THINGS THAT MUST COME TO PASS FIRST

Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on November 17, 2021 under AM Bible Study |

AM Bible Study Group: November 17, 2021 from Luke 21:8-19

Theme: As Jesus’ followers, we must not misunderstand the nature of the times—and thus fail to live for Him as we should in the present.

(All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).

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One of the most fascinating subjects that we can study from God’s word is the promises concerning the end of the age. It’s natural that we would want to know about such things. But there’s also a danger of looking into those promises recklessly, and misreading the signs of the times.

That was a danger that our Lord’s disciples could have fallen into. As they sat with Him on the Mount of Olives—and were admiring the beautiful buildings and ornate stones of the temple—He told them that the time would come when not one stone would be left upon another that would not be thrown down. Naturally, they would want to have that startling declaration explained to them.

So they asked Him, saying, “Teacher, but when will these things be? And what sign will there be when these things are about to take place?” (Luke 21:7).

Their question had to do with the time that the Lord spoke of—the time when the temple would be destroyed. But as we read on, we find that He doesn’t answer that particular question first. He doesn’t actually even get to that question until verses 20-24. But instead, He begins by warning them about what are not the signs that these things were about to take place:

And He said: “Take heed that you not be deceived. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am He,’ and, ‘The time has drawn near.’ Therefore do not go after them. But when you hear of wars and commotions, do not be terrified; for these things must come to pass first, but the end will not come immediately.” Then He said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be great earthquakes in various places, and famines and pestilences; and there will be fearful sights and great signs from heaven. But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons. You will be brought before kings and rulers for My name’s sake. But it will turn out for you as an occasion for testimony. Therefore settle it in your hearts not to meditate beforehand on what you will answer; for I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or resist. You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, relatives and friends; and they will put some of you to death. And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. But not a hair of your head shall be lost. By your patience possess your souls (vv. 8-19).

If we think about these words carefully in their context, we discover that they have to do—not with events at the end of the age—but with events that would happen in the near future of those disciples. They speak of the period of time between our Lord’s resurrection and ascension to the Father, and the actual destruction of the temple in 70 A.D—only within 40 years of the time Jesus spoke. The news He had just given them could have made them think that He was about to begin His earthly reign immediately. But He goes on to show them that this was not the case. There would be many things that would happen before then—and His followers needed to keep on faithfully doing the work that He had given them to do.

So; these words had special and particular relevance to the disciples living at that time. But they don’t have relevance to them and their time only. They also have something to say to Jesus’ followers throughout the centuries since then. They show us that there will be many events that will occur before He returns; and that it’s important that we do not misread them as signs of His immediate coming, but that we keep on working for His cause in the midst of such things. As our Lord’s words show us, we must not misunderstand the nature of the times—and thus end up neglecting our duties.

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Now; in these words, the Lord Jesus describes three basic things that would happen during the lifetimes of these disciples—during the forty-year period of the spread of the gospel that would precede the destruction of the temple. They were certainly things that would be happening in the world all the way up to the time of His return—even today. And so, in that respect—if we can say this carefully—they are not necessarily not signs of His soon return; but they aren’t necessarily signs that His return is about to happen either. You might say that such things characterize both the beginning and the end of the age—and occur often in the centuries between. But they are not necessarily signs of His immediate return.

First, He said that …

1. FALSE ‘CHRISTS’ WOULD ARISE (v. 8).

In verse 8, Luke writes, “And He said: “Take heed that you not be deceived. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am He,’ and, ‘The time has drawn near.’ Therefore do not go after them.” He warned His disciples not to (literally) “run behind” them as if they were the real thing.

Historians tell us that—during the time after our Lord’s resurrection—many false christs (that is, false ‘messiahs’) did in fact arise and declare that they were the promised ones. And the Bible also warns that there will be many who would arise in the centuries that came afterward. Jesus warned, in Matthew 24:5 that they “will deceive many”. But He also warned that such things would also happen even in the period of time described as ‘the great tribulation’; saying;

“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” (Matthew 24:23-25).

Now that our Lord has returned to the Father, no one will ever have an excuse for being fooled by such frauds. Jesus said that when He Himself returns to this world, no one will have to say, “He’s here” or “He’s there. Everyone on planet earth will know it plainly and immediately—with it being just as obvious as the lightning flashing from one end of heaven to the other. But the appearance of these false christs would also characterize the times throughout the centuries that precede our Lord’s return—even to our own time. The apostle Peter wrote;

But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed (2 Peter 2:1-2).

