“Now when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raise your heads because your redemption is drawing near” Luke 21:28 ESV¹

Read Matthew 24, Mark 13 & Luke 21

I am planning for a cross-country journey to attend a five-week discipleship program. I have been excitedly preparing for my trip for weeks. I went through my wardrobe, picked out appropriate attire, and purchased supplement pieces. I shopped for toiletries, snacks, office supplies, and little conveniences I would like to have available for myself while I am there. I cooked, assembled, and froze a variety of single-serving meals for my husband to eat while I am gone. I deep-cleaned my vehicle, inside and out, and made appointments for an oil change and a tire rotation. I cleaned my house, stocked up on nonperishable groceries, and used up perishable items. I paid bills, watered plants, sent out cards, and arranged for people to take care of some of my responsibilities while I am gone. I made phone calls, finished up tasks and obligations, got a haircut, gave my husband a haircut, and alerted the necessary people of my planned absence. Basically, I have done everything I was able and knew to do to get ready for this opportunity. I would rather be over-prepared than under-prepared.

Planning and providing for the future is extremely helpful, in fact, essential. But sometimes the more immediately urgent needs receive our utmost attention while we overlook the most necessary ways of planning for what is to come. In one of His parables, Jesus broached the topic of being alert to signs that point to the need to prepare for the forthcoming.

A Call to Prepare

“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 them, … ‘From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see all these things, you know that He is near, at the very gates’” (Matthew 24:3-4a, 32-33); “‘you know that the Kingdom of God is near’” (Luke 21:31b).

This parable is taken out of the middle of a much longer conversation. Visiting the rest of Matthew chapter 24, Mark chapter 13, and Luke chapter 21 is the only way we can discover what Jesus meant by “these things” (Matthew 24:33). Matthew, Mark, and Luke recorded The Parable of the Fig Tree and the conversation surrounding it in what has come to be known as the Olivet Discourse. Here, for the benefit of His disciples, Jesus answered the question: “‘What will be the sign of Your coming and of the End of the Age’” (Matthew 24:3b)? The fact that these passages are contained in the Scriptures for us to read, is proof that we can glean much from them as well.

All the Things for Which to Prepare

Jesus warned about lies abounding, particularly among those claiming to be Christ or to be speaking for Him (see Mathew 24:5; Mark 13:6; Luke 21:8). He mentioned the increase in wars, famines, and natural disasters (see Matthew 24:6a, 7; Mark 13:7a, 8; Luke 21:9a 10-11). But He cautioned His disciples that these were only signs of beginning on the End (see Matthew 24:6b, 8; Mark 13:7b, 8b; Luke 21:9b).

Jesus went on to describe the increase of lawlessness and the loss of love and respect for God and the things of God (see Matthew 24:12). Jesus disclosed that His disciples would be hated because of their association with Him (see Mark 13:13a; Luke 21:17). And He exhorted them that it would only be through endurance that they would be protected and be able to keep their faith (see Matthew 24:13; Mark 13:13b; Luke 21:18-19). But He said even then, with all this difficulty, it would not yet be time for Him to return.

Then Jesus talked about the persecution that would be heaped upon Followers of Christ (see Matthew 24:9; Mark 13:9; Luke 21:12). And how this persecution would cause many to fall away from the faith (see Matthew 24:10a), and that persecution would be the catalyst for hatred and betrayal to crop up among Believers—even among close family and friends (see Matthew 24:10b; Mark 13:12-13a; Luke 21:16). And that these trials would provide fertile ground for false prophets to lead people astray (see Matthew 24:11).

Jesus warned that what was to come would be the greatest tribulation ever to occur since the beginning of time (see Matthew 24:21; Mark 13:19; Luke 21:23b). In fact, things would get so bad that unless God were to cut the days of tribulation short, no one would survive, yet for the sake of His people, He would intervene (see Matthew 24:22; Mark 13:20).

But Jesus also encouraged them that this awful persecution would give an opportunity for the Gospel to spread (see Mark 13:9b-11; Luke 21:13) and that the Holy Spirit would give them the necessary words in order to faithfully share the Gospel (see Mark 13:11; Luke 21:14-15). He also declared that the Good News would be preached throughout the whole world by His faithful witnessed and it would be when they have finished their job of sharing the Gospel worldwide, that the end will come (see Matthew 24:14).

Only then would be the time for Him to return. So the disciples wouldn’t be shocked, Jesus explained that His return would be accompanied by great physical signs that would cause distress for the people of all nations (see Matthew 24:29; Mark 13:24-26; Luke 21:25). But, even with all of the prerequisite happenings, many would not be ready for His return (see Matthew 24:37-39). In fact, people who look very similar or are doing the same things would, in the end, have vastly different destinies (see Mathew 24:40-41).

