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We continue our Lord's Olivet 
Discourse, called the Olivet Discourse, because Jesus sat 
on the Mount of Olives and delivered this section of teaching. So I want to read the section, 
specifically Matthew chapter 24, beginning in verse 1. We'll 
read to verse 35. Hear now the word of the living 
and the true God. 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, nor ever shall be. And unless those days 
were shortened, no flesh would be saved. But 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 the 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 in Heaven, we thank You 
for the written Word. We thank You for our Lord Jesus 
and the Gospel that You have blessed us with, the fact that 
He has lived and died and rose again, not because of His own 
sins or His own crimes, but because of our sins and our crimes. How 
we thank You that He stood in our place, He cried, it is finished. 
How we thank You that through His blood we have forgiveness, 
even redemption from our sins and iniquities. We thank you 
as well for that righteousness that you have given to us and 
that which does avail with God Most High. Certainly it is the 
Gospel that brings us together. It is our common bond in our 
Lord Jesus Christ. And may our worship today be 
for the praise and the glory of our blessed and holy God, 
even Father, Son and Spirit. We would pray that any and all 
who have come here this morning outside of Christ would be convicted 
of sin and be shown their need for the Lord Jesus. And do that 
which is impossible with us, namely, save sinners for Your 
glory's sake and for their well-being. We ask that Your Holy Spirit 
would guide us now as we consider the Scriptures. We pray that 
You would help us to understand these things, and may it be a 
means of encouragement, a means of conviction, a means of rebuke 
and exhortation, and may it provide training in righteousness, and 
would You thoroughly equip all of us unto every good work. We 
thank you for the scriptures. We pray that the Holy Spirit 
who gave us the scriptures would guide us now as we study. And 
do forgive us for all of our sins and our transgressions. 
We know that sin does indeed darken our understanding and 
our minds and our hearts. And I pray that you would just 
cleanse us in that fount that is open for sin and uncleanness. And we pray these things through 
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Well, as we consider this 
particular section of Scripture, we have noted on several occasions 
there are various ways to approach Matthew 24, specifically the 
Olivet Discourse. And we are taking the Preterist 
interpretation, which essentially teaches that what we find in 
this section deals with the events associated with the destruction 
of Jerusalem in A.D. 70. If you're new to us this 
morning, and that sounds completely bizarre, I will simply refer 
you to sermon audio. You can listen to the sermons 
that have preceded our section this morning. Simply unable, 
and it's unwise, to duplicate material every time we introduce 
the sermon. So, we're picking up in verses 
22 to 28. Now, I think this is an ambitious 
task this morning, and I'm hoping that we can indeed get to all 
of this. But remember that the argument 
has been that Jesus prophesies or declares or announces that 
the destruction of the temple is coming. He tells us that in 
verse 2. He tells His disciples, do you 
not see all these things? He's pointing to the temple. 
Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here 
upon another that shall not be thrown down. It's the then standing 
temple that Jesus says is going to fall down. That provokes from 
the disciples two questions. Notice in verse 3, 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? Essentially, 
they say, when and what? So, Jesus addresses in the first 
place the what question. That takes Him to verse 35. He'll 
then address the when question in verse 36. So, what we find 
in this section is Jesus describing the signs of His coming and of 
the end of the age. Not the end of the world in terms 
of the cosmos, in terms of everything that we know and hold to, but 
the end of the Jewish age. We saw that last week in Ezekiel 
7. That was a convention used by 
the prophet back then to tell Israel that the end was coming. 
It wasn't the end of all things, it was the end of their particular 
situation. And such is the case here. What 
is in view is a covenantal transition. The Old Covenant is passing away, 
the New Covenant comes as fulfillment. Not replacement, but as fulfillment 
that the prophets had spoken of in the Old Testament. So in 
verses 15 to 20, what we have specifically is Jesus' description, 
or Jesus' instructions rather, to the people on what they ought 
to do when they see the abomination of desolation. Notice in verse 
15, when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel 
the prophet standing in the holy place, whoever reads, let him 
understand. We compare scripture with scripture, 
and we see specifically in Luke's account of the Olivet Discourse, 
he says, when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know 
that its desolation is near. So what Jesus is referring to 
here in the language of Daniel the prophet is when the Roman 
armies come to the temple and they sack it, they destroy it. 
They come upon the holy city to dispossess or to destroy the 
city and to kill the inhabitants. So Jesus says, when you see this, 
run. So if in verse 14 the end in 
view is the end of all things, instructions to flee would be 
superfluous. There would be no need to instruct 
persons on flight when it's the case that Jesus comes again in 
His second physical coming. Instructions to flee at that 
point are moot. There's nobody that can flee, 
there's nobody that can run, there's nobody that can hide. 
When Jesus comes again in glory to judge the living and the dead, 
you can't run and find safe haven on Mount Sham. You can't drive 
to Vancouver and find a place to rent for the night, and hopefully 
it all just blows by. When Christ comes again in His 
glory, He will indeed render judgment. He will indeed gather 
people before Him. He will separate sheep from goats. The sheep will go into everlasting 
life, and the goats will go into everlasting fire. The only way 
to be prepared for that day is by grace alone, through faith 
alone, in Jesus Christ alone now. Don't tarry. Don't wait. Don't say, that's something I 
want to think about when I'm older. No, I want you to take 
heed to the Word of God. If you are not in Him, if you 
are not with Him, you are against Him. And if you are against Him 
when He does come again, you will be cast off for all eternity. The way of salvation is not your 
own works, The way of salvation is not your own merit. The way 
of salvation is not your own ability, because you have none. You are dead in Adam. You are 
dead in your trespasses and sins. The way to God is through Christ. The way to God is through that 
fountain prophesied by Zechariah, that fountain that is open for 
sin and uncleanness. It is the fountain drawn from 
Emmanuel's veins, where sinners plunged lose all their guilty 
stains. Flee to Christ. Run to Christ. So in this particular situation, 
He tells those who are in Judea to flee to the mountains. Again, 
it's a localized judgment. Now I am telling you to flee 
to Christ. Don't run to the mountains, don't 
hide at the lakes, don't rent a cabin in the woods for a summer 
or a season, but flee. Why do you tarry? Why do you 
wait? So many of you hear the gospel on a regular basis. So 
many of you come to our church, and so many of you are brought 
up in Christian homes where the gospel is conspicuous. It's not hidden under a bushel. 
It's not hidden behind the piano or the TV in the home, but rather, 
it is conspicuous, and you are being taught what Scripture says. 
If you have any inkling for your safety, any interest whatsoever 
in your well-being, flee to the Savior. It's not magic. It's not hocus-pocus. It's not, 
well, what five things do I have to do to make myself fit and 
ready to come to Jesus? Come as you are. I love that 
statement in the prophet Jeremiah, when Yahweh tells the children 
of Israel, return to Me, ye backsliding children, and I will heal your 
backsliding. That's just counterintuitive, 
isn't it? We hear about a holy God, we 
hear about how sinful we are, and we start to reason, well, 
I've got to clean up my act before I go to Him. I've got to get 
myself right before I go to Him. No, Christ came because you can't 
clean up your act. Christ came because you can't 
make yourself fit and lovely. Christ came so that when the 
prodigal, who is longing after pig slop, just tries to cast 
himself upon the mercy of the Father, he is received, he is 
blessed, he is clothed, he is rejoiced over and rejoiced in. Don't try to clean up your act, 
but rather come to the one who's in the business of cleaning up 
acts. Isn't that what Savior means? 
