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Well, please turn with me in 
your Bibles to Matthew chapter 24. Matthew chapter 24. I'll begin reading in verse 1. 
Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples 
came up to show Him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said 
to them, Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, 
not one stone shall be left here upon another that shall not be 
thrown down. Now 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 and 
said to them, Take heed that no one deceives you. For many 
will come in my name saying, I am the Christ, and will deceive 
many. And you will hear of wars and 
rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled. 
For all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 
For nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom. 
And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. 
All these are the beginning of sorrows. Then they will deliver 
you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by 
all nations for my name's sake. And then many will be offended, 
will betray one another, and will hate one another. Then many 
false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness 
will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures 
to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom 
will be preached in all the world, as a witness to all the nations, 
and then the end will come. Therefore, when you see the abomination 
of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the 
holy place, whoever reads, let him understand. Then let those 
who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let him who is on 
the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house. And 
let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes. But 
woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing 
babies in those days. And pray that your flight may 
not be in winter or on the Sabbath. For then there will be great 
tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the 
world until this time. No, nor ever shall be. And unless 
those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved. But for 
the sake, or rather for the elect's sake, those days will be shortened. 
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. 
Therefore, if they say to you, look, he is in the desert, do 
not go out. Or, look, he is in the inner 
rooms, do not believe it. For as lightning comes from the 
east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the 
Son of Man be. For wherever the carcass is, 
there the eagles will be gathered together. Immediately after the 
tribulation of those days, the sun will be darkened, and the 
moon will not give its light. The stars will fall from heaven, 
and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then the sign 
of the Son of Man will appear in heaven. And then all the tribes 
of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man 
coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And 
He will send His angels with the great sound of a trumpet, 
and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, 
from one end of heaven to the other. Now learn this parable 
from the fig tree. When its branch has already become 
tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. 
So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is 
near at the doors. Assuredly, I say to you, this 
generation will by no means pass away till all these things take 
place. Heaven and earth will pass away, 
but my words will by no means pass away. Amen. Well, let us 
pray. Father, we thank You for the 
Word of God. We thank You for this time that we have together 
as the people of God to enjoy the worship of God. And we pray 
that Your Spirit would guide us now as we look to Scripture. 
We pray that He would give us clarity as we consider these 
passages. Help us as well, God, to learn 
practical lessons and to put them into practice in our own 
day, in our own lives. We pray now that You would forgive 
us for our sins and our transgressions, that You would cleanse us in 
the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, and we pray these things in His 
most blessed name. Amen. Well, our focus this morning 
is on those signs or those things that precede Jesus' coming and 
the end of the age. Now, I argue that the coming 
in view is Jesus coming in judgment upon Jerusalem in A.D. 70. It's 
called the Preterist interpretation. I do want to clarify a few things 
before we look at this material this morning. Last week I mentioned 
Harold Camping as an example of a date setter that Jesus says 
we are to avoid. I did not mean to give the impression 
that Harold Camping is like all those who disagree with my particular 
interpretation. I didn't mean that at all. Camping 
cannot be considered as mainstream in any of the three positions, 
whether it be futurism, preterism or the two events view. I believe 
he arrived at his particular scheme through mathematics and 
through numbers. It wasn't a millennial position, 
it wasn't a particular view of eschatology that drove that, 
but rather it was numbers. So I certainly did not mean to 
imply that if you don't agree with me, you're of camping. That was never my intention whatsoever. As well, I want to highlight 
that the interpretation that I take in this particular section 
is the minority report. More people out there hold to 
what's called futurism under the auspices of what's called 
dispensationalism, and then those who are not dispensationalists 
most of the times find themselves in that two-event view of the 
Olivet Discourse. I have no problem with them. 
I love and I esteem them. In fact, I use ten commentaries. 
I don't say that to say, wow, what a great guy, but simply 
to say of those ten commentaries that I routinely use with reference 
to Matthew's Gospel, I agree with one of them a hundred percent 
on the Olivet Discourse. It's probably no surprise that 
that person would be John Gill. And then I do as well agree with 
R.T. France a great deal of the time. But the rest of them take this 
to a view and that's perfectly fine. My desires here are modest. I'm not trying to necessarily 
convince everybody that preterism is the way to view this discourse, 
though that wouldn't bother me, but just so that you don't see 
that it's unorthodox or that it's outside of the veil of the 
Christian faith. In other words, don't brand the 
position heretical. But as I mentioned before, we 
simply do not have the time nor do I have the competency to present 
all of the three views and to give the strengths and the weaknesses 
of each of the views, I have to go with my gut, and I believe 
that the Olivet Discourse finds its fulfillment in the first 
century, in the siege of Jerusalem. Again, if you disagree when we're 
finished, that's fine. I love you, I hope you'll still 
love me, and we can go on forever. into eternity together. But let's 
look specifically now. One other thing. None of the 
positions here necessitate or have to be involved with a particular 
millennial position. I don't want to unnecessarily 
confuse a lot of people. But the millennial positions, 
amillennialism, premillennialism and postmillennialism do not 
necessitate a particular view of the Olivet Discourse. Dispensational 
premillennialism is committed to a futurist interpretation. 
It means they must take that. But in terms of premillennialists, 
amillennialists and postmillennialists you'll find differing interpretations 
from each of those schools. John Gill was a premillennialist. 
but he was a preterist when it came to Matthew 24 and 25. Postmillennialists 
oftentimes find a preterist interpretation appealing. It does go along well 
with their particular eschatology, but whatever eschatology or millennial 
position one holds, that does not necessarily demand a particular 
interpretation of the Olivet Discourse. For those who are 
thoroughly confused, let's try to undo that by opening up verses 
9 to 14. Remember last week, we considered 
that Jesus is answering the second question first. The disciples 
ask, when will these things be? And then the second question, 
what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the 
age? It's my position that Jesus takes up that second question 
first. He gives them the signs of his 
coming, the end of the age, and I believe he means by that the 
Jewish age, the old covenant dispensation. He says there are 
things that will take place prior to that siege in AD 70. Verses 
4 to 8 indicate that there will be false teachers. We saw that, 
we sought to demonstrate that from the pages of the New Testament. 
As well, Jesus says there would be political and social upheaval. 
