Introduction To Matthew 24

PREPARATION FOR STUDY OF MATTHEW 24 BIBLE TEACHER: CLIFTON JONES PLEASE READ Thank you for being a part of our study of Matthew 24 A study of the events related to the return of Christ PLEASE Do not “disagree” with anything taught within our study based upon: A different view that you have heard taught or preached A different view that you have read in a best-selling book A different view that you saw presented in a movie PLEASE Do not “agree” with the view taught within our study without your own personal study Listen, pay attention, take the study notes home, and study them Compare scripture with scripture Study the scriptures just as the believers in Berea did Acts 17:10 And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea: who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews. Acts 17:11 These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so. PLEASE SEARCH THE SCRIPTURES After you have prayed, read, studied, and compared scripture with scripture Determine what you believe The most important Biblical truth related to the Second Coming is: Learn and live, teach others that Jesus is coming again Live for Jesus today because He is coming again some day THANK YOU Thank you for your consideration and for your desire to learn Thank you for attending our study of Matthew 24 JULY 19, 2020 STUDY NOTES INTRODUCTION TO MATTHEW 24 BIBLE TEACHER: CLIFTON JONES THE OLIVET DISCOURSE There are many references in the Bible to the Second Coming of Christ Someone estimated that all but 4 of the 27 books of the NT speak of the return of Christ Every chapter in 1 & 2 Thessalonians have a reference to the return of Christ The most detailed single passage of scripture concerning the return of Christ is found in Matt. 24 The parallel Gospel passages to Matthew 24 are found in Mark 13 and Luke 21 In your personal study, you should read all three gospel accounts Not one of the accounts give all that was said by Jesus on that day, so make a comparison reading Jesus is speaking to His disciples in what is known as the “Olivet Discourse” So-called because Jesus was sitting on the Mt. of Olives teaching his disciples this passage Jesus knew that His days on earth were numbered, soon Judas would betray Him (Mt 26:14-16, 47-56; Mark 14:10-11, 43-50; Luke 22:3-6, 47-53) He would be arrested, tried, and sentenced to be crucified (Mt. 27; Luke 23; John 19) In just a matter of days Jesus would die on the cross (Matthew. 27:45-56; Mark. 15:33-41; Luke 23:44-49; John 19:28-37) Jesus had already shed tears over Jerusalem, Luk 19:41 And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it, And we know why He shed tears over Jerusalem, Luk 19:42 Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes. “Thy day” was a unique day, Jesus describes it as the time of your visitation, Luk 19:44 And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation. The time when Jesus proclaimed to Israel that He was their King The “Triumphal Entry” of Jesus into Jerusalem was a fulfillment of prophecy (Zech. 9:9-10) Daniel’s prophecy, “unto Messiah the Prince,” was fulfilled at the triumphal entry (Dan. 9:25) Which is the event that ends the first 69 weeks of Daniel’s prophecy of the 70 weeks And then we have the time gap (Daniel 9:24-27) Throughout His ministry Jesus had pleaded with Israel to accept Him as their Messiah, Mat 23:37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! The Jews had rejected Jesus as the Messiah of Israel, they had refused His message--WHY? They did not want to hear about a Savior that would be crucified They did not want to hear about suffering because they would follow their Savior The disciples were persecuted because of the “name” of Jesus, Mat 10:22 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved. According to Jesus those who follow Him will be persecuted until “the end” The Apostles were arrested in the early days of the Church Age, Act 5:41 And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name. The early church was persecuted, and many followers of Jesus were martyred (Acts 9:1; 12:1-2) The True Church will continue to be persecuted until the Second Coming of Jesus (1 Thessalonians 1:6; 2:14-15; 3:3-4; 2 Thessalonians 1:4-7) Paul warned Timothy that the “last days” will be difficult for the Christian (2 Timothy 3:1-9) Paul told Timothy why those days will be difficult for the Christian, 2Ti 3:12 Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. The last generation of Christians upon the earth before the return of Christ are not exempt The apostles did not want to think about suffering persecution in the name of Jesus The church of today does not want to hear of suffering for the name of Jesus They wanted to see a King that would establish His Kingdom on earth and reign over the earth The Jews were filled with anticipation when Jesus made His entry into Jerusalem, Mat 21:9 And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the Son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest. Their cry was not for spiritual salvation but for an earthly kingdom They thought it was time for Christ to establish a world of righteousness The Jews thought that they had suffered persecution long enough They longed for the kingdom which is indicated by their question at the time of the ascension, Act 1:6 When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? The earthly kingdom was still on their minds at the time of the Ascension The Jews were not looking for what God wanted to do within them, deliver them from their sins They were only looking for outward deliverance from their enemies They wanted to be delivered from their oppressors Many Christians today are not looking for what Jesus wants to do within them in the future They are only looking for deliverance from this world of sin, suffering, sorrow, and tribulation Christians today have the same thoughts that the Jews of Jesus’ day had Christians today don’t want to listen to the fact that they might suffer for Christ That Christians will suffer persecution from the hands of the Antichrist before they are raptured Many OT promises gave the Jews hope for the future There were promises of deliverance