Christian Living

He Who Endures to The End, Shall Be Saved

by Stephen Gola
01/09/22
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What does “But he who endures to the end, shall be saved” really mean? We hear it, but do we really understand it?

As I was spending time with the Lord, He opened-up my understanding regarding what He meant in Matthew 24:13.

To understand what Jesus meant, we must answer these three questions:

1. “…he who endures to the end” of what?


2. “…he who endures” what to the end?


3. And how does a believer “endure to the end?”

Remember, Matthew 24 is about world-wide trouble, tribulation, the end of the age, persecution of Christians, the rise of the man of sin, and the second coming of Jesus Christ.

To understand what Jesus meant in Matthew 24:13, we have to start in verse 9:

Jesus said, “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake.”

Remember those words: tribulation (persecution), kill, hated.

              Verse 10: “And then many will be offended, will betray one another.”

                             Remember the words: offended, betray.

              Verse 11: “Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many.”

                             Remember the words: false prophets, deceive.

Now this is where we get to the heart of why, how and for what reason Jesus said, “But he who endures to the end, shall be saved.        

Verse 12: “And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.”

All the words in the previous versus’ I said to remember, have to do with lawlessness. And what happens when lawlessness abounds? “The love (agape) of many (Christians) will grow cold.”

Jesus spoke this warning to not only those believers who where present with him, but to every person who believes on His name. That from then on, and especially at the end of the age, believers will be persecuted, hated, killed, betrayed, offended, and deceived by many who say they believe in Christ and those who don’t.

Because believers will be facing these obstacles, difficulties and challenges that will have an eternal outcome on their life after he or she leaves earth, Jesus gave us that admonishment to endure to the end.

Now to answer the three questions in order to understand what Jesus really meant in Matthew 24:13:

Question 1: “he who endures to the end” of what?

Jesus is not saying for us to endure by surviving or staying alive till the end of the tribulation. Nor is He saying to survive or stay alive until His coming. Jesus is saying, endure until your last breath ­— endure until you die by whatever means.

              Question 2: “he who endures” what to the end?

Believers must endure what Jesus said in versus 9-11 which are: tribulations, persecutions, being offended, hated, betrayed, deceived by false prophets and even killed by those of your own family.

Question 3: And how does a believer endure “to the end”?” This is the most critical of the three questions to answer.

The answer is hidden in verse 12: “And because lawlessness (the tribulation, persecution, hatred, killings, offences, betrayals and deceptions will be so intense) and abound, the love (agape) of many (Christians) will grow cold.” This is why Jesus said, “He who endures (all this) to the end (to his or her last breath) shall be saved.” The key to how to endure to the end is to walk in love (agape).

When we are facing these situations and walking in love, we will not only endure to the end ourselves, but will also encourage and strengthen other believers to stay in the love of God till their last breath. We cannot allow the lawless acts of the ungodly that are perpetrated against us to cause our hearts to hate back, be offended, do evil in return or hold any-kind of malice in our hearts against them. Returning evil for evil is exactly what the devil wants us to do in order to keep us from following Jesus’ command to “endure to the end.”

So, what are the commandments of love for us to use against the devil to successfully endure to the end?

• Love God first and foremost with every fiber of your being (Mark 12:30).


• Love your neighbor as yourself (Mark 12:31).


• Love your enemy (Luke 6:27-36).


• Jesus said, “Love one another as I have loved you” (John 13:34-35).


• And to show you love God, Jesus said, “If you love me, keep my commandments (John 14:15).

If we haven’t been practicing walking in love to those who have intentionally hurt us or seeking to do us harm, we need to start right now. The hour is late and as Jesus said, the love of many Christians will grow cold and will not be able to endure to the end to be saved.

Though I easily and quickly forgive, harbor no known ill feelings of hate, unforgiveness, bitterness, malice or anger in my heart toward anyone; purposely pray for good for those who have ought against me, I still feel my flesh recoiling as I write this. Adam failed obedience to God in the most perfect environment, but there will be those who will continue to walk in obedience to the love of God in the most-darkest of times. The question is, will we choose to be one of them?

We haven’t even begun to grasp the intensity of the hatred and persecution that is coming to Christians as we are fast approaching the end of the age and the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, it is essential to practice the love of God daily and rid our heart of all these evils.

Remember this: “The purpose (the goal) of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith” (1 Tim 1:5).

In spite of all the evil and wickedness thrust against believers in these end days, God will still have a people who endures: “And this Gospel of the Kingdom will be preached (by those who endure) in all the world as a witness to all nations, and then the end will come (and not before).

Note: Part 2: “How-to Walk-in Love Toward People While destroying the Evil That Drives Them” will be posted as soon as it is finished. The main topics are:

1. They Know Not What They Do


2. Do Not Be a Casualty of War


3. Remember, It MUST Be Done Legally


4. Jesus Came “That He might destroy the works of the devil,” And That’s What Love-Manifested Will Do