Be Ready for the Lord’s Return – Matthew 24

“Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said to them, ‘Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down.’ Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, ‘Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?’” Matthew 24:1-3

Between Matthew 19-23, Jesus had been in the temple in Jerusalem. In Matthew 23, He spoke eight woes against the scribes and Pharisees because their teaching made their followers twice as fit for hell as they were. Now, afterwards, in Matthew 24, Jesus and His disciples sat on the Mount of Olives. They could see the temple from there.

King Herod had employed 10,000 workers to beautify the temple. Its gold roof reflected the sun’s rays. Its white marble walls appeared as snow. Its beautification ended in 63 AD. Its destruction occurred in 70 AD. It was set on fire by the Romans. They pulled its walls down to extract the gold that had melted into the crevices. Not one stone was left upon another.

The disciples likely assumed that the end of the temple would be the end of the world. Think of it! God-in-the-flesh just told them that the building which represented their faith would become rubble. They wanted to know when the end would be. Jesus did not give them a day or a hour. He revealed to them signs that would appear preceding that day.

“And Jesus answered and said to them: ‘Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My Name, saying, I am the Christ, and will deceive many. And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows.’” Matthew 24:4-8

The first sign was deception. In the Book of Judges, Kings, Chronicles and the Prophetical books of the Old Testament, deception proceeds demise. Demise proceeds divine intervention. Israel was deceived when they worshipped the idols of the people around them. Then, their nation experienced spiritual and physical decline. Famines, pestilences, disasters and wars humbled them. Then, they cried out to the Lord for help, and He intervened to help them.

In Joshua 23:11, Joshua warned the tribes of Israel, saying, “Take careful heed to yourselves, that you love the Lord your God.” In Jude 1:21, Jude warned the Church, saying, “Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.”

In the Book of Revelation, there is deception, demise, and turning to the Lord before He returns.

In Revelation 7:9, 13-14, John saw “a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues... before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands.” An angel asked John, “What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?” John replied, “Sir, you know.” The angel told him, “These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.”

“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My Name’s sake. And then many will be offended, will betray one another and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved. And this Gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.” Matthew 24:9-14

There is a connection between the many false prophets and the sufferings of the saints. George Orwell wrote, “The further a society drifts from the truth, the more it will hate those who speak it.” In John 16:3, Jesus warned us saying, “They will do these things because they have not known the Father, nor Me.” There will be a spirit of lawlessness before the Lord returns. In 1 Peter 4:4, Peter wrote, “In regard to these, they think it strange that you do not run with them in the same flood of dissipation, speaking evil of you.”

Despite the hatred, betrayals, the tribulations, and the martyrdoms, the Gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness, and then the end will come.

“Therefore, when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place (whoever reads, let him understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house. And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes. But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! And pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath. For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened.” Matthew 24:15-22

“Jesus tells us directly that to understand this subject, we must go back to Daniel the prophet. Daniel 8:13 speaks of ‘the vision … concerning the daily sacrifices and the transgression of desolation, the giving of both the sanctuary and the host to be trampled underfoot.’”

“The first fulfilment of the desolation happened when Roman armies destroyed the Jewish temple in 70 AD. This is why Jesus says in Luke 21:20, ‘When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near. Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.’ In Luke 21:24, Jesus uses the same words as Daniel: ‘Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.’”

“The final desolation spoken of by Jesus speaks of the rise of an evil religious power that will mingle paganism with Christianity. When ungodly men infiltrate and corrupt the church so that it serves the agenda of an evil empire, we know that the end is near. This is a good time to flee to more desolate places before the great tribulation begins.” [1]

In 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4, Paul prophesied of this event, writing, “That day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshipped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.”

There will be a deception by the antichrist, social demise, a crying out to the Lord by many, and then, the Lord shall return.

“Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There!’ do not believe it. For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you beforehand. Therefore, if they say to you, ‘Look, He is in the desert!’ do not go out; or ‘Look, He is in the inner rooms!’ do not believe it. For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together.” Matthew 24:23-28

Jesus continues with warning to beware of false christs and false prophets. They will do great signs and wonders for the purpose of trying to deceive even the elect. Who else better to target than the people who are in a relationship with Christ. They are recipients of truth and light from God amidst a deceived generation.

Jesus will not return in a similar manner as He came to earth the first time. He will appear as suddenly as lightning does. He shall judge the earth with righteousness. Great armies will fall before Him. He will call the birds to partake of the carcasses of the dead.

“Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.” Matthew 24:29-31

Jesus also revealed the darkening of the sun, moon and stars in Revelation 6:12-13.

Could the sign of the Son of Man appearing in the heaven be the moment that He raptures the Church? In 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, Paul prophesied, saying, “The Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.” Would not the rapture of some while others are left behind cause great mourning on the earth?

The Lord says that the angels will gather together His elect. In Revelation 14:15-20, the Lord reveals two harvests. During the first harvest, the Son of Man reaps the earth with a sickle but there is no mention of wrath. During the second harvest, the angels reap the earth and people are thrown into the winepress of God’s wrath.

1 Corinthians 15:51–52 describes believers being transformed “in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.” In John 14:1–3, Jesus promised to return and “take you [His disciples] to Myself, that where I am you may be also.” 1 Thessalonians 5:9 states that “God has not destined us for wrath.”

“Now learn this parable from the fig tree: when its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near—at the doors! Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but My Words will by no means pass away.” Matthew 24:32-35

As figs flourish when spring comes, so end times signs flourish just before Jesus returns.

“But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying, and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left. Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” Matthew 24:36-44

The Church like Noah warns people right up until the time of the rapture. Some mock and others persecute them. Then, suddenly, believers are taken. As God provided a way of escape from His wrath for Noah and his family, so will God do for His bride the Church. As God got Lot and his family out of Sodom and Gomorrah before the fire fell so will He do for those who believe in Him and profess Him before He releases His wrath on the earth.

“Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master made ruler over his household, to give them food in due season? Blessed is that servant whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing. Assuredly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all his goods. But if that evil servant says in his heart, ‘My master is delaying his coming,’ and begins to beat his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunkards, the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him and at an hour that he is not aware of and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” Matthew 24:45-51

In Matthew 24:45, Jesus urges us to be faithful and wise servants who feed the souls who look to us for sustenance. Be like Jeremiah, Paul or Peter. In Jeremiah 25:3, he said, “For twenty-three years... the word of the Lord has come to me and I have spoken to you again and again, but you have not listened.” In Acts 20:31, Paul said, “Remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.” In 1 Peter 5:2-4, Peter said, “Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; neither as being lords over God’s heritage, but being examples to the flock. And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, you shall receive a crown of glory that fades not away.”

Jesus warns us not to beat our fellow servants. Don’t indulge in gluttony and drunkenness. Don’t be caught off guard when the Lord comes and be cut up and assigned to the place where hypocrites go. Hypocrites go where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.

At the end of Matthew 24, Jesus brings us back full circle to what He had said in Matthew 19-23 to the scribes and Pharisees. He warned them that they made their proselytes twice as fit for hell as they were. The scribes and Pharisees had digressed from serving God and others to demanding that God and others serve them.

In Matthew 25, the Lord will conclude His end times talk with three parables that have a similar theme. The theme is to be wise, be invested in the Lord and be kind to people because the Lord will return at an hour that you do not expect.


[1] amazingfacts.org/study/daily-devotional/what-is-the-abomination-of-desolation