Jesus left the temple and was walking away when His disciples came up to Him to call His attention to its buildings.

"Do you see all these things?" He asked, "I tell you the truth, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down."

... the disciples came to Him privately, "Tell us," they said, "when will this happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming and of the end of the age?"

Jesus answered, Watch out that no one deceives you..." Matthew 24:1-4, NIV

It's interesting to me just how many people have been deceived by this very topic. It seems that everyone has an opinion on the Second Coming of Christ, and many preachers and so-called Bible scholars just do not feel complete until they have tried to answer the question as to the day and time of His coming. But note what is really being asked in the passage above: The disciples wanted to know three things: When would the temple be destroyed? What would be the sign of Jesus' coming? What would be the signs of the end of the age?

While it is true that the disciples might have thought that all of these things would happen at once, Jesus did not say that they would. He told them what to look for prior to the temple in Jerusalem being destroyed. History reveals that these things happened in about the year A.D. 70, and it is remarkable that it happened just as Jesus said it would. As to the "end of the age", there can certainly be some question as to whether the disciples were asking about the end of the Mosaic age, with all of its laws, regulations, and Sabbath day worship, or the end of the Christian age which would follow the Mosaic age. Either way, it was a separate question as to the one everyone wants to know about: Jesus' Second Coming.

And the answer to that question is made crystal clear by Jesus, when He said,

"No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father."  Matthew 24:36, NIV 

Since even Jesus didn't know when the day of His second coming would be, does it seem reasonable to you that a mere man could? So, while it is interesting to see all of the things that are going on in the world around us in the day that we live, don't forget: It has not been given to man to know about the exact day and time of the second coming. But what is given to men is the knowledge of how God expects us to live for Him today. This is why we are reading - to find out the things we can know so that we can serve Him better.

The reading for today is Matthew 24. I pray that God will richly bless you as you read His word and seek to do His will.