Jesus wraps up His Olivet Discourse prophecies by talking about when He will return to the earth again at the Second Coming, and how Israel's miraculous return will mark the beginning of the end times "season".
Transcription (automatically-generated):
And today, we're in the third part of our study through the Olivet discourse, a famous teaching given by Jesus to his disciples on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem just before his arrest, trial and crucifixion.
And in this teaching, Jesus talks about the future, including the end times.
He shares some incredible prophecies, some of which have already come true and others that lie in the near future. And if you missed either of the last two weeks or pastor BJ's introduction to the Olivet discourse before that, I encourage you to hop on Facebook. If you're a member of God Rock New Hope Church's website, if you're part of that church and just catch up, because this is fascinating stuff and it all builds upon itself.
And in this study, we're going to take a look at what I think is one of the most amazing prophetic subjects in the Bible. And it's a huge, prophetic subject because it was actually fulfilled potentially. In less than 100 years from where we are right now, it happened in the 20th century and so I hope I've intrigued you with that.
I'm just going to leave that hanging as we get into the study.
And if you're wondering why we would take the time to study a subject like Bible prophecy, if you're thinking, why don't we just talk about something more practical and related to everyday life? It's because Bible prophecy builds our faith.
It reminds us that God is real. His promises are real. His word is true. He knows the future and he holds it in his hands. And so let's allow the Holy Spirit to build our faith as we discover more that God has said in his word that has already happened and is yet to come.
If you were with us last week, then you will recall that in Matthew 24, Jesus spent Verse is 15 to 28 talking about events that are going to take place in this span of time called the seven year tribulation. We're talking about some freaky stuff like Antichrist, the abomination of desolation and all that stuff. And if you don't know what I'm talking about and you're suddenly scared that you've maybe stumbled upon a cult, you haven't, I promise. Just hang with us, see where we're going today.
Go back and listen to last week's message and you'll be caught up on everything. Says we dive into today's study at Verse 8 29. Read there with me. Jesus shifts gears and he says immediately after the tribulation of those days. And I want you to underline that if you're a note taker, because whatever Jesus is about to talk about next, he's telling us that it's going to take place after the seven year tribulation.
But I want you to notice what Jesus also says. He says it will take place immediately after the tribulation immediately. In fact, this event could easily be considered the event that ends the tribulation. Jesus is going to be talking about the event known as the second coming. You supposed to gasp there, let's do that one more time, OK? Jesus is going to talk about the event known as the second coming. I know, I know. It's incredible.
It's incredible. I had to underline that first part of Verse 8 29 for a simple reason. You know, when you talk about Matthew 24, the Olivet discourse, Jesus talking about the future, there are many Christians who love Jesus.
They're going to heaven, but they have a different view on this. And they will say, well, Jesus is really talking about events that actually all happened between 70 A.D. and 128 between the fall of Jerusalem and the diaspora and these events where Israel was scattered all over the Earth and all these things have already happened. And the interesting thing is the first part of Verse 8 29 shows that cannot be the case because the tribulation that Jesus describes here is going to be, in his own words, immediately followed by the second coming of Jesus to the earth.
Now, let me ask you, this is not a trick question. Was the tribulation experienced by Israel between 70, 80 and 120 A.D. immediately followed by the second coming of Jesus Christ back to the earth? No, even if you weren't there, you know, no, it was not so therefore, Jesus is clearly referring to a tribulation that is coming in the future. It hasn't come yet. And here's what Jesus says is going to happen at the end of that future tribulation right before the second coming.
He says the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light. The stars will fall from heaven and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
Now it means what it says. When this time comes, the sun and the moon are not going to give any visible light.
And when it says the stars will fall from heaven, the word fall in the original Greek means be without effect.
And so when you put it all together, I believe that Jesus is telling his disciples that at that time the sky is going to be completely blacked out. The sun, the moon and the stars will not be visible. There will be no light at all coming from the heavens.
And it could be the result of a nuclear winter or it could be just a straight up supernatural event. God can do whatever he wants.
