Can Christians Lose Their Salvation – What Does the Bible Say?

It is very popular these days for people who profess to be Christians to say that what a particular church denomination teaches does not really matter. Many people believe that it does not matter whether a church is a Lutheran, Baptist, Methodist church or a community church, as long as the church believes in Jesus Christ.

While many believe this, what does God have to say?

But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed.  As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.  (Galatians 1:8-9).

Recently, I came face-to-face with this very situation.  My experience also provoked a review of the things I long ago learned about denominational differences.

Many think that the “Gospel” that Paul talks about involve the “basics” of the faith, and the “basics” only. Those “basics” are the belief that God is One in Three Persons, that Jesus is the Son of God and God the Son, that He was raised from the dead on the third day, and that salvation can only be found through Jesus. It is certainly true that these “basics” are very important and we must agree on them if we want to be followers of Christ and to receive salvation (cf. 2 John 1:7-11). But the letter to the Galatians makes it clear that the “Gospel” of which Paul speaks is much more than the basics!

Paul’s letter to the Galatians makes it clear that there were false teachers going around to the various churches in Galatia teaching the Gentile Christians that they needed to be circumcised and follow the Law of Moses (Galatians 3:3-4, 4:8-11, 5:1-5). This was the “other gospel,” the idea that the Gentiles needed to also follow the Law of Moses. According to Paul, those who taught these things were accursed– and those who accepted them were cut off from the grace of God in Christ (Galatians 1:6-9, 5:1-5)!

What’s going on?  Evangelicalism is in the midst of a Calvinist revival. Increasing numbers of church preachers and bible college professors teach the views of the 16th-century French reformer. Mark Driscoll, John Piper and Tim Keller — megachurch preachers and important evangelical authors — are all espousing the Calvinist interpretations of biblical doctrine. Attendance at Calvin-influenced worship conferences and churches is up, particularly among worshipers in their 20s and 30s.

In the Southern Baptist Convention, the country’s largest Protestant denomination, the rise of Calvinism has provoked serious discord. In a 2012 poll of 1,066 Southern Baptist pastors conducted by LifeWay Research, a nonprofit group associated with the Southern Baptist Convention, 30 percent considered their churches Calvinist — while twice as many were concerned “about the impact of Calvinism.”

Okay, many will ask… “is Calvinism necessarily a bad thing?” 

Calvinism is a theological orientation, not a denomination or organization. The Puritans were Calvinist. Presbyterians descend from Scottish Calvinists. Many early Baptists were Calvinist. But in the 19th century, Protestantism moved toward the non-Calvinist belief that humans must consent to their own salvation — an optimistic, quintessentially American belief.  In the United States today, one large denomination, the Presbyterian Church in America, is unapologetically Calvinist.

But in the last 30 years or so, Calvinists have gained prominence in other branches of Protestantism, and at churches that used to worry little about theology.

Lately, many church leaders, preachers and theologians have boldly asserted that a Christian cannot lose his/her salvation.  In fact, many well-meaning religious folks have built an entire theology around the assumption that it is impossible for a Christian to fall away and lose his salvation. You’ve most likely heard the cornerstone doctrine of Calvinism… once saved always saved.

But what if that entire theological assumption of Calvinism is false?

Let’s examine what the Bible says about a Christian losing his or her salvation. There are several passages which are often used as proof-texts. But if these verses are examined, they quite definitely do not teach the impossibility of apostasy (turning away; abandonment; revolt).  Let’s consider a couple of these “once saved, always saved” proof-texts:

Romans 8:35–39 (ESV)

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, ‘For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.’ No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

This, of course, is a beautiful passage of Scripture and should bring much comfort to Christians. However, it simply does not say what many attempt to make it say. Paul is talking about outside forces separating the Christian from the love of Christ. He never once says anything similar to the idea that Christians cannot choose to walk away from Christ. In other words, Paul says, “No matter what anyone does to you, they cannot take away your salvation.” It is wrong, however, to suggest Paul said a Christian cannot forfeit his salvation if he so chooses.

