Jesus Is Still Sovereign
Matthew 24:6-8
When End Times Events Appear
On the day of Pentecost, when the disciples were proclaiming the Gospel in all sorts of languages they had never learnt, Peter directed everyone back to Scripture and said, “this is what was spoken”. The Scripture helps us to discern signs, and events, on a way that brings clarity and points us to the person and work of Jesus.
In these last three months COVID-19 … and all that transpired as a result
… the many deaths.
… lock-downs and isolation.
… social disruption and social discontent.
… concerns over government over-reach and interference.
… the exposure of the increasing divide between rich and poor.
All these results have called for discernment. Many discerning Christians have gone back to the Scripture and have come to the conclusion that these events are signs of the end times.
That is true. Catastrophic events like this are signs of the end times. Jesus told us about such things.
Matthew 24:6-8
6 You will hear of wars and rumours of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of birth pains.
Wars. Famines. Earthquakes. Pandemics. Catastrophe on a large scale.
They are a sign. But take note of the language of Jesus.
“The end is still to come … these are the beginnings of birth pangs.”
Catastrophe is a sign that something is on the horizon.
Catastrophe is a signal that this earth as we know it has a limited time-frame.
Through Catastrophe God is lifting our eyes to see beyond the moment and to remember that this earth … this life we have … it is not the end destination.
As we look to the horizon and think about the significance of catastrophe as a sign we do so with the attitude of “see to it that you are not alarmed”.
Here is the point Jesus is making.
When catastrophic end times events appear don’t let them be the events which frantically cause you to be suddenly startled. Don’t let such events be the events which initiate the new wave of end time analysis and discussion. Catastrophe is not the moment to loudly sound the alarm bells.
The reason Jesus gives us this command is because the very nature of the end times does not revolve around catastrophe.
2 Timothy 3:1-5
1 But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. 2 People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, 4 treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power.
That is not catastrophic … that is a description of just about every day that has taken place since Jesus walked on the earth 2000 years ago.
The wars, famines, pestilence, pandemics … they are the catastrophic events that remind us “the end is still to come … these are the beginnings of birth pangs.”
Rampart greed and materialism.
Self-love, love of pleasure, and boastfulness.
Lack of forgiveness, brutality, treachery, godlessness.
These are the signs of the last days and the end times.
Not the catastrophic.
But that which has become … well that which is quite an ordinary and daily experience.
Paul’s words in Timothy express exactly the same teaching that Jesus taught about the last day. On the very last day, when judgement starts, this is how the world will look.
Matthew 24:36-39
36 “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 37 As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; 39 and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.
In the hour before the return of Jesus life will have a measure of … ordinary. So ordinary that, when the Lord returns there, even those who
… are waiting for his return.
… and praying for his return.
… and looking forward to His return.
Even some of them will say, “That was an unexpected time to return”.
Now some of you are starting to think a little more about what I am saying.
And you are remembering other parts of Scripture as well.
What about the anti-Christ?
What about the man of lawlessness?
What about ?
Well let’s have a look.
What do we read about the anti-Christ?
1 John 2:18
18 Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour.
1 John 4:2-3
2 This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.
In the days when John wrote antichrists were around. In each age there are antichrists. Discerning Christians have constantly identified this end time sign.
What about the lawless one?
2 Thessalonians 2:7-8
7 For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by the splendour of his coming.
Already in the days of Paul the power of lawlessness was there. The lawless one who is seeking to turn people away from the way of faith. Lawlessness exalts itself over God. Lawlessness uses signs and wonders to serve a lie. Lawlessness comes in the form of false Messiahs.
Jesus describes it this way:-
Matthew 24:10-13; 23-24
10 At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11 and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13 but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.
23 At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. 24 For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.
Jesus and Paul make the same point. We taste the destruction of lawlessness on a daily basis for the work of lawlessness has continued since the days of Jesus and Paul. When the lawless one … The One … appears Jesus will sort him out quick smart and overthrow him with the breath of his mouth … as simple for Jesus as blowing out a candle.
Again and again Scripture makes the point.
The end times have a measure of “ordinary” attached to them.
Ordinary in the sense that we completely used to seeing the rampart greed, and self-love, and brutality and treachery and godlessness or this world.
Ordinary in the sense that the spirit of the antichrist, which denies that Jesus is from God, is a spirit that pervades our times.
Ordinary in the sense that people keep turning from Jesus to false prophecies of hope and false claims of the way of salvation.
That is our ordinary world. All which is fulfillment of the last days.
The ordinary … which becomes the normal.
The normal … which can lull us into a rhythm.
The rhythm … which can quietly rock us to sleep.
And we get distracted. Or we get immersed.
Where we get over committed. Or we get over-busy.
Life just rolls on. So easily.
Then there is a war, a famine, a world-wide pandemic … a catastrophe.
Suddenly we are alert.
Our eyes are lifted up from the rut we have created by walking the ordinary.
The ordinary where we know we are in the last days, but where we have kind of neglected, or forgotten, or become distracted, to face each day knowing it could be the last.
Through catastrophe Jesus is once again reminding us … “The end is still to come … these are the beginnings of birth pangs.”
Through catastrophe Jesus is once again asking us, “Are you seeing what you need to see?”
Matthew 24:42-44 tells us what we need to see.
42 “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. 43 But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.
Keep watch … be ready.
Not keeping watch in the sense of trying to put together a time-table of events and then predict the date of the return of Jesus.
Only the Father knows the day or the hour.
Keeping watch is not math exercise. Rather it is a spiritual discipline.
When Jesus says, “keep watch” he is relating to a small town which has a wall around it and which has watchman keeping an eye on what is happening.
These watchman don’t know exactly when an enemy is preparing an attack. All they know is that, at some point, an attack will occur. So they keep watch knowing that their vigilance will help them to be prepared and have an advantage. If they don’t keep watch they will be caught out.
Our call to keep watch is the same. We know that Jesus will come back.
He is sovereign. Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess.
When end time events appear this is the truth they are proclaiming.
While that all takes place we watch. We keep ourselves in a state of spiritual preparedness. Watching our own lives and situations.
Scripture makes the same point elsewhere.
1 Corinthians 1:7-8
7 You do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed. 8 He will also keep you firm to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
2 Peter 3:10-12
10 The day of the Lord will come like a thief … 11 what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives 12 as you look forward to the day of God.
1 John 2:28
28 And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming.
When catastrophe comes it is easy to be startled … the end is near.
But that is not how Jesus wants catastrophe to impact us. Instead, in the middle of catastrophe, in the middle of the pandemic, Jesus is lifting our eyes up from the rut to look to the horizon.
He shows us, again, all the end time events are already happening – it is part of our ordinary.
Are we watching? Are we expecting? Are we keeping firm?
Or have we been rocked into a rhythm by the ordinary?
Prayer
