The End of the World According to Jesus

Now Matthew Mark and Luke all contain what is usually known as the Olivet Discourse, since Mark and Matthew indicate that Jesus gave it from the Mount of Olives; but the point of this teaching is to instruct all Jesus’ disciples about the end of the age and the return of Christ.

This must have been quite confusing for the disciples, as they hadn’t yet accepted that Jesus was even leaving; let alone that he was going to come back. However, Jesus’ words would mean more once he rose from the dead. It is even easier now that some of the events Jesus prophecies have taken place. But since most of them are still future, Jesus’ words are very important for orienting yourself in the present. We still have the tendency to want to see every major event as a sign of the end of the world; on the other hand, multitudes are ignoring the reality of Jesus’ return and will be caught by surprise by the terrifying judgments to come. It is vitally important that we are always ready for the return of Christ; Jesus calls living ready for his coming “watching” and “staying awake.”

What is the sign of the destruction of the temple?

Jesus’ teaching was sparked by the awe-inspiring sight of the temple. The disciples weren’t initially trying to probe the end of the world; they were just commenting about how incredible the temple was. Josephus tells us that some of the stone were as much as 60 feet long; scholars have estimated that such stones could have weighed as much as one million pounds. The Rabbis said “he who has not seen the temple has never seen a beautiful building.” It really could have been the eighth wonder of the world; it was called Herod’s temple. Strictly speaking Herod renovated Zerubbabel's temple, but he changed it so much that it is better called “Herod’s temple.” Herod had to physically enlarge the temple mount to its present size, for the hill on which the temple was built was too small; the Temple Mount today retains the physical dimensions but obviously there isn’t a temple there anymore. In fact, it is not too much to say that Herod’s temple was considerably larger and grander than Solomon’s temple.

So as you might imagine the temple was a source of national pride as well as something precious for the worship of God. That’s when Jesus dropped the bombshell - the temple will be completely leveled to the ground. Josephus tells us that the destruction of Jerusalem was so complete that you could not tell that the place had ever been inhabited. This must have been a shock to the disciples - the Temple will be destroyed? When? how? Notice they don’t ask why. Jesus already showed why when he cast out the market animals and money changers. So they know why - it’s a judgment from God. But they want a timeline. It’s perfectly natural to want that; but Jesus does not actually give them one.

What is not a sign of the end

What Jesus actually does instead is warn them not to get caught up thinking that the end is already here. This is the exact opposite of a sign of the end; it’s a warning that the end isn’t here yet despite certain events that might make you think that it is.

And the first false sign of the end is false Messiahs. The ones who come in Jesus’ name are those who claim that they are the Messiah and they will bring the end of the world. He warns them not to follow these people. If you have to ask if this is the end, then the answer is no.

The second false sign of the end is war. Nations have always risen against nation, ever since there were nations. Natural disasters such as earthquakes, famines, and pestilence have plagued mankind from the very beginning; the point of warning us about these events is that it is exactly these sorts of events that would make people wonder if it is the end yet. Jesus says instead “do not be terrified” because “the end will not be at once.” Meaning that such disasters are not a sign of the end.

And yet people still think that. During Covid I had to answer questions about whether Covid was a sign that the Rapture and the Tribulation was near. It’s nearly six years since then; I can safely say that it wasn’t. Of course, at the time I could not say categorically that it wasn’t a precursor to the Tribulation, but I did tell them that it was unwise to assume that it had to be. Jesus had already given us the warning - just because something bad happens; even something global, this is not proof that the Tribulation is near; it could be near, but you won’t know if it is until the Tribulation actually happens.

Meanwhile, Endure Persecution

Jesus resets his timeline by saying “before all this.” That is, persecution will arise before any of the chaos he warned might cause you to think the world was ending.

This is not predicting a specific time of persecution; only that it will happen in many varied ways. Persecution is a reality that the church as a whole need to expect until the return of Christ. That does not mean everywhere or all the time; but you can expect persecution somewhere until Christ returns. We have been blessed to live in a relatively free country with religious freedom; however, the experience of the church in America is an anomaly in church history; we ought to be thankful for that, but you need to be prepared to endure persecution. It’s not important how much persecution God asks you to go through; what is important is that you are prepared to endure whatever does come. Notice that only “some” will be put to death. That means that not every Christian will experience persecution to the same degree, and that’s OK. But every Christian needs to settle in their minds to be prepared to face it with boldness should the need arise.

Of course our minds go towards government persecution, and if you are called to bear witness before a governor or other political official, then you must do so boldly. But even your nearest family members who do not know the Lord may hate and reject you for your faith; thus, persecution can be local and familial. It might be harder to take a family member’s rejection than Government threats. Jesus calls each of us to stand boldly even if everyone hates you because you are a Christian.