Isn't that what Christ's job is? Isn't that what He's about? Isn't that His function? As I 
said last week, take these texts and bring them through the front 
door of heaven. Scripture says, Jesus, that You're a Savior for 
sinners, and I'm a sinner, so please save me. It's a pretty 
simple logic, isn't it? It's gospel logic. It's not, 
go out and fix yourself, because you can't. If you could fix yourself, 
then you know what Paul says? Christ died in vain. He says 
in Galatians 2.21, I do not set aside the grace of God. For if 
righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain. He died for nothing. If you can 
fix your condition, if you can make yourself fit, if you can 
make yourself beautiful to the Lord God Almighty, then why Calvary? Why the shame? Why the blood? Why the gore? Why the mocking 
and the spitting? Why the punishment at the hands 
of men? And why the punishment far more 
exceeding at the hands of Yahweh Himself? For the prophet says 
it pleased Yahweh to bruise Him. It pleased Yahweh to crush Him. 
Why would that have ever transpired if all we needed was a little 
bit of help? If all we needed was a little bit of advice? If 
all we needed was a little word of encouragement on how to buck 
up and try harder? You see, this is the air of all 
preaching that denies the gospel of our Lord, that denies the 
necessity of blood atonement, that denies the necessity of 
justification by grace alone through faith alone in Christ 
alone. These places where people gather together and hear another 
moral story on how they ought to try harder in this world, 
That is not what the Gospel is all about. It's not good advice 
on how to be better. It's good news on how Christ 
accomplished salvation for all those who come to Him. And the 
one who comes to Him, He promises, I will in no wise cast out. I 
will certainly not cast them out. I will not resist them. 
I will not rebuff them. I will not keep them at arm's 
length. That's John 6.37. Come to Him 
and you will find life. Come to Him and you will find 
joy. Come to Him and you'll be able to escape on that day when 
He comes again in glory to judge the living and the dead. Here, 
the mountains outside of Jerusalem or outside of Judea provided 
safe haven for those inhabitants that saw the Roman armies and 
then fled. The way of safe haven today is 
through the blood of the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. So 
Jesus tells disciples that witness this to then leave. It's wise to leave. It's prudent 
to run. There are instances and seasons 
and times to expand the kingdom of God when you escape. You just 
sit around and say, I'm going to take a bullet for Jesus in 
this siege. Well, if you can escape, maybe 
Jesus is okay with you not taking the bullet for Him. Don't deny 
your Lord, don't recant on your faith, don't neglect the realities 
of blood atonement and justification by grace alone through faith 
alone in Christ. Do not deny the Trinity, do not deny the 
hypostatic union of Christ, do not deny cardinal Christian truth, 
but brethren, if you can escape Jesus says in Matthew 10, when 
they persecute you in one city, then flee to another. He doesn't 
say, you terrible specimens of human beings. No, this is a good 
thing. You see the life and ministry 
of the Apostle Paul. He's a preacher on the run very 
often, isn't he? And this is the point in this 
passage. If it was the end of all things, the idea that you 
could actually escape is superfluous. It would be unkind of our Lord 
to ever suggest that there could be escape when there wouldn't 
be escape. But Jesus the prophet is speaking 
to a particular situation affecting a particular people in a particular 
time frame, all governed by 2434, wherein he says that all these 
things must take place in this generation. You simply cannot 
escape that. You cannot evade that. Attempts 
to try to mingle events here ultimately stumble when it comes 
to 2434. I think they stumble at 29, when 
this immediately follows on the heels of the Great Tribulation. 
Which great tribulation we looked at in verse 21 last week is the 
destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70. Jesus speaks concerning it 
in verse 21. For then there will be great 
tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the 
world until this time, nor ever shall be. We looked at several 
passages in the Old Testament where this is language that is 
used in prophetic pronouncement. It's apocalyptic language in 
one way, or in one sense, and Christ follows the line of prophets 
who went before him. So we've seen the command to 
flee, verses 15 to 20, and the reason for flight in verses 21 
and 22. It is a time of great tribulation 
we looked at last week. Now note, secondly, a time limited 
by the sovereign God in verse 22. Notice, he's still speaking 
about the tribulation of those days. He's still speaking about 
the situation marked by the abomination of desolation in verse 15. He's speaking about that era 
or that time frame wherein persons are told to escape and flee and 
run and hide. And then he says in verse 22, 
unless those days were shortened. See, there's no textual suggestion 
that we're dealing with different days. Again, if we amalgamate 
or we put into this whole discourse several events or even two events, 
there's no textual indicator for that. There's no time separation, 
there's no gap, there's no, oh, we're going to deal with a different 
set of days now. He speaks specifically of the 
tribulation that he's already described in verses 15 to 21. And unless those days were shortened, 
what days? Days in our future? Days that 
are coming in our distant horizon? No, they're the days He's been 
speaking of, the days of vengeance, according to Luke 21, wherein 
all things written are fulfilled by the execution of judgment 
upon the inhabitants of Israel for failing to obey the Lord 
God of covenant. Notice, unless those days were 
shortened, no flesh would be saved. But for the elect's sake, 
those days will be shortened. As I've said, the days in view 
are the same ones that Christ has been speaking of. No textual 
indicator to think there's any other days in view, is there? 
Well, no, it's pretty obvious there. Well, you read the literature 
and there's a whole shuffling of days that goes on in the interpretation 
of Matthew 24. I submit, if you read the text 
as it's written, it's going to yield this interpretation. Again, 
I know that sounds proud, and I know that sounds arrogant, 
and I know that may sound wicked, and I'm not saying that everybody 
who disagrees is a heretic, or they're evil, or they're hell-bound. 
But brethren, one of the primary elements of interpreting Scripture 
is to ask, how would the first recipients understood it? How 
would they have understood what was going to happen in our future? 
How would they possibly conceive of world events that would take 
place in the 21st century? He's dealing with them. Note 
the conspicuous second-person plural throughout the entirety 
of the discourse. You, you, you, you, you, you. Not them, them, them, them, them. 
He's talking to them. That's a them. That didn't work 
out just right, but you get my point, right? A bit of a you-them 
shift there. Notice what Christ says, "...and 
unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved, but 
for the elect's sake those days will be shortened." If it was 
the end of all things, shortening days wouldn't matter, would it? 
If verse 14 speaks of the end of all things as we know it, 
then the idea of a shortening of days is superfluous. The fact 
that flesh is saved. Now I argue and I believe and 
I fully embrace the historic Christian faith that says these 
bodies that are going to go into that earth after they breathe 
their last physically will be raised from the dead gloriously. The bodies of believers will 
be rejoined with their souls and they'll enter into the glory 
of heaven, the new heavens and the new earth with the Lord Christ 
Almighty. So I believe in the resurrection of the body. I believe 
in the fleshly resurrection that is to come. But in this particular 
context, the language suggests the siege in Jerusalem in AD 
70. There's flesh spared. Not flesh in terms of the general 
resurrection, but in terms of the abomination of desolation 
that descends upon the Jerusalem temple. In terms of those who 
are able to flee to the mountains, their flesh, their bodies are 
spared. Their bodies are preserved from 
the Jewish war with Rome. They are physically preserved. And notice what he says. Unless 
those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved, but for 
the elect's sake, those days will be shortened. And it wasn't 
just elect people that were spared or saved or preserved, but as 
well Jews. It wasn't a comprehensive annihilation. It wasn't the case that there 
were never again Jews on the face of the earth. But those 
days were shortened under the sovereignty of Christ specifically, 
and we'll see that in just a moment, so that there would be flesh 
spared, certainly for the elect's sake. Gil says it this way. But the meaning here is that 
the siege of Jerusalem and the calamities attending it should 
be sooner ended. Not that God had determined. 
