You just don't know really how burdensome it's been on pastors. You'll have to just be a pastor, amen, to know that. But anyway, I'm not going there this morning. Mark chapter 13, I'm gonna begin reading in verse number one. Verse number one. How many's gonna pray for the preacher? And as he went out of the temple, one of his disciples said unto him, Master, see what manner of stones and what buildings are here. And Jesus answered and said unto him, seest thou these buildings? There shall not be left one stone upon another, that there shall not be thrown down. And as he sat upon the Mount of Olives over against the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately, tell us when shall these things be and what shall be the sign when all these things shall be fulfilled? And Jesus answering them began to say, take heed, lest any man deceive you, for many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ, and shall deceive many. And when you shall hear of wars, and rumors of wars, be ye not troubled, for such things must needs be, but the end shall not be yet. For nations shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there shall be earthquakes in diverse places. and there shall be famines and troubles. These are the beginnings of sorrows. You may be seated. Who's gonna pray for the preacher? Well, I'm all choked up for some reason. You pray for us. Amen this morning. You'll find in our hearing this morning today we, amen, this is known as the Olivet. This sermon, amen, which was delivered by Jesus is also recorded in the book of Matthew chapter 24. I thought that's where I was gonna actually take the text from today. It's also in Luke chapter 21. And in this sermon, Jesus talks about the end time and the events that's gonna surround, amen, the end of the world. As I was thinking about this morning, my wife, I'll be honest with you, I didn't get what God wanted me to preach till this morning. And my wife came running in, telling me what was going on. And in order to properly understand prophecy, amen, you gotta keep a few truths in mind. Number one, and I'll get, this is by the way of introduction, number one, this passage never mentions the church or the rapture. If you think about it, amen. Why? Why doesn't it mention these things? Because this passage was not written to the church, it was written to the nation of Israel. How many's with me? Sometimes we get chapter 24 confused sometimes in our preaching. Now when I say that, amen, I believe you can use things in chapter 24 of Matthew in this chapter and we can relate to things today. All God's people said. Amen, but this is primarily a Jewish prophecy, amen, but still there's many truths that we can glean from, amen, from these verses of scripture. That means we're the preacher this morning. Secondly, this prophecy covers a tremendous expanse of time. If you'll take and study it out, it's not, hey, it's over a great time period. Thirdly, there's no Bible scholar has ever been able to solve all the theological riddles, quote, hidden within the Olive Discourse, or the Olivet Discourse. We gotta approach these verses, amen, with a humble heart, knowing that none of us know it all. All right, did you hear that? Knowing that none of us know it all. That's reason when you get to Zechariah and you get to Daniel and you get to Revelation, amen, everybody ain't, hey, none of us know it all. All that we need to know, amen, is to know that our name is written in the Lamb's book of life and that we're saved and that we're born again. Amen, I wanna preach on this subject, amen. So I want us to listen to the conversation between Jesus and his disciples, beginning there in verse number three. Amen, and I want us to, let's just see what it teaches us about. Now, it's gonna be just really self-explanatory, but here's what God's laid upon my heart, and I wanna preach on this subject this morning by the help of the Lord, the beginning of the end. the beginning of the end, number one, amen. If you'll find verses number five, amen, on through, amen. Let me, well, excuse me, amen. Verse number three, amen. And four, and it says, and as he sat upon the Mount of Olives over against the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately, tell us, when? shall these things be, and what shall be the sign when all these things shall be fulfilled? In verse number three and four. Listen, the disciples, amen, in the request, I want you to notice, after they'd gone out of the temple and out of the city, Jesus led his men up to the Mount of Olives. This mountain, they say, stood some 150 feet higher than the city below, and it offered a great commanding view, amen, of the temple, amen, on its