[0:00] Oh, wow. Wonderful. All right. Actually, we're going to, on that note, we'll transition. And if you guys would actually just stand with me and we're for the reading of God's word.
[0:17] We'll be reading in Matthew chapter 24, verses 1 through 14 this morning. Again, that's Matthew 24, 1 through 14.
[0:30] Amen. And Jesus answered them,
[2:12] Join me in a word of prayer.
[2:28] Father, thank you for your son, Jesus. Thank you for his words. Thank you for his endurance before us.
[2:39] And bearing the cross on our behalf, oh Lord, let us look to your son, Jesus, now. And let us hear from your word. Oh Lord, use your word to shape and mold us into your image, to encourage us, to build us up so that we may glorify you wherever we go. We pray. Amen.
[2:59] Amen. What a joy it is to be here this morning. It is a joy, really, to be here worshiping with you all, to be back.
[3:15] Over six months ago, Brittany and I got to come here and enjoy time with you guys. And it really has been such an encouragement to us. So much so, like as Sean said, Lord willing, later this year, we'll move here.
[3:31] We'll move here and join this church here. And that's actually the reason why we chose Boston. It sounds crazy, but we didn't choose Boston because of Boston.
[3:43] We chose Boston because Sean and you guys, we wanted to come here and be a part of this church. The Lord has led us in that way.
[3:54] And he has kindly so continued to build our faith for this transition. Experiencing sweet and generous hospitality at many of you guys, from many of you guys over this time.
[4:08] And seeing your zealous love for Jesus in conversations and seeing and hearing reports from Sean about how you guys are growing in the Lord and evangelizing the lost.
[4:21] And even small gifts, though, have really built our faith. Small gifts of like receiving a book, Make Way for Ducklings, has been something that has really been a treasure for our kids and us to read.
[4:35] And also good coffee. That was a gift we received. And that is key for us. We love good coffee. So to know that there are good local roasters here in Boston, that definitely helps.
[4:50] So we are very much looking forward to the potential of moving here later this year. And as we think about, like, the future, we often, as humans, typically, more typically here in the Western culture, we can be consumed with the future.
[5:09] Thinking about the future. Thinking about what it might hold. What will tomorrow be like? What job will I seek after graduation?
[5:22] When will I get married? How many kids do I want? We even write stories fantasizing about the future. And hypothesizing when the end will come. Or when it will be upon us.
[5:34] Or seeking maybe how to avoid the future. In our modern world, it seems like we're growing more and more in that way. How do we avoid the perils of the future?
[5:45] Perhaps even death. And in my early teens, before I was a Christian, I remember one night at my house, I was coming up the basement stairs. And I started to hear, through the door, I started to hear a conversation amongst my brother and my mom going back and forth.
[6:02] And they were talking about death and the end times and how they thought the end times were upon us. And before I could open the door, immediate dread just fell upon me.
[6:14] And instead of opening the door, I ran back downstairs the entire time. And my mom heard me loud enough running down the stairs that she called after me. And I just shut my ears saying, nope, nope, nope, nope, nope. All the way down the stairs so I couldn't hear her, act like I didn't hear her.
[6:27] And I ran into my room, closed the door while I thought I was safe and sound. I didn't have to engage in that conversation anymore. I didn't care about the future. I didn't want to have anything to do with the future.
[6:40] I dreaded over the future. So like an ostrich, I literally put my head in the sand in hopes that I could just drown it out. Christians, where is our focus when it comes to the future?
[6:55] Do you ignore the future because fear begins to creep into your heart? Or perhaps you find yourself focused on analyzing the data, hypothesizing how and when will the end come?
[7:11] But the question is, are you ready for what today might hold? Are you ready for tomorrow? Are you ready for next month, this year, or in 10 years?
[7:24] Are you ready for what your life might hold? And that brings us to our text today. We come to the fifth and last discourse here in Matthew's Gospel in chapter 24.
[7:36] Right before Jesus is taken to be crucified, Jesus gives this glimpse of what life on earth will look like for all, but particularly what life will look like for Christians, for his disciples, for the church, for us.
