Jesus Prophesies about the Future
Pastor Marty Tuesday, September 22, 2020 at 12:22PM Mark 13:1-13. This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on September 20, 2020.
Today, we will look at an extensive prophecy that is given by Jesus. He is more than just a prophet because he is not simply a man telling us what God has told him during prayer, or a vision. He is the Son of God who has been one with the Father from before Creation. He is the pure light from heaven that has come down in order to reveal our present predicament and the future, both for the disciples of his day and for us.
We would do well to listen to the words of Jesus and order our lives accordingly. These are not the times to enjoy the pleasures of sin and this world. These are not the times to cast off restraint and re-imagine how we can use the Bible to bring about Utopia. This is the time to fix our eyes upon Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, to keep our eyes upon the prize that awaits those who persevere in faith to the end, those who are faithful to his Gospel, and faithful to his mission to reach as many who are lost as possible.
Don’t be deceived. We know exactly where things are headed in this world because our Lord has told us so.
The Temple will be destroyed
In the first two verses, we are told that Jesus and his disciples are exiting the temple compound on their way back to Bethany for the night (a bedroom community of Jerusalem). At this point, the disciples remark on the amazing buildings and structures around them. There were huge porches that surrounded the temple compound and then the temple itself was even more beautiful. This was technically the 2nd Temple because the 1st Temple that Solomon built was destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon in 586 B.C. Josephus, a first century Jewish historian, described some of the stones as being 60 feet long with pillars for the porches that were around 38 feet tall and made of white marble. Today, people are only seeing the retaining walls that created the flat area for the temple compound. On top of this we can only imagine the wonder of men who were from rural Israel in the Galilee.
However, Jesus is not enamored with the amazing buildings. He explains that they will be completely torn down, and so destroyed that not one stone will be left on top of another. Both the 1st and the 2nd Temple had come to be a symbol of pride and false confidence. Yes, God had told them to build them, but the buildings had become more important than The One who was greater than them. Forty years later, the Roman General Titus would lay siege to the city and destroy the city and its temple. It was not normal for the Romans to so completely destroy temples. However, it is said that a fire broke out in the temple and some of the melting gold went into the cracks of the stones. The Romans pulled each stone apart and pushed it off of the temple mount down into the valley so that they could recoup the valuable metal.
Christians too may build buildings for the purposes of God, but we can never let those things become an idol in our heart. How many church buildings will survive the outpouring of the wrath of God depicted in Revelation? Yes, they are useful for us today as long as we keep them in proper perspective. Much like our physical bodies, we understand that they are temporary and destined for destruction. In humility and respect, we do our best to use them for God’s glory, not ours.
The disciples question Jesus about these things
We skip forward to the point where Jesus and his disciples are on the Mt. of Olives east of Jerusalem, most likely enjoying the early evening and the view of Jerusalem below them. We are told that Peter, James, John and Andrew privately come to Jesus and ask him about the earlier prophecy that he had made.
This portion is sometimes called the Olivet Discourse. It is also found in Matthew 24 and Luke 21. When you compare all three accounts, it is clear that there is more that has been discussed than just the temple and its destruction.
The first question is this. “When will these things be?” Or similarly, when will these things take place? The second question is, “What will be the sign when these things are to be fulfilled?” From the context of Mark, we would assume that this question is only about the destruction of the temple. However, Matthew 24 states that this question includes the 2nd Coming of Christ and the End of the Age. We do know that Jesus has been telling his disciples up to this point that he would be killed in Jerusalem, that he would be leaving to prepare a place for them, and that he would come back. However, they are having difficulty processing how all these things are to flow together and the time sequence involved. Thus, there are three different components to this question of what will the sign be. First, they are asking about the temple’s destruction. Second, they are asking about the 2nd Coming of Jesus, and third, they are asking about the end of the present age. Note that to them the end of the present age was when Messiah brought back those Israelites who were dispersed throughout the nations, dealt with Israel’s sin and offense to God, and restored the Davidic kingdom in a global rule of righteousness.