grounds. and as Jesus sat there on the mountain, amen, he was approached by four of his disciples, Peter and Andrew, John and James, and they came to Jesus, amen, with a question, and apparently the disciples were baffled by what they heard Jesus say about the destruction there of the temple, and they wanted to know, amen, what he was talking about, so they came to him for an explanation and asked him, Lord, in other words, And what, or what time, amen, is these things gonna take place? Verse number five through eight, amen, we notice the Lord and His revelation, amen. These men came asking the same questions I plead thee, people ask about, amen, in the end times, amen, in the day that we live in. Everybody wants to know when it's gonna happen. Everybody wants to know when Jesus is coming. Everybody wants to know what the signs are gonna be. Amen, if it's coming, listen, all you have to do is guarantee, amen, a crowd, amen, in any service, amen, amen, glory to God. If you want a crowd to come and announce that you're gonna be preaching, amen, on the end times, and I guarantee you some people will come, amen. The first thing, amen, to know, amen, is the potential of the deception. I want you to notice in verse number five, and Jesus answered them, began to say, take heed, lest any man deceive you, amen. How many believe Jesus is coming? Jesus warned his people that they needed to be wired of deception. I'll tell you what, amen, I'll get into that a little bit later on. Even the disciples could be drawn away by the things that they could hear and see. Amen, and by the way, that's still happening today. Amen, preacher. Listen, that's why you and I need to be more grounded in the Word of God than we've ever been more grounded before. We need to be familiar with what the Bible says and what we believe. Let me know what you believe this morning. I mean, 1 Peter 3, 15, listen, we need to have our doctrine nailed down tight in our hearts, amen, so that when the deceptions come, amen, we can be faithful to stand, amen, for the Lord. Listen, anytime you ever, amen, need to be in the house of the Lord, it's today, amen. We don't need less church now, we need more church now. Oh, but preacher, we can't do that, amen. Listen, I thank God we're in here this morning. Hey, do you know there's some churches still ain't having Sunday night services and Wednesday night services? I thank God we're having it, amen. We don't need less church, we need more church. Amen, listen, I got thinking about this. I want you to notice in verse number six, number one, he says there'll be false messiahs, amen, false Christ. For many shall come in my name saying I am Christ and shall deceive many. Amen, let me just say this. It's simple this morning. Jesus said there's gonna be many false Christs that could come along and draw away people, amen, with deception. Listen, in our, hey, I remember, amen, old Jim Jones, amen. Amen, you know what he was? He was a false Christ. I remember old David Koresh. Amen, Joseph Smith. Hey, glory to God, listen, Jim Jones was the founder of the People's Temple and nearly 1,000 people he led to commit mass suicide back in 1978. And let me just say this, as the end time approaches, amen, there'll be more and more people who have stepped forward claiming to be Christ. I'll never forget, amen, amen, I guess I was still in school. I'll never forget, they said Jesus was coming in 1980s. 86 or 88, I can't remember if it was one of those, 86, 87, or 88, said Jesus was coming, they had predicted He's coming. Let me just say this, amen? You say, preacher, what if somebody predicted it? That's a pretty good sign, it ain't gonna happen, but it don't mean it won't happen. Amen. I'm just saying, no man knows, amen, when Jesus, do you know Christ don't even know when He's coming? I need help right now. Jesus don't even know when he's coming. Only God the Father, amen. He said, but how do you be, he said, to be wired lest you're deceived, amen. Hey, and we've had it all through history, amen. We need to be wired that you're not deceived by some slick words or evil deception, amen. The appearance of people like that is merely a sign that the end is coming. Can I get a witness there? Not only that, amen, but secondly, in verse number seven, what did he say? He said, and when you shall hear of wars, and rumors of wars, amen. I'm trying to give you, amen, some signs, amen, of when Jesus is coming. Let me tell you something, amen, false crosses everywhere, amen. One time I heard that there's like 3,000 religions. Let me tell you something, religion ain't gonna get you to glory, amen. Religion ain't gonna save you, amen. Now, there is a pure and undefiled religion, the