John 10:27–29 (ESV)

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.

Again, it is a great abuse of Jesus’ words to make Him say Christians cannot lose their salvation. In context, Jesus had told the Pharisees multiple times that they had rejected Him because they did not know God or His word. Those who followed Him, however, did so because they recognized His deity. John 10 speaks to Christ’s deity, His power to save, and (like Romans 8) the inability of outside forces to snatch a disciple from Christ’s hand. But it certainly does not teach “once saved, always saved.”

Those are two of the passages many use to prove their premise. But, of course, those passages say nothing of the sort. Let’s look at a few passages of Scripture that most definitely refute the idea of “once saved, always saved.”

John 15:5–6 (ESV)

I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned.

Those who teach “once saved, always saved,” say that if someone lives a Christian life and then goes back into the world, that person was never really saved to begin with. However, Jesus clearly teaches in John 15, it is possible for someone to “not abide” in Him. The word “abide” means to stay, continue, or remain. If I said, “Bob didn’t remain in the room, like I told him to do.” You could know for certain that Bob was in the room at one time.

Hebrews 3:12–13 (ESV)

Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.

Again, it is pretty hard to deny that the Hebrew writer is addressing saved people. He begins this statement by saying, “Take care, brothers.” Obviously, we are talking about Christians. He warns these Christians, it is possible for an “evil, unbelieving heart” to develop in them which would cause them to “fall away from the living God.”

Galatians 5:1–4 (ESV)

For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. Look: I, Paul, say to you that if you accept circumcision, Christ will be of no advantage to you. I testify again to every man who accepts circumcision that he is obligated to keep the whole law. You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace.

Let us take notice that Paul warns them to “not submit again to a yoke of slavery.” These were people who had been freed from a yoke of slavery, by becoming Christians. Paul warns them not to leave Christ by trying to be justified by obedience to the Old Law. He says to these Christians, if they do so, Christ will be “of no advantage” to them. There were some in those churches who were already doing this and Paul said they had been, “severed from Christ” and they had, “fallen away from grace.” How could these passages be any more clear?

Hebrews 10:26-31 (ESV)

For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries. Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the evidence of two or three witnesses. How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace? For we know him who said, ‘Vengeance is mine; I will repay.’ And again, ‘The Lord will judge his people.’ It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

Obviously, the Hebrew writer was addressing those who had received “the knowledge of the truth” (vs. 26) and had been “sanctified” by “the blood of the covenant” (vs. 29). He said, if Christians “go on sinning deliberately” they could expect “judgment,” “punishment,” and “vengeance.”

Please understand, this doesn’t mean a Christian must be perfect, or else he will lose his salvation. John wrote, “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin…I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous” (1 John 1:7, 2:1). As long as a Christian is doing his best to live a life that is pleasing to God (2 Corinthians 5:9) – even though he will likely continue to fall short – the blood of Jesus will continue to wash him clean.

Please hear me, friends. Study the Scriptures to see if these things are so (Acts 17:11).  According to God’s word, a Christian is saved so long as he walks in the light; but if he chooses to go back into the world, he is trampling under foot the Son of God and is throwing away the gift of salvation (see Romans 6:1-7).  That, makes the concepts of Calvinism... false doctrine.

Life’s Journey in the Shadow of the Cross

“Anyone who does not take [up] his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.” Matthew 10:38

Not worthy of me? Jesus sets the standard and requirements to be accepted as one of His genuine sanctified and spirit empowered followers. We have nothing to do with it. Our role is to bear our cross.

It’s starts with our willingness to pay the price to follow Him. To live a life in sacrificial love and obedience to His will, not ours. His cross and His sacrifice for us gives Him the rightful basis for setting the standards so high. No one is forced or coerced into accepting a life in the shadow of the cross... but if you do, then you must live your life as Jesus requires.

