Passage 📖: Matthew 24:15–51 & Matthew 25

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👋 Introduction to Today’s Lesson

There’s a shift in the air.

Not just in the story — but in the tone.

Up until now, Jesus has debated religious leaders, answered loaded questions, and challenged power with truth.

But in this moment… He’s done arguing.

He turns to His disciples. And He speaks plainly. Urgently. Prophetically.

Not just about what’s about to happen — but what’s coming for all of us.

He doesn’t give a timeline.

He gives a mirror.

Because this teaching isn’t just about the future.

It’s about preparation.

He warns of destruction.

He exposes deception.

He tells stories — of lamps running dry, talents being buried, and doors that close forever.

And with every word, He’s asking:

Will you be ready?

Not later.

Not eventually.

Now.

Let’s dive in.

The King is coming.

Last week, we stepped into a moment of awe turned upside down.

The disciples marveled at the beauty of the Temple — the centerpiece of Jewish identity and worship. But Jesus wasn’t impressed. He saw what was coming: collapse, desecration, betrayal, and war.

It wasn’t just a prophecy of destruction — it was a wake-up call.

And Jesus gave His disciples (and us) one clear instruction: don’t be led astray.

We were reminded that:

Jesus didn’t warn us to scare us — He warned us to prepare us.

Because when everything shakes, it’s faith that keeps us standing.

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Jesus said to His disciples:

“So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place — let the reader understand — then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let the one on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house, and let the one in the field not turn back to get his cloak.

And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath. For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now — no, and never will be.

And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short.

Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There He is!’ — do not believe it. For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.

📖 This week’s passage is a long one — so instead of squeezing it all in here, you can read the full chapter at esv.org/Matthew+24

From Cosmic Warning to Cultural Wake-Up

Jesus is still on the Mount of Olives, still facing Jerusalem — but the tone has deepened.

What began with a comment about the beauty of the Temple (24:1) has now spiraled into a full-scale prophetic warning.

The crowd is gone. The noise of the Temple has faded.

Now it’s just Jesus and His disciples — and He’s not pulling any punches.

This is His final public discourse.

His last long teaching before the cross.

And He ends it by giving His followers a glimpse into what’s coming — and what they must become.

🔥 What “The Abomination of Desolation” Meant

When Jesus references “the abomination of desolation” (24:15), He’s using language that would’ve immediately triggered fear and memory in His Jewish audience.

This phrase comes from the book of Daniel — and had already been fulfilled once in 167 B.C. when Antiochus IV Epiphanes, a Greek ruler, desecrated the Jewish Temple by sacrificing pigs and erecting an altar to Zeus.

It was the ultimate insult — political, spiritual, and deeply traumatic.

So when Jesus warns of a second desecration still to come, His listeners would have known this wasn’t just metaphor.

It was a signal — one that meant disaster was on the doorstep.

🏃‍♂️ Why Jesus Tells Them to Flee — Not Fight

This would’ve shocked His disciples.

The common expectation of the Messiah was that He would rise up and defend Jerusalem — not tell His followers to run from it.

But Jesus’ instructions are clear: Don’t stay. Don’t fight. Flee.

That’s because what’s coming — the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in 70 A.D. — would be catastrophic.

Over a million people would be killed. The city would be razed to the ground.

Jesus isn’t being dramatic — He’s being protective.

And historically, His warning worked. Early Church writings say that many Christians remembered this teaching and escaped to the mountains before the city fell.

📜 Wedding Traditions and the Ten Virgins

The parable of the ten virgins in Matthew 25 relies on a wedding structure that’s unfamiliar to most modern readers — but deeply embedded in first-century Jewish culture.

Weddings had three stages:

The virgins (bridesmaids) had one responsibility:

Wait with lamps burning, ready to welcome the groom and join the procession.

These lamps were small clay vessels fueled by oil.

They gave off minimal light — just enough to walk at night.

Running out of oil wasn’t just careless… it was humiliating.

To miss the groom’s arrival was to miss the feast altogether — and once the door was closed, it stayed shut.

This imagery would have been vivid and emotional for Jesus’ audience — not just symbolic.

💰 Cultural Understanding of Talents

In the parable of the talents, the word “talent” doesn’t mean skill — it refers to a unit of weight used for silver or gold.

One talent equaled roughly 20 years’ wages for a laborer.

This was a fortune — and no one listening would’ve missed that.

To be entrusted with even one talent was to be given a staggering amount of responsibility.

In Jewish thought, stewardship wasn’t just financial.

It included anything entrusted to you — time, resources, opportunities, relationships.

The idea of accountability before a returning master would have struck a deep chord in a culture shaped by covenant, obedience, and communal honor.

🫂 Caring for “The Least of These” in Jewish Law

The final parable — the sheep and the goats — would have echoed back to Torah commands to care for the vulnerable:

These weren’t new ideas.

They were baked into the covenant identity of Israel.

But what was radical here was the personal identification Jesus makes:

“Whatever you did for the least of these… you did for Me.”

That would’ve stopped people cold.

He wasn’t just affirming good behavior.

He was revealing Himself in the broken, the marginalized, the unseen.

In a culture that highly valued status, purity, and appearance — this was a direct challenge to their categories.

🎯 Why All of This Felt So Urgent

Remember: Jesus is just days away from the cross.

Tensions are high. The city is full of Passover pilgrims.

Religious leaders are plotting His death.

And instead of shrinking back…

He gives His boldest warning yet.

