Matthew 24:1-8 — “Many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars… and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places…” In the opening section of the Olivet Discourse Jesus describes as series of signs that He calls the “beginning of sorrows.” The image He uses is that of a woman giving birth and these are the first labour pains. What period of time was Jesus referring to? Was He talking about events in the past? Was He talking about our world today? Or about a time that is yet to come?