It's not that God changed His mind, you know, in the fifth 
month of the siege and said, well, you know, they've had enough, 
so I'm going to let them off the hook. That's not the point 
of the passage. Gil says, it should be sooner 
ended, not than God had determined, but than the sin of the Jews 
deserved. And the justice of God might 
have required in strict severity, and might be reasonably expected, 
considering the aggravated circumstances of their iniquities. In other 
words, they deserved a whole lot more than what they actually 
got, because of their sin against the covenant God of Israel. And 
Jesus says specifically it is for the elect's sake. Isn't that intriguing? Who's 
the first primary persecutor of the people of God in the New 
Testament church? It is unbelieving Israel. They 
are persecuting the very ones whose presence preserves their 
race. That's the point. Because of 
the elect, God has preserved them. Because of the elect and 
the fact that the promises aren't just for Gentiles, but for Jews 
as well, Romans 11, we preach the gospel to them. They're not 
completely annihilated. They're not wiped off the face 
of the earth. So that's what he means in terms 
of verse 22. Unless those days were shortened, 
no flesh would be saved. But for the elect's sake, those 
days will be shortened. And this indicates to us the 
sovereign control of God. Not the sovereign control of 
the Roman army. They didn't just decide, well, you know, we've 
done enough, let's go. It's under the hand of God, just as the 
political upheavals referenced earlier in the chapter must take 
place. It's under the hand of a sovereign 
God. Everything that happens is under the hand of a sovereign 
God. We don't live in a world governed by chance. We don't 
live in a world governed by fate. We don't live in a world governed 
by impersonal forces. We live in a world governed by 
a sovereign God. And it's attributed in Mark's 
version of the Olivet Discourse to the Lord. Specifically, Jesus. I think the attribution to the 
second person of the Trinity is appropriate and fitting, because 
the argument is, and will follow in coming weeks, that the coming 
envisaged in both verse 27 and expanded on in verses 29 to 31 
is not that Christ physically comes to the earth, but that 
Christ, at the right hand of the Father, is exercising His 
messianic prerogative to lower His foot upon His enemies. And 
the first enemy was unbelieving Israel, covenant-breaking Israel, 
that had opposed, rejected, despised Yahweh. It is sending of His 
Son, the Lord Christ, to be the Messiah. They say in Matthew 
27, let His blood be upon us and our children. Christ visits 
them, not physically, But at the right hand of the Father, 
through the historical means of the Roman armies, it is the 
Lord Christ's attestation that He is that Danielic son of man 
that's gone to the right hand of the throne of God, and there 
He has received the kingdom. And this is an expression of, 
a visible display of, His rule from the right hand of the Father. 
Now, this is where everybody jumps ship This is where everybody 
says, well, preterism cannot account for verses 29 to 31. 
I simply ask you to pay attention and to stick around for the next 
few weeks. I mentioned that it's sort of like being in the dentist's 
chair. There is a forced break coming in four weeks, I assure 
you. I'm having surgery on my other 
hip, so we've got a lot of material to cover before we, you know, 
I go into the desert of pain and misery and suffering, but 
we have four weeks, and in that time I hope to get us at least 
through verse 31. So I realized that on the surface 
of it, it's language that speaks of the sun being dark, and the 
moon not giving its light, and the stars falling, and we've 
been trained, and we've been educated, and we've been brought 
up in a context where that only ever always means the end of 
the world. Brethren, it's got a long pedigree 
of Old Testament usage concerning the fall of kingdoms. And it's 
most appropriate in a chapter dealing with the fall of a kingdom. Verse 29, the Son of Man coming 
in the clouds. Again, it's Daniel 7, 13 and 
14. And there we have been trained, 
and there we have assumed, and there we have almost bought it 
hook, line, and sinker. That speaks of His coming to 
the earth. That's not what Daniel says. Daniel 7, 13, and 14 is 
an ascension text. He comes to the Ancient of Days, 
and therein he receives the kingdom, and dominion, and power, and 
glory. And one of the first aspects or displays of this visibly is 
the destruction of Jerusalem to execute the vengeance of the 
covenant upon these people. The calling of the elect via 
these angelic ministers. It's the preaching of the gospel 
to save sinners, consistent with what Jesus will say in Matthew 
28, is the task and mission of the church. That's overview. 
And again, there is a multitude of texts. I didn't pull this 
rabbit out of the hat, saying this is what you ought to believe. 
There is text after text after text that we are going to consider, 
God willing, in the coming weeks. But let's move on, specifically 
to verses 23 to 28. We have the warning against false 
Christs. So just an overview structure 
of the whole. Command to flee, verses 15 to 20. Reason for flight, 
verses 21 and 22. And then thirdly, the warning 
concerning false Christs in verses 23 to 28. Note the warning stated 
in verses 23 to 25. Again, we don't have any textual 
indicator that we're dealing with something different. We 
don't have any textual indicator to argue that now we're dealing 
with this. No, unless those days were shortened, no flesh would 
be saved, but for the elect's sake, those days will be shortened. 
Then, when does that then connect? It connects to then. Not then, 
but I want you to assume it's way off in the future, way off 
in the distance, way off in the horizon. 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, just a couple of observations. We've already 
noted that in the time leading up to the siege, there would 
be false Christs. Notice in Matthew 24, verse 4. Take heed that no one deceives 
you, for many will come in My name, saying, I am the Christ, 
and will deceive many." We've sufficiently demonstrated that 
that was a first century reality. The book of Acts demonstrates 
it. It confirms it, it highlights it, and it shows it. So Jesus 
is not basically repeating what He said there. In this time frame 
leading up to the siege, there would be these false Christs. 
Now, as we are in the midst of the siege, there's going to be 
false Christs. What's the logic? What's the rationale? He has 
the answer. This guy knows what he's talking 
about. He can fix this. These messianic 
claimants have come out of the woodwork to offer help to people 
in trouble. Not that it's wrong to offer 
help to people in trouble, but if you're the false Christ, then 
it's wrong. Look at what he says, verse 23. 
Then, again in the context of the Great Tribulation, if anyone 
says to you, look, here is the Christ, or there, do not believe 
it. Do you realize that Jesus is 
telling us here not to believe something? Just because somebody 
says they're Christ doesn't mean they're Christ, does it? Just 
because somebody says they're teaching God's Word doesn't necessarily 
mean they're teaching God's Word. Some of you might be suspecting 
me of committing that crime. I'm hopefully showing you at 
least that this is rooted in the pages of Scripture here. Jesus says, don't believe them. 
It's this combat to that whole idea that Christianity is just 
this leap of faith, we just willy-nilly jump into the arms of whatever. 
No, it's objective, it's revealed, it is focused upon the real Christ. I love what Spurgeon says. He 
says, it is a grand thing to have such faith in Christ that 
you have none to spare for impostors. It is a grand thing to have such 
faith in Christ that you have none to spare for impostors. This is what Christ tells us. 
Then if anyone says to you, look, here is the Christ, or there, 
do not believe it. The false Christs here, referred 
to, are those imposters who seize the moment. The guy with the 
answers, right? You can almost hear it now. Honey, 
I was at the marketplace today, and this fellow there, he spoke 
with authority, and he has answers, and he knows what we're supposed 
to do, and he's got some real-life suggestions on how to deal with 
this Roman problem. Jesus says, don't listen to them. 
