There are some portions of God's
Word that smart preachers ignore. So they say. And I don't claim
to be one of them. Mark chapter 13 is a great chapter. And it was prophetic when it
was written. So I just want to try to go slow
and talk about some things. I don't think we'll get through
all this today, but this is what the Lord put in my heart. And I don't have to tell you
this, much of the error, and here's how it is, much of the
error in so-called prophecy preaching today is the failure to distinguish
between what's already fulfilled and what's yet to be fulfilled.
That's the biggie. And it's really simple. When
a prophesied event occurs, it ceases to be prophecy and becomes
history. That's plain, isn't it? And so
the problem is Many things that have already occurred in history
are still preached today as prophecy and yet to be fulfilled. We're
going to see just a little of that as we go along this morning.
This chapter, Mark 13, is commonly known and referred to as the
Olivet Discourse. It's called that because In verse
1, as Jesus left the temple, left at Jerusalem for the last
time before he was crucified, this is within the final week
before the crucifixion. He goes, verse 3 says, to the
Mount of Olives and sits down with some of the disciples and
speaks the things that he says in this chapter. It's spoken
from the Mount of Olives. That's why it's called the Olivet
Discourse. We actually have three accounts
of it. And it's really good as a Bible
student when you learn that the four gospel accounts, Matthew,
Mark, Luke, and John, John is so different. But much of what's
in Matthew is in Mark and is in Luke. They're called the synoptics,
Matthew, Mark, and Luke. And on this occasion of this
Olivet Discourse, we have three accounts, Matthew 24, here in
Mark 13, and also in Luke 21. It's the same occasion. It's
the same message. Matthew and Luke are more extensive
in detail, so they're lengthier. Mark is the more concise account,
and yet there's 37 verses here, and I'd like to comment on each
one. Time will forbid us to do that,
but our message is an overall view of what's contained in this
chapter, Mark 13, as well as Matthew 24 and Luke 21. The thing our Lord is pressing
upon the disciples says here in verse 3 that four of them
ask him. These are the two sets of brothers
among the twelve, Peter and Andrew and James and John. They ask
him a question. And before we get to that, the
thing the Lord is pressing upon these disciples is that they
are nearing the end of the old covenant, the Old Testament order
of approach to God and worship of God. You remember there was
the tabernacle and later the temple. There was the priests
of the tribe of Levi. There was one high priest. There
was all the animal sacrifices. There was all that was, there
was the blood to be sprinkled. There was all that was involved
with that. All, all involving human activity. Well, they're nearing the end
of that. They're nearing, it's about to
be replaced with what Christ alone did. Just one example back
there on the great day of atonement in that system, No one was to
do anything on that day except the high priest. Christ Jesus
is our high priest. He's the only one that's done
anything that matters with God in our behalf. That's good to
get ahold of. Now, Christ is also impressing
on these fellas that they're nearing the end of the nation
of Israel. as a type of God's elect. Now
many today believe and preach it's all around us that the Jews
are God's chosen people. They were to the extent that
God promised Abraham that through his seed he would bring his son
into the world. And God committed himself to
protecting, providing for, prospering that nation until Christ came
into the world. And he did that. He protected them, promised them,
provided for them to be a picture, to be a picture as to how he
loves and cares for his own. But to say that the Jews, the
nation of Israel, was God's elect, and they only were God's elect,
is to say that they're God's choice, and Gentiles, we're just
stepchildren. We're nothing special. No, no,
no. And that's why I say that Israel
as a nation were a type of God's elect. God's love and care for
his people from eternity to eternity. Now, so Christ is pressing now upon
these disciples a transition that they are to look no more
to their traditional and historic religious heritage, but they're
there to look to Christ alone. The noted writer of the 1800s,
J.C. Ryle, introduces this chapter
simply and clearly. And rather than try and comment, I'm just going to read
what he said, going into Mark 13. Two great events form the subject of this prophecy.
