summary of Matthew 24:45-51
The last four Sundays we have looked at Matthew 24 and Jesus’ answer to the 3 questions that the disciples asked Jesus: “When will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and the end of the world?” The context in which these three questions came to Jesus was the destruction of the temple. Jesus said not one of these stones, pointing to the temple, would be left upon the other (verses 1, 2). Therefore, Jesus in his answer was telling them when the Jewish temple would be destroyed and what would happen. He was also telling them what signs would be seen before this event. But the questions the disciples asked were twofold. It referred to the destruction of the temple, and for many Jews, that meant the end of the world, but also, it referred to the end of the age, or the world as we know it. So, Jesus is answering the questions told them what would happen before the destruction of Jerusalem and what would happen before the end of the world as we know it. There is no other way to understand this passage. As I mentioned, there was a partial fulfilment of this passage before and during the destruction of Jerusalem and the destruction of the temple when the Roman armies invaded in 70 AD and when the abomination of desolation was seen in the temple. But also, there will be an ultimate fulfilment of this passage before the end of the world when Christ comes again visibly in his human nature a second time, as he predicted. Jesus came in judgement upon Jerusalem in some sense, but he will come a second time in judgement, as verses 29-31 state, in power and great glory, and when this happens, there will be great signs in the sky, and the angels will gather his elect from the four corners of the world. The resurrection of the dead will also happen during this time, and death will be abolished forever.
Before the second coming, 8 general signs will occur; in fact, these signs are the signs of the times in every generation. They are 1) false Christs will deceive many, 2) there will be wars and rumours of wars, 3) there will be famine and pestilences 4) there will be earthquakes, 5) there will be persecution of believers, 6) there will be a falling away of false believers, along with betrayals and hatred. 7) false prophets will rise to deceive many, and 8) lawlessness will increase and the love of many Christians will grow cold. We can say these 8 signs occur in every generation; it is part of the age we live in, and it will continue until the end of the world, but just before the second coming, as Scripture teaches, there will be a man of sin revealed (2 Thess 2) and a great tribulation, and between the first and second coming, Matthew 24:14 will take place: the gospel of the kingdom will be preached as a witness to every nation (ethnic group), and then the end will come. The challenge we face in the church is Christ has delayed his coming. It has occurred in every generation. The apostles expected Christ to return during their lifetime. And in every generation, Christians expect Christ to return. Let me test you on this. How many Christians have you spoken to that have voiced their expectation that Christ will come back very soon, like in a few years or even months? Just by thinking on the spot, I can think of many Christians, some in the last month, that believe Christ is coming very soon. This happens in every generation. And in a sense, Christ comes for each individual in every generation at the time of their death. In that sense, Christ is coming for everyone in every generation. But what we find in Matthew 24 is menta specific mention of the second cominggain, the challenge we all face is Christ is delaying his coming. And when the years go by, you feel it more and more. So, how do we react?
The parable before us, and the subsequent ones in Matthew 25, teach us what our posture, our disposition or attitude, should be while Christ delays his coming. There is a contrast in this parable. What our posture should be and what it shouldn’t be. It is addressed primarily to leaders of the church but can be applied to all in the kingdom of God who have been given responsibility. We are either wise and faithful at our station in life, or we are foolish and unfaithful. Which one are you? This is the point of this passage. To prepare for Christ’s coming, and especially when we see he is delaying his coming, is to be watchful and be at our post, being faithful to God and doing what He has commanded us to do. In other words, we all need to persevere in gospel clarity, gospel piety and gospel proclamation. This parable echoes Matthew 23:13, “He who perseveres to the end shall be saved.”
Sovereign Grace Fellowship - Chiang Rai 