Introduction Jesus offers three illustrations for his disciples. He begins with the parable of the fig tree: A Lesson for the final generation. He then encourages the disciples to watch and wait and gives a second illustration from the times of Noah. The third illustration features a thief in the night. How are we to interpret these illustrations? The rules surrounding the art and science of Biblical interpretation require that we relate them to the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ (see Walvoord p. 191 his Commentary on Matthew). The parable illustrates the certainty of His coming. The other illustrations plainly state the timing must remain a secret. How can you tell of you are a member of this final generation? The signs and signals begin in your lifetime and continue in your life-time and increase in frequency and intensity. The Parable Of The Fig Tree (v.32) Matthew 24:32 (NKJV)32 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. Jesus invites His disciples to learn a lesson from the fig tree. In the 1960 s and later Hal Lindsey popularized the notion that the nation Israel was the fig tree. In Matthew 20:18-22 we studied the incident were Jesus cursed a fig tree. It was Monday of the Passion Week. Jesus left Bethany (21:18) and in the morning made His way towards the city of Jerusalem. He found a fig tree by the road with only leaves and no fruit. You will recall Jesus said, Let no fruit grow on you ever again. And immediately the tree withered away (v.19). Normally the fruit and leaves appear at the same time. While the curse of the fig tree is illustrative of Israel who having every advantage still rejects the Messiah no one interprets the statement of Jesus Let no fruit grow on you ever again as an application to the nation or its people. Will Israel one day yield fruit to the living God? I think so. In this case I think Jesus invites us learn a lesson from the fig tree that is Jesus invites the fig tree to be our teacher. Remember what a parable is an earthly story that reveals a heavenly truth. Parables can conceal truth and reveal truth. Earlier in Matthew s gospel (13:10-11) the disciples came to Him and said to Him, Why do You speak to them in parables? He answered and said to them, Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. (v13). Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. Jesus went on to give the meaning of the parable of the sower. Luke s gospel confirms this is a parable (Luke 21:29); Then He spoke to them a parable: Look at the fig tree, and all the trees. In Luke s gospel we learn that this lesson can be learned from a fig tree or any fruit bearing tree for that matter. 1
The Mount of Olives contained both Olive and Fig trees. They would sometimes grow 20 or 30 feet into the air. At Passover the budding began. Fig trees lose their leaves in winter (while most trees retain their leaves). Jesus chooses the fig tree and offers the fig tree for this specific illustration. The fig tree buds late. It is the perfect example of what seems like a late (delayed!!) bloomer! The dry brittle branches are infused with sap the leaves appearing are signs that summer is near! Inherent in this illustration is patient waiting. You cannot hurry the natural cycle of the fig tree (see Life Application Bible Commentary; Matthew p. 481). Have you grown impatient? Do you want to hurry the End Times along? Are you on a personal or theological rush to Judgment? Be patient. Jesus is Coming. Now learn translates the Greek word manthano (learn). It means to learn in such a way that you genuinely understand the truth and can make appropriate application to your life. Jesus is speaking to His disciples. This lesson is not meant to conceal truth but reveal the truth. The word was often used to describe basic learning principles that would serve for the rest of life. We might think of this as elementary things like learning the alphabet or numbers. Paul uses the same expression (manthano) In all circumstances I have learned (same word) to be content (Philippians 4:11). We are invited to learn the lesson and live differently because of the lesson. And what is that lesson? When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. Jesus makes an unmistakable observation concerning in this case the fig tree. Sap flows in budding trees. Budding trees means spring is in the air and as sure as summer follows spring; so the budding leaves means fruit will come. The figs will drop. The tree will yield its fruit in due time. Jesus has been answering the questions posed in verse three; Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and the end of the age? If the fig tree represents the nation of Israel and its destruction and its subsequent reconstitution the parable would have been utterly lost on the disciples. If the purpose of the parable was to reveal the truth to them rather than conceal the truth from them than the straight forward reading makes the most sense. If the tree is in the season of sap and budding fruit the next season is summer. The Practical Fruit (vv.33-34) 33So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near at the doors! 2
