to emphasize His humanity as the incarnate Son of God. He who will reign over all things as the regent of Almighty God. In contrast to the vanishing nature of the previous empires, His dominion is … everlasting.

Daniel 7:13-14

¹³ “I was watching in the night visions, 
And behold, One like the Son of Man, 
Coming with the clouds of heaven! 
He came to the Ancient of Days, 
And they brought Him near before Him. 
¹⁴ Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, 
That all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him. 
His dominion is an everlasting dominion, 
Which shall not pass away, 
And His kingdom the one 
Which shall not be destroyed. 

Ezekiel 22:23-31

God stood in the gap for man. Only by His sacrifice alone, by taking on the sins of the world, could He allow mankind to live and not destroy them. By giving man His righteousness through their acceptance of His salvation in Christ Jesus they were given the gift of eternal life with His life within them. This free gift would be offered to all men that some could be saved. The state of the religious right then seems perilously similar to the religious right of today.

The priests were not examples of separation from worldly ways. Some at least were motivated by monetary gain. These prophets were involved in “whitewashing” the sins of the nation’s leaders. If the proper antecedent for them is “princes” (v. 27), then the priests were also guilty of approving murder. God could not find a spiritual leader to guide the people in godliness.

Ezekiel 22:23-31

²³ And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ²⁴ “Son of man, say to her: ‘You are a land that is not cleansed or rained on in the day of indignation.’ ²⁵ The conspiracy of her prophets in her midst is like a roaring lion tearing the prey; they have devoured people; they have taken treasure and precious things; they have made many widows in her midst. ²⁶ Her priests have violated My law and profaned My holy things; they have not distinguished between the holy and unholy, nor have they made known the difference between the unclean and the clean; and they have hidden their eyes from My Sabbaths, so that I am profaned among them. ²⁷ Her princes in her midst are like wolves tearing the prey, to shed blood, to destroy people, and to get dishonest gain. ²⁸ Her prophets plastered them with untempered mortar, seeing false visions, and divining lies for them, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord God,’ when the Lord had not spoken. ²⁹ The people of the land have used oppressions, committed robbery, and mistreated the poor and needy; and they wrongfully oppress the stranger. ³⁰ So I sought for a man among them who would make a wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found no one. ³¹ Therefore I have poured out My indignation on them; I have consumed them with the fire of My wrath; and I have recompensed their deeds on their own heads,” says the Lord God. 

Nahum 3:3-4

We were duped...totally and entirely by the moral breakdown of our generation. It heralded itself with the sexual revolution, Roe vs Wade, the ease of getting married and just as easily divorced. If you were not a participant of the moral breakdown the chances are high that you were a victim of those who were. Now we are all a broken people left wondering how this happened....and how did it happen to us? We were raised to believe in the commandments, the sanctity of marriage and commitment to whatever choices we made. What now? How can we justify our past so that we can have hope in our future? It is impossible....our only hope is Christ who bore our sins past and present so that we could be made whole. Those who have been forgiven much....they love much!

Nahum 3:3-4

³ Horsemen charge with bright sword and glittering spear. 
There is a multitude of slain, 
A great number of bodies, 
Countless corpses— 
They stumble over the corpses— 
⁴ Because of the multitude of harlotries of the seductive harlot, 

The mistress of sorceries, 
Who sells nations through her harlotries, 
And families through her sorceries. 

Mark 15:40-41

There were also women looking on from afar....this speaks volumes about the status of women in the days that Jesus lived on earth. Women were considered the property of men and in some countries are still. If we listen to the Scriptures, Jesus changed all that, He numbered women among His disciples and also His friends. God is never limited by societal rules and the worth they place on His creation......we would do well to listen to Him.

These women were true disciples of Christ. They had ministered to Jesus’ needs and would be the first witnesses of His resurrection. 

Mark 15:40-41

⁴⁰ There were also women looking on from afar, among whom were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the Less and of Joses, and Salome, ⁴¹ who also followed Him and ministered to Him when He was in Galilee, and many other women who came up with Him to Jerusalem. 

Ezekiel 34:16

Let’s be real....how can there be any question about God's love and caring for all His children....He seeks out the poor, the disenfranchised, the broken people that society looks down on and wants to make them whole! If we are Christian it is our part to help Him!

Israel, though guilty and misguided by her leaders, would eventually be rescued by the divine Good Shepherd and restored to the Promised Land.

Ezekiel 34:16

¹⁶ “I will seek what was lost and bring back what was driven away, bind up the broken and strengthen what was sick; but I will destroy the fat and the strong, and feed them in judgment.” 

Mark 6:1-6

Are you familiar with the adage “familiarity breeds contempt”? Even the Son of God, all God and all man, was subject to the pettiness of men. We pray for God to put people into our lives to help us grow closer to Him and then we dismiss and pick apart the very people that He placed there.... family, friends and Church members. He has provided everything that we need to mature and succeed .... just believe!

Jesus now went to minister in His own country, the area where He grew up, around Nazareth. The people readily acknowledged both Jesus’ wisdom and His mighty works, but with insensitive hearts and spiritual callousness they rejected Jesus’ message. A prophet is not without honor except in his own country is a maxim still repeated and still true today. Perhaps others were jealous of Jesus’ popularity and huge following. Their envy even took the form of violence against Christ.

Mark 6:1-6

6 Then He went out from there and came to His own country, and His disciples followed Him. ² And when the Sabbath had come, He began to teach in the synagogue. And many hearing Him were astonished, saying, “Where did this Man get these things? And what wisdom is this which is given to Him, that such mighty works are performed by His hands! ³ Is this not the carpenter, the Son of Mary, and brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And are not His sisters here with us?” So they were offended at Him. 
⁴ But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house.” ⁵ Now He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them. ⁶ And He marveled because of their unbelief. Then He went about the villages in a circuit, teaching. 

