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MATTHEW 24
The opening scene here is that Jesus comes out of the temple. That gives us insight to know that chapter 23 takes place in the temple. By observing little things like this we can better understand to whom He was speaking. That is why it is good to read the whole book before you try to study it in small parts. Matthew is rather long but it is very helpful to get a full picture of what takes place and also to get an idea what the main point of the book is. By book I don’t mean the whole Bible of course.
Now back to Matthew. He gives us some interesting information about the kingdom of God. Jesus kept expounding on what the kingdom is like. But as they are leaving the temple the disciples marvel at the beauty of the temple. It was impressive. But they had just come of it and Jesus had left it by telling the Jewish leaders that they would not be part of the kingdom unless they repented. Now the Jews used the temple as a sort of icon that set them apart of all other people. In Jeremiah 7:4 we read that they believed God would never abandon them because of the temple. Jesus said it would be left desolate and the disciples are confused, and want to know when this will happen. This chapter will answer some important questions and give us some good information.
Jesus Foretells the Future
1 As Jesus was leaving the Temple grounds, his disciples pointed out to him the various Temple buildings.2 But he responded, “Do you see all these buildings? I tell you the truth, they will be completely demolished. Not one stone will be left on top of another!”3 Later, Jesus sat on the Mount of Olives. His disciples came to him privately and said, “Tell us, when will all this happen? What sign will signal your return and the end of the world? ”4 Jesus told them, “Don’t let anyone mislead you,5 for many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah.’ They will deceive many.6 And you will hear of wars and threats of wars, but don’t panic. Yes, these things must take place, but the end won’t follow immediately.7 Nation will go to war against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in many parts of the world.8 But all this is only the first of the birth pains, with more to come.9 “Then you will be arrested, persecuted, and killed. You will be hated all over the world because you are my followers. 10 And many will turn away from me and betray and hate each other.11 And many false prophets will appear and will deceive many people.12 Sin will be rampant everywhere, and the love of many will grow cold.13 But the one who endures to the end will be saved.14 And the Good News about the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, so that all nationswill hear it; and then the end will come.15 “The day is coming when you will see what Daniel the prophet spoke about—the sacrilegious object that causes desecrationstanding in the Holy Place.” (Reader, pay attention!)16 “Then those in Judea must flee to the hills.17 A person out on the deck of a roof must not go down into the house to pack.18 A person out in the field must not return even to get a coat.19 How terrible it will be for pregnant women and for nursing mothers in those days.20 And pray that your flight will not be in winter or on the Sabbath.21 For there will be greater anguish than at any time since the world began. And it will never be so great again.22 In fact, unless that time of calamity is shortened, not a single person will survive. But it will be shortened for the sake of God’s chosen ones.23 “Then if anyone tells you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah,’ or ‘There he is,’ don’t believe it.24 For false messiahs and false prophets will rise up and perform great signs and wonders so as to deceive, if possible, even God’s chosen ones.25 See, I have warned you about this ahead of time.26 “So if someone tells you, ‘Look, the Messiah is out in the desert,’ don’t bother to go and look. Or, ‘Look, he is hiding here,’ don’t believe it!27 For as the lightning flashes in the east and shines to the west, so it will be when the Son of Mancomes.28 Just as the gathering of vultures shows there is a carcass nearby, so these signs indicate that the end is near. 29 “Immediately after the anguish of those days,the sun will be darkened,the moon will give no light,the stars will fall from the sky,and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.
30 And then at last, the sign that the Son of Man is coming will appear in the heavens, and there will be deep mourning among all the peoples of the earth. And they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And he will send out his angels with the mighty blast of a trumpet, and they will gather his chosen ones from all over the world—from the farthest ends of the earth and heaven.32 “Now learn a lesson from the fig tree. When its branches bud and its leaves begin to sprout, you know that summer is near.33 In the same way, when you see all these things, you can know his return is very near, right at the door.34 I tell you the truth, this generationwill not pass from the scene until all these things take place.35 Heaven and earth will disappear, but my words will never disappear.36 “However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself.Only the Father knows.37 “When the Son of Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah’s day.38 In those days before the flood, the people were enjoying banquets and parties and weddings right up to the time Noah entered his boat.39 People didn’t realize what was going to happen until the flood came and swept them all away. That is the way it will be when the Son of Man comes.40 “Two men will be working together in the field; one will be taken, the other left.41 Two women will be grinding flour at the mill; one will be taken, the other left.42 “So you, too, must keep watch! For you don’t know what day your Lord is coming.43 Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when a burglar was coming, he would keep watch and not permit his house to be broken into.44 You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.45 “A faithful, sensible servant is one to whom the master can give the responsibility of managing his other household servants and feeding them.46 If the master returns and finds that the servant has done a good job, there will be a reward.47 I tell you the truth, the master will put that servant in charge of all he owns.48 But what if the servant is evil and thinks, ‘My master won’t be back for a while,’49 and he begins beating the other servants, partying, and getting drunk?50 The master will return unannounced and unexpected,51 and he will cut the servant to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Matt 24:1-51 (NLT)
Jesus had just left the temple and had been very direct in giving warnings, laying out the woes, against religious leaders of Israel, Pharisees and scribes, and he was blunt and truthful in His accusations and assessments of where they are and how they are handling the Law of God, and the Word of God. Jesus is telling His disciples that the glory of God will leave that temple. That the temple will be destroyed, not one stone will be left on top of another. It would be destroyed by their enemies. They walk now across the Kidron Valley to the Mt. of Olives.. It is not far but it is quite a hike. The temple is up on a mount, Mt. Zion, and one has to walk down a steep hill, across the valley, and up the other steep hill to climb up to the mount. The disciples ask Jesus privately. They ask Him three questions.
