Sunday
Morning Bible Study
March
12, 2017
Introduction
Do people see Jesus? Is the gospel
preached? Does it address the person who is: Empty, lonely, guilty, or afraid
to die? Does it speak to the broken hearted? Does it build up the church? Milk
– Meat – Manna Preach for a decision Is the church loved? Regular: 2900 words Communion:
2500 words Video=75wpm
Ordain Dave Ritner
Home Fellowships – We are hoping to launch a couple of Home Fellowships in
a few weeks.
First we are looking to find a few folks who would be willing to host and
lead the groups of no more than twelve people.
We are thinking of the groups meeting weekly for six weeks.
We are thinking there ought to be some sort of food/snacks involved.
These will not be Bible Studies, but times to share and connect with each
other.
For now, we want the sharing time to be about the Sunday message – and we
will provide you with discussion questions.
We want there to be time spent praying for each other.
If you are interested in leading a group – we will have a brief info
meeting today after each service. Or, contact myself or Daniel Grant this week.
Luke was a doctor and a travelling
companion of the apostle Paul.
He wrote this book while Paul was
in prison.
In writing this book about Jesus,
Luke made use of other older documents like the Gospel of Mark, as well as
extensive eyewitness accounts.
Jesus’ ministry is well under way,
and the people have been amazed not just at the things He’s been teaching, but
the things He’s been doing.
We are now on the homestretch of Jesus’ ministry.
Jesus is now in Jerusalem, on His way to be crucified.
Luke has reminded us of what Jesus’ main purpose was in life:
(Luke 19:10 NKJV) for the Son
of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
We saw Jesus arrive in Jerusalem on a Sunday, to the shouts of an adoring
crowd, crying “Hosanna”.
The next morning, on Monday, Jesus came into the Temple and cleared out
those who were ripping the people off.
He then began to teach in the Temple, as He would every day until He would
be arrested.
When someone was admiring the great Temple stones, Jesus said that there
was a day coming when not one stone would be left standing on the Temple Mount.
When asked when this would happen, Jesus began to teach about the kinds of
signs that would warn of two coming events:
The destruction of the Temple.
His Second Coming
It’s not unusual for prophecies in
Scripture to have double fulfillments.
We’re going to navigate our way
through a passage that will reflect both events.
I will use black blocks on the
screen for the Temple Destruction, and bright red blocks for the Second Coming.
We were talking just last Thursday
in our study of Psalm 118, how more than a few prophecies have two fulfillments
– one near and one far.
There was a prophesied “forerunner”
who would prepare the people for the Messiah’s coming.
The prophecy was fulfilled in John
the Baptist, but will also one day be fulfilled by the prophet Elijah coming
back.
We saw on Thursday night that some
of the events laid out prophetically in Psalm 118 also would have two
fulfillments.
“Blessed is He who comes in the
name of the Lord” was partially fulfilled when Jesus entered Jerusalem and the
people shouted this.
Jesus said there would be another
time when the people would shout this, at His Second Coming.
21:29-36 Signs of His Coming pt.3
:29 Then He spoke to them a parable: “Look at the fig tree, and all the
trees.
Look – horao
– to see with the eyes; to see with the mind, to perceive, know
fig tree – suke
– a fig tree
trees – dendron
– a tree
:30 When they are already budding, you see and know for yourselves that
summer is now near.
already – ede –
now, already
budding – proballo
– to throw forward; of trees, to shoot forth, put out leaves; to germinate
now – ede –
now, already
you see – blepo
– to see, discern, of the bodily eye; metaph. to see with the mind’s eye
know – ginosko
– to learn to know, come to know, get a knowledge of perceive, feel; to
know, understand, perceive, have knowledge of; to know by experience
near – eggus
– near, of place and position; of time
summer – theros
– summer
Summer is near, not harvest.
:30 budding … summer is now near
It’s springtime and the trees in our backyard are budding. Can you guess
which kind of fruit we’ll have from each bud?