Jesus has already said, when you see this, run. Not stay, 
not have Bible studies with the false Christs, Not figure out 
how to win the war against the Romans, because you ain't going 
to win this war. Run. The Romans are not going to be 
defeated in this exchange. You're not going to, you know, 
mount up a battlement against them and... No, Jesus' instructions 
are clear and candid and simple. Run. Get out of Dodge. Notice. What he goes on to say. If they 
say to you, look, he is in the desert, do not go out. Look, 
he is in the inner rooms, do not believe it. Now, the inner 
rooms may refer to inner rooms of the temple. It's tough to 
know specifically. But the idea is that as we're 
in this siege, as we've got this situation around us, people are 
probably naturally, normally looking for answers, looking 
for help, looking for hope, looking for encouragement, looking for 
a way to navigate the particularly troublous times that we find 
ourselves in. Jesus has already spoken of what you're supposed 
to do. You're supposed to run. You're not supposed to go to 
the inner rooms. You're not supposed to go out to the wilderness. You're 
not supposed to go out there and look for these guys. You 
cannot, if you follow His instructions, to run, hide, leave. Notice the specific reason that 
He gives. Verse 24. So there's a warning 
stated, verse 23, and then a reason given in verse 24. For false 
Christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and 
wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. They will rise. 
There's never a shortage of these guys, is there? Not always guys, 
there can be girls, there can be women. They've got the answers. They know the antidote. They 
know the secret, you know, decoder ring. They've got it. They've 
figured it out. If you just follow this. I'm 
always wary about people who have the one thing that'll fix 
everything. There's no one thing that's going to fix everything 
because we made such a mess out of it. I mean, other than obedience 
to God's Word, obviously, that's the one thing that we need. And 
we just do this, we just fix this, and then those nasty Romans 
will go away. No, he says specifically these 
false Christs are going to rise up. They're going to deceive, 
if possible, even the elect, the idea being that they will 
actually do signs and wonders. Davies and Allison comment, unlike 
Jesus, who is reluctant to show signs and wonders throughout 
Matthew's Gospel. He's reluctant to show signs 
and wonders, and who often asks for silence about his miracles, 
again, in Matthew's Gospel. His false imitators will work 
wonders, why? For public display. Behind or 
the backdrop is probably Deuteronomy 13, 1 to 3, the false prophets 
who work signs and wonders. We see this as well in those 
magicians during the times of the plagues in Egypt. They were 
able to duplicate some of these plagues, weren't they? It wasn't 
just smoke and mirrors. They actually had these powers, 
devilish powers, but powers nonetheless. You see a parallel in 2 Thessalonians 
2. Again, the more I work through 
all of that, the more I see that Paul is simply giving us a smaller 
version of all of it in 2 Thessalonians 2. You see these lying signs 
and wonders relative to the beast in the book of Revelation and 
the false prophet, that beast that comes from the land. We 
see these things operative, and the Lord Jesus says, don't be 
dazzled by their works, but listen to my words. Don't be dazzled 
by their works, but be obedient to my words. It's a huge difference 
there, isn't it? Oh, you should have seen what 
this guy did in the marketplace. We need to listen to Jesus. You 
should have seen the signs and the wonders. We need to listen 
to Jesus. You should have seen what he 
did. We need to listen to Jesus. That's the emphasis that Christ 
is speaking of. He's already addressed the escape 
plan. He's already addressed what you 
do when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies. You don't debate. 
You don't watch signs and wonders. You don't discuss. You don't 
have interchange. You don't even go down from your 
rooftop to collect your belongings. If you're in the field, you don't 
even go to the edge to grab your cloak. You run and you get out 
of town. You see, in those days leading 
up to the fall, ultimately, there would be these false claimants. 
Notice what he goes on to say, very specifically. They will 
attempt, or if possible, they'll deceive even the elect. This 
does not speak to the ability to deceive the elect. The elect 
are capped by the power of God, aren't they? Yes, they are. Brethren, you're 
in a Reformed church. We believe that with every fiber 
of our redeemed humanity. Those for whom Jesus dies, those 
for whom He raises up on the third day, they're safe and secure 
forever. The if possible speaks to the 
attempts or the lengths that these false Christs will go to 
to deceive, even if possible, the elect. It doesn't speak to 
the deception of the elect as if it's an actuality, but it 
speaks to their tenacity. It speaks to their stick-to-itiveness. 
It speaks to their utter consistency in trying to dazzle with their 
signs and with their wonders. So the if-possible doesn't speak 
to the obliteration of the fifth point of Calvinism. Rather, it 
speaks to the reality that these men are going to keep going. 
These men are going to deceive. These men are going to lay hold 
of you. These men are going to captivate you. And then notice, 
Jesus speaks specifically in verse 25. He says, See, I have 
told you beforehand, How many things could we say we've done 
when we've already known what we weren't supposed to do? This 
is a, see, I have told you beforehand with reference to a prophetic 
discourse concerning the fall of Jerusalem. But it really could 
be extrapolated to anything. Couldn't it? Why have I sinned 
against God? It's not that I've lacked information, 
it's not that I've lacked knowledge, it's not that I've lacked the 
prior cognitive information, it's because I have willingly 
transgressed His Word. I have willingly said, no, to 
the Lord God Most High. And Jesus is saying, Jesus is 
telling, Jesus is setting forth to His disciples, see, I have 
told you beforehand, again, that you there I've told you, if you 
die in the siege, it's on you. If you don't make it out of Jerusalem, 
it's on you. If you go get dazzled by those 
false prophets and false Christs and watch them do their, you 
know, spiritual juggling act, you're doing that while Romans 
are moving forward in the utter obliteration of the city. And, 
you know, you're just dazzled with these signs and wonders. 
You're like the baby looking at the shining thing. Oh, there's 
the shining thing. And all the armies are converging 
and they're about to destroy. Jesus says, I've told you beforehand, 
go. Don't listen to false. Christ, 
don't listen to false. Prophets, listen to Christ. Brethren, 
there's an argument here for all of us to read our Bibles 
more. There he goes. That Baptist butler always pulls 
that out of every text. He's not pulling this exegesis 
out of a rabbit's hat. I do see it in the context, but 
he always tells us to read our Bibles and pray. Yeah. Absolutely. Because Jesus has 
told us so many things beforehand. And we willingly and we knowingly 
oppose him. It's not cognition that we lack, 
it's resolution, it's determination, it's obedience. We can't say, 
well, I just didn't know I wasn't supposed to fornicate. I just 
didn't know I was supposed to commit adultery. I just didn't 
know I wasn't supposed to smoke crack cocaine. What do you mean 
you didn't know that? You just didn't want to obey. 
We like to blame the lack of cognitive information rather 
than ethical rebellion that's in our hearts. Let's be honest, 
2813 in the book of Proverbs tells you how to deal with ethical 
rebellion in the heart. Don't blame cognitive lack of 
information, but rather, whoever confesses his sin and forsakes 
his sin will find mercy. That's the answer. I don't blame 
the fact or the thought or the idea that, I just didn't know. 
These guys couldn't say, well, I just didn't know. I just wasn't 
advised. Now notice what Jesus goes on 
to say. Verses 26 to 28. This is the 
specific command in light of false Christs. Okay? The structure here, I think, 
is very well structured and very orderly. Not my notes, but what 
Jesus is saying. He has told them that as the 
siege goes on, prior to the ultimate fall of city and temple, There 
will be these false Christs, there will be these false claimants, 
there will be these false prophets. They'll have the remedy, they'll 
have the antidote, they'll have the answers that you need. Send 
in your $59.99, thank you very much, or buy my book, or buy 
my tape, or buy my CD, or download the latest message at a cost 
of only $4.99. Jesus says, don't listen to them. 