and prosperity Prophecy revealed that the enemies of God’s chosen people would be defeated And that the Coming Messiah would establish the rule and reign of David on the earth It would be a reign of righteousness, justice, peace, prosperity, and safety for the Jews So, we need to understand some things concerning O.T. prophecy Especially what is known by the title of “Near and Far” prophecy Also known as the prophecies with double fulfillment NEAR/FAR PROPHECY OR DOUBLE FULFILLMENT Many of the OT prophecies have a double fulfillment or what is known as a Near/Far prophecy “Near” in the sense that a predicted event would soon take place “Far” in the sense that the same event (near) was a preview of a future event In Matthew 24 we find the Near/Far aspects of prophecy, or Prophecies of “Double Fulfillment” The prophecy of the near destruction of Jerusalem is revealed, Mat 24:2 And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down. That same prophecy reveals the far events that will again occur in Jerusalem (Matt. 24:15-16) The “near prophecy” was fulfilled in A.D. 70, but that was also a preview of the future event The “future prophecy” will be fulfilled in the time period known as the “70th Week of Daniel” In the future Jerusalem will be surrounded by armies and face its greatest time of persecution (Matthew 24:15-28; Mark 13:14-23; Luke 21:20-24) In the Olivet Discourse Jesus presented a chronological order of events related to His return He taught us how we should live in-light of His certain coming The main emphasis in Matthew 24 and 25 is on being spiritually alert (Matthew 24:42-43; 25:13) Christians must faithfully serve Christ today, for He is coming someday (2 Thessalonians 1:4) There are various views concerning the interpretation of Matthew 24 & 25 One view states that Jesus does not have the church in mind in Matthew 24 Teaching that Jesus is not speaking to the church, He is speaking only to Israel FOR THE CHURCH OR ISRAEL? Some teach that Matthew 24 does not have any application to the Church They say that the church is not present in any sense in Matthew 24 & 25 That it only applies to Israel and has nothing to do with the return of Christ for His Church The return of Christ for His church is known as the Rapture Their main argument is that the church is not mentioned in chapters 24 & 25 Which means that there is no teaching concerning the rapture of the church in Matthew 24 The Greek word translated “church” is found only three times in the Gospel accounts And then you do not find the word “church” again until the book of Acts The absence of the word church does not limit the teaching of the Gospels to the Jews The three times that “church” is found in the Gospels are all in the Gospel of Matthew The prophecy of Jesus concerning the church in, Mat 16:18 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And then again when Jesus gave instructions to the Church in, Mat 18:17 And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican. The book of Matthew closes with what the Church of today calls “The Great Commission,” Mat 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: The N.T. Church has always accepted these words as Christ’s commission to His Church The Great Commission is given to all followers of Christ, Mat 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen. All followers of Christ are to lead others to Christ The followers of Christ are to teach the newly baptized followers of Christ “All” of the teachings of Christ are to be taught to “All His followers” until the “end of the age” In the KJV the word “world” refers to an “age” or a period-of time The word “world” in Mt. 28:20 is the same word found in, Mat 24:3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world? That means that the followers of Christ today are to follow the teaching of Christ in Matt. 24&25 How long are we to make disciples and teach disciples, “even to the end of the age” The promise of Jesus is that He will be with us as we are “going, “even unto the end of the age” According to those words the Church will be on the earth until “the end of the age” The N.T. church has been commissioned by Christ to be a witness until the end of the age In Matthew 26, Jesus instituted the “Lord’s Supper” which the church of today observes Even though the word “Church” is not found in the Gospels of Mark, Luke, or John The church of today follows the teachings of Jesus in all-of the Gospel accounts The Church must learn and live according to the teaching found in all-of the Gospel accounts The Church claims the promise of Jesus in what is known as the “Upper Room Discourse” We like to hear Jesus say, “Don’t worry,” Joh 14:1 Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. Jesus was saying, “you believe what God has said, believe what I am saying,” Joh 14:2 In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. Jesus is going to return to receive the church, Joh 14:3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. Jesus was speaking to His disciples in the “Upper Room Discourse” Jesus was meeting with His disciples in the upper room the night before His crucifixion He was sharing with them what they could expect to witness in the next few hours He was also going to tell them what they could expect for the rest of their life upon earth He was even going to tell them what they could expect for all of eternity He also wanted them to know what their new responsibilities and privileges would be Because of those things that were about to happen in Jerusalem Jesus was speaking to the same disciples in His “Olivet Discourse” The same things can be said of the Olivet Discourse What Jesus was teaching His disciples was foundational truths for the Church Age The disciples were the future leaders of the church, what Jesus taught them applies to the church Are the Jews the only ones who have suffered persecution for following Christ? Does the future persecution spoken of in-verse 9 refer only to the Jews? Mat 24:9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake. Their persecution will be because in the name of Jesus they will be followers of Christ VARIOUS VIEWS OF THE OLIVET DISCOURSE 