1. When will these things happen?
2. What will be the sign of your coming?
3. What will be the sign of the end of the age?
Jesus does not answer the questions directly. He does this often, as does Hebrew literature. He may answer with another question, or with a parable. Jesus answers the third question first, then the second question and never really does answer the first one. To understand the answers we can look at other accounts of this time. Luke was also there and he wrote about the same thing from his perspective and understanding. It is wonderful to have other accounts to fill in what is not obvious, to help us with more details of what transpired. In Luke 21:5-36 we get the answer to the first question.
In Matthew 24:4-8 Jesus describes the birth pangs that take place first. Pain starts small in giving birth, then grows stronger and continuous. Jesus describes the scenes that will be taking place. Our generation is experiencing much of this, as have previous generations. We are living in a time when we need to be alert. We could be in the beginning of those birth pangs. Jesus goes on to say in verses 9-14 that then you will be delivered to tribulation and you will be killed, you will be hated by all nations because of My name. Remember that Jesus is speaking to His disciples, so the you refers to the Jewish people. We know that the whole world will be affected by the great tribulation, but what Jesus is telling them about right now would pertain to the Jews. At that time many will fall away, they will be misled by false prophets. Their will be lawlessness and people’s hearts will grow cold. That fits what we are experiencing today as well. Jesus wants us to know what will take place so that when it does we will not be alarmed. He is in control of it all the way through. The Gospel will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to the nations and then the end will come. Here we see the heart of God. He keeps trying to get people’s attention and give them time to repent. Jesus began His ministry by proclaiming the kingdom is near, repent and believe. God will continue to preach the message until the end.
In verses 15-16 we see some of the detail filled in. As in other parts of the Bible, and in Hebrew literature, we get an overview and then we get some of the details. Here we see that when ‘you see the abomination of desolation standing in the holy place, let the reader understand’, we are given a clue that we need to read in Daniel what was said about this time to understand with greater detail what will happen. In verse21 we read more of what takes place during the tribulation. Verses 23-26 are warnings and these we can read as a warning for us in our current day and age as well.
Now to answer the second question Jesus speaks about will happen immediately after the tribulation. It will come to an end very quickly. It will be very obvious. The sun and moon will be dark, and the sky will have shaken the stars so that they fall. We can’t explain exactly what this will be, but we can know it will a sign that the tribulation has come to an end. Then the sign of the Son of man will appear in the sky, verses 30-31. Jesus is about to gather up the elect. This gives us the insight that some believers will experience the tribulation. There are many views on the tribulation and I have listed some of those on this site. Read more under the Rapture tab.
Whatever we believe, we must just know that we are to be alert and be doing the Lord’s business as a normal way of living our life, whether we believe we will be raptured out before the tribulation or not. There are many things being said about the end times that is just a bunch of hype. Read the Word of God and you will have all you need to know. Man can conjure up many images, but if God had wanted us to know more He would have told us.
Jesus teaches us about the fig tree. When a fig tree blossoms, it is about to bear fruit. So when Jesus is about to return, we will have the signs of His coming. We will have some idea that it won’t be long.
The coming will be at a time when people don’t expect it, just as in the days of Noah. They were living out their lives as normal and the flood came quickly.
In verses 42-44 we have the illustration of a thief coming in the middle of the night. If we knew he was coming of course we would stay awake and be ready for him. When we see the signs of Jesus coming, we should be alert and ready for Him. We should be alert and ready even when we are not sure we are seeing any signs. To say we will just wait until we see a sign and then we will get ready is risky, and I would suggest you prepare your heart now.