[7:54] It might be one of the most difficult and often misunderstood passages of Scripture due to its eschatological prophecies and parables, but what our goal today is not to unpack these things in the eschatological position or try to convince you of one position over the other.
[8:16] Or when would things take place? I'll actually leave that up to Sean, because Sean is much more capable of doing that than I am. And I trust that he will lead you in that and giving you those answers as best as he can.
[8:32] However, though, again, it's not so much the text, though, here, that's the problem, that makes it so difficult for us, but more likely how we approach texts like this.
[8:45] What do we bring to the text? What are our presumptions? What are our own preconceived ideas of the future? Rather than actually seeking, what is the heart here behind this text?
[8:57] What is the heart the text is breathing to us? So today, the Word of God today gives no secret code to reveal the future to us, but it looks to provide a fresh burst of wind into the sails of his people, of God's people.
[9:17] So Jesus actually leans in. He leans in with pastoral care to shepherd his disciples, to prepare him, his people, his church, you and me.
[9:34] Jesus leans in to shepherd his people for whatever the future holds that they may endure while keeping his church fixed on the mission that he has given them.
[9:47] So to sum it up in one short sentence, Jesus prepares us to endure with hope for his glory among all nations. Again, that's Jesus prepares us to endure with hope for his glory amongst all nations.
[10:03] And to give us a little context here, though, in looking back at chapter 23 as well, the verses that come right before chapter 24 in verse 38 and 39, and even the first couple verses of 24, Jesus was in the temple.
[10:22] He was just in the temple with his disciples for the last time, giving multiple warnings of coming judgment upon Israel, upon its empty and corrupt leaders. The seven woes, as you might see here.
[10:36] And the last judgment he gives, though, is the most striking. It is the most important one to note. In verse 38, he says, See, your house is left to you desolate.
[10:50] The glory of the Lord has left the temple. An illusion from the prophecy of Ezekiel in chapter 10 of this happening.
[11:01] It's being fulfilled right now. And as Jesus leaves the temple with his disciples, they begin to look around. They begin to look around and see the beauty and the grandeur of its architecture.
[11:17] This temple was known as Herod's temple. John tells us in the gospel it took 46 years to build this temple.
[11:29] Herod wanted the temple to be more magnificent than that of Solomon's temple in all its glory. And if it wasn't destroyed in 70 AD, it would certainly be numbered among the ancient wonders of the world.
[11:43] So the disciples here are most likely getting caught up in the beauty of these buildings. And the moment they're captivated, they're marveling, they begin pointing out the buildings to Jesus.
[11:56] And then notice again how Jesus responds, though, to them. How he responds here at the beginning. You see, all these do not. It's going to be demolished.
[12:08] It'll become one big pile of rubble. So if that wasn't clear to you, that the glory, the presence of God is leaving the temple, he has just made it another building.
[12:22] But no, it's not just that. It's going to become a pile of rubble. No, it's going to become obsolete, no longer needed. And we might forget this, but this would be shocking.
[12:38] This would be strange to fall on the ears of the Jewish audience, of his disciples. This was no light thing for Jesus to say.
[12:50] It was the dwelling place of the Lord Almighty in the midst of his people, the center of all their worship activities. They went there to give their sacrifices, to have atonement with God, to see their sacred scrolls unrolled and hear the word of God proclaimed, to receive the forgiveness of sins, to receive blessing, to receive spiritual nourishment.
[13:13] This was the very symbol and the identity of Israel, the symbol of God dwelling with his chosen people. And Jesus just says, it's desolate.
[13:27] It's going to be dust. I don't know if we can understand, again, how shocking and confusing this might have been to them. But rest assured, we might ask the question, is God leaving?
[13:42] No. God has not abandoned his people. God is always at work for his people in the glory of his name. It's the old is passing away.
[13:54] And the new area of redemptive history is at play here. It's now unfolding. Jesus is preparing them for that, helping them see that. A new covenant of how God relates with his people is being ushered in by his son, the king.
