Luke 21 - How Will We Know When the End Times Are Near?
Luke 21 - Enduring Word Commentary
The Widow’s Offering
21 As Jesus looked up, he saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. 2 He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. 3 “Truly I tell you,” he said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others. 4 All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.”
Jesus always looked to a person's heart as the indicator of their love for God. Much of the gospels are spent showing why the religious leaders hearts were so far from God. Today's story is along the same lines. The rich people and religous leaders were impressed by those who put in large amounts of money, but Jesus was not.
In 1 Samuel 16, when Samuel was picking the next King of Israel, God told Samuel the type of king he was looking for, which illustrates this principle. Same was looking at the height of one of David's brothers, but not the Lord.
But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
"Jesus’ principle here shows us that before God, the spirit of giving determines the value of the gift more than the amount. God doesn’t want grudgingly given money or guilt money. God loves the cheerful giver. The widow’s gift and Jesus’ comment on it also shows us that the value of a gift is determined by what it costs the giver. This is what made the widow’s gift so valuable. David refused to give God that which cost me nothing (2 Samuel 24:24)." - Guzik
The Destruction of the Temple and Signs of the End Times
5 Some of his disciples were remarking about how the temple was adorned with beautiful stones and with gifts dedicated to God. But Jesus said, 6 “As for what you see here, the time will come when not one stone will be left on another; every one of them will be thrown down.” 7 “Teacher,” they asked, “when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are about to take place?”
Jesus was predicting what would happen in 70 A.D. about 40 years after Jesus' ministry, when the Romans destroyed and ransacked the Jewish temple. The disciples were admiring the temple and what it said about their religion and devotion to God. But related to the last passage, God doesn't care about buildings but about the hearts of those who enter the building!
When Jesus told them about the future demise of the temple, they naturally wondered when this would happen.
8 He replied: “Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them. 9 When you hear of wars and uprisings, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away.” 10 Then he said to them: “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 11 There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven.
Jesus seems to switch the historical reality of what would happen in 40 years to the end times. The language he uses here is very reminiscent of his other description of the end times in Matthew 24.
Both Matthew and Luke make it clear that Jesus spoke both of the coming destruction of Jerusalem, and of the ultimate end of the age and His glorious return. Prophetically, the two are connected, though separated by many centuries. (Guzik)
“We must regard the siege of Jerusalem and the destruction of the temple as being a kind of rehearsal of what is yet to be.” (Spurgeon)
One of the signs will be many will come claiming to be the Messiah. This has happened many times over the past centuries. All of these imposters were eventually discovered for who they were. Even Charles Manson the mass murderer in the 70's claimed to be the Messiah, and people believed in him and killed for him.
Be if you are grounded in God's Word, you will be able to quickly spot false Messiahs. When Jesus returns there will be no mistaking it is him, even for unbelievers.
12 “But before all this, they will seize you and persecute you. They will hand you over to synagogues and put you in prison, and you will be brought before kings and governors, and all on account of my name. 13 And so you will bear testimony to me. 14 But make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves. 15 For I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict. 16 You will be betrayed even by parents, brothers and sisters, relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death. 17 Everyone will hate you because of me. 18 But not a hair of your head will perish. 19 Stand firm, and you will win life.
Jesus speaks of an upcoming persecution of his apostles right after his death and resurrection, as most of the apostles were martyred for their faith. But toward the end of the 1st century there was widespread persecution of Christians by the Roman Emperor, Domitian, and other emperors who followed.
The Roman conquest of Jerusalem A.D. 70 was complete. History records that 1.1 million Jews were killed and another 97,000 were taken captive in one of the worst calamities ever to strike the Jewish people. Jesus warned them to avoid it. - Guzik
You can read in detail about 11 Roman Emperors during that time period that tried to destroy Christianity by killing Christians at this link.
