The Great Tribulation and the Second Coming of Christ (Matthew 24:1–31)

[Stephan Choe]

August 29, 2026

Key Verses 13–14:     “But the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. 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.”

In this passage, Jesus predicts a catastrophic future. On the surface, he appears to be speaking only of a disastrous future. Yet in reality, he is also speaking of our glorious future.

We Christians must recognize both the difficult state of the world and our hopeful future. By acknowledging both, we can maintain a living hope and lead a victorious life of faith, despite the world's adverse circumstances.

Let us therefore—through the message of Jesus—understand both the world's difficult plight and the certainty of our future hope, so that we may live in the confidence of victory.

May the message of Christ strengthen us in faith and give our lives a hopeful direction.

1. The Beginning of Birth Pains (1–14)

Jesus leaves the Temple, descends into the Kidron Valley, and climbs the Mount of Olives (3). When Jesus and his disciples reach about the halfway point up the Mount of Olives, the marble stones and the golden roof of the Temple gleam magnificently in the light of the setting sun. An unforgettable sight!

The Temple had been magnificently constructed from many massive stones. Some stones measured 14 by 4 by 6 meters. On the front of the Temple, the white marble stones were covered with a thick layer of gold, making the structure appear like a snow-capped mountain of gold. Because the Temple seemed so immense and solid, one might have thought it would stand forever.

The awestruck disciples draw Jesus’ attention to the magnificent Temple buildings, saying, “Look at these stones! Look at these buildings!” (Mark 13:1).

Jesus does not diminish the disciples’ appreciation for art and beauty. However, he wants to help them gain spiritual insight into the signs of the times. Therefore, regarding the end of the world, he tells them:

“Do you see all this? Truly, I tell you: Not one stone here will be left upon another; every single one will be torn down” (2).

His prediction was literally fulfilled in 70 AD by the Romans. After the Jews had risen up against them, the Romans besieged the city and completely destroyed both the city and the Temple.

I have visited some palaces in Europe. In my opinion, the Palace of Versailles in France is the most beautiful of them all. Tourists marvel at its splendor and beauty. I can imagine that, deep down, they envy the kings who once lived there. The Palace of Versailles was built in its current form during the second half of the 17th century under Louis XIV. "I am the State" was his motto. Through the construction of the palace and thirty years of war, he drove France to the brink of bankruptcy. When he died in 1715, few of his compatriots mourned him. A French parish priest noted in his church register:

"Louis XIV, King of France and Navarre, died on September 1st of that year—to the very slight regret of his entire people, given the exorbitant sums and considerable taxes he had imposed upon his subjects."

His successors, Louis XV (Louis XIV’s great-grandson) and Louis XVI (Louis XV’s grandson), led lavish lives in this palace. It is no wonder that the French Revolution broke out in 1789 and Louis XVI met a wretched end at the guillotine.

It is against this backdrop that we should view the Palace of Versailles.

When Jesus says, "Not one stone here will be left on another; everything will be torn down" (2), He is referring to two things.

First, His announcement points to the Jewish-Roman War and the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD.

Second, it refers to the catastrophic state of the world prior to the Second Coming of Christ.

The disciples ask Jesus, "Tell us, when will this happen? And what will be the sign of Your coming and of the end of the world?"

They want to know when the Temple will be destroyed and when the end of the earthly world will occur. The disciples are interested in the sign of the end times. Perhaps they wish to lead a comfortable life until the end times begin, and then—as soon as they see the sign—quickly become vigilant and welcome Jesus. If that were possible, it would be wonderful! But how does Jesus answer? Jesus warns us against impostors and false Christs (4–6),

“Watch out that no one deceives you! For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will deceive many.”

They pose as Christ and lead people astray from the right path. We are often surprised by how successful various false messiahs are in their activities.

We frequently see two Jehovah’s Witnesses standing on the street with their magazines. During my studies in Korea, a fellow student dropped out to become an active Jehovah’s Witness. Today, a Korean sect called “Shincheonji” (meaning “New Heaven and New Earth”) operates very aggressively.

But that is not all. Islam, too, actively sends out missionaries. One of our missionaries works as a Korean language teacher in an Islamic country; there, some Arabs learn Korean so that they can later work as Islamic missionaries in Korea.

However, this should not surprise us, for Jesus predicted it.

Jesus also predicts wars and natural disasters:

“You will hear of wars and rumors of wars; see to it that you are not alarmed. For all this must happen, but the end is not yet here. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; and there will be famines and earthquakes here and there. Yet all this is but the beginning of the birth pains” (4–8).

When Jesus speaks of “wars” here, he is naturally referring both to the Jewish-Roman War of AD 66–73 and to other wars worldwide. Wars and natural disasters—such as earthquakes and famines—continue to occur today.

I used to think that Korea and Germany were countries spared from earthquakes. Yet, about 39 years ago, we experienced a mild earthquake in Bochum. We could feel our apartment window moving slightly. Just last September, a magnitude 5.8 earthquake shook the Korean city of Gyeongju.