[14:09] A renewal and expansion of the kingdom of God being brought to fulfillment right here and now by Jesus. And so the hearts of his disciples were at that moment captivated by the earthly temporal needs, the earthly temporal time of that building, their own desires.
[14:31] But wait, they might have been asking, but wait. I thought we were going to be establishing your kingdom right here, right now. Don't we need this building? Isn't this the symbol and identity of your kingdom, of your people?
[14:47] And we might even ask ourselves, what temples do you admire? What temples in your life do you place your hope in? The vestiges of the church, Christians' former glory and power and prestige, what might be some of those that you look to?
[15:07] Political favor, cultural clout, or social prestige may occasionally characterize Christians, but this passage tells us it is an exception, not the rule.
[15:21] These things our earth are not meant to endure. So even as his disciples are distracted, though, and forgetting a misunderstanding, we see the patience and the kindness of God to lean in, to lean in to his disciples, to prepare his church, to prepare us so that we may endure with hope for the glory of God amongst the nations.
[15:53] And that brings us, actually, to our first point this morning. To endure, we must endure with discernment. So in chapter 24, look at verses 3 through 8 with me.
[16:06] Jesus leads his disciples up to the Mount of Olives. They sit down, and they came to him, and they privately asked him this question. And in his response, his first response is saying that, see that no one leads you astray.
[16:23] As they're overlooking the city of Jerusalem, the temple they just left, the temple that Jesus just prophesied about, and this question they just answered, Jesus doesn't seek to answer their question, but redirects it to their heart.
[16:41] And he emphasizes, see, that no one leaves you astray. Or how other versions translate it, watch out, that no one deceives you. Jesus immediately again just directs their attention to their heart, and redirects their focus to be on alert.
[17:00] Don't be concerned with this. Don't be concerned of when things might happen, or how things might happen, but be on alert. Jesus does what he always does.
[17:11] He begins to address their heart in this way. And it's amazing, because Jesus consistently focuses on the heart of his people. He doesn't just throw mere information at us to take in and to cling to, but rather his first concern is the attention, our focus, our hearts.
[17:29] So don't get caught up in the when, or exactly how it will all play out. That will not serve us. That will not serve us in any time. But here is what will serve you in the time ahead.
[17:43] Being alert. Being alert that there will be deception. The see and the watch out are imperatives, and Jesus puts this emphasis here.
[17:55] And it's actually the only imperative in this whole entire passage. So what that imperative actually calls our attention to, we'll see in the preceding verses here.
[18:07] It points to the lead astray that rises three times in the passage. In verses five, he says that I am the Christ, and they'll lead many astray.
[18:18] And then again, later on, in verses, sorry, verses 11, he says, and many false prophets were allied and lead many astray.
[18:31] So the Lord is making, drawing their attention here to that there is something to be on alert here about. Jesus focuses on our need to watch out for deceivers and stay the course.
[18:48] To compound the weight of the situation, again, though, in this passage, Jesus draws it then, Jesus says six times that many will fall prey to this.
[18:58] Many will be led astray. So it's not that just a few will be led astray, or just a minuscule amount that we don't need to be concerned about. No, that many people will be led astray.
[19:10] Verse five, for many will come in my name and lead many astray. Verse 10, then many will fall away. Verse 11, many false prophets will arise and lead many astray.
[19:22] Verse 12, the love of many will grow cold. Do you feel the weight, the gravity of this situation? This will not just happen a few times.
[19:33] It's going to be characteristic of the age to come. This age of, between Christ's first coming and second coming. And there will not just be few false messiahs, but there will be many.
[19:48] There will be many false teachers, false messiahs that will lead many astray. So we need to be on alert and be aware of this. Jesus knows the powers of deception that are at play here.
[20:03] He knows the powers of the evil one. He knows it all too well. Remember Jesus being tempted in the wilderness when Satan took God's word and twisted it ever so slightly, ever so slightly to make his attempt to even, to lead even Jesus, the son of God, astray.
[20:24] The audacity of Satan to try that. Do you not think that he'll try and do that on us? The powers of deception are not to be taken lightly. The dangers of false messiahs, false teachers abounded in the first century.
