Women's Bible Study - October 23rd, 2024 - Living Ready for Christ's Return (Matthew 24)

In one paragraph

Deborah walked First B Jackson's women's Bible study through Matthew 24 and the surrounding scriptures, tracing what Jesus told His disciples to watch for before His return. Her aim was not to set dates but to show that the signs are real, the season may be closer than we think, and the church is called to be ready. Jesus set up Matthew 24 at the end of Matthew 23, when He looked at Jerusalem and...

Read together

1. Matthew 23 Jesus gives seven woe statements to the Pharisees before turning to address Jerusalem
2. Matthew 24 Jesus teaches signs of the end times and the coming of the Son of Man
3. 1 Thessalonians 4 Paul tells the church to be informed and not ignorant about the end times
4. Matthew 25 Three parables Jesus tells the church about being ready for his return
5. Ezekiel 36-38 Prophecy of a great war coming upon Israel involving named nations
6. Daniel 9:27 Gives the specific seven-year length of the tribulation period
7. Daniel 12:11 Tells of the idol being set up in the middle of the tribulation period
8. Daniel 12 Gives a specific timeline of days so the day of second coming can be calculated
9. Numbers 19 Red heifers must be sacrificed to purify the ground for the temple to be rebuilt
10. 1 Thessalonians 4 Describes the rapture: the Lord descending, the dead in Christ rising, believers caught up in the clouds
11. 1 Corinthians 15:52 Paul says the rapture will happen in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye
12. Revelation 3:10 God promises to keep his followers from the hour of trial coming upon the whole world
13. 1 Thessalonians 1:10 Believers wait with confidence for Jesus to personally rescue them from the coming wrath
14. Revelation 19:14 At the second coming Jesus comes down to earth rather than meeting believers in the air
15. Zechariah 14:4 His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives at the second coming
16. Revelation 1:7 All peoples of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man appear
17. 1 Corinthians 13 The Lord defines what love is, including that it is kind and not easily offended
18. Matthew 19:29 Whatever believers do to advance the kingdom they will receive a hundred times that amount in eternity
19. Proverbs 21:13 Whoever shuts their ears to the cry of the poor will also cry out and not be answered
20. 2 Timothy 3 Paul tells Timothy that in the last days people will consider nothing sacred and times will be difficult

Talk about it

1. Deborah said Jesus described the coming troubles as birth pains, and called that a word of hope because labor pains lead to new life. How does that image change the way you think about hard things happening in the world right now?
2. Deborah pointed to the parable of the ten bridesmaids and said some of them looked the same on the outside but were not ready on the inside. What do you think it actually looks like, day to day, to have oil in your lamp?
3. Deborah shared the quote from Dallas Willard that discipleship is the process of becoming who Jesus would be if he were you. What does that challenge or encourage you about in your own life right now?
4. Deborah read from Proverbs 21:13 and talked about faithfulness meaning God can depend on you, and that He brings people across your path where you can either walk away or help. Can you think of a time you felt that kind of nudge, and how did you respond?
5. Deborah closed by asking, does He know you, and said your eternal life depends on that answer. What does it look like practically to grow in that kind of knowing relationship with Jesus, rather than just knowing about Him?