Listen to the simple answer that Christ gives. when you see the 
abomination of desolation standing in the holy place, run. Maybe that's why we balk at this 
interpretation, because it's so easy. We're drawn to the sensational. We're drawn to the theater-like 
presentation of eschatology. I mean, running and living in 
a bush and eating berries and making sure that we don't get 
snuffed out by some stray Roman soul. That's not as exciting. 
as whether or not Obama is the beast of revelation. Sometimes the answer in biblical 
interpretation is Occam's razor. The simplest explanation is more 
often than not the right explanation. Jesus says, don't listen to that. 
Now note what he goes on to do in verses 26 to 28. He gives 
a specific command in light of the fact that there will be these 
false Christs. He tells them they need to avoid 
them. Verse 26, if they say to you, look, he is in the desert, 
do not go out. That's not willy-nilly. Go into 
the desert. Davies and Allison say, in the 
desert was presumably a well-known haunt of messianic pretenders 
who sought to imitate the wilderness miracles of Moses. Who was in 
the wilderness crying out as a voice? It was John the Baptist. Persons thought he was messianic, 
didn't they? Isn't he the Messiah? Is he the 
one? Is he the Christ? Is he the anointed 
one? Consider in John 6, Jesus does a miracle out in the wilderness. He does a miracle out in the 
desert. He multiplies bread and fish and He feeds the multitudes. 
And what happens in John 6, 15? They try and take Him by force 
and make a king out of Him. There's a messianic expectation 
concerning the wilderness. And Jesus says, if you hear someone 
say, go out there, because there He is, Jesus says, don't go out 
there. Notice what He says then. Look, he is in the inner rooms. 
Do not believe it." This is just answering to what he's already 
said. He's out in the wilderness. He's in the inner rooms. Jesus 
says, don't go there. Now, it wasn't wrong to look 
for the real Christ in a physical location, was it? Was it wrong to look for a real 
Christ in a physical location? No. John 1, they find Messiah. They bring brothers to say, this 
is Messiah. After his resurrection, he says, 
go tell my brethren to meet me in Galilee. There's nothing inherently 
wrong about looking for the Messiah. Now, obviously, in the context, 
it's a false Messiah. But here's where we may part 
ways. I think another reason is because Jesus is saying, the 
nature of my coming is not physical. I will not be in a desert. I 
will not be in an inner room. I will be enthroned at the right 
hand of the majesty of God on high. And it's from that vantage 
point, my ascended and exalted glory, that I will lower my feet 
on all my enemies. I must reign over them till I 
make all my enemies my footstool." So, in other words, don't go 
out to wildernesses and don't go out to deserts looking for 
Jesus, because you're not going to find Him. That's what I think 
He is suggesting in this particular section. It was wrong to look 
for the real Christ in a physical location during the siege against 
Jerusalem, for He was in heaven executing judgment against His 
enemies, consistent with the curses in Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 
28. And that brings us to consider 
the nature of His coming in verse 27. Don't go there, don't go 
there. And now he's going to describe 
what his coming actually looks like. I really believe this. This is nuts. But just follow 
it for a moment. Don't go in the desert. Don't 
go in the inner rooms. Notice verse 27. For as the lightning 
comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the 
coming of the Son of Man be. Now let's just parse this a little 
bit, shall we? This will be expanded in verses 
29 to 31. 29 to 31 details or gives more amplification 
concerning this coming. Here it's just introduced in 
verse 27 as a corrective. It's a corrective. Don't go looking 
in the wilderness, and don't go looking in the inner rooms, 
because as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to 
the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. Gil explains 
it this way, and I'll try and tease this out in just a moment. 
He says, "...but of His coming in His wrath and vengeance to 
destroy that people, their nation, city, and temple, so that after 
this to look for the Messiah in a desert or a secret chamber 
must argue great stupidity and blindness, when His coming was 
as sudden, visible, powerful, and general to the rest of that 
nation as the lightning that comes from the east and in a 
moment shines to the west." Let's just look at some passages to 
try and validate this. Is everybody with me? You're 
in the desert, you know, you're in the chair, your mouth is open, 
shut it for a minute, give it one of these and get ready to 
open up again because we got a few passages that we need to 
look at. just to show and just to argue and demonstrate that 
verse 27 is not the second physical coming of our Lord. It is the 
coming that will be further amplified, expanded on, and further explained 
in verses 29 to 31. But as I've said, the function 
of verse 27 is a corrective. The disciples are not to look 
in physical locations because His coming is a spiritual coming. 
It's coming in judgment. You can't find Him in a desert. 
You can't find Him in an inner room because He's at the right 
hand of the Father. And it's through those historical 
events that you know that He's at the right hand of the Father. 
When we get to that sign of the Son of Man, it's in heaven. It's 
in heaven. And the sign is that through 
the destruction by the Roman armies, this is an evidence that 
what Jesus says was true and that He was now in heaven executing 
the vengeance of the covenant upon these transgressors. Notice, 
we've got to remember the time indicator in verse 34. Everything 
must take place in this generation. Let's not forget that. It's easily 
dismissed in the commentaries. It's easily dismissed by people 
who have an alternate view of Matthew 24. But it's not easily 
dismissible. Either this generation means 
this generation, or it doesn't. And if it can be shown when we 
get to verse 34 that every time Matthew uses this generation, 
he means the generation to whom Jesus is speaking, then why would 
we import into Matthew 24 an alien meaning? It's an evidence 
of our theology driving our exegesis. We're to let our exegesis drive 
our theology. As well, the immediately in verse 
29, or as I argue, further expands verse 27. It's immediately after 
the tribulation of those days. Two things in that verse connects 
us to the present context. As I said, most people jump ship 
at this particular point. Verse 29, they say, well, that 
can't mean what happened in AD 70. But there's two conspicuous 
points, textually, that connect us to the previous verses. The 
word immediately. France notes that Mark uses immediately 
a lot. It's a favorite in Mark's gospel. Matthew doesn't use it nearly 
as many times as Mark does, and he suggests that when Matthew 
uses immediately, we really ought to understand him to be speaking 
of immediately. And then he says, those days. What days? Here's where we're 
asked to suppose that those days of verse 29 mean something in 
our future. completely devoid of what we've 
already been discussing in terms of those days in verses 15 to 
20. There's just, again, no textual 
evidence to drive that interpretation. But back to 27. Note the parallel 
passage in Luke 17. You thought I was going to say 
Luke 21, didn't you? But it's Luke 17 that parallels 
this section of the Olivet Discourse. Verse 20 in Luke 17. Now, when he was asked by the 
Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them 
and said, the kingdom of God does not come with observation. 
What does he mean there? It's not visible. It's not public. He's not going to wake up on 
a Monday morning and drive down to the middle of Chilliwack and 
look up on top of Mount Shamman, and there's the kingdom of God. 