[20:38] As we know from the works of the historian Josephus in the earlier years of the church, they abounded. And they still abound to this day. Some may be more subtle than others than what you realize.
[20:53] And this is the battle that has been from the beginning as well. Remember the serpent's words in the garden? Did God actually say?
[21:04] The heart of the woman Eve being deceived while the heart of man, Adam, was passive, not being on alert.
[21:16] These deceptions are even plastered around us today, seeking to lure us, to indoctrinate us very subtly. It's not so blatant as we might think sometimes.
[21:28] The subtleness and the slowness of enticing our minds, working our heartstrings, one Instagram reel at a time. What things might we be letting entice us ever so subtly?
[21:44] How might we be letting down our guard ever so subtly? But thankfully, this warning here prompts his disciples to distinguish between truth and error. It would lead to the New Testament pastoral letters.
[21:58] Notice what characterizes the pastoral letters of the New Testament. They are written to serve the church and distinguishing between truth and error, to build them up, to encourage them in the faith, to redirect their focus.
[22:14] And it has protected the church now for over 2,000 years. What an amazing gift from the Lord, to constantly be caring and protecting his church, to endure.
[22:30] Moving along here now to verses 6 through 8, Jesus not only calls them to watch out, but he also tells them, don't read into these signs. Don't be alarmed by them.
[22:42] Don't be overwhelmed. Don't be worried. He says in verses 6 through 8, and you'll hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet.
[22:56] For nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places, and all these are but the beginning of the birth pains. Jesus is telling them it will be characteristic of the time.
[23:08] The end is not yet. This is going to transpire. This is going to take place. Do you ever find yourself frustrated by the saturation in the news and the media around us?
[23:22] Hearing of another war in the Middle East and Ukraine, another militant group destroying a country from within? A social feed full of natural disasters that seem to be taking place constantly across the world.
[23:40] Your heart quickly begins to sink, and you think, ah, the world is falling apart around me. I often find myself in that place.
[23:53] But Jesus says, no, no. He reminds us, no, it's not falling apart. It's not. Don't be alarmed. Don't be disturbed. It's all within the plan of God.
[24:05] In verse 7, Jesus then tells them this must take place. He reminds them this must take place. The end is coming, but this will take place. In essence, the new stage of a redemption history will be characterized by these things.
[24:21] As God is unrolling his new plan, it's disturbing our very fabric of the world around us. Jesus here is telling us that these things don't signify the end, that it has not arrived, but rather the point is to the promise that the end will come.
[24:39] Let me say that again. Jesus here is telling us that these things don't signify the end has arrived. Rather, they point us to the promise that the end will come. I hope that's clear.
[24:50] If not, Jesus even says it again in another way in verse 8. He says, all these are but the beginning of birth pains. They're just the beginning of the end.
[25:03] God is at work advancing the kingdom of the Son, and the enemy is trying his best to disturb, to subvert, to deceive, and to distract his people, God's people.
[25:16] He is trying to do everything he can to take away from the kingdom of God. So don't be worried, though. Don't be alarmed to remember the promise that the kingdom of God is being established.
[25:32] This church is evident of that very thing, that the kingdom of God is being established, and one day the kingdom of God will have its final fulfillment, is the courage that Jesus wants the hearts of his people to be filled with.
[25:49] And in the meantime, we are called to be on alert, to discern truth from error. We are on alert for false teachers, but don't be alarmed, don't be worried, or lose focus by never-ending wars that never cease around us.
[26:12] Countries, seemingly, and nowadays, it seems like we know of countries imploding within every day, or earthquakes in the Middle East taking out cities. It's a good thing to grieve these things, to grieve and to know of the birth pains, to grieve the power of the enemy, to grieve these things that are happening around us.
[26:40] But let that prompt you and lead you to prayer. Let that prompt you to be dependent upon the Lord all the more. But the point is, don't let it distract us.