This is the pivotal issue when it comes to our devotion to Christ. Jesus set this in cement when He said, “anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me” (Matthew 10:38). If we refuse to bear the cross we are given, then we can’t really call ourselves followers of Christ.

Since the stakes are so high, let me take a minute to clarify what it means to bear a cross for Christ. Cross-bearing is when I am willing to endure suffering that comes as a result of being known as a Christian. Cross-bearing requires a willing heart. Our experiences in life will bring us to many crossroads where we must choose:

Christ or comfort, Jesus or ease, worship or wealth, our gods or the one and only true GOD. Followers of Jesus make these hard choices because of who Jesus is—the Son of God, He is eternally worthy of our whole existence.

Being Christian is not easy. I wish it was! Don’t you often wonder why Jesus drew such a hard line in the sand when it came to cross-bearing? I mean, why couldn’t the Christian life be just a bit more of a cakewalk?

And then I think it’s because He knew that living to please our Father in heaven would be a rough assignment in a world controlled by the arch enemy of God... Satan. During His ministry on earth, Jesus endured painful rejection, cruel and unfair criticism, marginalization, physical torture, and finally humiliating crucifixion—all to be faithful to God the Father. For Christians, spiritually speaking, this world is a tough and hostile place to live.

It’s not all gloomy, cross-bearing does not exclude us from the grace of good times and the enjoyment of things He has provided for us. Thank God for the grace of seasons where our crosses can be lighter. But cross-bearing that pleases our Master, will always mean that, when push comes to shove, we choose the “Jesus way” even if it means loss, pain, sorrow and suffering.

Regardless of life’s challenges and maybe suffering, we can use these “seasons of difficulty” to lift Jesus up to a skeptical world. There is no better time to influence people to Jesus, to proclaim the gospel than during the times of our lives when the going is hard. It is during these times that we can point to Christ as our source of strength and our power of everyday living, because there’s no way we could be faithful and obedient, persevering through hardships, without the Holy Spirit working in our lives. The Holy Spirit will only be in us, working through us, IF we are “bearing our cross” as Christ has commanded. if He is the central focus of our lives, then we can be assured of his constant assistance in every part of our lives... including finding joy amidst

suffering.

A hard question.... is Jesus worth everything and anything to you? What will you decide the next time you have to choose between carrying your cross and laying it down for a more comfortable stress free life?  It’s a question we must be prepared to answer.  Time, circumstances and unexpected situations will one day demand an answer from each one of us.

Authentic followers of Jesus are joyful to bear their crosses... to prove to our Master that He is more important than anything else in this life!

The Nature of Bible Prophecy

The purpose of prophecy in the Bible is to teach us how to live today. That’s a very practical purpose. Satisfying our curiosity about the future or giving us advance knowledge of how things are going to turn out isn’t its purpose—even though it’s often portrayed that way. Its primary purpose is to keep our eyes fixed on the accountability that is coming; that everything we do—both good and bad—is of everlasting significance. It is in the awareness of where things are heading that our lives today find meaning and purpose.

For example, in Matthew chapters 24 and 25, Jesus gives an outline of things that are future. He tells the disciples about things they will face, but ends with six parables expressing why He’s given that information. He sums it all up in one word—watch.

Then comes the parables of the talents, the wise and foolish virgins, the sheep and the goats and so on. All are saying, “Since you know these things are coming, here’s how you’re to live now.”

So the bottom line of prophecy and knowing the future is how we treat others today. It is to encourage us to treat people the way Jesus treated us—with grace, kindness and a willingness to accept us, even with our mistakes.

As humans, we’re motivated by the future. We’re motivated by its possibilities, by the things that are likely to happen and how to get ready for those activities. But prophecy is only one of several ways God motivates people to become what He designed them to be.

Much of Bible prophecy is contained in obscure language and symbolism, making it hard to understand. However, in earlier days, it wasn’t as obscure as now. The language, for example, was part of a living genre.