Bible, that teaches about, amen, and that's visiting the fatherless. Amen, you go and read your Bible, amen, and feedin' the poor, amen. Listen, there'll be wars. Our world, amen, has been marked by wars since the beginning of time. I mean, Jesus cautioned us, amen, about gettin' caught up in wars that's ragin' around us. When the United States invaded Iraq, amen, back there in early 2001, listen, many believed it was the end of time. I mean, how many remember that? I mean, man, people started thinking, man, this is the end of time, Jesus is coming. Why would they think that? Hey, because it's over there in the Middle East, amen, and that's where the Battle of Armageddon's gonna be. A fall in the River Euphrates is gonna dry up. Can I get a help there? Amen, what are you saying? I mean, people were scared, amen, to death, hey, that Jesus is coming. But let me just stop right there. Jesus is still coming, amen. Jesus said that these things must be, amen. That is God is using, I believe, the tragedy of war, amen, to shape the world, amen, and to the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. You know God uses the wrath of men for his own glory? Sure he does, amen. Hey, we're not to be dismayed, amen, by wars and rumors of war. It's just God moving his pieces into place for the end time. I wanna stop here and just say this. I know I ain't preaching to you nothing new. Amen, there'll be wars, rumors of wars. Number three, let me say, there'll be constant upheaval in the world. Amen, in verse number eight, the Bible says, for nations shall rise against a nation. Let me tell you something, don't you forget China. Don't you forget Russia. Don't you forget North Korea. Don't you forget Iran. Don't you forget Syria. I need help on all these, amen. Jesus, hey, he cautioned us, amen, not to be caught up into these things. I mean, Jesus tells us that as long as the world stands, there'll be strife among nations, amen. I mean, listen, hey, we shouldn't be overly concerned about a lot of these things, amen, why? Because it's God preparing the world for his appearance, amen, of his son. Hallelujah, it's God preparing us. Everything that you see, amen, you want signs, amen, that Jesus is coming? Hey, we've been having signs that Jesus is coming, amen. Oh, listen, I said there are people in this world, but when we hear of Iran and Russia and China and North Korea and Syria, hey, it tends to make us a little afraid. Hey, you say, oh, but preacher, we got one in there now that'll stand up to him. Well, thank God we got one that'll stand up a little bit better now. I'm gonna tell you something though, friend. God's still gonna put things in place. Yeah, God's still gonna put things in place, amen, to fulfill his prophecy in the word of God. I guess I'm giving you a little bit of teaching this morning, amen. Yeah, preacher, what are you getting at? Listen, all these things just another part, amen, of living in the world, amen, and as the end approaches, amen, you'll see an increase, all kind of activity. I'm talking about all kind of upheaval. I mean, look what's happening right here in your own United States of America. Yes, sir. Hey, I'm convinced, hey, outsiders don't have to come to destroy it. Amen, it's being destroyed from the inside. Amen, and if there's a time to pray, we better pray. Number four, let me say, in verse number eight, listen, there'll be an increase in earthquakes. What happened this morning? That's what God, hey, that's the reason God led me in this direction, amen. What happened this morning? Really, how many failed it this morning? They said it's like 5.1 or 2, I don't know exactly. I've heard different numbers. I did read a little bit earlier that they was, the first one happened about something after one this morning. There was one, there's another one this morning. Hey man, one something AM this morning. That was actually the second one. I'm his window preacher. Hey, you know what? God could send an earthquake right now and wipe us all out. Hey, I'm saying this morning, there'll be an increase in earthquakes, amen. Listen, the world's no stranger to earthquakes. Scientists tell us that, amen, I don't know when this statistic was given, but scientists say that 13 million people have died in earthquakes, amen, in the past four years. 