He told them He would come with judgment and mercy. The people who do not know Christ would mourn greatly but the Believers would rejoice and the angels would take God’s people out of the troubled and evil world (see Matthew 24:30-31; Mark 13:26-27; Luke 21:26-27).

These statements were preceded by a declaration that the Temple would be destroyed. And among all of these warnings, Jesus mentioned something about a particular abomination that would cause desolation (see Matthew 24:15; Mark 13:14a; Luke 21:20). But He didn’t leave them hanging, He told them exactly what to do in response to its arrival (see Matthew 24:16-20; Mark 13:14b-18; Luke 21:21-23).

Things to Keep in Mind While Preparing

These passages of Scripture can be scary because Jesus spoke of some very troubling events in association with the End of the Age. Because of the unknown, the end of anything causes some apprehension. Added to that, these passages can be confusing because it is difficult for us to determine what has already happened compared to what is yet to happen, as well as, what is literal as opposed to what is figurative, and what applies to the disciples who asked the questions specifically, and what applies to Christians universally. In all honesty, there is a great deal of overlap.

We must remember, that although Jesus knew what was going to happen, He Himself didn’t know when exactly these things were going to happen. “‘But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of Heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only’” (Matthew 24:36). Jesus may not have known the when, but He does know the what, therefore, He revealed exactly what His Followers should do in response to that of which He spoke. Jesus actually shared what He did not to create fear but to ease some of the tension. And He promised, “‘Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away’” (Matthew 24:35; Mark 13:31; Luke 21:33).

Preparing for the Next Thing

Because we have history on our side, we can safely interpret that what Jesus talked about and what was recorded in Matthew 24:15-20, Mark 13:14-18, and Luke 21:20-24, was to instruct the disciples what to do in a specific instance that would affect their lives.

“‘So, when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the Holy Place (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let the one who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house, and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath’” (Matthew 24:15-20).

Matthew and Mark were Jews; they included the information about the abomination that causes desolation because their readers would have had some idea what that was. Luke was a Gentile, writing to Gentiles; he included something they could understand and would have needed to know.

“‘But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has come near … for these are days of vengeance, to fulfill all that is written … There will be great distress upon the earth and wrath against this people. They will fall by the edge of the sword and be led captive among all nations, and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles’” (Luke 21:20, 22, 23b-24a).

Likewise, nowadays, we may not understand to what Jesus was referring when He spoke of the abomination that causes desolation but the disciples, who were of Jewish descent, certainly would have known what Daniel had written.

“Daniel 9:26-27 refers to a prince who will destroy the city (Jerusalem) along with its temple and sacrifices, ‘and on the wings of abominations shall come one who makes desolate.’ Two chapters later there is another reference to an ‘abomination’ in connection to the temple: ‘forces from him shall appear and profane the temple and fortress, and shall take away the regular burnt offering. And they shall set up the ‘abomination that makes desolate’ (11:31). Scholars generally agree that the first reference of these prophecies is the Seleucid king Antiochus Epiphanes IV, who ruled Palestine from 175-64 B.C. Antiochus treated Israel with such violence and contempt that they rebelled against him. When he came to suppress the rebellion, his forces entered the temple, stopped the regular sacrifices, set up an idol of or altar for Zeus, and apparently offered swine there as a sacrifice. This is an abomination because it is idolatry, and it brings desolation because it defiles the holy place at the heart of Israel.” ²

But the event involving the Temple and Antiochus happened generations before Jesus’ disciples gathered around Him eager to hear about the signs of His coming and of the End of the Age. That can only mean that another similar event was yet to happen in the lives of the disciples to whom Jesus specifically spoke that would be so like this event that these disciples would be alerted to when to “‘let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let the one who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house, and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak’” (Matthew 24:16-18). Matthew, Mark, and Luke all wrote their gospels between 50 and 60 AD.