[26:54] Don't let it take our eyes and let us focus on our circumstances. We ought to take our eyes and let us focus on the Lord and what He is doing. Focus our eyes and minds and hearts on Jesus, our King, as we stay focused on the mission that He is giving us, that He has given His church.
[27:16] Which leads us to our second point this morning. we endure with witness. Endure and witness. As we look at verses now 9 through 13, Jesus now turns His focus to directly speak to what will happen to His disciples and what they will directly face as they follow their King, their God.
[27:42] So all this chaos is occurring in the world around the disciples. He says, you will also face great celebrations, a warm welcome, a love for you, and my message and you will live happily ever after.
[27:55] No. It will be opposition you receive. He says, then they'll deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death and you'll be hated by all nations for my name's sake.
[28:12] No. We will receive opposition. Opposition on many different levels actually as we see in these verses. Kingdoms and nations in verse 9.
[28:25] The closest to you in verse 10. The cities you live in in verse 12. Opposition, yes, opposition will abound. It will abound from every direction.
[28:36] This is to be expected in the Christian life. It would be good for us to be reminded of the opposition that even our fellow Christians, brothers and sisters in China and Africa and the Middle East endure every day.
[28:56] A good friend of mine who was born and raised in Iran was converted to being a Christian at a young age from Islam. It was actually his father that first came to faith and led his son to faith.
[29:11] And my friend, as he grew and grew in his wisdom and understanding of his faith, began to proclaim his faith, to share his faith, to disciple people in Iran.
[29:28] One day, he and his wife were actually returning from a trip from another country in the Middle East. They were on their arrival in Iran. They were dragged to prison for a couple of months, not knowing what would happen, what would happen to them.
[29:45] He was eventually released from prison and could no longer live in his country but had to flee. Even though his heart longed to stay with his people, to see the gospel go forward to his people, he knew that it was best for him to flee at this time.
[30:01] But this opposition that he received didn't turn his heart from Christ but it was used to strengthen his love for Christ. And amazingly, it was actually scriptures just like this one here that we're looking at today that the Lord brought to his mind while he was in prison, reminding him of the opposition and the suffering that is to be expected.
[30:27] This is normal. This is characteristic of the Christian life. But he was reminded that the Lord's promise for him to endure, to endure by the power of Christ.
[30:42] My friend today has continued to proclaim Christ wherever the Lord takes him. And currently, he is pastoring an Iranian church body in California, discipling Iranians near and far.
[31:02] We need to be reminded of testimonies like this more often. Just as Jesus reminds his disciples not everything will go well with us, rather, you will be hated for my namesake.
[31:16] At this moment, and I can't think of a scripture, a passage that speaks more directly against a false teaching that is prevalent in the church today. The false teachings of health, wealth, and prosperity.
[31:32] The health, wealth, and prosperity gospel is prevalent and we need to be discerning of this gospel and how it is creeping into our everyday lives and not knowing it.
[31:43] This false gospel proclaims, come to Jesus and your cancer will be gone. Come to Jesus and your wallets will be filled. Come to Jesus and he'll make you a TikTok influencer.
[31:56] It might be the most deadly teaching in the church today. Brittany and I saw this. It is deadly in the nations.
[32:07] It has deceived many, many Christians in foreign countries outside the United States. And they're just taking and twisting the word of God for man's own personal gain, man's own personal comforts.
[32:24] Oh, let us be discerning of these false teachings that are entering into the church. The many ways that Jesus' disciples will see and experience opposition is to be expected.
[32:38] Ephesians 2 says, the enemy, Satan, the prince and the power of the air is at work in the sons of disobedience. Satan is doing everything he can to distract and disrupt the plans of God.
[32:54] So as long as Satan is roaming about and sinful rebellion of man runs its course, the gospel of Jesus Christ and anyone, including us, anyone who proclaims the gospel will face opposition, costly opposition.
[33:11] That is to be expected. The life of a Christian you see is not meant to be hidden, not to be covered, not to be silenced, not to be dressed up to look like something it's not.
[33:27] Rather, the Christian, the life of a Christian is to be witnessed, to be heard, to be treasured, to be distinct, this is the plan of God to move forward his kingdom.