4,000 years, amen. 13 million people. Oh, hey, we saw with our own eyes, amen, the earthquake and what powerful quakes can do, amen. Listen, hey, back in December of 2003, I mean, that earthquake spawned a tsunami, amen, that killed some 300,000 people. I mean, remember the great tsunami. Hey, listen, 1811 and 1812. How many great earthquakes in Arkansas that rearranged the landscape of the area, caused rivers to change their courses, filled the skies with dirt and ash, and sparked many fires? Hey, these things ain't new, but I'm gonna tell you, as time goes and the Lord gets things ready, you'll see more and more earthquakes. I ain't trying to scare nobody, amen, but we don't know what's gonna happen this evening. Hey, I ain't gonna try and scare nobody. We don't know what's gonna happen before we leave this church, sir. I didn't feel it. Somebody says it feels weird. I didn't feel it, amen. Hey, man, but listen, hey, I'd like things to be stable under my feet, amen. On May 18, 1980, a volcano named Mount St. Helens in Montana, amen, erupted. This eruption, amen, was triggered by a violent earthquake that caused a rock slide comprised of one half cubic mile of rock. As the summit and north slope of that volcano slid down her sides, it says pressure was released inside the volcano, amen, where super hot liquid water immediately flashed to steam. The northward directed steam, The north, yeah, the north of directed steam explosion released energy equivalent to 20 million tons of TNT, dynamite. When toppled, amen, 150 square miles of forest in six minutes. It toppled a hunt, did you hear that? 150 square mile of forest in six minutes. How many of you believe God's still in control of this thing? in Spirit Lake, amen, north of the volcano, an enormous water wave initiated by one eighth cubic mile of rock slide had debris stripped through trees from slopes as high as 850 feet above, amen, the pre-eruption water level. The total energy output on May 18th was equivalent to 400 million tons of dynamite. Approximately 20,000, that's approximately 20,000 size atomic bombs. Let me believe Jesus is coming. Let me believe Jesus came and could just point his finger and it can all be over. Yeah, man. Hey, I'm talking about the disciples wanted to know the signs, amen. The explosion, amen, showered towns as far away as 250 miles with volcanic ash. Hey, I'll tell you something, friend, you better make sure you're ready to meet the Lord. They're increasing, amen, their frequency and their intensity. Hey, man, hey, didn't they say this is the biggest and recorded in North Carolina? The biggest one recorded. Listen, you ain't, this world ain't seen an earthquake yet. You believe that? Hallelujah, boy, there's a lot could be studied about earthquakes. What little bit of study that I, hey, that I had done this morning? I mean, God used earthquakes in the word of God, amen, to get people's attention, amen, amen, to let him know that God's still God, he's still on the throne. Hey, when Jesus, amen, hung on the cross and he died, amen, the earthquake came and the rocks rent, can I get a witness there? Hallelujah, showing the power of God. and his righteousness, amen. So listen, not only that, in that same verse number eight, there's gonna be famines. Now whenever these statistics were given, I'm not sure of it, but 3.6, amen, every 3.6 seconds somebody dies of starvation. Get this in your head. And we're in the land of plenty right now. 3.6 seconds somebody dies of starvation. Every year, amen, 15 million or more children die of starvation and hunger-related illness. Four million people starve to death every year. I mean, and 1.3 billion people live on less than a dollar of income a day. Are you getting this? I'm giving you a little lesson this morning instead of some topical preaching, I guess. Amen. Another three billion have survived on less than three dollars a day. Famines devastate the poor nations of the world, and we're just, hey, did you know that we're just one bad harvest away from starvation in America? Just one bad harvest. Let me have something to eat this morning on your choice. He had something to eat. How many of you getting ready to go out and eat dinner somewhere? Or going back to the house and fixing you something to eat? You know why? It's plenty. Gonna be famines. What signs of His coming? How many believe Jesus could come right now? Six of you, let me say this. I'll say famines will increase. They're gonna increase. They're gonna increase. You been in the supermarket lately? I mean, remember, hey, how many found out that you're paying a little bit more for your groceries? I'm talking about in the last four or five months. They want to blame it on this virus and everybody shut down. Jesus is coming, and it could be. Let me say, there'll be troubles of every kind. Bible says that in verse number eight, didn't he say? Earthquakes in diverse places, and there should be famines and what? Troubles. Troubles! I mean, listen, I'm talking about in Matthew's account of this conversation, he tells us that these troubles will be