Why The Word of God MATTERS

 Matthew 24

In verse 1 the disciples show Jesus the temple and surrounding buildings and exclaim how massive and solid they appear to be.  Jesus looks at those same buildings and says a time is coming when not one stone will remain upon another.  They were probably stunned by the news and so He took them to the Mount of Olives and began to explain the future to them.  As westerners we tend to think of Biblical prophecy as the prediction of a one time event but that is rarely how it works.  The Jews understood that prophecy was both prediction AND pattern.  In A.D. 70 the Romans attacked Jerusalem and destroyed the temple.  A fire was accidentally begun which burned the temple and caused all the gold within it to melt into the surrounding stones.  The Roman commander ordered every stone to be turned over and examined for gold.  The phrase “No stone left unturned,” came from this. 

4  And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. 5  For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many.

Verse 4 is one of those that should be highlighted and meditated upon.  His first words, “Take heed,” means to look, to be aware and observant.  When people tell you the Bible is not God’s Word, do you mark those people?  If supposed saints of God tell you the Bible is not divinely inspired do you mark down everything they say to you to a lower level?  Many would say that is a harsh thing to do.  Personally, I believe hell will be harsh.  It wasn’t designed for us.  It was supposed to be for the angels who have fallen.  We chose to disobey and God cannot allow more disobedience into Heaven (Exodus 20:6, Deuteronomy 5:10, John 14:15). 

You might say that those who call themselves the Christ are crazy and we can ignore them.  That would be true for those who have studied God’s word and meditate on it daily.  Does that apply to you?  Your neighbor?  1300 years ago someone came along and declared himself the next Christ.  His name was Mohammed.  He invented a set of laws just close enough to the true Word of God to make many stumble.  Most have not gotten back up.  He came from a people descended from Ishmael.  We already know the character of Ishmael and his people because scripture tells us.

In Genesis 16 God Himself spoke to Hagar, Ishmael’s mother saying,

11 “You are now pregnant and you will give birth to a son. You shall name him Ishmael, for the Lord has heard of your misery. ¹² He will be a wild donkey of a man; his hand will be against everyone and everyone’s hand against him, and he will live in hostility toward all his brothers.”

Not every man or woman in the Middle East comes from Ishmael but his descendants have taken residence in every nation.  God’s Word always comes to pass.  Notice His description of Ishmael’s tribe in verse 12.  “…his hand will be against everyone and everyone’s hand against him, and he will live in hostility toward ALL his brothers.”  Not only does this mean that a great number of Muslims in the Middle East are going to fight amongst themselves, but they will also live with great hostility against their other brother, Israel.  How many in Isis or Hamas are descendants of Ishmael?  They will be like Haman in the book of Esther.  That is another prophetic ending that will come to pass.

They will NEVER make peace amongst themselves OR Israel.  The wound is too deep.  They love Abraham because he was their daddy too.  They hate Israel because he was the chosen son.  They will twist the true God’s words because God put Isaac above Ishmael.  To them God is capricious because He did not choose them.  He is merciful because He had mercy on Hagar.  They would not call Him by the names Israel call Him or Christians call Him because the names of God are based upon the attributes He shows us.  To us God is certain, loving and gracious.  He is also Spirit which is the opposite of the god they serve.  We live for the life to come and are supposed to spread God’s love to that end.  They believe the life to come will be one of lust and passion.

6  And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.

Life on earth is constantly bombarded by our fallen nature and the devious and subtle attacks by Satan’s army.  We turned the earth over to him and he knows his time is short.  Every scientific discovery that is discovered for the good of mankind is being corrupted by Satan.  We are never satisfied, never satiated.  We always want more. 

7  For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. 8  All these are the beginning of sorrows.

In our modern world not only will nations rise against nation or kingdom against kingdom, but we have become subtle enough to tamper with the very creation of God.  We now design diseases and pestilences and scatter them against our enemies.  Who know which diseases are man made.  The Zika virus perhaps?  Every month you hear of a new earthquake in a different country.  People around the world are starving.  They are starving almost exclusively because of man made shortages and problems.  We are killing ourselves to get even with others.  This is just the BEGINNING of sorrows.

9  “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake.

People call me every day for prayer.  They say, “God is not helping me.  I need food.  I need a car. I need a home.  I need. I need. I need.  Only a few say, “I am so thankful to God for what I have.”  Pestilence and hunger have settled over much of the church.  The two major prayers are for money and health.  God describes this in 1 Corinthians 11.  This is the passage we usually read for Sacrament.  In verse 30 God says, “For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep and die.”  We don’t respect the church.  We don’t respect the body and the blood.  His body.  His blood. 

