Jesus said snares in life will be impossible to avoid, and "...woe to him through whom they do come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend [believers]."
If a brother sins against you, and asks forgiveness, forgive him; if he sins seven times in one day against you, and asks forgiveness, forgive him.
The disciples asked Jesus to give them more faith because they felt incapable of keeping such standards, and Jesus told them that if they had faith as a mustard seed, they could do anything. He told them a parable about a servant serving his master and not expecting special favor for doing what was his duty in the first place. According to the MacArthur Bible Study: the demanding standards Christ set may have seemed too high to the disciples, but they represented only the minimal duties for a servant of Christ.
Next, Jesus passed through Samaria and Galilee on His way to Jerusalem and ten men who were lepers cried out to Him, "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!" And Jesus told them to go show themselves to the priests. Immediately, they were cleansed as they went on their way. Then one man returned to Christ, glorified God, and fell down on his face at Jesus' feet to thank Him. The man was a Samaritan. Jesus pointed out that there were ten men, and only the one returned to thank Him, and He was a foreigner. Jesus told him that His faith saved him.
Then the Pharisees asked Jesus about the kingdom of God, and He answered that the kingdom of God will come without observation because it is within you. He told His disciples that they will desire to see the days of the Son of Man, but they will not. And some will say, " 'Look here!' or 'Look there!' Do not go after them or follow them. For as the lightning that flashes out of one part under heaven shines to the other part under heaven, so also the Son of Man will be in His day. But first He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation."
Jesus also told them that in those days it will be like it was in the days of Noah and of Lot --men ate, drank, and married, and then the floods came or fire and brimstone came from heaven and all were destroyed. "So it will be in the day when the Son of Man is revealed."
Whoever seeks to save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it.
He also told them that there will be two sleeping and one will be taken and the other left, or two in the field and one will be taken and one left, and the disciples asked where; and Jesus replied: "Wherever the body is, there the eagles will be gathered together."
COMMENTARY
Jesus told His disciples to be very careful not to cause anyone, particularly a young person, to end up in hell. It would be better for you to drown in the sea.
He also commanded believers to forgive always. Be ready for forgive and as many times as the offender asks forgiveness, forgive. Now, He also makes room for believers to point out a brother's offense, and God willing, it leads to repentance.
Jesus taught His disciples that keeping God's Law is their duty and they should not expect special privilege. We cannot earn favor with God for doing what we are already commanded to do.
The story about the ten lepers demonstrated the need for a grateful heart toward Christ. Only one man was grateful to Jesus for healing him, and He was a Samaritan. Jesus forgave his sins. He was saved, but the other ten were not. They were not even grateful for what Jesus did.
When the Pharisees asked about the kingdom of God, Jesus did not tell them that the kingdom was inside of their wicked hearts, but that it was in their midst, right before them. The kingdom is in the hearts of those who believe He is the Savior.
THE SECOND COMING
McGee said it best:
One of the greatest delusions of our time is that man is going to improve himself and his world; that he is going to build the kingdom of God without God. He expects to bring in the Millennium without Christ.
Jesus is now speaking about His second coming. He was an eschatological teacher and He spoke about the future. He warned His disciples not to be misled about His second coming. There will be two phases to His return. The first is the rapture (1 Thess. 4:13-18): a taking away of believers from the earth; but in this passage He is talking about the second phase: His return to earth to establish His kingdom. This occurs after the rapture and Great Tribulation.
The first time Jesus came, His people failed to recognize Him. They expected a conquering Messiah to overthrow Rome. Instead, He came as a baby and lived a life of poverty. Then He went to the cross. But in His second coming, He will not be isolated to one place, and all will see Him. It will be like lightning in the sky.
In that time, the people will be distracted with their selfish, personal pursuits, eating, drinking, and marrying, ignorant of God and His judgment. Jesus tells us to remember Lot's wife. She loved the world, and she was made into a pillar of salt for her disbelief. In that day, no one will be able to avoid calamity. No one will save his life.
For those taken out of the world and the ones left behind, this is not the rapture, but judgment. This is what Jesus talked about in the Olivet Discourse in Matthew 24:37-41. The ungodly are taken away in judgment and the one left behind will enter the Millennial kingdom. One will be working, one will be sleeping implies that this will happen all over the world.
Finally, there is the Battle of Armageddon (See Revelation 19:17): when the whole world will prepare to fight Christ, and lose. And then Christ will set up His kingdom upon the earth.
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| The Battle of Armageddon |