One is the destruction of Jerusalem and the consequent end of the
Jewish dispensation. The other is the second coming
of our Lord, Jesus Christ, and the winding up of the state of
things under which we now live. The destruction of Jerusalem
was an event which happened only 40 years after our Lord was crucified. That was in 70 AD. The second coming of Christ is
an event which is yet to come, and we may yet live to see it
with our own eyes. So as we go into this chapter,
Jesus leaves the temple. And as he does, one of his disciples
calls his attention and says, hey, Master, isn't this beautiful? Look at all this beautiful buildings
and stones in the temple. The Jews, they greatly admired
that. Practically worshipped it. So
proud of it. The Lord Jesus had already said
in Matthew's account, in Matthew before 24 and in Matthew 23,
he'd already said to them, your house, This is Israel. Your house is left unto you desolate. Empty. He didn't say my house. He no longer calls it my house,
but he said, your house is left unto you desolate. It's over. And he says here to these disciples,
without actually saying it, He's saying, it's not me that needs
to look at all this. It's you. Verse two, he tells them that.
Seest thou these great buildings? What you're looking at and think
is so magnificent and is permanent and makes you something superior
with God more than anybody else? No. He said, here's the deal. There shall not be one stone
upon another that shall not be thrown down. Admire it while
you can. Now, they didn't reply to his
words immediately, but when they get to the Mount of Olives, verse
three, and sat down, seated there, they say from that Mount of Olives,
they could actually look across the Kedron Valley through the
Eastern gate of the city and look right into the, at the temple,
at the temple. And they didn't question his
word. They just ask, when is this going
to happen? Verse four, tell us when shall
these things be? And what shall be the sign when
all these things shall be fulfilled. Now there is an intertwining
throughout this chapter in these events of which refers to the
destruction of the temple in Jerusalem, which would happen
40 years from that point and which statements are concerning
the coming of Christ. that is yet to come. I hope I
don't mean to make this confusing, but the Lord wanted me to look
at this today. So now they didn't question his
word. They just asked when. And the Lord takes a lot of verses
to answer this, but he begins with this in verse five, Jesus
answering them, answering their question. He began to say, well,
all that's too in-depth and too difficult and you just might
as well not go. No, no, no, no. The first thing
he says to them is take heed lest any man deceive you. For many shall come in my name
saying I am Christ and shall deceive many. Now they say in
that time period, there were many that claimed to be the Messiah,
claimed to be Christ. But instead of saying, I am Christ
personally, many were saying, this is how it is. This is what
he taught. This is what he said would be,
and will deceive many. And he said, here's the first
thing you need to concern yourself with. Take heed lest any man
deceive you. This take heed is very serious. It's an unquestionable necessity. Be careful. Take heed. Don't
fail in this. Take heed. And then he begins
to relate some things for them to watch for as signs that that
judgment was nigh, that it would be the end of Israel
as a nation as they knew it. I know these people cut my throat
over this, but that little nation over yonder today that they call
Israel, it's nothing but an arm of the American government. If
it wasn't for us, they wouldn't exist. Paul said in Romans 2, 28 and
29, he is not a Jew which is one outwardly, but he is a Jew
which is one inwardly. And circumcision is not that
which is in the flesh, but it's that which is in the heart. And Jesus said to him in the
Gospel of John, He told him, he said, don't even come to me
with that business that you're the children of Abraham. He said,
I'm able of these stones to raise up children of Abraham. And Paul said in Galatians, he
that is of the faith of Abraham, they are the children of Abraham.
And Paul said in Galatians that the promises given to Abraham
and to his seed, I say not, Seeds, plural, not
a nation, not sinners like us, but seed is one Jesus Christ. All the promises of God to Jew
or Gentile alike, so far as a hope of eternity, everlasting life,
are in Christ Jesus. God's not taking anybody to heaven
because they're a Jew. He's not taking anybody to heaven
because they're a Baptist. That's all that's good reason
to put them in hell. Only people he's taking are those in Christ. So I'm getting off track here
before we even get started. But anyhow, he tells some things
here and it's going to be 40 years before this first prophecy. the destruction of Jerusalem
and the temple. And that old order takes place.
Forty years might seem like a long time. But when you get my age,
40 years sometimes feels like 40 weeks. But he tells them here's
what to look for. Wars, rumors of wars, famines,
persecution, hatred toward the saints because of their hatred
of God. And finally, The abomination
of desolation. That is one that the prophecy
preachers go big on. Now just comment on that a moment.
