Three Questions

AUGUST 2, 2020 STUDY NOTES MATTHEW 24:1-3 BIBLE TEACHER: CLIFTON JONES THREE QUESTIONS INTRODUCTION Today we begin a verse by verse study of Matthew 24, something I have done several times But I have approached my study as if I had never studied it before As if I was reading it for the first time, desiring to be open to the illuminating of the Holy Spirit I pray that you will desire the illuminating ministry of the Spirit to teach you also There are three Gospel accounts of the words of Jesus known as the “Olivet Discourse” They are found in Matthew 24; Mark 13; Luke 21 All three accounts should be read and studied in-order to get a complete account of Jesus’ words At the beginning of each account Jesus predicts that the temple in Jerusalem will be destroyed THE TEMPLE Mat 24:1 And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple. Literally Jesus is walking away from the Temple, which is a significant event In the previous chapter, Jesus had been teaching the crowds and the disciples (Matthew 23:1) He had condemned the Scribes and the Pharisees with a message of eight woes (Matt. 23:13-30) Jesus now departs from the temple, He had previously called the temple His “Father’s House,” Joh 2:16 And said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not my Father's house an house of merchandise. But the temple was no longer God’s house, Jesus called it “a den of thieves,” Mat 21:13 And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves. Leaving the temple is also a symbol of His words in, Mat 23:38 Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. Jesus now calls the temple “their house,” expressing the truth of what He had previously said He said the temple would become as waste and a lonely place It would become like a desert or wilderness, without Jesus in the temple it is a desolate place Jesus “went out and departed from the temple,” His earthly ministry in the Temple had ended His departure from the Temple marked the end of His public ministry Jesus would now spend His time ministering to His disciples before He is crucified Jesus also ministered to His disciples for 40 days after His resurrection, Act 1:3 To whom also he shewed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God: “After His passion” speaks of the suffering and death of Jesus on the cross The Apostles must know why Jesus had suffered, died on the cross, and arose from the dead Jesus proved to them that He had risen from the dead by “many infallible proofs” In many different convincing ways Jesus proved that He was alive Jesus instructed the Apostles of those things “pertaining to the kingdom of God” At the first coming of Jesus to the earth the message was the “Gospel of the Kingdom” Listen to the message of John the Baptist, Mat 3:2 And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. The kingdom of heaven and the kingdom of God are the same The two terms mean the same and are interchangeable (Matthew 19:23-24) In the beginning of the earthly ministry of Jesus his message was the “Kingdom of God,” Mat 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Listen to what Jesus told Nicodemus, Joh 3:3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Today the kingdom of God is the rule and reign of God in the hearts and lives of His people Which is the Spiritual Kingdom of God, which must always be first in our life Jesus taught in the sermon on the mount, Mat 6:33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Christians today must proclaim the “gospel of the kingdom,” to the world, Mat 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come. The Physical Kingdom of God will be established on earth at the time of the return of Christ It is known as the “Millennial Reign of Christ,” He will reign upon earth for 1,000 years As Jesus departs from the temple, the disciples call for His attention toward the temple and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple. The disciples were now alone with Jesus, they could not believe what they had heard Jesus say How could the Temple be like a desert, barren and desolate, a place of waste? They thought that they had misunderstood or surely Jesus did not really mean what He had said He must have made a mistake, this great temple was the house of God, the center of Jewish life It was customary for Jews to swear by the temple (Matthew 23:16) Speaking against the temple was considered blasphemy (Acts 6:13) It was the center of life for Israel, the disciples wanted Jesus to take another look at the temple Look at the greatness of the structure, the temple was a massive, magnificent structure Some stones were 12’ wide, 12’ high, 40’ long, and weighed as much as 100 tons or more It is estimated that Herod’s Temple was taller than a fifteen-story building Modern engineering of today cannot determine how they built such a structure The disciples could not imagine how such a structure could be destroyed or torn down Likewise, to tear down the temple would be like tearing apart the nation of Israel They felt that without the temple Israel would be without God Jesus wanted them to realize what the life of Israel would be like without God The disciples came close to realizing what life without Jesus was like after His crucifixion Especially Peter, until Jesus showed Himself alive following His resurrection (John 21) But more importantly, He wanted them to know by experience what life “with Him” was like Jesus wanted them to look at Him “in faith” and obey His Words But in Matthew 24 their eyes and their thoughts were upon the temple Why was the Temple so important? The temple in Jerusalem was the house of God The Temple was the building set apart for the worship of God The Temple was the dwelling place of God upon earth Scripture speaks of three buildings at Jerusalem that were called the “Temple” All, were built upon the same site and after the same general pattern, alike in nature and design The temple of Solomon had been destroyed by the Babylonians in 587 B.C. After the return of the Jews from captivity around 520 B.C. they erected the temple of Zerubbabel The temple in Jerusalem in the day of Jesus was Herod’s Temple Jesus said it would be destroyed, His prophecy was literally fulfilled The temple was a real structure and it was really destroyed by the Romans in A.D. 70 Since that prophecy was literally fulfilled, we can expect a literal fulfillment