Matthew 24:15-28 - When You See It, Don't Believe It - November 15, 2020

The saying always used to be “I’ll believe it when I see it” – so that when you see something then you can believe it. I’m not sure that saying holds true anymore today. Sadly, between the recent election and the ongoing pandemic, you see and hear an awful lot of things that you shouldn’t believe. But as Christians, this shouldn’t surprise us. In fact, Jesus tells us today that as the end draws ever nearer, there are some things you will see that you must not believe.

Jesus spoke these words on Tuesday of Holy Week. As they walked past the temple, his disciples were oohing and aahing at its size and magnificence. Jesus burst their bubble by telling them that soon every one of the temple’s magnificent stones will be thrown down (Matthew 24:2). Understandably, the disciples were curious. And they ask Jesus two questions: when will these things happen? And what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the world? (Matthew 24:3) It’s important to understand that Jesus is answering both of these questions simultaneously. And the first thing we conclude from Jesus’ answer is that he is not, in verses 15 through 22, describing the end of the world.  

Perhaps you’ve heard or thought otherwise. Perhaps you need proof for this assertion. Ok. Jesus tells his disciples that they will see the abomination that causes desolation, that was spoken of through the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place. Luke adds context to this cryptic phrase, saying when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near (Luke 21:20). This literally happened in 70 AD when the Roman army led by Titus surrounded and proceeded to raze Jerusalem to the ground. That’s the positive proof. There’s also negative proof. If Jesus were referring to Judgment Day, what good would it do to flee to the mountains? What difference would it make if you ran back into your house to get your valuables or come from the field to grab some extra clothes? How could Judgment Day be harder on pregnant and nursing women than anyone else? What difference will it make if Jesus returns to judge in winter or on a Sabbath Day? At that point, none of those things will matter because no one will be able to escape Judgment Day (2 Corinthians 5:10).

Don’t believe that these words are a literal description of the end of the world. They’re not. They’re about the fall of Jerusalem – and that certainly was a great distress, unlike any that has happened since the beginning of the world until now, and unlike any that will happen again. Jerusalem was under siege for roughly five months. Soldiers scraped the leather off their shields for food. Women were driven to cannibalizing their own children. When the Romans finally did breach the city, the bloodshed was unimaginable. The first century Jewish historian Josephus estimated that over 1 million Jews were killed (Josephus is well-known for his exaggerations. But even half of that is still shocking.) [1]

And yet, while Jesus here is describing the literal fall of Jerusalem, it is also a type, a shadow of the world’s end. Just as the fall of Jerusalem brought suffering for Christians, so will the end of time. However, Scripture makes it clear that the sign that the End is near is not primarily physical but moral and spiritual. Again, we turn to other Scripture to help us interpret Jesus’ words here. In Luke 17, Jesus describes what the days before his return will be like. He says just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it also be in the days of the Son of Man. In what way? They were eating and drinking, marrying and being given in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark…likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot: they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building (Luke 17:26-27). Yes, the flood which drowned the earth (Genesis 7-8) and the fire and brimstone that fell on Sodom and Gomorrah were terrible (Genesis 19). But the days leading up to them were, apparently, great! People married, partied, ate and drank, bought and sold without a care in the world while the whole time false doctrine was spreading like a virus. Spiritual apathy, widespread immorality and false doctrine, not physical suffering will mark end of the world. So don’t believe it when someone tells you otherwise. Don’t become complacent or lazy just because you don’t see severe physical persecution today in our land.

Second, when you see Jesus anywhere but where he promised to be, don’t believe it. At that time if anyone tells you, ‘Look, here is the Christ,’ or ‘There he is,’ do not believe it…So if they tell you, ‘Look! There he is in the wilderness,’ do not go out there, or ‘Look! Here he is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. Don’t believe that Jesus will return in secret – or that only a select few will know when and where to find him. Why not? Because just as the lightning flashes from the east and shines as far as the west, so it will be when the Son of Man comes. Wherever the carcass may be, there the vultures will gather. Jesus’ return will be as clear and obvious to everyone as a bolt of lightning or as a dead animal is to a vulture.

But hasn’t Jesus promised to be with us right now and until the very end of the age (Matthew 18:20; 28:20)? Yes. That’s not the question. The question is: where can we find him? Jesus says that false Christs and false prophets will arise and will perform great signs and wonders. Don’t believe them! Why not? The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan, with every kind of miracle, that is, with false signs and wonders, and with every kind of unrighteousness that deceives those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved (2 Thessalonians 2:9-10). Don’t believe that every miracle, sign or wonder is from Jesus. Don’t believe that just because a person can apparently heal the sick, speak in tongues, or gather a following that he or she is from Jesus. You will see false Christs and false prophets – and you will be tempted to follow them. Their enthusiasm, their charisma, their popularity will be magnetic. They will claim that they and they alone have a direct line to Jesus. They will boast of their joy, their peace, their love, their confidence – and their outward success and popularity will seem to verify their claims. Don’t believe them.