pestilences. Uh-oh, disease, plagues. Black death, amen, that medieval Europe was afflicted by. I mean, listen, whole villages were destroyed by plagues. The Spanish influenza outbreak during World War I, 25 million people died with the flu. In a world without overnight, listen, I'm talking about intercontinental air travel, amen. How many three times more people, amen, did of the flu during the war? Listen, we thought something like that could never happen. We thought, hey, hey, hey, look how the nation's shut down. An outbreak, amen, that shut down society. Preachers preached on this years ago and we're now facing, amen, I'm talking about an outbreak that shut down the society and how that me and you have bowed to it, amen, in the last four months. Now I ain't saying not take care of yourself and not do it. I believe we've done the right thing. All God's people say it. Sure. I mean, hey, we didn't think it happened here. Think about the AIDS epidemic. It was estimated at one time that 70% of the people in Africa are HIV positive. SARS, the bird flu, Ebola, all these things. Now we got the China virus. I'm gonna say it too, amen. Anybody in here can say China virus? If we can, let's do it as a count to three. One, two, three, China virus. You know what? The truth will set you free. Listen, we don't need to allow these kind of things, amen, to fill us with fear, though. How many saved? Well, glory. How many saved? Hey, these disciples wanted to know Peter, Andrew, James, and John. They wanted to know what's the signs, Lord? When's it gonna happen? What's gonna take place? And he started and began to tell them. How many have we seen all of them? We've seen all of them? Yeah, sure we have. Secondly, this morning, I want you to notice, amen, the promise that we have in verse number eight. It says, there, these are the beginnings of sorrows. Now, preacher, how can that be promised? How can that be a promise? These are the beginning of sorrows. Listen, after telling his men of the things, amen, that cause people to believe the end is near, Jesus lets them know that it can't really know, amen, when the end will come. Jesus tells them, amen, that these things, they're just the beginning of sorrows. My, my, my, the beginning of sorrows. These men were looking for signs, and what Jesus really gave them was not signs at all. They were non-signs. Think about it. That means helpin' me here. We don't know the coming of the Lord, but we know it's near, and he's a-givin' them amen. When I say non-signs, amen, I will consider it a sign, but you think about that just for a moment. I mean, that phrase means the beginning of birth pains. I mean, nearly every woman that's gave birth in this congregation this morning, amen, will tell you those first contractions strike, amen, that they're just an indicator of a long, hard time ahead. You women gonna say amen to that. So what are you saying? He's telling His disciples that these are the beginning of sorrows. This is the birth pains. In other words, there's more coming. Let me say amen to that. There's more coming. Jesus wants his people to know that he's coming, that he was his, hey, that was his promise while he was here. Amen, in John 14, one through three. That was the promise of the angels, amen, when he ascended to heaven. Acts chapter one, verses nine through 11. That was the promise of the apostle Paul riding under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost there in 1 Thessalonians, amen. But he doesn't want them to get caught up and speculating on when that day will be. You'll drive yourself crazy. Wondering when is it gonna be. The Lord wants his people to live their lives like this. He wants you to work like he's never coming. Now when I say that, what do you mean? He wants us to live like he might come at any second. When we don't know when the Lord's coming, we need to be working that hard, hard, harder. All God's people say it. Why is it burden to pastor so great during this pandemic? Because you know what? Have we seen anybody saved in the last four or five months that we know of? Why? Because we've been out a lot. We ain't had, hey, why ain't visitors? We had visitors coming out there and having drive-in services and ended up coming in one or two services, amen, in the church that we had to go back out. Why ain't they here? Is it because we're separating the pews? And they don't want to have to come to the choir to sit down? I mean, with the preacher. Jesus wants his people to know that he's coming. Amen. The Lord wants his people to live their lives. Amen. He wants us to work like he's never coming, but he wants us to work like he might come at any second. Listen, we're not to be caught up in