They clearly see all of these as part of a sequence of events that happen altogether. So, before we go further, we must talk about a couple of issues in biblical prophecy.
When God gives us information about the future, it is not His goal to give us an advance history book with dates and everything that will happen in it. Rather, He gives us a rough understanding of where things are headed so that we know what to avoid and so that we can keep our trust in Him as it plays out. There are always surprises for God’s people as it plays out, but not in the sense that we are caught unawares. Christians have now received a more complete prophetic look at the future because of Jesus. However, we should remain humble and recognize that the same God who gave us the Old Testament prophecies is the one who is giving us the New Testament prophecies. We often think we have it all figured out more than we most likely do. So, here are two issues to bear in mind with biblical prophecy: Conflation, and Near and Far Fulfillment.
Bible prophecy often conflates future events without distinction of the amount of time between them. Of course, this is God’s prerogative and should be respected. An example of this is Isaiah 9:6-7.
“For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever.” (NKJV)
This passage is clearly speaking of the Messiah, Jesus. The birth of Messiah is spoken of seamlessly with his government and sitting on the throne of David. We now know that there would be two comings of Messiah. The first would be to provide salvation from sin, and the second would be much later to take up the throne of David, cast out the usurpers, and rule over the nations, that is, the day of judgment on all nations. Without our New Testament insight, this passage would seem to teach that these must all happen within the lifetime of an adult human at the longest. Thus, we should be careful to recognize that such things may also be conflated in New Testament prophecies and hold our views loosely.
The second issue of Near and Far Fulfillment can be seen when you read Isaiah chapters 7 through 9. Isaiah is dealing with King Ahaz of Jerusalem. He gives a prophecy that a child will be born and by the time that child can understand right from wrong (a matter of years) Syria and the Northern Kingdom of Israel would no longer be a threat. In Isaiah 8, we are told that Isaiah’s wife has a child. Thus, this prophecy has an aspect about it that dealt with the issues of that day and had a fulfillment in the near time of their day. Within a short number of years, the King of Assyria invaded, subduing Syria and Samaria (Northern Israel). Yet, aspects of the prophecy, such as Isaiah 9:6-7 and others, go beyond just a child that was born to Isaiah and his wife as a sign to Ahaz. We don’t have time to go into it all, but Isaiah’s kid is not named Immanuel as stated in the prophecy. Rather, he is named Maher-Shalal-Chash-Baz, which means speed the spoil and hasten the booty. Also, in the New Testament, we are told that this prophecy was a kind of pattern or picture of a coming child that would not only be further in the future, but also a greater child. This child would truly be “God with us,” and all the amazing things that go beyond that time period. This is sometimes called Near and Far Fulfillment, Double-Fulfillment, and also Parabolic Prophecy. The prophets laid down templates, or parables, by which we can recognize and understand the end times events. Thus, Jesus may refer to things that have a near fulfillment in the first century, and yet picture a bigger event at the end of this age.
The Beginning of Sorrows
Verses 5-13 are not actually an answer to the question of “when,” or of “what sign.” In verse 7 Jesus actually calls these the things that must happen, but the end is not yet. We could call them the “Before-the-End-Things.” Verse 8, also calls this period the “Beginning of Sorrows.” The following list can be seen as part of the sorrows of this present age leading up to the end of the age and the 2nd coming of Jesus. They themselves are not the signs of the end, but signs of the time that we live in.
The word for “sorrows” can sometimes be connected to the sorrows of death, but it is usually connected to the sorrows of childbirth. The prophets spoke of the nation of Israel sorrowing in childbirth to bring forth the Messiah. Similarly, the world would go into a time of sorrow trying to bring forth, birth, the political deliverance of the Messiah. The apostle Paul even describes the Day of Wrath of the Lord as coming upon the world like labor pains upon a woman (1 Thessalonians 5:3). Thus, the period of time following the “leaving of Jesus” could be described as The Beginning of Labor Pains for the whole world, not just Israel.