How far should you be willing to go? to the death. How can you threaten the person who is willing to die for their faith? You can’t and that’s the point. Yet not a hair of your head will perish. That obviously can’t mean that you won’t get physically hurt. I’d call being dead just a bit more than a hair of my head, wouldn’t you? But even if you die, you cannot be ultimately hurt, for you will rise again. Thus there is nothing to fear.

Your endurance gains eternal life, not physical life. You might have to die as a martyr. But perseverance is the mark of a true Christian. If you really believe the gospel you will not abandon it regardless of the pressure. Endurance does not earn your salvation; it proves the reality of it.

The Destruction of Jerusalem

Now for the first time Jesus does give a sign of something. But it’s the sign of the desolation of Jerusalem, not the end of the World. If you compare Matthew and Mark, they focus more on end time events, but Luke records what Jesus prophesied about the fall of Jerusalem which happened in the wars of the Jews from AD 66-70. And I know that because Jesus here only says about the “desolation” of Jerusalem. In Matthew Jesus talks about the Abomination of Desolations, which will happen in the tribulation. This is only about the fall of Jerusalem. Remember that’s what the disciples asked about. When will the temple be levelled as Jesus said?

It’s quite simple. When Jerusalem is surrounded by armies. Jesus does not say what army; as it happened, it was the Romans under General Titus. So if you were a follower of Jesus and you lived in Jerusalem about a generation after Jesus’ death, you would be expecting Jerusalem to be destroyed soon, and once you heard that the Roman Army was coming, you would have fled.

Eusebius tells us that this is exactly what the Christians in Jerusalem did; they actually fled to Pella. It’s the opposite of what people usually did during an invasion; usually those in rural unwalled towns would crowd into the cities for safety; here, Jesus tells them to leave fast once they knew that the armies were marching on Jerusalem. The nonChristians Jews did flee to Jerusalem, and they were all destroyed; the church listened to Jesus and they lived.

And the warning is dire. Normally the predominate casualties of war are young men. Women are spared. Not this time. This will be total war. Everyone must flee for the invading armies will slaughter everyone without distinction. Thus, pity the pregnant women and nursing mothers. They can’t run so fast. We are not so far removed from trying to go places with babies. It takes forever to get anywhere.

But Jerusalem must fall, for it is the days of vengeance. God did not forget that the inhabitants of Jerusalem killed the Messiah. He brought judgment before everyone of that generation past away. Also, Jesus hints that this is a matter of prophecy, and it is. Daniel predicted it.

Daniel 9:26 NKJV

“And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; And the people of the prince who is to come Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, And till the end of the war desolations are determined.

That is, the Messiah will be killed and apparently have nothing and after that the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the temple. Now the prince who is to come is the AntiChrist; this is why the AntiChrist has to be Western - notice it says that his people, not the prince himself; also it says his people, not his country. That is, it is not necessary that the AntiChrist be Italian; it is only necessary that the AntiChrist arise from any one of the Western nations that now exist. That includes America, the US is primarily descended from Europeans.

But the main point is that Daniel already prophesied that Jerusalem would be destroyed, and this prophecy was fulfilled in AD 70.

And once the city is taken, Jerusalem will be trampled by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. That is, once the city is taken, Jews will not fully control the city again until Jesus returns. That does not mean they can’t control the city at all, just that the Gentiles will be defiling the temple until then. Israel cannot build the temple; the dome of the rock is in the way, and if they demolished it it would start World War 3. Maybe the temple gets built prior to the start of the Tribulation; maybe it gets built during it or not until Jesus returns. But whatever happens, Gentile nations will have a say in what happens in Jerusalem until Jesus returns.

Notice that this creates a gap. Jesus said referred to the time of the Gentiles; that is the time that the Gentiles have dominance; they have had dominance ever since the Exile in 586 BC and this will not end until Jesus returns. So what happens after v.24 takes place after an unknown length of time - its however long the times of the Gentiles are. God knows how long that is - that’s why they can be fulfilled. Its just that he has not chosen to share that information with us.

The Signs of the Kingdom

So after the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled, there will be great cosmic signs, and fearful events. These are the events of the tribulation; yes, Jesus omits the Rapture entirely; that’s because the church wasn’t fully revealed yet. The Disciples weren’t quite ready to know about the church yet, so because the church wasn’t known, the Rapture wasn’t known either. By the way, Jesus directs his words to “you” meaning the disciples he is currently talking to. Yet he already said that some of them would be put to death, so by definition at least some of them won’t live to see these events. More than that when “they” that is, the people of earth, see Jesus coming, “your” redemption draws near. That is, Jesus is already teaching the imminent return of Christ. All the people who were alive then (except for Jesus himself, of course) are now long dead. Yet they were supposed to live as though they might be the generation that sees Jesus return.

