Now He looked up and saw the wealthy putting their gifts into the temple treasury. 2 And He saw a poor widow putting in two mites. 3 And He said, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all of them; 4 for they all contributed to the offering from their surplus; but she, from her poverty, put in all that she had to live on.”
Before you begin in verse 1 of this chapter. I recommend that you actually start in verse 46 of the previous chapter (20). Jesus in the last week of His life, is beginning his open rebuke of the evil scribes, and their pompous open show of giving at the temple.
45 And while all the people were listening, He said to the disciples, 46 “Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and love personal greetings in the marketplaces, and chief seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets, 47 who devour widows’ houses, and for appearance’s sake offer long prayers. These will receive all the more condemnation.”
The scribes were known to delight in this public process of giving. There were (at this time) 13 vessels that the people would place their gifts into, as they gathered in lines to do so. This process, that we read likens many of the ponzi schemes of our current times. These present day charlatans ask that everyone give till it hurts. They ask of the widow, the poor, the children of God, to step out on faith, and give so they can expect in return a double-fold blessing of their faith gift(s). Does this sound like anything in our present time?
Many people give, when they do not have to give. They are taken advantage of by these false teachers, just like in these days that Jesus walked on this earth.
And, as we read, Jesus exposed the evil practices of these scribes, as they too took advantage of the poor children of God, like this poor widow.
Jesus is not asking us to do the same. He is not commending this action. He is pointing out what the evil teachers, leaders, wolves in sheep’s clothing, take advantage of the poor, and desperate people of God. And they WILL receive their judgement in extra weight!
It is not what you give. It is how you give that matters to God.
Each one must do just as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. — 2 Corinthians 9:7
And as we will soon read, as the disciples ponder over the greatness of this temple they are walking through. Jesus compares this false example of God’s Holiness, this religion, this apostasy to the love of the Father for His children, will come down!
And while some were talking about the temple, that it was decorated with beautiful stones and vowed gifts, He said, 6 “As for these things which you are observing, the days will come when there will not be left one stone upon another, which will not be torn down.”
As the apostles wondered about the magnificence of the temple, Jesus like so many times, took advantage of this opportunity to expound (to Prophesy) on what had just occurred with the widow, and the corrupt religious system this temple symbolized, with what will soon happen to it.
The historian Josephus writes about Herod’s temple:
Josephus also wrote that, Caesar himself, during the Roman surge upon Jerusalem. Decreed that the Temple itself would be spared due to it’s beauty and architectural genius, and possibly the most amazing structure in the world. But, this sentiment would not be applied to anything else. He also decreed that the rest of the structures should be destroyed beyond recognition (to powder). Caesar happened to be in Jerusalem during this conquering. And when the Roman soldiers were pillaging and wrecking all that stood, he saw from a distance smoke coming from the temple, and commanded the General of the Roman Army, Titus, to stop the destruction of the temple. And, as Titus issued this command to his men, it was soon realized that neither Caesar nor Titus could turn away the rampage that became the actual fulfillment of the words Jesus. as Jesus declared, that not one stone would stand upon another.
God hardened the hearts of the Roman Soldiers, to ignore the command of Caesar and Titus. Which in those days was a HUGE no-no. Disobedience to Caesar, was as if ignoring god to a pagan culture. And, those that did, would incur great punishment. Simply said, it would constitute the death penalty. But, God’s word (Jesus Christ Himself) would not return void. But would come to pass, just as Jesus said it would.
They asked Him questions, saying, “Teacher, when therefore will these things happen? And what will be the sign when these things are about to take place?” 8 And He said, “See to it that you are not misled; for many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am He,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not go after them.”
Jesus knew that His children would encounter false teachers soon. And, He did not wish that any should perish. So, He told a truth that is still true today. Liars, deceivers, wolves would come after His flock, and try to mislead them. They would falsely say they are the one. The messiah to come for the children of God. To deliver them. For even in His day, they were popping up in these circles, and would be entangled in the flocks to come.