[33:41] That our lives would be so transformed by his gospel, the God's spirit being given to us so that we are cleansed from our sin, that we can walk in his ways, that our love can only grow more and more every day for our God and for our neighbor.
[34:03] This is the light that the darkness opposes. And when your family mocks you for being a Christian and you endure for years so that you can patiently and lovingly bear witness to Jesus, opposition is to be expected.
[34:25] That's the Christian life. but it does not go unnoticed by our God. Let me guarantee you that. The opposition that we will face does not go unnoticed by our God.
[34:40] No, it does not go unnoticed by God. Jesus here assures us in the last two verses our endurance in the face of the opposition does not go unnoticed by our God.
[34:54] That is a treasure that we can take home. That is a treasure that will get us through to endure. And now that leads us here to point number three this morning. That we endure with hope.
[35:06] We endure with hope. Looking at verses 13 through 14. But the one who endures the end will be saved.
[35:17] And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations. And then the end will come. Jesus draws his disciples attention now to promises.
[35:33] These two promises here in this last two verses. In a first reading of this promise in verse 13 it may seem that our salvation is contingent upon us on our own efforts our performance in this time our own endurance.
[35:54] However, remembering the context which we have seen it becomes more clear that endurance only reveals the true nature of what is already there.
[36:07] The one who endures sees these things and will have their reward. The one who endures these things will have their reward.
[36:18] this helpful quote by theologian Leon Morris helps us understand this by saying saving faith is not known by some firm declaration or a well intentioned beginning but by endurance.
[36:39] These words are not just focus not to just focus on constancy. they reveal a valid and valuable promise. The person described will be saved.
[36:53] Oh man the endurance of view here is not momentary but it is long term. It is looking at the trajectory of our endurance. We may go up and down and up and down but on a graph but if we are continuing upwards if our endurance and our trajectory are on heaven our eyes on Christ that is what we are looking at.
[37:16] We can easily get consumed though in our momentary failures. If we are not careful we can end up digging ourselves a hole of self defeatism which actually really is just focusing on our own performance.
[37:35] My works what can I do? But praise be to God that even our promise of salvation is not based upon our performance.
[37:47] It's not based upon my performance. It's not based upon your performance. We will have poor discernment. We will lose focus at times.
[37:58] We will shrink back in our witness at times. It's our endurance is not based upon us but the power to endure comes from Jesus because it is he who went before us.
[38:16] As we'll see after these verses in the next preceding chapters it is he who was dragged before the rulers of the world. It was he who was publicly mocked and flogged.
[38:29] He was despised and utterly abandoned by his people. he was hung on a cross until the full weight of the father's judgment for our sin crushed him.
[38:43] Church, he endured it all so that we would have eternal salvation. That's what our endurance is based upon. That's where our power comes from.
[38:55] Christians, do not underestimate the power of God to keep those he saves from whatever trials and tribulations you will endure.
[39:07] Romans 8 chapter 8 verse 32 helps us even understand this further. Write this passage on your heart. Romans chapter 8 verse 32.
[39:20] He who did not spare his own son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things.
[39:32] Oh man, that's the power of God. For your hope of eternal endurance, the trials, the suffering, the opposition you face, do not go unnoticed by the Lord our God.
[39:45] He sees. He sees what you endure. He sees the opposition that you go through and he knows. He knows it all too well.
[39:56] He will graciously give you all things. That's a promise. That's a promise that gets us through to endure. The second promise in verses 14.
[40:14] This verse, oh man, this verse often has its legs cut out from underneath of it. This verse is often mistaken as a command.
[40:26] But if you look closely, it is not a command. It is a promise. This is the promise that God's plans will be victorious.
[40:39] His kingdom will go forward. His plans cannot be stopped. The gospel will be proclaimed to all nations. He will see it to its completion up until the very end.
[40:51] And what makes this promise so significant is that it's fulfilling his plans from the beginning of time. The promise in Genesis chapter 3 for the seed of the woman, the son of Abraham, Genesis chapter 12, has come and all the families of the earth shall be blessed.