Again, we sought to demonstrate that from the Scripture. He describes 
this as the beginning of sorrows, or the beginning of birth pangs. And then what we find in verses 
9 to 14 are still part of that era, still part of that season. It is that specific time frame 
prior to the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70. So these things as 
well are certain things that the church must expect. So we 
want to look at the persecution of the church in verses 9 to 
12, and then secondly, the preaching or the proclamation of the gospel 
in verse 14. Those are the two more, or those 
are two more things that precede the fall of Jerusalem in A.D. 70. But let's take up verses 
9 to 12 under the persecution of the church. Notice again, 
the answer by Jesus to the disciples, what question? So I consider 
this passage more and more as I work through it. I'm convinced 
that Jesus answers their questions. I'm convinced that Jesus doesn't 
give them an enigma within an enigma. I don't believe He gives 
them a prophecy within a prophecy. I believe He straightforwardly 
answers the disciples' questions as they were posed to Him upon 
His announcement that the temple that they saw was going to fall. They asked the question. Jesus 
answers the question. And he answers in the first place, 
in terms of verses 4 to 8, generally. These are the kinds of things 
that you will see. These are the kinds of things 
that will affect the people of God. There will be these imposters. There will be these wars and 
rumors of wars. There will be these famines and 
pestilences and earthquakes in various places. When you hear 
of these things and when you see of these things, do not be 
alarmed, do not be troubled, do not think that the end is 
here, but rather these are the beginning of sorrows. He moves 
from the general in verses 4 to 8 to the particular or the specific 
in verses 9 to 14 that are facing the church specifically. In fact, 
Spurgeon comments, our Lord not only foretold the general trial 
that would come upon the Jews and upon the world, but also 
the special persecution which would be the portion of His chosen 
followers. So verses 4 to 14 are those signs 
that come prior to the destruction of Jerusalem. Christ's coming 
in glory to bring judgment upon the covenant breakers. And these 
things would go, in terms of the outward, generally, to the 
specific, inwardly, those things that would affect the church. 
Now, note specifically, with reference to the persecution, 
Jesus considers the external threat. Verse 9, He says, Then 
they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be 
hated by all nations for My name's sake. Let's not forget He's talking 
to the disciples. Not that there is an application 
for us as disciples in our own generation, but Jesus is highlighting 
specifically what will be the lot of these particular men that 
He is speaking to. And he highlights that there 
will be this external threat. Verse 9, they will deliver you 
up. That's the language of betrayal. 
That's the language of handing over. That's the language Jesus 
has used already when He spoke concerning the Jewish mission 
in Matthew chapter 10, verses 17 and 19 and 21. He says, when 
you go out to evangelize Israel, they will deliver you up. they 
will deliver you up to the councils, they will scourge you, they will 
beat you. Jesus has already addressed this information in Matthew chapter 
10. So it's that external threat 
that He is focusing on here that must precede the fall of Jerusalem. The parallel passage, in fact 
you can turn to Mark 13, which is the Olivet Discourse in Mark's 
Gospel. Very intriguing, because Matthew 
records Jesus' mission concerning Israel in Matthew 10. I believe 
that Mark wrote later than Matthew, and Mark incorporates that data 
concerning the Jewish mission into the Olivet Discourse, which 
I think underscores an important point. It is primarily a situation 
affecting the disciples in the first century concerning unbelieving 
Jews and their persecution of the Church of Jesus Christ. Notice 
in 13.9 in Mark's gospel. Watch out for yourselves, for 
they will deliver you up to councils, and you will be beaten in the 
synagogues. Now certainly I would imagine 
that we could be delivered and be beaten in a synagogue, but 
that's not the threat that faces us in the 21st century. That 
is the threat that peculiarly faced the people of God in the 
1st century, when they claimed allegiance to Jesus as Messiah, 
and unbelieving Israel rejected Him, and they despised Him, and 
they forsook Him. The people of Christ, the people 
of the Nazarene, the people that followed Jesus, were suffering 
under Jewish persecution. Again, I am not speaking this 
to promote a view of anti-Semitism, but certainly to highlight what 
was the reality facing the early church. So the external threat 
that Christ speaks of is Jewish, and it involves the Roman Empire 
as well. But let's just consider the threat 
posed by unbelieving Israel. Just remember our text, Jesus 
says, they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, 
and you will be hated by all nations for my name's sake. I 
think one of the ways to prove a preterist interpretation is 
to demonstrate this first century application, that this really 
did in fact occur. So turn to the book of Acts. 
The book of Acts. And there are many, many passages 
here. I reckon we can get through them 
quickly. We don't have time to develop each one, but I think 
you'll get the thrust or the gist of it as we just read them. 
Notice in Acts chapter 4, specifically verses 1 to 3, just showing that 
what Jesus said did in fact occur in that first century context. 
Unbelieving Israel persecuted the church of Jesus Christ. Notice 
in Acts 4.1, Now as they spoke to the people, the priests, the 
captain of the temple, and the Sadducees came upon them, being 
greatly disturbed that they taught the people and preached in Jesus 
the resurrection from the dead. And they laid hands on them, 
and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already 
evening. However, many of those who heard 
the word believed, and the number of men came to be about five 
thousand." Notice in chapter 5, verses 17 and 18. Chapter 
5, verse 17, the high priest rose up and all those who were 
with him, which is the sect of the Sadducees, and they were 
filled with indignation and laid their hands on the apostles and 
put them in the common prison. Notice in chapter 5 at verses 
27 to 33. Verse 27, it says, And when they had brought them, 
they set them before the council, and the high priest asked them, 
saying, Did we not strictly command you not to teach in this name? 
Do you understand who the author is talking about? He's talking 
about unbelieving Jews. Those who rejected Jesus Christ 
are now the persecutors of the church of Jesus Christ. The way 
they did not receive Jesus is the way they did not receive 
Jesus' disciples. Just like Jesus told them in 
the upper room. If the world hates you, know 
that it hated Me first. If they treat the Master that 
way, they're certainly going to treat the disciple that way. 
And this is fleshed out and evidenced out through the book of Acts. 
Notice verse 28, Did we not strictly command you not to teach in this 
name? And look, you have filled Jerusalem 
with your doctrine and intend to bring this man's blood on 
us. But Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to 
obey God rather than men. Praise God for Peter. He had 
a courage. He had a boldness. He wasn't 
going to shrink back. He wasn't going to kowtow. He 
wasn't going to whine and complain. He wasn't going to say, oh, it's 
a bit embarrassing for me to be identified with the people 
of Jesus. No, we ought to obey God rather 
than men, and if you command us to cease preaching, we will 
continue to do so. We don't care about the pressure, 
we don't care about the threat. Our Savior promised that we would 
face such things. He's also promised divine assistance 
by His Spirit. We will stand fast, we will hold 
firm, and we will proclaim this blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. It's heroic, it's blessed, it's 
wonderful. Chapter 5, specifically verse 
40. They agreed with Him, and when 
they had called for the apostles, and beaten them, they commanded 
that they should not speak in the name of Jesus and let them 
go. Look at chapter 6, specifically in verse 12. Chapter 6, verse 
12, Stephen, that man of God, they stirred up the people, the 
elders and the scribes, and they came upon him, seized him, and 
brought him to the council. They also set up false witnesses 
who said, This man does not cease to speak blasphemous words against 
this holy place and the law. For we have heard him say that 
this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs 
which Moses delivered to us. Notice in chapter 7, verses 54 
to 60. I don't need to read it all. 