The book of Revelation was written when its imagery would’ve made a lot of sense to its readers. They would readily have drawn appropriate lessons for their lives, even though they might not have understood or seen some of the historical references.

So today, to make sense of Bible prophecy—Revelation, for example—begin by reading all of it through. An English Standard Version (ESV) reads easily and is very accurate to the original text. Next, retell what you’ve read in your own words without reference to the book. Finally, ask yourself... “What do I see there? How did it feel?” After that simple exercise, begin to comb through the detail.

Bible prophecy doesn’t make sense if you ignore its details. At the same time, you can’t make sense of the details until you know the whole. Once you’ve got the big picture, then work through the details before coming back and putting the whole back together again.

Scholars once thought that analyzing the parts and knowing what all the details meant was the key to understanding it. These days the book is first considered as a whole in the way the original readers would have read it. Interpreting prophecy in conjunction with current events is a mistake. A glance at the history of interpretation shows people have always looked for their current situation in Revelation. Nearly all such interpretations appear laughable in retrospect.

Such an approach doesn’t respect the reality of Revelation, seeking, rather, to use Revelation to promote an agenda of the interpreter’s design. Beginning with current events and going to Revelation is interesting, but it’s also dangerous from the perspective of attempting to understand the book itself. By beginning with the story of the book, you develop a sense of what’s going on.  Only after that can one ask if there is anything going on that it might refer to.

So if the purpose of prophecy is to guide us in the best way to live, it certainly shows that God cares about us. It shows that He has a plan for the big picture and that we’re not just drifting out of control. It’s about a caring God whose control of events isn’t coercive, but is designed for the good of His people and the universe.

That’s a big assignment, since balancing the whole and the individual is a tough task of any government. And God’s government is no exception.

What the People of the “Last Days” will be Like...

If we are in fact living in the “time of the end”, what will humanity be like? How will they act?

What will be the characteristics and behavior of people living in the days just prior to the second coming of Christ?

You can get a snap shot of expected human behavior during this period that will be characterized by Godlessness at 2 Timothy 3:1-5. The apostle Paul writes...  There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God—having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.

Paul then goes on to list 20 personality traits that would characterize ungodly people. Have you observed some of these characteristics in those living in your community? Consider what has been said in recent times about the people of today.

“Lovers of themselves.” (2 Timothy 3:2) People are insistent\ on doing their own thing as never before. They are becoming gods unto themselves, and expect to be treated as such.—Financial Times, [newspaper], England.

“Lovers of money.” (2 Timothy 3:2) The ego of materialism has in recent times overpowered the spirit of modesty. Unless you are seen as rich in society your life is not worth living.—Jakarta Post, [newspaper], Indonesia.

“Disobedient to parents.” (2 Timothy 3:2) Parents are puzzled to find their 4-year-old ordering them around like he’s [French King] Louis XIV or their 8-year-old screaming... I hate you!—American Educator Magazine, United States.

“Disloyal.” (2 Timothy 3:2) The vastly increased willingness of men to leave behind partners and children constitutes perhaps the single greatest change in moral values during the past 40 years.—Wilson Quarterly- Magazine, United States.

“Having no natural affection.” (2 Timothy 3:3) Family violence is the dominant factor in the everyday life of communities around the world.—Journal of the American Medical Association Magazine, United States.

“Without self-control.” (2 Timothy 3:3) Many stories that occur on the newspaper’s front page every morning reflect minds lacking self control, moral fiber and mercy towards their fellow human beings and even themselves. . . . If our society continues to favor aggression the way it is now, our society will soon enter a phase of moral annihilation.—Bangkok Post, [newspaper], Thailand.

“Fierce.” (2 Timothy 3:3) Irrational anger and uncontrolled rage are seen on the road, in abuse within families and in the apparently gratuitous and unnecessary violence which often accompanies crime. Violence is experienced as random and unpredictable and people are left feeling disconnected and vulnerable.—Business Day, [newspaper], South Africa.

