The End in View, Part 4

your Bibles and the passage as
it’s printed in the bulletin. I caught an interesting glimpse
of an article this past week about a little device known as
the doomsday clock. I didn’t know there was one either.
And it said that this group of scientists or what have you quote-unquote
scientists, we’re going to adjust the doomsday clock. Essentially,
it is not a literal device. Basically, what they refer to
as the assessment of all the catastrophes and all the wars
and all the pressures and, of course, global resources, all
of those things combined put an effect on this thing called
the doomsday clock. And it said that these so-called
minds were going to get together and adjust it. And by adjusted,
I soon found out as I read the article, they were going to dial
it back a number of years, hundreds of years. They don’t know exactly
when, but I found it interesting in light of our study that even
the name of the clock The doomsday clock has a frightening sound
to it, doesn’t it? Whenever you talk about the end
or the things of the end, people have a fear of that, that it’s
doom, that it’s doomsday. Well, there certainly are difficult
days coming. There certainly are some difficult
aspects to the end. But for those who are in Christ,
there is no doomsday and there is no doomsday clock. I want
to take you back, back to our study where we have spent several
months really in considering these things. These things where
Jesus begins to answer a series of questions posed to Him by
the disciples, even those questions were prompted by a simple statement
that Jesus made. Jesus said that the temple, the
Jewish temple, was going to be destroyed. And that was so shocking
to Jesus’ disciples, Jewish themselves, who really expected a Savior
to come in and conquer and, if anything, enhance the temple. And now the fact that this Savior
that they had come to know and love was telling them the temple
was going to be destroyed, their worlds were rocked. We find ourselves,
as I’ve said, on Wednesday of Passion Week. Jesus is answering
their questions and essentially, too. What will be the sign of
your coming? And what is the sign of the end
of the age? And so that Jesus would comfort
them. He didn’t want them to be worried. He issues a series of warnings. Warnings about false messiahs.
A time when people would rise up claiming to be the Christ.
Claiming to be the Messiah. Jesus says, don’t follow them. Don’t believe it. There would
be a time of false labor, earthquakes and wars and all kinds of cataclysmic
events. Don’t believe it. False incrimination. A time of great persecution in
the church. And the church has seen this
over and over again throughout two millennia. Jesus says, don’t
believe it. Look at what, if you would, at
chapter 21, verse 12. Jesus said, before all these
things, they will lay their hands on you and will persecute you,
delivering you into the synagogues and prisons, bringing you before
kings and governors for My namesake.” Don’t believe it. That’s all
part of the package. That doesn’t mean that I am going
to return immediately. But there is a silver lining
as we began to see. It will lead to an opportunity
for your testimony. Verse 13, So make up your minds
not to prepare beforehand to defend yourselves.” In other
words, he wants them leaning fully on the Spirit Himself. Those words carry all the way
down through to verse 19, where he says that we will have opportunity,
the church, Those who are truly in Christ are going to have an
opportunity to proclaim Christ all the way until the end. And
if you would now, I want you to take your bulletin and just
look at the passage as it’s printed. If you’re new with us this morning,
if you’re returning and you haven’t seen this jumbled mess, I need
to explain it. It is a synthesis of the gospel
accounts, the synoptic gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke. Matthew,
you will find in italics. Mark, you will find in just standard
print. And Luke is in boldface print. I’ve already begun to offer you
reasons why I did this, but it’s absolutely crucial in this passage
to take the synoptic Gospels as a synthesis in this passage. We’ll unpack that more in the
moments ahead, if you would. Begin with me in this inserted
passage, which begins with Matthew 24 11. Many false prophets will
arise and will mislead many because lawlessness is increased. Most
people’s love will grow cold, but the one who endures to the
end, he will be saved. This gospel of the kingdom shall
be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations,
and then the end will come. But when you see Jerusalem surrounded
by army armies, pardon me, the abomination of desolation, which
was spoken of through Daniel, the prophet standing in the holy
place, let the reader understand, then recognize that her desolation
is near. Then those who are in Judea must
flee to the mountains and those who are in the midst of the city
must leave, and those who are in the country must not go down
into the city. Whoever is on the housetop must
not go down to get the things that are in his house. Whoever
is in the field must not turn back to get his cloak, because
