In Matthew chapter 24, Jesus is talking with His disciples about the end times...
"Jesus answered: 'Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming "I am the Christ," and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains.'" (v. 4-8)
It struck me as interesting this morning that He would compare it to birth pains, so I pondered on it some. I'm not bringing any of this up to start a discussion on "end times doctrine" or anything like that. Regardless of which school of thought you ascribe to, there are points that we agree on: A) we live in a fallen world right now, full of sin, pain, & suffering. B) It's going to get worse (see above verses and the rest of Matthew 24 for example).
According to Jesus, though, it's like birth pains. My first child's birth is the only one I truly experienced, as the rest ended up as c-sections. (I am NOT opening up a birth debate right now! This is only mentioned for comparison points with the given example of "birth pains." Regardless of whether the birth is surgical, natural, or anywhere in between, it is still a precious thing!) The "beginning of birth pains" is no joke! Your body is squeezing down on the baby, and it's not a pleasant time for either of you. It keeps getting more intense, too, as you go into transition and finally push the baby out. There is nothing in the world quite like it, and the end result, cradling that precious new life in your arms, is also beyond comparison.
Considering that, reading Christ's description of the end times as "the beginning of birth pains" is on one hand unsettling, because that tells me that things will definitely be getting worse in this world before we see true improvement. There will be ebb and flow, and we will have little pockets of relief and short-lived improvement, but overall it will continue to get worse. On the other hand, when we are finally done with the pushing and the squeezing and everything else that is to come, we will be released, only our release will not be into the sinful, pain-filled world that our babies are born into. No, it will be into the glorious presence of God Himself. "And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, 'Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people and God himself will be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.'" (Revelation 21:3-4)
"Jesus answered: 'Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming "I am the Christ," and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains.'" (v. 4-8)
It struck me as interesting this morning that He would compare it to birth pains, so I pondered on it some. I'm not bringing any of this up to start a discussion on "end times doctrine" or anything like that. Regardless of which school of thought you ascribe to, there are points that we agree on: A) we live in a fallen world right now, full of sin, pain, & suffering. B) It's going to get worse (see above verses and the rest of Matthew 24 for example).
According to Jesus, though, it's like birth pains. My first child's birth is the only one I truly experienced, as the rest ended up as c-sections. (I am NOT opening up a birth debate right now! This is only mentioned for comparison points with the given example of "birth pains." Regardless of whether the birth is surgical, natural, or anywhere in between, it is still a precious thing!) The "beginning of birth pains" is no joke! Your body is squeezing down on the baby, and it's not a pleasant time for either of you. It keeps getting more intense, too, as you go into transition and finally push the baby out. There is nothing in the world quite like it, and the end result, cradling that precious new life in your arms, is also beyond comparison.
Considering that, reading Christ's description of the end times as "the beginning of birth pains" is on one hand unsettling, because that tells me that things will definitely be getting worse in this world before we see true improvement. There will be ebb and flow, and we will have little pockets of relief and short-lived improvement, but overall it will continue to get worse. On the other hand, when we are finally done with the pushing and the squeezing and everything else that is to come, we will be released, only our release will not be into the sinful, pain-filled world that our babies are born into. No, it will be into the glorious presence of God Himself. "And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, 'Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people and God himself will be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.'" (Revelation 21:3-4)