“Lovers of pleasures rather than lovers of God.” (2 Timothy 3:4) Sexual liberation has become a moral crusade, in which Christian morality is the enemy.— Boundless, an Internet magazine.

“Having a form of godliness but denying its power.” (2 Timothy 3:5) A former prostitute in the Netherlands acknowledged that opposition to legalization [of prostitution] comes largely from religious groups. She paused, then said with a grin that when she was a prostitute, several [religious] leaders and ministers were among her regular clients. Prostitutes always say their best clients are from the religious community, she laughed.— National Catholic Reporter, [newspaper], United States.

According to God’s Word... the “End of the Age” will be a time when humanity is at its worst.

Matthew Chapter 24... Signs of the End of the World... NOW?

Read this article as a perspective on how Jesus’ prophecies in Matthew chapter 24 “might apply”

to our world today.

A murder in Oklahoma. Several years ago a 16-year-old boy and a companion entered a convenience store in Oklahoma City and opened fire on the store clerk.

The 16-year old instigator of this rampage described the murder in these words: “I squeezed the trigger and heard him scream. I hit him... I squeezed the trigger again, and the bullet entered through his heart and through his lungs. Blood splattered all over the opposite wall and he hit the ground. Then we walked out. We didn’t take any money. We didn’t take any merchandise. We just took the life of an innocent man... for Satan.” Investigators said later that the 16-year old wanted “to see what it felt like” to kill somebody.

Did that story shock you? Probably not. It happens all the time.  If you watch daily news programs, you’re well past being shocked by the evil that men and women are capable of doing to one another. When did evil become so common that we are no longer shocked by it?

Long ago, Jesus sat on a hillside with His disciples and predicted such a time as this. Later, the disciples asked Jesus privately, “What will be the sign of your coming, and of the end of the age?” (Matthew 24:3).

In response, Jesus outlined the signs that would precede His second coming. Here is something amazing. When we compare Jesus’ prediction in Matthew 24 with the predictions in the book of Revelation, they provide an incredibly accurate picture of our day. Was Jesus speaking about events of our time—signs in nature, in society, and in knowledge?

Today, it seems like these signs are being played out in the headlines splashed across our daily newspapers, on the evening news... everywhere we turn we see similar tragic events. If you’re a serious student of the Bible and think about the second coming of Christ... you can’t help but wonder if what Jesus said in the Olivet Discourse is being fulfilled on the world stage in this generation.

Let’s examine each of these signs––nature, society and knowledge––individually.

Signs in the World of Nature

Jesus turns His attention to the natural world: “There will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places” (Matthew 24:7).

Do we see famines today? North Korea is experiencing a famine of extraordinary proportions. Look to Sub-Saharan Africa. The UN Food and Agriculture Organization reports nearly 10 million people are in need of emergency food. Without it... they will perish.

Experts estimate that for more than a billion people in the world today, about a sixth of the world’s population, chronic hunger is an ever-present part of daily life. Ten thousand people a day, or more than 3.5 million people per year, die of starvation.

“There will be famines and pestilences,” Jesus said. “Pestilences” are diseases affecting crops, livestock or human beings and can be caused by nature or by human carelessness.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that an estimated 50,000 to 120,000 premature deaths are associated with exposure to air pollutants in the United States. Most of the third-world is ten times worse than the U.S. Disease-causing bacteria are developing resistance to antibiotics, and new diseases are appearing for which science has not found a cure.

Jesus said there would be earthquakes in the last days. Today we have 4000 seismograph stations in the world that record 12,000 to 14,000 earthquakes per year—that’s approximately 35 earthquakes per day. The “big one” is on its way, scientists tell us, and all these are preliminary to the dramatic earth-shaking events that will foreshadow the second coming of our Lord.

Signs in the World of Social Life

No signs are more obvious or inescapable than those in the social world.

Jesus plainly predicted: “But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark” (Matthew 24:37, 38).