these are the days of vengeance so that all things which are
written will be fulfilled. Woe to those who are pregnant
and those who are nursing babies in those days. But pray that
your flight will not be in the winter or on a Sabbath, for then
there will be a great tribulation. such as has not occurred since
the beginning of the world until now or nor ever will. For there
will be great distress upon the land, wrath to this people, and
they will fall by the edge of the sword and will be led captive
into all the nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled
underfoot by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are
fulfilled. Unless those days had been cut
short, no life would have been saved. But for the sake of the
elect, Those days will be cut short. As I told you several weeks ago,
this section isn’t an either or section, is it talking about
the destruction of Jerusalem that occurred in 70 A.D. or is
it talking about the end of the age? It’s not an either or, it’s
a both and. And the question, the answer
rather to those questions is yes. It is referring to 70 AD. It is referring to the end of
the age. And what essentially happens
is one is a microcosm of the other. Luke isn’t presenting
an entirely different message than Matthew and Mark. He’s not
describing exclusively the destruction of AD 70 that occurred in Jerusalem. All of these accounts are all
referring to one Olivet discourse, they are all recording the same
message of Christ and Christ was not of a divided mind. And
so the third option is to look at these things and to blend
both of them. So to see what happened in 70
A.D. is a microcosm of what will take
place in the end. Essentially, it will be repeated. As I’ve suggested in weeks past
and I am just flying through the overview, what we have in
this great section is a panorama, a broad overview of the end of
the age. And we began by looking back
in Matthew, chapter 24, verse 11, at indications of the end. We said that there will be indications
of the end. We saw their false prophets,
notably. Not just false teachers anymore,
not just false messiahs, but false prophets. As I said several
weeks ago, it is one of my longstanding prayers. I don’t want to be one
of those. I don’t want to lead the church
astray. I don’t want to be like the Pharisees,
blind guides leading the blind. I read a sermon by Spurgeon this
past week. on that very issue, blind guides
leading the blind and essentially, ultimately, rather, both of them
fall into a pit. I don’t want to go there myself. And as a teacher, much less,
I don’t want to lead anyone else there either. We must pay close attention to
ourselves and to our teaching. Jesus says that false prophets
will arise and will mislead many. Be very careful of what you buy
at the Christian Bible Superstore. Be very careful what you read.
Be very careful what you listen to. Be very, very careful. And in all of this, we are to
cultivate not only a passion for the truth and for accuracy
and for right methods, but we are to cultivate a right heart,
a right attitude. Not only false prophets, Jesus
points to, but Jesus says there will be cold hearts. People will
get so frustrated at the end of the age. So many different
ideas. So many different teachers. So
much lawlessness and sin, Jesus says in Matthew 24.12, that most
people’s love will grow cold. Not some. Most. The great portion,
and I take this to mean of the professing church, the great portion of the professing
church, their love will grow cold. One said it this way, iniquity
will be rife. People will no longer try to
hide their sins and will be flaunted openly. And since love is what
fulfills the moral law of God, the abundance of immorality will
have a chilling effect. On genuine love. And we have
to guard against that. We have to guard against that
we have to focus on the truth and master the truth. We have to make truth. The central
focus of our hearts and lives and the truth is God’s Word.
We have to be masters at that. We cannot be led astray. We cannot
allow our hearts to grow cold. We must cultivate a passion for
God, for the things of God and for his people. As I said several weeks ago,
in answer to the question, where are we in that continuum? How
close are we to the end? If all you’re doing is gauging
and measuring the coldness of people’s hearts, I’d say we’re
close. But from what I see, we have a long way to go, but it
could, as I’ve said before, it could go very quickly. The plug
could be pulled, false teachers advance and the hearts of many
grow very cold. Because lawlessness, unchecked
lawlessness that has no law to hinder it, no court system to
to hold it down. The church, or at least the professing
church, would grow cold almost overnight. It has before. And I say the professing church,
and that’s why I say, where are we? Where are we in our passion? Where are we in our love for
Christ, in our love for His church, in our love for Christ’s people? Where are we in our love for
the proclamation of the gospel? Where are we in the care of people
in this world? There are many who say they like
God. But can it truly be said of us
that we love Him with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength?
