To start a discussion on core values, a youth pastor in Saskatchewan, Canada, asked his youth group: “What would you do if your doctor told you that you had only 24 hours to live?” The students talked about being with friends and family, and the discussion seemed headed in the right direction. But then, Jason, a 13-year-old student said, “I'd get a second opinion” (Donna Spratt, Melfort, Saskatchewan, “Lite Fare,” Christian Reader).
As we look at our world, it seems that we are coming to the end of an age: Covid has changed our world. There is a lot more unrest and political turmoil these days. People are protesting everywhere, and prices continue to soar, along with the violent crime rate in many of our major cities.
Amidst all the crisis, people have various responses. Some panic, some rebel, and some just want a second opinion, hoping the bad news will go away.
How does Jesus want you to respond to all this? Well, if you have your Bibles, I invite you to turn with me to Matthew 24, Matthew 24, where Jesus talks about the end of the age and how He wants His followers to respond.
Matthew 24:1-2 But he answered them, “You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.” (ESV)
Those stones were so massive, that this seemed impossible! They were taller than I am and nearly 10-12 feet wide. Master stone masons had polished them smooth and generously decorated them with gold (Josephus, The Antiquities of the Jews 15.11.3-7).
The Temple itself was huge, covering about 1/6th of the city of Jerusalem. And its builders built it to last forever, because Herod intended it to be a permanent monument to himself.
The building certainly impressed Jesus’ disciples. They were Galileans, men of the country, fishermen who knew the lakeside far better than they knew the city. William Barclay suggests that some of them “would be like people from the country coming... to... New York” for the first time (Barclay, The Gospel of Matthew). If you can remember your first trip to the big city, you have a sense of what Jesus’ disciples felt looking at that massive Temple.
The sight staggered them, but Jesus tells them something even more staggering: One day, someone or something would completely destroy that temple. Jesus’ disciples couldn’t believe it, so when they climb the hill opposite the Temple, they ask Him about it.
Matthew 24:3 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?” (ESV)
They ask Jesus three questions: When will these things be? What will be the sign of your coming? And what will be the sign of the end of the age? In the rest of the chapter, Jesus answers all three questions in reverse order. This morning we’ll look at Jesus’ answer to the last question: What will be the sign of the end of the age? It starts in verse 4. Take a look!
Matthew 24:4-5 And Jesus answered them, “See that no one leads you astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray. (ESV)
During every time of crisis, people arise, who promise to save the world, but Jesus warns His followers to disregard them. Ensure that no one leads you astray, He says. And...
STAY TRUE.
Look only to Jesus for deliverance, because Jesus is the world’s only Messiah; Jesus is the world’s only Savior and King. Ignore any other so-called “savior.” For during the end of the age, false christs will multiply.
Jesus identifies them as the first of several signs marking the end of the age. So does the book of Revelation. When the angel opens the first seal in Revelation 6, John sees a crowned conqueror, riding on a white horse (Revelation 6:1-2). He is the Antichrist (1 John 2:18), a world ruler, who will promise peace to Israel when he confirms a 7-year peace treaty with them (Daniel 9:27). That marks the beginning of 7-years of tribulation, the first 3½ of which are relatively peaceful. Then, halfway into his 7-year treaty with Israel, the Antichrist will break that treaty, desecrate their temple, and institute a reign of terror over the whole world (Daniel 9:27; Revelation 12:6; 13:5).
He will be the ultimate deceiver, promising peace and salvation in a time of crisis, but ultimately bringing in war, famine, and death. At that time, believers will have to resist his lies. But at any time, you must resist the lies of anyone who claims to be your savior. Trust only Jesus for deliverance. Trust only Jesus to get you through the crisis, whatever it is.
Five years ago (April 2016), Harper's Magazine published a story about Jay Miscovich. He claimed to have found hundreds of emeralds in the Florida Keys from a Spanish ship that went down in 1622. There had been a lot of Spanish ships in those days that crashed on the islands and reefs of those Keys. Spanish conquistadors had loaded them with billions of dollars’ worth of gold, silver, and jewels, and they sailed those ships from South America to Spain in countless Spanish armadas. So today hundreds of treasure seekers still look for that treasure. Jay showed samples and claimed that he had found masses of emeralds in the Florida Keys, worth half a billion dollars.
With the advice of a partner, lawyers, and jewel experts, Jay collected millions of investment dollars from private individuals, wall street managers, and a company specifically set up to protect his enormous find. Jay presented a sympathetic, likeable façade, which fooled many.
In the end, the world discovered that Jay Miscovich manufactured the entire story. He made it all up, including deliberately "seeding" the ocean floor with emeralds he'd bought on the market. Exactly as he hoped, his false claims drew the interest of treasure hunters. But down the road, unaccountable discrepancies surfaced. For example, Belgian jewelers found an epoxy resin on the surface of the emeralds that could only have been added in modern times. One investor pulled out, and the entire story unraveled. Investigations and lawsuits plagued Jay, along with lost friends and an estranged family, all in a poisonous atmosphere of distrust and anger (Margie Haack, “Letters from The House Between,” Harper’s Magazine, Spring 2016; www.PreachingToday.com).