The Lord says; So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near at the door! What are all these things? The things talked about in verses 4-28. In brief: 1. Deception By False Teachers (vv.4-5). 2. Destruction by Wars (vv.6-7a). 3. Devastations by Disasters (vv.7b-8). 4. Deliverance To Persecutions By Loved Ones (v.9) 5. Defection From The Truth By Make-Believers (vv.10-13). 6. Declaration Of The Gospel To The Whole World (v.14). 7. Daniel s Abomination Which Makes Desolate (v.15) 8. Demonic Attempts To Wipe Out The Jewish People (vv.16-20). 9. Determined Judgments By God On The Enemies Of God (vv.21-28). 10. D Day or J Day The Literal Return of Jesus Christ (vv.29-31). Birth pains (vv.4-14); the abomination of desolation (v.15); the need to run for your lives (vv. 16-28); the tearing of the fabric of the universe (v.29). Those things indicate the time is near. When Jesus uses the expression even at the doors the doors are gates gates to the City. The picture is one of an entourage that makes its way to the gates all that is necessary is to cross the threshold of the gates and enter the city. Luke s gospel says; the kingdom of God is near (21:31); which is consistent with know that it is near (here v.33). This is the heart and soul and answer to the disciples questions at the beginning of the chapter. Jesus when will you come back and establish your Kingdom? The events will continue increase intensity frequency the appearance of false Christ and false religious leader a covenant to keep Israel safe, a rebuilding of a future temple. The Second Coming of Jesus is near and it is certain. 34Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place. Don t skip the word assuredly or I say to you. The truth is both a promise and an oath. Scholars are deeply divided over the expression this generation. The skeptic, the critic, the unbeliever believes the meaning this generation (genea) applies to the disciples in the first century and the people alive when Jesus spoke these words. They blindly and lamely appeal to the Destruction of the Temple as proof. The problem with that position is that all these things did not take place. What makes matters worse the very next sentence Jesus declares that Heaven and Earth will pass away but my words will by no means pass away. If these scholars and critics and skeptics are correct Jesus Himself becomes a false prophet and His claims to know the truth and tell the truth fall flat in the face of failed prophecy. Plainly they say Jesus got it wrong. 3
Or there is another explanation. The Greek word translated generation (genea) can mean race or family. Which might mean the existence of the Jewish people or the family of the Jews. More likely the simple explanation is the that Jesus speaks of this generation as the generation alive at the time when the events listed in verses 4-28 begin and then increase. In other words the events leading up to the coming of Jesus Christ will be short and intense. The signs preceding the Coming of Christ will be sudden, intense, and abbreviated and unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect s sake those days will be shortened (v.22). F.W. Grant writes;...the very generation that sees the beginning of these things will see the end (cited in Believer s Commentary by William MacDonald who cites F.W. Grant, Matthew Numerical Bible, The Gospels, p.230). MacDonald suggests the same people who see the rise of Israel as a nation (or who see the beginning of the Tribulation) will see the Lord Jesus coming in the clouds of heaven to reign. Others suggest that this generation is a reference to the stubborn recalcitrant generation that refuses to see Jesus as Messiah that is that national Israel will continue in its Christ rejecting condition until the coming of Christ. Will the Jewish people exist as a people when Jesus returns? I think so. I think Grant gets it exactly right the events that begin, unfold and conclude will all take place in the course of a single generation. Clearly since the death of Jesus and the resurrection of Jesus we have seen deception by false teachers; destructions by wars; disasters in the earth and persecutions by the saints. John writes that antichrists have gone out into this world; but there is on the horizon a future leader who has yet to be revealed. Misguided teachers may claim they know the identity of the future man of sin. But they are mistaken or deceived. The Predicted Future (v.35a) 35aHeaven and earth will pass away, The dissolution of the physical and temporary Universe is described in 2 Peter 3:10-13 and mentioned in Revelation 20:11. Why in the world is Jesus apparently delaying His coming? Peter argues that the Lord is not slack (tardy). At exactly the right time He will fulfill His Word. The Lord wants sinners to come to Christ and be saved from the coming wrath the future judgment. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burnt up (2 Peter 3:10). The Day of the Lord is that time of Tribulation the Great Judgment that will come upon the whole earth and called The Great Tribulation. When the World says peace and safety the judgment falls (1 Thessalonians 5:2-3). For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. For when they say, Peace and Safety! then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant 4