If the whole body of Christ actually tithed there would always be enough.  We would have enough to feed, clothe and house the poor.  Instead we have those who say tithing is not for us who rather demand God do His part while we neglect ours.  Add to this the number of churches whose leaders have not been able to find a balance between need and desire and feel they really do need that personal jet or the 20,000 square foot mansion for themselves and their poodle Fifi.  On the other side you have those who demand the church be poor.  Both go against God’s Word but they are greatly empowered by their desires or passions.  Neither one can ask God for instruction without the flesh placing blinders upon them. 

10  And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another.

When we come to God with preconceived notions and personal opinions His Word will lose its clarity.  My wife said something the other day when someone’s willingness to help someone offended another person who didn’t have the same ability.  She said, “Don’t hate.”  Find God’s true vision for you.  Realize it is for you and not for the whole world.  God is a personal God.  He has plenty of work and blessing for us all.  Follow your own vision without cursing mine.

Verse 10 is speaking of the church.  We hate that one church has a jet so we find a verse that curses them.  We teach that hate to our less scripturally minded brethren and so they just hate because hate doesn’t really need a clear purpose.  The central theme of God’s Word, “For God so loved,” is lost in the rage, in the passion, in the flesh; and now it’s every ministry for itself and none of them working together.  Because we don’t encourage each other, we begin to discourage each other.  We begin to pray for direction and guidance and Satan hears our prayers.

11  Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many.

Verse 11 says these false prophets will rise up and deceive many.  Not all of course.  Some of us really do study to show ourselves approved, a workman who needs not be ashamed.  They will deceive enough though.  We will no longer portray a united front and a scriptural front and so the saints who have begun to deny the perfection of God’s Word will begin to doubt all of it.  Allegory will take the place of certainty and we will cease to be a united and powerful voice.  1 Corinthians 14:8 says, “If the trumpet makes an odd sound, who will prepare himself for battle.”  Satan has turned this around.  He has managed to get many trumpets to blow a different sound.  One plays charge and one plays retreat and the body is scattered and ineffectual. 

One pastor believes homosexuals should be able to preach and teach in the church.  Another says no.  Two different sounds.  One says pay tithes and the other says no.  Two different sounds.  One says tongues have ceased and prophecy is no longer in use and the other says they are alive and well.  Two different sounds.  One says the Bible was written by ordinary men and makes no sense.  Another says the Bible is written as God MOVED ordinary men and is perfect.  Two different sounds.

12  And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.

Eventually we no longer put murderers to death.  We no longer have right and wrong.  It’s easy to sin and be crazy so more and more are crazy.  It’s easy to break laws and repent than to keep them in the first place so we deny the value of laws.  From the top down we ignore righteousness and honor and live for expedient wealth.  Men swoop in and destroy companies that supported hundreds of families for generations and break them up for a quick score.  They reap billions and hundreds are left starving.  They have more money than they could ever spend and care nothing for those they have destroyed.

Fathers abandon wives and children and feel no remorse.  Wives murder their children and say a voice spoke.  Men drive through town and kill random strangers for no reason and calmly say, “Yes, I did it.”  We deny prayer in school and are angered that people come in and murder our innocents from daycare through college and murder people dedicated to helping others because of slights and petty frustrations.  We blame the gun for the damaged soul and the God in Heaven for our own unwillingness to submit. 

Without God…we just don’t care.

13  But he who endures to the end shall be saved.

In Matthew 7:13-15, Jesus Himself says, “Enter ye in at the narrow gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in there: 14 Because narrow is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.  15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.”

If you preach the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ with accuracy, clarity and faithfulness you will be honored by God and hated by man.  Preach it anyway.  If you choose to do the work and will of God then do it with integrity and do not change the truth of His Word.  You will be despised by men.  Do it anyway.  Prophets will come and call you heretics and fools and deluded children.  Preach the Word of God with purpose anyway.  They will kill some of you for your faith.  Die with honor and a praise on your lips.

14  And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.

Keep it up.  Be diligent.  Don’t dilute and corrupt God’s Word.  Preach it clearly and faithfully.  The sooner we tell everyone, the sooner we can go home.  Preach it well and let’s move up the timetable.  This is why the Word of God matters. 

Preach!!!