Matthew 24:1-8 The Beginning of the End

To the podcast of Recast Church in Matawan, Michigan. This week, Pastor Don Filsek takes us through his series on the book of Matthew called, Not Your.

Average Savior. Let's listen in. Morning everybody, I'm Zach Lloyd, here to kind of.

Give you the announcements. So, you're new here. On the way in, you could have gotten one of these documents here. I call it a worship folder. It has everything that we're talking about here, but it's in a hard copy.

If you like the hard copy, this is your place. Inside, you'll find a connection card. Connection card is a way for you to connect with us, give us your information, fill us out, turn it in out at the welcome table in the lobby.

You'll get a free t-shirt. Also included in there is the envelope to give. We don't pass an offering plate, so if you'd like to give, use that. Also, drop that off at the welcome table. We have a book that Don's recommending that I think is topical.

It is by Nine Marks, a reputable organization. Not very big. A few pages here. It says, how can I love church members with different politics? So, it is certainly topical. We recommend it. There's a suggested donation of five dollars.

There'll be an envelope that you could do it that way. Also, what's going on is we have a family meeting tonight. If you call Recast your church home, come tonight at 7 o 'clock and see what's going on in terms of business at Recast.

We also have an announcement that came out earlier this week regarding this format. So, we've been at two services. We're going to go to one service beginning March 7th. If you'd like to know more details about why that change is being made, check out the video that we put out.

But that'll be one service at 1030 a .m. Everything else going on, you can find out at recastchurch .com. That's our website. We put everything there. And lastly, there is a marriage retreat for anybody that wants to come.

There's a sign up in the lobby. If you're interested, there's more details there. All right. Thank you, guys. See ya.

Well, good morning to everybody and welcome to Recast Church. I'm Don Felsick. I'm the lead pastor here. And it's a joy to gather together. For those of you that are joining us on the live stream, glad that you're able to be a part of this through technology.

And I really mean it. I mean it when I say I'm glad to gather together. I hope you enjoy the gathering together of God's people. For years, I've stood up here and said that we're a people who need each other.

And the past 12 months have proved that to be true. It has proved that to be true in my life. I hope it has in your life as well. And so I hope that this morning is a morning of gladness and rejoicing for all of us in the gathering.

My prayer is that we would all encounter God through His Word and in worship this morning. And I also pray that we feel a little less alone. A little less alone because we gather together. As we get a chance to look around, and I encourage you to look around and see that you are not alone.

How many of you would admit that during the course of your week, sometimes it just feels like you're out there kind of slogging through it on your own? You know what I'm talking about? Where it's like I feel like maybe I'm the only Christian within 10 miles of where I'm at right now.

Like it just feels that way at times. And so hopefully this is a anchor point for you to be able to look around and reflect and say there are others who think the thoughts that I think, who value Christ, who love Him and want to honor Him.

And so let that be that for you this morning. I pray that that's the case. Others are seeking to grow in faith, grow in community, grow in service as well. This morning is gonna start off as almost as the beginning of a series within a series.

Now the the big-picture series of what we're doing is we're going through the book of Matthew. I actually started that years ago and then I took I took a break here and there to do other series in between and stuff.

And so Matthew is, I picked that up over the holidays, seasons and times. This is probably the longest consecutive chunk of the book of Matthew that I've taken off in a while. And the reason I call this a series within a series is that although we're marching through the book of Matthew, we get into these these sections that are kind of thematic.

So this section that begins in chapter 24 and goes through the end of chapter 25 has its own title. A lot of theologians and a lot of biblical scholars will call this the Olivet Discourse. Now you don't need to know that but it's a it's one primary teaching that was given by Jesus and it's named after the location, the geography where it was given.

It was given on the Mount of Olives just outside of Jerusalem. On the east side there's a large hill that's still there today and we know the location because the text tells us where he sat down and taught on these things.

That's how it got its name, the Olivet Discourse, but it it's interesting in what it focuses on. Now I'm just curious, how many of you have ever really been interested in end times? Like does that ever does that ever grab your attention?