And what was life like in Noah’s day? Moral values were discarded for pleasures, marriage vows were broken, divorce was common, the social and moral fabric of society in Noah’s day disintegrated. Standards that were once the norm, God’s standards, were no longer acceptable.

What about the moral fabric of society in the 21st century? Living together outside of marriage is commonplace, widely accepted and even encouraged. Now more than 30 per cent of all births in America are to unmarried women. The marriage rate has fallen nearly 30 per cent since 1970, and the divorce rate has increased about 40 per cent. Truth is considered relative; morality is an individual preference; right and wrong are no longer absolutes. The resulting violence is sweeping our nation. Frankly speaking... if Jesus does not come soon, we will destroy our culture through immorality and violence.

Signs in the World of Knowledge

Every time you boot up your computer, you fulfill a prophecy in Daniel: “But you, Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book until the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase” (Daniel 12:4). This verse suggests that both knowledge about the prophecies of Daniel and knowledge in general would increase.

Knowledge has never before increased as fast as it does today. It is estimated that 80 per cent of all the scientists who have ever lived are alive today. The scientific material they produce every 24 hours would take one person a lifetime to read.

And not only is knowledge increasing exponentially, the accessibility of that knowledge is phenomenal. If you wanted to know something years ago, you had to go to a public library and invest hours in research. Today, knowledge is accessible at the click of a mouse.

Daniel’s prophecy that “knowledge will increase” is speaking especially of the knowledge of God’s Word, the truth about Jesus, the gospel message of salvation and His expected return. The Bible predicts a powerful worldwide spiritual revival before the coming of Jesus: “This gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all nations, and then the end will come” (Matthew 24:14).

Before the coming of Jesus, unprecedented doors of opportunity for the proclamation of the gospel will open around the world. Is Matthew 24:14 being fulfilled now... around the globe?

From Russia, Africa, India, China the countries of the Middle East to the remote islands of the Pacific, millions are turning to God’s Word, committing their lives to Christ and His Kingdom. God is on the move everywhere in the world. This preaching of the gospel on such a scale with such receptiveness has never happened before. If any person on earth “has an ear and desire to hear”, they can hear the gospel. Is this generation witnessing the prophetic signs of Jesus’ eminent return?

Is there anything in your life that would keep you from being ready for His return, should it happen soon? Jesus longs to save you. He longs to have you live together with Him forever.

There is too much evidence to simply say this generation is no different than any other generation since Pentecost and the founding of the Church. This is no ordinary time. God’s final call is going out all over this planet.  Millions around the world are responding. Now is the time to prepare for His soon return.

The Second Coming of Christ WILL Happen

The second coming of Christ is the blessed hope of the Church, the grand climax of the gospel. The Savior’s coming will be literal, personal, visible, and worldwide. The way of this sin-filled world is not going to continue as it is... consuming generations of people who are born and then die, saved or unsaved. Jesus was telling us the end would one day arrive. He would return. He admonished believers just prior to his death, in the verses of Matthew chapter 24... to be on the watch and prepared for His return.

It is foolishness to believe that “this generation” could not possibly be the generation that will experience the second coming of the Lord. The evidence is all around us, all around the planet... so why not this generation?

It is reasonable and logical in light of the evidence, that we may well be living witnesses to the complete fulfillment of the end-time prophecies. Consider the evidence. Do a bit of personal soul searching. Why do so many believers reject the possibility that now, this time in human history, may indeed be the “time of the end?”

Believers in the first century church thought Christ’s coming was going to happen in their lifetime. They were focused on being spiritually ready for His return. They heard Jesus loud and clear... be watchful, aware of the world around you, love one another, love God with your whole heart, be obedient, serve others and preach the gospel and my eminent return. Jesus is saying the same words to all Christians today.

Today, like the Christians of the first century. we don’t know the day or the hour of His coming. Therefore, we must be ready at all times. R4L

Matthew 24 -- Past...Present...Future?

