Things to Come

Bottom line

Jesus told us what was to come so that we could discern between what is of God and what is a deception.

Opening Line

May 8, 1945 marked the official end of World War 2 in Europe, followed by the official surrender of Japan on August 15, 1945. But did you know that even though that is when history remembers the war ending, it didn’t actually end until much later?

Introduction

On the Europe side of things, the Nazi resistance continued to fight against Allied sources for an additional 9 days. On the Japan side of things, Japan didn’t sign its official surrender until September 2, 1945. Then, on April 28th, 1952, Japan signed the Treaty of San Fransisco, which marked the legal end of the war with Japan, a full 7 years later.

As interesting as that may be, the final 2 holdouts of Japanese resistance didn’t surrender until 1974, 29 years after Japan officially surrendered. One was holding out in Indonesia, and the other holding out in the Philippines.

Main Point

Why do I start with some random World War 2 facts? Because as followers of Jesus, you and I live in this now but not yet reality. On one hand, Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension mark his victory over sin, death, and the ultimately the devil. He has won the war, Satan is defeated, and Kingdom of God is here. It is why you can experience God’s healing touch and his blessing in your life. The kingdom of God is here.

But, on the other, it is not here yet. Even though he is defeated, Satan is still very active in the world and still causing problems. Sin is still very real in our world, and because of sin things don’t always go according to plan.

So as disciples of Jesus, you live within this tensions of the now and not yet. At times, you experience the now and the goodness of being a son or daughter of God Almighty. At other times, you experience the hardship and unpredictability of living in a world ruled by the devil, whose who purpose is to steal, kill and destroy.

Why it matters

This tension in our faith is felt in many different areas. This morning, as we continue on in Matthew 24, one of the things that you will see is that there is a tension found in some of the bible prophecies. Some of these prophecies have had a partial fulfillment, yet you get the sense that there is more to come. The challenge is to be able to live within the tension, to see what has happened, and still be watchful, knowing that there is more to come.

We are going to pick things up in Matthew 24:15. If you missed last week, I encourage you to check it out as we looked at how some of the things that Jesus said signal the end are happening right now, and this morning is a look at things to come.

Scripture

Matthew 24:15–22 NLT

“The day is coming when you will see what Daniel the prophet spoke about—the sacrilegious object that causes desecration standing in the Holy Place.” (Reader, pay attention!) “Then those in Judea must flee to the hills. A person out on the deck of a roof must not go down into the house to pack. A person out in the field must not return even to get a coat. How terrible it will be for pregnant women and for nursing mothers in those days. And pray that your flight will not be in winter or on the Sabbath. For there will be greater anguish than at any time since the world began. And it will never be so great again. In fact, unless that time of calamity is shortened, not a single person will survive. But it will be shortened for the sake of God’s chosen ones.

1) The Abomination of Desolation

The NLT says sacrilegious object that causes desecration, but the Greek is actually the abomination of desolation, which is exact same wording found in Daniel. Even if you don’t know what either of those words mean, just hearing it said creates a strong emotion in you. You very much get the idea that something horrible is being done. Abomination is a repugnant or detestable act, person or object. Desolation is the state of being decayed or destroyed.

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Jesus mentions that the object or person has already been referred to in the book of Daniel. In fact, Daniel has 4 separate visions of the abomination of desolation, each revealing a little more of the picture than the last. So it is no small thing that Jesus mentions it here.

But here comes the tension. Daniel prophesied this abomination happening during the Babylonian exile, then a few hundred years later, it happens. Following Alexander the Great, a Greek general would march into Jerusalem, set up an image of Zeus in the temple, sacrfice pigs on the altar, and force the priests of God to eat the raw pig flesh. The image of Zeus in the temple is the abomination, pigs being unclean according to God’s law would have been the desolation or decay of God’s holy standards.

Then, interestingly, Jesus brings it up again. Following Jesus’ words, in ad 70, the Romans would march on Jerusalem, and a Roman general would walk straight into the holy of holies, set up more altars in the temple, and when the Jews resisted, he tore the whole temple down.

In both of these moments in history, not only was the temple desecrated by the actions of these unbelievers, but history records some of the worst horrors inflicted on the Jewish people. In the ad 70, two thirds of the Jews were slaughtered as they attempted to flee the city.

Where some would say that the words of Daniel and Jesus are fulfilled, based on these moments in history, I want to suggest to you that it is going to happen again. If the signs that Jesus described in the first part of the chapter are happening, then the next part is still to come, the only difference is that instead of the events being limited to just Israel, the ramifications will be on global scale. When you see the abomination of desolation, that is your cue to take cover because what happens next will be worse than anything that has ever happened before.

