Peter Tan-Chi - Jesus is Coming, Be Ready
Greetings in the wonderful name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I hope many of you or all of you participated in our mid-year prayer and fasting. Personally, I look forward to spending time with the Lord, and I hope you had a good time spending time with the Lord. And lastly, before I go to our topic today, I'm encouraging all of you, inviting all of you to continue the habit of prayer and fasting every Friday. The entire CCF, the leadership team, the staff, we fast every Friday lunch time. Hope to see you next Friday. We continue our series on End Game. What do we mean by end game? What's going to happen at the end? This is what's going to happen. Today, we will discuss Matthew chapter 24. It is about Jesus and what He has to say about end times.
You see, the disciples asked Jesus point blank, "When are these things going to happen? When are You coming back? And what are the signs"? So these are specific questions, and I'm so glad Jesus taught them. Matthew 24:1 and 2: came out from the temple. And then he made the amazing statement. This is what he said: Why is it an incredible statement? Many people don't realize Herod started the work for the renovation of the temple in 19 BC, before Christ. And that work continued on. It was finally completed in 63 AD. Imagine, after spending all that money to remodel, to rebuild, to improve the temple, here is now Jesus saying: That is the prophecy, not one stone.
Why is that so important? Because history tells us that when the Roman government got so angry with the Jewish people, they sent this general, General Titus to take over Jerusalem, because Jerusalem was rebellious; the people were rebelling. And the Roman government was so angry that the people who tried to hide inside the temple because of its sacredness, they were thinking they'll be spared, but not the Roman soldiers. They were so angry. They killed almost over a million Jews. Not only that, the temple got burned. So what? Well, do you realize the temple's motif, the roof, the decking were made of gold, and when the gold melted, it went to the crevices of the temple stones.
Now the temple stones are not like hollow blocks. Some of them are as long as 50 feet, as wide as 24 feet. So these are massive stones. Why will Jesus say they will fall down? Precisely because of the gold. They wanted to recover the gold that got melted that went inside those crevices. Friends, one thing I want you to know: when Jesus says something, it will surely happen. And that is the backdrop of this prophecy: the certainty of the destruction of that temple. That temple was a masterpiece, it was so beautiful. And that temple was destroyed. Many of them saw it with their own eyes. The people listening, realized when Jesus says something, it will happen. With that as the background, Jesus now tells them: Do you notice the questions? Three questions: When will these things happen; the destruction of the temple? Next, what will be the sign of Your coming?
You see the coming of Jesus is so important that He taught them that He is coming again. That's why they asked Jesus, "What is the sign of your coming"? And then they asked, "And what are the signs of the end of the age? When is the end of the age"? That word, "end", is from the word "teleios", what is the end game? What is the final conclusion? Why is the second coming so important? Why are we discussing it today? Does it matter? Would it make a difference in your life? If you believe Jesus is coming again, or you don't believe He's coming again, will that impact your life? I guarantee you, it makes all the difference and you will know why as we go through what Jesus is telling the disciples. Jesus talked about His second coming and He wanted them to be protected.
So the first P is for their protection. You need to know the truth. The second is for them to be prepared. It is important that they be prepared. Why should we talk about the second coming? Because Jesus wants us to persevere. And that is what He wanted to convey to His disciples. So let's look at these three. So, what do we mean by protection? In Matthew 24:3 onward, Jesus tells them, Do you notice that word? "See to it that no one will mislead you". Jesus wanted to protect the disciples. Jesus is warning them: "Don't let anyone mislead you when they say, 'I'm the Christ.'" Today, many people believe that a certain person is the Messiah, is the Savior. That is dangerous because you are risking your entire future in believing something that's wrong. So it is important to know prophecy to protect us. Jesus tells them, You see, Jesus wants to protect us. "You don't have to be afraid, but I want you to know the truth," He says, must take place, but that is not yet the end.
Now, those of you who are mothers, those of you who are fathers, you understand what is the meaning of birth pangs. My wife is a mother of five children, and before each child were to be born, we noticed something: her stomach will begin to contract. It's called birth pangs. The closer the intervals, the stronger the intensity of the contraction, you'll know the baby is going to come soon. And that is what Jesus is saying. In short, Jesus is saying when you see these things, it is not yet the end, but the end is nearer than you think. And I began to research on those signs, wars, rumors of wars. You would be amazed. We thought that after the end of Second World War, after the establishment of the United Nations, you will have less wars. On the contrary! What Jesus is saying is so true.