People today are looking for the jewels of peace and security. Please, don’t fall for some likeable shyster, who tries to sell you a bill of goods. Avoid anyone who claims to be your savior, and look only to Jesus for deliverance, especially in these days, which may be a precursor to the 7-year tribulation, or the end of the age. As we approach the chaos of the end of the age, stay true to the Lord. Then...
STAY CALM IN THE CRISIS.
Keep your composure. Be still in His presence. That’s what Jesus advises.
Matthew 24:6-8 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are but the beginning of the birth pains. (ESV)
When a woman starts her labor, she knows a baby is coming. In the same way, when you see war, famine, and earthquakes, know that the end is near. Now, war, famine, and earthquakes happen every year, but it seems that they are occurring with more frequency in the last few years. They will certainly increase in the last seven years of the age, during the tribulation.
This roughly parallels what Revelation says about the end times. When the angel opens the second, third, and fourth seals in Revelation 6, there is war, famine, and death. Then, when the angel opens the sixth seal, there is a great earthquake, which leads to worldwide panic.
However, God’s people don’t need to panic, because God planned all this and told us about it in His Word. Revelation describes in great detail what Jesus predicts here in Matthew 24.
And 1 Thessalonians 5 says, “While people are saying, ‘There is peace and security,’ then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief. For you are all children of light, children of the day” (1 Thessalonians 5:3-5).
God has revealed the truth to you! So stay calm no matter the crisis and especially as we approach the end of the age. Even if the world seems out of control, God has it all under control, and He is working all things according to the counsel of his good, acceptable, and perfect will (Romans 12:2; Ephesians 1:11). So trust Him in the storm and stay calm.
In 2017, Elizabeth L. Silver wrote The Tincture of Time, a very personal memoir about her baby daughter’s stroke at six weeks. The memoir recounts the trauma and uncertainty Silver experienced for a full year before her daughter recovered.
Last year (2020), Silver wrote an article for Literary Hub, On Managing Acute Uncertainty in a Time of Medical Crisis. In the article, she describes talking to a lot of people about the current pandemic crisis. In those conversations, she found their biggest concern was fear of the unknown. They could face illness, financial loss, even death, but living with uncertainty scared them the most. She discovered the same thing when she interviewed people living with various diseases. They feared not so much the disease itself, but living with medical uncertainty.
Then Silver contrasts how most people deal with a medical crisis compared to doctors and nurses. She asked non-medical people for the first word that comes to mind when they hear the phrase “uncertainty in medicine.” Their overwhelming response was “fear” or “blindness” or “powerlessness.”
Yet when she asked scientists and health care professionals the same question, their first response was “challenge” or “reality.” They understood and expected this uncertainty, because it is part of their professional worldview (Elizabeth Silver, “On Managing Acute Uncertainty in a Time of Medical Crisis,” Literary Hub, (5-8-20; www.PreachingToday.com).
In the same way, when a crisis comes, you can view it as a challenge or an opportunity, because Jesus told you to expect it. It’s all a part of God’s plan.
Jonathan McBride, who served as director of the Presidential Personnel Office under Obama, recently discussed leadership in crisis moments. He said:
At the White House, we used to tell a story about an astronaut who posed a question to a group of people: “Say, you’re at the International Space Station and suddenly your oxygen goes out. You know you’ve got about 10 seconds before you start to lose consciousness. What do you do?” People started blurting out all the things they would do first. The astronaut interrupts and says, “No. You think for eight seconds, and you make one move.” (Bill Shapiro, “Invitation to a Crisis,” INC magazine, March-April 2021, pp. 32-27; www.PreachingToday.com)
Too many people panic in a crisis and make all the wrong decisions. How much better to stop and think. Then make the one move that will solve the problem. Stop and think about God’s plan in the crisis. Then make the one move He leads you to do.
As we approach the chaos of the end of the age, 1st, stay true to the Lord; 2nd, stay calm in the crisis; and finally...
STAY STRONG IN THE FAITH.
Persevere through tribulation. Endure to the end.
That’s what Jesus encourages His followers to do, but first He warns them of tribulation and apostacy.
Matthew 24:9-12 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake. And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. (ESV)
People in the world will put you through tribulation, because they hate you. Literally, they will pressure you to give up your faith, and some will. Others will give up their faith because of false teachers, who lead them astray. Fake media and false information will deceive a lot of people, creating division, lawlessness, and hate. Wow! How very descriptive of our day and age. It seems hopeless, but there is hope!
Matthew 24:13 But the one who endures to the end will be saved. (ESV)
The one who does not fall away, because of the pressure or the lies, will be rescued from losing everything. The one who keeps the faith, despite tribulation or deceit, will be delivered from a wasted life.
The Old Testament prophet, Daniel, saw this time, yet future, when the Antichrist will arise and (quote) “seduce with flattery those who violate the covenant, but” Daniel says, “the people who know their God shall stand firm and take action” (Daniel 11:32).
