THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION

Matthew: Jesus As Israel's Messiah And His Kingdom

Q. Christ As Israel's Messiah Seen In His Words Of God's Work With Israel To The Kingdom, Matthew 24-25

3. Christ As Israel's Messiah Seen In His Second Coming Judgment Of People

(Matthew 24:42-51)

I. Introduction

A. Much misinterpretation has occurred in Church History regarding Jesus' Matthew 24-25 end-time prophecies.

B. We thus view His parables in Matthew 24:42-51 about those who will experience the Great Tribulation, and of their accountability to Him at His Second Coming for insight and lessons for us who live and serve Him now:

II. Christ As Israel's Messiah Seen In His Second Coming Judgment Of People, Matt. 24:42-51.

A. After predicting His Second Coming in Matthew 24:29-41, Jesus in Matthew 24:42 began to address the need for those on the earth in the future Great Tribulation to prepare themselves for His return, Matthew 24:40-41.

B. Accordingly, using the analogy of a watching householder, Jesus told those in the future Great Tribulation to prepare themselves to meet Him since they would not know the exact time of His arrival, Matthew 24:42-44:

1. Though God's timeline regarding the future Great Tribulation has "a definite starting time and a definite ending time" in the Seventieth Week of Daniel 9, many living in the tumultuous Great Tribulation era will not easily recognize or identify the exact time of His return much as a householder who knows a thief will come in the night to steal still does not know the exact moment the thief will arrive, Matthew 24:42-43.

2. Accordingly, when people in the Great Tribulation see the events Christ has predicted will precede His return start to occur, they like the watching householder must prepare for Christ's return by immediately putting their faith in Him and serving Him that they might be blessed when they meet Him, Matt. 24:44.

C. In particular, those living in the Great Tribulation who are in God-given oversight positions must take care to relate to others righteously, for they will give an account to Christ for their oversight, Matthew 24:45-51:

1. The servant in the Matthew 24:45-51 section of Christ's Olivet Discourse is a person who has been assigned the role of being a responsible overseer in some realm, much like a steward who faithfully was to give his subordinates their food at the right intervals, Matthew 24:45. This illustration relates to parents, family men or any other leader in relation to any party under his jurisdiction in some institution.

2. At Christ's return, if an overseer due to faith in Christ has conscientiously cared for those under his care, he will be blessed by seeing Christ advance him to rule over all that He has, Matthew 24:46-47.

3. However, if the overseer has failed to sense his accountability to Christ at His Second Coming so that he abused his subordinates selfishly and indulged his lusts in irresponsible conduct, Christ will return at a time when he is not expecting to see Him and that overseer will be caught in his sin with no suitable excuse for his misbehavior, Matthew 24:48-50.

4. Since the overseer's selfish, irresponsible actions mirror his lack of trust in and lack of relationship with Christ, he will be severely judged by being separated from Christ in eternal judgment, Matthew 24:51.

D. Though these teachings directly apply to those living in the Great Tribulation era, there are principles in these teachings on how God evaluates and will judge us Christians today relative to our works (as follows):

1. First, we Christians do not know when our Lord is going to take us to be with Him in the pretribulation rapture of the Church. We must thus not postpone fulfilling God's assignments for us, but start to address them today that we might be found faithful before Him were the rapture to occur today! (Matt. 24:42-44)

2. Second, we Christians in God-given oversight in any realm will be held accountable by Christ at the rapture to have faithfully, responsibly and selflessly edified our subordinates, Matt. 24:45. If we function this way, Christ will reward us, Matt. 24:46-47. However, if we fail to see our great accountability to Him and so cease faithfully, responsibly and selflessly to edify our subordinates, turning instead to mistreat them and to live irresponsibly, selfishly indulging our sinful lusts, we will lose reward, Matthew 24:48-51.

Lesson: Christ told those living in the future Great Tribulation who will begin to see Biblical signals of His Second Coming to respond to them by getting ready to meet Him that they be rewarded and not punished, and that overseers recall their great accountability to Christ so as to edify their subordinates and not indulge their lusts.

Application: (1) May we today trust in Christ for salvation, John 3:16. (2) As Christians, (a) may we get busy today addressing God's assignments for us in view of the rapture, and (b) may we who oversee others rightly edify our subordinates, not indulging our lusts at their cost, in view of our accountability to Christ when we meet Him.