Today, you have more wars, nations against nations. That word, "nation", is "ethnos". It's ethnic groups. It is not a political division. It is like Muslims in the Philippines against Christians in the Philippines. It's ethnic groups. It's like what's happening in Africa, one tribe against another tribe. It's like what's happening in Iraq, what's happening in the Middle East, one tribe against another tribe. The Bible tells us wars and rumors of wars, they will increase. And then the Bible talks about famines. You will think famines is a thing of the past. No! In the 21st century alone, you have the famine in Congo, 5.4 million people died. The famine in Sudan, the famine in Uganda, the famine in Somalia, you may not realize as of today, every day, you have 25,000 people dying from hunger. And out of those 25,000, you have 10,000 children dying daily.
If I were to compute that on an annual basis, you have 9 million people dying of hunger today, every year. And you have over 3.5 million children dying every year. We have not solved the problem of famine. Jesus prophesied there will be plagues. Now you and I would be thinking with the advancement of science, we should overcome pandemics, epidemics; but let's look at history. Some of the worst pandemics that has happened. It's called the Black Death, the bubonic plague spread by rats, around 200 million people died, almost 51% of the population of Europe. New World Smallpox, wow, twelve percent of the population. Spanish Flu, this is just in the ninth, in the 20th century. And that's why you have the quarantine, it's because of the Spanish Flu; they wanted to quarantine people, "cuarto", forty, quarantine. 50 million died.
And of course you have the HIV. HIV is still ongoing and you have already 35 million people who have died. And today you have the COVID, the COVID-19 pandemic. My whole point is this: nothing new under the sun, there will be pandemics. What is very striking to me are earthquakes. The Bible tells us in the end time, there will be earthquakes. If I show you a chart of what's happening when it comes to big earthquakes over five, magnitude of 5, look at what's happening: in the 1900s that's the chart. Every 10 years, you will notice from the 1900s up to 2000, the year 2000 now, look at the graph. The earthquakes are increasing. It's increasing exponentially. Can I tell you what God is saying? God is shaking the world. God is telling us, "Be ready, I'm coming soon! I will tell you the signs," and earthquakes are one of those signs.
God wants also to prepare us. What do I mean? To be forewarned is to be forearmed. And it tells us in the next few verses, Matthew 24, let me read: Brothers, sisters in Christ, do not be under an illusion that the world will fall in love with believers. The truth is this: God tells His disciples, Today, you will see Christians are being attacked all over the world. What is very sad, even in the States today, they are attacking Christianity. Do you notice? Today, you have Christians betraying other Christians. Look at verse 11: Jesus warns us! There will be many false prophets. Why is this important? You need to be prepared. You need to be protected from false prophets. What do I mean false prophets? In the time of Moses, people asked Moses, "How will we know who is a counterfeit prophet and who is a true prophet"? Because today there are many people claiming to be prophets. I'm sure you have heard many, many church leaders claiming that this guy is a prophet. "This is what he said".
Well, I want you to be careful. Based on the Bible, how do you tell, who are real prophets, who are not? Let's find out. The moment a prophet begins to claim, "This is what God is saying," and it does not happen, the Bible says that person should die because he is being presumptuous, claiming to be a messenger of God, but he's delivering his own message. How can we tell? Today, I tell people it is important you must know the word of God, because the word of God and the word of a real prophet will never contradict. But notice: In short, don't listen to him. In other words, God wants us to be discerning, to be careful. But this is one of those warnings that I want all believers to be prepared for. This warning is more serious than earthquakes, famine, epidemics. What is this?
And this is what's happening today. It's unbelievable! If you're watching the news, even when you watch what's happening in America, lawlessness is increasing. But the danger is not just lawlessness. The danger is this: That includes Christians. Friends, Jesus wants you to be prepared, He wants you to be protected. The danger of a cold heart is more serious than pandemics. What do I mean? The moment you lose your love for God, what will you be doing? Everything you are doing will be legalism. The moment a pastor loses his love for the Lord, the moment a Dgroup leader loses his love for the Lord, what kind of ministry will that be? It will just be like a routine. You would be doing something out of habit, but it's no longer love. And that my friend is very dangerous. And God warns us in the end time, the heart of the people will grow cold.