This is where they dispose of Stephen. They stone this man 
to death. They take rocks and they throw 
them at him, and they batter and bruise and break his body 
until his lifeblood is spent, and he enters into the presence 
of his beloved Savior. Notice in Acts chapter 8, verses 
1 to 3. It's interesting, because at 
this particular juncture, Saul of Tarsus is the chief persecutor, 
or one of the chief persecutors of the church. Later on, we'll 
find that Paul the Apostle becomes the persecuted. He becomes victim 
to the unbelieving Israelites that want to destroy him. Notice 
in 8.1, Saul was consenting to Stephen's death. At that time, 
a great persecution arose against the church, which was at Jerusalem, 
and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria 
except the apostles, and devout men carried Stephen to his burial 
and made great lamentation over him. As for Saul, he made havoc 
of the church, entering every house and dragging off men and 
women, committing them to prison." Notice in Acts 9, 1-4, Probably 
going to have to expedite here and not cover all of them, but 
I hope you get the point. Acts 9.1, Then Saul, still breathing 
threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to 
the high priest and asked letters from him to the synagogues of 
Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the way, whether 
men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. This was not for Bible study. 
This was not for potluck. This was not for the church picnic. 
This was not to swap recipes. It was to destroy the church 
of Jesus Christ. That Saul of Tarsus, breathing 
out these threats against the people of Jesus, Jesus comes 
to him on the road to Damascus and saves him, delivers him from 
the wrath to come, and then uses this Saul and sends him forth 
as the great apostle to the Gentiles. And when Paul goes, and when 
Paul preaches, Paul meets with the same sorts of persecution 
that he himself inflicted upon the people of God. Notice in 
Acts chapter 13, verses 45 to 50. Acts 13, verses 45 to 50. But when the Jews saw the multitudes, 
they were filled with envy. This is in Pisidian Antioch, 
after Paul had preached in a synagogue there. When the Jews saw the 
multitudes, they were filled with envy and contradicting and 
blaspheming. They opposed the things spoken 
by Paul. Then Paul and Barnabas grew bold 
and said it was necessary that the Word of God should be spoken 
to you first. But since you reject it and judge 
yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, behold, we turn to the 
Gentiles. Dropping down in Acts chapter 
14, Paul on the first missionary journey gets stoned outside of 
the city of Lystra. Stoned there doesn't have its 
21st century connotation. He didn't stop at the pub. He 
got stoned, much the way that Stephen did in Acts 7. In fact, 
Paul suffered stoning such that they dragged him out of the city 
and supposed him to be dead. These were men that had seen 
death, that wasn't so sanitized and removed in their day as it 
is today. And nevertheless, he gets up and he goes to Derbe, 
which is 60 miles from Lystra. I want to talk about devotion. 
You want to talk about courage. You want to talk about heroism. I mean, brethren, how many times 
are we sidetracked or sidelined for the smallest things? And 
Paul gets stoned to the point where people suppose him to be 
dead, and then he goes to Derbe, which is a 60-mile jaunt, so 
he can preach. And in 1422, his sermon is simple. Through many tribulations, we 
must enter the kingdom of God. No one had to say, what do you 
mean by that, Paul? They saw it in his body because 
he had been stoned. He tells the churches of Galatia 
in Galatians chapter 6, from now on, let nobody trouble me, 
for I bear in my body the brand marks of Jesus. This persecution 
was real. This persecution was hot. This 
persecution was consistent. And we can multiply passages. 
17-5, 18-6, and then 12-18. 23, 20, 19, 21, 11, 21, 27 to 32, 21, 36, 22, 3 to 5, 22, 
22 and 23, 22, 30, 23, 27, 23, 30, 24, 5 to 9, 24, 27, 25, 2 to 15, 25, 24, 26, 21. There will be a quiz afterwards to 
make sure that you got all those. You see the point? When Christ 
says you'll be delivered up to the synagogues and to the councils 
and you will be persecuted and suffer tribulation and be killed 
and be hated by all men for my name's sake, the first major 
persecutor of the church of Jesus Christ was unbelieving Israel. Just as they rejected Jesus, 
they would reject the persons that followed Jesus. You see 
this in the epistles as well. 2 Corinthians 11.26, when the 
apostle is rehearsing the sorts of things that he suffered for 
the cause of Jesus Christ. He says very candidly in 2 Corinthians 
11.24, from the Jews five times, I received forty stripes minus 
one. Now, think about that for a moment. 
Paul was one of them. Paul was a Pharisee. Paul had 
been trained by Gamaliel. Paul was a man that was so inclined 
with and in tune with that rabbinic Phariseeism, and now he is being 
scourged by the selfsame people that he used to surround himself 
with. You see his devotion for the cause of Christ, and you 
see their devotion against the cause of Christ. Because if they're 
going to take one who was formerly their own and beat him like a 
common criminal, you can see how they despised and disdained 
the very Church of Christ. Notice in 1 Thessalonians 2. 
1 Thessalonians 2, verses 14 to 16. And I believe that here, 
when Paul says, wrath has come upon them to the uttermost, he 
is referring to the same event that Jesus is prophesying in 
Matthew 24. It is the siege, it is the fall 
of Jerusalem and her temple in AD 70. But note in 1 Thessalonians 
2, verse 14. For you, brethren, became imitators 
of the churches of God which are in Judea in Christ Jesus." 
Judea, that's the southern kingdom. That's Israel. It's the unbelieving 
Jews. That's the covenant breakers. 
That's the location of the city of Jerusalem, and that is the 
location of the temple, which was the visible expression that 
Yahweh was with His people. Remember, there's more going 
on in the Olivet Discourse than just the destruction of a city 
by the Romans. There is a covenantal shift that 
is going on. The kingdom is taken away from 
Old Covenant Israel and given to the church. And Jesus' prophecy 
reflects that. Paul's statement here does as 
well. You also suffered the same things 
from your own countrymen, just as they did from the Judeans, 
who killed both the Lord Jesus and their own prophets, and have 
persecuted us, and they do not please God, and are contrary 
to all men, forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles that they 
may be saved. So, as always, to fill up the 
measure of their sins, but wrath has come upon them to the uttermost. Same language Jesus employs just 
prior to the destruction prophecy. Wrath has come, or they filled 
up the measure of their sins. They filled up the measure of 
their father's guilt, and as a result, wrath comes upon them 
to the uttermost. See, hopefully, and again, there's 
more passages in the Book of Acts, if you're so inclined, 
email me and I will provide them to you, that highlight that unbelieving 
Israel was the first chief persecutor of the Church. But as well, the 
external threat involved the Roman Empire. the Roman Empire. Initially, they were sort of 
ambiguous to the Christians. They thought that Christianity 
was just a subset or a sect off of Judaism. For the most part, 
they just left Christianity alone. In fact, when you go through 
the book of Acts, the Romans are involved, but their complicity 
is seen in simply doing what the Jews want. In other words, 
the Jews arrest the apostle Paul, they put him on trial before 
these Roman emperors or these Roman kings or authorities, and 
they just sort of pass the buck until Paul ultimately goes to 
see Caesar. Increasingly, prior to the destruction, 
the Roman Empire became hostile toward Christianity. The first 
great persecution against Christians broke out in the years 64-68. 