Olive Tree
Cherry Tree
Lemon Tree
Avocado Tree
:31 So you also, when you see these things happening, know that the kingdom
of God is near.
see – horao
– to see with the eyes; to see with the mind, to perceive, know
happening – ginomai
– to become, i.e. to come to pass, happen
Present participle
know – ginosko
– to learn to know, come to know, get a knowledge of perceive, feel; to
know, understand, perceive, have knowledge of; to know by experience
near – eggus
– near, of place and position; of time
:31 when you see these things happening
Just as you can tell that the fruit is coming when you see the buds, when
you begin to see “signs”, you can know that Jesus is coming back.
What are the “signs” that show this?
Jesus has been talking about them since verse 8:
False Messiahs (vs.8)
Wars (vs.9)
Earthquakes (vs.11)
Famine (vs. 11)
Disease (vs.11)
Persecution (vs.12)
Jerusalem surrounded by armies (vs.20)
Signs in the heavens (vs.25)
Fear (vs.26)
:29 Look at the fig tree
There was one tree that Jesus distinguished from the other trees, the fig
tree.
The fig tree is a common tree in Israel.
The fig tree is often used in Scripture as a picture of the nation of
Israel (Jer. 24; Hos. 9:10; Luke 13:6-9; Mat. 21:19-20)
(Jeremiah 24:1 NKJV) —1 The Lord showed me, and there were two
baskets of figs set before the temple of the Lord,
after Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had carried away captive Jeconiah the son
of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and the princes of Judah with the craftsmen and
smiths, from Jerusalem, and had brought them to Babylon.
(Hosea 9:10 NKJV) —10 “I found
Israel Like grapes in the wilderness; I saw your fathers As the
firstfruits on the fig tree in its first season. But they went to Baal Peor, And separated themselves to that shame; They became an abomination like the thing they loved.
Jesus Himself has already used the
fig tree as a picture of Israel.
(Luke 13:6–9 NKJV) —6 He also
spoke this parable: “A certain man had a fig tree planted in his
vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. 7 Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, ‘Look, for three
years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none. Cut it down;
why does it use up the ground?’ 8 But he
answered and said to him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around
it and fertilize it. 9 And if it
bears fruit, well. But if not, after that you can cut it down.’ ”
Jesus was talking about how He had
been looking for fruit from the nation for the last three years, but hadn’t
found any.
Matthew recorded that when Jesus
entered Jerusalem, He encountered a fig tree.
(Matthew 21:19–20 NKJV) —19 And seeing
a fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it but leaves, and said
to it, “Let no fruit grow on you ever again.” Immediately the fig tree withered
away. 20 And when the disciples saw it,
they marveled, saying, “How did the fig tree wither away so soon?”
I don’t think Jesus was just hungry
and cranky and took it out on a poor fig tree.
He was giving a prophetic picture
of God withering the nation of Israel for their lack of fruit, for their lack
of recognition of Jesus as their Messiah.
And now Jesus talks about the “sign” of a fig tree putting out leaves,
buds, and eventually fruit.
Though Jesus might simply be talking about the other “signs” being a
portent of things to come like buds, He could also be referring to the nation
of Israel coming out of its long winter, and becoming a fruit bearing tree once
again.
I believe one of the biggest signs that we are in the last days is the
reestablishment of the nation of Israel.
There has never been a nation that has been conquered, scattered, and then
come back to life after 2,000 years.
:32 Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away
till all things take place.
Assuredly – amen
– verily, amen
by no means – ou
me – two negative particles.
pass away – parerchomai
– to go past, pass by; metaph. to pass away, perish; to pass by (pass
over), that is, to neglect, omit,
Aorist subjunctive
take place – ginomai
– to become, i.e. to come to pass, happen
:32 this generation will by no means pass away
generation – genea
– men of the same stock; the whole multitude of men living at the same
time; the time ordinarily occupied by each successive generation, about 40
years.
The word “generation” can speak of people of the same nationality, but it
can also speak of the time span of a generation.
When Moses led Israel through the wilderness, a “generation” was considered
40 years.
Jesus might be saying that the nation of Israel would not pass away until
Jesus comes back.
Jesus might be saying that the people who see the final puzzle pieces
falling into place will be the ones to see His return.
Yet it seems that Jesus is
clarifying what He said in the previous verse, “when you see all these things,
know that it is near – at the doors!”.