We have a loving God. He wants to warn us because He does love us and does not want us to be caught off guard, or to have never known the consequences of not being prepared. God knows the beginning just as well as He knows the end of all things. He is the author of everything that is ever going to take place on this earth. God wants us to be aware that false prophets will deceive many so that we won’t be misled and we won’t be doubting what to do. He doesn’t want us to be frightened by the events, but to remain confident that all things will take place just as He has planned, and that we are safe with Him. Even if we lose our life, we will be instantly be with Him. Many good people will die during the tribulation, but that does not mean that they were forsaken. It just means that God chose to take them home and perhaps it is very merciful, so they won’t face the after affects of it. God wants us to be ready and we are to trust that whatever happens during that time is in His hands. God wants us to endure to the end. We are not to give up hope or to be afraid of what will happen. It will happen according to God’s plan and He knows every person whom it will affect. He has a plan for every ones life. As we live out our life in obedience to God we will face persecution even before the tribulation. We are to be prepared in life for difficult times. We are to be holy in our conduct and blameless. We are to be diligent to study the Word so that we will not be misled to believe false information. We are to be aware that we will be hated because we believe He is Lord, and it may be painful, costly, and risky, to be about our Father’s business. This life is not one of comfort and happiness for ever. We get that in the kingdom if we endure. Do you know what you believe? Do you know the one who promises that we will inherit the kingdom? That would be Jesus Christ you know. Praise His name.
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Chapter 25
There are two parables in this chapter. The messages are very important to understand. We are to be ready, to be prepared for the second coming of our Lord. We are told how to be ready. The answer may not be what you expected. There are many who seem to have missed this point that Jesus taught about.
In chapter 23 Jesus gave many woes to the Pharisees.
In chapter 24 He gives us the answers to the disciple’s questions.
There is a prophecy here. Prophecy isn’t just to inform us of the future but to also form us for the future. Jesus wants to prepare us, to shape us. He calls us to repentance and loyalty. Jesus said no one knows the day or the hour, only the Father knows, and so we are to be alert. We are to be ready for the return of Jesus Christ.
In chapter 25 we have some answers to some questions we should be asking ourselves.
Verses 1-13 tell us to be prepared, ready and alert.
The parable in verses 14-30 tells us how to be ready.
Chapter 25
Parable of the Ten Bridesmaids
1 “The Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of ten bridesmaidswho took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise.3 The five who were foolish didn’t take enough olive oil for their lamps,4 but the other five were wise enough to take along extra oil.5 When the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and fell asleep.6 “At midnight they were roused by the shout, ‘Look, the bridegroom is coming! Come out and meet him!’7 “All the bridesmaids got up and prepared their lamps.8 Then the five foolish ones asked the others, ‘Please give us some of your oil because our lamps are going out.’9 “But the others replied, ‘We don’t have enough for all of us. Go to a shop and buy some for yourselves.’10 “But while they were gone to buy oil, the bridegroom came. Then those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was locked.11 Later, when the other five bridesmaids returned, they stood outside, calling, ‘Lord! Lord! Open the door for us!’12 “But he called back, ‘Believe me, I don’t know you!’13 “So you, too, must keep watch! For you do not know the day or hour of my return.
Parable of the Three Servants
14 “Again, the Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a long trip. He called together his servants and entrusted his money to them while he was gone.15 He gave five bags of silverto one, two bags of silver to another, and one bag of silver to the last—dividing it in proportion to their abilities. He then left on his trip.16 “The servant who received the five bags of silver began to invest the money and earned five more.17 The servant with two bags of silver also went to work and earned two more.18 But the servant who received the one bag of silver dug a hole in the ground and hid the master’s money.19 “After a long time their master returned from his trip and called them to give an account of how they had used his money.20 The servant to whom he had entrusted the five bags of silver came forward with five more and said, ‘Master, you gave me five bags of silver to invest, and I have earned five more.’21 “The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’22 “The servant who had received the two bags of silver came forward and said, ‘Master, you gave me two bags of silver to invest, and I have earned two more.’23 “The master said, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’24 “Then the servant with the one bag of silver came and said, ‘Master, I knew you were a harsh man, harvesting crops you didn’t plant and gathering crops you didn’t cultivate.25 I was afraid I would lose your money, so I hid it in the earth. Look, here is your money back.’26 “But the master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy servant! If you knew I harvested crops I didn’t plant and gathered crops I didn’t cultivate,27 why didn’t you deposit my money in the bank? At least I could have gotten some interest on it.’28 “Then he ordered, ‘Take the money from this servant, and give it to the one with the ten bags of silver.29 To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away.30 Now throw this useless servant into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
The Final Judgment
31 “But when the Son of Mancomes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit upon his glorious throne.32 All the nationswill be gathered in his presence, and he will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.33 He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left.34 “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 creation of the world.35 For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home.36 I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’37 “Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink?38 Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing?39 When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’40 “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters,you were doing it to me!’41 “Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. 42 For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink.43 I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’44 “Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’45 “And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’46 “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.”
