The Gospel Of Matthew Chapter 24 Part 10 End Times And Jesus' Parable Of The Fig Tree

Matthew 24:30-31  And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31  And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. 

We need to look at this text again because there are important connections with Jesus' teaching for us.

At the Day of the LORD judgment all people and nations will see Jesus coming with great power and glory.

He will send His angels to gather the elect, who are primarily Jewish people who believed God's Word and remained faithful to Him. 

The elect will be mostly believing Jews, who will be gathered from all corners of the earth.

Matthew 13:36-43  Then Jesus sent the multitude away, and went into the house: and his disciples came unto him, saying, Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field. 37  He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; 38  The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; 39  The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. 40  As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. 41  The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; 42  And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. 43  Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear. 

Jesus' parable of wheat and the tares is also connected to the Day of the LORD judgment.

Jesus was teaching truth to His disciples by using easily understood parables about the Kingdom of God.

Jesus Christ is the sower who sowed good seed in His fields (The World).

The good seed represents the children of the kingdom, which would be the Jewish people who heard and heeded the gospel.

Tares look like wheat until the time of harvest, when their heads turn black. They are poisonous to eat.

Thus, tares represent the children of the Devil all those who are unbelievers. 

They grow up side by side in God's field, but will be separated out at harvest time.

Tares exist in Christ's church which is why all apostles warned against false teachers and false prophets.

This is why we experience church splits, people who form gossipy cliques, or create problems in our churches.

Those who reap the harvest are Christ's angels which correspond the angels who will be sent forth by Jesus to gather the believing remnant.

The true wheat (All the born again) will be safely gathered into heaven and the kingdom of God.

All wicked tares will be gathered and cast into a furnace of fire (Hell) to be burned.

Matthew 24:32-35  Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: 33  So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors. 34  Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled. 35  Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away. 

Jesus then turned to tell His disciples about how to apply His teaching of the end times and signs of His coming.

He taught this truth while they were at the Mount of Olives and both fig trees and olive trees grew there.

There have been wildly divergent views about this passage and rather than address them we will simply focus on what Jesus said, in context of His teaching.

We must remember Jesus is speaking of His kingdom to Jewish disciples.

Trying to apply His teaching to the Church, creates confusion because the Church is not in view here.

Christ's disciples must learn how to make use of the truths He taught them about the end of the world and His coming again.

A fig tree has distinct stages of activity.

In winter, it goes completely dormant and all its leaves drop to the ground. 

In spring, as temperatures warm up, a fig tree pushes out new leaves and small figs appear on last years branches.

In summer, the fig tree experiences aggressive growth, putting out new vigorous shoots that are the foundation for the main crop of figs. 

The new crop ripens by the end of summer or early fall.

The parable of the fig-tree means that its budding and blossoming indicate summer is nigh, for all created things know their appointed time.

As the fig tree awakens from its dormant state it begins to grow aggressively and form new figs.

Leviticus 26:3-4  If ye walk in my statutes, and keep my commandments, and do them; 4  Then I will give you rain in due season, and the land shall yield her increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. 

At this point, the farmer is assured of a good harvest.

God ordains the cycles of life in order to feed all creatures including mankind.

Such a bountiful provision from our Father should cause us to rejoice and love Him more, such that we obey His commands.

Jesus taught His disciples that as they observe the frequency and intensity of the end times traits and the signs of His return, they will know their Lord is coming soon.

Matthew 16:3  And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowring. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times? 

Our duty as Christ's disciples is to be vigilant and discerning.

Jesus rebuked hypocritical Pharisees because they understood signs of certain weather patterns, but they did not see the signs, wonders and teachings of Christ as indicating that Messiah was among them.

We know that as the end times unfold, all character traits of the last days will get worse in intensity and frequency.

Thus, Jesus compared the growing intensity and frequency of end times signs, with the summer growth cycle of fig trees.

When the signs Jesus gave reach a point comparable to fig trees ripening for harvest, then Christ's return is imminent and the end is near.

Matthew 24:35  Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away. 

Matthew 5:18  For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. 

What a wonderful way to end this section.

Jesus said that heaven and earth shall pass away in the future fiery judgment that accompanies His return, but Christ's Word will never pass away.

This world has an expiration date known only by God.

Satan's kingdom, all the demonic host and all who promote spiritual wickedness in high places, will perish when Christ establishes His kingdom.

God's Word is like He is: eternal, unchanging, true, full of glory, possessing irresistible power to do His good pleasure.

Psalm 89:34  My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips. 

The salvation covenant God made with Abraham is still active and ongoing and it will be for eternity.

God adopts us as His children when we exercise repentant faith in Christ.

God gives us all spiritual blessings in heavenly places for those who are in Christ by the new birth.

God gives us great promises that He will keep just as He said in His Word.

These and many more are based upon the covenant God made with Abraham. He will never change promises that He pledged. 

Psalm 119:89  LAMED. For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven. 

Psalm 119:151-152  Thou art near, O LORD; and all thy commandments are truth. 152  Concerning thy testimonies, I have known of old that thou hast founded them for ever. 

Psalm 119:160  Thy word is true from the beginning: and every one of thy righteous judgments endureth for ever. 

God's Word spoke all created things into existence and it decreed how all things shall end by a fiery judgment.

His Word is settled, secure, immovable and eternally fixed.

His Word will never change, nor will His moral standard be removed because it is the perfection of God's holiness.

His Word is the only source of perfect, immutable truth that will govern all things, judge all things and bring all things to their rightful conclusion.

Psalm 119:161  SCHIN. Princes have persecuted me without a cause: but my heart standeth in awe of thy word. 162  I rejoice at thy word, as one that findeth great spoil. 163  I hate and abhor lying: but thy law do I love. 164  Seven times a day do I praise thee because of thy righteous judgments. 165  Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them. 166  LORD, I have hoped for thy salvation, and done thy commandments. 167  My soul hath kept thy testimonies; and I love them exceedingly. 168  I have kept thy precepts and thy testimonies: for all my ways are before thee. 

Let us be like the Psalmist, such that when we open our Bible to read His Word, we stand in awe of what God says to us.

Let us have hearts full of joy because we find great satisfaction in reading scripture that is far better than any riches this world may offer.

Let us learn to love God's law that was fulfilled for us by our Lord Jesus Christ, and let us learn to hate lying and deception that seems to define our culture.

Let us learn to praise God throughout the day because of the joy and blessing we receive from His Word.

Let us enjoy the peace that passes all understanding which comes from following Christ and believing His Word.

Let us yearn for the same kind of love and longing for God's Word that the Psalmist had, such that we are determined to glorify God with our thoughts, words and actions. 

1 Peter 1:22-25  Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently: 23  Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. 24  For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: 25  But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you. 

All this world that we know is on a countdown to God's fiery judgment and we must not love the world more than we love God.

His Word is truth from beginning to end.

His Word and the ministry of His Spirit with the Word in our heart, can save the vilest offender who truly repents and trusts Christ.

His Word is infinite, eternal and when its truth enters out hearts, it brings light from heaven and imparts life to our lifeless soul.

Let us praise God for all these things, and let us share the life changing gospel of Christ with others.

Psalm 19:14  Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer. 

Bob