Politics and church history are littered with deceivers - people who claim what is not true, about themselves, others, the Bible or God.  Jesus is not talking to the crowds in these verses, but to the disciples, the future apostles.  His message to them, and through them to the church today and beyond, is to be at a high state of alert to identify deceivers.  Reject them and repudiate their false teaching (Proverbs 4:23-27).  It might seem harsh in these days of tolerance, but lies are like malignant viruses which can remain dormant for years, but be activated when we have low resistance of

Families are special! They should provide a secure place where we are loved, and we can love others freely, without fear.  When people repent and believe in the saving grace of Christ, they belong to another family as well; they are adopted into God's family (Ephesians 1:5), and He calls them 'His children' (Hebrews 2:13).  So, every believer has two families - a natural one and a spiritual one.  In God's creation design, there should be no conflict between the two - but when sin entered the world, we soon saw the first murder - brother on brother (Genesis 4:1-12).

The atrocities that accompanied the Temple desecrations of AD67 and 70 were not worth staying around for!  Nor will be the time of the Anti-Christ.  But fleeing for your life is a terror-filled experience too.  As has so often happened within living memory and in our generation, notably in Africa and the Balkans, central Asia and the Middle East - what the aggressors see as being justified, is sheer misery to many innocents caught up in the conflict.  

It is a common mistake to think that everything will continue as it always has (2 Peter 3:3-4).  Global warming is slightly shaking that assumption, but many think it will not really make much difference ... and so they continue as before.  But God has the right to do whatever He chooses, and that will include the way the night sky will undergo sudden change, and the sun (on which we depend for so much) will be switched off.