Let us always hear the warning of Jesus. Your love for God, your love for one another must be maintained. That is how you can persevere. And that's how you can be protected. The reality is Jesus warns you, He warns me of the reality of hardship, persecutions. Based on the Open Doors' latest research, 2018, 2019, every day you have 13 Christians killed. Every day, you have 12 churches, 12 church buildings being attacked. And every day you have around 12 Christians arrested, detained. What is very sad is in the 21st century, it is not possible to practice religion or beliefs safely in many parts of the world. And that's exactly what Jesus said: in the end times, you will have attacks. You'll be persecuted. He not only wants to protect them, He wanted them to be prepared, but more than that, He wanted them to persevere. What do we mean by persevere? Persevere is from the word, "endures". Let's read this: What does it mean, "endures to the end"?
You see, the Bible tells us if you are a true follower of Jesus, you will not only believe. You will continue believing. To continue believing means what? You will endure, you will persevere. You will keep on doing what is right. That word, "persevere", comes from the word "hupomenō". Do you remember "hupomenō"? That's the word for "to remain under a burden", but it also means you are not just under the burden, but you have a positive attitude. You are bearing the burden with the strength of the Lord. That's the idea of persevering, you endure. It's one thing to be faithful for one day. It's one thing to be faithful for one week. It's another thing to be faithful for one year. But it is altogether another thing to be faithful for 10 years, to be faithful for the rest of your life.
My question: are you learning to persevere, to keep on doing what God wants you to do, not just for one day, one week, one year, two years? My goodness! If it takes a lifetime, are you willing to persevere to the end of your life? That's what God wants us to learn. What must we continue doing? Here is a very clear answer about when the end will happen. The end will come, the Bible tells us, "the gospel of the kingdom", the gospel of Jesus shall be preached "to the whole world". And then the end will come. What does it mean to endure? You will not only keep on believing, you keep on preaching the gospel. You keep on doing what he has commanded us to do. That is what Jesus told the disciples.
In 2006, there was a group of Christian leaders who met together. They realized there are over 3,000 unreached people groups. What do we mean by unreached people group? These are people who don't have any local church in that community. There's nobody planning to evangelize them. No gospel. That's the same idea of "ethnos", particular ethnic groups. In the Philippines, for you to understand what are people groups, people from Ifugao, people in Palawan; now in Palawan, you have Tagbanua, you have different tribes. Each tribe is a people group. You have Mangyans. Technically, you will notice that the gospel has been proclaimed to the whole world. It begun in the Middle East, it went to Europe and then it went to America. And from America, it went to South America to Africa, to Asia, and now the gospel is being proclaimed back to the Middle East. God's desire is for the whole world to know Him and to repent. God has done His part. He wants us to do our part. Therefore, it is important that you and I do our part.
Let's share the gospel. Let's get involved in whatever methods that can share the gospel with other people. I suggest Go Viral is very effective, it's very simple. If you want to know more about Go Viral, let us know. In 2005, we have around 3,500 unreached people groups. But because a group of leaders met together, discussed how to strategize to reach these unreached groups. As of today, I have good news for you! As of today in 2021, there are only around 500 unreached people groups. CCF is part of this movement. We are sending missionaries to places where they have never been reached and by the grace of God, will you believe it? Many of them are using Go Viral. Are you doing something to share the Gospel so that everybody will have a chance to hear? And the truth is this: Christianity is growing. The truth is this: there are more believers alive today than there ever was in the time of Christ up to this century.
You will have more people who are alive today, who are Christians. Why? Because many of God's people are spreading the good news and I praise God for you. I praise God for CCF Beyond. We are reaching to the far corners of the world. We are planting churches to people groups, to those who have never heard. And I pray you will do the same. How will you persevere? He tells us He talks about a great tribulation that has not occurred in the past until now, nor ever will. So what is he talking about? He's talking about the great tribulation. Verse 22: In short, what is Jesus saying? There will be a day of great, great tribulation, and the elect, they will be going through those tribulations.
In the time of great tribulation, you will now have: You know what Jesus is saying? Even the elect, even the believers, if they are not prepared, if they are not warned, they can be deceived, you know why? The false prophets and the false Christ will say in the midst of this tribulation, "I am your savior. I will save the day". That's the meaning of the word "anti-Christ", substitute for the Messiah. And he continues. This must be so scary when the power of heavens will be shaken. I can't imagine such a day. If you've seen that movie, Deep Impact, where the meteors, a big meteor is going to fall on the earth, stars are falling, that's the idea. And then look at verse 30: But do you notice something? As he is coming, what will happen? Why will they mourn? Because, again, many have rejected Jesus. They didn't realize He is the Messiah. He is the Savior. When He comes, you will see the sadness, the regrets of their lives.