“In the year 66 AD the Jews of Judea rebelled against their Roman masters. In response, the Emperor Nero dispatched an army under the generalship of Vespasian to restore order. By the year 68, resistance in the northern part of the province had been eradicated and the Romans turned their full attention to the subjugation of Jerusalem … The Roman legions surrounded the city and began to slowly squeeze the life out of the Jewish stronghold. By the year 70, the attackers had breached Jerusalem’s outer walls and began a systematic ransacking of the city. The assault culminated in the burning and destruction of the Temple that served as the center of Judaism.”³

Those Jews who heeded Jesus’ advice recorded by Matthew and Mark would have recognized the abomination of the Romans who were about to bring desolation. And those Gentiles, who happened to be in Judea, and who believed the words of Jesus written down by Luke, would have known to escape as soon as the Romans surrounded Jerusalem. Those who did not know Jesus or did not believe Him were caught up in a terrible genocide. The Jewish historian, Josephus, who was an eyewitness to this event, wrote:

“While the Temple was ablaze, the attackers plundered it, and countless people who were caught by them were slaughtered. There was no pity for age and no regard was accorded rank; children and old men, laymen and priests, alike were butchered; every class was pursued and crushed in the grip of war, whether they cried out for mercy or offered resistance.

Through the roar of the flames streaming far and wide, the groans of the falling victims were heard; such was the height of the hill and the magnitude of the blazing pile that the entire city seemed to be ablaze; and the noise – nothing more deafening and frightening could be imagined.

There were the war cries of the Roman legions as they swept onwards en masse, the yells of the rebels encircled by fire and sword, the panic of the people who, cut off above, fled into the arms of the enemy, and their shrieks as they met their fate. The cries on the hill blended with those of the multitudes in the city below; and now many people who were exhausted and tongue-tied as a result of hunger, when they beheld the Temple on fire, found strength once more to lament and wail. Peraea and the surrounding hills, added their echoes to the deafening din. But more horrifying than the din were the sufferings”³

Notice how Josephus mentioned the laments of those in the surrounding hills. Though those who believed and obeyed Jesus couldn’t help but observe and mourn the loss of Jerusalem and the Temple, they did not suffer as those who remained in the city. They were not personally subjected to these atrocities because they listened to and obeyed the words of Jesus.

 Preparing for a Possible Next Go-Round

While the above portions of Matthew 24, and the companion passages in Mark 13 and Luke 21, refer primarily to the genocide and destruction of the Temple in 70 AD and are fulfilled prophecies, that does not mean that something similar will not again happen in the future. The book of Revelation mentions another, at least partial, destruction of the Temple in the Last Days.

“And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, ‘Rise, and measure the Temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein. But the court which is without the Temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the Holy City shall they tread under foot forty and two months’” (Revelation 11:1-2).

Though Believers in the early Church did experience many horrific trials and persecutions similar to what Jesus described, much of what is recorded in these Scripture passages also applies to all Christians and is yet to come; therefore, the rest of the events described in these passages are most likely End Times predictions. The way the disciples asked their questions makes it seem as if they thought the destruction of the Temple and the returning of Jesus would happen simultaneously. Jesus does not make the distinction clear because, remember, Jesus knew what was going to happen but not when. Jesus answered their questions but the timeline was not completely clear.

Diligently Preparing

What is clear was Jesus’ repeated, stern urging of His disciples to be ready for His return:

“‘For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man … Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. … Therefore, you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect’” (Matthew 24:38-39, 42, 44).

“‘Therefore, stay awake—for you do not know when the Master of the House will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning— lest He come suddenly and find you asleep. And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake’” (Mark 13:35-37).

Why would Jesus have to so stress the need to be ready? One reason is the human propensity to get distracted when things take longer than expected. Jesus cautioned:

“‘But watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that Day come upon you suddenly like a trap. For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the whole earth. But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man’” (Luke 21:34-37).

Another reason a Christ-follower will need to stay alert is that lies will surround Christ’s return.

Thinking Preparation is Unnecessary

Some will claim that Jesus has already returned:

“‘If anyone says to you, “Look, here is the Christ!” or “There He is!” do not believe it. For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you beforehand. So, if they say to you, “Look, He is in the wilderness,” do not go out. If they say, “Look, He is in the inner rooms,” do not believe it. For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man’” (Matthew 24:23-27).

Jesus made it plain that when He did return, it would be undeniable:

“‘There will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves, people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world. For the powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory’” (Luke 21:25-27).

An Excuse not to Prepare

Others will suggest that true followers of Christ will not experience any tribulation, persecution, or difficulty. Corrie Ten Boom confronted this lie in a letter written in 1974 to church leaders in the United States, Miss Ten Boom stated:

“The world is deathly ill. It is dying. The Great Physician has already signed the death certificate. Yet there is still a great work for Christians to do. They are to be streams of living water, channels of mercy to those who are still in the world. It is possible for them to do this because they are overcomers. Christians are ambassadors for Christ. They are representatives from Heaven to this dying world … Jesus said, ‘In the world, you shall have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world” (John 16:33) We too, are to be overcomers – bringing the light of Jesus into a world filled with darkness and hate.

