Notes from a sermon on 23 October 2011
Matthew 24 verses 42 – 51
The future of all those who have come and put their trust in Christ for the salvation of their soul.
The church is not just a building but it is rather the child of God saved by God’s matchless grace. In Acts chapter 2 the disciples waited for the promised Holy Spirit coming on them in that day. They were all joined together in one body through the power of the Holy Spirit. The function of the church was to go out into all the world and preach the gospel. That is still the same today. The features of the church through the New Testament. This is a mighty body. This is a body whose head is the Lord Jesus Christ. Not tied to anything else. The funding of the church. How is it funded? The apostle Paul’s pen “those saved by the grace of God we are to give to this body to continue in this world." All of that is for the here and now but what is the future of this body – are we mostly going about this world not caring? The future of this church has 4 different aspects – rapture, reception and review.
1 Thessalonians 4 verse 17 “caught up”. This is the word for rapture. Talking about when the Lord comes. When the dead arise from the grave – only the bodies will rise as the souls are already departed and in the presence of the Lord already. This is our inheritance – when we close our eyes in death it is not the end. The body goes to the ground but the soul into the presence of the Lord. When the Lord returns to the air he brings the souls with him and the body is called out from the grave. Both are reunited. The word Paul uses is caught up in the air. Remember the parable of Jesus of a man working in the far country who leaves his servants in charge. The servants lead a riotous time. Jesus likens that to you and I. We can lose sight of the things that matter and be caught up in some other activities that are not pleasing to the Lord. Wouldn’t that be awful if that were to happen to us? We know nothing of the hour or day the Lord will return hence the reason for saying “watch therefore.” Are you watching, waiting for the Lord to return? Daniel 9 he is in the attitude of prayer verse 1. Daniel was a young man taken out of Jerusalem. Many years later when he is old he is living in Babylon still. He had been educated in the king’s palace. He took his stand for the Lord when the servants brought in the food and wine of the kings house. Daniel refused to eat or drink of these things because he felt he would be contaminated if he did. 70 years later he is still living for God. Daniel is a student of God studying the word of God “understood by books”. He was studying a certain topic from the word of God which was the promise given to Jeremiah. The number of years children will be away from Jerusalem in captivity would be 70 years. Daniel is asking God what will happen next. Daniel has a concern for the people. We need to have that same concern today, a compassion for people. He wants to find out what will happen in the future - verse 3. Daniel knew something of what it was to pray, he hadn’t forgotten, he was determined. The same phrase “set my face” was used of Jesus when he did that in relation to his death on the cross of Calvary. When he opened up what would happen to his disciples Peter jumped up and said “not so Lord.” The Lord replied “get thee behind me Satan.” There will always be something to hinder us whenever we get down to the place of prayer or study the word of God or even to get to various meetings. Daniel shows us the urgency and importance in these verses. Daniel wanted to know 70 years spoken of to Jeremiah. We find here that when he gets to prayer Daniel gets an unusual answer. The answer was widened out into a programme, God’s programme that is foretold. Daniel receives an answer but it is an answer that is widened out. God opens his calendar to show what would happen not just in the next 70 years but right down the generations. Verses 24 – 27 marks out 3 distinctive schedules. Verse 24 = 70 weeks. Verse 25 = 7 weeks 3 score and 2 weeks. Verse 26 = 3 score and 2 weeks. Verse 27 = 1 week. Language used here is figurative. Language of weeks are really years. The word “weeks” is the Hebrew word “hepta” which means 7. God used the word “hepta” to speak of 7. Whenever he speaks of 70 weeks it means 70 groups of seven years or 490 years in total. Daniel is getting before God and praying. God is opening up his own schedule and showing what would happen in generations to come. Need to be careful again not only does he tell Daniel 490 years but when it would begin – verse 25. 7 weeks 3 score and 2 weeks. 69 in total. Started off with 70 now we have a week missing. Timescale to start this programme was whenever Jerusalem would be rebuilt again. From that time it took 69 years. God is showing Daniel here something that is important. The very day when the Lord would be hailed as prince on Palm Sunday when Jesus rode into Jerusalem, put palm leaves down in front of him and they hailed him as king was the day God spoke of here. 500 years before that event God said it would be happening. Verse 26 after he was hailed prince then he was rejected, ridiculed and crucified on the 70th week. Verse 27 speaks of the 69 weeks plus 1 which adds up to 70. That which God began to talk of would happen after the programme was interrupted. The Lord was crucified, rejected of man and set aside. The final week is still to come. That final week hasn’t started. Robert Anderson’s book “Daniel in the critics den” calculated it all out. When Jesus began his public ministry he was 30 years old. He was 33½ years when he died. What about this week – verse 26. Messiah was cut off from you and I. Threescore and 2 weeks is 62. “and the people of the prince shall come and shall destroy the city and the sanctuary and the end thereof shall be with a flood and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.” The people of the prince – this was destruction of Jerusalem. After Jesus died armies of the prince came to destroy the temple of the Lord. In Jerusalem Roman soldiers did exactly that. Jesus said not one stone would be left. There was only one way they could get the gold out from between the stones in the temple and it was to dismantle it one stone by one stone. No prince but it was the people. Not one stone would be left Jesus said. Verses 27 “and he shall confirm the covenant” who is the “he” mentioned here? He is none other than the anti-Christ. “with many for one week” that is the week that is missing = 7 years. Christ is coming again. As you look at the papers, listen to the news, see the downfall of nation after nation, the financial fall, famines, earthquakes, pestilences and rumours of war. These are the signs the anti-Christ is on his way. Before those things come to pass, before 7 years of his being on this earth the church is going out is that 70th week. It is so close but how much closer shall the coming of the Lord be to take his people home.