And interestingly, in 64, specifically in the month of July, there was 
a fire in Rome. And the Roman population believed 
that it was Nero himself who set the fire or caused the fire. 
In order to deflect that, he blamed the Christians. Well, 
that targeted the Christians for a whole host of persecution. 
And many, in fact, some, I shouldn't say many, it's probably a minority 
opinion, but some see that beast in Revelation 13, not as somebody 
in our future, but somebody in that first century setting, even 
Nero. John Fox refers to him as a beast. Tacitus, in his annals, describes 
the activities of Nero, and he was just a horrific man. So we 
see there is Jewish persecution and there is Roman persecution 
against the Church. It happens in the first century. Now notice, going back to Matthew 
24, picking up in verse 9, they will deliver you up to tribulation 
and kill you. I already read, or we already 
cited the fact that Stephen was killed in Acts chapter 7. If 
we continue in Acts chapter 12, James the son of Zebedee was 
killed. James, the brother of Jesus and 
the author of the book of James and the leader in the early church, 
was killed as well. Josephus records that in his 
Antiquities of the Jews. So the fact is that there were 
those who were killed. And he goes on to say in verse 
9, And you will be hated by all nations for my name's sake. This is highlighted elsewhere 
in Jesus' teaching, in Matthew's Gospel. I already alluded to 
the fact that it's in the Upper Room Discourse in John 15, 18 
and following. If they hate Jesus, they're going 
to hate His disciples. In fact, brethren, if this world 
loves you, you need to take stock. If you never cause anybody any 
chagrin, or you never cause anybody any discomfort, or no one ever 
gets upset at you, I would really question whether you're fleshing 
out the demands of Christ in this generation. I mean, come 
on! We live in a godless, perverse, 
sexual age. I think it's offensive for us 
just to imbibe the biblical doctrine of heterosexuality anymore. If we're not upsetting the status 
quo in society, then perhaps our Christianity needs to abound 
and grow and not get militant and foolish and yell at people 
and scream at them and tell them all these nasty things. But if 
you have nothing but acceptance from the world, you've got to 
consider what the apostles went through. You've got to consider 
what the church has faced throughout the ages. You've got to consider 
the reality that all those who desire to live godly in Christ 
Jesus, 2 Timothy 3, will suffer persecution. While Preterism, 
as I understand, believes that this has been fleshed out and 
fulfilled in the first century, it certainly does not teach there 
won't be tribulation, there won't be killing, there won't be hatred 
for God's people in every age that they live. We go to the 
very beginning. Cain hated Abel. Abel was a godly 
man. Cain was a wretched man, and 
that hatred was there. And we trace that theme throughout, 
and we see that the godless always despise the godly. So if we are 
loved and welcomed and celebrated by the godless in our age, then 
we're doing something wrong. We're not living as salt and 
light. We're not shining in such a manner 
to expose the evil acts of wickedness in our own generation. Acts 28, 
there's an interesting statement. I'm sorry, Acts 28. Just to sort of underscore this 
hatred by all nations, it's when the Jews want to hear from Paul 
about what's been happening in his life. Paul is now in a Roman 
prison and some of the Jews in Rome come to hear Paul. We've 
heard about you. You were a Pharisee. You were 
Saul of Tarsus. You were trained under Gamaliel. 
You were a Pharisee of Pharisees. Concerning the law, you were 
blameless. What's happened to you? He says, well, I'm in chains 
for the hope of Israel. The hope of Israel is the Lord 
Jesus Christ. And intriguingly, they make this 
statement in 2822. It says, but we desire to hear 
from you what you think. For concerning this sect, we 
know that it is spoken against everywhere. It didn't take long 
for animosity to develop and to increase against the church 
of Jesus Christ, not just amongst unbelieving Israel, but in the 
empire itself. And the reason why is specified 
by Jesus, specifically in 24.9, you will be hated by all nations 
for my name's sake. Not because you're jerks in society, 
but for my name's sake. In fact, turn to 1 Peter chapter 
4. I think we need to get this principle. Sometimes people are 
persecuted, or sometimes they meet opposition, and sometimes 
they meet difficulties at work or in society, and they conclude, 
it's because I'm so godly. Well, not necessarily. In fact, 
Peter, when you suffer, wants you to survey the reason for 
your suffering. Notice in 1 Peter chapter 4, 
beginning in verse 12, "'Beloved, do not think it strange concerning 
the fiery trial, which is to try you as though some strange 
thing happened to you.'" In other words, church expect tribulation. Church expect fiery trials. Church 
expect difficulties and hardships. Verse 13, 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. Exult 
in it. If you are suffering for the 
name of Christ, then rejoice in God. If we would have continued 
in Acts 5.41, after the disciples are scourged, 5.41 says they 
leave and they're rejoicing. Why? Because they were counted 
worthy to suffer shame for His name. It was a glorious thing 
in the first century to bear the brand marks of Jesus in one's 
body. Notice in verse 14, 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. Now note the qualification in 
verse 15. But let none of you suffer as 
a murderer, a thief, an evildoer, or as a busybody in other people's 
matters. If your friends at work don't 
like you, don't necessarily say it's because you're a godly Christian. 
Maybe you're a busybody. Maybe you're obnoxious. Somehow 
we don't ever entertain that. Could it be me that is the reason 
here? Now, do you think? This is what 
Peter's saying. Examine the purposes, or examine 
the reasons, survey the scene, and see why it is you are suffering, 
or you are persecuted. If you've gone out and knocked 
off banks and killed tellers, and you end up in the pokey, 
don't claim it's for the name of Jesus. It's because you're 
a criminal. But if you're obnoxious to people 
and they can't stand to be with you, don't say, I'm being persecuted 
for Jesus' sake. No, it's because you're obnoxious 
and people can't stand to be with you. I think this is what 
Pastor Peter wants us to get. That not all suffering is necessarily 
relative to our union with Christ. It may be because we're just 
downright obnoxious. And Peter says or addresses that. Not all suffering, not all issue, 
not all trial is because you're so godly. It may just be the 
opposite. And Peter wants you to take stock 
of the whole situation. Let none of you suffer as a murderer, 
a thief, an evildoer, or as a busybody in other people's matters. Yet, 
if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let 
him glorify God in this matter. You see, that is the reason for 
the widespread persecution in the first century, prior to the 
siege of Jerusalem, via unbelieving Israel and via the Roman Empire. It was identifying with Jesus. It was owning Christ as Lord. 