It doesn't come with observation. It's not a visible, public thing. Let me just ask you, if the kingdom 
of God can come in a non-visible, non-observable manner, can't 
the king come likewise? Can't the King duplicate that 
pattern and come as well without us being able to say, hey, there's 
Jesus on the top of Mount Shem. Notice, the Kingdom of God does 
not come with observation, nor will they say, see here, or see 
there, for indeed the Kingdom of God is within you. I mean, 
the commentators say it's spiritual in nature. It's among you. It's that spiritual reign of 
the Lord Christ at the right hand of God Most High. We are 
inhabitants of the Kingdom of God. It doesn't mean we go to 
a place each day, does it? It doesn't mean there's a moat 
around our kingdom, but there is a kingdom that is among us, 
or a kingdom that is within us. Isn't that the case? This is 
biblical eschatol, biblical theology. Notice in verse 22, then he said 
to the disciples, the days will come when you will desire to 
see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see 
it. And they will say to you, look here or look there. Do not 
go after them or follow them. Why? For as the lightning that 
flashes out of one part under heaven shines to the other part 
under heaven, so also the Son of Man will be in his day." He 
uses the same language there. Now notice in verse 31, in that 
day. Again, we ought to consider in that day being consistent 
with the day he's already spoken of in verse 24, the day of the 
Son of Man. In that day, he was on the housetop 
and his goods are in the house. Let him not go down or come down 
to take them away. He gives the same instructions 
that we find there in 24, 15 to 20. It's a parallel usage there that 
does bespeak this whole reality, that the kingdom of God comes 
without a visible demonstration in terms of, you know, moats 
and castles and all that sort of thing. So can it not be the 
case that the Son of Man can come without being physically 
present? He can't send representatives, 
he can't send delegates, he can't send ambassadors. I submit that 
he does that every Lord's Day through the preaching of the 
Gospel. Christ is here, brethren. If you don't believe that, you 
don't have a proper view of preaching. What does Paul say to the Ephesians? That Christ came and preached 
peace to you. Read the book of Acts, specifically 
Acts 19. Did Jesus go to Ephesus? No, but Paul did. So that when 
Paul is accurately preaching the Word of God, Paul could say 
that Christ came and preached peace to you. He can do things 
by way of representation. He can do things by way of delegation 
and ambassadorship. That's the benefit and blessing 
of being a king. You've got cronies that do your 
bidding. So just to see if the kingdom 
can come without visible observation, so can the king. Consider the 
lightning metaphor that we find utilized by Christ in Matthew 
24, 27. For as the lightning comes from 
the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the 
Son of Man be. The presence of lightning is 
indicative of God's majestic glory. Exodus 19, Exodus chapter 
20. What surrounds the Sinai event? It's lightning, demonstrating 
that God is glorious. But as well, lightning is indicative 
of God's terrible judgment. You can just cite these texts 
or write these texts down. Psalm 18, 14, Psalm 78, 48, and 
49, Psalm 97, 4, and Psalm 144, 6. Just a couple of examples 
that lightning is associated with the judgment of God. What's 
Jesus speaking about here? He's speaking about the judgment 
of God. We ought to hear that. We ought to understand the similarities 
in usage as well. There's a similar metaphor employed 
by our Lord in Luke 10. You can turn there, Luke chapter 
10. A similar metaphor utilizing lightning 
In Luke chapter 10, notice in verse 18, well, verse 17, the 
70 returned with joy saying, Lord, even the demons are subject 
to us in your name. And he said to them, I saw Satan 
fall like lightning from heaven. Does that mean there was this 
actual physical representative in a red suit and a red cape? 
I don't mean to mock or sound silly, but he's not suggesting 
that there was this physical apparition. It's judgment. Through the preaching of the 
apostles, through the proclamation of the truth, through the salvation 
of sinners, Colossians 1 was taking place. He has conveyed 
us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom 
of the Son of His love. I saw Satan fall like lightning 
through the proclamation of the truth. You see, it's a similar 
metaphor that speaks there of Satan's fall, but of Jesus coming 
in Matthew 24. Look at a very strict parallel 
in Zechariah 9. Zechariah chapter 9. The specific burden here is the salvation 
of Israel and the vengeance of God upon their enemies. And note 
Zechariah 9, verse 14. Now we're going to meet a trumpet 
in verse 31 of Matthew 24. We see the similarity there. 
You see that? Lightning associated with the judgment of God. But 
what I read over very briefly and very much essential to see is the very first part of the 
verse. Then Yahweh, notice, will be seen over them. How will Yahweh 
be seen over them? God is spirit. He doesn't have 
a body like men. He will be seen over them when 
he brings the judgment of God to bear upon his enemies. They 
will see him. They will know he's there. They 
will observe, through the historical phenomena, the reality that Yahweh 
is with them. Do you see the similarities? Jesus is doing no new thing in 
the Olivet Discourse. He stands on the shoulders of 
the prophets who have gone before Him to execute the same judgment 
on the same covenant breakers of the same covenant. It is consistent, 
brethren, to understand that this is what's going on. Back 
to Matthew 24, 27, non-preterist. That means people that do not 
understand it the way I see it argue for a spiritual application 
of verse 27. John Calvin sees it as the lightning 
is the spread of the gospel. Matthew Henry sees it as Christ 
setting up his spiritual kingdom in the world. No doubt dependent 
on Luke 17. The point is, brethren, that 
every time the Bible says that Jesus is coming, it doesn't necessarily 
mean the second physical coming in glory to consummate all things. Here it is conditioned by the 
context, and the context is one of judgment that began in chapter 
21. and has now come to prophetic 
explanation in chapter 24. This is no new thing. This isn't something that goes, 
wow, I can't understand this. It makes perfect sense of the 
entirety of the context that we have been dealing with. Do 
not look for physical Christs and physical locations because 
the coming in view is a judgment coming, orchestrated by the Son 
of Man, who will be enthroned at the right hand of God, where 
He must reign until all of His enemies are made His footstool, 
Lightning highlights His suddenness and its conspicuousness. In other 
words, don't look at that guy that's in the desert or in the 
inner room. But rather, when the Son of Man comes, you're 
not going to miss it. There's not going to be any question. 
You're not going to go home and say, Honey, I met this guy who's in the desert, 
or I met this guy who's in the inner room. He might be the Christ. 
No, you're not going to miss this. It's going to be conspicuous. When those Roman armies sacked 
the city in accordance with what Jesus has spoken here, what do 
you think the first thought was in AD 70 when the people saw 
their city and their temple fall? We should have listened to Jesus. Again, we forget that there was 
a real-life historical context where persons died and where 
they suffered and where there was horrendous tribulation and 
trial, But brethren, just imagine, if you were one of those who 
fled, you'd probably say, I'm glad we listened to him. Wouldn't 
you? I think I would. I'm glad we 
listened. I'm glad that our five-year-old 
is going to get to go to college. I'm glad that we get to continue 
our loving relationship. I'm glad... This was an age of 
wars. We have had unspeakable blessing 
here in North America. Unspeakable blessing. We're not 
getting shelled. We're not getting shot. We're 
not seeing armies surround Chilliwack or Abbotsford. We're just not 
seeing that. But in the first century, civil 
wars in Rome, civil wars in Jerusalem, wars... When you listen to Jesus 
and escape the city and escape the siege and your flesh was 
spared, you probably thought, praise God that the Messiah told 
us how to leave. Maybe this is what David is alluding 
to in Psalm 103, who redeems all your life from its destructions. 
