Slices
Prepare
As you come to today’s reading, give God the things that are on your mind. Commit them to his safe keeping so you can focus on his Word.
Bible passage
The destruction of the temple and signs of the end times
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 fulfilment 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.
Explore
A couple of days ago we thought about what it means to live in the light of our future resurrection. This passage gives one ‘worked example’.
Look at verses 16–18. Jesus predicted what many of his followers, both soon after his ascension and up to the present day, would face: rejection, betrayal, hatred, persecution. Some would be killed for their faith, but even to those, Jesus promises, ‘But not a hair of your head will perish’ (v 18). We may lose our lives on this earth, but this earth isn’t all there is. It isn’t the real thing. When we stand before the Lord in glory, we will find that not a single hair has been harmed, no matter what we have suffered.
And Jesus teaches us how to approach such persecutions: ‘Make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves’ (v 14). This isn’t just saying ‘don’t worry about tomorrow’s problems today’, but ‘decide today that you’re not going to worry about your problems tomorrow’! How amazing! We can stop future anxiety now by deciding to trust God to keep his promises.
Respond
There is much to worry about in the world. This passage reminds us that God knows about it all and we can trust him even when things seem to go wrong. Ask him to help you cast all your anxieties on him (1 Peter 5:7).
Deeper Bible study
Outward beauty may please our eyes, but inner beauty shines brightest.
The Eiffel Tower in Paris, Big Ben in London and the Petronas Twin Towers of Kuala Lumpur are examples of city symbols today. In the first century, the Temple of Jerusalem was the icon of the city. Every pilgrim to Jerusalem was deeply impressed by it. However, Jesus was not impressed by what he saw there. On the day after he entered Jerusalem, he cleansed the Temple.1 Later on, the disciples commented about the beauty of the Temple, leading Jesus to predict its destruction (v 6).
The destruction of the first Temple by the Babylonians was etched in the culture of the Jews in the first century. None of them could comprehend how God would allow this to happen again. Jesus then explained to the disciples the signs of when the Temple might be destroyed (vs 8–24). There would be false prophets, wars and persecution (vs 9–18). The exhortation to ‘Watch out’ and ‘Stand firm’ (vs 8,19) emphasises how much Jesus wanted the disciples to be prepared for the disaster and not to be caught unawares and be led astray.
In AD 70, the Temple was destroyed by the Roman armies. Today, on the western edge of the platform of the Temple, huge stones that were thrown down during the destruction are still visible – truly ‘not one stone will be left on another; every one of them will be thrown down’ (v 6).
The warnings of Jesus speak to us today. As we look at the external beauty of our lives, we may think that all is well with us but, if we are honest with ourselves as we take a hard look deep within, what will we find? Are we like those religious leaders during the time of Jesus who refused to repent of their sins? Or are we prepared to keep watch and stand firm at all times?
May we examine our lives so that we will not drop our guard and be complacent.
Bible in a year
Read the Bible in a year: Deuteronomy 27,28; Romans 7
Pray for Scripture Union
As we enter the new financial year, please pray for wisdom and clarity of vision as we seek to navigate turbulent economic times in our society. Pray that our recent experience will help to refine the Revealing Jesus framework to provide better help to local churches and volunteers as they journey alongside the 95.