Abomination in the Old Testament was always related to desecration
of worship. Either by outright false worship
or by profaning true worship. And in rejecting the Lord Jesus
Christ, the Jews were guilty of both. The abomination of desolation,
spoken of back in the book of Daniel, refers to the Roman armies
invading the temple and standing in the holy place, desecrating
the holy things of God. And verse 14, it's the last sign. Jesus said, when that happens, you boys flee to the mountains.
And it did happen. And they did flee and escape
the cruelty of the Romans. But greater, they escaped the
judgment of God upon that city and upon that temple. And only
because He instructed them as how to escape. That's the only
reason they did escape. He goes on and says a lot of
things. In verse 22, for false Christ and false prophets shall
rise and shall show signs and wonders. Oh, yeah, they're going
to work miracles in demonic power to seduce if it were possible, even the
elect. Thank God it's not possible.
Then in verse 23, again, take ye heed. Behold, I have foretold
you all things. Now, in verses 24 and 25 are
made much of by many false prophets today, But in those days, not after
those days, talking about this destruction of Jerusalem, 70
AD, but in those days, after that tribulation, after that suffering, after that
Roman oppression, after that invasion, after that tribulation,
not future, but that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and
the moon shall not give her light, and the stars of heaven shall
fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken." Now,
I have no objection to that being literal, if you believe it is.
But I think rather that it's symbolic of the entire political
system, the religious system, everything Israel held to as
being distinct. It all was in chaos. It went
haywire. Their world, their nation, their
religion was all gone. God shut it down. And the last sign, verse 28,
now learn a parable of fig tree. When her branches yet tender
and put it forth leaves, you know, that summer is near. It was springtime. It's right
at Passover time. Christ is going to be crucified
within days of this. And this, he says about the fig
tree. It's springtime, and Christ said,
just as certain as the fig tree puts out its leaves at this time
of year. What does that mean? You know
that summer is near. And just that certain judgment
is nigh upon the nation of Israel, upon the capital city, Jerusalem.
It'll be destroyed. And upon the temple, there'll
be not one rock left on top of another. And he said, you can know that
it's nigh by all these things, even at the doors. Now verse
30 is the clincher. Verily, I say unto you that this
generation shall not pass till all these things be done. This,
this is stated in all three accounts, Matthew 24, 34. here in Mark
13 30 and Luke 21 32. This generation shall not pass. A lot of so-called prophecy preachers
quote that as referring to our generation. I've heard it many
times. God said this generation shall
not pass trying to scare people. Referring to our generation.
No, Jesus was not pointing 2,000 years future. But the generation he's in, he
didn't say that generation, 2,000 years from now. He said, this
generation shall not pass till all these things be fulfilled.
And it didn't. The judgment came within that
generation in 40 years. Verse 31, again, here it is. Heaven and earth shall pass away,
but my words shall not pass away. Now the Jehovah's witness, or should I say Jehovah's false
witness, they put an if in this. And they explained this verse
as a hyperbole or just an example. just a figure of speech. And
they say that it's saying if heaven and earth could pass away,
Christ is saying still, my words will never pass away. But there's
no if here. There is no if. It's a positive
statement. Heaven and earth shall pass away. But here's the key. Pass away
does not mean cease to exist. When our loved ones die, we say
such and such passed away. We don't mean they ceased to
exist. Oh no. We mean that things have
changed. And it means the same here. Everything
as you know, it will change. The old covenant involving the
temple and its worship is replaced with a new covenant. And the principle is Christ,
our King, who conquered for us, is coming
again. And that's what the rest of this
chapter is about. And he says, but of that day
and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels, which are
in heaven, neither the son, but the father. And now for a few
moments, I want you to notice with me in the last five verses
of the chapter 33 through 37, there is given a precept, a rule,
an instruction, And four times we read the word
watch. So I want to read these five
verses. Look for watch four times. Take
ye heed. He's done said that. Watch and
pray. For you know, not when the time
is. For the Son of Man is as a man, taking up our journey,
who left his house and gave authority to his servants, and to every
man his work, and commanded the porter to watch. Watch ye therefore, for you know
not when the master of the house cometh, it even, or at midnight,
or at the cock crowing, or in the morning, This was the four watches of
the night. Evening, midnight, cock crowing,
3 a.m. in the morning. Lest coming suddenly,
he find you sleeping. And what I say unto you, I say
unto all. And here it is a fourth time.
