Matthew 24: Signs of His Coming (7)
Pray Psalm 96.11-13.
Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad;
Let the sea roar, and all its fullness;
Let the field be joyful, and all that is in it.
Then all the trees of the woods will rejoice
before the LORD.
For He is coming, for He is coming to judge the earth.
He shall judge the world with righteousness,
And the peoples with His truth.
Sing Psalm 96.11-13.
Mit Freuden Zart: All Praise to God, Who Reigns Above
Let heaven sing with lusty voice; let earth and sea sing sweetly!
Let fields and trees in Him rejoice, for He is coming swiftly
to judge the world in righteousness, the peoples in His faithfulness.
He comes; exalt Him greatly!
Read Matthew 24.1-51; meditate on any words that jump out at you.
Prepare.
1. How will we know when Jesus is coming? How should we prepare for that event?
2. How did Jesus characterize the age in which we live, these “last days”?
Meditate.
The primary message of Matthew 24 is that Jesus is coming again. This is an event of incomparable importance. Until it happens, the world will be wracked with strife and turmoil and sorrows. Jesus did not give us many details about what will happen after He returns, except to warn of the judgment of all those who refuse to believe in Him. The focus is on Him and His coming. When we see Him, that will be all that matters; He is the complete realization of all the righteousness, peace, and joy we could ever know.
The age in which we live—the last days, as Peter explained in Acts 2—will be fraught with difficulty. Wars, famines, plagues, and tribulation for the followers of Christ will be in every generation. The destruction of Jerusalem will mark the official start of this time of woes, although precursors of it can be seen in the book of Acts. So sorrowful and difficult will these times be, that many will appear from time to time, claiming to be Christ, promising to deliver us into a better way of life, and deceiving many. We must not be misled.
When Jesus does return, everyone will know it. Every eye shall see Him. All the dead will be raised, the redeemed to eternal life and the unbelieving to eternal perdition. In the meantime, Jesus has given us a charge to keep: Set His house in order by loving service and faithful witness. Each of us has a calling from the Lord. We must be diligent to do the work He has appointed to us until He comes again. We must not waste precious moments and thoughts in vain speculations about the precise details of His return. The world is wracked with sorrow and sin; our calling is to watch and serve, so that when He comes, He will find us busy about seeking and advancing His Kingdom.
For now, that’s all we need to know.
Treasure Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162
The Gospel of salvation is this:
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son,
that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life (Jn. 3.16).
“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household” (Acts 16.31).
“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 6.23).
The Gospel of the Kingdom puts our salvation to work for others:
“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves;
it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.
For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works
which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them” (Eph. 2.8-10).
“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” (Matt. 24.14).
The Gospel of the Kingdom also strengthens us for trials and tribulations:
“Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord,
as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness,
through the knowledge of Him Who called us by glory and virtue,
by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises,
that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature,
having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
But also for this very reason, giving all diligence,
add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance,
to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love.
For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our
Lord Jesus Christ…for if you do these things you will never stumble; for so an entrance will be supplied to
you abundantly into the everlasting Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Pet. 1.2-11).
Full participation in the Kingdom of God allows us to work in our Personal Mission Field for the sake of others; and to grow and enjoy our love relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ that will strengthen and enable us to face the troubles of life with Him—hand in hand. In every trial, sadness, sickness, or onslaughts from our enemy, we will stand firm in our faith—regardless. “Nevertheless I am continually with You; You hold me by my right hand. You will guide me with Your counsel, and afterward receive me to glory” (Ps. 73.23, 24).
We must use the time of our lives to grow in Christ. To strengthen our souls to answer all the ultimate questions carefully and correctly. As Jesus said, “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels” (Mk. 8.36-38).
Think of Kingdom living as being a spiritual “gym rat”. One who spends a lot of time “growing in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Pet. 3.18). One who is solely focused on our spiritual fitness and condition. One whose main priority is improving our spiritual health and strength.
One who spends hours setting our hearts aright to follow God’s Laws to the very end (Ps. 119.112).
One who daily falls more deeply in love with Jesus Christ, so that we would never contemplate denying Him.
“He is the complete realization of all the righteousness, peace, and joy we could ever know.”
Use these days to love, work, share, grow, and strengthen yourself for that Day,
for “he who endures to the end will be saved” (Matt. 24.13).
Every day with Jesus is sweeter than the day before
Every day with Jesus I love Him more and more…(Anon.) He’s the One I’m waiting for!
Reflect.
1. How is it evident (Heb. 11.1) that someone has true, saving knowledge of Jesus?
2. Why is it important that we include the promise of the Kingdom along with the promise of salvation when we share the Gospel?
3. The Kingdom of God is not of this world but it is for this world. Explain.
A great promise is extended to the Lord’s faithful and wise stewards. It is like the promise He made to those to whom He said, “Take authority over five cities” or “take authority over ten cities.” For to be made the head “over all his possessions” is nothing other than to be made an “heir of God and coheir with Christ” and to reign with Christ. Origen (185-254), Commentary on Matthew 62
Pray Psalm 96.1-10.
Commit yourself to the Lord, and live this day in the joy and strength of His coming.
Sing Psalm 96.1-10.
Mit Freuden Zart: All Praise to God, Who Reigns Above
Sing to the LORD! O, bless His Name! All nations tell His glory!
Salvation’s tidings loud proclaim; let earth rehearse His story!
For God is greatly to be praised; His throne above all gods is raised!
Fear Him, and sing His glory!
All other gods are idols vain; the LORD created heaven.
Splendor and strength with Him obtain; to Him be glory given!
All fam’lies, praise this mighty LORD! Give strength and glory to His Word;
exalt the LORD of heaven!
Bring off’rings sweet to Him, our LORD, in holy garments praise Him!
Tremble before Him, all the earth; among the nations raise Him!
The earth is fixed, it will not move; the peoples will His justice prove.
Exalt the Lord and praise Him!
T. M. and Susie Moore
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment to give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
Other columns of interest: This week: Our Read Moore podcast continues on St. Patrick from the book, Patrick: A Devotional History. Our Crosfigell teaching letter is pursuing a series on the spiritual poetry of the Celtic Revival. The ReVision column continues our new study of “Everyday Christianity”. Click here to see all the other columns and writers available to you.
And please prayerfully consider supporting The Fellowship of Ailbe with your prayers and gifts. You can contribute online, via PayPal or Anedot, or by sending a gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, P. O. Box 8213, Essex, VT 05451.
Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter.
