Daily Devotional

It is remarkable that, even after nearly fifty days with the risen Jesus, the disciples—now apostles—still did not understand. Just a few verses earlier, Jesus had given them one clear instruction for the days ahead: wait (verses 4–5). But they were not content simply to wait. They wanted a preview of what was coming, a glimpse behind the curtain. I think the same is true for many of us today. When I became a Christian in the 1970s, many books were being written about the End Times, and speculation was everywhere about what the world would look like before Jesus’ return. Would there be a one-world government? What would it look like? What would the Antichrist be like? Would the temple in Jerusalem need to be rebuilt before Jesus returned? Then, as now, it seems we do not take Jesus’ admonition seriously: “It is not for you to know times or seasons.” As we look for his return, Jesus did not give us a calendar of dates and times, but he did give us a kind of checklist of things that must take place before his Second Coming. This checklist is found in Jesus’ Olivet Discourse in Mathew 24:3-14. Without including the whole passage, perhaps we can list some of the things that Jesus said will be present prior his return:
 

1. False teaching false Christs, false prophets- “many will come in my name saying I am the Christ and they will lead many astray.” (vs.5). The apostle John reminded his readers; “Children it is the last hour and you have heard that the antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come. Therefore we know it is the last hour.”  The same is true today. I think we can check this box.
2. “Wars and rumors of wars…nation rising against nation kingdom rising against kingdom” (vss.6-7). There is war in Iran, the war between Russian and Ukraine, the civil war in Sudan. I think we can check this box.
3. Earthquakes (vs7) – Earthquakes of 6.5 magnitude or greater within in the last 3 months have occurred in Peru 6.8, Colombia 6.8, Japan 6.8 Indonesia 6.7. Check  
4. Famines (vs.7) – Currently there are major famines in Sudan, South Sudan, Nigeria, Somalia and Yemen Gaza and Afghanistan. These areas correspond very closely to areas of conflict highlighted in number 2. Check.
5. Persecution (vss. 9-10) - Since 2000 more than 70 million Christians have been martyred for their faith. That is more than all the previous deaths since the Church was birthed at Pentecost. Check.

Jesus gives us a substantial list. Yet every item we have marked off has appeared in some form since the birth of the Church—and, in many ways, throughout recorded history. Regarding these events, Jesus makes a striking statement: “All these are but the beginning of the birth pains” (v. 8). Still, one essential reality remains before we can rightly speak of Jesus’ return. Jesus identifies it in verse 14: “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.” The word translated “nations” is the Greek word ethnos. It does not primarily refer to modern nation-states but to people groups connected by shared customs and, especially, by shared languages or dialects. Jesus is saying that before the end—before even the end of the beginning—every people group must have the opportunity to hear the good news: that Jesus came down from heaven, was born of a virgin, and lived his entire life in perfect loving relationship with his Father and Maker. This is life that we all should live but are unable to . They must hear that Jesus died the death that they should have died and that he was raised on the third day as proof that his self-sacrifice was sufficient to pay the penalty for every sin ever committed. They must have the opportunity to hear this good news in the language of their heart. They need to hear this good news in their heart language because they need to know that God is the God who knows the language of their heart.

Yet this is the one item on the checklist we still cannot mark as complete. Today, more than 3.4 billion people still do not know who Jesus is because they do not personally know a Christian, have no viable Christian witness—such as a church or missionary—in their community, and lack access to Scripture in their own language. According to Wycliffe Bible Translators, of the 7,396 identified languages in the world, 3,229 still have no Scripture translated into them.

The task ahead is daunting and yet it is doable. This is amazing time to be a global Chrisian. In fact we could be the first generation to witness the fulfilment of Jesus’ prophesy. In 2010 reaching the world’s 7000+ languages was expected to take 125 years. But in 2015 various translation projects came together, harnessed cutting edge technology and forged a path forward together. Today because of these united efforts we are on track to see this task completed in 2033. What will that look like?

• 95% of the world’s population will have access to the full Bible
• 99.96% of the world will have access to a New Testament
• 100% of the world with access to at least some portion of the Scripture
• 2 full Bible translations will be available in the world’s most strategic 100 written languages.

So what can we do to accelerate the accomplishment of this great task?

• Pray — In Matthew 9, before sending out the twelve disciples to proclaim the good news, Jesus told them to ask the Lord of the harvest to send laborers into fields ready for harvest. Prayer is always the first and most important work. Resources such as Joshua Project (https://joshuaproject.net/) can help you learn about unreached people groups.
• Give- This task can only be completed if God’s people (especially the church in the United States) provide both prayer and financial support. IllumiNations (https://illuminations.bible) is a collaborative project uniting all the major translation ministries. This is great way to maximize your gift towards bringing the Bible to all people groups in the world
• Share- Even when the Bible becomes available for all unreached people, they will still need someone to share the good news with them. As Paul said in Romans 10 “How will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written ‘How beautiful are the feet those who preach the good news”  (14-15). Today we live in an age in which God is bringing the world to us. Who knows? Maybe God will make it possible for you to share the gospel with someone from an unreached people groups who has become your neighbor. They may not yet have the Bible in their own language but they have you.

So let’s stop looking for the coming attractions. The Greatest Story of all time is being written right before our eyes, and the Author is inviting us to be part of the story and part of bring the story to its glorious conclusion. Are you in?
 

English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.