Now the various signs of the Tribulation period are explained in more detail in the book of Revelation, but that takes us too far afield. The main point is that when they occur they demonstrate that the times of the Gentiles is ending; but one of the signs of the Kingdom is the Son of Man coming in the clouds - only when Jesus appears can you expect the nightmare to be over.

Of course, the church isn’t on the earth at that stage; we are in heaven. But since it isn’t the right time to reveal the existence of the church yet, he speaks to believing Israel, since believing Israel is in fact standing right in front of him. When Jesus actually returns most people will mourn and be terrified of him; he wants believers on earth at the time of his coming to celebrate instead. And yes, there will be many believers on earth at the Second coming; while every believer will be Raptured at the Rapture, a vast host of people will be saved during the Tribulation. Anyone who believes and manages to survive both the horrors of God’s wrath on the earth and the persecution of the Antichrist will know that Jesus’ return means it’s over.

But more than that, he is talking to disciples who haven’t even grasped the idea that Jesus is leaving, so the idea of him returning is just alien. He wants them to understand that even though he will leave, the story is not over. They must live in light of the Return of Christ each day. Jesus leaves us no hints about when all this will happen - the disciples wanted a timeline, but Jesus does not give them one. Instead, they must prepare to watch and be ready.

The Parable of the Fig Tree

Jesus gives another parable; this one is clearly a simple illustration; In the same way when you see the trees begin to green up, you know that winter is over and summer is around the corner. In the same way, when all these things take place, you know that the Kingdom of God is near.

And just so we don’t mistake it, he declares that his words are more secure than the heavens and the earth. Only God could be that certain. But what about this generation? He declares that this generation will not die until all these things are fulfilled.

Well Jesus did not return in a single generation. But Jerusalem did fall in less than one generation. Depending on how you date the gospels, Jesus was speaking either in AD 30 or Ad 33; Either way, the Wars of the Jews began AD 66 and ended AD 70. The most time you could get is 40 years, or one generation. Jerusalem really did fall within one generation.

But the events of the close of the times of the Gentiles clearly did not happen then, and we are still in the times of the Gentiles. Either Jesus meant the initial events of his timeline - the destruction of Jerusalem only - or he might also have meant the generation that sees the final events. The Tribulation is only seven years long; it is much shorter than a generation, so no young person alive at the beginning would die of old age; he might die of any number of other things, but it is much shorter than a generation as well. In other words, Jesus does not help tribulation saints know how long exactly to endure, but he does declare that it is less than a generation.

Watch and Stay Awake

Now Eschatology is not given to us to satisfy our curiosity about the future. it is given to us to encourage us to be ready. Jesus warns us that we must take care not to “weigh down” our hearts. A “heavy” heart isn’t a sad one; it’s one that refuses to listen. There are two things that can cause you not to be ready. The first is wild and riotous living. Obviously if someone is intent on destroying themselves through partying, they aren’t going to be particularly interesting in talking about Jesus returning to earth to judge the living and the dead. They will be uncomfortable with the idea that they will have to be accountable for their actions; even though they will be accountable for their actions even if Jesus doesn’t come back in their lifetime. A party-hard lifestyle has consequences.

The other danger is in being caught up in the cares of this life. This is the less spectacular danger - just living life and focusing on the here and now and forgetting that all this mundane stuff is really for when Jesus comes back. Someone caught up in the cares of this life might have a pretty responsible life, but they don’t think about spiritual things. They don’t live in the present for heaven, thus, they really don’t care about Jesus’ return. They are worried about the mortgage and their career and that sort of stuff.

Either way, failing to live in light of the return of Christ will mean waking up one day and getting a nasty shock. The return of Christ is without warning. the only way to be ready for the return of Christ is to be constantly living in a manner that pleases Him. This means always living in two modes; first, living the kind of life that you would not be embarressed for Jesus to return and find you doing it; second, preparing and planning for the future in case he does not return yet. He didn’t give us a timeline so we can’t sell everything and wait at the top of a mountain. But he also didn’t give us any warning, so we can’t live it up now and get right with God before the big day. The Big Day might be now.

That’s what Jesus means by “staying awake.” He means living in light of the imminent return of Christ. The prayer is that you may have the strength to escape these things - it is not physical strength you need, but spiritual strength. They could escape the destruction of Jerusalem by taking what Jesus said seriously about the coming armies that would destroy it. You can escape the Tribulation by trusting Christ for salvation today, so that you aren’t left behind to suffer with the rest of the world. Either way, those who believe Jesus escape; those who don’t will suffer.

But there is a second part to this prayer - to stand before the Son of Man; that is to stand before Jesus when he sits as King on the Throne of David. If you can stand before him in that day, you are in the Kingdom. The Blessings that God has promised, Blessings that can only come once God judges the earth. Those blessings can be yours.