Living with Hope: Embracing the End Times

Devotional

Day 1: Revelation reveals future truth and blesses obedient hearers.

Prophecy isn’t a code to crack but a gift God reveals in His timing; Revelation shows Jesus unveiling “what must soon take place,” with John instructed to write what he saw, what is now, and what will take place later, and a promise that those who read, hear, and take to heart the words of this book are blessed—so approach this book with humility, expectancy, and a willingness to obey whatever God makes clear to you today. [32:02]

Revelation 1:1-3, 19 (NIV)
The revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who testifies to everything he saw—that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near.
Write, therefore, what you have seen, what is now and what will take place later.

Reflection: What specific section of Revelation have you avoided or skimmed—will you read it aloud today (even a single chapter) and write one concrete step of obedience you sense God asking you to take in response?

Day 2: Israel’s restoration signals God’s end-time timetable.

Scripture points to a real-world marker for the last lap: God promised to bring Israel and Judah back and restore them to the land He gave their ancestors; the modern re-formation of Israel should move you from reacting to headlines to trusting God’s unfolding plan, praying for His purposes, and anchoring your perspective in the Word rather than politics or fear. [41:58]

Jeremiah 30:1-3 (NIV)
This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Write in a book all the words I have spoken to you. The days are coming,’ declares the Lord, ‘when I will bring my people Israel and Judah back from captivity and restore them to the land I gave their ancestors to possess,’ says the Lord.”

Reflection: Set a 3-minute timer today to pray specifically for God’s purposes for Israel and her neighbors (peace, justice, salvation in Jesus); what headline will you reframe in prayer with Jeremiah 30:3?

Day 3: Jesus will rapture believers before final return.

Scripture gives real hope: the Lord Himself will descend, the dead in Christ will rise, and those alive in Christ will be caught up to meet Him in the air—study this with humility, but let it motivate holy living, courageous witness, and practical readiness more than speculation or theatrics. [50:24]

1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 (NIV)
For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.

Reflection: If Jesus caught up His church today, who is the one person you’d most want to have heard the gospel from you—will you text or call them today to share your story and invite them to take a next step?

Day 4: Present hope flows from Christ’s ultimate victory.

This world is not your home; trouble is promised, but so is peace in Jesus—fix your eyes on His victory, renew your heart daily, lean on God’s people when you need to borrow faith, and refuse to place your hope in anything smaller than the One who has already overcome. [53:03]

John 16:33 (NIV)
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Reflection: Name one current worry weighing you down; pray John 16:33 out loud over it and take one concrete action today that embodies “take heart” (for example, send a prayer request to a friend, step away from doom-scrolling, or serve someone in need).

Day 5: Prepare the next generation to endure and lead.

Jesus said there will be a generation that sees the end-time events unfold; treat kids and students as today’s leaders, not tomorrow’s—invest prayers, presence, and discipleship into them now so they are ready to stand firm and lead with faith when it’s their watch. [01:00:15]

Matthew 24:34 (NIV)
“Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.”

Reflection: Identify one child, teen, or young adult you know—how will you tangibly invest in their faith this week (write a handwritten note, invite them to serve with you Sunday, or commit to pray for them daily at a set time)?

Sermon Summary

It’s been a heavy week, and I know many of us walked in carrying grief, confusion, and anger. When the world feels like it’s unraveling—memories of 9/11, another school shooting in a town our family loves, and the assassination of Charlie Kirk—I asked the Lord how to shepherd us well. His answer was simple: keep doing what He has already led us to do. So we launched “Living with the End in Mind,” a seven-week journey through Scripture that helps us see our days in light of Jesus’ return.

I shared seven reasons we’re taking this path. First, the sheer frequency of biblical prophecy—62 of the 66 books contain it—should build our confidence that God is not winging history. Second, the Second Coming saturates the New Testament; it shows up more than almost any other topic, and yet we rarely teach it with the weight Scripture gives it. Third, Revelation is unique—John is not spinning metaphors; he’s reporting what he sees, fast and faithfully, as Jesus reveals it. God even promises a blessing to those who read and take it to heart.

Fourth, there is a timeliness to all of this. Scripture said there would be wars, rumors of wars, persecution, and a fresh outpouring of the Spirit. We also said out loud what is often avoided: you can’t understand the end without understanding Israel’s place in God’s plan, including the miracle of 1948. Fifth, we’ll clarify the difference between the rapture and the Second Coming—not to win debates, but to walk humbly and obediently. Sixth, hope for today flows from hope for the future; this world is not our home, so we refuse to anchor our peace to headlines. And seventh, we must prepare the next generation. Jesus said there will be a generation that sees it all. Whether it’s our kids or their kids, we’re called to disciple them now—because they aren’t tomorrow’s leaders; they’re leading today.

We ended by laying our burdens down and trusting the Father who knows, loves, and carries us. He has the end settled. Keep your eyes on Jesus, renew your heart daily, lock arms with God’s people, and live like the finish line is in sight—because it is.