11 Roman Rulers Who Tried to Destroy Christianity (and Failed)
Jesus gives them an important promise for when this time comes. He will give them the words to defend themselves. Though even family members would betray them, he would never do so. There was also a special reward promised for those who were marytred for their faith in Jesus. In the end they may lose their earthly life but will obtain eternal life.
From the Book of Acts on, there have been countless times when persecution has given Christians the opportunity to preach and give testimony to those they could otherwise never reach with the message, such as kings and rulers. - Guzik
20 “When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near. 21 Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those in the city get out, and let those in the country not enter the city. 22 For this is the time of punishment in fulfillment of all that has been written. 23 How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! There will be great distress in the land and wrath against this people. 24 They will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. 25 “There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea. 26 People will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken. 27 At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 28 When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”
Jesus reveals what the scene will be like in Jerusalem as the apocalypse begins. It will be a time of judgment and terror unlike any time before it. Jerusalem will once again be trampled. Yes, some people think this relates to only A.D. 70, but that is a pretty hard argument to make since the rest of the verses describe things happening very similar to other descriptions of the end times, as described in the book of Revelation.
Jesus in Luke talks about Jerusalem being trampled until the time of the Gentiles are fulfilled. I don't have time to go into what this means, but we know the gospel would be preached to the Gentiles until the full number became believers as determined by God. There are references in the bible for the restoration of Jewish people. Whether relates to a restoration of the land Israel once occupied, or is more related to the people of God who were sons and daughters of Abraham and recipients of the first covenant is up for serious debate. (Especially with what is happening in Gaza right now)
Time of the Gentiles - Got Questions
Here is another view that seems to make some sense.
The "fullness of the Gentiles" means "as many as will believe," or "the complete number." When that mysterious point has been reached, the Jewish people will no longer be hardened in their unbelief in Christ. (Bible.ref)
29 He told them this parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees. 30 When they sprout leaves, you can see for yourselves and know that summer is near. 31 Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that the kingdom of God is near. 32 “Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. 33 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away. 34 “Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you suddenly like a trap. 35 For it will come on all those who live on the face of the whole earth. 36 Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man.” 37 Each day Jesus was teaching at the temple, and each evening he went out to spend the night on the hill called the Mount of Olives, 38 and all the people came early in the morning to hear him at the temple. 29 He told them this parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees. 30 When they sprout leaves, you can see for yourselves and know that summer is near. 31 Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that the kingdom of God is near. 32 “Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. 33 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away. 34 “Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you suddenly like a trap. 35 For it will come on all those who live on the face of the whole earth. 36 Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man.”37 Each day Jesus was teaching at the temple, and each evening he went out to spend the night on the hill called the Mount of Olives, 38 and all the people came early in the morning to hear him at the temple.
Jesus told the disciples and us to be aware of what it happening around us. This is why Christians should watch the news as much as you make dislike it. We need to wise and serpents and innocent as doves. To the extent we get caught up in the things of the world, which he mentions in verse 34, we will not be ready for Jesus' return. Jesus tells us to watch and pray. Being a man or women of prayer will always help keep us ready and alert. When we pray we invited the Holy Spirit to help us see with spiritual eyes what is happening in the world.
While I don't think anyone knows the exact time of Jesus' return, you could certainly point to many things happening in our world today, which resemble what Jesus describes in this passage.
Jesus says this generation will not pass away until these things happen. What does he mean by that since the generation he was talking to has passed away and Jesus hasn't returned yet?
Jesus did not refer to His own generation and that of the disciples, but of the generation that sees those signs; they will also see the very end. This is God’s promise that He will not prolong what Jesus called the Great Tribulation (Matthew 24:21) forever. (Guzik)
“Genea can mean three things: (1) the descendants of a common ancestor; (2) a set of people born at the same time; (3) the period of time occupied by such a set of people, often in the sense of successive sets of people. It cannot be said…therefore, that genea necessarily means generation.” (Pate)
You can see the commentators different slightly on what this means but we don't need to get unnecessarily distracted by this. The main thing is that we are to watch, pray, and being doing the things Jesus told us to do before he returns in His way and in His time.
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