11 Aug 2016, Mark 13:1-23 马可福音 13:1-23, Events Before the Second Coming 主再来之前将发生的事件

Posted on Aug 7, 2016 in Devotions, Mark |

Scripture Reading        : Mark 13:1-23

Theme                            : Events Before the Second Coming

 

Mark 13:1-37 is commonly known as the Olivet Discourse because Jesus preached this sermon on the Mount of Olives.

  1. Destruction of the Temple. Immediately after Jesus warned about having the wrong hope in the religious system of the time, including giving to the temple, one of the disciples was still dull in understanding and marveled at the magnificence of the temple building. Jesus prophesied that the temple will be destroyed, and as history unfolded, Jesus’ prophecy came true (of course it did!) in A.D. 70. This had not happened at the time when Mark wrote the Gospel.
  1. Death of Believers. Jesus warned that believers will be beaten and killed, and just as birth pains are infrequent at first but will increase in both frequency and magnitude just before the child is born, believers can only expect the persecution they face to get worse as the second coming of Christ gets nearer.
  1. Devastation of the World. The abomination of desolation first referred to the desecration of the temple by Antiochus Epiphanes, the king of Syria, in the second century B.C. when he sacrificed a pig, an unclean animal, on the temple altar. In the future, the Antichrist will set up an image of himself in the temple (Dan 9:27; 11:31; Matt 24:15; 2 Thess 2:4). God graciously shortened this time of the Great Tribulation in the future to three-and-a-half years (Dan 7:25; Rev 12:14) for the benefit of His people.

 

Praying the Scripture

  1. Recipients of the Gospel of Mark were Christians who were undergoing persecution in Rome. The temple in Jerusalem had yet to be destroyed, but when it actually happened, the prophecy recorded by Mark became a great encouragement for the persecuted believers that the faith they held on to is indeed true. Let us pray that we will have faith to believe that Jesus will come a second time, just as the Bible prophesied.
  1. The Christians in Rome were undergoing great persecution at the time Mark wrote the Gospel. Mark was encouraging them to persevere, and prepared them to expect the persecution to only get worse. If we are suffering for the sake of Christ and His Gospel, let us thank God and pray for His protection and provision so that we may persevere.
  1. We are already experiencing many false prophets claiming to raise people from the dead or heal diseases. Jesus had already warned us beforehand not to be led astray. Let us pray that we will be discerning and be on guard against false teachers and false prophets.
 
 
 

经文：马可福音13:1-23

主题：主再来之前将发生的事件

 

马可福音13:1-37也俗称是“橄榄山讲论”，因为耶稣是在橄榄山上讲这道的。

  1. 圣殿被毁。紧接着耶稣的警告叫人不要对当代的宗教体制怀错误的希望后，包括对圣殿的奉献，其中一个门徒仍然不明白，还赞叹圣殿的华丽。耶稣预言那殿将被毁，而历史证明耶稣的预言在公园70年应验了（当然！）。马可写下这福音时，那件事还未发生。
  1. 信徒被杀。耶稣警告信徒会受鞭打，并被杀，而如生产之难一样，初期较少，可孩子要出生之间，疼痛频率与深度都会激增；信徒也可指望当基督再来的日子临近时，他们所受到的逼迫只会更苦。
  1. 世界的毁坏。“那行毁坏可憎的”起初指的是叙利亚王安条克四世（Antiochus Epiphanes）在公关前第二世纪亵渎圣殿之举，因为他将一个不洁净的动物（一头猪）献在祭坛上。日后，敌基督的会在殿里竖起自己的雕像（但9:27,11:31；太24:15；帖后2:4）。神凭着恩典，为了祂的子民将日后大灾难中的这段期间缩短成三年半（但7:25；启12:14）。

 

用经文祷告

  1. 领受马可福音的人是在罗马经历逼迫的信徒。耶路撒冷的圣殿还没被毁，但当预言应验时，这成为了遭受患难信徒们的极大鼓励，因为他们坚持的信心是真实的。让我们祷告我们同样也能有信心，相信耶稣会再来，正如经上所记。
  1. 马可写下福音的时候，罗马的信徒正遭受极大的逼迫。马可是要鼓励他们继续忍耐，并预备他们，晓得逼迫的状况只会越来越糟。我们若为基督和祂的福音受苦，让我们因此感谢神，并求祂的保护和供应，叫我们能坚持。
  1. 我们已经看到很多假先知的出现，自称能使人从死里复活，并医治疾病。耶稣已经警告过我们不要受他们的牵引，偏离真道。让我们祷告我们会有分辨的心，提防假教师和假先知。