Matt 25:1-46 (NLT)
The virgins who had brought enough oil would not share with those who didn’t. Now is that the Christian way? Well, we have to understand what is taking place here. This parable depicts more than the wedding. This wedding is depicting being God’s bride, the bride of Christ, and the wedding party that will enter into eternal life. If anyone puts up a block for our salvation we are to destroy it, or not to have a relationship with that person. Just as Jesus said to Peter, get behind me Satan, we are to be alert to the way the enemy uses other people to mislead us. Jesus says there will be many who say “Lord, Lord,” but that Jesus never knew them. Our enemy is lurking everywhere. We need to know where to draw the line. We are to love our neighbor and help the poor and the widow. But this depiction is more about the end times that daily living.
In the parable of the virgins, we have five who are prepared and five that are not. That is a clear message. How would you prepare for our Lord’s return? Are you preparing for the Lord’s return? So what would that look like in your life now?
The slaves who received the talents is an interesting parable. When Jesus returns we will be evaluated, or judged, for what fruit we bore, what we did for the building up of the kingdom, how faithful and loyal we were, as well as what we did with what we were given. Notice that each slave was given talents according to his ability. A talent was a measure of currency, in gold and silver. God gives us each some ability and He has a purpose for our life. We are responsible to determine what gifts we have and ask God to show us how He wants us to use them. He gives us the ability and the opportunity to use them wisely.
In the end Jesus comes to sit on His throne. All nations will be gathered before Him and He will separate the righteous from the unrighteous. The righteous He calls the sheep and the unrighteous the goats. Sheep have a tendency to wander off. Goats have a tendency to be the leader who leads astray. The goats are also very stubborn. We have a message here and we are to heed these words. God does not want anyone to end up in hell. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. This is an eternal fire, a place of torture that lasts eternally.
Jesus doesn’t give us some random parables, but rather fits them together, builds on top of one another, to bring a message of great importance. They strategically demonstrate kingdom living that will prepare us to be ready for the future.
Let’s say that God is the man and we are they slaves. God gives us each some special abilities. We are fellow believers. He wants us to be good stewards of all the blessings He bestows upon us. We are to use all our resources wisely. God is the owner of all things and we are only allowed to use them. So what does God expect? He does not want us to hide and hoard His treasure. We are not to hide within the church. We are not to be content that we have eternal life. We are to be concerned about our fellow man. We are to support the work of the church. We are not to isolate ourselves from the evil people of the world. We are to be actively reaching out to those who are still in darkness. Now don’t tune this out because you don’t like evangelism. We each have a realm of influence and our lives give witness to our faith. We are to shine among those who don’t know Jesus. We don’t have to always be verbally speaking forth the good news. We are to be ready with a testimony and to live our life in such a way that they will know we are different. We are to be doing our Father’s business, each and every day. God desires for His kingdom to grow. We are His tools to reach those who have not heard the message of salvation, or have not understood that they need to respond to it. Negligence is punished and diligence is rewarded. God created you and chose you. He trusts His message with you and trusts that your life will be a testimony and bring witness to who He is and how much He loves His creation. He does not want anyone to perish and we may be the one to tell them the words that will change their destiny. Now that we should take seriously.
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The Parable of the Ten Virgins (25:1-23) The parable of the ten virgins taught about the proper preparation necessary to enter the kingdom. Only those who were prepared to serve the Messiah (25:1, "the bridegroom") would enter in. The groom's delay in coming caused some to be unready (25:5). Again, the length of the wait for the Messiah's return and the need to be ready no matter how long he might take was emphasized.
Laziness with the Master's Entrusted Possessions (25:14-30) In this parable the concept of reward was central (25:21, 23; cf. 24:47). The parable of the three servants spoke of the rewards that would be given to those entering the kingdom on the basis of their faithfulness to God-given opportunity for service. Those who failed to use their gifts and opportunities for service would suffer judgment (25:28-30).
True Obedience Defined: Love for the King's Brothers (25:31-46) This passage elaborated the concept in 25:26 that not only blatant acts of evil would reap judgment. The failure to do the will of the Father and to use his gifts for the sake of others would also bring judgment. It also described the gathering and evaluation of the elect (25:32; cf. 24:31). The subjects of judgment would be people from all the nations. The separation of the sheep and goats depicted the judgment on the Gentile nations that would precede the inauguration of the kingdom and determine who would enter. The basis for entrance was faith, evidenced by works of kindness (25:35-39). No unbelievers ("goats") would be permitted to enter.
The two commands in 25:34, 41 brought some surprises (cf. 25:37, 44) for both the saved and the unsaved. For each group Jesus stressed the way they treated their fellow brothers and sisters (cf. 22:39). He had already defined who they were in 12:48-50. He placed great emphasis on community life in the gospel ministry. Jesus taught that the rewards of the kingdom were based on the good deeds performed for others. Showing love toward others would prove love for God (cf. 22:37-40; 1 John 4:7-8). Love for Jesus' family rounded out the concept of "the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs" of the Beatitudes (Matt. 5) and summed up all the character traits desired by Jesus for his followers: gentleness, humility, compassion, and obedience.