of Matthew 24 According to scripture there will be another temple structure built in Jerusalem (Matt. 24:15) DESTRUCTION FORETOLD 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. The disciples had pointed out the temple to Jesus to remind Him, this is the Temple of God What could possibly happen to it? How could it be destroyed? They were saying that such a great building could not be destroyed Even if it were not the house of God who could ever destroy such a great structure They did not believe that it could be physically destroyed Jesus takes their point and points out the temple in-order to tell them of the future events This great, magnificent structure, that they were looking at would one day be destroyed verily I say unto you, Jesus often used the word “verily” which means “truly “Truly I tell you” was Jesus’ way of saying, “I am telling you the truth” The emphasis is truth and nothing but the truth, as it always is with the Word of God There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down. Jesus strongly stated the fact that not one stone of the Temple would remain in place Absolutely not one stone will be left upon another, every single stone will be torn down It will all be torn down, totally destroyed, not even two stones will be left together The words of Jesus were fulfilled in A.D. 70 when the Romans destroyed the temple The Roman army destroyed Jerusalem, burned the temple, and killed more than a million Jews But the words of Jesus were deeper in meaning than just the physical destruction of Jerusalem He was also saying that the Jewish nation would be defeated The time would come when they would not be a united people in their own land When the Romans destroyed the temple, the government of the Jews was also overcome The Jews who were left alive were driven from their land And the Jews had no form of government again until May 14, 1948 The State of Israel was established for the first time in 2,000 years Israel was once again back in their land and the Jews were reestablished as a nation Israel regained control of her city in 1967, all of which is significant Because Israel had to be back in the land before the prophecy of Daniel 9 could be fulfilled The prophecy of Daniel 9:27 is known as the “Seventieth Week of Daniel” The 70th Week of Daniel is one of the most important prophecies in all-of the Bible Daniel was given a vision of the future for the nation of Israel and her holy city Jerusalem What the Romans did in A.D. 70 is a type of what will happen to the Jews again Which will be during the Seventieth Week of Daniel There is a parallel between the desolation in A.D.70 and that within the 70th Week of Daniel According-to Daniel, the end-result will be an ultimate completion of desolations (Daniel 9:26) Jerusalem will again be destroyed by the people of another prince who is yet to come Antichrist will be the prince to come, 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 final preparations for the beginning of the final 70th week are already in place Israel is back in the land but under constant conflict of terrorism and the Palestinian pressure The pressure upon Israel is going to increase to a world-wide scale, including many nations Israel is going to be looking for a solution to peace for their people and their land 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 signing of the covenant could be very soon When the covenant is signed, the 70th Week of Daniel will begin (More details in Matt. 24) So, we are asking today, when will that time be? Just as the disciples were asking Jesus--- TELL US WHEN AND WHAT 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? Why is this passage known as the “Olivet Discourse?” A “discourse” is a conversation, talking, or speaking, here Jesus is teaching His disciples The “Mount of Olives” is a small range of several summits overlooking Jerusalem Sometimes at night Jesus would go to the Mount of Olives to rest (Luke 21:37) Jesus had gone to the Mount of Olives to pray before He was arrested and tried (Luke 22:39-46) Jesus ascended back to heaven from the Mount of Olives (Acts 1:9-12) When Jesus returns, He will stand on the Mount of Olives, Zec 14:4 And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. The Mount of Olives was a likely place for Jesus to meet with His disciples Especially, to share with them future events related to His return The Olivet Discourse is one of the greatest passages in the NT concerning the Second Coming the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Mark gives us the names of four disciples who came to Jesus privately, Mar 13:3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives over against the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately, The disciples had three questions for Jesus: (1) When will these things happen? Referring to the destruction of the temple when one stone will not be left upon another? (2) What will be the sign of your coming? Referring to what Jesus had said to them in, Mat 23:39 For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. (3) What will be the sign of the end of the age? Thinking that His coming “in the name of the Lord” would be the end of the present age And that Jesus would then establish the Messianic Age Their request was for a single sign that would identify when these things were about to happen, Mar 13:4 Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign when all these things shall be fulfilled? Luk 21:7 And they asked him, saying, Master, but when shall these things be? and what sign will there be when these things shall come to pass? They were asking for a sign to watch for, a sign that would confirm what Jesus had said In their minds the disciples put it all together, and all-of their questions are related: 1. If the temple is going to be destroyed, then that means-2. The Messiah (the Christ) is coming in the name of the Lord, and that means-3. The end of the present age and the beginning of the new age Jesus is going to answer their questions, but not in the order in which they were asked Luke gives us Jesus’ answer to the first question (Luke 21:20) Matthew and Mark give us Jesus’ answer to the second and third question Jesus gives a chronological order of the events that will occur before the end of this age Things that would soon occur would be a foreshadow of future events Things that would be a picture of