Whatever the case may be, it's going to be pretty terrifying for those on the Earth at this time.
And again, this has not happened yet in history and it didn't happen between 70 A.D. in 120 A.D. Luke's gospel records the same teaching by Jesus.
And I put something from Luke's gospel on your outlines. Luke adds these details. And on the earth, distress of nations with perplexity. That just means problems with no solutions. The sea in the waves, roaring men's hearts, failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming upon the earth. You see, during the seven years of the tribulation, people are going to be terrified because one terrible judgment from heaven after another is going to rain down on the earth.
And so everyone is going to be wondering with dread what's next.
Kind of like how we feel in 2020, but way, way, way, way worse, and yet we know from Scripture that most of the people on the earth at that time will continue to stubbornly reject God.
And their desire to reject God will be even stronger than their fear.
And they still won't turn to God. Now let's go back to Matthew 24, In verses 30, and this is one of those verse is that it just hypes me up and I honestly generally struggle to read this aloud because I'm just so overwhelmed by it. This is like it's going to be the greatest moment of my life when this happens Verse 8 30 than the sign of the son of man will appear in heaven.
And then all the tribes of the earth will mourn and they will see the son of man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory, with power and great glory.
And I want you to underline the words see other places in scripture.
Tell us that when Jesus returns to the Earth at this time, he's going to make a pit stop at a place in Israel called the Valley of Megiddo, where the poorly named Battle of Armageddon will take place. I say poorly named because it's not going to be a battle.
Unbelievably, there's going to be a force allied to Antichrist and Satan, and they're going to think that they can take on God with weapons. It's bizarre, but that's what they're going to think. And when Jesus returns with all of us with them, his church, his saints with him, that battle is going to be over in an instant with one word from the mouth of Jesus.
And so I don't know that it deserves to be called a battle when it's over in one word from the king of kings. So that's what's going to happen.
Jesus tells us that as the whole world sees him, they will mourn.
They will mourn. That's a strange word. Why would that be the case? Jesus is coming back to the earth. Why are people mourning?
Well, just imagine this. Hundreds of millions of people who have rejected Jesus rejected the gospel over and over and over, wouldn't listen, wouldn't repent. Even as God is raining down, judgment from heaven wouldn't listen. Even as angels fly across the heavens, preaching the gospels wouldn't listen because no sign is ever enough. And then all of a sudden those people see Jesus coming on the clouds and glory and power. And you know what disappears in an instant.
In that moment, every stupid argument that says God doesn't really exist when he's right there. There he is.
And every I will see him.
And in that moment, in that instant, when they're confronted with the reality of Jesus in his glory and power, here's why they're going to mourn, because they're going to know it's too late.
It's too late. That's why they're going to mourn. I had you underline the word see, because it's a fascinating thing in the original Greek, the word sea actually means sea and that's important because of everything Jesus is talking about has already happened.
If it all happened in the first and second century A.D., I got to think, at least, at least like a few people would have noticed, the son of man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and glory. If everyone's going to see it, I think a few people would remember.
Obviously, again, the only rational explanation here is that Jesus is talking about events that have not happened yet. And so just to make sure we're all on the same page here, make note of this.
It's your first fill in. The second coming takes place at the end of the seven year tribulation.
The second coming takes place at the end of the seven year tribulation and will go on in verse 31, it says, and he that's Jesus will send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet and they will gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
And I like the way that Mark 13 records these same words of Jesus. Mark says it like this from the farthest part of Earth to the farthest part of heaven.
You see, when Jesus refers to his elect, he's referring to those on the earth who turn to Jesus during the tribulation and somehow survived, as well as all of the surviving Jews.
But I want you to notice that, as Mark points out, these elect are both on the earth and in heaven. And so this tells us that that this is a gathering of all the saints of God, those on the earth and those in heaven.
And they're all coming together to join with Jesus on the earth in Jerusalem for what is basically is welcome back party. That's what it is. And it's going to be the greatest party that has ever taken place in the history of the world up to that point.