Would you like to stir up a heated debate about Biblical prophecy? If that’s your aim, then you’ll need a good starting point... how about the Olivet Discourse as recorded in Matthew chapter 24? You can probably foment the debate to a fever pitch among elders and scholars even in the same church body.

A review of various Bible Commentaries clearly shows that there is little agreement about the meaning of Matthew 24. This section of Scripture has perplexed many interpreters and caused a multitude of speculations and differing opinions about what Jesus meant. In fact, it might be fair to say that there may be no passage of Scripture that has been the focus of more controversy than the twenty-fourth chapter of Matthew’s Gospel record.  It’s like throwing fuel on a simmering fire... soon it rages.

D.A. Carson, a well known New Testament scholar, begins his commentary on Matthew 24 with these words: "Few chapters of the Bible have called forth more disagreement among interpreters than Matthew 24 and its parallels in Mark 13 and Luke 21. The history of the interpretation of this chapter is immensely complex" (The Expositor's Bible Commentary, volume 8, page 488). No kidding.

Carson's statement amplifies the difficulties people have encountered when trying to interpret Matthew 24. While the chapter is a marvelous collection of prophetic implications, it has been victimized by considerable theological speculation. Several theories, spawned by a misunderstanding of this chapter, have generated confusion in the religious community.

Interpretations of Matthew 24 have spawned entire religious movements, denominational creeds, divisions and divisiveness. It has been used to endorse the “labels” attached to various schools of eschatological thinking such as... Pretorism, Realized Eschatology and Dispensational Premillennialism.

This article isNOT about finding common ground with any particular interpretive perspective on Matthew 24. It's about simple TRUTH. It is essential that we understand what Jesus was saying in Matthew 24. Christ is returning... aside from the Cross and the Resurrection “the day [or time] of His return will be the day of all days”. Nothing is more important to a believer than understanding what Jesus meant in Matthew 24. But we must approach its interpretation with great caution, avoiding self-serving simplistic views and arrogant dogmatism.

The Context is Critical

Studying Matthew 24 in the larger context of preceding chapters will help avoid interpretation pitfalls. Considering the importance of “context”... the background to Matthew 24 actually begins at least as far back as chapter 16:21. There, we are given the following summary statement: "From that time Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life."

By his comments, Jesus set the stage for what appeared to be to the disciples a showdown in Jerusalem between himself and the religious authorities. He continued telling his disciples about this imminent conflict as they made their way to Jerusalem (20:17-19).

During the time Jesus was explaining that he was to suffer at Jerusalem, he took Peter, James and John up to a high mountain. There, they experienced the transfiguration (17:1-13). This of itself must have made the disciples wonder whether the establishment of the kingdom of God was close at hand (17:10-12).

Jesus also told the disciples they would sit on 12 thrones judging Israel "when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne" (19:28). No doubt, this sparked additional questions about the time and manner of the coming of the kingdom of God. Jesus' talking about the kingdom even prompted the mother of James and John to ask him to give special positions in the kingdom to her two sons (20:20-21).

Then came the triumphal entry into Jerusalem, in which Jesus rode into the city on a donkey (21:1-11). This, said Matthew, fulfilled what the prophet Zechariah had spoken, and which was thought to refer to the Messiah. The entire city was aroused, wondering what would happen as Jesus arrived. In Jerusalem, he overturned the moneylender's tables and took other actions to demonstrate his messianic authority (21:12-27). "Who is this?" people asked in response to his audacious behavior (21:10).

Next, in 21:43 Jesus told the chief priests and elders of the people: "I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit." His audience knew he was talking about them. Jesus' statement could have been taken as an implication that he was ready to establish his messianic kingdom, but the religious leaders holding power, would not be a part of it.

Is the kingdom to be established?

The disciples who heard this certainly would have been confused, wondering what was going to happen. Was Jesus ready to announce his messiahship? Was he ready to put down the Roman authority? Was he on the verge of ushering in the kingdom of God? Would there be a war, and what would happen to Jerusalem and the sacred temple?

