10 Scriptures on How to Live in the End Times

1. Live in Love

“Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God” (1 John 4:7)

Widespread sinfulness can cause hearts once full of God’s love to grow cold. Matthew 24:12, explains how, “Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold.”

Acts 28:27 describes how people’s hearts can become calloused, causing their eyes to no longer see, their ears to no longer hear, and their hearts to no longer understand what is true.

Cold hearts become disheartened and question whether God really loves them, daily growing hardened towards Him and towards each other. Because coldness of heart usually happens over time, it’s vital to daily examine our own hearts, so we continue to live in love with God and with one another.

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2. Live by Faith Not by Sight

“For we live by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7)

Living in the end times requires living by faith and not by what we see going on around us. Keeping our eyes set on what is happening in the physical world will keep us from seeing and believing what God is doing in the spiritual.

If we put our confidence in what we can see, feel, and taste, then we’re not living by sight but by what we see as reality. Like 2 Corinthians 4:18 urges, “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”

Believing what we see to be more real than what God says is real, is living a faithless life because as Hebrews 11:1 explains, “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”

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3. Live Knowing God’s Word

“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15)

Some Christians are being led away from God’s truth by progressive leaders and churches, as well as by various deceptive spiritual beliefs that do not line up with God’s word. 2 Peter 3:17, warns believers to be on guard.

2 Timothy 3:8 describes how during the end times, there will be many teachers within the Church who rise up and oppose God’s truth.

As well, 1 Timothy 4:1 explains how some followers of Christ will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.

Studying God’s word is key to recognizing when leaders, groups, and ideologies are off-track. Knowing His word keeps us anchored in His truth.

Yet so many believers have stopped reading God’s word for themselves, relying rather others to tell them what it says. Doing so leads many astray, as they lose the ability to distinguish falsehoods on their own.

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4. Live Devoted to Prayer

“Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful” (Colossians 4:2)

Prayer needs to take a high priority during the end times because prayerlessness leads to losing communication with God.

Ephesians 6:18, explains the importance of prayer. “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and request. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.”

Praying for God’s direction, protection, and leading in our lives, will help keep us attentive to and aware of the enemy’s end times plans and attacks.

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5. Live Walking in God’s Light

“But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, His Son, purifies us from all sin." (1 John 1:7)

To navigate through the end times, it’s critical we stay out of the darkness of the world and walk in God’s light, so we won’t stumble off track. Ephesians 5:8 explains, “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light.”

As Ephesians 5:3-5 describes, walking in darkness involves participating in sexual immorality, any kind of impurity, greed, obscenity, foolish talk, crude joking, and more.

Instead, we’re to walk in the fruit of light, which consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth, and to find what pleases the Lord (Ephesians 5:9).

Walking in darkness means believers have wandered away from God's word and are backslidden in their relationship with Him. 1 John 1:6 explains, “If we claim to have fellowship with Him and yet walk in darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth.”

As Ephesians 5:15-16 warns, “Be very careful, then, how you live—not at unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil."

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6. Live Leading Others to Jesus

“How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?” (Romans 10:14)

Jesus tells the story of a rich man who died without Christ and then realized his entire family was set to follow him to torment (Luke 16:27-28). Tragically, it was too late for him to tell them or anyone about Jesus.

Living in the last days gives us time to lead others to Christ before it’s too late. It offers us the opportunity to focus on the eternal destiny of our friends, family, and neighbors.

God calls us to reach out to others on His behalf. “We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making His appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God” (2 Corinthians 5:20).

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7. Live Putting Hope in God

“Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment” (1 Timothy 6:17)

Living in the end times means putting our hope in God, rather than looking to achieve and attain our rewards on earth according to the world’s standards. As Ephesians 6:8 explains, the Lord will reward each of us for whatever good we do.

During the end times we can live hopeful knowing God is our provider and has much for us. Jesus says in Revelation 22:12, “Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with Me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done.”

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8. Live Walking in Forgiveness

“Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you” (Colossians 3:13)

Living in the end times means walking in forgiveness. Like the Lord has forgiven us, we are called to forgive one another.

Often we think we can manage holding onto unforgiveness because we feel it’s justified in some way. But an unforgiving heart is a serious condition. Carrying around hurts, wounds, and grievances affects our relationship with God and with others.

In case we underestimate the sin of not forgiving others, Matthew 6:15 explains. “But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”

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9. Live Keeping Watch

“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come” (Matthew 24:42)

So many have given up looking for Jesus to return. They just don’t believe it's going to happen anytime soon or at all.

Yet living in the end times means keeping watch and looking for His soon return. It’s believing what God has said will happen over what we think or feel. Matthew 24:31, assures us, “And He will send His angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.”

In this watchfulness, Jesus urges us to prepare for His coming. “So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect Him” (Matthew 24:44).

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10. Live Rested

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28)

It’s tiring living in tumultuous days and easy to grow exceeding weary. If we try to find rest on our own, soon we’ll be completely worn out.

Jesus understands life’s burdens and daily offers to bear the weight of its heaviness on His shoulders for us (Psalm 68:19). He graciously calls us to come to Him for rest.

As the Apostle Peter urges, “Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7).

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