Oh, it's only spiritual, David. Yeah, but he saved me out of 
some pretty hairy situations where I could have lost my life 
in battle. He redeemed my life from destruction. Jesus redeemed 
them from destruction by the prophetic word here. And then 
notice finally, that's not a preacher's finally, it's a real finally, 
but we do need to look at verse 48. This is the reason for his 
coming. I don't think it just restates 
verse 27. I don't think it's just parallel 
to verse 27. I think the 4 that begins the 
verse in the New King James captures the argument. For as the 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. Now that's a bit of 
a cryptic saying, isn't it? That's a tough one. That's a 
real melon scratcher. What do we do with, for wherever 
the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together? Well, 
interpreters do a lot with it. Some say the coming of the Son 
of Man will be as public and obvious as eagles circling over 
carrion. In other words, when you see 
eagles circling over carrion, that's an obvious thing, and 
the coming of the Son of Man will be like that. Others suggest 
that when life abandons a body, the vultures or the eagles descend 
on it. When the world has become rotten, the Son of Man will come. 
It's pretty common today. The world's so wicked, Jesus 
must be coming back. Now, I don't dispute that, but 
I don't think that's what this means. As well, some suggest 
that Christ is the carcass and believers gather to Him. That's 
a really interesting version or a very interesting take on 
the passage. Others suggest it speaks to that 
eschatological feast where the bodies of the wicked are devoured, 
Ezekiel 39 and Revelation 19. Again, I think the simplest answer 
is oftentimes the correct one. For where the carcass is, there 
the eagles will be gathered together. It's not a parallel to verse 
27. It's not saying the same thing, 
but it's explanatory. It's telling us something new. It's giving us a further shade 
of information. Note quickly Job 39, just to 
see the idiom used back then. It's to show that Jesus is doing 
no new thing in terms of the use of biblical language. I think 
if you get Jesus' use of biblical language, it will help to solve 
the supposed mystery of Matthew 24. But notice in Job 39, 27. 
Does the eagle mount up at your command and make its nest on 
high? On the rock it dwells and resides, on the crag of the rock 
and the stronghold. From there it spies out the prey, 
its eyes observe from afar, its young ones suck up blood, and 
where the slain are, there it is. The conventions used in Ezekiel 
39, as I've already said. You can turn there. Ezekiel 39, 
some take this as the eschatological feast, when the enemies of God 
are ultimately devoured by birds. They would parallel this with 
Revelation 19. I certainly would, too, but I 
would have a different application of Revelation 19. But notice 
in Ezekiel 39, 17, "'And as for you, son, a man thus says the 
Lord God, "'Speak to every sort of bird and to every beast of 
the field, "'assemble yourselves and come, gather together from 
all sides "'to my sacrificial meal, which I am sacrificing 
for you, "'a great sacrificial meal on the mountains of Israel, 
"'that you may eat flesh and drink blood.'" That's to every 
bird. That's what they're supposed 
to do. Now, note Habakkuk chapter 1. Habakkuk uses the same convention, 
but I think in a way that is more similar to its usage here 
in Matthew 24. Notice in Habakkuk chapter 1, 
this is the context of Babylon judging Judah. Context similar to Matthew 24, 
Rome judging Judah. Just look at verse 5 in Habakkuk 
1. Some of you may have objected to my use of that language that 
Christ at the right hand of the throne of God sends the Roman 
armies. That might violate somebody's conception of gentle Jesus, meek 
and mild. Gentle Jesus, meek and mild, 
at the right hand of God most high, must reign till his enemies 
are made his footstool. Not all of his enemies are made 
his footstool through conversion. Some of them are dashed to pieces 
like a potter's vessel. It's Christ who's sovereign over 
that catastrophe in AD 70. And here, specifically, God says, 
verse 6, I am raising up the Chaldeans. That's the Babylonians. God's raising them up. Do you 
see that? It's not a rabbit out of the hat. This is what the 
Bible says. God raises up the Chaldeans. 
He calls them a bitter and hasty nation which marches through 
the breadth of the earth to possess dwelling places that are not 
theirs. They are terrible and dreadful. Their judgment and 
their dignity proceed from themselves. Their horses are also swifter 
than leopards and more fierce than evening wolves. Their chargers 
charge ahead. Their cavalry comes from afar. 
They fly as the eagle that hastens to eat. So in this particular 
context, in Matthew 24, Jesus used a popular biblical idiom 
to speak concerning judgment. And like unto Habakkuk 1, I argue 
that what's in view here are the ensigns of the Roman armies 
as they enter into the city, as they enter into the temple. 
It is those eagles that devour the carcass. It is those eagles 
that devour the dead body. Now, Gil and Spurgeon actually 
both see it this way. Not actually. Spurgeon takes 
a different position when we get to verse 29. But here I think 
he's consistent. Not that he needs me to say he's 
consistent. But Gil says, here the Roman armies are intended, 
whose ensigns were eagles. Spurgeon says, Judaism had become 
a carcass, dead and corrupt, fit prey for the vultures or 
Carian tites of Rome. Turn to Psalm 78 for just a moment. Or Psalm 74. I said that was a finally, I 
just didn't say how long of a finally it was, but really we're coming 
close. Psalm 74. It's a contemplation 
of Asaph, probably with reference to the destruction of Jerusalem, 
by the Babylonians, though Gill says there was a handful of Jewish 
interpreters that placed the application of Psalm 74 to 8070. But look at it. Oh God, why have 
you cast us off forever? Verse 1. Why does your anger 
smoke against the sheep of your pasture? Remember your congregation 
which you have purchased of old, the tribe of your inheritance 
which you have redeemed, this Mount Zion where you have dwelt. 
Lift up your feet to the perpetual desolations. The enemy has damaged 
everything in the sanctuary. Your enemies roar in the midst 
of your meeting place. They set up their banners for 
signs. Imagine if an invading army came 
to Chilliwack and their soldiers came into our church building 
and they were flying a flag that was an abomination, that was 
repulsive, that was blasphemous. We would be utterly destitute. 
We would be utterly grieved that they would bring that filth into 
this holy place. That's what the psalmist is saying. 
That's what Christ is saying in Matthew 24. But I think the 
answer is even more conspicuous. It's not only the Roman armies. 
It's not only their ensigns. It's not only the reality that 
they have come under the hand of Christ to bring judgment to 
bear. But what's one thing I have constantly 
tried to emphasize throughout our exposition? What Israel faces 
here is a result of their having violated God's covenant. I spent time on a particular 
Sunday going through passages in Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 
28. Those were sections dealing with the curses of the covenant. If you go into the land, you 
do what you're supposed to do, there will be blessing. You go 
into the land, you don't do what you're supposed to do, there 
will be cursing. Note Deuteronomy 28. Deuteronomy 
chapter 28. Perhaps our Lord, in Matthew 
24, 28, is alluding to this. He says, wherever the carcass 
is, there the eagles will be gathered together. Look at the 
covenant curse specifically in Deuteronomy 28 at verse 25. Yahweh 
will cause you to be defeated before your enemies. You shall 
go out one way against them and flee seven ways before them, 
and you shall become troublesome to all the kingdoms of the earth. 
Your carcasses shall be food for all the birds of the air 
and the beasts of the earth, and no one shall frighten them 
away. Don't look for false Christs 
in the wilderness. Don't look for false Christs 
in the inner rooms, because the true Christ is at the right hand 
of God Most High, and He is pouring out the vengeance of the covenant 
upon those who transgressed. This isn't a new thing. It should 
not have surprised anybody. It had been consistently spoken 
of. in the book of Deuteronomy. It 
had been prosecuted already in the northern kingdoms in the 
8th century BC, the southern kingdoms in the 6th century BC, 
and now here for the last time, because Jesus says, upon you 
all the guilt, all the bloodshed from Abel to Zechariah will be 
requited at your hands. They rejected the prophet of 
prophets. They rejected the Lord of glory. 