And then Luke, 21, adds this comment from Jesus.
Now, when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads because your redemption draws near. Jesus says, listen, if you're one who turns to me in the tribulation, you weren't saved when the rapture happens, but you turn to me in the tribulation and you see all these signs happening, it's good news for you because you're king.
Jesus Christ is about to return to the earth. Hold on. I'm coming, he says.
And then he says, if you're Jewish and you feel like the world is ending in this time as Antichrist tries to wipe you out, when you see all these things happening, remember, your redemption draws near. Why? Because for them, God is about to open their eyes. And finally.
Finally. Make them recognize him as their messiah and he's going to redeem Israel, our brother Paul tells us in Romans 11 that at this time all Israel will be saved. And the redemption that we're talking about when Jesus is your redemption draws near the redemption that comes along with the second coming. It's not just for the Saints. It's not just for the Jews. It's not just about people. He's talking about the redemption of the earth and the whole universe.
You know, the whole universe is in a state of entropy. It's in a state of decay. The universe itself is winding down. Everything in creation right now is dying.
Everything, every star, every cell, every bit of material matter in the universe is dying.
And when Jesus returns to the earth, entropy will be reversed and everything that is broken will begin to be made whole and made new and put back together and healed and restored and redeemed. They're going to close hospitals and orphanages when Jesus reigns on the earth because we won't need them, we won't need them. People will be made whole. All the people that are in prison because they're part of the cycle of generational abuse and trauma.
They're going to be healed. There's going to be redemption. There's going to be restoration when Jesus comes to the earth. That's why he says now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads because your redemption draws near.
And now, for clarity's sake, I want to make sure we understand the rapture and the second coming are two completely separate and distinct events. The big picture is that the rapture is Jesus coming for his church to collect this church.
The second coming is Jesus coming with this church. We're with him at the second coming. The rapture takes place before the tribulation. The second coming takes place at the end of the tribulation and we move on to verse 32. We'll make it through two whole words here. Jesus says, now learn, now learn. And I want you to underline the word learn, because there's only three times that. Jesus says specifically we are to learn something.
And I think there's something significant here in Matthew nine 13, Jesus says, go and learn what this means.
I desire mercy and not sacrifice in Matthew. Eleven twenty nine.
Jesus says, take my yoke upon you and learn from me. For I am gentle and lowly and heart and you'll find rest for your souls.
And then here in verse 32 in Matthew 24, once again, Jesus is going to say Learn now, learn.
Now, let me ask you again, not a trick question.
Do you think that Jesus was serious those other two times he said learn he was serious? You bet.
So I think we can safely assume he's serious here, too. And according to those verse is, there's three things that Jesus wants us to be students of now. Now, when we say students, we mean Jesus are saying, I don't want you to just read this. I don't want you to just believe this and agree with this. I want you to dig into this and understand what it means. I want you to really dig into this and study this and understand what it means.
According to Jesus, the three things he wants us to especially be students of are mercy, Jesus himself and Bible prophecy. He says, you got to learn mercy. You got to learn how to understand it. You've got to learn me. You've got to know me personally. And then you've got to understand Bible prophecy because it'll change the way you live your life.
With that in mind, he says in verse 32. Now learn this parable from the fig tree when its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves.
You know that summer is near. So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near at the doors now to make sure that we're connecting the dots, I want you to know that the summer Jesus refers to in verse 32 and the IT in verse thirty three, the subject of this prophecy is the Kingdom of God. And you say, how do you know that, Jeff?
Well, we know it because in Luke 21 31, it records these words of Jesus this way. It's on your outlines.
So you also, when you see these things happening, know that the Kingdom of God is near, the kingdom of God is near. How near did he say?
At the doors, at the doors, giving us this picture of Jesus standing with his hand at the doorknob, about to turn it. And if you've studied Revelation, that's a cross reference to revelation for one.
If you want to dig into that now, I have to take a second for you.
Theology nerds, people who love to study the Bible, want to know more about it, want to dig into it. I've got to take a minute, basically, just to stir up some trouble and give you something great to talk about among yourselves.