—Tyndale Concise Bible Commentary
The opening scene here is that Jesus comes out of the temple. That gives us insight to know that chapter 23 takes place in the temple. By observing little things like this we can better understand to whom He was speaking. That is why it is good to read the whole book before you try to study it in small parts. Matthew is rather long but it is very helpful to get a full picture of what takes place and also to get an idea what the main point of the book is. By book I don’t mean the whole Bible of course.
Now back to Matthew. He gives us some interesting information about the kingdom of God. Jesus kept expounding on what the kingdom is like. But as they are leaving the temple the disciples marvel at the beauty of the temple. It was impressive. But they had just come of it and Jesus had left it by telling the Jewish leaders that they would not be part of the kingdom unless they repented. Now the Jews used the temple as a sort of icon that set them apart of all other people. In Jeremiah 7:4 we read that they believed God would never abandon them because of the temple. Jesus said it would be left desolate and the disciples are confused, and want to know when this will happen. This chapter will answer some important questions and give us some good information.
Jesus Foretells the Future
1 As Jesus was leaving the Temple grounds, his disciples pointed out to him the various Temple buildings.2 But he responded, “Do you see all these buildings? I tell you the truth, they will be completely demolished. Not one stone will be left on top of another!”3 Later, Jesus sat on the Mount of Olives. His disciples came to him privately and said, “Tell us, when will all this happen? What sign will signal your return and the end of the world? ”4 Jesus told them, “Don’t let anyone mislead you,5 for many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah.’ They will deceive many.6 And you will hear of wars and threats of wars, but don’t panic. Yes, these things must take place, but the end won’t follow immediately.7 Nation will go to war against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in many parts of the world.8 But all this is only the first of the birth pains, with more to come.9 “Then you will be arrested, persecuted, and killed. You will be hated all over the world because you are my followers. 10 And many will turn away from me and betray and hate each other.11 And many false prophets will appear and will deceive many people.12 Sin will be rampant everywhere, and the love of many will grow cold.13 But the one who endures to the end will be saved.14 And the Good News about the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, so that all nationswill hear it; and then the end will come.15 “The day is coming when you will see what Daniel the prophet spoke about—the sacrilegious object that causes desecrationstanding in the Holy Place.” (Reader, pay attention!)16 “Then those in Judea must flee to the hills.17 A person out on the deck of a roof must not go down into the house to pack.18 A person out in the field must not return even to get a coat.19 How terrible it will be for pregnant women and for nursing mothers in those days.20 And pray that your flight will not be in winter or on the Sabbath.21 For there will be greater anguish than at any time since the world began. And it will never be so great again.22 In fact, unless that time of calamity is shortened, not a single person will survive. But it will be shortened for the sake of God’s chosen ones.23 “Then if anyone tells you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah,’ or ‘There he is,’ don’t believe it.24 For false messiahs and false prophets will rise up and perform great signs and wonders so as to deceive, if possible, even God’s chosen ones.25 See, I have warned you about this ahead of time.26 “So if someone tells you, ‘Look, the Messiah is out in the desert,’ don’t bother to go and look. Or, ‘Look, he is hiding here,’ don’t believe it!27 For as the lightning flashes in the east and shines to the west, so it will be when the Son of Mancomes.28 Just as the gathering of vultures shows there is a carcass nearby, so these signs indicate that the end is near. 29 “Immediately after the anguish of those days,the sun will be darkened,the moon will give no light,the stars will fall from the sky,and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.
30 And then at last, the sign that the Son of Man is coming will appear in the heavens, and there will be deep mourning among all the peoples of the earth. And they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And he will send out his angels with the mighty blast of a trumpet, and they will gather his chosen ones from all over the world—from the farthest ends of the earth and heaven.32 “Now learn a lesson from the fig tree. When its branches bud and its leaves begin to sprout, you know that summer is near.33 In the same way, when you see all these things, you can know his return is very near, right at the door.34 I tell you the truth, this generationwill not pass from the scene until all these things take place.35 Heaven and earth will disappear, but my words will never disappear.36 “However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself.Only the Father knows.37 “When the Son of Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah’s day.38 In those days before the flood, the people were enjoying banquets and parties and weddings right up to the time Noah entered his boat.39 People didn’t realize what was going to happen until the flood came and swept them all away. That is the way it will be when the Son of Man comes.40 “Two men will be working together in the field; one will be taken, the other left.41 Two women will be grinding flour at the mill; one will be taken, the other left.42 “So you, too, must keep watch! For you don’t know what day your Lord is coming.43 Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when a burglar was coming, he would keep watch and not permit his house to be broken into.44 You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.45 “A faithful, sensible servant is one to whom the master can give the responsibility of managing his other household servants and feeding them.46 If the master returns and finds that the servant has done a good job, there will be a reward.47 I tell you the truth, the master will put that servant in charge of all he owns.48 But what if the servant is evil and thinks, ‘My master won’t be back for a while,’49 and he begins beating the other servants, partying, and getting drunk?50 The master will return unannounced and unexpected,51 and he will cut the servant to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Matt 24:1-51 (NLT)
Jesus had just left the temple and had been very direct in giving warnings, laying out the woes, against religious leaders of Israel, Pharisees and scribes, and he was blunt and truthful in His accusations and assessments of where they are and how they are handling the Law of God, and the Word of God. Jesus is telling His disciples that the glory of God will leave that temple. That the temple will be destroyed, not one stone will be left on top of another. It would be destroyed by their enemies. They walk now across the Kidron Valley to the Mt. of Olives.. It is not far but it is quite a hike. The temple is up on a mount, Mt. Zion, and one has to walk down a steep hill, across the valley, and up the other steep hill to climb up to the mount. The disciples ask Jesus privately. They ask Him three questions.