They rejected the Christ that was sent by the vineyard owner. 
They refuse to bow to the Son. They ultimately say, away with 
Him, away with Him, crucify Him. So verses 27 and 28 are the rationale 
as to why they ought not to pursue these false Christs. For the 
coming of the real Christ is going to be conspicuous. It's 
not going to be visible or physical. It'll be visible through the 
events that transpire. Just as when Yahweh comes, And 
He uses His lightning as a sword of judgment. And you will see 
Yahweh is what Zechariah says. Well, brethren, we've gone from 
Dan to Beersheba. Just a couple of quick thoughts 
and then we go. First, we ought to appreciate the preserving 
effect of the elect of God. Verse 22. Unless those days were 
shortened, no flesh would be saved. But for the elect's sake, 
those days will be shortened. Spurgeon makes this observation. 
He says, Those who had been hated and persecuted by their own countrymen 
became the means of preserving them from absolute annihilation. 
Thus has it often been since those days. And for the sake 
of his elect, the Lord has withheld many judgments and shortened 
others. The ungodly owe to the godly 
more than they know or would care to own. In other words, 
we have a preservative effect upon society. Jesus tells us, 
we're the salt of the earth. Brethren, let's live like the 
salt of the earth. Let's function like the salt 
of the earth. Remember that when the angel 
comes, or God says to Abraham, I'm going to destroy Sodom? What 
does Abraham say? Well, if there's righteous people 
in the city, will you spare them? Yeah, you give me some righteous 
and I'll spare them. There was no righteous, and so 
the city was destroyed. Let's not be those kinds of Christians. Let's actually exercise a preserving 
effect upon society, not because we're the biggest social justice 
warriors or because we stand out on the street corner saying, 
we're believers and we're great and we're preserving. Just be 
faithful, be consistent, be the guy who works hard, be the lady 
who works hard, be the person who does what they're supposed 
to do without whining and grumbling and complaining. Pray for political 
leaders. Pray that the Lord saves them. 
We live in a climate, in an era, in a particular time, where we 
complain a whole lot more than we pray for them. Brethren, you 
may not like these particular people, but God can save these 
particular people. Pray for them. Are you the biggest 
complainer? Are you one of the people that 
just do what they're supposed to do? Exercise that preserving 
effect upon society. Again, some people get this, 
well, I've got to change my life, I've got to radically alter, 
I've got to sell my house, I've got to shave my head, I've got 
to live on... Don't just be faithful where God's planted you. That's 
always the answer. Be faithful where God's planted 
you. Be faithful as a man, faithful as a woman, faithful as a child, 
faithful as a parent, faithful to do what you're supposed to 
do. Be a preservative in society. Secondly, the nature of His coming. I've explained it as a spiritual 
coming. Some will object, well, the disciples wouldn't have understood 
it this way. Wouldn't they? People would say, well, that's 
not how they would have understood it. I don't know specifically 
what they would have understood, but I have in rebuttal this thought. 
I think they would have understood it exactly the way I'm explaining 
it. Think about it. The disciples at this point were 
still struggling with the concept of His death. They were still 
struggling with the concept of His resurrection. They, according 
to Acts 1, were still struggling with the concept of His ascension 
and His second coming. What do the angels tell the disciples 
in Acts 1? The way you've seen Him go is 
the way He will come again. I don't think they had a fully 
developed 21st century end times eschatology that mimics ours. What were they more in tune with? They were more in tune with these 
Old Testament passages where Israel saw Yahweh through historical 
means. They were more in tune with Old 
Testament passages like Isaiah 19 when Yahweh rides on a cloud 
into Egypt. That would be more akin to their 
expectation than would be the mindset that many in the 21st 
century have in terms of His second coming. I believe that's 
precisely how they would have understood it, and then argue 
in terms of the day itself. We have noted, this is Tuesday 
night, when He sits on the Mount of Olives and He gives this prophecy. What happened on Tuesday? On 
Tuesday they saw him curse the fig tree and say that no fruit 
would ever grow from it again. That was Israel. On Tuesday, 
they heard him tell the parable of the vineyard, and the Pharisees 
rightly interpret it. He's going to destroy those miserable 
wretches and take their vineyard away from them. They heard that. They would have heard the parable 
of the wedding feast in Matthew 22, 7, when the master, the father 
of the one getting married, is angry and sends armies to destroy 
the city. It would still be ringing in 
their ears His pronouncement at the end of Matthew 23, after 
a long series of condemning woes upon them. He says, upon you, 
you there is vengeance coming. They would have heard Him say 
in 23.38, Behold, I say to you, your house, your temple is left 
to you desolate. In the beginning of this particular 
prophecy, they heard Him say that all these things would be 
fallen, all these things would fall. How would they have not 
understood it this way? To speak to the temple, and with 
reference to their Old Testament background, of judgment comings 
of Yahweh against the enemies of Israel, and even against Israel 
at times, that's what would resonate in their minds. They wouldn't 
have had the vision that we have. They would have had the Old Testament. 
And the Old Testament would sufficiently explain to them how it would 
be that the Son of Man would come. As I said, it will be fleshed 
out, expanded on, amplified, coming, God willing, next week. And just by way of conclusion, 
take Jesus' lessons to heart. There are times you're not to 
believe. There are times you're not to believe. Notice that the 
presence of signs and wonders do not automatically guarantee 
the presence of the true Christ. Jesus does not deny that these 
false claimants to the messianic office do signs and wonders. Notice he doesn't say, don't 
believe them because it's smoke and mirrors. They're like those 
magicians that go before and they set... He doesn't say that. He says they'll deceive, if possible, 
even the elect through their signs and wonders. So, brethren, 
get that in your head. The presence of signs and wonders 
do not automatically confirm the presence of the true Christ. 
Not all that glitters is gold. Just because something is a sign 
and wonder doesn't necessarily mean that Jesus is behind it 
directly. I mean, obviously, comprehensively 
sovereign, all of that. But those magicians were able 
to duplicate some of those plagues. Sweet says incredulity is sometimes 
commanded of disciples. One would wish that this modern 
age of disciples would follow this advice. Incredulity, being 
suspicious, being of a Berean spirit, examining daily what 
the scriptures say to make sure that Paul really was accurate. 
Carson says, empty-headed credulity is as great an enemy of true 
faith as chronic skepticism. And then I've already quoted 
Spurgeon, it is a grand thing to have such faith in Christ 
that you have none to spare for imposters. Well, brethren, I 
pray that these things will at least help you to understand 
the position you may continue to disagree with. But I do believe 
that this is what the Spirit has intended in terms of our 
understanding. It's not a matter of orthodoxy 
in terms of if you don't subscribe to this interpretation, you're 
hell-bound. No. If you're a believer in Jesus 
Christ, you're heaven-bound. Even if you get Matthew 24 wrong, 
you're heaven-bound because of what Christ has accomplished. 
And if you're not a believer, and you've got the best explanation 
of Matthew 24 that's out there, you're hell-bound. The answer 
is not, do I rightly understand Matthew 24? The answer is, do 
I know Jesus Christ as my Lord and as my God? Well, let us close 
in prayer. Father, we thank you for the 
Word of God. We thank you for your graciousness to us, and 
I pray that all these things would indeed be helpful, that 
we would see how Scripture does interpret Scripture, how we would 
see that so much of what Jesus says in this discourse is stuff 
that has been said before. And I pray that you would go 
with us now, that you would watch over us, and that you would bring 
us back together tonight, that we may worship you in spirit 
and in truth. And we pray these things through 
Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen.