Hey everybody! Thank you for joining me in daily Bible reading as we seek to glorify Jesus, know Him more, and interpret the truth of His Word.
If this is your first time going through the Bible, I am incredibly excited to have you here. If this is your 5000th time, I am humbled that you are here and hope you grow in your relationship with Jesus along with me. May we all seek to know Him more and apply what we learn to further our mission of spreading the gospel. If you missed a day and want to catch up, visit the archives page HERE! But there is no shame if you start today! Day 270, Matthew 24:10 — The End Times: Second Coming Signs Matthew 24:10 (NASB1995) “At that time many will fall away and will betray one another and hate one another.” Context Matthew 24 contains Jesus’ lengthy, detailed discourse about the end times and His second coming. It comes just after a debate with the religious leaders (21:23-22:46) and His seven woes of judgment against them for their unbelief and hypocrisy (23:1-33). Following a final lament over Jerusalem that includes God’s abandonment and judgment for their rejection of Christ (23:37-39), Jesus leaves the temple with the twelve. They then ask Him when the end will come and what sign to look for regarding the end and His coming, leading to His lengthy reply. Review Yesterday, we continued Jesus’ end times discourse and read about the severe persecution and tribulation that comes against followers of Jesus. Some confuse the use of tribulation in v. 9, arguing that Matthew is speaking about The Great Tribulation. However, Matthew distinguishes this tribulation from the “great tribulation” described in v. 21. The “tribulation” in v. 9 includes persecution from the ruling Jewish authorities who hunted down and executed many Christians throughout the first few centuries. It especially includes the first few decades of the early church that Paul and other New Testament authors write about as well. Every one of the twelve disciples will face severe persecution and die torturous, brutal deaths for their devout faith in Jesus. The rest of the verse spoke about the scope of persecution toward Christ's followers as “all nations” will seek to destroy them. Matthew’s addition of “all nations” reveals that this hatred will not come from just Jews, but from Gentiles and others wherever they go for their bold profession of Christ. Jesus’ point is that those who decide to put their faith in Him will face such troubles until He returns. However, these troubles do not signify the end is near—they simply reveal the normal danger and tribulation that comes with following Him. Discussion Today, we continue Jesus’ end times discourse and read about the hate and apostasy that will come following His death and resurrection. Jesus just spoke about the persecution that comes with following Him. Now He says, “At that time many will fall away and will betray one another and hate one another.” The Greek word used for “at that time” is tóte, which literally means ‘and then’, as most translations state. Using “at that time” does not specify an exact period that can apply to random points in time. The correct use of tóte or ‘and then’ reveals that this apostasy will become a major issue following the mentioned persecutions in v. 9. Jesus sadly states that “many” will leave the faith and betray their former brothers and sisters in Christ. However, this familial betrayal is not just spiritual but physical, as Mark 13:12 says, “Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and have them put to death.” Notably, Matthew already mentioned the blood-related hate and disloyalty that will come from following Jesus (Mt. 10:21), which is why he does not repeat himself here. This familial betrayal will likely come from a lack of endurance against the pressure of persecution, echoing v. 9. But it is not only Jews who will betray each other but ‘fallen away’ Christians who will betray their former brothers by delivering them to antichrist authorities.[1] This betrayal includes a cold-heartedness toward God and hate toward those who remain faithful to him. In the first few centuries, “many converts to Judaism reverted to paganism, and Jewish texts warn of many Jewish people turning from God in the end time.”[2] Apostasy and betrayal were considered some of the most appalling crimes,[3] yet many did so because of the pressures from persecution and potential execution. It was not always a genuine hate for a person that led to betrayal, but a fear-induced pressure leading to active disloyalty. Furthermore, this falling away seems to parallel Paul's “great falling away” mentioned in 2 Thessalonians 2:3. However, Paul connects his falling away with the revealing of the antichrist. Jesus will mention the revealing of the antichrist in v. 15, but it seems He is speaking about generalized apostasy here that will happen throughout history—not the specific tribulation-related ‘great falling away’ mentioned by Paul. Regardless, Jesus states this apostasy and hate will present difficult times for those who count the cost and remain faithful to Him. Thus, the twelve and fellow Christians must remain watchful and faithful as they endure such severe opposition until Jesus returns. We will continue Jesus’ end times discourse tomorrow. Application This is one of the harder truths revealed in Scripture, as it is saddening and difficult to imagine that “many” Christians will leave the faith. Apostasy is not new, as many people have left the faith throughout history. Certainly, we all know of at least one person who has done so. But that does not make it any easier to hear, especially when we have to consider the verity of Paul’s “great falling away” just before the end. For our application, the reality of apostasy ignites the interesting debate about the doctrine of ‘once saved, always saved.’ This is one of the few doctrines I am still considering. However, I heavily lean toward the countless biblical references that seem to rebuke the idea. While there are biblical references to God ‘keeping’ and ‘securing’ those who are His (Jn. 6:37; 10:28; 1 Jn. 5:11-13; Rom. 8:38), many also speak about people leaving the faith or being warned to remain faithful (Mt. 24:10; 25:8; Jn. 15:6; Rom. 11:20-22; Col. 1:21-23; 2 Thess. 2:3; 1 Tim. 4:1; Heb. 3:12-14; 6:4-6; 10:26-27, etc.). I understand the argument that those who fall away were never saved, but God's Word is clear that a believer can backslide, become lost, or go astray, etc. Those who remain bound to sin, unchanged by the Holy Spirit’s transformative power, are on dangerous ground. Such backsliding can become full-on apostasy if one is not genuinely repentant. There are far too many verses speaking about remaining faithful and enduring in our faith, which necessitate us abiding in Christ. I think about it like this. Unless you are a Calvinist, our relationship with God is based on Him guiding us to Him and us accepting His grace provided through Christ. However, like any relationship, we can give up on it or reject it. We can avoid sustaining an intimate relationship and grow cold in our love. Jesus will even speak of some people’s love growing cold and our need to come back to our first love if we have fallen away. While I am not suggesting I am right, I firmly believe Scripture provides enough evidence that we must endure to the end and remain faithful to Christ. We must not reject the salvation we once accepted. While Jesus will keep those who are is, we can still choose to reject Him. However, there is good news in knowing that we can repent and return to Christ because He is faithful and forgiving. May we praise, worship, honor, and glorify Jesus every day in all that we do while continually pursuing righteousness, holiness, and forgiveness as He forgave us. Looking Ahead Thank you for joining today’s daily Bible reading! Next, we read Matthew 24:11. I hope you join me! I have made commenting available, so please feel free to discuss the reading and ask questions. If you do not want to discuss publicly, you can reach out to me privately. We are on this journey together. References [1] Doug O’Donnell, “New International Greek Testament Commentary.” [2] Craig Keener, “IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament, Second Edition.” [3] Ibid.
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