Well, if we know that there are imposters and imitators, how can you be sure where the genuine Jesus is? What is the proof of Jesus’ presence? You look for him where he’s promised to be. He promised to be where sins are being forgiven in his name (Matthew 18:18-20) – Jesus is present wherever Absolution is announced publicly or privately. He promised to be present in Baptism (Matthew 28:20) – he said, through Paul, that as many of you as were baptized into Christ have been clothed with Christ (Galatians 3:27). And does it get any plainer than Holy Communion? This is my body…this is my blood (Matthew 26:26-27)? If you want to find Jesus today, look to where he has promised to be: Baptism, Absolution, Communion. You have his own word that where these things are he will be. How could anyone miss this?

Well, billions do. They do because from his ascension until his return Jesus has chosen to clothe himself in weak, ordinary things. The absolution is weak and ordinary compared to someone who claims that his babbling is a secret revelation from God. Baptism looks like nothing but plain water – but exorcisms, where priests splash holy water and speak in Latin to drive out demons, that’s pretty impressive! The Lord’s Supper looks like nothing but plain bread and Mogen David wine – how can that compete with healings, miracles and visions? In the end, our only hope is to become unbelievers – to not believe that Jesus is anywhere but where he has promised to be; and, finally, to not believe that our faith will preserve us in the end.

What? I’m not supposed to place any trust in my faith? Nope. As we get closer to the end, things will grow worse and worse morally and spiritually. In 1 Timothy Paul said: the Spirit clearly says that, in later times, some will fall away from the faith, because they devote themselves to deceitful spirits and the doctrines of demons (1 Timothy 4:1). I can say that I don’t want to or intend to fall from the faith, but I can’t comfort myself by saying: my faith will never fail. If you doubt that about yourself, just remember that the apostle Peter said even if all fall away because of you, I will never fall away (Matthew 26:33), and we all know how that ended up.

So if we can’t trust our own faith, then what can we trust? Well, how did Jesus comfort the Christians who were facing horrifying days leading up to the fall of Jerusalem? Did he point them to their faith, saying, “Don’t worry, you believe, so you will be spared and saved?” Did he point them to their understanding of Scripture or their good works? No, the comfort Jesus offered them was something that happened long before they were born, something clearly outside of themselves: their election. He said if those days were not shortened, nobody would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, those days will be shortened. And one verse later he says that it is impossible for the elect to be deceived (Matthew 24:24).

As the end nears, I can’t comfort you with your faith because your faith, like mine, is weak. I can’t comfort you with your understanding of Christian doctrine because your understanding, like mine, is lacking. I can’t comfort you with your life of love toward God and others because your life, like mine, is more often than not lacking in love for anyone but myself.

But, as the end draws ever closer, I can comfort you with your election. I can comfort you with the fact that God chose you in Christ before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4). I can comfort you with the fact that the reason you have been baptized and are hearing the Gospel right now is because of God’s election; as Paul says that those he predestined, he also called. Those he called, he also justified. And those he justified, he also glorified (Romans 8:30). I can comfort you with the fact that even though you haven’t kept God’s law perfectly, Jesus has in your place (Matthew 5:17-20). I can comfort you with the fact that even though your sins separated you from God (Isaiah 59:2), Christ has reconciled you to God by his death and resurrection (2 Corinthians 5:19). I can comfort you with the fact that by means of Baptism and Holy Communion God has placed his seal on you, marked you as one who will be spared and saved no matter how evil and immoral this world becomes (Revelation 7:1-8).

For the sake of the elect God shortened the horrifying days of Jerusalem’s destruction. For your sake God has shaped and continues to shape all of history leading up to the end. Everything in this world, everything in your life – the good, the bad, and the ugly – work together for your eternal good (Romans 8:28). As the terrible signs of the End reach a climax in this world, I can’t promise you that your faith won’t be shaken. But I can repeat Jesus’ promise: I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand (John 10:28).

So when you see these things happening – as they are even now all around us – don’t believe them. Don’t believe that this description of the fall of Jerusalem is how this world will literally end – that will only lead to complacency and false confidence; don’t believe that Jesus is present anywhere but where he promised; and don’t believe that your faith will preserve you in the end. Instead, believe that God will preserve his elect to and through the end to eternal life in heaven. Amen.

[1] https://www.gutenberg.org/files/2850/2850-h/2850-h.htm#link2HCH0006