“Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” Matthew 24:3 NKJV
As a believer, it certainly did not take long in my walk down the path of study into the rapture of the Church to become aware that it was a subject of much contention, even within the body of Christ. Truthfully, that at the time surprised me quite a bit considering my thoughts were that the rapture was the culminating event of the Church which we all should be looking forward to with great anticipation. Sadly, there are those who do not share that enthusiasm, and as I was to discover, they all seem to use one particular passage as a foundation of their position.
“But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only.” Matthew 24:36 NKJV
Now I’m willing to bet you have heard this passage used on more than one occasion for the reason I have just mentioned, and if you have been a believer for any length of time, have probably also given it a fair bit of reflection considering what it might mean. What I want to share with you today is simply my take on this verse, and not to necessarily dive into an extended, exhaustive study of it. Much better scholars than I have done so, and their work is readily available on the internet for study. What I want to do is simply share with you what I have shared with many over the years when I have taught on the rapture of the Church and the application of this verse to that subject. It can be summed up in just one word; context.
Context can be best explained in light of studying the Word as always reading what comes before, and after a particular verse in order to better understand what it is referring to. Over the years, I have used the following example to explain this to those I have had the privilege to teach.
“Saturday night John got hammered,”
Now ninety-nine times out of one hundred my audience would respond that John went out and had a little too much to drink, and with reason, it certainly would seem to be an accurate conclusion. It is, however, a completely wrong interpretation. Now look at that phrase in context.
“Did you hear what happened at the high school this past weekend? Saturday night John got hammered by two girls while playing in a powder puff football game”.
The context changes things completely and the assumption that the subject was excessively drinking is completely false. My point here is that when it comes to the Bible, examining any portion of scripture without examining the context leads to misinterpretations as false as our example. Any verse or passage needs to be studied in light of the verses that come before, as well as after in order to understand what is being said and how we should apply what we are told. I believe if we do that with Jesus’ words that no one knows the day or the hour, we will find that there is a completely different meaning than what many have been led to believe.
Matthew chapters 24 and 25 are called the “Olivet Discourse” because the Mount of Olives is the location where Jesus shares His prophecies of what is to come which we find in these two chapters. As you can see from the first passage I shared with you today, in verse 3 the disciples ask Jesus three important questions; when will these things happen, what will be a sign that you are coming, and when will this age end? These three questions are prompted by the events of that day which we can see in chapter 23 and the first two verses of chapter 24.
Jesus had been teaching in the temple and had taken the opportunity to condemn the scribes and Pharisees for their hypocrisy and failure to lead the nation of Israel as responsible representatives of God. The case can certainly be made that if they had done their job properly, Israel would have accepted Jesus as their Messiah according to God’s plan. This would easily explain Jesus’ anger towards them, and the scathing indictment he pronounces over them. The unfortunate result is His prophecy that because of their rejection, the future of the temple, Jerusalem, and Israel is total destruction at the hand of God.
In light of these events, it is certainly understandable that the disciples are concerned about what they have just heard, and their three questions should come as no surprise. So Jesus spends the rest of the day explaining in detail what the future holds for the nation of Israel. It is in this context that we look closer at Jesus’ statement that no one knows the day or the hour. Jesus is answering the disciples’ questions about the end of the age when He makes this statement, and as I did with our example, I want you to look closely at Jesus’ words which come immediately before in verse 35.
“Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.” Matthew 24:35 NKJV
The disciples asked about the end of the age, and I believe Jesus answers that question with verse 35 and 36. Look at them together.
“Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away. But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only.” Matthew 24:35-36 NKJV
Does that not put a little different spin on what you may have heard taught or believed up until now? For me, and many others, looking at verse 36 in context changes things considerably. It seems that rather than talking about the rapture of the church, (which doesn’t even exist when Jesus speaks these words), Jesus is referring to when heaven and earth will pass away. On that subject, Jesus tells us more in the book of Revelation which may help us understand His words even more.
“Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea.” Revelation 21:1 NKJV
If we examine the context of this passage as well, by looking back at chapter 20, we find that heaven and earth pass away sometime after the seven year tribulation, the one thousand year millennium, and the final judgment at the Great White Throne. When exactly? Sorry. If you recall, Jesus has already told us;
“But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only.” Matthew 24:36 NKJV
So as I see it, when Jesus tells his disciples that no one knows the day or the hour He is simply responding within the context of answering their three questions concerning the end of the age, and has nothing whatsoever to do with the rapture of the Church. If you ask me about the timing of the rapture, I will tell you it could happen at any moment. Considering what the world looks like right now I will also tell you I am surprised we are still here. Now you know what I believe, but I encourage you to do your own study as well.
If you are reading this today and have never made the decision to accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, I urge you to do it right now. Simply admit to God that you need His forgiveness because you are a sinner, be willing to turn away from your sins, believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sins, and invite Him to come in and control your life through the Holy Spirit by praying a simple prayer like this;
Father, I know I am a sinner in need of salvation. I believe you sent your Son Jesus to die on the cross for my sin, and I ask you now to forgive me of my sins. I want to receive your gift of salvation so please come into my heart and help me to live and follow you as my Lord and Savior. In Jesus' name, Amen.
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