The puzzle pieces are the same things we talked about in the previous
verse, the “signs” He’s been describing since verse 8.
I’d like to suggest that there are two of these puzzle pieces that are
still missing – Jerusalem being surrounded by armies (vs. 20), and the signs in
the heavens (vs. 25). Those are things
that happen during the Tribulation.
What puzzle pieces?
False Messiahs (vs.8)
Wars (vs.9)
Earthquakes (vs.11)
Famine (vs. 11)
Disease (vs.11)
Persecution (vs.12)
Jerusalem surrounded by armies
(vs.20)
Signs in the heavens (vs.25)
Fear (vs.26)
Israel established (vs. 30)
There is a sense in which there is that
“double fulfillment” going on, that some of the signs were fulfilled before the
coming destruction of Jerusalem.
Yet all of the signs will be
fulfilled before the Second Coming.
:33 Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.
Heaven – ouranos
– the vaulted expanse of the sky with all things visible in it; the region
above the sidereal heavens, the seat of order of things eternal and
consummately perfect where God dwells and other heavenly beings
earth – ge –
arable land; the main land as opposed to the sea or water; the earth as a
whole; the earth as opposed to the heavens
pass away – parerchomai
– to go past, pass by; metaph. to pass away, perish; to pass by (pass
over), that is, to neglect, omit,
Same word used in vs. 32
First use here is future indicative
This is something that will
definitely happen.
words – logos
– word
by no means – ou
me – two negative particles.
pass away – parerchomai
– to go past, pass by; metaph. to pass away, perish; to pass by (pass
over), that is, to neglect, omit,
Second use is aorist subjunctive
:33 Heaven and earth will pass away
There are some things that will not
pass away, but there are some things that will.
Heaven and earth will one day pass away. Peter wrote,
(2 Peter 3:7 NLT) And by the
same word, the present heavens and earth have been stored up for fire. They are
being kept for the day of judgment, when ungodly people will be destroyed.
God will replace the current heaven and earth with a new heaven and earth.
(Rev. 21:1)
(Revelation 21:1 NKJV) —1 Now I saw
a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had
passed away. Also there was no more sea.
:33 My words will by no means pass away
Lesson
The Bible lasts
Voltaire was a famous French atheist who died in 1778. He said that in one hundred years from his
time Christianity would be swept from existence and passed into history. But
what has happened? Voltaire is gone, and the Bible and Christianity continue.
Fifty years after Voltaire, the Geneva Bible Society was using Voltaire’s own
house and printing press to publish stacks of Bibles.
In A.D. 303 Emperor Diocletian issued an edict to destroy Christians and
their books.
Yet 25 years later, Diocletian was followed by Emperor Constantine, who
commissioned Eusebius to prepare 50 hand-made copies of the Scripture at
government expense.
H.L. Hastings wrote, “Infidels for
eighteen hundred years have been refuting and overthrowing this book, and yet
it stands today as solid as a rock. Its circulation increases, and it is more
loved and cherished and read today than ever before. Infidels, with all their
assaults, make about as much impression on this book as a man with a tack
hammer would on the Pyramids of Egypt.
When a French monarch proposed the
persecution of the Christians in his dominion, an old statesman and warrior
said to him, “Sire, the Church of God is an anvil that has worn out many
hammers.” So the hammers of the infidels have been pecking away at this book
for ages, but the hammers are worn out, and the anvil still endures. If this
book had not been the book of God, men would have destroyed it long ago. Emperors
and popes, kings and priests, princes and rulers have all tried their hand at
it; they die and the book still lives.”
Even today, you will continue to find critics trying to discredit the Bible
on all sorts of grounds.
Yet as the archaeologist’s hammers and shovels in Israel continue to work
(here is a picture of Magdala), they continue to discover more and more
evidence that this book is accurate and true.
Isaiah wrote,
(Isaiah 40:8 NKJV) The grass
withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever.”
Lesson
Invest in what lasts
How many of you have ever listened to music on an 8-track Tape Player?
How many of you have watched a movie in a Drive-in theater lately?
How many of you have made a phone call in a Phone booth lately?
My challenge to you is what you do with that last section of Jelly
Beans. What will you spend your time
doing?