There were even false messiah’s in the Herod’s temple when it was being destroyed. It is said, they told the people to stand boldly in the doorways of the temple, and have faith, that they (false messiah’s) would deliver them from this purge. There were false messiah’s even before the Roman siege on Jerusalem. They provoked Rome, as they defied Caesar, saying they would deliver God’s people from the Roman occupation, via an uprising. And all this did, was embolden the wrath of Caesar, and thus fulfill Jesus’ words of the destruction of the temple.
Even in our times, we have encountered false teaching, false prophets, and false messiah’s. The publication THE TIME DRAWETH NEAR, was created by the Jehovah Witnesses. It initially prophesied the end of the world would be in 1917. Then when this did not happen, the “witnesses” changed this prophesy to 1925. And when the end of the world did not occur then, they updated their “intelligence report” to 1975. Well, as you are well aware. This did not happen as they said it would. And to make matters worse, during the days leading up to each of these false dates. They told their followers to sell all their possessions, and give the proceeds to the “church”.
So, I ask…Does this sound like anyone in our present day? Anyone promising abundance, and that you can have your best life now. Do you hear false teachings that promise your miracle is only a tithe away? I encourage you to follow the words of Jesus…“Do not go after them.”
9 And when you hear of wars and revolts, do not be alarmed; for these things must take place first, but the end will not follow immediately.”10 Then He continued by saying to them,“Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom,
We must be reminded that Jesus is speaking to his disciples in their present time. There was a Roman occupation taking place, and wars and revolts were a very apparent reality for them all. But, Jesus knew this was still not easy conversational topics. This meant very real discomfort, sacrifice and possibly death, even to them. But, Jesus wanted to give them peace, while answering their question, in saying “do not be alarmed”.
We need to also hear these words. Jesus is not only talking to them. He is talking to us.
The fear of man brings a snare,
But one who trusts in the Lord will be protected.
— Proverbs 29:25
And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
— Matthew 10:28
These wars and revolts are still here today. And, Christ Jesus is still asking His people today, to not fear. To trust that He has everything in control. Nothing can happen to His, without His knowledge. But, keep in mind, these signs do not mean the end is immediate.
11 and there will be massive earthquakes, and in various places plagues and famines; and there will be terrible sights and great signs from heaven.
Earthquakes are no joke. I have personally been in two. Both in California. And, both were above a 5 in the Richter scale. The ground moving violently underneath your feet standing on the pavement, or while your on the 7th floor of a 100 year old building. Feeling it sway back and forth, your emotions being elevated, your heart is not just pounding, but it almost feels like it has stopped while your trying to figure out what you can do. But, honestly these earth shaking events can take any feeling of control over your life far away. You can immediately feel helpless.
In Matthew 24 these earth signs are compared to the birth pains of a woman. They start low and not so intense. But, as the baby is coming due, the frequency of the events happen more frequently and much more intense, as the delivery draws nearer.
But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pains.
— Matthew 24:8
Earthquakes can come from a couple things down deep in the earth. One, being the plates moving. The other is magma being released throughout all of the cracks and already formed volcanoes throughout the earth. And Volcanoes have been increasing year by year. Currently 48 volcanoes are in eruption status as of January 27, 2002.
12 “But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, turning you over to the synagogues and prisons, bringing you before kings and governors on account of My name. 13 It will lead to an opportunity for your testimony. 14 So make up your minds not to prepare beforehand to defend yourselves; 15 for I will provide you eloquence and wisdom which none of your adversaries will be able to oppose or refute. 16 But you will be betrayed even by parents, brothers and sisters, other relatives, and friends, and they will put some of you to death, 17 and you will be hated by all people because of My name. 18 And yet not a hair of your head will perish. 19 By your endurance you will gain your lives.
40 They followed his advice; and after calling the apostles in, they flogged them and ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and then released them. 41 So they went on their way from the presence of the Council, rejoicing that they had been considered worthy to suffer shame for His name. 42 And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they did not stop teaching and preaching the good news of Jesus as the Christ.
— Acts 5: 40-42
Is this a contradiction in v.18, when it says that not a hair on our head will perish. Not at all. We have to keep in context the whole description of this persecution, and the build up in this till (possibly) death comes. Of course we can all agree more than our hair will be hurt or damaged in our martyrdom. But, we cannot forget the words of our King of Kings, the giver of life eternal.