We now come to Matthew 22 and verse 15. Here the final scene begins to develop with the Pharisees laying plans to trap Jesus by asking him a question regarding the paying of taxes. They hoped to use his answer as the basis for accusing Jesus of rebelling against the Roman authority. But Jesus answered rather cleverly, and their plan was foiled.

That same day the Sadducees also had an encounter with Jesus (22:23-32). Not believing in the resurrection, they asked him a trick question about seven brother s marrying one woman. Whose wife would she be in the resurrection?, they asked. Jesus answered them indirectly by telling them they didn't understand their own Scriptures. He confounded them by pointing out that there is no marriage in the kingdom.

Next, the Pharisees and Sadducees together tested Jesus on the meaning of the greatest commandment in the law (22:36). He answered them by quoting Leviticus 19:8 and Deuteronomy 6:5. Then Jesus asked them a trick question about whose son the Messiah was to be (22:42). They fell into his trap, and "no one could say a word in reply, and from that day on no one dared to ask him any more questions" (22:46).

Chapter 23 shows Jesus criticizing the teachers of the law and the Pharisees. Toward the end of the chapter, Jesus talked about sending them prophets, wise men and teachers whom they would flog, kill and crucify. He laid the responsibility for all the slain prophets at their feet. The anger and tension of the religious leaders was obviously growing. The disciples must have been wondering about the meaning of these hostile encounters. To them, Jesus gave the appearance of provoking these encounters. Was Jesus about to take control of the government as Messiah?

Then, in a prayer to Jerusalem, Jesus spoke of its house as becoming desolate. This is connected to his cryptic comment: "For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord'" (23:39). By this point in time, the disciples must have been utterly confused, curious and anxious about the things Jesus was saying. Was he about to proclaim himself King? Would his seemingly unlimited power overturn the Roman empire?

Temple to be destroyed

After these things, Jesus leaves the temple. As he was walking away, his anxious disciples pointed to its buildings. In Mark's words, they said, "Look, Teacher! What massive stones! What magnificent buildings!" (13:1). Luke says the disciples remarked how the temple was "adorned with beautiful stones and with gifts dedicated to God" (21:5).

Think of what must have been going through the disciples' minds. Jesus' comments about Jerusalem's desolation and his confrontation with the religious leaders both frightened and excited the disciples. They must have wondered why he was speaking of impending doom on Judaism and its institutions. Wasn't the Messiah coming to glorify both by becoming the Messianic King? By their comments about the temple, it seems as if the concerned and confused disciples were thinking, Surely, nothing can happen to this beautiful temple in which God dwells!?

Jesus then made the disciples more curious and frightened. He brushed aside their lavish praise of the temple. "Do you see all these things?" he asked. "I tell you the truth, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down" (24:2).

This must have been shocking to the disciples. They thought the Messiah was going to save Jerusalem and the temple, not allow both to be destroyed.

As Jesus spoke of these things, the disciples must have thought about the end of gentile rule and the glory of Israel, both which are prophesied so many times in the Hebrew Scriptures. They knew these events would occur at "the time of the end" (Daniel 8:17; 11:35, 40; 12:4, 9). It was at this time that the Messiah would appear or "come" to usher in the kingdom of God. It would mean that Israel would again rise to national greatness and prominence throughout the known world.

Those confused and anxious disciples would have been thinking... surely this is what Jesus was preparing to do. He is the Messiah, our King and he’s going to restore Israel and bring forth the kingdom of God... now. R4L

Living the Christian Life with Joy

“Some people have a warped idea of living the Christian life. Seeing talented, successful Christians, they attempt to imitate them. For them, the grass on the other side of the fence is always greener. But when they discover that their own gifts are different or their contributions are more modest (or even invisible), they collapse in discouragement and overlook genuine opportunities that are open to them. They have forgotten that they are here to serve Christ, not themselves.”

― Billy Graham, Hope for Each Day: Words of Wisdom and Faith