Matt 24:36-51

Matthew 24:36–51 (ESV)

36 “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.

Directly above verse 36 of our text this morning, we find the parable of the fig tree located in verses 32-35. And the point of the parable is that by observing the fig tree, one can determine when summer is near.

So, if we take that knowledge, that lesson, and apply it to verse 36 and onto 41 - we understand that Christ is teaching that absolutely no one knows the exact day, hour or time that He will return.

Verse 36 tells us that even he as the Son of Man, as the incarnate God, had voluntarily laid aside significant aspects of his sovereignty - his omnipotence, omniscience and omnipresence meaning that Jesus Himself as 100% God and 100% man did not know the hour of his return.

However, Jesus tells us that by observing the signs (which are things Jesus mentions earlier in the chapter), one can have the ability to recognize that His return is near

He says starting in verse 37:

37 For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.

Christ designates Himself as the Son of Man:

Daniel 7:13–14 - “I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days (God the Father) and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.

There have been many religious leaders that people have celebrated as God or deity, but all, except one, have one thing in common: they never claimed to be God themselves and they are all dead.

Buddha - ash remains are said to have been found in a chinese village, never claimed to be God

Muhammad - buried in a tomb in Saudi Arabia, never claimed to be God

Joseph Smith - buried in Illnois, USA, never claimed to be God

Jesus Christ - remains have never been found, tomb where he was buried is empty, he was seen by hundreds after his resurrection and we see in verses all over the Bible, just like verse 37 of this text where he unequivocally designates Himself as God -

folks listen to me this morning....there’s something different about Jesus. He is the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and End, the way, the truth and the life, the Son of Man, the Son of God, the Bright Morning Star, the Savior of the World and the God of the Universe…He did everything he said he was going to do and is going to return and when he does - you better have that ticket punched and your house in order for the return of the Lord of the Universe!

He says in verse 38:

38 For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, 39 and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 40 Then two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one left.

Christ says that when He returns the world will be as it was in the days of Noah. And even though the signs of His coming will be obvious to anyone who is paying attention, apparently few will be looking.

In Genesis 6, around 1600 years had passed since God created Adam and Eve - earth’s population had exploded and Gen 6:5 tells us that the heart of humanity was continually evil.

It tells us that the earth was filled with violence, that the people of Noah’s day were depraved (corrupt; wicked) and were not the least bit concerned about it.

2 Timothy 3:1–4 gives us a better picture: But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,

And for those being observant - watching the signs of the time, just like the fig tree mentioned earlier...

It is becoming increasingly obvious that, to understand what the world was like in the days of Noah, we only need to watch the evening news.

42 Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.

It is not celebrated among protestant churches as much as in other circles but next Sunday, people all over the world will be celebrating “advent.”

Now advent simply means the arrival of a notable person, in the days of prior to the new testament - the Israelites awaited the advent of the Messiah…but today advent is not only to celebrate the fact that Christ came as the Messiah - but also to celebrate his second return as the Son of Man.

And this is the statement being laid out to us this morning… Christ is telling us to “stay Awake!” as believers.

If you are a follower of Christ here this morning - you are not to be sitting idly waiting for Jesus to come fix the world - instead you are to be completing The work of the Gospel! The Work of the Kingdom! The work of the great commission!

Matthew 28:18–20 (ESV) - And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Discipleship demands faithful stewardship! Not attempts to calculate the time of the end.

43 But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.

stressing how unexpected and unpleasant his return will be for those not prepared for it.

45 “Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his master has set over his household, to give them their food at the proper time? 46 Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. 47 Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions.

Christians too should be about their Lord’s work, honoring him in every area of life. Leaders must serve more than rule.

48 But if that wicked servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed,’ 49 and begins to beat his fellow servants and eats and drinks with drunkards, 50 the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know 51 and will cut him in pieces and put him with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

The alternative is to imagine the day of reckoning as later than it turns out to be so that one acts irresponsibly and wickedly, thinking that plenty of time still remains for repentance

The three main points of the parable thus follow:

“(1) God rewards and punishes people at the final judgment on the basis of their stewardship of the tasks assigned to them.

(2) Faithful stewardship requires perseverance and consistency, for the end could come at any time.

(3) Those who postpone their responsibilities and do evil in the meantime may sadly discover that it is too late for them to make amends for their errors.”