An Urgent Warning

Jesus stressed critical information that is vital if we hope to avoid deception by false prophets and other deceivers active in the Assembly.

The discourse given by Jesus on the Mount of Olives includes instructions about the future. He warns repeatedly of “the many deceivers” and “false prophets” who will spread misleading information about his return, and thereby they will deceive many of “the elect.” Constant vigilance and adherence to the Apostolic teachings are necessary so we may recognize their deceptions and lies.

The warning of Jesus is relevant since so many churches today are being overrun by false teachers, charlatans, false prophets, and other predators, impostors who are “deceiving and being deceived.”  While the Church has struggled with deception since the beginning, the problem is especially acute today.

[Danger - Photo by Mark Riechers on Unsplash]

It is not coincidental that Jesus located this warning at the start of his discourse. The greatest threat to his followers is posed by deceivers, not persecution, poverty, or tribulation. Recognizing deceitful teachings is more critical than knowing the times and seasons of Christ’s return. If the Church can be overcome by deceivers, it will be destroyed from within.

Jesus began with a warning: “Beware lest anyone deceive you.” Liars and charlatans will come in his name and “seduce many.” Likewise, “many false prophets” will appear among his followers, targeting the “elect” of God. In the passage, the stress is on the Greek term translated as “many” - (Matthew 24:4-11, 24:23-24, 24:26).

These deceptive teachings will include false information about “the coming of the Son of Man.” False prophets will claim that Christ “is here” or “there,” or that he is “in the wilderness” or “in the secret chambers.” They will set false expectations about the imminence of his return, claiming that the “season has drawn near” - (Matthew 24:23-26, Luke 21:8).

Disciples will “hear of wars and reports of wars,” and deceivers will point to conflicts between nations, earthquakes, and similar calamities, both natural and manmade, as evidence of the rapidly approaching end of the age.

Wars, seismic activities, and famines occur regularly. However, they are not indicators of the nearness of Christ’s return. They cannot be used to calculate the timing of the end. At most, they are “birth pains.” They point to the inevitable conclusion of the present evil age.

Nevertheless, as Jesus stated, “the end is not yet.” Common events like seismic activity cannot be used to calculate the date of Christ’s return. Nor did Jesus say that the frequency or intensity of wars or famines would increase in the last days. Wars, plagues, earthquakes, wars, and famines have been common occurrences throughout history. What sets one war or earthquake apart from all others, prophetically speaking? - (Matthew 24:4-6).

TIMES AND SEASONS

Jesus warned his followers that “no one knows the day and hour, neither the angels of the heavens nor the Son, except the Father alone.” For emphasis, he ended this declaration with the term “alone,” which is emphatic in the Greek sentence. The Father is the only exception to the rule.

This warning is repeated at least four times in Christ’s ‘Olivet Discourse’, along with his declaration that we do not know “on what kind of day” he will come since the Son of God is coming “at an hour we do not expect.” The version of this saying in the Book of Mark adds that we do not know “when the season is” - (Matthew 24:42-44, 24:50, 25:13, Mark 13:32-35).

Jesus again warned his disciples about this just before his Ascension. They asked when he would restore the kingdom. To this, he replied:

• “It is not for you to know times or seasons, which the Father has put in His own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea and Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth”- (Acts 1:7-8).

The Greek nouns translated as “times” and “seasons” in the above passage are both in the plural number, and together, they cover any way we might wish to demarcate time - (Acts 1:7-8).

Try as we might, we are not privy to information about “when” the Son of Man will appear. We lack the ability and knowledge necessary to calculate the timing of the final day. Our human desire to obtain information about the future is understandable. This is precisely why Satan sends his vassals to prey on our anxieties about the future.

Rather than attempt to ascertain prophetic timetables, we must concern ourselves with proclaiming the Gospel to every inhabited corner of the Earth. That is the one mission assigned to us by our Sovereign, and this calling is the paramount mission of the Church. Its completion is the one event that will trigger Christ’s return and the “conclusion of the age” - (Matthew 24:14).

In the interim, we must remain prepared for his sudden and unexpected arrival. Because we do not know the timing of the end, we must be ready at every moment - (Matthew 24:14, 25:13, Mark 13:32-36).

• “But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what watch the thief was coming, he would have watched and would not have allowed his house to be broken through. Therefore, be you also ready; for in an hour that you think not the Son of man is coming” – (Matthew 24:43-44).

Jesus did not provide his Church with detailed prophetic timetables or signs and harbingers by which we can calculate the date of the Second Coming. However, he did give emphatic and repeated warnings about deceivers who will plague his people. This reality will continue for the entire period between his Ascension and his “coming on the clouds,” though this onslaught is especially intense today. Therefore, “Beware lest anyone deceives you!”

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SEE ALSO:

• The Sign of the End - (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)

• Selling False Expectations - (Jesus warned of coming deceivers who will mislead many by pointing to natural and manmade disasters as signs of his imminent return)

• Rumors and Disinformation - (Rumors about the Day of the Lord caused alarm and confusion in the Thessalonian congregation – 2 Thessalonians 2:1-2)

• Howling Impostors - (The New Testament repeatedly warns of coming deceivers and false prophets who will cause many to depart from the faith)