OK, Jesus says when you see these things happening, know that the kingdom of God is near. Now to state the obvious, if the kingdom of God is near, if it's almost here, then it can't be here yet.
It can't be here yet.
So when you hear certain theological camps talk about how the kingdom of God is already here on the earth, spreading across the earth, everything's being made new. Everything's already being redeemed. We know from the words of Jesus that is not the case. The phrase the kingdom of God refers to something very specific in the Bible.
It refers to the literal and physical rule and reign of Jesus.
It refers to Jesus being physically and literally in a place ruling and raining. It refers to the king raining over his kingdom.
So let me walk you through this, not trick questions. Is Jesus literally and physically raining in heaven right now?
Yes, he is. Absolutely.
Is Jesus literally and physically in his physical body raining on the earth right now?
No, he's not.
Can't go to Jerusalem. Book five minutes with Jayce. Can't do it. Who's ruling on the earth right now?
Satan. That's right, according to the Bible, according to Jesus himself, Satan is the God of this age right now. Therefore, where is the kingdom of God right now? It's in heaven physically and it's in us spiritually. When will the kingdom of God come to the earth at the second coming when Jesus literally and physically returns to the Earth to rule and reign from Jerusalem.
And I don't know about you when someone says, well, listen, Jeff, I disagree. I think the kingdom of God is already here, all over the Earth. What I usually like to say is, well, I got to tell you if it is. I'm horribly disappointed because I had much higher expectations. I don't know about you, but I think when Jesus is ruling and reigning on the earth, I think he's going to do better than 20, 20.
I hope you can say amen to that. I think Jesus can do better than 20, 20. The truth is the kingdom of God has not yet come. That's why Jesus taught his disciples to pray for it to come. He said, When you pray, pray like this.
Thy kingdom what come? Because it's not here yet. That's why we long for it. That's why we long for it. Because we know that when it comes. Man, nobody's going to be disappointed, nobody's going to be left out, it's not going to be some cause of justice that is overlooked when Jesus is ruling and reigning. I got high expectations and you should, too. So would you write this down?
The Kingdom of God refers to the literal rule and reign of Jesus, which will begin at the second coming.
I'll say this in relation to what I've just said and in relation what I'm about to say, any time Mr. Passerby's here teaching, we would always encourage you to test what we say against the scriptures. Don't believe anything that I say because you hear me say it.
Get into the Bible for yourself, dig into it for yourself. If you completely disagree with me and think I'm crazy and want to get in the Bible to prove me wrong. Praise God. That would be awesome. I'd love to see you dig into the Bible. Even if you want to try and just prove me wrong, I would welcome that.
So do your own research have some good discussions, but get into the word for yourself.
I also want to be as transparent with you as I can be.
There are there are sort of two levels to this metaphor, this parable that Jesus gives about the fig tree.
He says now learn this parable from the fig tree when its branches already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know, that summer is near. So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near at the door.
There's sort of two levels to this as there are multiple levels to things all over the scriptures. Perhaps you've had this experience, you read something in the Bible, you go back, you read the same thing a year later and you see something, you get something out of it you didn't get last time because there's layers to the word of God.
It's inexhaustible. You can understand it on one level. Then you grow and God you become more like Jesus. You have more of the spirit in you. You go back and read again with greater understanding. You get more out of it, you get more out of it, you get more out of it.
And so the first level that we want to talk about here that's worth mentioning, it's the view that Jesus is simply saying to those who are listening to him, especially the Jews, that all of the signs he's told them about Antichrist, the temple being rebuilt, the abomination of desolation, the tribulation, all these things are signs that the second coming is imminent. It's about to happen. Just like leaves on a tree are a sign that summer is on the way.
And because in Luke's account, it doesn't just say fig tree.
It says, look at the fig tree and all the trees. Some will hold the view and they'll say that that's all there is to it. There's just this one level. Jesus is just saying, hey, when you see all these things happening, the second coming is very, very close. We would also learn from this. Things like all these things are going to take place in one generation.