Back in the, I remember being in high, I was in high school in the 80s and my pastor was going through a series on the end times. I think that basically in the late 80s or early 90s it was basically pastoral malpractice to not preach on end times.

Anybody with me? If you were in a church in the 80s or 90s you heard a message about a series about the end times. Anybody with me on that? Did you guys hear that stuff? So it's really a common thing and it's something that I think all of us are curious about, all of us have questions about, and this passage in this subject has received a lot of just a lot of scrutiny and a lot of interest over the years.

By the way these passages that I'm going to be preaching on over the next several weeks in this Olivet Discourse are open to a vast array of interpretations. Now it's going to be tricky for us to navigate what is a very complex teaching from Jesus and and some of you may have heard some of these words.

Raise your hand if you've heard of pre-tribulational or mid-tribulational or post-tribulational. Those are views, those are big words that basically at the end of the day say where is the the return of Christ in relationship to a seven year period of great tribulation that's going to come upon the planet.

And then that's not even to get into the views of the Millennium where there's a thousand years that's predicted by the book of Revelation where Jesus is going to literally reign for a thousand years on earth and all of that stuff and there's various views on that.

And so these passages that we're going to be talking about come into all of those kinds of thoughts. We're not going to necessarily throw out those theological terms but we're definitely going to be working through this text.

And as we look at this passage this morning and as we move into this discourse about the end times, it will hopefully snap into focus that these teachings do not only have practical application for some future generation that's going to be here at the return of Jesus.

As if this is kind of like put these two chapters behind glass and break if the rapture happens so that you understand it better. That's not the way that this is meant to be used. It's not like it's written and in case you wake up one morning and your spouse is gone and everybody from your church is gone and you're like oh okay I better look at Matthew 24 and 25 to figure this stuff out.

Time to read the book of Revelation because I've been left behind or whatever. That's not the picture that we're supposed to have, not the attitude we're supposed to have towards these texts. Jesus is seeking to talk to his followers about how we live in the here and now in light of his future return at the end of the world.

Now he's definitely going to give us some insight about the types of things that are going to be going on at that end time but by and large he's not as concerned about giving us a when as much as a how to live in the waiting time and hopefully you get that from this message.

So if you're not already there open your Bibles to Matthew chapter 24 verses 1 through 8. Again Matthew 24 1 through 8. Again recast as I say every week this is God's holy and precious word. A powerful word, a word that desires to transform and change our lives, to get into us in a way that we live differently because we've encountered it.

So Matthew 24 1 through 8, Jesus left the temple when was going away when his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple. 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.

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? 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 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. Let's pray. Father I thank you so much for your word that clarifies for us that we have a written word that we that's foundational that we can keep coming back to time and time again.

A written word that clarifies things for us and that identifies for us exactly what you desired to communicate. Father I pray that we would take on your word and that it would transform and change the way that we live in and move in and think about these catastrophes and difficulties that come upon our lives and wars and rumors of wars and earthquakes and famines and pandemics and all of this.

Father there's so much practicality in these words of Christ as we think about the things that we've lived through and the things that we've endured and these things are just the beginning of the birth pains of a kingdom that is that is coming.

A kingdom that is being birthed through travail through difficulty through tragedy and and all the all the problems that we see around us. So father I pray that you would help us to think rightly that you would speak through me with accuracy and with clarity and with passion and zeal this morning that you would help us to listen and be attentive to your Holy Spirit and that you would transform us to a person because we encounter you through your word this morning in Jesus name amen.

All right so I encourage you to get comfortable as I do every Sunday you can get more caffeine back there in the form of coffee or tea there's a juice back there there's doughnuts and then make sure that you keep your place in Matthew 24 1 through 8 keep that on your lap so you can follow it as we walk through this passage verse by verse that's our intention every week to make the word clear what God desires of us as a result of coming in contact with his word and so last week we saw a text where Jesus declared this is setting some of the context so we understand what's happening here when we're reading starting off in chapter 24 last week we saw Jesus declared that he was going to depart the temple and it would be declared the word that would describe the temple after his departure would be desolate.