If you’re going to invest your time and energy in something that counts, think
about investing in God’s Word, something that lasts.
I’ve invested a lot of time in things that haven’t gone anywhere.
I’ve never regretted the hours I’ve spent over the last 45 years in God’s
Word.
It’s important not just to read and study God’s Word, but to do what it
says.
(Matthew 7:24–27
NKJV) —24 “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I
will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: 25 and the rain
descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it
did not fall, for it was founded on the rock. 26 “But everyone who hears these
sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his
house on the sand: 27 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and
beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.”
:34 “But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with
carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you
unexpectedly.
:35 For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the
whole earth.
take heed – prosecho
– to bring to, bring near; to bring a ship to land, and simply to touch at,
put in; to turn the mind to, attend to be attentive; give attention to, take
heed
weighed down – bareo
– to burden, weigh down, depress
Does carousing and drunkenness
strike you as things that would “weigh a person down”?
:34 carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life
carousing – kraipale – the
giddiness and headache caused by drinking wine to excess
; the sickness and discomfort
resulting in drunkenness.
It’s not just the high of getting drunk, but the hangover that comes after
you’ve been drunk.
drunkenness – methe
– intoxication; drunkenness
Illustration
One Drunken Night
It’s not so funny when this is your life.
cares of this life
cares – merimna
– care, anxiety
life – biotikos
– pertaining to life and the affairs of this life
This is the worry about how you’re going to make ends meet.
It’s the worry about your next salary increase.
It’s a life that lives for “more”
Drunkenness and the cares of this life can get you sidetracked from what is
really important.
:34 that Day come on you unexpectedly
unexpectedly – aiphnidios
– unexpected, sudden, unforeseen
come – ephistemi
– to place at, place upon, place over; to come upon
When your life is headed in the wrong direction, you will not be ready for
the day you meet God.
(Luke 12:16–21
NKJV) —16 Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain
rich man yielded plentifully. 17 And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I
have no room to store my crops?’ 18 So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build
greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. 19 And I will
say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your
ease; eat, drink, and be merry.” ’ 20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This
night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which
you have provided?’ 21 “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich
toward God.”
Being ready for “that Day” is not just being ready for the Rapture, but
being ready to meet your God.
Every day people find themselves face to face with God, whether it’s in an
auto accident or something tragic happens with their health.
Twenty four years ago when we were meeting at the YMCA, we met a fellow
named Bill Cable. Bill was assigned by the folks at the YMCA to help us each
Sunday. Bill would come to church, but he also kept resisting the gospel. We were
so happy when one day after 2 ½ years, Bill opened his heart to Jesus. Two
weeks later Bill was riding his bike down Chapman Avenue at midnight when he was
killed in a hit and run accident.
We know that Bill is in heaven now, but Bill almost waited too long before
accepting Jesus.
snare – pagis
– snare, trap, noose; of snares in which birds are entangled and caught;
implies unexpectedly, suddenly, because birds and beasts are caught unawares
will come … on – eperchomai
– to come to arrive; to come upon, overtake, one
who dwell – kathemai
– to sit down, seat one’s self; to have a fixed abode, to dwell
:36 Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to
escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of
Man.”
will – mello
– to be about
come to pass – ginomai
– to become, i.e. to come into existence, begin to be, receive being; to
become, i.e. to come to pass, happen
to stand – histemi
– to cause or make to stand, to place, put, set; in the presence of others,
in the midst, before judges, before members of the Sanhedrin;
the Son of Man –
Who is the “Son of Man”?
It’s Jesus. The one who is talking
:36 counted worthy to escape all these things
Some aspects of the end times can
be calculated to the very day.
When the antichrist declares
himself God in the rebuilt Temple, you can count 1260 days, and Jesus will return.
Other aspects of the end times that
are unexpected and can’t be calculated.
Jesus said,
(Matthew 24:36 NKJV) “But of
that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father
only.
How can it be able to be
calculated, and yet unexpected?
It’s Jesus’ Second Coming to judge
the earth that can be calculated.
The unexpected part is known as the
“Rapture”, when Jesus will snatch all believers from the earth to be with Him.
Paul wrote,
(1 Thessalonians 4:17 NKJV) Then we
who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the
clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.