All these things are going to take place in one generation, not spread out across different centuries.
So that level is true. It's absolutely correct. That is what Jesus is saying. That is what the Bible is saying.
But there's a second view that I personally hold to and I'm going to dive a little deep into. But I wanted you to understand that that first level first, because there's another level and the rabbis call it a Remez, a Remez, and so a Remez is like a hidden, deeper, mystical level to a passage of scripture.
And they believe many do, including me, that there is such a Remez in this parable of the fig tree.
Because you see throughout the Bible, whenever the fig tree shows up, it's always in proximity to Israel being talked about as a nation politically every time it shows up in the Bible.
So would you write this down? First of all, in the Bible, the fig tree is used as a type of political Israel. It's used as a type of political Israel.
And even if you take Haluk words it into account, Jesus still specifically mentions the fig tree. He could have just said learn from the trees.
But in all three gospels, he specifically highlights a fig tree and nothing in the Bible is by accident. What's unique about the fig tree is that it follows the seasons very intensely, unusually intensely.
We had a fig tree in my backyard growing up and here's what happens with a fig tree every winter.
It loses all its leaves, but it looks it looks dead, absolutely dead.
Like it's been dry for years. And you could just push it over with a light shove every year. I'd look out at this tree and I'd say, hey, dad, are we going to chop that thing down? It's dead. And he'd say, just wait.
Just wait for spring. I think he was crazy. And then sure enough, every year it's spring leaf start coming back. That awful stinky fruit starts coming back and falling all over the ground again. Things are nasty. I'm sorry if that's offensive to you. And this would happen every single year.
And when you put this all together, all these pieces together, many pastors, including me, believe that this Remez is pointing to this prophetic picture that political Israel is going to be dead for a winter season, just like a fig tree. However, there's going to come a time when all of a sudden political Israel is going to start coming back to life like a fig tree bearing leaves in the spring.
And that what Jesus is saying is, hey, when you see that happen, when you see political Israel come back to life, know that the kingdom of God, the second coming, all these end times, events are right about to happen.
So would you write this down and I'll talk about. Some more Jesus's teaching that the rebirth of political Israel will be a sign that in times events are very, very near.
They are very, very near.
And how true this has been and how history has played out. We are miraculously on course with this interpretation of the parable of the fig tree.
Let me tell you the story. Fascinating story of 20th century history. If you've been with us the past few weeks, you know that in 70 A.D., the Romans have just had it with Israel. They're tired of these attempted rebellions. The Jews will never do what they tell them to do. They're mad. And so they say, we're done with Israel. We're burning this whole thing to the ground. They destroy the city of Jerusalem to the ground.
A million and a half Jews lose their lives in just 18 months and they run for their lives across the world in the event known as the diaspora. They go to Poland, they go to Ethiopia, they go to Bokha in south Florida. They go all over the world in the diaspora.
What the Romans do is they rename the territory Felicio after Israel's greatest traditional enemies, the Philistines. And in that language at that time, the more common way of saying Finistere was simply Palestine, Palestine. That's where the name comes from. And that's how it got called, that it was an insult toward Israel by the Romans.
A few straggling Jews try to attempt a few guerrilla rebellions, and they're all wiped out completely by 132 A.D. And after that, the land formerly known as Israel becomes a desolate wasteland.
Nobody even wants it. Nobody is fighting over Israel at that time. Indeed, the nation of Israel found itself in a long winter, ceasing to exist as a country like a fig tree.
Israel looked dead. Israel looked dead because for 19 hundred years, basically, she was, and as the centuries passed, even the world's greatest Bible students and theologians began to say, Listen, I know, I know there's all these prophecies in the Bible that require Israel to exist and Jerusalem to exist and for there to be a temple and all these things.
But but listen, it's been 500 years, a thousand years, 1400 years, 900 years. And I feel pretty confident saying Israel is dead. Its place has been a wasteland for centuries. Nothing's happening here.