Jesus offers a glimmer of hope here at the end. It is the end. Jesus says the end is here. The end is coming. But He says,
he who endures to the end, he will be saved. What great news. What comforting
news. that endurance by God’s grace,
holding fast to the truth, loving one another to the end, loving
God with everything in us to the end, we shall be saved. And I take that to point clearly
to eternal salvation. That doesn’t mean we earn it
by our tenacity, by our endurance. It does mean that our salvation
is proved out to the end as God’s grace courses through us until
that day. But before you transport yourselves
to eternity and rest comfortably there, Jesus takes us immediately
back, back down to earth, back out of the bliss of heaven and
back in to this passage and to the subject at hand. We are looking
at a panorama of the end of the age, not only the indications
of the end, but secondly, the trigger for the end. And the
trigger for the end is the preaching of the gospel. Matthew 24, 14
says it very simply. The gospel of the kingdom shall
be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations. And then the end will come. How
much do you love God? How much do you love the proclamation
of the gospel? We should be preaching Not just
because we want to see the end, we should be preaching and sharing
because we love others, because our own love hasn’t grown cold. God says right here that the
preaching of the gospel, the clear articulation of the fact
that Jesus Christ died on the cross for sinners, That’s going
to be preached. That message is going to be preached
to the end. And when it has fully been preached,
it’s over. It’s over. And in answer to that little
question, where are we in that continuum? Do a million more
need to hear? Ten million? A thousand? Six? Or is it just one? And we have no idea. We have no idea where we are
in that continuum. We just know we’re called to be faithful and
preach. And when the gospel has fully
been preached according to God’s standard, the end will come. I already comforted you with
the words, I’m not going to belabor the point, and I’m really not
even going to review the whole rapture. I’ve told you that I
don’t see the church in this passage beyond verse 14. But I’m not going to stand hard
and fast on that. I think the church is going to
be taken out at some point. Pre-trib. If you’re elsewise,
that’s fine too. As one person used to say, pray
for pre and prepare for post. That’s fine. Live like a Christian. Love God. Preach Christ. Serve one another right up until
the end. Whenever that is. But it is what makes us such
a crucial, crucial understanding of this point. Because we don’t know. We don’t
know precisely. I’ve given you reasons why I
think it’s before the tribulation period, but we don’t know. We
don’t know when the gospel will be fully preached. We don’t know
when that trigger is set. We need to be ready and live
ready and live right and be right. Thirdly, we talked about features
of the end, and this is where we left off last week. Features
of the end just in the midst of this panorama of the end of
the age, not only indications of the end and the trigger for
the end, but the features of the end. What is it going to
look like? Luke. Picks up Jesus words at
this point in verse 20. If you’re following along in
the bulletin and he says, when you see Jerusalem surrounded
by armies, then recognize that her desolation is near. In essence,
there are two elements at the end. Armies and abomination,
we talked a little bit about armies, we talked about the end. And I do believe that it is the
great tribulation that is in view here. He mentions words
like the end and desolation and the abomination of desolation
and days of vengeance. A great tribulation such as has
not occurred since the beginning of the world, nor ever will. Great distress, wrath. I take
that to mean the wrath of God. armies. That’s going to be one
great indicator. And only Luke speaks of armies,
and that’s why I say a synthesis of this passage is so crucial. Because you can come away with
it with almost two different stories completely. And say that Luke was talking
about what happened in AD 70, but Matthew and Mark, they’re
talking about a very distant thing. Only Luke speaks of armies,
and you could almost step back and say, when hasn’t Israel been
surrounded by armies? But if you take both together,
not just armies, but armies and what Matthew points out and Luke
or Mark as well, the abomination of desolation, what is that?