Do you want to stand firm in all the chaos? Then know your God. Don’t just know ABOUT God. KNOW God personally. Enter into a close relationship with Him through faith in Jesus Christ.
For without God, you will give into the pressure; you will believe the lies and give up your faith. But those who have a close relationship with God will make it through! They may stumble, but they will not fall completely away. In fact, Daniel says, “Some of the wise shall stumble, [but only] so that they may be refined, purified, and made white, until the time of the end” (Daniel 11:35).
If you trust Christ with your life, you will persevere! You will come out on the other end of the trouble stronger than you ever were before. You may stumble at times, but God will refine and purify you along the way.
Every day, 13 Christians worldwide die because of their faith. Every day, government authorities unjustly arrest or imprison 12 Christians. And every day, kidnappers abduct another five. So says the 2021 World Watch List (WWL), which is Open Doors latest annual report of the top 50 countries that persecute Christians the most. 309 million Christians live in places with very high or extreme levels of persecution, up from 260 million in last year’s list.
David Curry, president of Open Doors says:
You might think the [list] is all about oppression… But the [list] is really all about resilience. The numbers of God’s people who are suffering should mean the Church is dying—that Christians are keeping quiet, losing their faith, and turning away from one another. But that’s not what’s happening. Instead, in living color, we see the words of God recorded in the prophet Isaiah: “I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert” (Isa. 43:19, ESV, CT Editors, “The 50 Countries Where It’s Most Dangerous to Follow Jesus in 2021,” Christianity Today, 1-13-21; www.PreachingToday.com).
The church is growing faster today in those countries that persecute Christians the most than in many other countries. So stay strong in the faith. Tribulation is not destroying the church. It is strengthening the church.
More than that, in the middle of all the chaos, the Gospel is spreading all around the world! The light is growing amidst all the darkness. That’s what Jesus said would happen at the end of the age.
Matthew 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. (ESV)
We are seeing the spread of the gospel today like we have never seen it before! According to Christianity Today, the map of global Christianity that our grandparents knew has been turned upside down. At the start of the 20th century, only ten percent of the world's Christians lived in the continents of the south and east. Ninety percent lived in North America and Europe, along with Australia and New Zealand. But at the start of the 21st century, at least 70 percent of the world's Christians live in the non-Western world—more appropriately called the majority world.
More Christians worship in Anglican churches in Nigeria each week than in all the Episcopal and Anglican churches of Britain, Europe, and North America combined. There are more Baptists in Congo than in Britain. More people in church every Sunday in communist China than in all of Western Europe. And there are ten times more Assemblies of God members in Latin America than in the U.S. (Christopher J. H. Wright, “An Upside-Down World,” Christianity Today, January, 2007; www.PreachingToday.com).
On the same day, not too long ago (February 3, 2016), two different publishers released two news stories that illustrate the turnaround of Christianity in our world. The Wall Street Journal reported that Deepak Chopra, the Hindu holistic health expert and author of 84 books, spent three days leading a workshop for MBA students at Columbia Business School in Manhattan. He directed roughly 65 students to sit in silent meditation, with their eyes closed and their smartphones and laptops stashed out of sight. He invoked Hindu goddesses, featured a band of urban yogis, and asked students to diagram their “soul profile.” That happened right here in the United States of America, supposedly a Christian nation.
Meanwhile, on the other end of the earth in the largely Hindu nation of Nepal, Christianity is exploding. An article on NPR noted, “Now [Nepal] has one of the fastest-growing Christian populations in the world.” According to the national census the Christian population has grown from zero in 1951, to 458 Christians in Nepal in 1961, to 102,000 in 2001, to 375,000 in 2011, to over a million today in 2021 (1,285,000 according to Open Doors).
As missiologist Christopher J. H. Wright has said, "Missions is now from anywhere to everywhere” (Lindsey Gellman, "Millionaire Deepak Chopra Invokes Hindu Goddesses to Inspire Columbia MBAs," Wall Street Journal, 2-13-16; Danille Preiss, "Why Nepal Has One Of The World's Fastest-Growing Christian Populations," NPR, 2-3-16; www.PreachingToday.com).
Praise the Lord! The church is growing, and the gospel is spreading all over the world! Sure, you see chaos as we approach the end of the age, but you can also have confidence that God is at work in the middle of all the chaos.
Mark Mitchell, pastor of Central Peninsula Church in Foster City, California, talks about the time he ran a marathon. He trained hard to be as prepared as possible, but he did not prepare for the end of the marathon. A marathon is just over 26 miles, but experts tell you not to run over 20 miles in your training. That means the last six miles of a marathon are “no man's land,” Mitchell says. You don't know what you're getting yourself into. You may hit a wall. You may have cramps. You only know that it's going to be tough. But you also try to believe that if you train hard enough, you will be ready and will be able to cross that glorious finish line (Mark Mitchell, in his sermon Ready or Not, Here I Come! www.PreachingToday.com).
In the same way, as you approach the end of the age, you don’t know what you’re getting yourself into, but you DO know how to make it through to the finish line! Jesus told you how! Just stay true to the Lord, stay calm in the crisis, and stay strong in the faith.