Do you realize in the first century, brethren, when you said, I believe 
in Jesus, when you called Him Lord and Savior, it was a challenge 
to the Roman state? Do you know that the emperor 
was viewed as Lord and Savior? Koryos Soter? And so for the 
early church to confess that there was a Lord and there was 
a Savior, but it wasn't Caesar. It was Jesus Christ. That's why 
in Thessalonica you see the charge laid against the believers. They 
preach another king! Jesus! That was an offense and 
an affront. Do you realize that in the Roman 
Empire, it didn't matter how many gods you had? It didn't 
matter if you subscribed to the Pantheon? It didn't matter if 
you bowed to each and every one? But when you confessed the living 
and true God, when you confessed and professed faith in Jesus 
Christ, you were saying that that Pantheon is fake. They are 
not gods. That's why Christians in the 
first century were called atheists. Did you know that? That the charge 
against believers in the first century was atheism, because 
they excluded all these gods, and that was a challenge to the 
civil authority. And so they were persecuted and 
they suffered. Brethren, all this to say and all this to underscore 
and highlight, we need to have some courage in our generation. Wednesday night, we looked at 
David's mighty men. We're going to look at them again 
tonight. because I think their message is meaningful to be heard 
by the entire church. Those mighty men displayed courage 
in the face of great trial. These mighty men displayed great 
courage in the face of trial. What's Jesus' lesson for us? 
Things aren't always going to be rosy. Things aren't always 
going to be peachy king. Things aren't always going to 
be as splendid as they currently are. You need to watch, and you 
need to pray, and you need to be ready for such things. So 
we see a first century application, and the real reason was, is because 
they identified self-consciously with the Lord Jesus. Note, it's 
not just an external threat that's going to face the church, but 
it's an internal threat as well. verses 10 to 12. He says, and 
then many will be offended. And by offended there, it's not 
like sometimes we're very sensitive. My wife gives me an eyebrow raise. I might be troubled for the week. 
Why would she do that? Hypersensitivity is the order 
of the day. It's a very hypersensitive generation 
that we live in. Can't offend anybody except Christians. You can't entertain the thought 
that there might be another religion out there that may not have these 
wonderful goals of fulfilling society in all of its joy. You 
can't degrade that, but you can degrade Christianity. We're called 
to be non-sensitive in a hyper-sensitive age. And you know what? We should 
be. We shouldn't get so offended 
about everything. But the offense here is not You know, they raise 
their eyebrows because these things are happening. It's the 
word scandalized. It's used in Matthew's Gospel 
for falling away. It's probably a term that explains 
or displays what's called apostasy. And then many will be offended. 
Many will be scandalized. Many will stumble. Many will 
fall away. Don't miss the connection. What 
happens when there's external threat? What happens when the 
Roman Empire is trying to persecute Christians? What happens when 
unbelieving Jews are delivering up the people of God to synagogues 
and they're scourging them and they're recommending them to 
the state to be executed? What happens to those professors 
who don't have courage? What happens to those professors 
who are not committed to overcoming? What happens to those who profess 
the faith in Christ, but they're weak, and they're not the real 
deal? Many will fall away. You see, 
brethren, what Jesus says later in verse 13 is absolutely necessary. He who endures to the end, he 
shall be saved. It doesn't matter what the external 
threat is, it doesn't matter what the internal threat is, 
it never changes the responsibility of God's people. That's why in 
the grand scheme of things, if preterism is right, if it's not, 
if the two-event theory is right, or it's not, or futurism is right, 
or it's not, it does not remove the teeth of the practical implications 
of the passage. Thus far Jesus has said, do not 
be troubled when you hear of wars and rumors of wars. He has 
said, do not be deceived by those date-setters who come and try 
to lead you astray. And here He says, endure, persevere, 
run with endurance the race that is set before you. So whoever 
is right with reference to that specific interpretation of the 
Olivet Discourse, in the long run, brethren, it speaks to every 
single one of us. Equally, we're not supposed to 
be deceived by false Christs. We're not supposed to be troubled 
to the point of paralysis when we read the news or listen to 
the news. And we're certainly not to kowtow 
when the external threat and even the internal threat rages 
against the church. We stand fast. We hold firm. We do not shrink 
back. We go forward. We parrot, we 
imitate, we imbibe the ethic that we see displayed in the 
early church. Very intriguing in light of the 
persecution that was upon them. You know what the most quoted 
or alluded to text in all of the New Testament is? Psalm 110.1, 
the Lord, Yahweh, said to my Lord, Jesus, sit thou at my right 
hand until I make thine enemies your footstool. That's what gave 
them the courage. That's what inspired them to 
earnestness. That's what kept them going. 
It wasn't their goodness. It wasn't their faithfulness. 
It wasn't their resoluteness. It was Christ enthroned at the 
right hand of the Majesty on high, where He rules and He reigns 
and He governs and He is the King of kings and Lord of lords. That's what puts it into the 
hearts of God's people. We're not saved because we persevere. We persevere because we're saved. Because Christ died for us and 
He rose again. And He's given us forgiveness 
and a righteousness that avails with God. And that faith that 
He gives us believes upon Him. But then it goes forward in Him. Brethren, the church, under these 
circumstances, needs to take heed. I think there is a causal 
connection between 9 and 10. Some will be delivered up, or 
many will be delivered up, they'll be tried, they will be killed, 
they will be hated, and then many will be offended. You see 
the causal connection? And then many will be offended. 
It's kind of like this. I'm part of the losing team. 
I don't like the losing team, so I'm going to abandon the losing 
team. I understand sometimes people do that with their sports. 
Well, you know, the Canucks, as long as they're doing well, 
they've got my vote. But when they start doing terribly, 
then I'll go for whatever other team there is. Just showing you 
my hockey skills and savvy here. My sons-in-law are probably embarrassed. You see the causal connection. 
Because of the persecution, then many will be offended. Again, 
not just their delicate sensitivities have been violated, they've been 
scandalized, they stumble, they are apostates. And then note 
what happens as a result of that. And again, you see this throughout 
Scripture. 2 Corinthians 11.26, Paul refers 
to false brethren. Galatians 2.4, Paul refers to 
false brethren. 2 Timothy 1.15, all those in 
Asia turned away from me. 410 in 2 Timothy, Demas, having 
loved this evil world, has departed and forsaken me. You see this, 
2 Thessalonians 2, verse 3, which a passage I think is dependent 
upon Matthew's version of the Olivet Discourse. The apostle 
says there will be a falling away, there will be apostasy. Note what they do when they apostatize. Verse 10, many will be offended, 
will betray one another and will hate one another. They will betray 
others. What's the point here? If the 
Roman state begins to persecute Christians and somebody breaks 
and they apostatize, They want to be looked upon favorably by 
the state, don't they? If the Romans come and say, hey, 
do you know where those Christians are holed up? Do you know where 
they're worshiping? Do you know where they're praising their 
Jesus? Yeah, they're down the road on First Avenue, and they're 
in this particular apartment, and if you go there at 5 p.m. 
on a Sunday, you can find them. Intriguingly, Tacitus himself 
says that when persecution of the Christians began, There was 
that very thing that took place. Christians were arrested, and 
then they recanted, and then they betrayed or told where others 
were. And that then served the interests 
of the state, and more persons were arrested. So you see that 
apostasy doesn't... just affect the apostate. In 
this instance, the apostate now betrays others, the faithful, 
the people of God. So you see what Jesus is saying. 