1. When will these things happen?
2. What will be the sign of your coming?
3. What will be the sign of the end of the age?
Jesus does not answer the questions directly. He does this often, as does Hebrew literature. He may answer with another question, or with a parable. Jesus answers the third question first, then the second question and never really does answer the first one. To understand the answers we can look at other accounts of this time. Luke was also there and he wrote about the same thing from his perspective and understanding. It is wonderful to have other accounts to fill in what is not obvious, to help us with more details of what transpired. In Luke 21:5-36 we get the answer to the first question.
In Matthew 24:4-8 Jesus describes the birth pangs that take place first. Pain starts small in giving birth, then grows stronger and continuous. Jesus describes the scenes that will be taking place. Our generation is experiencing much of this, as have previous generations. We are living in a time when we need to be alert. We could be in the beginning of those birth pangs. Jesus goes on to say in verses 9-14 that then you will be delivered to tribulation and you will be killed, you will be hated by all nations because of My name. Remember that Jesus is speaking to His disciples, so the you refers to the Jewish people. We know that the whole world will be affected by the great tribulation, but what Jesus is telling them about right now would pertain to the Jews. At that time many will fall away, they will be misled by false prophets. Their will be lawlessness and people’s hearts will grow cold. That fits what we are experiencing today as well. Jesus wants us to know what will take place so that when it does we will not be alarmed. He is in control of it all the way through. The Gospel will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to the nations and then the end will come. Here we see the heart of God. He keeps trying to get people’s attention and give them time to repent. Jesus began His ministry by proclaiming the kingdom is near, repent and believe. God will continue to preach the message until the end.
In verses 15-16 we see some of the detail filled in. As in other parts of the Bible, and in Hebrew literature, we get an overview and then we get some of the details. Here we see that when ‘you see the abomination of desolation standing in the holy place, let the reader understand’, we are given a clue that we need to read in Daniel what was said about this time to understand with greater detail what will happen. In verse21 we read more of what takes place during the tribulation. Verses 23-26 are warnings and these we can read as a warning for us in our current day and age as well.
Now to answer the second question Jesus speaks about will happen immediately after the tribulation. It will come to an end very quickly. It will be very obvious. The sun and moon will be dark, and the sky will have shaken the stars so that they fall. We can’t explain exactly what this will be, but we can know it will a sign that the tribulation has come to an end. Then the sign of the Son of man will appear in the sky, verses 30-31. Jesus is about to gather up the elect. This gives us the insight that some believers will experience the tribulation. There are many views on the tribulation and I have listed some of those on this site. Read more under the Rapture tab.
Whatever we believe, we must just know that we are to be alert and be doing the Lord’s business as a normal way of living our life, whether we believe we will be raptured out before the tribulation or not. There are many things being said about the end times that is just a bunch of hype. Read the Word of God and you will have all you need to know. Man can conjure up many images, but if God had wanted us to know more He would have told us.
Jesus teaches us about the fig tree. When a fig tree blossoms, it is about to bear fruit. So when Jesus is about to return, we will have the signs of His coming. We will have some idea that it won’t be long.
The coming will be at a time when people don’t expect it, just as in the days of Noah. They were living out their lives as normal and the flood came quickly.
In verses 42-44 we have the illustration of a thief coming in the middle of the night. If we knew he was coming of course we would stay awake and be ready for him. When we see the signs of Jesus coming, we should be alert and ready for Him. We should be alert and ready even when we are not sure we are seeing any signs. To say we will just wait until we see a sign and then we will get ready is risky, and I would suggest you prepare your heart now.
