May 12, 2026
Tuesday, May 12
A few days before Good Friday, Jesus and the disciples were visiting the temple in Jerusalem. The disciples were talking about how magnificent their temple was. And they were right. Those massive, gleaming-white stones, trimmed in real gold, were a mind-blowing sight like no other. The temple was also the focus of Jewish national and religious identity. Jesus shocked them by declaring that the Temple’s days were numbered. Someday, it would all be gone. They left the city, but halfway up the nearby Mount of Olives, the disciples had questions. Christ’s response to their questions forms Matthew 24-25, a passage that has formed many theories about the End of all things. For the rest of the week, we’ll focus on His words. Let’s start with Matthew 24:3.
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?”
Notice there are two questions there, not one. 1) When will the temple be destroyed? 2) How will we know that you’re about to return and start the new world? To the disciples, however, those were two parts of the same question. They couldn’t conceive of the Temple being destroyed unless God was getting ready to build a bigger one, like Ezekiel foretold. But Jesus knew that in the year 70, just a few decades from then, the Roman General Titus would invade Jerusalem, slaughter thousands of Jews, and tear the temple to the ground. Many of those disciples would live to see it happen. He wanted them to be ready.
He also wanted them (and us) to be ready for His return. What follows in chapter 24 and 25 is His way of preparing them for both events. Let’s take a closer look at what He said:
4And Jesus answered them, “See that no one leads you astray. 5For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray. 6And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. 7For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8All these are but the beginning of the birth pains.
Jesus is saying, “Don’t be alarmed when you hear news of catastrophic events. You’ll end up being like the first-time parents who go running off to the hospital the first time she feels a contraction, only to be sent home and told the baby is still a long way from coming.”
23Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. 24For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. 25See, I have told you beforehand. 26So, 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. 27For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.
He’s warning us ahead of time that false preachers will get God’s people all stirred up over nothing. Don’t be deceived.
36“But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.
This is astonishing. Jesus is saying, “Even I don’t know when it will happen.” Somehow, Jesus had chosen in His earthly form to give up some of His knowledge, including the date of His return. So if Jesus didn’t have all the details figured out, you won’t, either.
I could go on, but you get the message. Jesus’s teaching is meant to keep us from becoming hysterical, from making fools of ourselves and disgracing His message. Stop trying to figure out who the Antichrist is. Stop trying to force current events into biblical prophecy. Stop getting excited about wars and natural disasters, and other events that should make us weep. Jesus said, “be ready.” That was the whole point of His talk, and I would argue, the whole point of all biblical prophecy.
“Father, forgive us when we get overly confident in our own view of current events, or when we think we have your Second Coming all figured out. But at the same time, help us live in constant expectation and readiness. In Jesus’ name, amen.”
Senior Pastor
First Baptist Conroe
More from Pastor Jeff at his website: jeffbergerwriting.com
