As I look at the condition of the world today, I cannot help but believe that we are well into what Jesus called “the beginning of sorrows.” Everywhere we turn, we see war, violence, deception, hatred, famine, disease, persecution, and the steady loss of compassion for human life.
The world is not becoming more peaceful. Evil is spreading, violence is expanding, and governments increasingly speak of destroying entire nations as if they were moving pieces upon a game board. Children are killed and called collateral damage. Hospitals, schools, homes, bridges, power plants, and water systems are placed in danger. Leaders threaten greater destruction while crowds cheer them onward.
Jesus warned:
“For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows.”
— Matthew 24:7–8, KJV
We are not merely watching another difficult chapter in human history. We are seeing a warning that mankind is moving toward a crisis it will not be able to solve.
The Sorrows Will Increase
The word sorrows speaks of birth pains. They may begin slowly, but they become stronger, more frequent, and more difficult to endure as the appointed time approaches.
For many years, people have said there have always been wars, earthquakes, disease, and evil. That is true. Jesus did not say these things would suddenly appear for the first time. He warned that they would come together and intensify.
One conflict leads to another. One nation attacks, another retaliates, alliances are activated, trade routes are closed, economies weaken, food prices rise, and ordinary people suffer. Every act of revenge becomes the excuse for greater violence.
Humanity possesses weapons capable of destroying cities in moments. Governments can shut down electrical grids, poison water supplies, interrupt food distribution, and bring suffering to millions who never entered a battlefield.
We may be seeing only the beginning of what will soon come upon the earth.
Evil Will Continue to Spread
The danger is not found only in armies and weapons. It is also found within the human heart.
People are becoming accustomed to death. They watch homes collapse and children carried from the ruins without feeling sorrow. They defend actions they would condemn if another country committed them. Political loyalty has become more important than truth, mercy, or human life.
Jesus warned:
“And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.”
— Matthew 24:12, KJV
A cold heart can justify almost anything. Once people stop seeing their enemies as human beings, there is no limit to the suffering they will accept or inflict.
Paul described the last days:
“This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves… without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good.”
— 2 Timothy 3:1–3, KJV
We are witnessing the spread of an evil that no border can contain. Violence does not remain where it begins. Hatred moves from nation to nation, community to community, and eventually from heart to heart.
There Will Be No Place to Hide
Many believe they will escape because the war is happening somewhere else. They watch the suffering of other nations from the safety of their homes and assume it can never reach them.
But the world has become too closely connected for any major conflict to remain isolated.
War affects fuel, food, medicine, banking, transportation, communication, and employment. A missile launched thousands of miles away can raise prices at an Indiana grocery store. A closed shipping lane can empty shelves across America. A cyberattack can darken cities without a foreign soldier ever crossing the border.
If violence continues spreading, there will eventually be no nation untouched, no economy unaffected, and no earthly place completely secure.
The wealthy may build shelters. Governments may establish protected locations. Families may store food and supplies. There is wisdom in reasonable physical preparation, but no bunker can shelter the soul from the judgment of God.
The prophet Amos warned those who believed they could escape the approaching day:
“As if a man did flee from a lion, and a bear met him; or went into the house, and leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him.”
— Amos 5:19, KJV
There may come a time when there is no earthly place to hide. The greatest preparation is therefore not merely securing food, water, medicine, or shelter. The greatest preparation is preparing the soul.
Prepare Your Soul
Many people prepare for emergencies but neglect eternity. They have food in storage but no faith in their hearts. They have plans for a power failure but no preparation to stand before God. They know where they will hide during a storm, but they do not know where their soul will go when life ends.
Jesus asked:
“For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?”
— Mark 8:36, KJV
You may survive an economic collapse and still lose your soul. You may escape a battlefield and still be unprepared for eternity. You may possess everything necessary to preserve the body for a season while neglecting the soul that will live forever.
Preparing your soul begins with repentance.
“Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.”
— Luke 13:3, KJV
Repentance is more than fear of coming judgment. It is turning away from sin and surrendering your life to Jesus Christ. It is admitting that you cannot save yourself and trusting the One who died for your sins and rose again.
“For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
— Romans 10:13, KJV
Christ Is the Only Safe Refuge
I do not know exactly how much time remains. No one knows the day or hour. But we do not need to know the date before responding to the warning.
No government can promise your safety. No military can protect every city. No amount of money can guarantee tomorrow. There is only one refuge that will never fail.
“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”
— Psalm 46:1, KJV
The same Psalm describes a world in upheaval:
“Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea.”
— Psalm 46:2, KJV
Faith in Christ does not mean Christians will avoid every earthly trial. Believers may experience persecution, poverty, loss, sickness, or war. But nothing can separate those who belong to Christ from the love of God.
Our safety is not the promise that trouble will never reach us. Our safety is knowing that Christ will never leave us.
God Will Intervene
Jesus warned that the final period of suffering would become so severe that human survival itself would be threatened:
“For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.”
— Matthew 24:21–22, KJV
Mankind will reach the point where human wisdom, diplomacy, military strength, and technology cannot rescue us. Unless God intervenes, humanity will destroy itself.
But God will intervene.
The governments of this world do not control the final outcome. Proud rulers do not write the last chapter of history. Jesus Christ will return, evil will be judged, and the kingdoms of this world will yield to His authority.
“The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.”
— Revelation 11:15, KJV
Do Not Wait Until Tomorrow
This message is not written to create panic. It is written to awaken the soul.
Jesus told His disciples to watch. He warned them not to become so occupied with everyday life that the appointed hour arrived while they were spiritually asleep.
“Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.”
— Matthew 24:42, KJV
Do not wait for another war, another plague, another economic collapse, or another tragedy before seeking God. Do not wait until fear fills your heart and every familiar place of safety has disappeared.
The time to prepare your soul is now.
Confess your sins. Turn away from evil. Forgive those who have wronged you. Make peace where peace is possible. Open the Word of God. Seek the Lord in prayer. Place your complete faith in Jesus Christ.
The darkness may continue to deepen. Violence may spread until there seems to be no place left to hide. But those who belong to Christ possess a refuge the darkness cannot enter and the powers of this world cannot destroy.
Jesus said:
“And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.”
— Luke 21:28, KJV
We may be well into the beginning of sorrows. What comes next may be more difficult than anything this generation has experienced.
Prepare what you reasonably can for your family—but above everything else, prepare your soul.
There may soon be no earthly place to hide. But there is still time to run to Jesus.
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