Watch. Watch. I want to say to us, the
Lord is coming. He could come today. So we're to watch. Watch. Years ago now, many preachers
had it down pat, they thought. Every time I fly, I lit on a
donkey in Israel. That was some prophetic symbol
that Jesus is coming right around the corner. We don't know when, but he's
coming. He's coming. He hasn't come yet. And I think this precept, this
admonition is more personal. And here's what you and I need
to get a hold of. Whether or not his bodily return is very
soon. His return for you as an individual
is very soon. You say, but I'm young. They
bury him every day. Watch. Don't doze off. Don't let your guard down. Concerning what you believe and
who you believe in. I see most people Explain this
word watch as meaning clean up, buddy. Don't let your tongue
slip. Don't say that bad word. Don't do this. Don't do that.
No, no, no. What we're to watch, what we're to watch and be careful
about is him in whom we trust. Keep your eyes on Him as our
full acceptance with God. It's in Christ. Don't doze off. Don't let your guard. Don't forget
who you believe and know, be alert and watch. Revelation 16,
15, behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth.
and keepeth his garments. He's not talking about your clothes
closet. Our garments are the robe of
Christ's righteousness. Hold on to that. You can let
everything else go. What Dr. Religious Bottle Stopper
said, don't worry about it. Hold on to Christ. He is our
righteousness. Watch that. Guard that. Lest
you walk naked and be in shame. If you don't have Christ, you
don't have anything. Watch means this. Keep your eyes
on the Lord Jesus Christ as our full acceptance with God. The
Apostle Peter said, over in 1 Peter 5 verse 8, Be
sober, be vigilant, because your adversary the devil as a roaring
lion walketh about, seeking whom he may devour. People preach that saying the
devil would have you to cuss out loud and get drunk and covet Do all sorts of crazy. Hey, what Satan is after is what's
in your heart concerning the Lord Jesus Christ. Hold on to that. Be sober, be
vigilant, be alert, resist steadfast in the faith. You're not the
only one that's been here knowing that the same afflictions are
accomplished in your brethren. that are in the world. We're
all in this together. Same thing. But thank God all the things
that captivate our minds and attention here are temporal. It won't always be this way.
Thank God. So he says, shake yourselves.
Watch. Romans 13, 11, Paul said, now
is our time to awake out of sleep. Wake up! What is it you're looking
at? Most folk I know are running
here and there, to and fro. Well, they don't do this over
that other church. They do this over this church. You know, boy,
I believe that's the way to go. I believe people are a-ya-ya-ya-ya-ya-ya-ya. What about the Lord Jesus Christ? Him and His righteousness. is
our acceptance with God. That's what we're to guard and
hold on to. 1 Thessalonians 5. Listen to this and we'll be through
reading, I hope. But of the times and the seasons,
brethren, you have no need that I write unto you. For yourselves
know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh. as a thief
in the night. For when they shall say peace
and safety, I believe even this had an application to that destruction
of Jerusalem. When they say peace and safety,
then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a
woman with child, and they shall not escape. But ye, brethren,
are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a
thief? You are all the children of light and the children of
the day. We are not of the night nor of
darkness. Therefore, let us not sleep as
do others, but let us watch. There's that word again. Let
us watch and be sober. The value of this message for you and I this morning, within
these four walls, the value of this is not how it might affect
somebody else. But rather, what is it to you? And think about this. When they're
rolling you down that hall to the ICU, or when they're rolling your
cold body to the morgue, then it won't matter what anybody
else thought about what we ought to be and do. It'll be, who am I? What am I? Where do I stand with
God? We stand in His Dear Son, His
Beloved Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. And I challenge you today, if
you die in your sins, you won't stand. The precept is to watch. Look to Christ. Believe in Him.
Trust in Him. And don't let go of it. Take
heed. Everybody likes this souped up
music. Jesus is coming soon. Troublesome time. Y'all know
that's all. And it's so upbeat. You can dance to it if you want
to. I don't care. But the reality is Jesus is coming
soon for me. He's coming soon for you. And that's what you better get
on.