So we must be interpreting the Bible wrong that this must be something else. It must be an allegory, a metaphor or something, because the idea of Israel becoming a country again after 1500 years was laughable.
In 1867, the famous author, Mark Twain visited Jerusalem in Israel, and he described it like this a desolate country whose soil is rich enough but is given over wholly to weeds, a silent, mournful expanse, a desolation. We never saw a human being on the whole route, hardly a tree or shrub anywhere, even the olive tree in the cactus.
Those fast friends of a worthless soil had almost deserted the country.
Describing Jerusalem, Twain wrote, A fast walker could go outside the walls of Jerusalem and walk entirely around the city in an hour.
I do not know how else to make one understand how small it is. But there were a few very committed Bible scholars who in the late 1980s took a look at what the Bible said, and they said, listen, we can't just dismiss something in the Bible as being allegorical just because it looks impossible to us.
Scripture Scripture says Israel will exist as a nation again. God can do anything. OK, it's going to happen.
And my favorite example is a fascinating man named Sir Robert Anderson.
He lived and worked primarily in the back half of the hundreds and spent most of his life as the assistant commissioner of Scotland Yard in the U.K. And as he got close to retirement, he began applying his detective skills to Bible prophecy.
And towards the end of the eighteen hundreds, he published a book, I actually have a copy, and the book is titled The Coming Prince. And in it he shared his conclusion that after investigating the Bible as a professional detective, it was clear to him that the Bible taught that Israel will exist as a country again. And obviously everyone thought this was fringe theology at the time.
And then World War One happens and everyone said, you know what, this has to be the end times, and this faithful group of theologians said it can't be because Israel has to become a nation before all that stuff begins to happen.
And in the aftermath of World War One, a man named Hitler rose to power in Germany, a man who by secular historical accounts, was obsessed with a satanic agenda, deeply into the occult and obsessed with the destruction of God's chosen people, the Jews.
And as we all know, Hitler made it his goal to eradicate the Jewish people from the face of the earth.
And he almost succeeded. Over six million Jews died under Hitler.
But as is always the case, God did something extraordinary in the midst of incredible pain and suffering and evil. And even in World War Two, as people were saying, this must be the end times, this faithful group of theologians were saying it can't be. Israel has to be back in the land. That's the first thing that has to happen. And so God caused something to happen that would be unimaginable today. Today, we could never imagine the United Nations supporting Israel in some way or fashion, but because God willed it, there was this moment in the history of this tiny moment when the world was sympathetic toward Israel because they had just gone through the Holocaust.
World War two had ended.
And so they did something unbelievable on May 14th, 1948, the United Nations created the state of Israel for the Jewish people and gave it to them. They thought they were giving it to them, but obviously God was giving it to them. And in a single day.
Prophecies from Ezekiel and Isaiah that were over 2500 years old were fulfilled. It happened in nineteen forty eight.
Would you write this down? On May 14th, 1948, Israel was reborn as a political nation. And what should have happened at that point in Christian theology, in my humble opinion, is that everyone who had said, no, no, you're interpreting it wrong, you're interpreting it wrong, that should have been the end of the discussion because it happened.
It happened.
And that should have changed the way that every Christian interprets Bible prophecy, because it should have made everyone say maybe we should be taking some of this stuff a little bit more literally.
The stories are countless and you can go and find the archived photos online. Jews from around the world began flocking back to the land of Israel. The young Israeli government stripped every seat out of a commercial passenger plane, went and picked up a thousand Ethiopian Jews, put them on the plane and flew them back to their homeland of Israel.
And just like that, Israel sprang back to life as a political nation again.
They took a little break around nineteen hundred years of not existing, and yet after nineteen hundred years, Israel was reborn, the greatest attempt to destroy them, Hitler in the Holocaust is actually the very thing that resulted in them being brought back to life.
That's what God does. That's how he works. It's absolutely unbelievable. And only God could do something like that. But wait, there's more. There's more. The day after Israel was declared a nation in 1948. Are you hearing me the day after?