We have a loving God. He wants to warn us because He does love us and does not want us to be caught off guard, or to have never known the consequences of not being prepared. God knows the beginning just as well as He knows the end of all things. He is the author of everything that is ever going to take place on this earth. God wants us to be aware that false prophets will deceive many so that we won’t be misled and we won’t be doubting what to do. He doesn’t want us to be frightened by the events, but to remain confident that all things will take place just as He has planned, and that we are safe with Him. Even if we lose our life, we will be instantly be with Him. Many good people will die during the tribulation, but that does not mean that they were forsaken. It just means that God chose to take them home and perhaps it is very merciful, so they won’t face the after affects of it. God wants us to be ready and we are to trust that whatever happens during that time is in His hands. God wants us to endure to the end. We are not to give up hope or to be afraid of what will happen. It will happen according to God’s plan and He knows every person whom it will affect. He has a plan for every ones life. As we live out our life in obedience to God we will face persecution even before the tribulation. We are to be prepared in life for difficult times. We are to be holy in our conduct and blameless. We are to be diligent to study the Word so that we will not be misled to believe false information. We are to be aware that we will be hated because we believe He is Lord, and it may be painful, costly, and risky, to be about our Father’s business. This life is not one of comfort and happiness for ever. We get that in the kingdom if we endure. Do you know what you believe? Do you know the one who promises that we will inherit the kingdom? That would be Jesus Christ you know. Praise His name.
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Chapter 25
There are two parables in this chapter. The messages are very important to understand. We are to be ready, to be prepared for the second coming of our Lord. We are told how to be ready. The answer may not be what you expected. There are many who seem to have missed this point that Jesus taught about.
In chapter 23 Jesus gave many woes to the Pharisees.
In chapter 24 He gives us the answers to the disciple’s questions.
There is a prophecy here. Prophecy isn’t just to inform us of the future but to also form us for the future. Jesus wants to prepare us, to shape us. He calls us to repentance and loyalty. Jesus said no one knows the day or the hour, only the Father knows, and so we are to be alert. We are to be ready for the return of Jesus Christ.
In chapter 25 we have some answers to some questions we should be asking ourselves.
Verses 1-13 tell us to be prepared, ready and alert.
The parable in verses 14-30 tells us how to be ready.
Chapter 25
Parable of the Ten Bridesmaids
1 “The Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of ten bridesmaidswho took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise.3 The five who were foolish didn’t take enough olive oil for their lamps,4 but the other five were wise enough to take along extra oil.5 When the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and fell asleep.6 “At midnight they were roused by the shout, ‘Look, the bridegroom is coming! Come out and meet him!’7 “All the bridesmaids got up and prepared their lamps.8 Then the five foolish ones asked the others, ‘Please give us some of your oil because our lamps are going out.’9 “But the others replied, ‘We don’t have enough for all of us. Go to a shop and buy some for yourselves.’10 “But while they were gone to buy oil, the bridegroom came. Then those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was locked.11 Later, when the other five bridesmaids returned, they stood outside, calling, ‘Lord! Lord! Open the door for us!’12 “But he called back, ‘Believe me, I don’t know you!’13 “So you, too, must keep watch! For you do not know the day or hour of my return.
Parable of the Three Servants
14 “Again, the Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a long trip. He called together his servants and entrusted his money to them while he was gone.15 He gave five bags of silverto one, two bags of silver to another, and one bag of silver to the last—dividing it in proportion to their abilities. He then left on his trip.16 “The servant who received the five bags of silver began to invest the money and earned five more.17 The servant with two bags of silver also went to work and earned two more.18 But the servant who received the one bag of silver dug a hole in the ground and hid the master’s money.19 “After a long time their master returned from his trip and called them to give an account of how they had used his money.20 The servant to whom he had entrusted the five bags of silver came forward with five more and said, ‘Master, you gave me five bags of silver to invest, and I have earned five more.’21 “The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’22 “The servant who had received the two bags of silver came forward and said, ‘Master, you gave me two bags of silver to invest, and I have earned two more.’23 “The master said, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’24 “Then the servant with the one bag of silver came and said, ‘Master, I knew you were a harsh man, harvesting crops you didn’t plant and gathering crops you didn’t cultivate.25 I was afraid I would lose your money, so I hid it in the earth. Look, here is your money back.’26 “But the master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy servant! If you knew I harvested crops I didn’t plant and gathered crops I didn’t cultivate,27 why didn’t you deposit my money in the bank? At least I could have gotten some interest on it.’28 “Then he ordered, ‘Take the money from this servant, and give it to the one with the ten bags of silver.29 To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away.30 Now throw this useless servant into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
The Final Judgment
31 “But when the Son of Mancomes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit upon his glorious throne.32 All the nationswill be gathered in his presence, and he will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.33 He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left.34 “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 creation of the world.35 For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home.36 I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’37 “Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink?38 Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing?39 When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’40 “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters,you were doing it to me!’41 “Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. 42 For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink.43 I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’44 “Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’45 “And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’46 “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.”