But what is amazing is the next verse: Elect. You have that word "elect" repeated again and again and again. What is the meaning of the word "elect"? The word "elect" comes from this Greek word "eklektos", that is always applied to God's people. That's where you have the word "chosen". In fact, 1 Peter 2:9 tells us You are an "elect". That's where you have the word "chosen", selected. It always refers to God's people. In other words, it is very possible if you read Matthew 24, especially verse 22: For our sake. That means there are believers who will go through the tribulation. In verse 24: if possible, even the elect will be misled; believers can be misled.
And Matthew 24:31: the angels will gather His elect. So what does that mean? This is where I'd like you to understand biblical theology. When the Bible is very clear on something, you can teach it dogmatically. But when it comes to the second coming of Christ, when it comes to the rapture, my friend, don't be dogmatic as to the when. You can be sure of this: Jesus is coming again. You see the whole message today is very simple: Jesus is coming very soon! Be ready. He gave seven illustrations in Matthew 24 to 25. What are the seven illustrations? He talks about the fig tree, He talks about Noah, He talks about the two workers, He talks about the thief, He talks about the servants.
This is Matthew chapter 24. I don't have time to expand on the 10 virgins and the talents, which is in Matthew 25. But if you study all of this, they have one common theme: you do not know when Jesus is coming again, but you must be ready. Let's talk about the illustration of the fig tree. Jesus tells us What Jesus is saying is simply this: fig trees are known in Israel. During winter, they lose all their leaves. However, when spring time comes, you will see the buds, the leaves slowly blooming. And Jesus is saying when you see a fig tree with leaves, you know the summer is near. With that story He's saying, "You better realize when you see all of these signs, wars, rumors of wars, remember: I'm coming very soon".
Look at His expression: "recognize that He is near, right at the door". What do you mean by this generation? Many scholars like to believe that it's the generation that sees what's happening, that is seeing all of these signs. For some people, they see the fig tree represent Israel. When you see Israel restored as a nation, that generation will see all of these things happening. But whatever it is, this is what is important: in verse 35, Jesus said, I want you to notice: What Jesus is saying is this: "This is a certainty. What I say will come true; I'm coming again. All of these prophecies will happen. My word is even more dependable than the heavens or the earth, the rising of the sun, the setting of the sun, the planet Earth that you see. My word will last. My word will come true".
Verse 36, notice the repetition. You will not know when... Do you know what Jesus is saying? "Nobody knows when I'm coming. Not even the angels, not even the Son, but the Father alone". Now you may ask how come Jesus does not know. Remember: Jesus is 100% man, 100% God. At this point in life, He chooses to inhibit His divinity. And that's why Jesus could die. Even though he was God, he was His Son, but He surrendered the rights of being God. So when Jesus talks about how no one knows the second coming, not even the angels, but God alone, in short, be careful when people start telling you, "I am sure Jesus is coming next year". Don't ever believe them because Jesus says nobody will know. You know it is near, but you don't know exactly when. And then he gives the example. Jesus is not saying it is wrong to eat, it is wrong to drink, it is wrong to get married.
What Jesus is simply saying is this: the people went through their regular routine, but they did not care or bother to take the warning of Noah seriously. You know the lesson for you and for me? Don't be like those people in the time of Noah. They were so careless. They do not want to bother to ask what is the implication of the message of God. You must understand Noah warned them. The Bible tells us Noah preached to these people. Can you imagine: when Noah was building the ark, people saw Noah building the ark. Did they bother to ask him, "Why are you building the ark, Noah"? and he would tell them, "Because God told me there's going to be rain and there's going to be flood, and I want to be prepared". Now, those people, you must know: they don't understand rain, they don't understand the flood, but all they know is here's this guy building like a boat to protect his family. They didn't bother. When they saw all the animals entering the ark, did they ask Noah, "Noah, why are all the animals entering the ark"?
You see, my friend, don't be so preoccupied with your routinary activities that you neglect the warnings of the Lord. He is coming soon, He wants you and me to be ready. And the Bible tells us when the flood came, that's the time they realized what Noah was talking about, but it was too late. You see, there's a point in your life when God gives you opportunities. Don't be so busy with whatever you are doing that you neglect the warnings of God. Then he gives the example of two men working in the field: one would be taken, one will be left. He talks about two women working, grinding the meal: one will be taken, one will be left. But notice the most important thing about that example, verse 42: Do you notice the emphasis? You don't know the day. Be alert! And then he gave another example of the thief. The focus is be alert, because you do not know when the thief will break in.