The armies of four Arab countries, Egypt, Syria, Transjordan and Iraq, they cross into Israel with the intention of wiping Israel off the map.
We hate you. You've got no right to exist. We're just going to kill all of you. Saudi Arabia sends a military contingent to operate under Egyptian command.
Yemen declares war, but doesn't take military action. So this is how much hatred Satan had stirred up against Israel, even though they hadn't even been a country for 24 hours yet. And before that, they hadn't been the country for nineteen hundred years. We need to understand that other Arab nations hated Israel before they even had a chance to do anything politically. At that time, Israel did not own the West Bank or Gaza. They didn't control the Temple Mount.
These Arab nations hate Israel because they're Israel. They hate Israel because Satan hates Israel and they're under Satan's influence, period, that's the reason why it is Satan hate Israel because God looked at Israel and he said, out of all the peoples on the earth, you're my portion. He looked at all the land in the earth and God said, out of all the land, Israel is my portion. He looked at all the cities of the earth and he said, out of all of them, Jerusalem is my portion.
So what does Satan hate more than anything, Jerusalem, Israel, the Jewish people, because God loves them. After a year of fighting, so they spend their whole first year of existence, Israel, fighting neighbors who are trying to kill them, after a year of that, a cease fire is declared. And when the bullets start flying, Jordan still controls half of Jerusalem, including the Temple Mount.
Now, from a biblical perspective, this was a massive problem because Bible prophecy talks about Israel being in control of all of Jerusalem in the future. We have unfulfilled prophecies like Zachariah, 14, which talks about half of Jerusalem falling into captivity.
And in order for Israel to lose half of the city, they have to first control all of the city. So the events of 1948, they're not going to be enough. If you want to take Bible prophecy, literally, Israel has to control all of Jerusalem.
Nineteen years later, June of 1967, the situation is tense because Israel's neighbors, Egypt, Syria and Jordan still hate their guts this whole time, nearly two decades.
They're constantly attacking Israel, sabotaging them, striking out at Israeli settlements that are close to the border that was close.
Egypt, Syria and Jordan begin massing their troops on the border with Israel in a clear sign that they're right about to invade. And then God moves, the Israeli Air Force launches a preemptive attack on Egypt's air force and destroys all of their planes on the ground.
On the ground, every single plane, they don't even get them in the air. Egypt takes out their entire Israel takes out Egypt's entire air force.
The ground war begins and the three nations attack Israel. Israel is outnumbered more than four to one.
And to make a long story short, Israel obliterates those other armies in six days, six days, that war is over. The other armies are just obliterated. And during the fighting, Israel takes control of more territory and expands their borders as they push back these countries that are invading them and some of that territory they take as they're pushing these armies out of their country. Those territories are Gaza and the West Bank and most importantly, all of Jerusalem, including the Temple Mount.
And all of a sudden, 1967, all the pieces are in place for prophecies like Zechariah 14 to be fulfilled, not allegorically, but literally.
Now, as a side note, I need you to know this is the actual history. This is what happened. Israel only controls Gaza and the West Bank because Egypt, Syria and Jordan tried to destroy Israel and committed genocide. That's the only reason Israel controls that territory. And Arab countries have been complaining about their loss ever since and demanding that Israel give them back their land. I mean, you know, today that they constantly call Israel occupiers of those territories.
But the fact of the matter is they would still have those territories if they hadn't launched attacks from them to try and annihilate Israel.
This is like someone throwing a knife at you to try and kill you missing and then complaining to the whole world when you won't give them their knife back makes no sense.
This guy stole my knife. Well, in my defense, you threw it at me to try and kill me. So I didn't feel like giving it back the thief.
Just logic doesn't really work. All they had to do to keep the land was not try and kill Israel. That's all they had to do. I don't think they got anything to complain about. And the reason that these other Arab countries don't simply take back there are people who live in those territories right now is because they love them being there to make Israel look bad. It's a public relations disaster and they love it because they love seeing Israel look bad.