As much as some of you would love to hear my take on the abomination of desolation, you will have to wait until the end of the month for that one. I will say this before we move on. Jesus says the abomination of desolation will be standing in the Holy Place, aka the temple in Jerusalem. There is no temple in Jerusalem at the moment because Islam has laid claim to the temple mount. However, there is a very strong movement known as the Third Temple movement that are putting things together in order to rebuild the temple of God. When that happens, we need to take notice because of what is to follow.

Matthew 24:23–28 NLT

“Then if anyone tells you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah,’ or ‘There he is,’ don’t believe it. For false messiahs and false prophets will rise up and perform great signs and wonders so as to deceive, if possible, even God’s chosen ones. See, I have warned you about this ahead of time. “So if someone tells you, ‘Look, the Messiah is out in the desert,’ don’t bother to go and look. Or, ‘Look, he is hiding here,’ don’t believe it! For as the lightning flashes in the east and shines to the west, so it will be when the Son of Man comes. Just as the gathering of vultures shows there is a carcass nearby, so these signs indicate that the end is near.

2) More False Messiahs and False Prophets

Now some of you from last week are probably looking at me like, “Wasn’t this the first point from last week?” Yes, but I want you to note what Jesus adds this time. He says that this new wave of false messiahs and false prophets will perform great signs and wonders. They will be so convincing that they will be able to deceive even the most seasoned believer.

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Imagine, someone bursting onto the scene with the ability to performs signs and wonders, the kind that are typically associated with God’s holy people, maybe even Jesus himself. Those individuals could draw quite a following very quickly.

But! Jesus says that when the Son of Man returns, you won’t have to have someone run up and tell you about it. It will as obvious as a flash of lightning in the sky.

Now I want to unpack this a bit. I’ve heard say that the lightning reference is the quickness of lightning; blink and you miss it. But Jesus clearly uses the image of lightning for its power and obviousness.

A couple years ago, I was walking back from the church to my house. It was summer, and as I was walking, the sky was kind of hazy. I could hear thunder off in the distance, but figured I had lots of time to get home. Well, I had just turned the corner onto my street to head home, and all of a sudden BOOM! All I could see was white light, and the thunder hurts my ears it was so loud. Needless to say, I ran for home. Only to get inside and see my loving family rolling on the floor laughing as I ran for my life.

I tell you that story because I can attest that there was nothing about that moment that was blink and you miss it. It was loud, it was powerful and it was terrifying. I couldn’t have missed it if I tried, and that was the point Jesus was making. When he returns, you won’t need someone pointing it out; you will see it for yourself. So don’t be duped by these false messiahs and prophets that will rise up.

Matthew 24:29–31 NLT

“Immediately after the anguish of those days, the sun will be darkened, the moon will give no light, the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. And then at last, the sign that the Son of Man is coming will appear in the heavens, and there will be deep mourning among all the peoples of the earth. And they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he will send out his angels with the mighty blast of a trumpet, and they will gather his chosen ones from all over the world—from the farthest ends of the earth and heaven.

3) The Son of Man Comes

Jesus is the Son of Man. Jesus reinforces the idea that you won’t miss his return. He will come on the clouds of heaven with power and glory. The mourning of the peoples is because the one with the highest authority has come, and he is going to put an end to corruption and all the things that people use to keep themselves in power.

Don’t worry you won’t miss it. However, the question is, are you going to ready for the day that he does come?

Matthew 24:32–36 NLT

“Now learn a lesson from the fig tree. When its branches bud and its leaves begin to sprout, you know that summer is near. In the same way, when you see all these things, you can know his return is very near, right at the door. I tell you the truth, this generation will not pass from the scene until all these things take place. Heaven and earth will disappear, but my words will never disappear. “However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows.

4) Learn the Signs

The same way that people can look at the fig tree and know that summer is quickly approaching, you can see the signs, the things that Jesus has described, and know with confidence that return of Jesus is near. You told this the have hope because you serve a good God who has told you what is to happen.

But you won’t know the exact day or hour. Knowing that the end is near is meant to spur you on to a life of faithfulness. It is meant to inspire you to hold strong to your faith and conviction because you know that your reward is near. Seeing these things take place is not meant to discourage you or cause fear; it is to create anticipation because you know what comes next is amazing and good.

Now I will make this comment. I’ve heard a lot of people point out the generation comment. What does Jesus mean that this generation won’t pass away. Well, on one hand, the events of ad 70 would lend itself to this comment. The other thought is that the generation that saw Israel become a nation again won’t pass away before the Son of Man returns. I’m not saying that definitively, but it might be worth keeping in mind.

Matthew 24:37–41 NLT

“When the Son of Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah’s day. In those days before the flood, the people were enjoying banquets and parties and weddings right up to the time Noah entered his boat. People didn’t realize what was going to happen until the flood came and swept them all away. That is the way it will be when the Son of Man comes. “Two men will be working together in the field; one will be taken, the other left. Two women will be grinding flour at the mill; one will be taken, the other left.

