Sermon Notes

24 As Jesus came out of the temple and was going away, his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple. 2 Then he asked them, “You see all these, do you not? Truly I tell you, not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.” 3 When he was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” 4 Jesus answered them, “Beware that no one leads you astray. 5 For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Messiah!’ and they will lead many astray. 6 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places: 8 all this is but the beginning of the birth pangs. 9 “Then they will hand you over to be tortured and will put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of my name. 10 Then many will fall away, and they will betray one another and hate one another. 11 And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. 12 And because of the increase of lawlessness, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But the one who endures to the end will be saved. 14 And this good news of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the world, as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.] 15 “So when you see the desolating sacrilege, spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), 16 then those in Judea must flee to the mountains; 17 the one on the housetop must not go down to take things from the house; 18 the one in the field must not turn back to get a coat. 19 Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing infants in those days! 20 Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath. 21 For at that time there will be great suffering, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. 22 And if those days had not been cut short, no one would be saved, but for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short. 23 Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look! Here is the Messiah!’ or ‘There he is!’—do not believe it. 24 For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and produce great signs and wonders, to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. (New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition, NRSVue)
24 1-2 Jesus then left the Temple. As he walked away, his disciples pointed out how very impressive the Temple architecture was. Jesus said, “You’re not impressed by all this sheer size, are you? The truth of the matter is that there’s not a stone in that building that is not going to end up in a pile of rubble.” 3 Later as he was sitting on Mount Olives, his disciples approached and asked him, “Tell us, when are these things going to happen? What will be the sign of your coming, that the time’s up?” 4-8 Jesus said, “Watch out for doomsday deceivers. Many leaders are going to show up with forged identities, claiming, ‘I am Christ, the Messiah.’ They will deceive a lot of people. When reports come in of wars and rumored wars, keep your head and don’t panic. This is routine history; this is no sign of the end. Nation will fight nation and ruler fight ruler, over and over. Famines and earthquakes will occur in various places. This is nothing compared to what is coming. 9-10 “They are going to throw you to the wolves and kill you, everyone hating you because you carry my name. And then, going from bad to worse, it will be dog-eat-dog, everyone at each other’s throat, everyone hating each other.11-12 “In the confusion, lying preachers will come forward and deceive a lot of people. For many others, the overwhelming spread of evil will do them in—nothing left of their love but a mound of ashes.13-14 “Staying with it—that’s what God requires. Stay with it to the end. You won’t be sorry, and you’ll be saved. All during this time, the good news—the Message of the kingdom—will be preached all over the world, a witness staked out in every country. And then the end will come. 15-20 “But be ready to run for it when you see the monster of desecration set up in the Temple sanctuary. The prophet Daniel described this. If you’ve read Daniel, you’ll know what I’m talking about. If you’re living in Judea at the time, run for the hills; if you’re working in the yard, don’t return to the house to get anything; if you’re out in the field, don’t go back and get your coat. Pregnant and nursing mothers will have it especially hard. Hope and pray this won’t happen during the winter or on a Sabbath. 21-22 “This is going to be trouble on a scale beyond what the world has ever seen, or will see again. If these days of trouble were left to run their course, nobody would make it. But on account of God’s chosen people, the trouble will be cut short. 23-25 “If anyone tries to flag you down, calling out, ‘Here’s the Messiah!’ or points, ‘There he is!’ don’t fall for it. Fake Messiahs and lying preachers are going to pop up everywhere. Their impressive credentials and bewitching performances will pull the wool over the eyes of even those who ought to know better. (The Message, MSG)

As a child, taking long summer road trips to visit family in other parts of the country were both a blessing and burden. After long several hours of driving, my sister and brother would inevitably ask my parents, “when will we get there?” My Mother would respond succinctly, “when we get there!” Of course, that answer simply not good enough because we wanted to speed up our arrival to enjoy my Grandmother’s home-made ice cream, fresh picked watermelons from Papa’s vegetable garden, and playing with our cousins. Our preoccupation with the question “when” was not easily satisfied.
When reflecting on this week’s lesson, I realize my childhood preoccupation with the question of when is not singular. In the Bible, questions concerning the “whens” of life abound. Noah and his family likely wondered, “when will the flood waters recede? Sarah and Abraham probably pondered, “when will we have the child of promise?” The Judean deportees no doubt cried out, “when will our exile end.” And in the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus’ disciples ask him, “when will these things occur? However, in this lesson concerning Jesus’ response about the fate of the Jerusalem temple and the end times, Matthew reminds us that Christians should worry less about the “whens” of life and instead focus on remining faithful regardless of the times.