Sometimes I get frightened as I read the Bible, and as I look in this world and see all of the tribulation and persecution promised by the Bible coming true. Now I can tell you, though, if you too are afraid, that I have just read the last pages. I can now come to shouting ‘Hallelujah! Hallelujah!’ for I have found where it is written that Jesus said, ‘He that overcomes shall inherit all things: and I will be His God, and he shall be My son.’ (Revelation 21:7). This is the future and hope of this world. Not that the world will survive – but that we shall be overcomers in the midst of a dying world …

There are some among us teaching there will be no tribulation, that the Christians will be able to escape all this. These are the false teachers that Jesus was warning us to expect in the latter days. Most of them have little knowledge of what is already going on across the world. I have been in countries where the saints are already suffering terrible persecution.

In China, the Christians were told, ‘Don’t worry, before the tribulation comes you will be translated – raptured.’ Then came a terrible persecution. Millions of Christians were tortured to death. Later I heard a Bishop from China say, sadly, ‘We have failed. We should have made the people strong for persecution, rather than telling them Jesus would come first. Tell the people how to be strong in times of persecution, how to stand when the tribulation comes, to stand and not faint.’

I feel I have a divine mandate to go and tell the people of this world that it is possible to be strong in the Lord Jesus Christ. We are in training for the tribulation, but more than sixty percent of the Body of Christ across the world has already entered into the tribulation. There is no way to escape it. We are next. Since I have already gone through prison for Jesus’ sake, and since I met the Bishop in China, now every time I read a good Bible text I think, ‘Hey, I can use that in the time of tribulation.’ Then I write it down and learn it by heart …

In America, the churches sing, ‘Let the congregation escape tribulation’, but in China and Africa the tribulation has already arrived. This last year alone more than two hundred thousand Christians were martyred in Africa. Now things like that never get into the newspapers because they cause bad political relations. But I know. I have been there. We need to think about that when we sit down in our nice houses with our nice clothes to eat our steak dinners. Many, many members of the Body of Christ are being tortured to death at this very moment, yet we continue right on as though we are all going to escape the tribulation”⁴

Getting Distracted from Preparation

We can panic when we read what Jesus had to say about the End Times: Hatred, lies, division, and fear will abound. Natural disasters, wars, and famines will crop up all over the world. And lawlessness and lack of love for God and the things of God will increase. Especially with events of this last year and a half, we can, like so many generations before us who faced great difficulties during their lifetimes, assume that the End Times are indeed at our doorstep. Current events can tempt us to be hysterical and act irrationally.

We can shudder in fear when we think about Last Days bringing great persecution upon Christians, forcing many to fall away from the faith, and causing others to make divisions and propagate lies in the church. Even though we know that Jesus said such persecution will reveal the Remanent and will open up opportunities for the Gospel to spread throughout the Globe. We may be excited that true Believers will be able to carry the Gospel through closed borders, into hard hearts, and to places the Gospel has not been able to enter before because they will be empowered in a way they never have been before. At the same time, we can be fearful; we don’t want to be hated because of our association with Christ.

We can be concerned, as the End Days approach, about the necessary changes that our current religious system will have to face. Though we know that already many well-known leaders have fallen, whole denominations have succumbed to pressure of popular culture, and that which has tried so hard to be attractive and relevant has become increasingly more impotent, we can mourn the loss of what we have come to know as church.  The Temple to which the disciples referred was indeed beautiful but the religious practice that it represented had become ineffective. When it toppled, Jesus constructed a new Temple. “Your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God” (1 Corinthians 6:19). The falling of one that looked so grand on the outside was replaced by another that was far more powerful on the inside. The fall of the church, as we know it, in the End Times will be the beginning of something far better. But, still the unknown causes trepidation.

How to be Prepared

How can we be ready for what is to come? I will let Corrie Ten Boom comment on that with the continuation of her letter:

“When I was a little girl, I went to my father and said, ‘Daddy, I am afraid that I will never be strong enough to be a martyr for Jesus Christ.’ ‘Tell me,’ said Father, ‘When you take a train trip to Amsterdam, when do I give you the money for the ticket? Three weeks before?’ ‘No, Daddy, you give me the money for the ticket just before we get on the train.’ ‘That is right,’ my father said, ‘and so it is with God’s strength. Our Father in Heaven knows when you will need the strength to be a martyr for Jesus Christ. He will supply all you need, just in time.’”⁴

Because they spent time with Him and talked with Him, Jesus specifically answered His disciples’ questions and gave them the exact information they needed to be able to navigate what the future would bring. Likewise, as we spend time with and talk to Jesus, as we ask Him questions and listen for His response, we too can be prepared for the future no matter what it may entail. As we wait for “the fig tree … [to] come out in leaf, [and] … see for [ourselves] and know that the summer is already near” (Luke 21:29-30), God will allow uncertainties to draw us into a closer relationship with Him. He will use present difficulties to help us more deeply trust Him. And He will use conflict of opposing ideas, to help us to discover what we believe and learn how to appropriately stand for it.