I'm not saying that Israel has handled everything perfectly. Far from it. What I am saying is this. Israel belongs to God. They are baby. They are God's property.
It's just the way it is.
And Israel existed before Palestine and the Palestinian territory only exists today because Arabs tried to destroy Israel from those very territories.
So if you're going to line up on a side of this issue, let me just encourage you, super good place to be is God's side, super good place to be on pretty much any issue. And so I hope the prophecy involved in all of this amazes you. I hope it builds your faith in God and your faith in his word, because this can't be faked.
This can't be faked.
You're talking prophecy and fulfillment that spans millennia. You have to deal with the facts and the facts. Leave only one conclusion.
There's a God in control of history. He's in charge of the present. He's in charge of the future. And he's speaking to us through his word.
And by the way, do you remember how Mark Twain described Israel as essentially being a wasteland? Will God's done a miracle there, too? Because in Israel today, there is the most fertile agricultural land in the world.
God supernaturally blessed, literally the ground. And it's been discovered in recent decades that Israel may actually have more oil than any other Middle Eastern country and more natural gas.
Well, incredibly, we're still not done no matter how much you want us to be, because In verses 34, Jesus says this. He says assuredly that means you can bet your life on this.
He says, assuredly I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place. So Jesus is saying all these things are going to happen in one generation, Antichrist, the tribulation, abomination of desolation, the second coming Israel, all these things is all going to happen in one generation.
Now, what does Jesus mean when he says a generation?
This has been quite the subject of discussion because most, including me, will take it to mean that Jesus is saying, listen, that generation that was alive to see Israel become a nation in 1948 will not die out before the second coming gets here and every other and times event before it.
So people will say, well, well, well, what does the term generation mean in the Bible?
It can mean forty years, which would put us at 1988. And I try to stay away from date setting. But I'm going to go out on a limb on this one and suggest to you the second coming did not happen in 1988.
You can also make a biblical case for a generation being 70 years. That would put us at twenty eighteen. Again, I have a word from the Lord.
The second coming did not happen in twenty eighteen. You can also make a biblical case for a generation being up to 100 years. That would take us to 2048. Or it could simply mean that the last Jew who was alive in 1948 will still be alive when Jesus returns to the Earth. It doesn't mean Jesus has to wait all the way until the end. It just means he's going to return at some point while that person's still alive.
There could be many others alive at that time to.
What's important to understand is this. With Israel existing as a political nation, once again, with Jerusalem under their control, the Lord can rapture his church at any time.
Do you realize there's nothing left on the Bible prophecy checklist that has to happen before Jesus comes for his church in the Rapture?
There's nothing else he can do it at any time. Any time could happen, right? Now, it's too cocky, right, right now, that would have been that would have been awesome, though, I'm just saying.
So write this down.
While the generation could be up to 100 years or more, Jesus could rapture his church at any time. At any time. And just in case you think that Jesus doesn't want us to take all this prophecy stuff seriously, he says this in verse 35, Hey, heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will by no means pass away.
Jesus says the universe is you know, it is going to one day turn to nothing, but not a single word of what I've told you is going to fade away.
It's all going to happen exactly as I've told you.
As surely as Jerusalem fell in 70 A.D., exactly as Jesus predicted, as surely as Israel became a political nation again in 1948, exactly as Jesus predicted. Everything else Jesus has prophesied will happen exactly as he has predicted.
Don't take my word for it. Take the word of God for it. And don't forget that one of the questions Jesus was asked by his disciples all the way back in verse three was what will be the sign of your coming? And I cannot, for the life of me figure out why some Christians would think we're strange for simply believing that in Matthew 24, Jesus actually answered the questions that his disciples asked him.
I believe. Deeply. Personally. Correctly, that the rebirth of Israel as a political nation was one of the single most important events in history and the single most important prophetic event since the day of Pentecost in Acts Chapter two, God's word is amazing.
You can trust his word. You can trust him. He's both faithful. But even better, he's able to keep his promises, both big and small, to generations, to peoples, to nations. And do you personally and individually.