You've got this external threat vis-à-vis unbelieving Israel 
and the Roman Empire. But because of that particular 
threat, many will be offended, many will be scandalized, many 
will fall away, many will be apostates, and that will turn 
the persecution on the church from within her own ranks. They 
will betray one another and they will hate one another. It's not 
a good thing. It's not a good situation. Jesus 
says that's going to precede the fall of Jerusalem. Those 
texts, as I indicate, highlight that reality. The apostasy scene 
in 1 John 2.19. What does John there write? They went out from us. But they 
were not of us, because if they were of us, they would have continued 
with us. There were those who professed, 
there were those who made a confession, but they went out. We saw it 
in Hebrews 10. We spent time in the summer in 
Hebrews 10, 26 to 31, deals with apostates. Those who had, in 
the language of Hebrews 6, tasted. They had had some degree of enlightenment. They had known something of the 
powers of the age to come. And then they fall away. They 
stumble. They're scandalized. They no 
longer hold to these things. So, what do they do? They turn 
on others. That's what Jesus says is going 
to happen in Matthew 24, verse 10. It doesn't stop there. There's deception. So under the 
internal threat, you've got apostasy and betrayal, but you've also 
got deception. Verse 11, he says, then many 
false prophets will rise up and deceive many. Now probably the 
false Christs of verse 4 were outside of the professing church. 
Those false Christs who came with messianic claims and said, 
oh, I'm the Christ, you should listen to me, you should follow 
me. Again, we saw samples or evidences of those in the book 
of Acts. These are probably those within 
the ranks, those who have gone astray, those whom the Apostle 
Paul warned about in Acts 20. He says, from among your own 
ranks, savage wolves will rise up. They will not spare the disciples. They will feast on them the way 
that a wolf digs his teeth into a little sheep. We see these 
specimens throughout the New Testament. Most think we shouldn't 
rush through this, because I want you to see each and every one. 
In fact, we will postpone the preaching of the Gospel. I don't 
mean that practically, because I hope to do that in just a moment. 
But verse 14, we'll put it off to next week, because I'm sure 
some of you are thinking, how in the world could verse 14 have 
actually happened prior to the destruction of Israel or Jerusalem 
in A.D. 70. So let's just slow it down 
a little bit. Let's look at a few of these verses just so we can 
see what's happening. So we see the external threat, 
unbelieving Israel, Roman Empire. We see the internal threat, apostasy 
and betrayal, verse 10. Deception, verse 11. I argue 
that these false prophets are probably the ones in the church, 
are probably insiders. You may turn to Acts 20. Acts 
chapter 20, notice in 29 and 30, well, backing 
up to verse 28. Paul, this is essentially the 
first pastor's conference, the apostle gathers the elders of 
the church from Ephesus. And in verse 28 he says, Therefore 
take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the 
Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God, 
which he purchased with his own blood. For I know this, that 
after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing 
the flock. Also from among yourselves men 
will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples 
after themselves. Therefore, watch and remember 
that for three years I did not cease to warn everyone, night 
and day, with tears." Notice in Romans 16. Romans 16, specifically 
verses 17 and 18. Romans 16, verses 17 and 18, 
I urge you, brethren, note those who cause divisions and offenses 
contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and avoid them. 
For those who are such do not serve our Lord Jesus Christ, 
but their own belly, and by smooth words and flattering speech deceive 
the hearts of the simple. Notice in 2 Corinthians 11, 13, Again, just trying to underscore 
that a Preterist interpretation is not so outlandish because 
these things really did happen in the first century. They really 
did occur, and the New Testament gives us manifold evidences of 
that reality. Notice in 2 Corinthians 11, specifically 
verse 13. For such are false apostles, 
deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. And no wonder! For Satan himself 
transforms himself into an angel of light. Therefore it is no 
great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into 
ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their 
works. 2 Peter 2.1 2 Peter 2.1 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, of course, 1 John 4. And verse 1, Beloved, 
do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits whether 
they are of God, because many false prophets have gone out 
into the world. And then he gives a litmus test 
on how we can test them. The spirit who confesses that 
Jesus came in the flesh. The anti-Christian spirit, or 
the anti-Christ spirit, or the false prophet is agnostic. He 
does not confess that Jesus has come in the flesh. They deny 
the real humanity by our Lord Jesus. Other things going on 
in 1 John as well, but you get the point. The deception was 
real, and according to the Lord Jesus in verse 11, he says, many 
will rise up and deceive many. So, again, I don't want anybody 
to take this and say, well, you know, Pastor Butler said it, 
it must be true. Do not do that. Examine daily 
the scriptures. Be the Bereans in Acts 17. They were more noble-minded than 
those in Thessalonica. Why? because they examined daily 
the scriptures, the things that Paul was speaking. Paul wasn't 
a sensitive Nancy boy who said, why in the world would you ever 
examine what I've said? Paul was good with that. Any 
man that preaches the Word of God that isn't good with people 
having open Bibles is a cult leader that shouldn't be listened 
to. Examine these things, listen, and do not take the word of Jim 
Butler, of Harold Camping, or whoever it is out there. If you 
are not convinced by the Spirit of God in your heart of hearts, 
reject it. Don't hold it. Listen to what 
Christ says. The pervasive influence of these 
false prophets will be successful. You know why they're successful? 
Because the people of God at times are lazy. The people of 
God at times don't read their Bibles. The people of God at 
times just accept everything they hear. The people of God 
aren't discerning. They're not discriminating. They've 
kowtowed to a hypersensitive generation, and they will never 
question anything. That is not consistent with Christianity. Go to the Scriptures, the prophets 
say. To the law and to the testimony, 
if they speak not in accordance with them, they're to be rejected. 
Brethren, don't let false prophets deceive many. The best way for 
you to be on guard and the best way for you to be fortified is 
to be in the Scriptures, to understand the Word of Truth, to understand 
sound doctrine, to realize what the historic Christian faith 
has seen as being consistent with the Word of Truth. That 
is certainly important as well. You don't do theology all on 
your own. You do it in the context of the 
Church. You listen to the Reformers. You listen to the Patristics. 
You listen to the people of God throughout the ages, because 
you have respect for Ephesians 4. because Christ ascended on 
high. He led captivity captive, and 
He gave gifts to men. And in the context, the gifts 
that He gives to men are men, men like Spurgeon, men like Calvin, 
men that we don't say were like Paul or like Jesus, but they 
were men we ought to listen to. Not slavishly. We can disagree. We disagree with Calvin on baptism. That's okay. But we ought not 
to therefore throw him out, the baby with the bathwater. Just 
got in there, you know, we don't do that with Calvin. But you 
need to know the Bible. You need to know the Old Testament. 