Somebody called it the 800 pound gorilla that’s been in the room
the last two months. Right. Every time we read the
passage, we hear the abomination of desolation. When is he going
to get to that? Today’s your day. Between Matthew’s account and
Luke’s account, Jesus provides these two very closely related
indicators of the end. The gathering armies around Jerusalem
and the abomination of desolation in the holy place. What is that? As I said, Mark speaks of it
as well. Abomination, that’s a Bible word, right? When you
talk about abominations, you know, that just is a biblical
word. It’s a biblical thought, not
a word that we commonly bandy about in our day and age. It was very often used in the
Old Testament of denoting idols or objects connected with gross
idolatry. As one said, abomination denotes
an object of disgust, something loathsome and detestable. Try
these on. Don’t try to keep up with me
turning Deuteronomy chapter twenty nine, verse sixteen. For you
know how we lived in the land of Egypt, how we came through
the midst of the nations through which you passed. Moreover, you
have seen their abominations and their idols of wood, stone,
silver and gold. Those two things are so often
connected, idolatry and abomination, so as to be blended. They are
almost one and the same. 1 Kings. First Kings 11, 6 and
7, Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and
did not follow the Lord fully as his father had done. Then
Solomon built a high place for Chemosh, the detestable idol
of Moab on the mountain, which is east of Jerusalem and the
detestable idol of the sons of Ammon. That word detestable there
just translated detestable. It is our word abomination. Second
Kings chapter 16, verse three. Second Kings 16, three says this,
but he walked in the way of the kings of Israel and he even made
his son to pass through the fire according to the abominations
of the nations whom the Lord had driven out from before the
sons of Israel. The assessment is God’s. God
is the one that had determined these practices to be abominable,
evil to the core. The interesting thing about the
passage of hand, though, is that there is a masculine particle
in Mark indicating that the writer Mark, by way of the Holy Spirit,
Mark thought of this abomination of desolation as a personal thing. A living thing. Either an idolater
himself or an idolatrous image that was alive, essentially. What about this word desolation?
I mean, it’s a pretty simple word. Some of you have been to the
desert that pretty much paints the picture of what desolation
is nothingness. But this desolation is desolation,
destruction, utter destruction that is brought about. It’s not
the way the plains were left barren by a lack of water and
great heat. This is something that is done
to a once vibrant place. It literally is the desolation
that is caused by the abomination. This sin, this sinful idolatry,
whatever it is, is so vile and so detestable to God Himself
that when God sees it, desolation takes place. So, as one said in providing
this insight, Jesus, as recorded in Matthew’s Gospel, directs
us ultimately back to the prophet Daniel, because this expression,
the abomination of desolation, comes really from Daniel’s prophecy
and evidently refers to something overwhelmingly idolatrous. The
Old Testament book Daniel, the prophet, Jesus says, is a key,
absolute crucial element in understanding the end times. Daniel’s prophecies
provide important details about the rise and fall of nations,
right? Even beginning with Nebuchadnezzar,
the great lesson to Nebuchadnezzar was against his pride, thinking
that he had done it all himself and God humbled him, right? Sent
him out to pasture, right? Eating grass and hay. The whole
thing unfolds, as you remember, about the king of Nebuchadnezzar
who had a disturbing dream. Remember, it was confusing. He
couldn’t figure it out. He couldn’t even really remember it. And
Daniel steps up to interpret the dream. The result is an unfolding
of history, the history of the world. Ultimately, to the very
end, the abomination of desolation is alluded to or specifically
mentioned numerous times in Daniel’s prophecy. I want to take you
to just a couple of them. If you would turn, you’re going
to have to go to the clean part of your Bible and find the book
of Daniel. At this point, this is where
I should hear rustling, great rustling. Daniel, turn, if you would, first
to Daniel chapter eight, verse 13. Now, the idea of this thing.