This is the
unexpected, sudden part of the End Times.
The general layout of the End Times looks like this:
At any time Jesus will snatch His church away in the Rapture.
That will be followed by a seven year period known as the Tribulation.
At the end of the seven years, Jesus will return with the church and judge
the world. This is the Second Coming.
The Bible talks about the Tribulation as being the worst time in human
history.
You don’t want to be here when that happens.
Though some people believe that the church will go through the Tribulation,
Jesus seemed to think that it was possible to be counted “worthy” to escape it.
Jesus wrote to the church of Philadelphia:
(Revelation 3:10
NKJV) Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you
from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who
dwell on the earth.
Some people think that this idea
that the church will be raptured before the Tribulation didn’t come into
existence until the 1850’s.
Yet the early church believed in
the “imminency” of Jesus’ return, that He could come back at any moment.
The “Didache” was a document dating
back to the late first century. It gives all sorts of instructions to churches
about things like living a holy life, baptism, fasting, prayer, and communion. The
last chapter is all about being ready for the Second Coming. It starts with:
16.1 Be watchful for your life; let
your lamps not be quenched and your loins not ungirded, but be ye ready; for ye
know not the hour in which our Lord cometh.
worthy to escape –
The early church fathers also spoke
of the imminent return of Jesus.
In the late first century, a
document known as the “Didache” was written, giving instruction to the early
church after the Apostles had all passed. This is from the last chapter of the
Didache:
16. Be watchful for your life; let
your lamps not be quenched and your loins not ungirded, but be ye ready; for ye
know not the hour in which our Lord cometh. 2And ye shall gather
yourselves together frequently, seeking what is fitting for your souls; for the
whole time of your faith shall not profit you, if ye be not perfected at the
last season. 3For in the last days the false prophets and corrupters shall be multiplied, and the
sheep shall be turned into wolves, and love shall be turned into hate. 4For
as lawlessness increaseth, they shall
hate one another and shall persecute and betray. And then the
world-deceiver shall appear as a son
of God; and shall work signs and wonders,
and the earth shall be delivered into his hands; and he shall do unholy things,
which have never been since the world began. 5Then all created
mankind shall come to the fire of testing, and many shall be offended and
perish; but they that endure in their
faith shall be saved by the Curse
Himself. 6And then shall the
signs of the truth appear; first
a sign of a rift in the heaven, then a sign of a voice of a trumpet, and
thirdly a resurrection of the dead; 7yet not of all, but as it was
said: The Lord shall come and all His
saints with Him. 8Then
shall the world see the Lord coming
upon the clouds of heaven.[1]
:36 pray always that you may be
counted worthy to escape
always – literally, “at all times”
pray – deomai
– to want, lack; to desire, long for; to ask, beg
Prayer based on specific needs
counted worthy – kataxioo
(“according to” + “judge worthy”) – to account worthy, judge worthy
Some manuscripts have a different
word here, carrying the idea that we are to pray to “have strength” to escape.
counted worthy – katischuo
– to be strong to another’s detriment, to prevail against; to be superior
in strength; to overcome; to prevail
to escape – ekpheugo
– to flee out of, flee away; to seek safety in flight; to escape
Either way, the result is the same,
to “escape” what is coming.
:36 Watch therefore
Watch – agrupneo
– to be watchful, vigilant
Grammatically, this is the only command in the verse. This is what we’re supposed to do.
While we are watching, we should be “praying” that we are counted worthy to
escape what is coming.
Lesson
Ready or not
Are you ready for what’s around the corner?
Jesus wants us ready to “escape” the things coming on the earth. How do we do that if we’re “watching”?
We pray.
We’re not going to escape without the help of Jesus.
Whether the idea
is about having “strength” to escape, or being “worthy” to escape, the idea is
that you’re not escaping without Jesus.
I do not believe that Jesus will only take those in the
Rapture who are “good” Christians.
Salvation is about grace. It’s about faith in Jesus. It’s about trusting in what He did for us
when He died on the cross.
(Ephesians
2:8–9 NKJV) —8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of
yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.
Do you want to escape the things coming on the earth?
Then you need to turn your life over to Jesus.