Matthew 24:1-8

Rachel Workman: 24 As Jesus was leaving the Temple grounds, his disciples pointed out to him the various Temple buildings. 2 But he responded, “Do you see all these buildings? I tell you the truth, they will be completely demolished. Not one stone will be left on top of another!”

3 Later, Jesus sat on the Mount of Olives. His disciples came to him privately and said, “Tell us, when will all this happen? What sign will signal your return and the end of the world?”

4 Jesus told them, “Don’t let anyone mislead you, 5 for many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah.’ They will deceive many. 6 And you will hear of wars and threats of wars, but don’t panic. Yes, these things must take place, but the end won’t follow immediately. 7 Nation will go to war against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in many parts of the world. 8 But all this is only the first of the birth pains, with more to come.

Just lastnight I laid in bed and prayed God lead me to your church. I want a church that I can trust to preach your word. Being misled doesn't dismiss us from our responsibilities. We can and will still face judgment for it. I'm not going to pretend to predict the return of Christ. But honestly the wars they speak of here and earthquakes will be on level we've never seen before. We will be on the other side at this point and I fearfully agonize for those left behind.

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John Burnett:  24 Jesus came out from the temple and was going away ^[a]when His disciples came up to point out the temple buildings to Him. ² And He said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down.”

³ As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the ^[b]end of the age?”

⁴ And Jesus answered and said to them, “See to it that no one misleads you. ⁵ For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the ^[c]Christ,’ and will mislead many. ⁶ You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. ⁷ For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes. ⁸ But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs.  Prophesy tells us that the antichrist will stand in the temple halfway through the 7 year tribulation period where he will proclaim himself to be god and he will be the leader of the one world government.  The first three and half years of the tribulation will involve wars and rumor of wars like the Gog/Magog war.  Today, Russia (Gog) is building the alliances with the other nations (Iran, Ethiopia, etc.) that will be involved in this war (Ezekiel 38).  Droughts around the world are getting worse leading to famines and earthquakes are increasing in frequency and severity all over the world.  All of this will take place when the Holy Spirit is removed and that means we will be removed/raptured.  These things get me very excited about our future as God has promised that we are not going to suffer his wrath and it appears to me that things are lining and speeding up towards Jesus’s return.   

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Allen Michaels:  The Destruction of the Temple and Signs of the End Times

24 Jesus left the temple and was walking away when his disciples came up to him to call his attention to its buildings. ² “Do you see all these things?” he asked. “Truly I tell you, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.” I’m sure the disciples had a hard time believing that this massive and glorious structure could be destroyed. But the temple was indeed destroyed only 40 years later (A. D. 70) when the Romans sacked Jerusalem.

³ As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” Jesus’ reply emphasized the events that would take place before the end of the age. He pointed out that his disciples should be less concerned with knowing the exact date and more concerned with being prepared—living God’s way consistently so that no matter when Jesus came in Glory, he would claim them as his own.

⁴ Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. Jesus’ first response was “Watch out that no one deceives you.” The fact is that whenever we look for signs, we become very susceptible to being deceived. There are many “false prophets (24:11, 24) around with counterfeit signs of spiritual power and authority. The only sure way to keep from being deceived is to focus on Christ and his words. Don’t look for special signs, and don’t spend time looking at other people. Look at Christ. ⁵ For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. ⁶ You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. ⁷ Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. ⁸ All these are the beginning of birth pains.