is spelled out in numerous passages. Verse 13 is just an allusion
to such a thing. Daniel 8.13 says, Then I heard
a holy one speaking, and another holy one said to that particular
one who was speaking, How long would the vision about the regular
sacrifice apply while the transgression causes horror so as to allow
both the holy place and the host to be trampled? Turn, if you
would, to 9.17. In Daniel 9, verse 17, it says, So now, our God, listen
to the prayer of your servant and to his supplications. And
for your sake, O Lord, let your face shine on your desolate sanctuary. And so the idea of a place that
is once vibrant and once holy, that now has been desecrated
and thereby, because it is so abominable, wiped clean. Let me pause here to just tell
you that what Jesus says here, when you see the abomination
of desolation, which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet,
I believe the very passage that he’s indicating is found in Daniel
9.24. Glance down the page from 9.17
and find Daniel 9.24. In Daniel 9 24 through 20, we’ll
pick it up through Daniel, probably through 26. It says 70 weeks have been decreed
for your people and in your holy city, a clear reference to the
nation of Israel to finish the transgression, to make an end
of sin, to make atonement for iniquity, to bring an everlasting
righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the
most holy place. So you are to know and discern
that from the issuing of a decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem
until Messiah, the prince, there will be seven weeks and 62 weeks. It will be built again with a
plaza and a moat, even in times of distress. Then, after the
sixty-two weeks, Messiah will be cut off and have nothing,
and the people of the Prince who is to come will destroy the
city and the sanctuary, and the end will come with a flood. Even
to the end there will be war. Desolations are determined.”
I believe that is exactly the passage that Jesus was alluding
to when He sent us there. When it says, let the reader
understand, having read Daniel, This is exactly what he was pointing
us to. The abomination of desolation
makes a covenant with Israel in verse 27, it says he will
make a firm covenant with the many for one week. Seven years,
he will break that covenant next in the middle of the week, he
will put a stop to the sacrifice and grain offering on the wing
of abominations will come. One who makes desolate even a
complete destruction, one that is decreed, it is poured out
on the one who makes desolate. Over and over again, this abomination
of desolation continues to be mentioned in Daniel’s prophecy,
Daniel 11 31, Daniel 12 11. Back, if you would, to the Gospel
of Luke, either in your Bible or in the bulletin. So when Jesus
says there in Matthew 24, 15, therefore, when you see the abomination
of desolation, which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet,
standing in the holy place, Mark adds, where it should not be. This is oil and water. It’s beyond
oil and water. This is absolute blasphemy in
a place that is designed, allegedly, to be a holy place, a place for
God. That standing within the holy
place can almost only mean one thing. The temple enclosure itself,
the Holy of Holies, and most scholars would look back on history
and say that there has been an occurrence like this by a man
named Antiochus Epiphanes. Antiochus Epiphanes invaded Jerusalem
and ultimately he initially he presented himself as a friend,
went and attacked Egypt, had a tough time with Egypt and decided
to turn on Israel. Came into Israel under the guise
of friendship and at his indication and through great treachery,
he attacked the city. That’s not the worst thing he
did. He was a Seleucid king. He achieved his power through
violence. Once he became king, he bestowed
upon himself the name Epiphanes, meaning splendid one. He would
go on to feign this friendship with Israel, but ultimately he
treacherously turned on them, as I’ve already indicated, on
a Sabbath of all days. He suddenly commanded his army
to attack the residents of Jerusalem. And then, in order to shame the
Jewish people that he was in the midst of murdering, he set
out to defile their temple by offering a pig on the altar.
And then, to top it all off, he made the priests eat the flesh
of swine. Some people think that it might
even refer here in a more modern sense to the Romans. It’s happened
before. In essence, as we look at the
nation of Israel, as we look at the holy place, it’s happened
before. But that didn’t bring complete
desolation, not a permanent one. Some people think it could refer
to the Romans and to their standards and just the fact that they were
in the holy place as they attacked Jerusalem in 70 A.D. with their
idolatrous images, these eagles on posts, that that’s what it
was referring to. The bottom line here is that
Jesus points back to Daniel’s prophecy. And plainly indicates
that this whole thing is still something future. And it clearly
supersedes the events of 80, 70. The ultimate fulfillment,
both of Jesus prophecy and Daniel’s prophecy is the great tribulation. When the Antichrist. Will play
out the exact scenario. befriending the nation of Israel,
turning against them eventually, effecting some vile abomination
against God, defiling the temple that ultimately brings about
God’s retribution. And when God strikes, desolation
is overwhelming. 2 Thessalonians 2 talks about
it. Let no one in any way deceive
you. For it will not come unless the apostasy comes first and
the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes
and exalts himself above every so-called God or object of worship
so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying
himself as being God.” Hasn’t that always been the devil’s
game? No wonder Jesus says, let the
reader understand this comment here. Certainly is a comment
that Jesus could have made or a comment under the influence
of the Holy Spirit that the gospel writers, both Matthew and Mark,
could have made. In essence, it doesn’t matter
whether Jesus made the comment Let the reader understand or
Mark and Matthew under the influence of the Holy Spirit made the comment.