We should watch for such things. And we should take Jesus’ warning seriously, with respect to such frauds, when He said to ‘take heed’. But we should also remember that the appearances of such ‘false christs’ are not necessarily a sign that the end is about to come.

Jesus also warned that …

2. GLOBAL DISTURBANCES WILL OCCUR (vv. 9-11).

He went on to say, in verse 9, “But when you hear of wars and commotions, do not be terrified; for these things must come to pass first, but the end will not come immediately.” In the forty years after Jesus ascended to the Father, there was much turmoil in the world. And there was turmoil even afterward, as the Roman empire itself began to fragment; and nations fought one another for power and dominance. They still do today. But He didn’t want His followers to be surprised by this or to think that the age was coming to an end. He said very clearly that they must happen first; “but the end will not come immediately”.

Political turmoil won’t be the only kind of turmoil that will occur. Luke goes on to say in verses 10-11; “Then He said to them, ‘Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be great earthquakes in various places, and famines and pestilences; and there will be fearful sights and great signs from heaven.’” There have been many such things recorded throughout history. Some of them have caused great terror to fall upon the people of the world. People thought that the end of the world had come. But those events didn’t usher in the end of the age. There will, however, be signs like these in the future—and it seems as if their frequency and intensity will be something far more serious than anything that had come before. In verses 25-28, the Lord says;

“And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; men’s hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near” (vv. 25-28).

So; clearly there will be uniquely great disturbances and events that will serve as signs of the end. But the occurrence of such things also preceded the immediate prophetic events at the time of the disciples. They do not necessarily indicate that the end of the age has come.

Our Lord mentions another kind of event that could be mistaken as a sign of the end …

3. PERSECUTIONS WILL TEST GOD’S PEOPLE (vv. 12-17).

This is something that the Lord spoke of as occurring in the very immediate future of the disciples. In verses 12-13, He said, “But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons. You will be brought before kings and rulers for My name’s sake. But it will turn out for you as an occasion for testimony.”

The apostles of our Lord began to suffer persecution almost as soon after Pentecost as they began preaching about Him. The Jewish authorities would arrest them, imprison them, and threaten them if they didn’t stop preaching in Jesus’ name. And the apostle Paul himself suffered almost non-stop persecutions and arrests and beatings. He was literally taken before synagogues and into prisons, and brought before kings and governors. History tells us that he even testified of Christ before Caesar Nero. This all happened before Jerusalem was destroyed in 70 A.D. And it has been happening—in one form or another—ever since. None of it was an accident. The Lord Himself sovereignly allowed it in order to advance His gospel around the world.

It was in this context that the Lord Jesus inserted a wonderful promise to His followers. We find it in verses 14-15. He said, “Therefore settle it in your hearts not to meditate beforehand on what you will answer; for I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or resist.” His followers would never be abandoned by Him; but His Holy Spirit will speak mightily through them. Perhaps this was what the apostle Peter was thinking of when he wrote to his persecuted brothers and sisters in Christ and told them;

Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy. If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified (1 Peter 4:12-14).

But the persecution will—at times—be very deep and painful. He said in verses 17-18, “You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, relatives and friends; and they will put some of you to death. And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake.” This was something that our Lord told His disciples about more than once (see also Matthew 10:16-23). It happened to His apostles shortly after He left them. It’s something that has happened many times throughout the history of the church in the world. It is happening even today. And it will be particularly so during the times of the great tribulation. In verses 18-19, however, our Lord makes another promise: “But not a hair of your head shall be lost. By your patience possess your souls.” No matter what man may do to them, the sovereign God keeps them. Even if their faithful witness costs them their life, they will nevertheless be bodily raised in glory.

So then; persecution is not necessarily not a sign of the end times. But neither is it a sign that the end times have come. In any case, we must keep faithful—knowing that we will not be lost to Jesus.

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After Jesus arose—just before He ascended to the Father—the disciples asked Him, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6). And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (vv. 7-8).

Let’s be careful that we don’t misinterpret the signs that concern the times of the end—and thus end up failing to do our duty in the here-and-now.