Scripture

“I tell you the truth, this generation will not from the scene until all these things take place. Heaven and earth will disappear, but my words will never disappear.”

Observation

Jesus continues to warn about the soon to happen events.

False messiahs and false prophets will arise in order to deceive, if possible, God’s children. Then, the sun will be dark and and stars will fall from the sky – this is a reference to the falling of political power in Jerusalem in 70 AD. People will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds – a reference to Christ judging the nation with power and glory.

That generation to whom Jesus was speaking would not disappear until these things happened. Heaven and earth may pass away but his words will not i.e. things are as sure as God’s promises.

Application

All of these things are meant to be seen as referring to the terrible events of AD 70. Jesus confirms this by saying,“This generation will not pass from the scene until these things take place.” In other words, they would happen inside a 40 year time period from when Jesus spoke. AD 70 fits into this time scale.

It is astonishing (well not really, when we understand God’s gift of prophecy) that Jesus so accurately described what was to come and ultimately what did occur.

I find this comforting. The Lord knows everything that is going to happen in our future and already has it under control. He was not surprised by the events of the year 70, and He is not surprised by the events of the year 2023 .

Many have come to believe that these events are signs of Jesus’ second coming. But in order to do this, they have to bend the words of Jesus out of shape and construct elaborate and complex timelines.

The kingdom of God is already here, and everything predicted by Jesus in this passage has already happened.

Prayer

Thank you Father that you know my days before I do. Thank you for the assurance that you are in control. Amen