Mark 13:5 And Jesus answering them began to say, Take heed lest any man deceive you:
Fourfold warning:
In Mark’s gospel of Christ’s prophetic discourse on the Mount of Olives, Jesus warns us no less than four times to “take heed” and since it comes from Jesus we should pay attention to it. Take heed is one word in the Greek and carries the idea of looking at with our eyes, discerning with our eyes and mind what we see; carefully examine and weigh.
Deception:
First, Jesus warns us not to be deceived by those that try to keep us from Him and also prophetic signs. In Matt 24:4-5 Jesus told of those who would come either posing as Christ or His representative and deceive people into going away from God and His Word. Paul warns of some of the things that deceivers will try to beguile us to accept (Eph 5:3-7; Col 2:8). John warns of deceivers as well as Peter and Jude (1 Jn 4:1-2; 2 Pet 2:1-3; Jude 4).
Persecutions:
Jesus warns us to be prepared for probable persecutions. We live in a time of very mild persecution, but some Christians live in lands of severe persecutions. Christians in Egypt live day to day in fear of death, imprisonment and banishment for their faith. Chinese Christians have and are suffering persecution for their faith. Our faith has not been truly tested as yet, but may soon be tested and Jesus warns us to look, discern and examine our faith in light of it. In Lu 14:27-28 Jesus told of being His disciple and counting the cost to follow Him.
Signs and wonders:
This warning follows close to Jesus’ first warning but the emphasis is upon “signs and wonders” performed by the false prophets and Christs. Such things as are done in the name of God but in reality are thru the power of darkness (Acts 8:9-11; 13:6-8; 16:16-17; 19:19).
Predicting Christ’s return:
Many have tried to predict the time of Christ’s return either for gain, renown or just ignorance, thinking they can do what Jesus said we cannot do. Numerous people try to figure out who the antichrist is or one of some other aspects of prophecy – pointing details not given to us in Scripture. Some even get so enamored with prophecy that they neglect the rest of Scripture and focus totally upon prophecy not reading, studying or applying the rest of the Bible. Jesus warns that we cannot know the time of His return, but warns us to always be ready. In Lu 21:34 He warns us not to get caught up in the cares of life and forget prophecy altogether. We must live a balanced life and always be ready for His return.