things that would occur at the end of the age So, in Matthew 24 we have a Near/Far Prophecy or prophecy of Double Fulfillment The accuracy of Jesus’ predications of the near events assures us of the events yet to come The “near” events literally took place, the “far” events will literally take place Their first question related to a “near” event, the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple Tell us, when shall these things be? Remember what Jesus had told them, “Behold, your house is left unto you desolate” It would become as waste, a lonely place, it would become like a desert or wilderness Jesus said “There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down The disciples could not believe what they had heard But if it was true, then “when” would it happen? It appears that the disciples were doing some serious thinking If the temple was going to be destroyed, there must be something significant about it There had to be more than just the destruction of the temple They were not just thinking about one “thing,” their question concerned “things” (plural) Remember the mind-set of the Jews, they were looking for the Messiah to come The Messiah would be the King who was coming to establish the kingdom of God So, if Jesus was the Messiah and the Temple was going to be destroyed That must mean that the present age would be closed out and the new age would begin According-to the Old Testament, the New Age would happen when the Messiah would appear Jesus had told them, Mat 23:39 For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. So, now if Jesus is coming, what will be the sign of His coming? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, Their thinking was Jesus must be talking about when He will “come in the name of the Lord” The disciples wanted to know when Jesus would return, would they know when He had come? Would God give them a sign to reveal the presence of Jesus? (Same questions in our day) A sign is something that can be seen, and it points to or identifies with something else to be seen Notice that they did not ask for “signs” (plural) they asked for a “sign” (singular) They wanted a single sign, they wanted only one sign Something that would show them for sure what Jesus was talking about So that they could tell without any doubt, they wanted something unique Something that would be distinct, they wanted something supernatural from God They wanted something that would say to them, Christ is now here, He is now present Something that they could see and know for sure, “This is the presence of Christ” They were wise in what they asked, they knew that God had given such signs before God had signified the first coming of Jesus, Isa 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. What a unique “sign” identifying the first coming of Jesus, the virgin birth of Jesus During the ministry of Jesus, the scribes and Pharisees had asked Jesus for a sign They wanted Jesus to prove who He said he was, how could they know for sure, Mat 12:38 Then certain of the scribes and of the Pharisees answered, saying, Master, we would see a sign from thee. His answer, Mat 12:39 But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas: What was the sign of Jonah? Mat 12:40 For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus would be the sign of His person and work The Jews asked Jesus for a sign, Joh 2:18 Then answered the Jews and said unto him, What sign shewest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest these things? The sign that Jesus gave them was his resurrection, Joh 2:19 Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. They questioned this subject of the temple, just like in Matthew 24, Joh 2:20 Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days? Jesus was referring to His body which, after His death, would be resurrected in three days, Joh 2:21 But he spake of the temple of his body. Even His disciples did not understand His words until after His resurrection, Joh 2:22 When therefore he was risen from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this unto them; and they believed the scripture, and the word which Jesus had said. The virgin birth of Jesus was the sign that Jesus had come the first time to the earth His resurrection was the sign that Jesus had accomplished what he had come to earth to do Now what will be the sign of his second coming? The disciples wanted to know the sign that would reveal that he had come to begin a new age They believed that the coming of the Messiah would end the present age and begin the new age After the resurrection, they asked if that time had come, 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? Jesus had come forth from the dead, could this now be the time of the new age? Their questions were in a correct order, Jesus will return and then the end of the age will come That is the correct order of events, but in answering their questions the order is reversed The sign of the end of the age will precede the sign of His Coming and of the end of the world? “World” must be understood as the world in which we now live and understand it “Age” is the best translation, meaning the time in which they were living Which is the same age that we are living in today Their thinking was, if the temple was going to be destroyed, then it must be the end of the age If it is the end of the age, then Jesus must have come in the name of the Lord (Mt. 23:39) They believed that his coming would end the present age, so they connected all three together: The destruction of the temple, Jesus coming or His presence, and the end of the age In the “Great Commission” Jesus promised to be with us until the end of the age, 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. The sign of the “End of the Age” is found in, 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: The sign of the “End of the Age” will occur before the “Sign of His Coming,” 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. First there will be the “cosmic disturbance” and then Jesus will appear in His Glory The disciples knew from the OT prophets that at the end of the age, God’s wrath would fall upon the wicked world Before God’s wrath falls upon the wicked world, Jesus will remove the church from the earth But before that we are going to read some things we would rather not hear, but keep reading Listen to the song, it will explain what I am saying