TEXT:
‘Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?’ – Matthew 24:3
THOUGHT:
The title of Today’s Teaching presupposes that Jesus must have come to this earth the first time, otherwise He could not return! It’s amazing how many people, who have no trouble believing as fact aspects of English history which are only supported by a few records, yet choose to doubt the authenticity of Christianity, when there are over 8000 historical records in existence.
No doubt the real reason lies in the fact of who Jesus really is. If one believes He is God the Son, as He said, then one would have to listen to and obey Him. Not to do so would be to one’s eternal peril; but by writing Him off as a figment of someone’s imagination or His own delusion, people think it will not matter. The ostrich may bury its head in the sand but that will not prevent danger from coming its way.
Another misconception prevalent among Christians is the fact that as it has been such a long time since Jesus said, “I will come again”, He is not going to return at all! Peter, in his epistle, warned against such thinking, ‘What happened to the promise that Jesus is coming again? ….But you must not forget this one thing, dear friends: A day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day. The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent’ – 2 Peter 3:4, 8-9.
God works on a different timescale to us. The eternal God is outside of our earthly limits of days, weeks, months and years. What we think is a delay is merely God getting everything into place. He is a faithful God who keeps His promises. If the Bible recorded Jesus promising His disciples that He would return, then He will!
Today’s Teaching looks at the Bible passages which recorded Jesus telling His disciples in great detail about the end times when He would return. We will concentrate on Matthew chapter 24. See also Mark chapter 13 and Luke chapter 21.
While the disciples were admiring the temple’s restored architecture, Jesus prophesied its complete destruction. This was fulfilled in AD70. Literally not one stone was left upon another as the Roman army tried to ensure that Jerusalem and the temple were obliterated permanently. Jesus’ prophecy shocked the disciples and they asked Him three questions.
When Will These Things Be?
What Will Be The Sign Of Your Coming?
What Will Be The Sign Of The End Of The Age?
Today’s Teaching is not an in-depth study, but more to see what we can learn from the answers Jesus gave to His disciples’ questions and the advice He gave as to how we can be ready and waiting for His return. It is being sent out in three parts over the next two or three weeks.
WHEN WILL THESE THINGS BE?
This was perhaps the easiest answer to understand as less than forty years later Jerusalem and its temple were destroyed. But concerning the other events Jesus said, ‘No one knows the exact day or hour’ – Matthew 24:36. However, just as changes taking place in nature let us know that summer is on its way, so it will be known in a general sense that the return of Christ is imminent.
Those who claim to know the day of Christ’s return and publicly predict it (as the Jehovah Witnesses have done several times) are in error and should be ignored. Only the Father knows. Jesus in His humanity did not. If He did then He would have told His disciples, for He did not keep anything back from them that would have been helpful.
It is probably likely that some of the twelve disciples lived long enough to have witnessed the destruction of the temple. Certainly the Apostle John would have been alive, for he lived to be nearly one hundred years old, although he may have been exiled to Patmos at that time.
Jesus warned His disciples about the danger of deception from false Christ’s – Matthew 24:4-5. As long as a Christian sticks to what the Bible says, they will not be deceived but ready for the return of Christ. Jesus later made a promise to His disciples that He was going to heaven to prepare a place for them and when it was ready He would return to take them there – John 14:1-4.
Scripture seems to make a clear distinction between Christ’s return to the air for the saints – 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 and His returning to the earth with the saints – Revelation 19:11-16. He talked about returning as a flash of lightning – Matthew 24:27, but also of everyone seeing the sign of His return – Matthew 24:30. The first refers to the rapture or snatching away, the second refers to His literal return to earth.
The disciples, shortly before His ascension asked Him, ‘Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?’ He replied, ‘The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth’ – Acts 1:7-8 NLT. In other words, do not concentrate on My second coming, but on the reason for My first. Evangelise the world in the power of the Holy Spirit, so that when I return to the air for the saints (all believers), there will be a mighty harvest to take to heaven.
Jesus is coming. The question is, “Is He coming back for you?”
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