In other words it will be devoid of the divine presence when he leaves. And now we see right off in verse one he left he departed the temple for the last time and he leads his disciples out the eastern gate of Jerusalem and up the steep slopes of the Mount of Olives east of the city.

And if you were to go stand there today you have a great view of the city looking to the west overlooking the city. If you're up on the eastern slopes of the Mount of Olives it's a beautiful breathtaking thing.

But the thing that would grab your attention right away is that there's a big gap there's a big blank area in the middle of that temple mount as it's the it's it's kind of like you're up higher you're looking down and then there's this flat pavement that is the place in the location where the temple of God used to be there.

And and that's what they see. Only they don't see the absence. They actually see the glory and the beauty of the temple. They see Solomon's portico with all of its colonnades there and an area of shade for people to gather.

And other buildings and various things that are up there in that temple complex. And so they're climbing up this hill. There's this breathtaking view of the city. But most breathtaking of all is the temple probably the gold of the temple on the outside shining as they're climbing this hill this glorious and beautiful temple built by King Herod himself.

And the disciples were obviously confused by the cryptic statements about the temple being made desolate. This temple desolate destroyed empty vacant. How is that possible. And so what they do is they're walking up the hill as they literally draw Jesus's attention to.

You're talking about that temple down there right. That glorious and beautiful structure. And according to Mark's account Mark gives us a little bit more detail than Matthew does here. So in Mark's account of this exact same event he says that one of the disciples blurted out look teacher what wonderful stones and wonderful buildings.

They're drawing attention to the beauty and the majesty of the center of the worship of Jehovah of God himself. And this brings us to our outline for the message this morning. The the first movement in the text is a huge shift is coming.

Jesus predicts to their vantage point. A huge shift is coming now we live within on the other side of the shift that we're going to be talking about. But in verses 1 2 that's what he's interested in.

And then verses 4 5 is the second point we will be tempted to follow false saviors. The third point is we will be tempted to panic. And the fourth is Jesus explaining that the kingdom is in active labor.

So those are the the four movements the four points of the text. And let's start off with the first one. Let's let's just go in order. Let's start with Jesus identifying that a huge shift is coming now.

He's talking to his followers. They're drawing attention to the beauty of the temple. And in verse 2 he treats their observation. They're literally trying to draw Jesus into a discussion. Look at the glory and the beauty of that which you just said is going to be left desolate.

Look at this beauty. And he treats it as though it's a it's a question that needs an answer. And it says. And he answered them. The reason is not that it was necessarily a question but they had a question in their heart.

There is there is no doubt in my mind that they actually wanted a response from him. What they're really asking without asking directly is how in the world could all of that beauty. How in the world could lose giant massive stones and all of that gold and all of that worship of God.

How could that center of worship be left desolate. Jesus give us more detail. We don't get it. What cataclysmic ruin could cause such a beautiful place to be vacated by Almighty God the center of their idea of worship.

And I want to point out that a threat against this building during this time was tantamount to a threat against the Jewish people themselves. It was treasonous to talk about the destruction of that temple.

And yet as they stand there gazing down at the beauty of their religious world Jesus blurts out a stunning shocking earth-shifting kind of statement. He says. I tell you the truth. Not a single stone of those buildings will remain on top of one another.

Those buildings will all be toppled. That beauty that you see down there in the valley all gone washed away not a stone on top of stone. And then he turns and continues walking up the hill. How many of you realize the complete and utter bomb.

He's just dropped on their world not just desolate destroyed. He now clarifies completely obliterated not a stone left on stone. By the way a fulfilled prophecy in 70 AD it actually comes to pass just like Jesus says it's going to.

He's about 40 years prior to that event predicting its its downfall its demise. So they turn to finish the walk to the top of the hill where he sat down taking the posture of a teacher. And they approach him to have a private lesson with their master to really mind the depths of what in the world he's just said.

And I would suggest to you that regardless of how far they had to walk before he sat down on the summit of that hill all of their minds must have been racing. Whether that was a minute or 20 minutes or 30 minutes they their mind is racing.