But even the hairs of your head are all counted. Do not fear; you are more valuable than a great number of sparrows. — Matthew 10:30
Our Great Redeemer has us in His eternal hands.
28 and I give them eternal life, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. 30 I and the Father are one.” — John 10:28-30
20 “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then recognize that her desolation is near. 21 Then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains, and those who are inside the city must leave, and those who are in the country must not enter the city; 22 because these are days of punishment, so that all things which have been written will be fulfilled. 23 Woe to those women who are pregnant, and to those who are nursing babies in those days; for there will be great distress upon the land, and wrath to this people; 24 and they will fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the nations; and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
These opening verses point to a key observation in the timeline of the end-days. Birth pains – the baby is almost here.
Jerusalem being surrounded by it’s enemies, has been an ever occurring event it seems. When Rome laid siege upon her, it was 70 A.D.
But, verse 22 is the key to these specific passages. Jesus gives us words that uniquely identify that this is actually an end-times event, when He says: “When all things which are written, be fullfilled.”
The key word is “all things which are written”. We can now be confident, that this is pointing to the actual end time events, and not events from the past with the enemies of Israel. They are of course a part of the “all” statement. But, not the conclusion.
If you are paying attention to any of the events of today. You are well aware, that foaming mouths are abundant towards the destruction of Israel, and these cries are ever increasing in their drumbeat towards the crescendo.
15 “Therefore when you see the abomination of desolation which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place—let the reader understand—
— Matthew 24:15
24 “Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city, to finish the wrongdoing, to make an end of sin, to make atonement for guilt, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy, and to anoint the Most Holy Place. 25 So you are to know and understand that from the issuing of a decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem, until [f]Messiah the Prince, there will be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; it will be built again, with streets and moat, even in times of distress. 26 Then after the sixty-two weeks, the [h]Messiah will be cut off and have nothing, and the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. And its end will come with a flood; even to the end there will be war; desolations are determined. 27 And he will confirm a covenant with the many for one week, but in the middle of the week he will put a stop to sacrifice and grain offering; and on the wing of abominations will come the one who makes desolate, until a complete destruction, one that is decreed, gushes forth on the one who makes desolate.”
— Daniel 9:24-27
25 “There will be signs in the sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress among nations, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, 26 people fainting from fear and the expectation of the things that are coming upon the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27 And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 28 But when these things begin to take place, straighten up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”
Now we get into the beauty of God’s Creation, the stars. If you remember God placed them above our heads for a unique reason.
“It is I who made the earth, and created man upon it. I stretched out the heavens with My hands And I ordained all their host.”
— Isaiah 45:12
14 Then God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night, and they shall serve as signs and for seasons, and for days and years;
— Genesis 1:14
One of the reasons God made the Stars in Heaven, were to for signs. Obviously, a sign on a road is for information. For a traveler, it helps to know what is coming up around the bend, or how long it will be till we arrive to our destination. These signs show us one very important thing.
28 But when these things begin to take place, straighten up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”
Every kid on a long trip, can now be heard saying, “are we there yet?” And at this point in the end of days timeline, we can definitely say, our destination, our home, our refuge, is just around the corner.
For the stars of heaven and their constellations Will not flash their light; The sun will be dark when it rises And the moon will not shed its light.
— Isaiah 13:10
26 And the light of the full moon will be like the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be seven times brighter, like the light of seven days, on the day the Lord binds up the fracture of His people and heals the wound He has inflicted.
— Isaiah 30:26
8 And the fourth angel poured out his bowl upon the sun, and it was given power to scorch people with fire. 9 And the people were scorched with fierce heat; and they blasphemed the name of God who has the power over these plagues, and they did not repent so as to give Him glory.
— Isaiah 30:26
Blood Moons have been a special sign in our history. And due to advancements in astronomical science, we can now back track constellation movements, all the way back in history. They have been accounted with great movements of God concerning great events with Israel.