[41:14] It's the promise from Psalm chapter 2 that God the Father gave to his son. Jesus seated on his eternal throne would have the nations for his inheritance and the whole earth as his possession.
[41:31] That's the promise in Psalm 2 that Jesus would have the nations for his inheritance and the whole earth as his possession. Church, the Father will see to it that his son will have his inheritance.
[41:47] this is not a great commission nor a great commandment. It is a great certainty, a great confidence.
[42:00] This is so freeing to know it's not upon our efforts to hasten Christ's second coming. It's the fuel, rather, that provides, that propels us forward in our endurance and our hope.
[42:17] John Piper says, I don't know any more inspiring missionary promise than this word from Jesus. One thing fascinating about these two verses as well, as we see in this contrast, and to the contrast between what will endure and what will not endure, as we talked about in the beginning, the temple is left desolate, and it will be destroyed.
[42:49] It is made clear that the old covenant system was not meant to endure. So Jesus is not investing into the stones of the temple to build his kingdom.
[43:01] The temple building will no longer be the place where foreigners and Gentiles, the nations, will call on the name of the Lord. the nations will no longer need to travel far and wide to come to the temple.
[43:19] No, it's no longer come and see. This age is the age of go and tell. That's what's being ushered in here.
[43:32] No longer, no longer the age of come and see, but the age of go and tell. This is seen in Jesus' final words to his disciples in Matthew chapter 28.
[43:43] Go, or rather, as you may go, make disciples. In Acts chapter 1, you'll receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
[44:00] Go and tell the power of his cross that it has lifted the darkness off of the nations. And now the power of the gospel goes forth, gathering of people from every tribe, every tongue, every nation.
[44:18] That is what will endure for his namesake. The church, the universal church, he has promised to build it, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it, even though Satan may try his hardest.
[44:35] he will not prevail against it. Christ will come again and he will bring his people home. And our witness, how we endure, God will use for the glory of his name to the ends of the earth.
[44:52] Church, what a time we are in. Oh, what a time we are in. What a unique age we are in. and even in our modern day, when opportunities are abounding all around us to glorify the name of Christ in the nations, to be a part of the plan of God.
[45:16] Who knows how far your gospel witness will go in our globalized world, where information is sent from Boston to Dubai, to Hong Kong, to mainland China, to villages in the Mexican Chiapas, in a blink of an eye.
[45:37] We have no idea how our gospel witness and how we endure will go forth in this globalized world, and there are many opportunities if we'll have them.
[45:51] Pastor theologian John Piper so helpfully says this, the cause of world missions is absolutely assured of success.
[46:04] It cannot fail. Is it not reasonable then that we pray with great faith, that we invest with great confidence, and that we go with a sense of sure triumph?
[46:18] triumph? Oh, what good news this is. What good news this is, that it is not upon our shoulders.
[46:31] It is absolutely assured of success. It's not upon our shoulders, though, to hasten Christ's second coming, but that we get to play a mysterious part in knowing it's assured, it has an assured success.
[46:50] We get to play a part in that. So will we have it? Will we take part in that? I want to end you, though, with this verse from 1 Timothy chapter 6 verses 12 through 13.
[47:12] It says, fight the good fight of faith. take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
[47:25] I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who in his testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession.
[47:39] Jesus made his good confession before Pilate and died on the cross to save us, securing our hope. So let us, church, let us look to him who endured before us, endured on our behalf, that we may continue in making our good confession amongst our neighbors, amongst the city of Boston, amongst the United States, and amongst all nations, until that day when all nations will bow before the throne of Christ Jesus.
[48:19] Oh, what a wonderful day that will be, and what a blessed assurance that we have in knowing that day will come. Let us rest in that. Let us endure for that day.
[48:32] Let us pray. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Jesus, thank you. Thank you, Jesus, for lifting the darkness from over the nations.
[48:50] That even we, we here being Gentiles, being foreigners, we let us make you share an and these may these are amazing.
[49:20] Hey, a