Such catastrophic events should not surprise us. Instead, we must hold fast to the promise of the Kingdom of Heaven and proclaim the Gospel. Here, Jesus speaks of the tribulations that Christians will face (9–12):

“You will be handed over, persecuted, and killed, and you will be hated by all nations for my sake. At that time, many will turn away from the faith, betraying and hating one another; many false prophets will arise and lead many people astray. Because lawlessness increases, the love of most will grow cold” (9–12). During the collapse of the Ottoman Empire and the rise of the new Turkish Republic, 2.1 million Armenians, 750,000 Syrian Christians (Assyrian-Aramaic), and 350,000 Orthodox Pontic Greeks lost their lives.

Even today, Christians face persecution in many countries. According to Schirrmacher, approximately 50 Christians die as martyrs every day.

Should we hold back and remain silent in the face of persecution? Jesus answers,

"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" (14).

The forces of evil appear immensely powerful; they attempt to oppress believers on earth.

Yet God is far stronger than they are. Nothing and no one can thwart God's will. Amidst the persecution of Christians, God works powerfully through the testimony of believers, saving countless people from darkness. We are called to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ to the whole world. It is God's will to make the Good News of Jesus Christ known to all people everywhere, so that they may believe the message and enter His kingdom.

Despite increasing persecution, the gospel is being powerfully proclaimed worldwide, and the number of Christians—especially in regions where persecution is widespread, such as Asia and Africa—is rising rapidly.

In 1949, there were only 4.3 million Christians in China; today, however, the Christian population there is growing by 10 percent annually.

The number of Christians is also increasing rapidly in other Asian countries. Even in North Korea, the Christian population is growing, despite the fact that believers there face death should their faith be discovered. Indeed, many North Korean Christians are imprisoned in concentration camps. Despite this extreme persecution, Pastor Isaac’s missionary organization, "Corner Stone," sends North Koreans who have come to faith in China back to North Korea to establish underground churches. As a result, 1,600 such underground churches have been formed over the past 20 years.

Heon Woo Lee once served as an evangelist in the Chinese border region near North Korea. He was arrested by Chinese police for street evangelism, spent a night in prison, and was sent back to Korea. Estimates suggest that between 100,000 and 200,000 Christians currently live in North Korea.

Despite persecution, the powers of darkness cannot prevent the spread of the Gospel, for God is at work. We should place our trust in God and commit ourselves to the evangelization of the world.

2. The Great Tribulation and the Return of Christ (15–31)

Jesus instructs his disciples to flee to the mountains when they see the "abomination of desolation" standing in the holy place (15–16). This abomination refers to the military standards or statues of pagan armies, which the Jews regarded as idolatrous images. Jesus does not tell them to flee to a fortified city, but to the mountains. When the Roman armies under General Titus—carrying their standards—began their assault on rebellious Judea, many Jews fled from the countryside into the city of Jerusalem, believing it to be safe due to its high walls. Christians, however, heeded Christ’s instruction and fled to the mountains. In 70 AD, the Romans conquered Jerusalem and reduced the city to rubble and ashes; almost everyone who had sought refuge there perished.

Yet the siege and destruction of Jerusalem were merely a harbinger of the end times. We should not rely on worldly things, but rather place our trust in Jesus Christ and follow Him. This is the path to salvation and eternal life.

Jesus says that God will shorten the time of tribulation at the end of the age so that none of the elect will be lost (21–22). God also uses this tribulation to separate nominal Christians from true believers—just as winnowing separates the chaff from the wheat. No nominal Christian will be saved, yet no true believer will be lost.

Some false Christs or false prophets perform great signs and wonders, saying, "Look, here is the Christ!" or "There He is!" Yet we must not let ourselves be deceived by such miracles. We need not worry about where or when we might encounter the returning Christ. For in verse 27, Jesus speaks of His Second Coming:

“For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.”

All people on earth—believers and unbelievers alike—will witness the coming of Christ.

We need only believe in Christ and His word and obey His word. That is all that is required to receive the returning Christ. After the Great Tribulation—that is, shortly before the Second Coming of Christ—the sun and moon will be darkened, and the stars will fall from the sky. Thus, the first heaven and the first earth will pass away, and a new heaven and a new earth will appear (Revelation 21:1). Those who have placed their hope in this world will suddenly find themselves helpless. Yet all who have placed their hope in Christ will see Him perfectly fulfill that hope.

For Jesus describes His glorious Second Coming as follows: “Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven. And then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He will send out His angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other” (verses 30–31).

Jesus Christ will not forget a single one of the elect when He gathers them into the Kingdom of Heaven. In the Kingdom of Heaven, we will see God face to face and dwell with Him. All the saints—such as Abraham, Moses, David, Peter, Paul, Andrew, Renate, Yurim, Yeon, and others—will be present there. There, we will all be part of the one Church of Christ. There will be no more death, sickness, or strife. There, we will share in the glory of Christ and reign together with Him. Because of this confidence, we are optimists, even though we know that much strife, persecution, and war prevail in this world. We are ready to endure hardship or distress because a glorious future awaits us in Christ. With this confidence, we can say:

“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?” “Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us” (Romans 8:35 and 37).

Amen!