guessing. Amen. When the Lord's gonna appear, we're not to be looking for signs. We're to be looking for the Savior. He said, to look up for your redemption, draweth nigh. We don't really need signs, Sister Kathy. Amen, I don't have to look for a sign that he's coming. Amen, but preacher, don't that help us? I said a while ago that they were, Jesus gave them non-signs. I don't know, maybe I shouldn't have said that. Amen, they were signs, amen, that the end was near, but it don't tell us how near that end is. All God people said? You say, what if he, hey, I believe my pastor said he preached for 40 years, Jesus was coming. You know what, soon? How many believe Jesus is still coming soon? If you're not ready today, you need to be ready. Now I know you just got up, but I gotta have you to the pen. Let's stand to our feet, if you will. I'd like for every head to be bowed. I'll close just for a moment. I'll give you some more of a teaching, amen, message this morning. But it's what I felt like God had pressed upon my heart. If you're not saved today, every head bowed. If you're not saved today, the things Jesus mentioned here ought to serve as a wake-up call for us. Now, you may have felt a little shaken this morning, a little vibration, or a little shaken, but you wait till the news starts reporting where the epicenter of this was. You wait till they start giving out the damage and what happened. You say, now preacher, you're speculating like there's a lot happened, even the five on the Richter scale has got to do some kind of damage. But see, it don't affect you. It didn't affect you like it's affected them. If you're here this morning, you're not a believer. The things that Jesus mentioned here ought to wake us up. I guarantee you that some people woke up this morning. Some probably woke up to devastation, scared to death. Didn't know what was going on. I wonder how many called on God this morning. Hey, God knows how to get our attention. I wonder how many really fell on their face and said, God, be merciful to me. They thought, amen, the end was near. Listen, Jesus is coming. The world will go in a time of terrible tribulations. Billions will die due to war, disease, starvation. I'm talking about plagues, earthquakes. The only way to miss that horrible time is to be ready when the Lord comes. Amen, to be ready now, to be saved now. This ain't the time, amen, to think you're saved, hope you're saved, wonder if you're saved. Hey, you better know without a shadow of a doubt that your name's written in the Lamb's Book of Life. Are you ready for Jesus to come? Are you ready to face death? What if you woke up in your house was in samples but you were still alive. What if you woke up and the earth had opened up and swallowed your house, but yet you were there somewhere and you were still alive, buried alive? Have you been saved by the grace of God? Church, Jesus is coming, but things are likely to get tough for his people before he does. Jesus is coming, but what are we going to have to go through and what's it going to be like before the rapture of the church actually takes place? Don't let us be deceived by signs of the times. Let us determine in our hearts that we're gonna obey His Word and we're gonna live for Him until He comes, amen, for us either in the rapture or if we have to depart, amen, but what we call death. Listen, if you wanna talk to the Lord about your walk with Him, hey, right now's the time to talk to the Lord, amen, about your walk. Now, if you come up here, it doesn't mean that you're lost or backslid. Well, it may be, maybe you are, amen, but maybe you're a Christian and you wanna bring it to Jesus and say, Lord, I got lost family members. I got lost loved ones that I wanna see saved. I realize, and the preacher's trying to tell me this morning, amen, that yeah, these are some signs, amen, but these signs have already come to pass, but they may be greater, amen, greater. Jesus is coming. And when he does, it's not going to be announced. When Jesus comes, he's gonna come as a thief in the night. You ain't gonna know. You little boys and little girls, do you know that you're saved? Have there been a time that you confessed your sin to God and you realized that if you was to die, you'd go to hell and you don't wanna go to hell? And you realize Jesus died for you? He hung on the cross, he was buried, Oh, on the third day, he rose again. He's alive, sitting at the right hand of the Father, and that he's a coming again. And you realize that, and you want to be saved. All you have to do is come to this altar, cry out to God, call on his name, and he'll save your soul. You gonna sing or just play? All right, if she continues to play.