Verse 44: Notice the emphasis: be ready, be ready, why? Do you notice the emphasis of the entire chapter of Matthew 24? You do not know when. He's coming very soon. Be ready, be alert. What does it mean to be ready? He talks about a slave; a servant and a master. Notice how he described the slave: "Who is the faithful and sensible slave"? What is the meaning of the word "sensible"? It is a very important word. It's from the word, "phronimos". The word "phronimos" has the idea of your inner thought life, your perspective, impacting your behavior. That's the word for sensible. When somebody's sensible, you know he's thinking right and is acting right. Notice, the sensible slave, the one with the right perspective, the one with the right attitude, they're the one with the right belief system. Look at verse 46: The word "blessed" means what? Happy. You should be happy, why?
Verse 47: Here is the amazing promise: if you know Jesus is coming, you will be protected from laziness. You will not only be protected, you will prepare. You will be faithful. You will persevere. And then the result will be, you'll hear Him say, "Well done! I will put you in charge of all My possessions". In other words, does it matter today whether you believe Jesus is coming or not? Yes, it matters! It affects your life. It affects your future. It affects other people. Look at the next verse, the contrast. This expression was used by Jesus seven times in the New Testament, and every time this phrase is used, "weeping and gnashing of teeth", it is bad news. Regrets, remorse, horrible condition.
Friends, this message is crucial. It will impact your eternity. Are you ready or are you not ready? There is no middle ground. My prayer is you will be ready. To be ready is not just to know. It is to do something about it. Like in the days of Noah, people knew, people heard, but they did not do anything. Why? Perhaps they don't really believe that the rain is coming, that the flood is coming. They were not prepared. And the Bible tells us when the flood came, it was too late. The same thing when it comes to the servant. The servant knew that the master is coming. But the servant does not know when. What's the difference? The one that is sensible, I want you to know that word, faithful and sensible... did something. He was faithful every day. We do not know how long, but if you study the parable of Matthew chapter 25, the virgins and the five talents, the principle is to be ready, is to persevere.
Be faithful, not just one day, two days. To persevere. I'm reminded of my mistake years ago about perseverance. You see, my father would tell us to clean up our mess, to clean up our room. My father would inspect from time to time and I realize I had been fixing up my room, but my father has not come to inspect. Would you believe it? The day I decided not to clean up my mess was the day he came. And that is very clear in my mind. I was so embarrassed. I felt so sad that my father came on the day when I did not fix up my room. That, my friend, is the meaning of sensible and being faithful. You be faithful daily because when Jesus comes, will he see you faithful?
When Jesus comes again, what are you doing? A faithful person will keep on doing what God wants him to do. I'm reminded of what happened to Pompeii, when the volcano erupted and many people died on the spot. They did not have to die, because weeks before the eruption you have signs. The volcano was giving up smoke. There were earthquakes. and yet only a few took heed and they did something. The Bible tells us today, you hear rumors of war, you have tremors, all of these signs, it's happening. What's happening to Israel. Lawlessness is increased. People's hearts are no longer with the Lord. You have all of these signs, but many people will know in the head but do nothing about it.
I want you to do something about it. I want you to get your life right with the Lord. If you had not accepted Him as your Lord and Savior, today, make sure you come to Him, surrender your life to Him. To those of you who know Him but you have somehow lost the perseverance, you have somehow gone astray, you are no longer being faithful, you are not doing what He wants you to do, my friend, it's never too late to repent, because the heart of God is you must be ready. "I am coming soon. When? That is not the issue, but be ready. That is the issue. Are you ready"? To be ready means what? Take actions. Take Jesus seriously. He's the coming King. He's the coming Judge. And all of us will give an account of our lives.
To those who are faithful, it'll be a time of great joy, great celebration. And that's my prayer, that when I see Jesus, I will be full of joy. The truth is this: that is the most important day of your life and my life. Everything I have done, everything I will do, I look forward to that day when I see my Savior and my Master, and then when I see Him smile and say, "Well done". And that, my friend, is only possible if you and I are ready all the time. Why don't you ask God today, "Lord, what do you want me to do that I'm not doing"? Why don't you ask, "Lord, what do you want me to stop doing"? "What relationship do you want me to give up"? "Lord, what do you really want me to be doing so that I will be ready to meet you at any moment"? I will pray for you.
Lord Jesus, I pray for many people today who have never taken this warning seriously. They are playing games. Forgive us, Lord, when we play games with You. Help us to take this seriously. Lord, we accept You, not just as our Savior, but as our Master. You are the coming King. You are the coming Judge. Help us to take this warning seriously and help us to take this promise happily, for You will bring justice and rewards for Your people. It's to be a time of celebration, not a time of fear. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.