Luke 21:5-38
5 Some of his disciples were remarking about how the temple was adorned with beautiful stones and with gifts dedicated to God. But Jesus said, 6 “As for what you see here, the time will come when not one stone will be left on another; every one of them will be thrown down.”
7 “Teacher,” they asked, “when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are about to take place?”
8 He replied: “Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them. 9 When you hear of wars and uprisings, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away.”
10 Then he said to them: “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 11 There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven.
12 “But before all this, they will seize you and persecute you. They will hand you over to synagogues and put you in prison, and you will be brought before kings and governors, and all on account of my name. 13 And so you will bear testimony to me. 14 But make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves. 15 For I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict. 16 You will be betrayed even by parents, brothers and sisters, relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death. 17 Everyone will hate you because of me. 18 But not a hair of your head will perish. 19 Stand firm, and you will win life.
20 “When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near. 21 Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those in the city get out, and let those in the country not enter the city.22 For this is the time of punishment in fulfillment of all that has been written.23 How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! There will be great distress in the land and wrath against this people.24 They will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
25 “There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea. 26 People will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken. 27 At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 28 When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”
29 He told them this parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees. 30 When they sprout leaves, you can see for yourselves and know that summer is near.31 Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that the kingdom of God is near.
32 “Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. 33 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
34 “Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you suddenly like a trap. 35 For it will come on all those who live on the face of the whole earth. 36 Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man.”
37 Each day Jesus was teaching at the temple, and each evening he went out to spend the night on the hill called the Mount of Olives, 38 and all the people came early in the morning to hear him at the temple.
Watch the Fig Tree
In 365, French bishop Hilary of Poitiers predicted that the world would end that year. Ten years later another French bishop, Martin of Tours, said the end would come by the year 400. In 1988, Edgar C. Whisenant wrote a book giving 88 reasons why the rapture would happen in 1988. Throughout history there have been hundreds of end times predictions, almost all of them suggesting it would come sometime in the predictor’s life span.
When we read Jesus’ words in Luke 21, we see that he says to “watch the fig tree.” In other words, he says to watch for the signs of when the end will come. That might tempt us to start making predictions. We’ve had countless wars, including two world wars. Earthquakes, hurricanes, and tornadoes happen all the time, and they don’t show any sign of slowing down. Famine is often in the news. We’ve had plagues, disease and pandemics. Surely these must be signs of the end, right?
When I was in grade school, I remember learning about egocentrism. The idea that we all tend to be self-focused. I think that helps explain the habit of people predicting that the world will end during their own lifetime. There is something in us that believes we are important enough that the return of Jesus has to happen while we are around to witness it. Of course, history has shown that this isn’t the case.
The disciples ask Jesus about the destruction of the Temple, and his response is partly about that event (which took place in the year 70), but he is also talking about the end of time. We can respond to Jesus’ words here in at least a couple of ways that are not ideal. We can become hyper-focused on trying to figure out the date this will all happen. We can watch the news and see what is happening around the world in order to predict what it all means. But that’s largely a waste of time because Jesus told us in Matthew 24, “No one knows the day or the hour.”
The second way we can get off track is to be fearful because we don’t know when it will happen. We can watch what is happening in the news around the world and become terrified by what we’re seeing. We can come up with worst case scenarios, sacring ourselves and others by focusing on the wrong things. But Jesus teaches us not to be frightened. He encourages us not to worry, to stand firm, and be careful not to be deceived. The return of Jesus should never make his followers fearful. Thoughts of his return should fill us with hope and confidence! And until that day comes, our role is to produce fruit by staying connected to Jesus. Our job was given to us at the Great Commission, we’re to make disciples knowing that Jesus is with us.
It’s possible that the end is near and maybe Jesus will return in our lifetime. But we shouldn’t try to set dates. We need to “watch the fig tree.” We need to be able to recognize the signs of what is coming, but it is far more important to trust the Gardener and keep our eyes on him.
Reflection:
• Am I focusing on the wrong things?
• Is my heart weighed down with anxiety or fear?
• Am I putting my hope and trust in Jesus?
Prayer:
Jesus, thank You for Your word. Thank You for sharing with me the signs of things to come. Help me to stay focused on what is most important as I live my life without fear and anxiety while I look forward to Your return. Amen.
Author Bio
Rob Knight is the lead pastor at
Pine Ridge Family Church in Pembroke, ON. Pine Ridge Family Church believes their mission as a church is to become a community of Christ followers who strive to love like Christ, lead people to Christ and equip them to do the same. Learn more at
https://prfchurch.com/.
Luke and Acts taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®
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