Jesus then describes some of the sorrows of this time and how they could impact his followers. The first is Deception, especially through False Christs pretending to be him having come back. This would also include false prophets, false religions, and even false philosophies that are atheistic, such as Marxism et. al. Jesus warns us that people will try to deceive us by many means, even pretending to be him. Thus, in God’s word, we are warned against the antichrist spirit that rules this world and one day will be able to bring forth the ultimate godless leader, The Antichrist. He both pretends to take the place of Christ, and also to stand against him. We can only expect this deception to grow more and more difficult to see through. If you try to navigate this period with only your natural eyes and mind then you will be deceived. However, if you will rely upon the truth of God’s word then you will be able to discern the times that we live in and the deceptions that currently exist. We are the most manipulated generation to have ever lived and it will only grow worse. Jesus talks about this more in verse 21, so we will expound on this further then.
This time of labor pains would also be marked by Wars and Rumors of Wars. In fact, verse 8 makes it clear that this is many wars and many nations and not just what happened in 70 AD. This is not meant to be a prophecy that wows us. It is meant to prepare God’s people and inform them. In verse 7, Jesus emphasizes that we are not to be “troubled.” This translation is a bit flavorless here. It comes from a word that means to wail and could be better translated as “cry out in anguish, panic, be alarmed,” etc.
Yes, troubling times will trouble our hearts, but we are warned in advance so that we will not descend into panic and anguish, despair and depression. Rather, it should strengthen our faith as we see these things confirm the prophetic word.
Verse 8 also mentions Earthquakes, Famines, and Troubles. They basically represent things like natural disasters and the pestilence, or disease, that comes on their heels. This is not about a particular earthquake, but about them happening in various and different places.
Verse 9 shows that it would be a time of Persecution for the followers of Jesus. However, in the midst of persecution, the Gospel would go to the ends of the earth. Jesus expounds that Christians will be brought before councils, beaten in synagogues, and brought before courts in order to give an account for the sake of Jesus. God intends this to be a witness to those leaders. God’s people are not to worry about what to say in those moments, or prepare a speech, because the Spirit of God will speak through them in those moments.
It is important to note that, in Matthew 24:14, Jesus states that the end will not come until the Gospel goes into the whole world. “And this gospel will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.” This may be the closest thing to a sign of the end of the age. At the least, we can say that it is a prerequisite. So, this age will be marked by Christians who suffer persecution, and, yet, witness to the world about Jesus, the coming judgment, and how to be spared from it.
Lastly, we are told of Betrayal and Hatred of Christians. This can be seen as a part of the Persecution. However, betrayal is done by those of your own kind. Brother to brother can be both biological and a reference to fellow “Christians.” Of course, they would be Christian in name only. This is similar to what the early believers experienced from their fellow religious Jews.
Ultimately, Jesus states that Christians will be hated because of their connection to Jesus. No matter how syrupy sweet the world may treat us in the moment, there is an underlying hatred that seeks to come to the surface in the opportune time. In John 15:18-19, Jesus describes it this way. “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. If you were of this world, the world would love its own. Yet, because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.”
Did these things all happen in 70 AD. Yes, of course they did. However, neither did they end then. These things have continued on down through the centuries into the modern age. In fact, more believers were martyred for the sake of Christ in the 20th century than the previous 19 centuries combined.
Another question to ask is this. Did Jesus come back at 70 AD and did he bring an end to the age of Israel’s domination by the Gentiles? No, he did not. All attempts to spiritualize the 2nd Coming of Jesus and the end of the age come across as a religious person trying to have their cake and eat it too. It smacks of religious charlatans who discover their prophecy did not happen and so seek to further the deception by spiritualizing it. Don’t be deceived. These things are spiritual and nature, but they will also be literal. Jesus will come back and the domination of Israel by the nations will come to an end. We are still in the Times of the Labor Pains, and the contractions are happening quicker and harder each day. The Day of the Wrath of the Lord is at hand and who can stand? Only those who have put their faith in Jesus as their Savior and Lord. Don’t put this off until later. Do it today!