1. That there is nothing in the Olivet Discourse concerning the church or the rapture 2. All-of the passage is a prediction of the destruction of Jerusalem There is nothing about the return of Christ, all of chapter 24 was fulfilled in A.D. 70 3. The chapter describes the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70 And, also describes the destruction within the last days before Christ returns There is a message for Israel in Matthew 24 & 25 There is also a message for the Church in Matthew 24 & 25 We must hear Jesus, Mat 24:4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. As the church of today we are to study, understand, learn, and live the truths presented in Mt. 24 UNDERSTANDING MATTHEW 24 First of-all, accept the plain sense of scripture as literal sense When the literal makes sense, seek no other sense, or it will become nonsense Compare scripture with scripture, especially scripture within the context of a verse Compare scripture with scripture beginning with the context of a verse We must go to the book of Daniel in-order to understand truths from Matthew 24 Where we find the prophecy known as “The Seventy Weeks of Daniel” (Dan. 9:20-27) Daniel chapter 9 is one of the most amazing passages of prophecy found in the Bible It is one of the most important prophecies in all-of the Bible concerning the future Much of which has already literally been fulfilled since Daniel received the vision Fulfilled with such accuracy that only the Omniscient God could have revealed it Which reveals to us the divine inspiration of scripture The “Seventy Weeks” are revealed to be a 490-year time-period set aside by God The 490 years are divided into three periods of time The first is a period of seven weeks which equals 49 years, the first phase of the 490-year period The second is a period of threescore and two weeks, which adds up to 62 weeks (434 years) Therefore, the first two periods of time equals, 483 years, 49 + 434=483 So, phase one and phase two cover 483 years which have been fulfilled Which leaves a final period of 7 years to complete the 490 years and yet to be fulfilled There is a time-gap between the 69th and 70th week of Daniel’s prophecy We are still in the time gap, the final 7 years is still yet to come The first 483 years were literally fulfilled, the last 7 years will also literally be fulfilled The 70th week is a chronological key to understanding prophecy related to the Second Coming The best way to refer to this future time-period is to call it “The Seventieth Week of Daniel” It is misleading to identify the future 7-year period of-time as the “Tribulation” (often done) Scripture does not present a period of seven years known as “The Tribulation Period” Many call that time-period the “Tribulation” because they believe it to be God’s wrath Their conclusion is that there will be seven years of God’s wrath The future 7-year period, known as, “the 70th week of Daniel,” is not the wrath of God Throughout scripture, the time of God’s wrath is clearly identified as the, “Day of the Lord” THE 70TH WEEK OF DANIEL, THE FINAL 7 YEARS OF DANIEL’S PROPHECY The final 7-year period will begin with a covenant, Dan 9:27 And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate. The covenant will be between the prince that is to come, the Antichrist, and the nation of Israel Before such a covenant can take place, Israel must be back in her land Which occurred in May 1948 and then Israel regained control of her city in 1967 The final preparations for the beginning of the 70th week are in place Israel is back in her land but under constant conflict Israel now faces terrorism and the Palestinian pressure, even world pressure Israel is looking for a solution to peace, a covenant of protection Israel could now be ready at any time to sign a covenant of peace with someone Someone who has the political power and military resources to guarantee her peace Peace that Israel desperately needs and desires, the covenant could be very soon When that time comes, Israel will greatly need protection Before the covenant can be established, the Antichrist must come and establish his power base Which begins with his conquering three nations and then ruling the final beast empire All of which could now take place in a brief period of-time, some of which could be overnight Watch for the beginning of the future seven-year period, the 70th week of Daniel’s prophecy Jesus confirmed that a well-known event will divide the future seven-year period-of time That event is called the “Abomination of Desolation” (Matthew 24:15) The “Abomination of Desolation” will be the beginning of the “Great Tribulation” (Mat. 24:21) The “Great Tribulation” will be “cut short” for the sake of God’s elect (Mat. 24:22) God will announce to the world what is about to happen, through the “Cosmic Disturbance,” Mat 24:29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: Which will reveal the return of Christ and the coming of the Day of the Lord, Mat 24:30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. Watch for the time related words as you study Matthew 24 But before the day of the Lord begins, Jesus will remove the church from the earth, Mat 24:31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. Following the Day of the Lord, the prophecies of Daniel will be fulfilled The end-result will be an ultimate completion of desolations, which would be after 490 years Following the time of desolation there will be the period of everlasting righteousness (Dan. 9:24) CONCLUSION Where are we on the calendar of events related to the Second Coming of Christ? The final preparations for the beginning of the seventy weeks are in place The signing of a peace covenant between the Antichrist and Israel could be very soon When the covenant is signed, the 70th week begins, watch for the covenant of peace Jesus presents to us the order of events related to the 70th Week of Daniel There is a reason why we can be certain of all future promises being fulfilled Jesus died on the cross, He was buried in a tomb, He arose from the grave, “He Lives” HYMN #533 “HE LIVES” Pay attention to the second verse, “The day of His appearing will come at last”