The destruction of this temple the temple of God destroyed the center of Jewish religious life demolished. How can this be. I imagine they're just like what did he just say. This is mind-boggling. What he tells them here is that there is a gigantic massive religious huge shift that is coming.

A shift that we don't feel fully because we haven't been Jews. But if you had been raised as a Jew during this time Jesus's prediction that this temple was going to be obliterated would have just been mind-bending like not.

He's got this wrong. Finally we caught him in something that he's got wrong because God will not go without a temple. God will not be dishonored in that way. There's no way that that temple is going to be thrown down.

So that huge shift that he's predicting is the destruction of the temple. Jesus told by the way something that's interesting that ties in with this. He told the woman at the well a Samaritan woman. All the disciples had gone into town to get lunch and he's there alone.

And he asked this woman to draw water for him and she begins a conversation. And they end up having a long conversation. But in the middle of that conversation she gets a little bit hung up on where to worship.

She's a Samaritan. They worship up north and they don't. They're not allowed to come down to the temple. There's a lot of animosity between the two people groups and so he they worship in Samaria. And there's a debate over the geography in the location.

And so Jesus literally says a day is coming when the geography doesn't matter anymore. You're not gonna no longer no longer is it gonna matter whether you worship in Samaria or whether you even go down to Jerusalem to the temple and worship.

That's that's gonna be a that's gonna be a non-issue. A shift is coming soon says Jesus when the location of worship matters less than the manner and the heart of worship. And he says people will worship him in all locations in spirit and in truth.

How many of you are living in that shift. You're already living in it. There's no need for a temple. We don't have to take a pilgrimage every year to a holy place in order to worship God. We worship him in our car on our commute we worship him in our workplace.

We worship him in our families in our houses in our living rooms. Wherever we go we are we are. We are just our words away from the worship of God because Jesus Christ has opened that door for us. And the most important thing is that they that we worship him in spirit and in truth with our hearts our minds our emotions everything engaged through the knowledge of him in his word in truth.

The shift he predicted to his followers and to the woman at the well came with the destruction of the temple about 40 years after he declared this when the Romans came in set siege to Jerusalem smoked them out in what may very well be one of the most heinous and dark sieges ever recorded in human history.

I mean some of the things that are so graphic I won't say I'm up front some of the things that the Jews endured in that. And and then the temple burned and completely all the throne all the stones thrown down there.

That shift was very very radical very radical. And the big movement of if you're a student of the Bible a huge thing that happened. The Jews have not been able to practice any temple services for almost 2 ,000 years had a big deal.

It's a huge deal religiously. And why. Well I believe that God has permitted that because the worship of God has shifted from geography to heart. That's the shift that Jesus is talking about here a shift from geography and specific location.

By the way you don't have to come to a church to worship God anybody glad for that. My hope and prayer for all of us routinely I pray this I literally pray this most Sunday mornings. And that is that you don't see what happens here as extremely significantly different from what happened yesterday or the day before.

The glory is the gathering right. There's something that's beautiful. There's something that's special about getting together as I mentioned at the introduction that we look around and we see that there are other worshipers of God that he's connecting us in relationship.

There's a glory in that. That's different than me you know singing in the shower or in my car or whatever. There's there's differences here than there is there. And at the same time there's a glory to being able to just worship God wherever you are.

Anybody with me on that there's a beauty to that. He's he's brought us to heart not to location and geography. So before we dive into our second point I want you to notice that the disciples initiated this long discourse.

Jesus sits down again assuming the posture he's open to teaching them by sitting down in this way. And there's a there's there's kind of a nature to that. But the disciples initiated the discourse with three questions in verse 3 they ask the question that all of us always ask when I asked you to raise your hand and say if you've ever been interested in end times how many of you really the interest comes down to one word question when how many would like the answer to that.

When that's the first first question they ask when will all these things happen. They picking their jaws up off the ground you said the temple is gonna be destroyed. When and what will be the sign of your return now.

That's an interesting question if you don't take into account you have to take into account last week's context where he said I am departing the temple and it's gonna be left desolate until I return. And people are shouting blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.