One amazing sign in the heavens, and more current to our times, is the Great American Eclipse. The first account was back in August 18th, 2017. This is where a full eclipse traversed in completeness our entire Northern continent, making what is the first slash of a “X” from the upper west coast to the southern east coast. The next one will complete the “X” April 8th of 2024, coming from the central south of the US, and carrying through the upper north east…Just 2 years and a month away from today (3/1/2022). These do not happen very often, and are very rare, specifically generational.
So, could this be a sign for the United States. Some speculate that it could be a sign of God’s judgement upon the US. I am not sure. I do believe that the U.S. is a bastion for all that is an abomination to the Lord. I know we have a lot to answer for concerning the atrocities in the name of humanism, and every sin imaginable. I know we are not alone in this. All countries suffer in the same virus of sin that we do. It’s just that we have made a profit from it. We are PROUD of it. We have marketed it like candy to a world that needs the Truth, The Light, The Way. But instead, we have sold our morals and our children to the highest bidder. I believe if we are not Babylon itself, we are the whore that sits upon the beast. The only word I can sum all of this up with, is repent.
If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
— 2 Chronicles 7:14If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
— 1 John 1:9Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.
— Acts 3:19From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”
— Matthew 4:17
But for the believer, the chosen children of God. We are to lift our heads up! We are to straighten our posture. We are not to shy away, as we see these signs accumulating. We know, and are assured, that the problems and curses of this world, are soon to be in the rear-view mirror of our coming destination, our hope.
17 Then we who are alive, who remain, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore, comfort one another with these words.
— 1 Thessalonians 4: 17-18
29 And He told them a parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees: 30 as soon as they put forth leaves, you see for yourselves and know that summer is now near. 31 So you too, when you see these things happening, recognize that the kingdom of God is near. 32 Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all things take place. 33 Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.
This can be simply summed up for the believer. His words will not return to Him void.
So will My word be which goes out of My mouth;
It will not return to Me empty,
Without accomplishing what I desire,
And without succeeding in the purpose for which I sent it.
— Isaiah 55:11
34 “But be on your guard, so that your hearts will not be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of life, and that this day will not come on you suddenly, like a trap; 35 for it will come upon all those who live on the face of all the earth. 36 But stay alert at all times, praying that you will have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.”
Do not search for peace in anything else, apart from the King Himself. It is Christ Jesus, that has bought you with the price of His suffering, His love, His perfect, sinless sacrifice on the cross for OUR sins. Do not spit in the face of His perfect will to gather His children, and to give to them joys unspeakable. Riches beyond this decaying world.
14 “Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. 2 In My Father’s house are many rooms; if that were not so, I would have told you, because I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I am coming again and will take you to Myself, so that where I am, there you also will be.
— John 14:1-3
Finally, in the last two verses. We find Jesus doing the very thing He asks of His children. He is praying. What a beautiful example that we should all be doing in the days we find ourselves in. This is the Creator of Heaven and earth, diligently making time to be with the Heavenly Father. He knows that He will need everything gained from spending any extra time given, to be with the Father.
Two days separate this warning to His people, and the suffering He will endure, till He lays His life down to a horrible death. This prayer time sustains Him, for what is about to come. He does not ask of us something that He Himself does not practice. His final words in this chapter are:
36 But stay alert at all times, praying that you will have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.”
— Luke 21: 36
Will you follow in the steps of the Savior of the World? Will you accept the beautiful invitation to sup with Him, as our time draws nearer to His return?
Trust me, you will need this time with the Father. Your sanity depends upon it. You will need every minute you can capture to endure what is coming upon the world. You will see suffering like no other time. Deception will be at an all time high. So much, that the very elect could be deceived.
23 Then if anyone says to you, ‘Behold, here is the Christ,’ or ‘He is over here,’ do not believe him. 24 For false christs and false prophets will arise and will provide great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect. 25 Behold, I have told you in advance.
— Matthew 24:23-25
Do I have to mention, Your family, your loved ones? Do they know the hope that is only through Jesus? And if they do. Do they see you lovingly, with all your heart, in the flowing grace given, following the Savior of the world, in practice and faith?