Matt 25:1-46 (NLT)
The virgins who had brought enough oil would not share with those who didn’t. Now is that the Christian way? Well, we have to understand what is taking place here. This parable depicts more than the wedding. This wedding is depicting being God’s bride, the bride of Christ, and the wedding party that will enter into eternal life. If anyone puts up a block for our salvation we are to destroy it, or not to have a relationship with that person. Just as Jesus said to Peter, get behind me Satan, we are to be alert to the way the enemy uses other people to mislead us. Jesus says there will be many who say “Lord, Lord,” but that Jesus never knew them. Our enemy is lurking everywhere. We need to know where to draw the line. We are to love our neighbor and help the poor and the widow. But this depiction is more about the end times that daily living.
In the parable of the virgins, we have five who are prepared and five that are not. That is a clear message. How would you prepare for our Lord’s return? Are you preparing for the Lord’s return? So what would that look like in your life now?
The slaves who received the talents is an interesting parable. When Jesus returns we will be evaluated, or judged, for what fruit we bore, what we did for the building up of the kingdom, how faithful and loyal we were, as well as what we did with what we were given. Notice that each slave was given talents according to his ability. A talent was a measure of currency, in gold and silver. God gives us each some ability and He has a purpose for our life. We are responsible to determine what gifts we have and ask God to show us how He wants us to use them. He gives us the ability and the opportunity to use them wisely.
In the end Jesus comes to sit on His throne. All nations will be gathered before Him and He will separate the righteous from the unrighteous. The righteous He calls the sheep and the unrighteous the goats. Sheep have a tendency to wander off. Goats have a tendency to be the leader who leads astray. The goats are also very stubborn. We have a message here and we are to heed these words. God does not want anyone to end up in hell. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. This is an eternal fire, a place of torture that lasts eternally.
Jesus doesn’t give us some random parables, but rather fits them together, builds on top of one another, to bring a message of great importance. They strategically demonstrate kingdom living that will prepare us to be ready for the future.
Let’s say that God is the man and we are they slaves. God gives us each some special abilities. We are fellow believers. He wants us to be good stewards of all the blessings He bestows upon us. We are to use all our resources wisely. God is the owner of all things and we are only allowed to use them. So what does God expect? He does not want us to hide and hoard His treasure. We are not to hide within the church. We are not to be content that we have eternal life. We are to be concerned about our fellow man. We are to support the work of the church. We are not to isolate ourselves from the evil people of the world. We are to be actively reaching out to those who are still in darkness. Now don’t tune this out because you don’t like evangelism. We each have a realm of influence and our lives give witness to our faith. We are to shine among those who don’t know Jesus. We don’t have to always be verbally speaking forth the good news. We are to be ready with a testimony and to live our life in such a way that they will know we are different. We are to be doing our Father’s business, each and every day. God desires for His kingdom to grow. We are His tools to reach those who have not heard the message of salvation, or have not understood that they need to respond to it. Negligence is punished and diligence is rewarded. God created you and chose you. He trusts His message with you and trusts that your life will be a testimony and bring witness to who He is and how much He loves His creation. He does not want anyone to perish and we may be the one to tell them the words that will change their destiny. Now that we should take seriously.
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The Parable of the Ten Virgins (25:1-23) The parable of the ten virgins taught about the proper preparation necessary to enter the kingdom. Only those who were prepared to serve the Messiah (25:1, "the bridegroom") would enter in. The groom's delay in coming caused some to be unready (25:5). Again, the length of the wait for the Messiah's return and the need to be ready no matter how long he might take was emphasized.
Laziness with the Master's Entrusted Possessions (25:14-30) In this parable the concept of reward was central (25:21, 23; cf. 24:47). The parable of the three servants spoke of the rewards that would be given to those entering the kingdom on the basis of their faithfulness to God-given opportunity for service. Those who failed to use their gifts and opportunities for service would suffer judgment (25:28-30).
True Obedience Defined: Love for the King's Brothers (25:31-46) This passage elaborated the concept in 25:26 that not only blatant acts of evil would reap judgment. The failure to do the will of the Father and to use his gifts for the sake of others would also bring judgment. It also described the gathering and evaluation of the elect (25:32; cf. 24:31). The subjects of judgment would be people from all the nations. The separation of the sheep and goats depicted the judgment on the Gentile nations that would precede the inauguration of the kingdom and determine who would enter. The basis for entrance was faith, evidenced by works of kindness (25:35-39). No unbelievers ("goats") would be permitted to enter.
The two commands in 25:34, 41 brought some surprises (cf. 25:37, 44) for both the saved and the unsaved. For each group Jesus stressed the way they treated their fellow brothers and sisters (cf. 22:39). He had already defined who they were in 12:48-50. He placed great emphasis on community life in the gospel ministry. Jesus taught that the rewards of the kingdom were based on the good deeds performed for others. Showing love toward others would prove love for God (cf. 22:37-40; 1 John 4:7-8). Love for Jesus' family rounded out the concept of "the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs" of the Beatitudes (Matt. 5) and summed up all the character traits desired by Jesus for his followers: gentleness, humility, compassion, and obedience.
—Tyndale Concise Bible Commentary