So he said I'm going to return. It's on that until word was in the end of our text last week. So what will be the sign of your return. And what will be the sign of the end of the age. Now the way that they were conceiving of this is that the age you know certainly if the temple is gonna be destroyed and and Jesus is gonna return he's the king and they already understand him as Messiah.

And so what does it mean the end of the age. Well they're looking forward to a new kingdom. They're expecting him to set up a new kingdom and usher in a new age. And so that's the nature of the question.

What will be the sign that you're setting it all up brand new that you're starting over again. And in context. I believe that these questions are in rapid succession. They come because they come from a commonplace in the hearts of the disciples.

You see the disciples are collapsing these questions together because in their minds they naturally belong together. There's a logical connection to these things. In other words to the Jews the destruction of the temple and the return of Jesus to Jerusalem and the end of the age would all be basically a simultaneous event.

How could they have worship without a temple in their minds. They're thinking okay everything is on its head at that point. Certainly Jesus is gonna start something brand new at that point. And Jesus had just predicted that he would re-enter Jerusalem to the cries of blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.

And they obviously believe that all that would usher in the end of the age. And so they're asking these questions all kind of as one question at the end of the day. So throughout the next couple of chapters Jesus will interweave his answers to these questions and what can sometimes be to our minds confusing from the vantage point of 2 ,000 years later he will give them he will declare some signs in this text that speak directly to them discussing the signs about the destruction of the temple that will happen 40 years in the future from them still nearly 2 ,000 years ago to us.

But he's gonna talk about some of the signs that will happen of that to prepare them. But he will also strongly caution them about an overemphasis directive I mean really addressing us to you know not having an overemphasis on the question when and Jesus will address the end of time and the destruction of the temple and his return which we know.

And here's the here's the kicker in the rest of this the rest of this text is we're gonna be going through it over the coming weeks. We know these things covered centuries of time but he will cover them in one lecture that serves the primary purpose of preparing his followers them and us to live in this period of anticipation and waiting without all the answers without all the answers to the question when we are those who are waiting.

And as we wait Jesus says your anticipation. You are to live a life of anticipation looking for and longing for the return of your Lord and Savior. But that anticipation can be exploited in two ways and he's cautioning us in these next two points about it.

The first point remember being a huge shift is coming that huge shift in the change of the way that worship is done no longer in geography but primarily in heart. And then the second point we will be tempted to follow false saviors now.

I find it very intriguing here in verses four and five the very first thing that Jesus addresses when it comes to the end times. You're curious about end times. But take this one on. The very first thing he addresses is stay closely connected with Jesus.

It's the first thing that he says. So so you're going. When is it gonna happen. Who's the Antichrist. What's all this. You know what's that. What's the sign of the mark of the beast. And what's this. And what's this.

And what's this. And we've got all of these questions. And he says here's the thing you need to know first fundamental the basis of your curiosity about end times. There's gonna be temptation to follow other saviors.

There's gonna be a temptation to follow other Messiah's. Others will rise up when Jesus peers down the road toward the end answering their concerns and their questions. He sees pitfalls and hurdles for his people and he's most concerned that we stay with him.

First concern stay with me. And so here in this text he graciously grants us the warning in a form of a command. See that no one leads you my followers astray. What he says here is that many will come claiming to be representatives of Christ and even some declaring that they are the anointed one of God.

That's what the word Christ means anointed one of God or Messiah. Many will be caught up in the trap of following others. According to verse 5 he goes on to say. He goes so far as to say many. Many will be on the wrong road following the wrong leader.

As we move toward the end of the age and closer to his return many will be on the wrong path following the wrong leader. When he comes back there will be a proliferation of various ways. There will be a proliferation of various saviors and messiahs.

How many have seen that in your own lifetime. There's more now than there were 20 years ago and it just keeps rolling. This reminds me that Jesus knew the timeline. He knows there have been many leaders down through the age that have claimed to come in the name of Christ.

There are some who have claimed to speak for Christ that do not. And there are some of the more wacky who have even claimed to be Christ right. This was a warning to his immediate disciples but also still stands as a warning to us.

