LIVING IN THE LAST DAYS, PART TWO

LIVING IN THE LAST DAYS, PART TWO Matthew 24:15-28; 45-51 June 29, 2008 Given by: Pastor Rich Bersett [Index of Past Messages] Introduction The smell of death was everywhere. Every day another two hundred or so died of starvation or malnutrition in this city alone. That did not count the other cities in the wider territory that were also under siege by the mighty enemy. Food and water supply lines had been cut off. Missiles were launched by the thousands into this well-fortified city, as wave after wave of the best warriors in the world came against the fortress. For over a year it continued, both here and in several cities in the region. But this was the great city, the strong city, the well-protected, impregnable city on the hill, and many from the other towns escaped them to come to this great city. Soon the city swelled to three million inhabitants, challenging the resources, crowding the homes and the streets. It was at this time that the relentless siege began. The city closed in around itself, and soon what was to the many refugees a citadel of hope became a prison with no escape but death. From the pen of one of the most renowned and trusted historians of the day: “…thousands of men, as well as women and children…perished by the sword, by famine, and by other forms of death innumerable…the excessive sufferings endured by those that fled to [that great city] itself, as to a city of perfect safety…all these things any one that wishes may find accurately described in the history…” In all, an estimated 1.1 million people died in those days of siege. Another historian: “Nowhere was food to be seen; but, bursting into the houses, men searched them thoroughly, and whenever they found anything to eat they tormented the owners on the ground that they had denied that they had anything; but if they found nothing, they tortured them on the ground that they had more carefully concealed it. . . . .Of all evils, indeed, famine ios the worst, and it destroys nothing so effectively as shame. For that which under other circumstances is worthy of respect, in the midst of famine is despised. Thus women snatched the food from the very mouths of their husbands and children, from their fathers, and what was most pitiable of all, mother from their babes. And while their dearest ones were wasting away in their arms, they were not ashamed to take away from them the last drops that supported life.” Citizens of this holy and devoutly religious city looted, beat and murdered one another even for tiny morsels of food. One historian recorded, “Soon corpses were lying everywhere. In fact, many people died trying to bury others.” Survivors managed to heave many corpses over the besieged city walls into the trenches below, which were now filling up. Thousands of putrid, decaying bodies filled the deep pits on the south and west sides of the city that had once been garbage dumpsites. The Historical Fulfillment of Prophecy The city? Jerusalem (along with other Judean cities, including the famous Masada where remarkable archeological evidence of a terrible death to thousands, including what appears to have been a mass suicide—all of which occurred two and a half years after Jerusalem fell in A.D. 70). Whose army enacted these sieges? Rome. Their agenda was to destroy the Jews and those of what they called the Christian sect, and to level their key cities, especially including the holy places, like the Temple at Jerusalem. Interestingly, most of the faithful Christ-followers escaped the sword because they left the cities before the slaughter began. How did they know to leave? Jesus had prophesied personally 40 years before that this very thing would happen. Let’s look into that prophecy at Matthew 24, beginning with verse 15. Reviewing the Context You may recall in our last study in Matthew 24 we learned that Jesus was here responding to three questions posed by His disciples concerning the “end times.” They were: 1. When will these things be? (destruction of Jerusalem)   2. What will be the sign of your coming?   3. What will be the sign of the end of the age? These are the questions posed by His followers in verses 3 and 4 of Matthew 24. You might also remember that in the first half of this two-part series we saw that there are two big picture issues blended into Jesus’ answers: 1. the prophecies about the ultimate end of history and the world, including the second coming of Christ and judgment, and   2. the more immediate prophecy of the soon coming destruction of Jerusalem We dealt with the former a couple weeks ago. This morning let’s look at Christ’s remarkably precise prophecy of the Fall of Jerusalem, which, in fact occurred 40 years later. Remember, it is a daunting task to study this chapter and determine which part of Jesus’ answers deal with the second coming and which deal with the more immediate prophecy of the destruction of Jerusalem. My interpretation coincides with the conclusion of most biblical scholars—that verses 15-28 deal with the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Temple. There are other, very convincing arguments that say the entire chapter deals with the very last days and that the fall of Jerusalem was either only the beginning of the fulfillment of the end times prophecies or served as a warning and reminder of the ultimate end of the world. Some even suggest that the fall of Jerusalem WAS the 2nd coming of Jesus in judgment! The Prophecy of Jesus concerning the fall of Jerusalem Matthew 24:15 – So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’ spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand… In about 169 B.C. this prophecy was at least partially fulfilled when the Syrian ruler Antiochus Epiphanies overran Jerusalem and stopped all temple sacrifices. He actually erected a pagan altar inside the Temple dedicated to the idol Zeus Olympus and, some say, even sacrificed a pig on the altar—the ultimate insult to the Jews. That qualified as the abomination of desolation. But Jesus indicates such an abomination would occur a second time. And it did. Even prior to the Roman army’s invasion in A.D. 70, Pilate the Roman procurator moved a huge battalion of soldiers into Jerusalem, again abolishing all Jewish temple sacrifices. This, Jesus said, was a sign to His followers living