Let the reader understand the bottom line is it says pay attention. Know this. Some of you have heard. The worrying and whining sound. That comes from having started
the Institute back up. And I don’t pay much attention
to that whirring and whining sound, because I’ve been there
too. I can remember when we used to take our tests, one seminary
professor would hand out a study sheet. Actually, it wasn’t a
study sheet. It was a study book. It was a
booklet of printed papers about that thick. And on every point,
he said, know this. Know this well. Know this very
well. And it was all up for grabs.
You could be tested on any of it at a moment. Jesus says, know
this. Know this well. Listen to this. Let the reader understand. The passage points both to the
destruction of Jerusalem and to the final coming of Christ.
As one said, in accordance with Daniel’s prediction, Antiochus
Epiphanes, unaware that he was fulfilling prophecy, responsible
for his own wicked deed, erected a pagan altar over the altar
of burnt offering, polluting the house of God. That happened
long ago. Nevertheless, Jesus says, when
you see. Showing that he is telling clearly
that a divine oracle can apply to more than one historical situation
and that sacrilege that results in the desolation of the city
and the temple takes place more than once in history. Let the
one who reads Daniel’s prophecy understand this. Just as in the
past, the holy places of the Lord had been desecrated, so
it will be again. Just as the desecration of Jerusalem
has a near reference and a distant reference, same thing with Daniel’s
prophecy. It saw fulfillment in miniature.
But the abomination of desolation that takes place at the end of
the age will make Antiochus epiphanies look like a children’s cartoon.
What Jesus is describing in the Olivet discourse is a close parallel
to Daniel 9. They’re both referring to the
same period. What Jesus refers to as the tribulation period
is an echo of Daniel’s prophecies. And we could literally spend
years. Don’t doubt me or I’ll try it.
We could literally spend years or at least months on Daniel’s
prophecy alone. The rebuilding of Jerusalem,
that whole issue, the meaning of the 70 weeks, Messiah being
cut off, the people and the prince, the destruction of the city,
the flood, the covenant, all of those things, all of those
elements. It is enough. This morning to
acknowledge that Daniel’s prophecy is Christ’s prophecy. Jesus said
it. They are one in the same, the
trouble and the tribulation is the same, the abomination of
desolation is the same. This is exactly why Jesus speaks
of it. As one said, what Jesus is describing
is a monstrous abomination that causes great desolation. The
abomination, gross idolatry, results in widespread devastation
and ruin. And I fully believe the church
is gone. The church isn’t even here for
any of us. We are looking at a panorama
of the end of the age. Not only the indications of the
end and the trigger of the end and the signs of the end, but
the desperation in the end. Look at Luke 21. This is heartbreaking. It isn’t just wishful thinking
on my part. I mean, it’s not like I said,
what’s going to give the church the easiest way out? Yeah, let
me pick pre-tribulation because I don’t want to face Luke 21,
21. Then those who are in Judea must
flee to the mountains. Those who are in the midst of
the city must leave. Those who are in the country
must not enter the city. Matthew describing the same thing,
recording the same event, says this. Whoever is on the housetop
must not go down to get the things that are in his house. Whoever
is in the field must not turn back to get his cloak, because
these are the days of vengeance so that all things which are
written will be fulfilled. Woe to those who are pregnant
and those who are nursing babies in those days. Mountains have
been a frequent refuge. We’re not the only ones like
the mountains. People have always liked the mountains as a place
to retreat, not only in times of pleasure, but in times of
calamity. Luke provides us with the greatest
amount of detail here in this regard. The continued flow of this passage
makes it clear. that you don’t have an either
or proposition at hand with this whole prophecy that Jesus pours
out. It is a blending of both 70 A.D. as a microcosm and a view of
the end of the age. To those in Judea, to those in
the midst of the city, to those who are in the country and ultimately
to those who are with child and nursing. And he calls to all
of these groups. all of them in the context of
a great tragedy. And so Jerusalem, having been
rebuilt only again to come into focus, only again to find themselves
the hatred of the nations and surrounded, only this time an
attack on Jerusalem will be in the context of the great tribulation
and it will be the last. Luke says there’s not going to
be time for anything. They’re not going to be time
to go get your coat off the coat rack. There’s no reason to go
down and get a snack. There’s no reason to run back
in to the city from the country. It’s over. Talking about the
immediacy of the end. Point five. And did you doubt
I could make it to point six? Point five. Characterization
of the end. Matthew 24 says here, For then
there will be a great tribulation such as has not occurred since
the beginning of the world until now nor ever will.” Luke adds
here, there will be great distress upon the land, wrath to this
people. They will fall by the edge of the sword. They will
be led captive into all the nations and Jerusalem will be trampled
underfoot by the Gentiles. This is the great tribulation.