Although Christian tradition has attributed the Gospel of Matthew to one of Jesus’ disciples—Matthew the tax collector—since the second century CE, it is an anonymous work dated from 80-90 in the 1st century CE. While we do not know who wrote this gospel, we know the writer had access to the Gospel of Mark (the earliest gospel), and that they edited Mark’s work to include numerous sayings of Jesus that were not included by Mark. Based on how this anonymous writer reworked material from the Gospel of Mark, and inserted Jesus’ words, biblical scholars have discerned that the writer/author of Matthew is a Jewish Christian who likely led a Jewish Christian congregation—the Matthean Community—that consistently found themselves at odds with Jewish religious leaders.
As pastoral theology, the Gospel of Matthew reflects a Christian community that tightly affirms its Jewish heritage, culture, and scripture, while precariously negotiating its affirmation of Jesus as the Christ. To be a Matthean Christian is to uphold the Hebrew Scriptures, but interpret them in ways that reflect the life, mission, ministry, and theological world-view of Jesus of Nazareth and speak to the current issues facing Matthean Christians. The writer of the Gospel of Matthew balances the received traditions about Jesus with the contemporary struggles of the Matthean community, to craft a gospel narrative that brings together God’s activity in Jesus with the lived experience of Matthean Christians.
Matthew’s Gospel consists of six major parts and the lesson text comes from the fifth portion (21:1–27:66) which centers on the conflict Jesus faces in Jerusalem with religious leaders and Roman officials. In chapter 21, Jesus makes his triumphal entry into Jerusalem, cleanses the temple, and curses the fig tree (21). In chapters 22-24, Jesus teaches on the greatest commandment, denounces Scribes and Pharisees, and laments over the impending fate of Jerusalem. In chapter 25, Jesus offers his disciples three parables that underscore the importance of preparation for the impending reign of God which he calls the “kingdom of heaven.” In chapters 26 and 27, the ongoing conflict Jesus has with Jewish religious leaders and Roman authorities culminate in his betrayal, arrest, and crucifixion.
In Matthew 24:1-14, Jesus foretells the destruction of the temple and teaches the disciples about a future all-encompassing judgement that will occur after his second coming. Biblical scholars call this final speech the Eschatological Discourse (24-25). While the Sermon on the Mount (5-7) is often quoted more than any other of Jesus speeches in the Gospel of Matthew, it is the Eschatological Discourse—also called the Olivette Discourse because it is given on the Mount of Olives—that best describes a final reckoning for those people and empires who do not accept the kingdom of God/Heaven that Jesus inaugurates. Because the Jewish religious leaders (Pharisees, Sadducees, scribes, priests, and elders), reject Jesus as the Messiah, they consistently challenge his authority and seek out ways to publicly discredit him. Often, these debates occur in the temple—a place that the writer of Matthew represents as symbolizing the complicity of Jewish religious leaders with Roman imperial rule.
This week’s lesson text is best understood when read comparatively with its Synoptic parallels in Mark 13:1-23 and Luke 21:5-36. Collectively, these texts are known as the Synoptic Apocalypse because each biblical passage discusses the destruction of the temple and Jerusalem, as well as the end times (apocalypse in Greek).