You know what's deficient in the modern church today? It's 
the knowledge of the Old Testament. It's almost like we don't need 
the Old Testament, we got the New and it tells us all about 
Jesus. Please don't do that. The Old Testament tells us all 
about Jesus. It's all about Christ. He himself said that in John 
5, 39. You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have 
eternal life. These are they which testify 
of me. Jesus in Genesis 3, 15. Jesus 
in Genesis 18. Jesus in Genesis 22. And all 
the other chapters as well. I'm just filling in some of the 
blanks here. Christ is in the Old Testament, 
brethren. This is why you need to know 
the Old Testament. False prophets oftentimes get 
their fangs into people who just don't know the Old Testament. 
They don't know the New Testament either, but we ought to know 
it all. So we see in the internal threat, apostasy and betrayal, 
they go together, verse 10. Deception, verse 11. Then notice 
thirdly, the antinomianism, verse 12, because lawlessness. That's 
what the word antinomianism means. I know it sounds like a $5 word, 
but it just means anti-law. Anti-law refers in the history 
of theology to a particular view. Antinomianism means that we, 
as Christians, have no regard for, and the law has no place 
in the lives of God's people. Look at what happens if we actually 
adopt such a position. And because lawlessness will 
abound, the love of many will grow cold. You see, what Jesus 
is saying is that under the pressure of external threat, under the 
pressure of internal threat, while there's apostasy, while 
there's betrayal, all this stuff is lawless. It's wretched. It has no concrete, objective 
root in the law of God. And what stems from, or rather, 
what results from this climate of lawlessness? The love of many 
will grow cold. It's an amazing thing, with reference 
to antinomianism as a theological or doctrinal conviction. The 
antinomian thinks that somehow law chokes out love. Jesus tells 
us law doesn't choke out love. Law-less-ness chokes out love. In fact, the apostle Paul defines 
love. You're probably thinking, 1 Corinthians 
13, with that glowing exposition. And he certainly does, but in 
Romans 13. He says, if you want to love 
your neighbor, don't murder them. If you want to love your neighbor, 
don't commit adultery with their spouses. If you want to love 
your neighbor, don't steal from them. Paul, what about bring 
them flowers, and do good things for them, and be warm and fuzzy? Yeah, you could do all that. 
But the concrete application of love to another human being 
is obedience to God's law. Isn't that amazing? Because of 
lawlessness, the love of many will be extinguished. It's really crazy to me that 
we have such antipathy to the law of God when it's that law 
that defines for us what it means to love God and to love fellow 
men. Davies and Allison write, love 
and lawlessness are antithetical for love fulfills the law. Doesn't it? Isn't that what Paul 
says? Osborne says this phrase, will grow old, connotes the image 
of a fire being extinguished. The fire of God was gone out 
of them and left them spiritually cold. So you see, facing the 
church in that first century context, and again, not to mean 
that it will never face the church again, there were external threats 
and there were internal threats. You had unbelieving Jews, you 
had the Roman Empire turning up the fire against the people 
of Jesus Christ. As that fire was turned up against 
the people of Jesus Christ, it affected the false professors 
within the churches. And those false professors fell 
away. They were scandalized. They stumbled. 
They became apostates. So they betrayed the true Christians. They betrayed and hated the real 
people of God. This produced a climate of lawlessness 
or antinomianism. And in that climate of lawlessness 
or antinomianism, the love of many grew cold. So what's Jesus' 
answer to the church then and to the church now that does in 
fact face the same sorts of things? Apostasy and betrayal, deception 
and antinomianism. You see, there's nothing new 
under the sun. The same sorts of things that 
they suffered in the first century church is the same sorts of things 
that we suffer in the 21st century church. But note what Jesus says 
in verse 13. He who endures to the end shall 
be saved. In other words, don't give up. 
Don't give in. Don't go into your bathtub and 
cry because these things are happening. I'm not saying it's 
always wrong to cry. Go ahead and cry. If your bathtub 
works, that's fine. But get back into the battle. We're not to be paralyzed. We're not to be taken from the 
field of battle. This is what Christ says. This 
is what is said so many times by Jesus. And every church in 
the book of Revelation, the seven churches of Asia Minor, do you 
know how each of the letters end? He who overcomes to the 
end. What is John confronting as he's 
writing? Or rather, what is the Spirit 
communicating to the churches via John? We know there is this 
increased climate of persecution. We know that the unbelieving 
Jews target the Church of God. We know that the Roman Empire 
targets the Church of God. So what is the message for the 
churches of Ephesus, and Smyrna, and Pergamos, and Thyatira, and 
Laodicea, and Philadelphia? What is the message to those 
churches? He who overcomes. And then there's 
a promise appended or attached by our Lord, peculiar to the 
way He introduces Himself to the church. That's the emphasis. What do we do? We've got the 
Roman state encroaching upon us, or in our own generation. 
We've got the Canadian state encroaching upon us. What do 
we do? There's churches that are full 
of apostasy and betrayal and deception and antinomianism. What do we do? You endure to 
the end. It may not sound as glamorous and romantic as we 
might like, but that's what God says. Endure to the end. Now the end in view probably 
has The destruction, those who listened to Jesus, those who 
responded to Jesus, did escape the siege that took place in 
Jerusalem in AD 70. Church fathers record this. There 
was a place called Pella in Perea that the people of God escaped 
to, to avoid this coming calamity. But it holds true throughout 
the age, right? Therefore, he who endures to 
the end shall be saved. Again, we're not saved because 
we persevere. We persevere because we're saved. It's one of those graces built 
in by God. It's one of those graces built 
in by God. When we have that faith to believe 
on the Lord Jesus, that faith is not alone. That faith then 
puts us into mobility, it puts us into movement, it puts us 
on that right course or that right path. He who endures to 
the end shall be saved. Frantz says, in response to both 
the outward threats of verses 4 to 8 and the destabilizing 
tendencies within the disciple community, he says the only remedy 
is deliberate, sustained faithfulness to the values and demands of 
God's kingdom. Well, brethren, as I said, we'll 
stop there in terms of our exposition. We'll pick up verse 14, the Lord 
willing, next week. But I do want to close with just 
a couple of thoughts, perhaps just reminders, because I think 
we have covered these things. We need to realize, first, the 
presence of external and internal threats today. Our day, in many 
respects, is not much different. I mean, we don't feel it as keenly 
now in North America as our brethren do in other places. Think Middle 
East. Think about brethren suffering 
under oppressive Muslim regimes. Think about brethren dispossessed 
from their homes and dispossessed from their businesses, and those 
brethren that are in prison. Think Asia Bibi in Pakistan, 
for whom we've prayed for many, many, many years now. I mean, 
her crime was minimal. It wasn't a crime, but in terms 
of the Pakistani state, an offense against Islam, it was a death 
penalty offense. This is happening now. This is 
happening today. That's why we, in prayer meeting, 
read the voice of the martyrs. That's why we read those on Wednesday 
night. Because out of sight, out of 
mind, we don't think about brethren that are suffering for the cause 
of Christ if we're not reminded that there are brethren suffering 
for the cause of Christ. There is external threat facing 
the church today in various places throughout the earth. I suspect, 
I'm not a prophet or the son of a prophet, the way Amos said, 
but man, if you look at all the signs going on or all the things 
in North America, I can't imagine there's a friendly future for 
Christianity in our generation. I mean, just interpret the things 
going on around us. I mean, laws, legislation being 
enacted, not to target everybody out there, but to target us. 