This is what we’ve been talking about for six weeks. What Matthew
and Mark quote Jesus is referring to, the great tribulation, Luke,
refers to it as great distress. It’s the same thing. It’s the
same horrible conflagration that occurs at the end of the age. Great tribulation points to a
cataclysm and a cataclysm of events that the world has never
seen. Global suffering, cosmic destruction, a time of incredible
destruction and distress, hardship that is unlike anything the world
has ever faced. As I said, if you put all the
wars, all the earthquakes, all the volcanoes, all the famine,
all the pestilence, everything all at once, it doesn’t even
begin to describe the end of the age, the great tribulation. As one said it, the defenders
of the city will be slain or scattered as prisoners of war
among the nations of the world. Jerusalem will fall into the
hands of pagan nations until the times of the Gentiles are
fulfilled, until the present world order, when Christ will
come with divine majesty and power to establish his eternal
kingdom. This isn’t the end yet. Finally, the mercy in the end. The mercy in the end, Matthew
24, 22. It does end with a whimper. It
ends with the mercy of God. Unless those days had been cut
short, no life would have been saved, but for the sake of the
elect, those days will be cut short. You say you thought the
elect were already gone. The church has already been taken
out of the world. The rapture you taught us last
week. We’re not the only ones. There
will be those saved during the Great Tribulation. The Gospel
will continue to be preached. There will be a witness. God’s
Word will go forth and people will be saved. And God says,
for their sake, that whole suffering season will
be cut short. As one said it, these signs point
to a time of tribulation like any other in the history of the
world. Jesus’ reply here suggests that there is a fixed number
of saints to be martyred. When the suffering is going on,
it may seem that the torrents of martyrdom have no end. But
there is an end to the suffering. And that end is already fixed
by God Himself. He has established the boundary
beyond which the forces of evil will never be able to cross. Aren’t those comforting words?
They are comforting words. They’re comforting words because
they come from a sovereign God who is in absolute control. He’s
not going to be duped by a doomsday clock that suddenly goes gong
in the night. God has orchestrated. God has
planned everything down to the infinite detail. And that same
God holds you securely in His hand if you are in Christ. If
you are in Christ Jesus, you are secure. We have no reason
to speak of the end as doomsday. It is not doomsday for us. For
us, it is the day of the Lord. It is the great day. Let’s look
to that and let’s look to that with that attitude. Let’s pray. Our Father God, these are weighty
things. For some, even frightening things. Things from which they shy away
and fear to speak of, fear to study. Lord God, we don’t take
these things up arrogantly. We have delicately handled Your
Word and come to Your Word and brought ourselves before You
Lord, we have been humbled at the words we have heard. Lord
God, we take great confidence in the fact that you are a sovereign
and holy God and one who will one day take his people home.
Lord, we don’t know exactly when, but we do know what we’re supposed
to do in the meantime. We’re supposed to love you. We’re
supposed to love one another. And we’re supposed to love the
lost by proclaiming Christ to them, that all of the elect would
come to know You. Lord, grant us that grace to
be faithful in our callings. It is in Jesus’ name that we
pray, Amen.