The Sign of the Time
This is taken from a message I taught at Project Church. I thought I’d share with you all. Hope you find it to be encouraging and challenging.
The Sign of the Time
Matthew 24-25
Enter the story.
You are a disciple of Jesus.
Imagine that you’re of the the twelve who are with him and you all are climbing a hill called Mt. Olive. And when you all get to the right spot you see a spectacular view of the temple in Jerusalem in the distance. The view is similar to climbing up to a local hill that overlooks your city.
You all sit down, drink some water, and look over at Jesus. At this point you’ve been on a journey with him for two or three years and have witnessed him do and say things beyond comprehension. He turned water into wine, healed scores of people, mocked the religious elites, walked on water, and even claimed to be God.
Now, tired and weary from the climb, and the journey, you’re with him on this mountain. The breeze kisses your skin and he you’re thinking about something Jesus said just before going up the hill in regards to Jerusalem. “For I tell you, you will not see me again, until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’” (Matthew 23:39) Your mind has been wandering on the climb, “Does this mean he’s going to leave?”
Since you and Jesus are tight, and you don’t want to worry everyone else, you casually walk over to Jesus as he’s sitting on a rock and ask, “When will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the close of the age?”
Jesus lets you know that you weren’t the first person to ask and so he gets everyone’s attention and says:
“See that no one leads you astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray. And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are but the beginning of the birth pains.”
“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake. And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.”
Your mind begins to race as you glance over the view of the city. Jesus continues.
“So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place, then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let the one who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house, and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath. For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved.”
“But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short. Then 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 arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you beforehand. So, if they say to you, ‘Look, he is in the wilderness,’ do not go out. If they say, ‘Look, he is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it.For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.”
At this point, you’re looking at the temple in the distance, the most holy of holy places, and you look back over at Jesus, and he’s saying, as Daniel said, it will be. The temple with be wiped out. You will discover that just decades later, in 70 A.D., the temple is indeed destroyed by the Romans. Once again, Jesus was right. You wonder when all this will happen. Jesus, as if he knew exactly what you were thinking, answers your question.
“From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates. Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.”
“Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his master has set over his household, to give them their food at the proper time? Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions. But if that wicked servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed,’ and begins to beat his fellow servants and eats and drinks with drunkards, the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know and will cut him in pieces and put him with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
“But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only. For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Then two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one left. Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”
You are stunned.
First, Jesus remains a mystery. He’s not saying when he’s coming back because even he, the angels, or anyone know. You will later chuckle to see preachers with charts and graphs trying to predict what Jesus said was unpredictable. Many people will sell books trying to decipher the times and prey on this deep longing in all humans, for things to be made right, because right now, everything seems in shambles. Christians should not be about predictions. By doing so, we are trying to be God because Jesus tells us only the Father knows when. We must learn to live while we wait.
Then Jesus, being the brilliant, masterful teacher he is, breaks in down in terms even simple people like me can understand with the parable of the ten virgins.
“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept. But at midnight there was a cry, ‘Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise answered, saying, ‘Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.’ And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut. Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ But he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.’ Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.”
Upon hearing this, you’re capturing the heart of what Jesus really wants you to know. He wasn’t trying to make us obsessed with the end, because he is the end. He doesn’t want us to try to look out for the anti-Christ, but to look to him as Christ. Not to worry about the destruction of the temple, because he is the true temple. Not to focus on the city of Jerusalem, but our citizenship in the kingdom. What’s he wants us to remember is this: To live like today was your last day and to live it for him.
We take our lives for granted and forget what our purpose is, but Jesus is telling us, that something big is coming and to be ready. Something big will happen. Jesus will soon be arrested, tortured, beaten, mocked, and nailed to a cross where something cosmic will occur. He will bear my sin, and the sin of the whole world, and die in my place and he’s taking my sin with him to be buried. But the story of everything will change when he raises from the dead and begins the great reversal and defeating Satan, sin, and death and bringing hope to the world. The parable of the virgins is a cause for celebration for believers and a warning to unbelievers.
Jesus begins to tell another story to hammer home the heart of his message. This parable he’s about to tell is perhaps the most out-of-context passage preached in modern church history. Churches will often use this for building campaigns or financial teaching. However well-intended that might be, it’s true and original meaning is much more profound. The parable of the talents.
“For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master’s money. Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here I have made five talents more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here I have made two talents more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’”
You realize Jesus isn’t talking about money, he’s talking about your life. He’s saying, “Don’t waste your life!” You’ve always thought the idea was to live a safe and comfortable life but now Jesus is challenging your thinking and, because he loves you, urges you to live a life beyond your life in light of the life to come in eternity. You look around at the other disciples who are recognizing what Jesus is saying to them and you. You’ve been given potential and strengths and they weren’t given to you to build a cushy life, or live the American dream, they were given to you to be good news to this world. That what we do in this life matters in the next.
It’s an honor to have the God of the universe entrust you with such a meaningful life. Some say a talent represents a day’s wage. While that’s true, perhaps it’s better defined as something better- grace. We are given something we don’t deserve. The first two workers got what they didn’t deserve. Only the one who did nothing got what he deserve. The only people who don’t get what they deserve are the ones who serve the King.
As you ponder Jesus parable, your hope now is to hear the words of your King when you are reunited, “Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’” The Kingdom of Heaven is the true promised land and we are but former slaves turned pilgrims on a voyage there. Now we’re discovering that Jesus doesn’t just want us to get to the promised land, he’s saying the voyage matters and wants us to tell his story and change stories on our way to the King.
He will now tell us what really matters in the end, or better said, the new beginning.
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’
“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’ Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
Silence fills the air and air escapes your lungs as reality sets in. Jesus is the sign of the end of the age, making possible for us to live a life like Jesus did. To love the loveless, to preach the Gospel and be gospel, to feed the hungry, to care for the sick, to comfort the comfortless, to welcome strangers, and be willing to suffer for the cause of Christ. The sign of the time is that you and I have the time to be like Christ.
Every human being who has ever existed will stand before a throne where the King of kings will reside. He has prepared two places. One for those who know, love, and follow him. Another for the devil and demons. You realize, you will have a moment before your Creator and King, and the one who entered our story will allow you to enter His- or you will eternally suffer with the doomed demons.
Regardless of where you’re at with God, you are a pilgrim. Your home is not here.
The question is, where is it?
The Gospel of Jesus secures your home but it doesn’t just end there. The Gospel of Jesus causes you to live a life for Jesus in the here and now, for the least of these.
I have two questions for you today:
1) Do you know Jesus? Do you love Jesus? If not, what are you waiting for. We’re not promised today or tomorrow.
2) If you do know and love Jesus, are you following him? Does your life look any different than anyone else’s? Are you living as if today is the last day of the rest of your life?
This life is hard. Endure it. This life matters. Don’t waste it. Good eschatology focuses on the King, not this world. The end will come, be aware of it. That’s good news for those of us who love Jesus. But he isn’t here yet, so there’s work to be done.
That’s why the church exists.
That’s why you exist.
