The Sign

According to Jesus, the End will not come until the Gospel of the Kingdom of God has been proclaimed to all nations – Matthew 24:14. When the subject of the Second Coming is raised, the question of what “sign” or “signs” will precede it is asked. Invariably, wars, earthquakes, tsunamis, famines, and similar catastrophes are offered as harbingers of that day. Yet Jesus gave the definitive answer to this question - the completion of the Church’s mission to proclaim his salvation and lordship to all nations.

After his final visit to the Temple, he predicted its destruction. Because Israel rejected her Messiah, “All these things shall come upon this generation. Behold, your house is left to you desolate. Truly I declare to you, there shall not be left one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down” - (Matthew 23:34-39, 24:1-2).

[Photo by Florian Gerus on Unsplash]

In reaction, the disciples asked two questions. First, when would the predicted destruction of the Temple occur? Second, what would be the “sign” of the Son of Man's coming and the “consummation of the age”?

Jesus began his answer with a dire warning—beware of false messiahs and false prophets who will deceive many. His disciples would hear about wars, earthquakes, international conflicts, and famines. False prophets and other deceivers point to such events as signs of the rapidly approaching End.

However, calamities of this sort are not indicators of the End. Disasters occur but the “End is not yet.” False teachers infiltrate the Church and point to these things as “signs” of his imminent return. In this way, they raise false expectations and “deceive many” - (Matthew 24:4-8, 2 Thessalonians 2:1-4).

Human and natural catastrophes are common events; therefore, disciples must "not be alarmed" when they inevitably occur. They are not chronological markers by which his Assembly can calculate the timing of the End. At most, they constitute a “beginning of birth pains,” indicating the inevitable conclusion of the present age.

To the first question, he answered, “This generation.” The generation that was contemporary with Jesus saw the destruction of the Temple when a Roman army destroyed it in A.D. 70, exactly as he predicted - within one generation - (Matthew 3:7, 11:16, 12:34-45, 16:4, 17:17, 23:33-36, 24:34).

THE TASK

Regarding his “coming on the clouds and the conclusion of the age,” Jesus declared that no man knows that day or hour except God alone; therefore, his disciples must always be prepared for its unexpected and sudden arrival. Knowledge of the “times and seasons” belongs to God alone - (Matthew 24:36, Mark 13:33, Acts 1:7-9).

As to the requested “sign,” Jesus gave us one clear goal that must be achieved before he returns, the “proclamation of this Gospel of the Kingdom in the whole habitable earth for a testimony to all nations.” Only “then will the End come.”

The message of his Kingdom is Good News for all men. God is calling every man and woman to hear and obey it. Christ’s disciples must testify of this great salvation in every inhabited corner of the Earth before the “Son of Man arrives… to gather his saints” and judge the nations - (Matthew 24:14).

The opening passages of the Book of Acts stress the importance of the Church’s mission. Before his Ascension, Jesus commanded his disciples to wait in Jerusalem until they received the Gift of the Holy Spirit. They would then become his “witnesses in Jerusalem, and all Judaea and Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth” - (Acts 1:6-9).

The Spirit is necessary for empowering the Church to carry out its mission. Jesus did not leave us powerless; he sent the “promise of the Father.” We must be his witnesses until the day he returns. “As they were looking, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of sight.  And while they were looking into heaven, two men stood by them in white apparel and said, Why are you standing and looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was received into heaven, will come in like manner as you beheld him going into heaven” - (Acts 1:6-11).

The proclamation of the Gospel and the outpouring of the Spirit are inextricably linked, and they must continue until the end of the present age - as long as God is summoning sinners to repent - (Acts 1:6-11).

• “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and rise again from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name unto all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. And behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you. But wait in the city, until you are clothed with power from on high” – (Luke 24:46-49).

• “Christ, being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured forth this, which you see and hear… And Peter said to them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.  For to you is the promise, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God will call” - (Acts 2:33-39).

How do we know when our task is done? According to Jesus, when the End arrives! The fact that he has not returned proves our mission remains unfinished. We as his disciples must persevere in Gospel witness until Christ appears “on the clouds of heaven” and gathers his elect, “from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other,” and the Spirit equips and guides us daily in this effort– (Matthew 23:31).

We are called to preach the Gospel until it reaches the “uttermost parts of the Earth.” Completing this mission matters far more than possessing accurate information about signs, “times and seasons,” or prophetic timetables. Our Risen Lord is waiting for us to complete our paramount task before he returns in glory to reap the harvest of the Earth.

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SEE ALSO:

• To the Ends of the Earth - (The Gospel of the Kingdom announced by Jesus offers salvation and life to all men and women of every nation and people)

• Spirit and Mission - (Jesus gives the Holy Spirit to his people, empowering them to proclaim the Good News of his Kingdom to the Nations of the Earth)

• My Witnesses - (The Gift of the Spirit equips the Assembly to bear witness to Jesus, especially concerning his Resurrection from the dead)

• Mes Témoins - (Le Don de l'Esprit équipe l'Assemblée pour rendre témoignage à Jésus, en particulier en ce qui concerne sa Résurrection d'entre les morts)