Key Takeaways

1. Treat prophecy as revelation, not a riddle. When we let Scripture reveal instead of forcing Scripture to solve, humility replaces anxiety and clarity grows with time. God discloses truth in seasons, and patient obedience often precedes understanding. Confidence in the past faithfulness of his word fuels trust for what hasn’t yet unfolded. [32:02]
2. The Second Coming deserves more weight in our thinking and living. Scripture speaks about Jesus’ return with remarkable prominence, not to satisfy curiosity but to shape urgency, holiness, and hope. If we devote a month each year to the first advent, how might our discipleship change if we trained our hearts to anticipate the second with equal seriousness? Expectation is not escapism; it’s fuel for faithful presence. [34:31]
3. Israel’s story is a biblical category, not a political talking point. The re-formation of Israel in 1948 functions like the white flag in the final lap—alerting us to where we are in God’s timeline. We must resist an American-centered lens and let Scripture set the stage; God’s covenant purposes are bigger than our national narratives. Let the Bible define your framework, then love and act with truth and grace. [46:47]
4. Hope for today flows from hope for the future. This world is not our home, which is why its fractures sting and why our lives must anchor to the One who has overcome the world. We don’t deny pain; we deny it the final word. Fix your eyes on Jesus’ return, renew your focus daily, and borrow the faith of God’s people when yours feels thin. [53:03]
5. Disciple the next generation as if they’ll carry the final leg. Jesus said there will be a generation that witnesses the culmination; our task is to prepare them to be faithful, wise, and courageous. That means prioritizing the window where hearts are most open and treating kids and students as present-tense leaders in God’s mission. Investing in them now is obedience to Jesus, not strategy. [60:15]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[01:30] - A heavy week and seeking God’s heart
[05:00] - Why “Living with the End in Mind”
[10:00] - Reason 1: The frequency of prophecy
[15:30] - Mystery revealed, not a puzzle to solve
[26:57] - God’s timely favor and launching the journey
[32:02] - God reveals in seasons; posture for Revelation
[34:31] - Reason 3: Why Revelation is unique; John on Patmos
[38:49] - Reading Revelation literally: Greek class and Omar
[41:58] - Reason 4: Signs of the end and global persecution
[46:47] - Israel, 1948, and the “white flag” moment
[50:24] - Reason 5: Rapture vs. Second Coming (and a trumpet tale)
[53:03] - Reason 6: Hope for today from hope for the future
[60:15] - Reason 7: “This generation” and preparing the next
[63:15] - Response and prayer: Lay down your burdens

Sermon Clips

In fact, let me give you an insight. And this is really the one that hit home for me. References to the second coming outnumber references to the first coming by a factor of eight to one. Remarkable.And isn't it interesting that we celebrate the first advent, the first coming of Jesus every single year at Christmas? I mean, we give a month every single year to teaching on the story of Jesus's first advent, and we don't teach nearly as frequently about the second coming of Christ. Now, we're gonna still do a Christmas series. Don't y 'all worry, okay?We'll still have the trees decorated. We'll still do Christmas Eve services. I love it. It's one of my favorite times of the year.But isn't it interesting that the second coming is referred to eight times as frequently, and yet we don't talk about it as often as we should as a church and as Christ followers. [00:33:48] (53 seconds) #SecondComingPriority

So scripture is clear that as we move closer to the end, two things will be happening simultaneously. Christ followers will be persecuted. God will be pouring out his spirit. This is what we're seeing happen before our very eyes. But just to be fair to the discussion, I do think there have been Christ followers at different times.in history who could look around at what's happening and reach the conclusion that they were living in end times as well. So we have to find something foundational beyond just our observations to make the claim that we are living in the end times. [00:43:03] (37 seconds) #PersecutionAndPromise

And what that foundational truth is, is the formation of the nation of Israel, which took place in 1948.We're going to talk a lot about Israel in this series, and I know that makes some of you uncomfortable because you email me, okay?Every time I talk about Israel, I'm waiting those emails start dropping in. And that's fine. It doesn't bother me at all. In fact, I love pastoring a church where there's a variety of perspectives. I love that about our church, okay? I love that. But I do think part of what's happened with a lot of Christ followers is they've let politicians and other discussions take that issue and make it their issue. And church, this is a biblical issue. [00:43:40] (43 seconds) #IsraelAsEndTimesMarker

And then there is Israel, and God still has a plan for Israel. And it's hard for us as Americans to acknowledge that we may not be the center of the story.We kind of don't know how to act any other way, do we, right?I mean, I don't know about y 'all, I don't know if I can say this, this might get me in trouble, but in the school I grew up in,The big flat map they had of the world always had America right in the middle. That's just for free. So anyway, I'm just saying, let's acknowledge a little bit of our own bias sometimes when it comes to how we think about things, okay? [00:46:37] (33 seconds) #NotTheCenterOfTheStory

So Israel is the center of a lot of scripture concerning the end times. And so we want to acknowledge that. We want to be faithful to that. But just for a second, that's why we can say with certainty we're living in the end times. If you go to a NASCAR race or an IndyCar race, when they get to the final lap, they wave a white flag. And that lets you know, hey, you're entering the final lap. The formation of Israel in 1948 is the white flag being waved when it comes to all of the scripture speaking to the end times, okay? So that's why we can say we're living in the end times, all right? [00:47:10] (32 seconds) #1948SignalsFinalLap

Because the best I can tell in God's word, every time he gets ready to do something big, here's the first thing he says.Where can I find a teenager?He did it with David, who walked past all the men who had been listening to Goliath speak about their God. And this young teenage boy walks past all of them and says, I'll take him.He did it with Mary. Young teenage girl. To be the mother of his son.So when we invest in these kids, and when we invest in these teenagers, listen, we have no idea how God is using us to prepare them for what he has for them. [01:02:42] (46 seconds) #EmpowerTeensForGodsWork

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