Matthew 24:15 says, When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)  Jesus now begins to discuss the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem in more particular terms.  Jesus said that if they had read the prophecies of Daniel that they would understand what He was talking about.  Matthew Henry points out that in order to understand the Bible, we must study the Bible.  God's word will always lead us to a better understanding of who we are and Who He is.  Verse sixteen states, Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:  Jesus did not tell those who saw this abomination in the temple to stand and fight, but to flee into the mountains.  This does not mean that we are always to flee from trouble, but that at times God may lead us away from certain situations.  The key is to rely on God for guidance.  Verse seventeen states, Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house:  Jesus said that during this time of persecution that the people needed to forget about material things and simply follow God's instruction.  We cannot allow material things to keep us from everlasting life.  If we value the things of this world more than our relationship to Christ, then something is wrong.  Verse eighteen adds, Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.  Jesus said that there was to be an urgency to their escape from this abomination.  I believe that we can likewise say that we are to urgently flee from false teachings.  We need a sense of urgency in proclaiming the gospel as well.  Verse nineteen adds, And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!  Jesus adds a particular warning to expectant and new mothers.  This was not a warning against having children, but was simply a statement that it would be hard on those who were expecting or had young babies.  Verse twenty says, But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day:  Jesus said pray about having to flee.  It would be worse some times than others.  We often use an expression like, "I just pray," when we really don't pray about something, but I believe that Jesus was serious about praying about the situation.  Verse twenty-one says, For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.  We know that the early Christians experienced great tribulation, but we also know the their is coming a greater tribulation before the return of Christ.  Jesus tells us that we should be prepared for this, and the first step in that preparation is prayer, or seeking God's will for our lives.  I wonder how prepared Christians, especially those in America, are for tribulation because of their faith today.  Verse twenty-two says, And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.  Jesus said that unless the times of tribulation were shortened that no flesh would be saved.  This was speaking of a physical saving, since Jesus also said that for the elect's, those who accepted His salvation provided for them, that the days of tribulation would be shortened.  In verse twenty-three Jesus warns, Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not.  We are not to fall for anyone claiming to have seen Christ physically that we are to not believe it.  When Christ does return, the whole world will know it.  Verse twenty-four continues, For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.  Jesus warns us that there will be many false Christs and prophets.  Anytime someone says that we must go through them to find salvation, they have in effect declared themself to be the Christ, or Savior.  We have been warned not to believe them.  We have no need for a go-between to get us to Christ, and once we accept Him as our Savior, the Holy Spirit indwells us to help us keep Him as Lord.  Verse twenty-five states, Behold, I have told you before.  This was nothing new that Jesus was telling the disciples, and it certainly should be nothing new to us today.  We must be committed to following Christ, not just when things are going well, but especially during times of persecution.