Not to scare.

But to save.

Not to argue theology.

But to call people to faithful preparation.

The signs He gave weren’t just about the end of the world.

They were about the end of any life built on control, pride, and complacency.

Because the Kingdom wasn’t just coming.

It was already here.

And the way you wait reveals who — and what — you truly trust.

Jesus doesn’t just predict global chaos or spiritual deception — He calls His followers to stay alert.

Not later. Not eventually. Now.

“Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” — Matthew 24:44

In a world obsessed with schedules, updates, and countdowns, Jesus says:

You won’t get a notification.

Readiness isn’t about predicting a date.

It’s about living every day like it could be today.

So what does readiness look like?

Not fear. Not obsession. Not frantic striving.

But daily faithfulness.

Quiet integrity.

Spiritual alertness.

A life aligned with the King — not just in belief, but in practice.

If you’ve been putting off surrender…

If you’ve drifted from your first love…

If you’ve been assuming you’ll have more time…

This is your wake-up call.

Stay ready — because you won’t have time to get ready.

The parable of the talents isn’t about comparison.

It’s about faithful return.

“Well done, good and faithful servant…” — Matthew 25:21

Each servant received a different amount.

Each had a different outcome.

But the Master’s pleasure didn’t depend on how much they produced.

It depended on what they did with what they were given.

This is so freeing.

Because God isn’t asking you to be someone else.

He’s not grading you against someone else’s story.

He’s asking:

Were you faithful with what I gave you?

Your gifts.

Your time.

Your influence.

Your pain.

Don’t bury it out of fear.

Don’t hoard it in insecurity.

Offer it — boldly, creatively, joyfully.

Because in the Kingdom, it’s not about how flashy your faith looks.

It’s about how faithful you’ve been with what you’ve been given. 

In the final parable, Jesus doesn’t split the sheep and the goats by what they knew — but by how they loved.

“I was hungry… I was a stranger… I was in prison… and you came to Me.” — Matthew 25:35–36

This moment isn’t theoretical.

It’s painfully practical.

Because the ones who saw the hurting, the hungry, the forgotten — and responded — were the ones who truly knew Him.

And the ones who walked past?

Even if they knew His name…

They missed His heart.

Jesus is crystal clear:

The way you treat the vulnerable is the way you treat Him.

Which means our love for God isn’t proven by worship or theological accuracy —

It’s revealed in how we move toward the least of these.

If your life is closed off…

If your time, your home, your money never make room for the hurting…

Then it’s time to ask: Have I truly encountered the God of compassion?

Because you can’t claim to know the God of Love and ignore the ones He loves.

And if you find your heart cold or guarded today — don’t fake it.

Remember this:

You were the hungry one.

You were the stranger.

You were the one in chains.

And Jesus came for you.

So now — let that compassion flow through you.

Let His mercy rewrite your motives.

Let His kindness open your hands.

Let His love lead you into love.

Because in the end, love won’t just be a virtue.

It will also be the evidence of your transformation.

This entire section — Matthew 24 through 25 — isn’t just Jesus’ longest teaching on the future.

It’s His final public teaching before the cross.

And He doesn’t spend it laying out a timeline.

He spends it inviting us to live differently.

Because the Kingdom isn’t just something we wait for.

It’s something we prepare for — with urgency, with compassion, with faithfulness.

Jesus doesn’t say, “Get ready eventually.”

He says, “Stay ready always.”

And readiness isn’t about knowing the hour.

It’s about knowing Him.

It’s about living like the Bridegroom could return tonight.

It’s about stewarding every resource — every gift, every opportunity — like it belongs to the King.

It’s about refusing to disconnect worship from love, and love from justice.

And it’s about remembering this sobering truth:

There will come a moment when it’s too late to get ready.

The door will close.

The accounts will be settled.

The King will separate those who looked religious… from those who looked like Him.

So don’t waste this moment.

Don’t fall asleep with empty lamps.

Don’t bury what God gave you.

Don’t walk past the people Jesus put in your path.

Stay awake. Stay faithful. Stay soft-hearted.

Because the Bridegroom is coming.

And the Kingdom belongs to the ones who are ready.

Blessings,

Michael

Every month RDZ highlights an artist you need to know—quick hits only: name, city, an album and tracks we recommend, and where to listen! Let’s share music that moves us and glorifies Him!

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: LANELL GRANT

Bio: Houston-bred producer & rapper blending faith, storytelling, and sharp production. Former teacher turned award-winning beatmaker and solo artist.

City: Houston, Texas

RDZ Note: I just recently came across Nell when searching for songs to add to the KNGDOM RAP playlist. I saw a reddit post that said Lanell Grant was the driving force behind Tobe Nwigwe’s music before they stopped working together. I’ll leave the drama for the haters, all I know is Nell is one of the most talented artists I’ve come across in the past year! The production, the bars, the visuals, the SUBSTANCE. I hope I can grow up to be like Nell one day.

Recommended Listening:

Album: My Name is Nell

Songs: Big Girl Big God, Don’t Let’em Swamp Ya, Shake Loose, Pillar of Salt

Please go Listen, Like and Follow her on any and all of your preferred platforms!

We’ve added a few of her songs on our KNGDOM RAP playlist Click here to check it out!

BTW, this isn’t an empty recommendation… I’ve been bumping My Name is Nell all month!

Have a music recommendation to share with The KNGDOM community or that you think should be considered to any of our playlists?

Click here to submit please!