Mark Chapter 13 Verses 9 – 10

•Ok. I mentioned this last week and here it becomes paramount. Please note that Jesus is speaking here specifically to the Jews. Remember the scene. Four Jewish men and even Jesus, a Jewish Rabbi and they are on the Mount of Olives (this being the Olivet Discourse) which is in Israel. So understand Jesus is speaking of and to the Jews here and that’s evidenced in what He says. He says, “You will be beaten in the synagogues.”

•The distinction and point is important because the rapture of the church does not need to wait until Christians are, “delivered to councils,” or “brought before rulers.” Although we do see this today for sure…

•The rapture also doesn’t need to wait upon the gospel being preached to all the nations. I mean can you imagine what the disciples thought when Jesus said that? First of all, what’s the Gospel!? They didn’t yet understand! And second of all, for a single message to get out to the entire world, impossible…in their day! Not in ours though, right? But the raptures not waiting on that…the only thing the rapture is waiting on is the trumpet blow…Revelation 4, 1 Thessalonians 4:16…So when Jesus speaks of “but first” here He is not necessarily speaking of the rapture but of the time when “all things will be fulfilled.” (Verse 4)

•Now, the gospel being preached to all the nations, that word in the Greek for nations is ethnos and it speaks of not only nations with borders but every ear…every human family…and that is the job of the 144,000 witnesses during the Great Tribulation, the two prophets on the scene during the Great Tribulation and the angels flying across the sky during the Great Tribulation!

•You see the Great Tribulation is referred to as the Time of Jacob’s Trouble in Jeremiah 30 so know this; the tribulation does not concern the church. It concerns Israel and all who reject the free gift of salvation through Jesus, the Son of God.

Mark Chapter 13 Verse 11

•Proof positive that God can speak through us, and does speak through us! So, the same goes for us! Think about this. Would you rather speak or would you rather God speak through you? DUH! Mr. Perfect! Not the wrestler, HA! Remember him? The greasy jerry curls and the horrible yellow singlet with the white boots! I mean who made that decision!? Dude didn’t even look like he ever hit the gym! HA!

•No I’m talking about the REAL Mr. Perfect! Jesus says worry less and move forward more! Don’t fret about your verbal defense or your oratory offense even…just trust in God and be ok with being there in the moment and being a conduit for God…and if the fire rages…let it burn man! We’re so afraid of the fire, so afraid of hard discussions, why? Fire is what purifies and burns away the chaff…poke around in the ashes once the fire is out…look for the precious stones…don’t miss that step either! Could be an apology for being all hot…or heated…or it could be a kind word or a bridging offering…reconciliation…but don’t be afraid. Fear not…in the moment you need to speak…trust God!

Mark Chapter 13 Verse 12

•Oh man that is horrible stuff! The deception and pervasive rule of the antichrist will trump everything during the Great Tribulation. I like what Nick Fury said to Loki in the Avengers…Loki talking about bringing peace to the human race by ruling them and Nick Fury says, “You keep saying peace, but I think you mean the other thing…”

•You see the antichrist will sell his system based on peace and an end to all the bickering but the strategy is to control. Even to the point that we read in Revelation that folks that don’t worship his image will be put to death! And the proof of worshiping the image of the beast? Take the mark! Why? For peace! AH! See? That’s the other thing! And many will be deceived; buying into this junk…swallowing the lie that peace is even possible on this fallen planet!!!

Mark Chapter 13 Verse 13

•Speaking to those who become believers during the Great Tribulation. Those Jews and even non-Jews who see the writing on the wall. Maybe someone shared the Book of Revelation with them at some point over a cup of coffee and explained to them the Gospel over lunch years back and now they are gone…mysteriously disappeared along with so many others…and they open their hearts to the truth and their eyes are open and now they can’t take the mark…they can’t buy into the antichrist’s system and global government…and so they at that point they must endure to the end…to the end of the seven year Tribulation period or until they are caught and killed for the sake of peace…Jesus says here, they too will be saved. Tribulation saints we call them…

Mark Chapter 13 Verses 14 – 19

•Check that out! Jesus just quoted the Book of Daniel! Pretty good validation eh? We quote Spurgeon and Matthew Henry and Chuck Smith but can you imagine if Jesus quoted you? Man that’s cool and that is proof positive that flies in the face of those that want to debate Daniel’s authorship and authenticity…and Jesus is talking about the Abomination of Desolation. Basically the desecration of the Holy Place in the Temple.

•We find this scene specifically in Daniel, and spoken of in Luke 21 and Matthew 24 and we see clues to it in 2 Thessalonians and Revelation 13 and this is really when the cat is let out of the bag. When the antichrist changes his tone from peace and problem solving to demanding to be worshipped as god and Jesus says when you see that happen…things are about to get really terrible for you Jews.

•Because the Jews are there. They believe in God. They worship Jehovah, Yahweh and yet they reject Jesus and so during the Great Tribulation, the Jews are there…believing in God the whole time! And so when this goes down and the mark begins to be stamped on folks and the image is set up and demanded to be worshipped, who are going to balk at that? You got it! The Jews…and so Jesus says run!

•Jesus says that the terror upon the earth at this time is worse than the terror of the flood. Worse than the horror of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah…unimaginable…

Mark Chapter 13 Verse 20

•Folks that use this verse to ascertain and teach that the church will go through the Great Tribulation miss a key fact that the Biblical term “elect” is ascribed to three groups of people. Israel or the Jews in Isaiah 65:9. Believers in 1 Peter 1:2. And Tribulation saints here and in Matthew 24:22.

Mark Chapter 13 Verses 21 – 23

•The Jews are going to be on the look-out at this point for the Messiah…they don’t accept the New Testament but at this point the anticipation of the Christ comes from the Old Testament. The time of Jacob’s trouble is unmistakably upon them and so to draw them out of hiding…to lure them like a baited hook…the devil and his goobers will cause folks to proclaim that they are the long awaited Messiah…

•Even signs and wonders…folks we are not looking for signs and wonders as the manifestation of Jesus or godliness…we are looking for love and for the perfect Lamb of God that washes away sin…You and I today must be prepared to discern good from evil and signs and wonders are not a good lever…so what is? Verse 23. The Word of God…that is how we prepare. Not just for the end of all things, but even for the beginning of our day…the perfect law of liberty…the Word of Truth…