But, first of all, think about Matthew 24 in the Bible. You know, the big chapter that talks about the Second Coming of the Savior...with all the scary stuff that precedes it. I can't tell you how many times I have read it and been amazed that the Savior told them to "see that ye be not troubled" when they began to witness the signs that He described. The chapter is full of stuff that is very troubling! Read it and think about how it makes you feel.
Well, I believe in those things, both that He is coming again and that there will be really, really hard times before He does. In fact, I am paying close attention to what is happening in the world and how it compares to His descriptions. But, more than that, I just have this feeling deep inside that tough stuff is coming and I want to know how to get through it.
So, I have been studying these things. A lot! For quite some time. And that brings me back to what I want to share.
If you study the End Times at all, the Parable of the Ten Virgins comes up again and again. I thought I was very familiar with the parable and several commentaries on it. But one day I read a commentary that was a little different and I wondered to myself, "Is that really in there?" It surprised me enough that I decided to look up that parable again and see if what the writer said was really there. (It wasn't. He was taking poetic license which is fine by me....I just want to know when it's done.) I tried to think where to find the parable. "Well, it's talking about the coming of the Bridegroom....maybe it's at the end of Matthew 24." It wasn't there. But I decided to take a minute and re-read the chapter. So interesting to me. The disciples ask Jesus when He will come again and what will be the sign of His Coming. Talk about an inspired question! And then Jesus tells them what to look for.
Well, obviously I didn't know where to find it in the Bible so I turned to the Topical Guide to look it up. And guess where it is! Matthew 25! That got my attention. It helped me to look at this chapter differently than I ever had before. And this is what I discovered...
Matthew 25 and its three parables are a continuation of the conversation the Savior had with His disciples in Matthew 24! That changes everything. Well, it did for me anyway.
Matthew 24 - the signs to look for before the Second Coming
Matthew 25 - HOW TO PREPARE for those incredible events!
Well, those signs are pretty scary-sounding and so I am very interested in knowing what the Savior says about preparing for it. And I will be blogging about each of these parables in the coming weeks. I would really love it if you shared your thoughts with me as I present each parable in its turn.
One last thought as I introduce this topic. Just to prove that this parable chapter is a continuing conversation, I want to point out the evidence for that. (Not that I need to, but it was a point of interest to me.)
Matthew 25:1 has a Joseph Smith Translation footnote that says, "And, then, at that day..." (which in scripture-speak means the Last Days just before the Millenium) "...before the Son of man comes, the kingdom of..." This pointed out to me that He was still talking about this Last Day time period from the previous chapter. Of course, this is only found in the LDS edition of the Bible. If I had given more thought as I read previously, it might have been obvious to me anyway as it is clear enough as it stands in the King James edition. But the JST footnote got my attention.
And then Matthew 26:1 puts a period on the conversation, so to speak. "And it came to pass, when Jesus had finished all these sayings..." And then the scriptures move on to a new topic.
This is all a big deal to me because it helped me to examine this chapter in a new light. As I read, I asked myself two questions:
"How does this parable help prepare me for the events He has just described?
What do I need to do to be prepared?
And that is what I am going to be talking about, starting next week. I hope it will end up a discussion. See you then.
Love what you're doing! I have been having the same feeling, just something inside me telling me things are going to get very hard very soon. I have been doing the same as you, searching the scriptures, writing columns of what was done temporally to prepare, and what was done spiritually, and what was learned by it. I'm gathering outside information but trying to be careful of how I use it so I can follow the promptings I receive for myself. This is going to be a great time to keep up on my journal😊
ReplyDeleteGlad to know I'm not alone in my feelings. Thanks for your additional witness of the need to prepare for the days that lie ahead. And you have given me some new study ideas....so, THANKS!
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