“But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. For just as the days of Noah were, so the coming of the Son of Man will be … Therefore stay awake, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming.”
- Matthew 24:36-37, 42 -
We’ve all heard of the Mount of Olives. When David’s son, Absalom, seized Jerusalem, King David and his followers fled the city by it: ‘David went up the ascent of the Mount of Olives, and wept as he went, and his head was covered and he was walking barefoot. And all the people who were with him each covered his head and went up weeping as they went’ (2 Sam. 15:30). What a sorrowful scene!
Years later, Olivet saw even more tragedy when Solomon used it for idol worship: ‘Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the detestable idol of Moab, on the mountain which is east of Jerusalem, and for Molech the detestable idol of the sons of Ammon’ (1 Kings 11:7). Exiled in Babylon, Ezekiel even saw a vision as the glory of God departed from Jerusalem and ‘stood over the mountain which is east of the city’ (Ezek. 11:23).
Impressive and varied as these instances are, we typically associate the Mount of Olives with Jesus. The preacher says “Olivet” and we picture Christ riding down the mountain and into Jerusalem for His triumphal entry. We remember Him raising Lazarus in the village of Bethany on the back of Olivet. We recall Jesus being in agony and praying so fervently in the Garden of Gethsemane that Luke tells us ‘His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the ground’ (22:44). Then came our Lord’s betrayal and arrest as the Passover moon bathed the mountain’s ancient olive groves an eerie white.
After His trials, crucifixion, and resurrection, Jesus proved His fondness for the mount by ascending to heaven there: ‘He led His disciples out as far as Bethany, and lifting up His hands, He blessed them. And it happened that while He was blessing them, He parted from them and was carried up into heaven’ (Luke 24:50-51). Zechariah prophesied 500 years earlier that Jesus, the Messiah, would return to earth in the same way He left, arriving back at the very same place: ‘In that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which is in front of Jerusalem on the east; and the Mount of Olives will be split in its middle from east to west’ (Zech. 14:4). This end times prophecy naturally leads us to Christ’s great teaching on His own return, known as the Olivet Discourse.
Having pronounced woe after devastating woe on phony Jewish leaders during Passion Week, Jesus turned His back on their damning system, saying: “How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you did not want it. Behold, your house is being left to you desolate!” (Matt. 23:37-38). The gleaming Temple was no longer “My Father’s house” (John 2:12). Jesus gave this marvel of antiquity over to destruction. And yet the Temple’s majesty still clouded the disciples’ thinking: ‘His disciples came up to point out the Temple buildings to Him. And He answered and said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down”’ (Matt. 24:1-2).
What does Jesus mean by all these things? He could mean the Temple, with its dazzling courtyards and gold clad towers. But after the damning woes He just leveled against corrupt Judaism, Jesus might be asking His disciples if they’ve grasped all these things He’s just said. As usual, they didn’t. They thought Herod’s Temple was too magnificent to ever topple. Yet when Rome sacked Jerusalem in A.D. 70, the lofty Temple would be burned and its gold façade melt between the colossal stones. Soldiers and scavengers would demolish every block, seeking some small fortune. Thus Jesus’ Olivet Discourse begins with a prophecy of doom.
The disciples, rocked by this prediction, ask rather desperately: “When will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming and of the end of the age?” (Matt. 24:3). So Jesus fleshes out Daniel’s prophecy, known to all true Jews. He speaks of God’s future chastisement and purification of Israel, then His judgment of the whole world. Christ describes false messiahs, natural catastrophes, and widespread conflict, “but all these things are merely the beginning of birth pains” (24:8). It’s easy to get caught up in eschatology and lose oneself in the abomination of desolation or false Christs and their signs and wonders. But doing that means missing two major teachings in the Olivet Discourse: the believer’s need for endurance and readiness.
Before describing the second half of the tribulation, Jesus warns that “many false prophets will arise and will deceive many. And because lawlessness is multiplied, most people’s love will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom shall be proclaimed in the whole world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come” (Matt. 24:11-14). The love of most - not a few - will grow cold to God, Jesus says. This plays out in John’s Revelation when most curse God rather than throw themselves on His mercy as the world melts around them. So Christ tells disciples of every age to endure. This is why the Spirit inspired Matthew to record several parables about endurance and readiness that Jesus spoke on Olivet.
Jesus teaches: “Learn the parable from the fig tree: when its branch has already become tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near; so, you too, when you see all these things, recognize that He is near, right at the door” (Matt. 24:32-33). We aren’t to mimic the religious hypocrites who came to Christ demanding signs. Our Lord rebuked them, saying they predict the weather by the sky but fail to “discern the signs of the times” (16:3). The Lord of Glory met blasphemers with perfect words and miracle power, yet they were blind to His singular majesty. As believers, we must not be like them. We must soberly align today’s news with biblical prophecy to remain prepared for Christ’s return.
Our Christ is generous and loving. Not only does He teach endurance on Olivet but He promises rewards for all who persevere to the end. He asks: “Who then is the faithful and prudent slave whom his master put in charge of his household to give them their food at the proper time? Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes. Truly I say to you that he will put him in charge of all his possession” (Matt. 24:45-47). This is the same path to blessing that Paul promised the Romans, saying: ‘The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, also heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him’ (8:16-17). What hope belongs to all who are heirs with Christ!
The flip-side comes at the end of this parable, just as it does in the parables of the ten virgins and the talents. Teaching atop Olivet, Jesus stays committed to truth. He doesn’t offer sunshine and rainbows, but danger, turmoil, and a glorious reward to those who toil. He also offers punishments for all who fall into sin before His return. Those who say in their hearts, “My master is not coming for a long time” and live licentiously, “the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour which he does not know, and will cut him in pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matt. 24:48, 50-51).
Jesus ends His discourse with the parable of the sheep and goats. Having warned of the need for readiness, watchfulness, and faithfulness, He hammers home that we will all give an account when He returns. The saved and the unsaved will be divided like sheep and goats as the tribulation ends but before the millennial kingdom begins. In the days following His Olivet Discourse, Jesus was betrayed into the hands of unbelievers and crucified for sinners. But the Holy One of God will return in glory to judge the world. He has laid the way of salvation for all who trust in Him. So learn from our Lord. Trust in Him and remain steadfast until He returns with your reward.
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