Second Coming Signs {part 1}

Second Coming Signs {Part 1} 

Matthew 24:3 As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. "Tell us," they said, "when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?"

The disciples were asking the question When are you going to arrive in your full messianic revelation?  When are you going to come and be all that we anticipate for you to be? They did not think in terms of him leaving for a long extended period of time and then returning, rather they simply thought in terms of him soon making a transition to set up his kingdom and they were allowing him time for that.

Think with me through this, please.  These disciples were not the only ones to receive a message from God only to have the fulfillment of that message extend way beyond their lifetime.  

Think with me about the Bible.  Who else received a message and did not see the fulfillment during their lifetime?  Lets begin with Abram.   He was minding his own business was he not?  

Then in Genesis 12, 17, and 19 we see God stepping into his life, and providing a great prophecy about his life and the lives of his decadents.  The covenant with Abraham was formed and promises made and then reminders given to him that God’s word is still in progress of being fulfilled, and he was not forgotten.    I would submit to you that God still does this today.

 While Abram saw the scope of God’s plan did he live to see all the details?  NO!  

What about Moses?  We see the same thing:  Moses died and another generation saw the promises fulfilled.  What about David?   David saw only a partial fulfillment of his covenant.  The throne was established, but keep in mind that forever promises need forever to be fulfilled.   

For a log time now, there has been lacking a man to sit on the throne of Israel.  However, prophecies about a future Davidic King and the rebuilding of the house of David reaffirm the ultimate intention of God’s covenant to David and Israel.   These Prophecies have extended way past the lifetimes of the recipients. 

What about Jeremiah?  He was given visions and messages about the New Covenant.  Did he live to see the fulfillment of what he saw?  No!   That prophecy extended well past his lifetime too.  We see glimpses of that prophecy, but if God terries the prophecy of the NEW covenant will out live us!

My point is this:  It is very common for prophecies to outlive those who receive them.  And when you consider the reality that many prophecies have a double fulfillment, this prophecy in Matthew 24& 25 has a direct fulfillment in the lifetime of these disciples and a fulfillment that far outlast their life.  

So when they asked him questions about the end of the age, it was natural for them to want to see it fulfilled in their lifetime, but really it stands to reason that this was an unreasonable expectation on their part! 

They used a term that is found several times in the book of Matthew.  It is in the great commission:  “Low I'm with you even to the end of the age.”  In Chapter 13 it is found several times, we read the harvest is the end of the age.  I'm not sure what the disciples were looking for, and I'm not sure what sign they anticipated maybe they wanted to know if it would be accomplished by lightning, or some catastrophic event, but whatever it is they wanted a marker.  And, this whole sermon called the Olivet Discourse was the response given by Jesus to answer the questions of his disciples.  

In the 4th verse Jesus said to them:  NIV Matthew 24:4 Jesus answered: "Watch out that no one deceives you.”

And he begins to speak to the preparation of the disciples mind as to the time of his return. Before I go much further, let me pause and make a comment about the importance of that truth for our day.  

Verses 4 - 9 describe the early days of the tribulation period. There is a term for it in the text here it is called the beginning of sorrows.

Whatever we have experienced through this COVID-19 crisis; it is just the beginning!  So as bad as it is right now, we have not seen anything yet.   You think about that as we move through this study.