Mark 13

¹As Jesus was leaving the temple, one of His disciples said to Him, “Teacher, look at the magnificent stones and buildings!” ²“Do you see all these great buildings?” Jesus replied. “Not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.” ³While Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John, and Andrew asked Him privately, ⁴“Tell us, when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are about to be fulfilled?” ⁵Jesus began by telling them, “See to it that no one deceives you. ⁶Many will come in My name, claiming, ‘I am He,’ and will deceive many. ⁷When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. These things must happen, but the end is still to come. ⁸Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places, as well as famines. These are the beginning of birth pains. ⁹So be on your guard. You will be delivered over to the councils and beaten in the synagogues. On My account you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them. ¹⁰And the gospel must first be proclaimed to all the nations. ¹¹But when they arrest you and hand you over, do not worry beforehand what to say. Instead, speak whatever you are given at that time, for it will not be you speaking, but the Holy Spirit. ¹²Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child. Children will rise against their parents and have them put to death. ¹³You will be hated by everyone because of My name, but the one who perseveres to the end will be saved. ¹⁴So when you see the abomination of desolation standing where it should not be (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. ¹⁵Let no one on the housetop go back inside to retrieve anything from his house. ¹⁶And let no one in the field return for his cloak. ¹⁷How miserable those days will be for pregnant and nursing mothers! ¹⁸Pray that this will not occur in the winter. ¹⁹For those will be days of tribulation unmatched from the beginning of God’s creation until now, and never to be seen again. ²⁰If the Lord had not cut short those days, nobody would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, whom He has chosen, He has cut them short. ²¹At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There He is!’ do not believe it. ²²For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and wonders that would deceive even the elect, if that were possible. ²³So be on your guard; I have told you everything in advance. ²⁴But in those days, after that tribulation: ‘The sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; ²⁵the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.’ ²⁶At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds with great power and glory. ²⁷And He will send out the angels to gather His elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven. ²⁸Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its branches become tender and sprout leaves, you know that summer is near. ²⁹So also, when you see these things happening, know that He is near, right at the door. ³⁰Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have happened. ³¹Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away. ³²No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. ³³Be on your guard and stay alert! For you do not know when the appointed time will come. ³⁴It is like a man going on a journey who left his house, put each servant in charge of his own task, and instructed the doorkeeper to keep watch. ³⁵Therefore keep watch, because you do not know when the master of the house will return—whether in the evening, at midnight, when the rooster crows, or in the morning. ³⁶Otherwise, he may arrive without notice and find you sleeping. ³⁷And what I say to you, I say to everyone: Keep watch!”

Life is short. Where are you going?

You just read God’s own words, and one day every one of us will stand before Him. “What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes” (James 4:14). This life will be over sooner than you think — do you know where you are going when it is?

The Bible says, “Man is appointed to die once, and after that to face judgment” (Hebrews 9:27). If you died today, would you be ready?

Are you a good person?

Most of us think we are. But God doesn’t measure us against other people — He measures us by His Law. Look honestly at the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:3–17):

1. You shall have no other gods before Me.
2. You shall not make for yourself an idol.
3. You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain.
4. Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.
5. Honor your father and mother.
6. You shall not murder.
7. You shall not commit adultery.
8. You shall not steal.
9. You shall not bear false witness.
10. You shall not covet.

Have you ever told a lie — even a small one? Have you ever taken something that wasn’t yours? Have you ever used God’s name as a curse word? Have you ever wanted what belongs to someone else? Jesus said that anyone who looks with lust “has already committed adultery … in his heart” (Matthew 5:28), and the Bible says “everyone who hates his brother is a murderer” (1 John 3:15).

If we’re honest, we have all broken God’s Law — and “whoever keeps the whole law but stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it” (James 2:10). “There is no one righteous, not even one … there is no one who does good, not even one” (Romans 3:10–12).

That leaves every one of us guilty before a holy God. “The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23), and “whoever rejects the Son will not see life. Instead, the wrath of God remains on him” (John 3:36). This is why our world is full of tragedy — and without Christ, every life ends in the greatest tragedy of all.

But God made a way

“God proves His love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). Jesus lived the perfect life we never could, and on the cross He took the punishment we deserved: “God made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21). Three days later He rose from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:3–4).

It’s like standing guilty in court when the judge steps down and pays your fine himself. Forgiveness is a free gift — you can’t earn it: “It is by grace you have been saved through faith … it is the gift of God, not by works” (Ephesians 2:8–9). “The gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23).

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come that they may have life, and have it in all its fullness.” Jesus — John 10:10

What will you do with Jesus?

“Repent and believe in the gospel!” (Mark 1:15). Turn from your sin, and put your trust in Jesus alone — “if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9). Don’t put it off — “now is the time of favor; now is the day of salvation!” (2 Corinthians 6:2).

And when you turn to Him, you won’t be met with a frown — you’ll be met with a celebration. Jesus said, “there is joy in the presence of God’s angels over one sinner who repents” (Luke 15:10). God says, “I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked should turn from their ways and live” (Ezekiel 33:11). He is “mighty to save. He will rejoice over you with gladness … He will rejoice over you with singing” (Zephaniah 3:17). Like the father who ran to embrace his lost son, He is waiting with open arms — and heaven throws a party when you come home (Luke 15:20–24).

If you died today, where would you spend eternity? Today you can be forgiven, made new, and have real, abundant life — now and forever.

Join the Party — give my life to Jesus Find a Party — a church near me

Scripture quotations are from the Berean Standard Bible (BSB), which is in the public domain.