The church is not just a building but it is rather the child of God saved by God’s matchless grace. In Acts chapter 2 the disciples waited for the promised Holy Spirit coming on them in that day. They were all joined together in one body through the power of the Holy Spirit. The function of the church was to go out into all the world and preach the gospel. That is still the same today. The features of the church through the New Testament. This is a mighty body. This is a body whose head is the Lord Jesus Christ. Not tied to anything else. The funding of the church. How is it funded? The apostle Paul’s pen “those saved by the grace of God we are to give to this body to continue in this world." All of that is for the here and now but what is the future of this body – are we mostly going about this world not caring? The future of this church has 4 different aspects – rapture, reception and review.
1 Thessalonians 4 verse 17 “caught up”. This is the word for rapture. Talking about when the Lord comes. When the dead arise from the grave – only the bodies will rise as the souls are already departed and in the presence of the Lord already. This is our inheritance – when we close our eyes in death it is not the end. The body goes to the ground but the soul into the presence of the Lord. When the Lord returns to the air he brings the souls with him and the body is called out from the grave. Both are reunited. The word Paul uses is caught up in the air. Remember the parable of Jesus of a man working in the far country who leaves his servants in charge. The servants lead a riotous time. Jesus likens that to you and I. We can lose sight of the things that matter and be caught up in some other activities that are not pleasing to the Lord. Wouldn’t that be awful if that were to happen to us? We know nothing of the hour or day the Lord will return hence the reason for saying “watch therefore.” Are you watching, waiting for the Lord to return? Daniel 9 he is in the attitude of prayer verse 1. Daniel was a young man taken out of Jerusalem. Many years later when he is old he is living in Babylon still. He had been educated in the king’s palace. He took his stand for the Lord when the servants brought in the food and wine of the kings house. Daniel refused to eat or drink of these things because he felt he would be contaminated if he did. 70 years later he is still living for God. Daniel is a student of God studying the word of God “understood by books”. He was studying a certain topic from the word of God which was the promise given to Jeremiah. The number of years children will be away from Jerusalem in captivity would be 70 years. Daniel is asking God what will happen next. Daniel has a concern for the people. We need to have that same concern today, a compassion for people. He wants to find out what will happen in the future - verse 3. Daniel knew something of what it was to pray, he hadn’t forgotten, he was determined. The same phrase “set my face” was used of Jesus when he did that in relation to his death on the cross of Calvary. When he opened up what would happen to his disciples Peter jumped up and said “not so Lord.” The Lord replied “get thee behind me Satan.” There will always be something to hinder us whenever we get down to the place of prayer or study the word of God or even to get to various meetings. Daniel shows us the urgency and importance in these verses. Daniel wanted to know 70 years spoken of to Jeremiah. We find here that when he gets to prayer Daniel gets an unusual answer. The answer was widened out into a programme, God’s programme that is foretold. Daniel receives an answer but it is an answer that is widened out. God opens his calendar to show what would happen not just in the next 70 years but right down the generations. Verses 24 – 27 marks out 3 distinctive schedules. Verse 24 = 70 weeks. Verse 25 = 7 weeks 3 score and 2 weeks. Verse 26 = 3 score and 2 weeks. Verse 27 = 1 week. Language used here is figurative. Language of weeks are really years. The word “weeks” is the Hebrew word “hepta” which means 7. God used the word “hepta” to speak of 7. Whenever he speaks of 70 weeks it means 70 groups of seven years or 490 years in total. Daniel is getting before God and praying. God is opening up his own schedule and showing what would happen in generations to come. Need to be careful again not only does he tell Daniel 490 years but when it would begin – verse 25. 7 weeks 3 score and 2 weeks. 69 in total. Started off with 70 now we have a week missing. Timescale to start this programme was whenever Jerusalem would be rebuilt again. From that time it took 69 years. God is showing Daniel here something that is important. The very day when the Lord would be hailed as prince on Palm Sunday when Jesus rode into Jerusalem, put palm leaves down in front of him and they hailed him as king was the day God spoke of here. 500 years before that event God said it would be happening. Verse 26 after he was hailed prince then he was rejected, ridiculed and crucified on the 70th week. Verse 27 speaks of the 69 weeks plus 1 which adds up to 70. That which God began to talk of would happen after the programme was interrupted. The Lord was crucified, rejected of man and set aside. The final week is still to come. That final week hasn’t started. Robert Anderson’s book “Daniel in the critics den” calculated it all out. When Jesus began his public ministry he was 30 years old. He was 33½ years when he died. What about this week – verse 26. Messiah was cut off from you and I. Threescore and 2 weeks is 62. “and the people of the prince shall come and shall destroy the city and the sanctuary and the end thereof shall be with a flood and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.” The people of the prince – this was destruction of Jerusalem. After Jesus died armies of the prince came to destroy the temple of the Lord. In Jerusalem Roman soldiers did exactly that. Jesus said not one stone would be left. There was only one way they could get the gold out from between the stones in the temple and it was to dismantle it one stone by one stone. No prince but it was the people. Not one stone would be left Jesus said. Verses 27 “and he shall confirm the covenant” who is the “he” mentioned here? He is none other than the anti-Christ. “with many for one week” that is the week that is missing = 7 years. Christ is coming again. As you look at the papers, listen to the news, see the downfall of nation after nation, the financial fall, famines, earthquakes, pestilences and rumours of war. These are the signs the anti-Christ is on his way. Before those things come to pass, before 7 years of his being on this earth the church is going out is that 70th week. It is so close but how much closer shall the coming of the Lord be to take his people home.
No comments:
Post a Comment