Mark 13:3-8, 13 NIV
“As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John and Andrew asked him privately, “Tell us, when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are all about to be fulfilled?”
Jesus said to them: “Watch out that no one deceives you.”
Many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and will deceive many. When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places, and famines. These are the beginning of birth pains…Everyone will hate you because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.”
Mark 13:3-4, 6-8, 13 NIV
A somewhat complicated answer to a simple question! Jesus had just made a bold statement…
“Do you see all these great buildings?” replied Jesus. “Not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”
Mark 13:2 NIV
The disciples were marvelling at the massive temple structure they were leaving, a seemingly indestructible monument compared with the other buildings surrounding it. They looked up at its stone walls, huge blocks of rock, cut from a far-away quarry and hauled over rough terrain to be placed, one on top of the other, to form this beautiful “house of God.” How it was done was a miracle of engineering.
Jesus, always seeing things from a different perspective, interrupted them. “This seeming permanence isn’t permanent. This huge monument to man’s ability will soon be a heap of rubble.”
“What! How is this possible?”Intrigued by Jesus’ reply, the disciples, no doubt led by Peter, asked a simple question that released a stream of mystifying “signs” that seem impossible to piece together.
Clever humans have tried to create a timeline out of Jesus’ signs, which He didn’t intend. Rather, His clues were meant to show them, not when but that it would happen.
Woven together into a tapestry of prophecy, Jesus presented His disciples with a picture of events soon to happen, fulfilled by the Roman army under Titus, which destroyed Jerusalem, slaughtered many Jews and scattered the Jewish believers across the Roman Empire, and events that would herald His return.
Jesus gave them precise instructions for their survival when God’s judgment fell on Jerusalem.
““When you see ‘the abomination that causes desolation’ standing where it does not belong—let the reader understand—then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let no one on the housetop go down or enter the house to take anything out. Let no one in the field go back to get their cloak.”
Mark 13:14-16 NIV
Run…and pray!
Not long before, with tears streaming down His face, Jesus had predicted this horrifying event. So terrible would be the destruction that Jerusalem would be razed to the ground, the temple included.
“As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said, “If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace—but now it is hidden from your eyes. The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God’s coming to you.”
Luke 19:41-44 NIV
“These are the beginning of birth pains…”
These few words hidden in the text are the clue to understanding this prophecy. Not a timeline but signs. All these predictions… deception, wars, natural disasters, persecution…have been a part of human history from the beginning of time. Nothing new but…the signs lie in the increase in volume of these adversities.
“Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.”
Every generation has had those who predict the end in their time. Some have even put a date to their predictions and yet… we are still here, eagerly awaiting Jesus’ return.
So, how do we respond to these sobering words? I don’t think Jesus ever meant us to try to work out the exact date of these events heralding His return. The danger of doing so is that we might be tempted to live carelessly until the predicted date of His return comes closer.
At the end of this long discourse He gives us His prescription…
““But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come.
It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with their assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch.
Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back—whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’ ”
Mark 13:32-37 NIV
Be faithful to your assigned task! Then you will be ready.
“The Lord answered, “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns.”
Luke 12:42-43 NIV
Keep watch! Not for the signs that are being fulfilled but for the enemy who would deflect you and derail you from faithfulness to the Master on your journey to the Father.