there to get out of Jerusalem before the great plunder that would occur under the leadership of Titus in the year 70. Because of this prophecy of Jesus the believers who were faithful were spared the terrible events of that lengthy siege. Interestingly, the New Testament indicates there will be a third fulfillment of this ‘abomination that leads to desolation’,’ when the Man of Lawlessness (or the Antichrist) “takes his seat in the temple of God displaying himself as being God (2 Thes. 2:3-4) Matthew 24:16ff - …then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let no one on the roof of his house go down to take anything out of the house. Let no one in the field go back to get his cloak. How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath. For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again. If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened. At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect—if that were possible. See, I have told you ahead of time. So if anyone tells you, ‘There he is, out in the desert,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here he is, in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather. History records there were many who were claiming to be Christ in the time leading up to the destruction of Jerusalem by Rome. Suddenly, everyone it seemed was a prophet, and they were saying some crazy things. Many of them were the ones who convinced Jews and Christians to flee to Jerusalem for safety. Those who did were trapped there and lost their lives. Jesus warned His followers—many of whom were there in person hearing this prophecy—to get out of Judea as fast as they could. If they were on their roof (where families spent much of their time in the evenings) they were to run across the roofs of their neighbors and escape without even going to get their belongings. It was common in those days to take shortcuts by walking across the roofs of your neighbors. If you are out in the fields working when you first get word of the temple being desecrated—that is your sign to vacate Jerusalem (or any other city in Judea). Don’t waste your time going to find your raincoat. Those believers who took the counsel of this prophecy to heart did leave and they and their families were spared the horror of those days. But, while hundreds, perhaps thousands, left, two million or more trusted the advice of the false prophets over the warning of Jesus and tragically lost their lives. Jesus also warned in verses 27-28 not to be fooled about other so-called Christs. He said, “If you see me coming in the clouds, you will know it is the end and not just the fall of Jerusalem!” The Universal Warning The next part of Matthew 24 that clearly speaks to the issue of the fall of Jerusalem as well as the prophecy of the end of the age begins at verse 45. It is, quite simply, a warning to listen to and obey His instructions, a warning faithful believers will heed. Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, “My master is staying away a long time,” and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards. The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. In essence, the Lord is telling His followers not to be negligent in their kingdom service. (This is what the three parables in Matthew 25 are all about as well.) He also warns about the temptation they will face as time drags on and Jesus doesn’t return as soon as they expect. It will be tempting for them to disbelieve He is ever coming. This issue is also picked up in 2 Peter—a letter written to the church by the apostle Peter much later than the gospel of Matthew. There, in verse 3, we read: …you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, “Where is this “coming” he promised? Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.” But they deliberately forget … But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. Some Lessons we should take away from these passages 1. Believe God’s Word. When the omniscient God of the Universe takes the initiative to reveal that something is going to happen, it is advisable to believe Him and to prepare and follow instructions. One scholar has estimated that there are over 2,000 references to the second coming of Jesus in the Bible. For every prophecy concerning the first coming of Christ, there are eight that look forward to His second! (Today in the Word, April 1989, page 27).   2. Live in prepared fashion. This is the consistent theme of all the second coming references in the New Testament: LIVE IN LIGHT OF THE END. The focus is not on the timing, nor on the details—we get all excited about these things, but time after time, the Word makes it clear: the important thing is to keep faithfully serving Him. Again, in 2 Peter: Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness. So, then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him. (2 Peter 3:11-14) We are to live as a prepared people, expectant of His coming, but also expectant that He may break into our world and our lives in ANY way. • You don’t know when (24:36 et al) and you don’t know HOW He will come. Get used to it!   • Surprises have happened before (Noah & A.D. 70) (24:37-44)   • We are called to faithfulness and wisdom (24:45-47) ◦ “Jesus’ unambiguous intention was that we all should watch and wait for Him, that we should be ready, and that we should live our lives in such a way that we would not be embarrassed at His appearing.” (Coming Again, Jerry Newcombe, Chariot Victor Publishing, 1999, p. 183)   • There is justice and judgment with God (24:48-51) Fear the Lord appropriately • Fright fear versus Respect fear   • What an unbecoming thing it is to follow Christ in a spirit of fear and threat! Negative ILUS in Mat. 25 - “I knew that you are a hard man” [webmasters note: Matthew 25:24]   • Grace inspires service out of freedom, joy and gratitude versus out of fear, threat and legalism (1 Timothy 1:7) To fear the Lord is to freely, joyfully serve Him with abandon. To live for Him in obedience to everything He calls us to do. Live holy and godly lives…make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him…therefore, keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come…be faithful even to the point of death… [webmasters note: 2 Peter 3:11-14; Matthew 24:42; Revelation 2:10]     [Back to Top]