woman. And they shall not escape. BUT YOU BRETHREN ARE NOT IN DARKNESS, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief. Peter argues You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness (1 Thessalonians 5:4-5). Here darkness is a state of both moral and spiritual separation from God. You are not separated from God. You have been reconciled to God in Christ! Will God s people be caught unprepared when Christ comes to take them to Heaven? Clearly the Word will be surprised by the catastrophic judgments that must take place. The Universe will not last forever. The sun will one day collapse. The earth will be consumed by fire. God will create a new heaven and a new earth. But everything you see will someday be gone! The material universe will fail. Our bodies will fail, the planet will dry up, the sea will disappear but the Word of the Lord will not fail. In Luke 16:17 we read; And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one tittle of the law to fail. In John s gospel it says (10:35) If He called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken) and Psalm 19:9 The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether. Whatever has been touched by sin, contaminated by sin, infected by sin must be destroyed. Whatever has been cleansed by God, forgiven by Jesus will be infused with grace and redeemed. The Permanent Proclamation (v.35b) 35b...but My words will by no means pass away. The Lord contrasts the impermanent nature of the universe (heaven and earth) and the permanent nature of His words. The predictions of Jesus cannot fail. What about the scholars who suggest that Jesus was right about most things but wrong about some things? The Lord Jesus makes it clear that His words will by no means pass away (that is fail to come true). In the strongest terms possible Jesus maintains the absolute certainty that all He has said must come to pass. Do you remember how the chapter began? The Disciples were commenting on the majesty and magnificence of the Temple and its buildings! Like the Pyramids of Egypt or the Parthenon in Athens or the Temple of Diana in Ephesus they seemed impervious to earthquake, weather time. The Pyramids are still with us. The Parthenon continues to stand. But an earthquake and time have caused the Temple of Diana to disappear from modern view. 5
The skeptic and critic and the unbeliever are hoping that with time and the corrosive elements of human reason and the supremacy of science the words of Jesus will fade with time or disappear and be replaced with a new narrative. The story of humanity will not end according to the prophecies in the Bible. The story of humanity will unfold according to the promise that Satan made to Adam and Eve in the almost forgotten Garden of Eden. Satan s rebellion and man s rebellion will be rewarded because God s Word will fail and the prophecies fail to materialize. In the Life Application Commentary on Matthew we read: History is the story of change, the rise and fall of empires, the coming and going of societies, which for a time, happened upon some happiness then floundered upon some folly. What survives all change? Not temples, not governments, and not even Christian saints (who get sick and die like everyone else). Only God s Word endures. On that alone we stake everything. God s promises endure forever, and all who belong to Jesus share in them. Take hope. Jesus alone leads through change to a bright and buoyant future, full of everything good (p.482). Conclusion What can we safely say about the Second Coming of Jesus Christ? There are 318 references to the Second Coming in 216 chapters of the Bible. It is one the great themes of the Old Testament prophets and the New Testament writers. Jesus repeatedly promised to return (John 14:3; Matthew 24 and 25; Mark 13; Luke 21). The angels testify tot he fact that Jesus will return (Acts 1:11; Hebrews 2:2). The Apostles faithfully proclaimed this truth (see 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17; Hebrews 9:28; 1 John 2:28; Jude 14-15). The Church is invited to look forward to Christ s Second Coming as The Blessed Hope (Titus 2:13; 2 Peter 3:12). We are taught that this hope provides one of our greatest incentives or Holy living and present and future comfort (1 Thessalonians 4:14-18). Paul made clear (1 Thessalonians 4:15) For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede (go before) those who are asleep (dead). There will be a final or terminal generation. In 1 Peter 2:9 Peter writes; But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous life. In the early church John Chrysostom (c.349-407 AD) understood this generation as a reference to the Church age, that no amount of persecution or tribulation would destroy the church but rather the church would persist until the return of Jesus. 6
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