5) Just like any other day

Now there is a lot that could be said about the days of Noah comment, and I could unpack it. But I think the significant point is what Jesus said how people were conducting themselves. They were partying and getting married and having banquets. They were just enjoying life the same way they had done every other day of their life. Until the flood waters came and swept them away. For many people, the return of Christ will catch them off guard, completely unprepared.

Do you know who wasn’t caught off guard? Noah. Why? Because God told him what he was supposed to do, and what was going to happen. So while the world was looking down, Noah was looking up, watching for the rain.

Now some of you may be wondering what is going on with verses 40 and 41. Two men working, one will be taken, the other left. Two women grinding, one taken, the other left. What is going on here?

The Rapture

There is a strongly held belief that what Jesus is describing here is something called the Rapture. There are lot of scripture in the New Testament that talk about the faithful in Christ being swept up, first the dead in Christ and then the living, and we will meet Jesus in the sky. Though there are a few that argue that the rapture isn’t a really thing, the vast majority of scholars agree that the faithful in Christ will be swept up, but they just can’t seem to agree on when it will happen.

Without getting into it too in depth, I want to present to you the two most prominently held beliefs, and where I think I fall on the spectrum. The first popular belief is that the faithful in Christ will be raptured before the seven year period known as the Tribulation. It is the Pre-Tribulation belief. The idea is that before the abomination of desolation, before the atrocities that are going to happen, before things get really bad, the church will be swept away and we will miss it. Nice thought.

The second most prominent view is what is called the Post-Tribulation view, and I want to suggest that this is more true to the Biblical account. Here’s why I say that:

a) It follows the timeline of Matthew 24

It is no small detail that Jesus lists it at the end of his account of the series of events that signal the end. If the rapture was going to happen earlier, he would have probably said as much.

b) Scripture speaks about enduring and persevering

If the church was going to escape the hardship that are the come, why would the New Testament authors encourage the church that those who persevere to the end will be saved? The need to persevere and endure are only necessary if there is hardship that needs to be endured.

c) Pre-Tribulation belief only works in the West

I recently read about the start of the church in China. When the missionaries arrived, they taught the people that the rapture would happen before tribulation came. Then the Chinese church started to experience persecution, and it caused great confusion because they had been led to believe that they would be raptured away before hard times came.

The same still applies today. In the West where we can still gather freely and worship openly does the idea of escaping tribulation work. You and I don’t know what it means to be persecuted.

But go to the church in China or Turkey or Egypt. Tell them that they will escape hardship and they will laugh at you. They are experiencing hardship and persecution for their faith every day. Their hope is that Jesus is going to come and rescue them from their hardship, from their persecution. The hope is that the trials and tribulations they are living through will end.

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Transition to Application

Can I be honest? I really hope I’m wrong on that point. I genuinely hope that Jesus is going to return and sweep the church away before the Tribulation starts. I really do. However, based on everything I’ve read and our study last year of Revelation, I really have a funny feeling that the church is going to have to endure to the end. So I’m stuck with this tension.

Main To Do

How do you respond this morning? I believe that we need to leave here and live like Noah. Here’s what I mean. Noah was told by God to build an ark because a flood was coming and would wipe out the whole earth. So Noah built the ark. He did his job, but he did it with one eye on the sky. He never lost sight of the urgency, he kept going because he knew one day, the clouds would come, the waters would come, and he had to be ready.

Whatever it is you do, keep doing it, but keep an eye on the sky. Never lost sight of the fact that Jesus will return one day, and that day is sooner than you think. Keep your ear tuned to the sound of trumpets, because it will unexpectedly, on a day like any other day.

Why it matters

If you live with one eye on the sky, you will begin to have a growing sense of urgency. You will have a growing sense that time is short and you better make the most of it. You will make sure you have more meaningful conversations and waste fewer moments. That things that once seemed important won’t seem to matter as much. I believe that your life will begin to come into alignment with God’s plans and purposes.

I also believe that if you don’t you may open yourself up to being deceived by the times. I believe you will that the day will come and you won’t be ready, or worse, those around you aren’t. Last week I closed by imploring you to wake up, and I’m telling you again that this is not something you should be sleeping on.

Closing Line

So church, keep your eye on the sky.

Discussion Questions

What stood out from the message?

How can we discern between what is truly of God and the deceptions present in our lives?

What practical steps can you take to remain watchful for the signs of Christ’s return?

What does living in the tension of the 'now but not yet' mean for your faith journey?

In what ways can you prepare yourself and others for the unexpected return of Jesus?

How does understanding the concept of the 'abomination of desolation' impact your view of current events?