The Priority in Preparation

Mark wrote that it was, “Peter and James and John and Andrew [who came to Jesus and] asked Him privately, ‘Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign when all these things are about to be accomplished’” (Mark 13:3-4). Matthew and Mark weren’t even there. I have heard that it was Peter who gave Mark the information for his Gospel. Matthew must have been with Mark when Peter relayed Jesus’ answer to their question because Matthew and Mark’s accounts are very similar.

What I find fascinating is that John was there. The same John, who spent half of his Gospel writing about the events of the last few days of Jesus’ life on Earth, doesn’t record anything about the Olivet Discourse and its warnings about the End Times. Could it be that what John, who called himself “the disciple that Jesus loved,” does mention—about abiding with Christ—is the thing needed more to be ready for come what may than worrying about all the details of the Last Days and Christ’s Return? If we are truly abiding in Christ, we can’t help but be alerted to the signs of the times and be ready for the Rapture. When we are in Christ and Christ is in us, Jesus will tell us exactly what we need to know and exactly what we need to do, exactly when we need it. Will He be any less helpful to us than He was to the disciples? Will He be any less loving than Mr. Ten Boom was to Corrie? I don’t think so. If we have Jesus, we will have everything we need.

Miss Ten Boom continued to share wise and timely words in her letter:

“How can we get ready for the persecution?

First, we need to feed on the Word of God, digest it, and make it a part of our being. This will mean disciplined Bible study each day as we not only memorize long passages of Scripture, but put the principles to work in our lives.

Next, we need to develop a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Not just the Jesus of yesterday, the Jesus of History, but the life-changing Jesus of today who is still alive and sitting at the right hand of God.

We must be filled with the Holy Spirit. This is not an optional command of the Bible; it is absolutely necessary. Those earthly disciples could never have stood up under the persecution of the Jews and Romans had they not waited for Pentecost. Each of us needs our own personal Pentecost, the baptism of the Holy Spirit. We will never be able to stand in the tribulation without it. In the coming persecution, we must be ready to help each other and encourage each other. But we must not wait until the tribulation comes before starting. The fruit of the Spirit should be the dominant force of every Christian’s life. Many are fearful of the coming tribulation. They want to run. I, too, am a little bit afraid when I think that after all my eighty years, including the horrible Nazi concentration camp that I might have to go through the tribulation also. But then I read the Bible and I am glad.

‘When I am weak, then I shall be strong,’ the Bible says. Betsy and I were prisoners for the Lord, we were so weak, but we got power because the Holy Spirit was on us. That mighty inner strengthening of the Holy Spirit helped us through. No, you will not be strong in yourself when the tribulation comes. Rather, you will be strong in the power of Him who will not forsake you. For seventy-six years I have known the Lord Jesus and not once has He ever left me, or let me down. ‘Though He slay me, I will hope in Him.’ (Job 13:15). I know that to all who overcome, He shall give the crown of life. Hallelujah!”⁴

Proper Preparation

Any of us can get so absorbed in all of the details, responsibilities, and preparations that the physical world requires that we can get distracted from what is necessary for the spiritual sphere. As we make sure we have everything we need for what is immediately before us, let us make sure we are as diligently preparing spiritually for what the future will bring. May we be prepared by being in God’s Word, drawing close to Jesus, and being filled with the His Spirit. Then, praise God, we will be ready come what may in any realm.

When it comes to being prepared for the End Times and Jesus’ Return, may we do everything we are able and know to do to get ready for these happenings. I would rather be over-prepared than under-prepared. How about you?

 

 

¹ Scripture quotations marked with ESV are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All Scriptures are taken from the ESV unless otherwise noted. To aid in understanding, I have capitalized references to God.

² https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/what-is-the-abomination-of-desolation/

³ http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/jewishtemple.htm

⁴ I cannot accurately reference the source of this letter, as I do not know where it was originally published. It was shared with me via a Facebook Messenger post. Facebook no longer allows me to access the link, but if you search online for “Corrie Ten Boom and the Rapture” you find this letter copied in its entirety in a handful of articles.