1-2 Jesus then left the Temple. As he walked away, his disciples pointed out how very impressive the Temple architecture was. Jesus said, “You’re not impressed by all this sheer size, are you? The truth of the matter is that there’s not a stone in that building that is not going to end up in a pile of rubble.”
In the opening verses of the opening verses of the lesson text, Jesus explicitly refers to the temple’s destruction which occurred 70 CE as a consequence of the Jewish rebellion against the Roman Empire. While we traditionally read this biblical text as a prediction or foretelling of how the Romans sacked the temple and burned Jerusalem, because the Gospel of Matthew is not written before 80 CE, this scriptural passage reflects a backwards looking viewpoint of the writer of the Gospel of Matthew. When compared to Mark’s version of these apocalyptic events (Mark 13), it is clear that Matthew has rewritten Mark to present Jesus as making a deliberate exit from the temple after he laments over Jerusalem (Matthew 23:37-39).
Like the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament prophets warned Israel/Judah that religious apostacy, social justice abuses, and religious corruption would result in the God abandoning the first temple, Jesus now warns that God’s presence will leave the second temple. Therefore, when Jesus leaves the temple in Matthew it represents God’s glory—personified in Jesus as the Christ—departing from the temple. This parallels Ezekiel 10:18 and 11:23. Further, only the disciples follow Jesus out of the Temple, symbolizing how the religious leaders and crowds are decisively choosing to ignore Jesus’ warnings. While the second temple is an impressive architectural feat, it will be destroyed because it no longer houses God’s presence.
3 Later as he was sitting on Mount Olives, his disciples approached and asked him, “Tell us, when are these things going to happen? What will be the sign of your coming, that the time’s up?” 4-8 Jesus said, “Watch out for doomsday deceivers. Many leaders are going to show up with forged identities, claiming, ‘I am Christ, the Messiah.’ They will deceive a lot of people. When reports come in of wars and rumored wars, keep your head and don’t panic. This is routine history; this is no sign of the end. Nation will fight nation and ruler fight ruler, over and over. Famines and earthquakes will occur in various places. This is nothing compared to what is coming.
In verses 3-8, after Jesus goes to the Mount of Olives, the disciples approach him with “when” questions concerning the end times. Again, Matthew edits Mark’s version of events, calling attention to the fact that all of the disciples ask these questions as opposed to only four disciples in Mark’s gospel. In the Gospel of Mark, the four disciples are separated from the crowds by their curiosity about the end times. In the Gospel of Matthew, all of the disciple are separated from the crowds as they collectively pose these tough “when” questions.
The fact that Jesus is seated on the Mount of Olives, invokes eschatological imagery from the fourteenth chapter of Zechariah which describes judgement for all people and nations who do not embrace the word of the Lord. In Zechariah 14, God will enter the city and establish the Kingdom of God/Heaven after vanquishing Israel/Judah’s enemies. However, before the coming of the Divine kingdom, pretenders, wars, and devastating natural disasters will occur.
Like Zechariah, verses 4-8 of Matthew’s gospel also invoke false leaders, wars, and natural disasters as signs that the apocalypse is quickly approaching. Therefore, these verses essentially answer the “when” question. When Christians see these events occurring, they know God’s kingdom is being established. While Matthew discusses these events, he is less concerned about signs that point to the “when” question, and instead focuses on ensuring the Matthean Church is them to fully interpret how Jesus contextualizes the impending end times. According to Matthew, the primary sign of the apocalypse will be the Christian community will go through persecution. Like Mark’s version of this text, Matthew says there will be a time of intense suffering before Jesus returns to fully establish God’s Kingdom. Christians will suffer because they carry the name of Jesus Christ. Because they profess Jesus as their lord and savior, tribulation will come because of their faith. Many will fall away from their belief in Jesus and their love for the Christ and his gospel of will literally crumble. Further, they will turn their backs on living in agape love, thus forgetting that the greatest commandments are to “love God with their heart, soul, and strength,” and “love their neighbor as themselves.”
However, everyone will not reject their faith in Jesus. Many Christians will remain faithful until the end, preach an uncompromised gospel, and continue to embrace ministry with passion even though they are continually persecuted. During this final persecution, the church does not implode. This period of tribulation will also be a time of spiritual growth. The Church will embrace their mission to preach, teach, serve and evangelize until God’s will is “done on earth as it is in heaven.” Remember, this is occasional pastoral theology—meaning the writer of Matthew writes to a specific community of Christian believers to recount the life, ministry, crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus so they will remain faithful and endure until the end.
15-20 “But be ready to run for it when you see the monster of desecration set up in the Temple sanctuary. The prophet Daniel described this. If you’ve read Daniel, you’ll know what I’m talking about. If you’re living in Judea at the time, run for the hills; if you’re working in the yard, don’t return to the house to get anything; if you’re out in the field, don’t go back and get your coat. Pregnant and nursing mothers will have it especially hard. Hope and pray this won’t happen during the winter or on a Sabbath. 21-22 “This is going to be trouble on a scale beyond what the world has ever seen, or will see again. If these days of trouble were left to run their course, nobody would make it. But on account of God’s chosen people, the trouble will be cut short. 23-25 “If anyone tries to flag you down, calling out, ‘Here’s the Messiah!’ or points, ‘There he is!’ don’t fall for it. Fake Messiahs and lying preachers are going to pop up everywhere. Their impressive credentials and bewitching performances will pull the wool over the eyes of even those who ought to know better.
In the final verses of the lesson text, Jesus says additional signs of the end times will be the desecration of the temple and numerous false messianic claims. The desecration of the temple will occur when Romans profane the temple by introducing statues of the emperor or images of the emperor into the Jewish temple. Matthew invokes the prophet Daniel, who foretold that a “desolating sacrilege” would occur (9:27; 11:31; 12:11). This is a reference to Antiochus IV, who was called Epiphanes, profaning the altar in the Jerusalem temple in 167 BCE. Matthew says the same type of defamation that occurred then will occur in the 1st Century CE in Jerusalem.
In verses 17-19 Jesus directs the faith community to flee, leaving everything. However, this flight is not an indication of cowardice, or a lack of faith. Rather, Jesus says they should flee their fear, running towards the missionary ministry of the Christian faith. During times of distress, persecution and difficulty, Christians are energized by the call of the Gospel to evangelize the lost. Like Andrew and Peter fled from being fishermen to become fishes of men, Christians should flee their old lives to embrace the work of ministering to the needs of hurting people. When trouble comes, the faithful disciples run towards trouble to bring a life-affirming word of hope grounded in Jesus of Nazareth.
As faithful Christians run “into the fire,” they overcome the false messiahs and fake preachers that talk a good talk, but fail to do the work of evangelizing the lost, nurturing believers, and ministering to those in need. Ultimately, the writer of Matthew reminds us that instead of wondering “when” the end times will come, the Church should be working “in the meantime,” to preach, teach, and minister in the name of Jesus.

i. Mark Allan Powell, “Matthew” in The SBL Study Bible: New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition (New York: HarperCollins Publishing, 2023) 1740.
ii. M. Eugene Boring, “The Gospel of Matthew: Introduction, Commentary and Reflections,” in The New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, Volume VII (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015) 37-58 and 188-195.