Luke 7:40-50

From childhood I have been afraid of people and the emotional and physical pain they can inflict. My heavenly Father I have always trusted. My earliest memory of this total trust and faith in Him was at the age of 9 and it has never changed....my Protector, my Teacher, my salvation, my God!

The Underclass

Nearly every society and every city in biblical times had a large underclass. Tending to congregate in the cities, the underclass included the poor, the sick, the disabled, the lepers, the blind, the insane, the demon-possessed, widows, orphans, and refugees. Lacking resources to provide for even their basic needs, many turned to begging, stealing, menial labor, slavery, or prostitution. Few cultures made provision for these desperate, destitute wanderers, and so they remained largely powerless to change their condition. Yet it was to the underclass that Jesus intentionally directed much of His life and ministry.

Jesus’ point is that the amount of love showered on the Savior will be in direct proportion with one’s sense of the gravity of the sins that the Savior has forgiven. The woman knew she had been forgiven much, and as a result she would love much. Faith is the human channel for receiving God’s gifts.

Luke 7:40-50

⁴⁰ And Jesus answered and said to him,  “Simon, I have something to say to you.” 
So he said, “Teacher, say it.” 
⁴¹  “There was a certain creditor who had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. ⁴² And when they had nothing with which to repay, he freely forgave them both. Tell Me, therefore, which of them will love him more?” 
⁴³ Simon answered and said, “I suppose the one whom he forgave more.” 
And He said to him,  “You have rightly judged.” ⁴⁴ Then He turned to the woman and said to Simon,  “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has washed My feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head. ⁴⁵ You gave Me no kiss, but this woman has not ceased to kiss My feet since the time I came in. ⁴⁶ You did not anoint My head with oil, but this woman has anointed My feet with fragrant oil. ⁴⁷ Therefore I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much. But to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little.” 
⁴⁸ Then He said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” 
⁴⁹ And those who sat at the table with Him began to say to themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?” 
⁵⁰ Then He said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.” 

Zephaniah 1-3

There will come an end to God’s window of salvation....we need to ask forgiveness and then spread the truth of Jesus Christ and His grace so that all who accept Him can celebrate eternity with the Holy Trinity. Seek God and He will be found. He alone can do what we cannot.......Revive us Oh Lord!

Zephaniah’s message had both halves of the bad-news-good-news equation. His first words were bad news indeed: The day of the Lord was coming and that meant terrible judgment. The Israelites had acted like their pagan neighbors—they had scorned God’s law, worshiped false gods, and sinned without remorse long enough. Now it was time to repent: They had to turn back to their God or face the consequences.

It was the “turn back to God” part of Zephaniah’s message that offered a ray of hope. And to those who listened and responded to his call, the good news wiped out every line of bad. God would restore those who sought Him.

The godly King Josiah led an important revival that affected all Judah. Scripture reports that this revival, though short-lived, delayed God’s judgment, the invasion by Babylon

1a2 to revive, be quickened. 1a2a from sickness. 1a2b from discouragement. 1a2c from faintness. 1a2d from death. 1b (Piel). 1b1 to preserve alive, let live. 1b2 to give life. 1b3 to quicken, revive, refresh. 1b3a to restore to life. 1b3b to cause to grow. 1b3c to restore. 1b3d to revive. 1c (Hiph). 1c1 to preserve alive, let live. 1c2 to quicken, revive. 1c2a to restore (to health). 1c2b to revive. 1c2c to restore to life.

Zephaniah 1-3

1 The word of the Lord which came to Zephaniah the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah. 

² “I will utterly consume everything 
From the face of the land,” 
Says the Lord; 
³ “I will consume man and beast; 
I will consume the birds of the heavens, 
The fish of the sea, 
And the stumbling blocks along with the wicked. 
I will cut off man from the face of the land,” 
Says the Lord. 

John 8:42-47

Jesus is the Word of God made manifest to man....what a miracle that you and I have been given the privilege of hearing the truth that sets us free from the barnacles of this life! May we spread the Word of His mercy and grace. Satan wants to kill, steal and destroy your faith...do not let Him have access to your actions.

Jesus knew what was in the hearts of people, so He could trace their actions to their source. The devil is a murderer; his agents wanted to kill Christ.

John 8:42-47
⁴² Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God; nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me. ⁴³ Why do you not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word. ⁴⁴ You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it. ⁴⁵ But because I tell the truth, you do not believe Me. ⁴⁶ Which of you convicts Me of sin? And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe Me? ⁴⁷ He who is of God hears God’s words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God.” 

Luke 21:20-34

In the end Jerusalem will be under attack by her enemies and overtaken with non Jews. The odd happenings in the cosmos will distress all of us. There will wars and instability in all parts of the world. When these things are happening....the end of the world as we know it is near! We need to look around us and see the signs and not hide our fear in the distractions of the world but trust in the triune Godhead to deliver us in His mercy and goodness. The Christ is coming! 

Luke 21

²⁰  “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near. ²¹ Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those who are in the midst of her depart, and let not those who are in the country enter her. ²² For these are the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled. ²³ But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! For there will be great distress in the land and wrath upon this people. ²⁴ And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. 

²⁵  “And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; ²⁶ men’s hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. ²⁷ Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. ²⁸ Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near.” 

²⁹ Then He spoke to them a parable:  “Look at the fig tree, and all the trees. ³⁰ When they are already budding, you see and know for yourselves that summer is now near. ³¹ So you also, when you see these things happening, know that the kingdom of God is near. ³² Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all things take place. ³³ Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away. 

³⁴  “But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. ³⁵ For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. ³⁶ Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.”