I mean, it's a hate crime to say that homosexuality is a sin, 
or it's wrong, or it should be criminal activity. Oh, you can't 
say that! We're going to imprison you! 
It's a hate crime to suggest that somebody who's a boy use 
a boy's bathroom. How is that a crime? They should 
use the boy's bathroom. This is the generation in which 
we live, where good is looked at as evil and evil is looked 
at as good. So let us learn from our Lord. What's the response 
in light of external threat? He who endures to the end shall 
be saved. What about the church? What about 
internally? Oh, we see apostasy. We see a betrayal. We see deception. Guys who couldn't explain the 
gospel are in pulpits all over the place. What's the gospel? 
Well, we should just love God and love our fellow man. That's 
the law. That's our problem. We don't 
love God. We don't love man. We don't obey 
the law. The gospel answers to that problem. It is the good news of Jesus' 
life, death, and resurrection, such that any by grace who looks 
to Him in faith will live. Man can't explain the gospel. He certainly shouldn't be in 
a pulpit. And then what about antinomianism? Oh, I can't believe 
you guys are Sabbatarian. How could you ever think that 
the Fourth Amendment is for the people of God today? Why would 
we ever think that one of the ten is no longer for us today? 
Why would we think in terms of apostolic practice that it's 
no longer for us today? Why would we think that it's 
okay somehow in this new covenant expression of the people of God 
that we can just disregard the law? So these things are as prevalent 
with us as they were then. I've already mentioned something 
about the law and love. Let me quote for you Professor 
John Murray concerning this topic. He says, it is symptomatic of 
a pattern of thought current in many evangelical circles that 
the idea of keeping the commandments of God is not consonant with 
the liberty and spontaneity of the Christian man, that keeping 
the law has its affinities with legalism and with the principle 
of works rather than with the principle of grace. He says, 
it is indeed strange that this kind of antipathy to the notion 
of keeping commandments should be entertained by any believer 
who is a serious student of the New Testament. What's our Lord 
Jesus say in John 14? If you love me, Just wait until 
you get zapped and expressed. If you love me, you will keep 
my commandments. What's John say in his first 
epistle? The commandments are not burdensome. What child of God, with the Spirit 
of God, looks at the transcript of God and says, I don't like 
that! The child of God, with the Spirit 
of God, looks at the transcript of God and says, Please empower 
me and enable me by the Spirit to comply. Help me to love your 
law. Help me to say with the psalmist, 
Oh, how I love thy law. It is my meditation, day and 
night. He wants to be that blessed man 
of Psalm 1, whose meditation is in the law of Yahweh, day 
and night. Brethren, we ought to see this 
in the language of our Lord. It's just a small phrase. It's 
a bit of an obscure phrase, but it's a powerfully impactful phrase. Because lawlessness will abound, 
the love of many will grow cold. Perhaps the love that waxes and 
wanes in our hearts toward others has something to do with this 
very principle. What think we of the law of God? 
If I love God's law, I will hopefully, in turn, love God's people. And I will express that to them 
in concrete fashion by not murdering them, by not committing adultery 
with their spouse, by not stealing from them. And if I want to bring 
them a coffee or take them out for coffee, that's the lovey-dovey 
sort of emotional expression to that. But concretely, the 
expression of love is found in terms of obedience to God's law. Think of that young people when 
it comes time to get married. Oh, but I love him or I love 
her. Why? Because they're obedient 
to God? Because you're obedient to God? 
Well, no, because he looks good or she looks good. Oh, you know, 
that's fine. Good looks, think about that. 
But that ought not to be the primary criteria. It's how is 
she, how is he relative to God's law? Because those who have the 
Spirit, those who have been conquered by sovereign grace, those who 
have come to the Lord Jesus Christ, see that law as most blessed, 
most wonderful, and most glorious. So how we view the law will indeed 
display something concerning our state before God Most High. If you are not a believer here 
this morning, I hope that I have sufficiently explained the gospel, 
but if you have not, here it is. The gospel is the good news 
concerning Jesus Christ. The gospel isn't that we're saved. That's an effect of the gospel. 
It's a blessed and wonderful effect. The gospel isn't that 
we're having more successful lives than everybody else. That's 
not even necessarily the case, because sometimes people conquered 
by grace live miserable lives. The gospel is the good news concerning 
Christ. It's about Jesus. You see, we 
couldn't obey God's law. We're an Adam. We're dead in 
our sins. We have an aversion to God. We 
hold God in contempt, and He holds us in contempt. Apart from 
Christ, whose life was perfect in obedience to the law, we will 
suffer in hell forever. But because of Christ, all those 
who look to Him receive the righteousness that He accomplished. Isn't that 
good news? Because now, as well, we need to be forgiven of our 
sins. Think about your day today. Have you sinned? If you say, 
well, no, I've been pretty good thus far. Consider the demands 
of the law. You shall love the Lord your 
God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and love 
your neighbor as yourself. If you can successfully answer 
affirmative to that within the last two seconds, you're a better 
man than most. We need our sins forgiven. How 
are our sins forgiven? Is it through the confessional 
box at the Popish Church? Is it through the penance that 
He passes down from on high? Say ten Hail Marys and one Our 
Father and poof, your sins will be gone? It's through the blood 
of Jesus Christ, His Son, that we have forgiveness. It's through 
Christ's sacrifice at Calvary. He is the Lamb of God who takes 
away the sin of the world. So when by God's grace we trust 
in Jesus, we get both forgiveness and the righteousness that Christ 
accomplished. It is given to us. It's credited 
to our account. So you may not understand anything 
I said about preterism, about futurism, about all these signs 
or whatever, but this much you must understand. You have sinned 
against a holy God and you are hell-bound. You may not see it, 
you may not believe it, you may not like to think about it, but 
this is what the Bible says. And the only hope for escape 
is through the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. It's a great privilege 
as a minister of the Gospel to be able to hold that forth. We 
have good news for you. We have hope for you. We have 
forgiveness. If you look at sin as an illness, 
there may be no cure. But when you look at sin and 
all of its filthy and disgusting details, we know that Jesus is 
a real Savior for real sinners. Well, let us close in a word 
of prayer. Father, we thank You for Your Word, and we thank You 
for Your grace, and we pray, God, that You would help each 
of us, as believers in Christ, to endure to the end, to persevere, 
to run with endurance the race that is set before us, always 
looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of faith. And for 
any and all here that are outside of Christ, I pray that you would 
do what is impossible with men. Open hearts and give the graces 
of faith and repentance that sinners may close with Jesus 
Christ today. And instead of being hell-bound, 
they would be heaven-bound, rejoicing in the Lord of glory himself. 
Go with us now, we pray, and we ask through Jesus Christ our 
Lord. Amen.