This is not just for them in their day and age. And here's the caution. Beware of anyone who claims to come in the name of the Lord claiming that they have themselves the secret ways of salvation. And they're there.

They're here. How many of you know that on the internet there's all different kinds of people who are putting forward themselves as the answer. All kinds of things on the internet that would push themselves forward as the way.

There's all kinds of secret knowledge available for all of you on the internet. Secret on the internet did you get that. But it's it's available to all of us. Right. And it's there. It's just a couple clicks away and you can.

You can know the truth. You can know the right way. And it's of course my way. And it's for a donation of a thousand dollars today you can find out the truth. You hear what I'm saying by the way that could be misquoted if you can cut that out of the video.

I wasn't saying that about myself. I would suggest to you that one need not directly state I am Jesus to fall into the category of the of the ones that he's warning about. There are many false teachers in our day and age that would word these things quite differently more subtly.

Wouldn't it be great if people just came out right and said I think I'm the answer to all of your problems. Because then you would know right. You then you have a clue. You would kind of get down to like okay this guy's a little bit full of himself.

This guy is a little bit. There's a bit much. But what kind of things are said in our day and age. I'm giving broad categories and not pointing to any specific ministry. Not pointing to any particular false teacher.

But things like things are said like the Bible is the Bible is good. I don't start that way. The Bible is good but what you need is just a little bit more and I've got that little bit more now. They might not even say that they just would certainly imply it in the way that they teach it in the things that they give.

You need to follow me to figure out what is really true. They are in essence saying follow me and I will save you somewhat even in our day and age. This would be the subtlety of their coming as a Christ.

They would say things like spirituality is just having a good feeling toward all people. How many of you know that. That's the that's the center point of religious commonality in our culture right now.

Just be nice to everybody and you're a good person and you're okay as long as you're as long as you're loving okay. Seek justice love everyone. It's gonna be all right. There are talk shows that do that.

There are podcasts that do that. There are internet sites that do that. There are churches that do that. And they are setting themselves up in opposition to the gospel of Christ which requires repentance from sins.

One way you can tell a false teacher they don't like to talk about sin. It will shy away from it. Why it's bad PR. A hard time hard time bringing in money for the ministry convicting people when you think of it this way we live in a day and age of false teachers galore.

You know what I'm talking about false messiahs everywhere. People who will push themselves forward as the answer. How will we be kept from being led astray. It's a serious question church. I mean you can kind of think while I'm at a good church and things are going all right.

And I and I hope you see it as a good church. But let me encourage you to keep coming back to the stable Word of God as the source. And I say this to you with all sincerity. Check on me. Check on me. You have you have it right there.

If you don't we'd like to get you a copy get the Bible and get it into your minds and into your heart so that you can identify the fake when it's there rightly understood and studied for understanding this word has the power to cut through the fog of false teachings.

Have you seen it happen in your life where you believe something and the word is corrected. It praise God. When that happens we all need that. Or where you've heard a preacher or a pastor or even me say something you're like.

I'm not sure that. That's what this says. I mean come and talk with me. I would love to the other thing that I would encourage you to do is you're doing it right now. And that's be engaged and involved in community theology.

And isolation can get dangerous when I when I prepare my message I do my own work first. And then I go to commentaries and I check on scholars and other people. I'm usually reading four or five commentaries on the passage that I'm preaching on this week not to not to you know Jack their information but at the end of the day to check on myself.

At least I'd know who I'm disagreeing with if I could lay in someplace different. Do you know what I'm saying. But check yourself. We all need that. I guess I could say check yourself before you wreck yourself.

Right. But but but make sure you've got other people in your life. And I love it. I just this past week I've had two or three different texts or emails from people who said I'm reading this. I don't really understand it.

Pastor help me to understand it better. I love that. I love that reach out to me or Spencer and Spencer's a great wealth of information. I mean reach out to him and ask him questions too. And we we kind of kind of built to live for that kind of thing.

We enjoy answering those questions and talking through those things. Lastly I would just encourage you as you think through another way to discern is to identify that any spiritual teacher that does not consistently make much of Jesus Christ is likely putting themselves forward in his place.