Olivet Discourse 5 - Matt 24:32-51; JS-M 1:31-55; Mark 13:28-37; Luke 21:21-33

I really feel like this section is getting away from me, so I just want to wrap it up by hitting on a few more points and then move on. The first comes from JS Matt 1:31 which says, “this gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached in all the world, for a witness unto all nations, and then shall the end come, or the destruction of the wicked.” This is an interesting concept because, living in this country we think “well of course the gospel is free to be preached everywhere,” but then we have to remember that we have a fairly unique style of government that allows for religious freedom, whereas most of the rest of the world isn’t free to choose their own religion, including many who aren’t free to choose religion at all. But then on the other hand, I think about the progress that’s been made and even if it isn’t public knowledge, the gospel is in all nations of the world.

Think about Saudi Arabia, a predominantly Muslim country, it would be tempting to believe that we don’t have the gospel there, but we’d be wrong. Conversion away from Islam is considered blasphemy and punishable by death, and many nations still enforce this rule, and while some people might feel “I would die for my new religion,” it’s not just your death, but the death of your whole family, however extended that may be. In keeping with that, Muslims from certain nations are not allowed to be baptized because of the danger that it presents to their families. Does it mean that the gospel doesn’t apply to those people because of where they happened to be born? Of course not. But it is possible that their ability to accept the gospel might be delayed until something else changes.
It’s a difficult concept to understand because isn’t dying for the cause as a martyr the ultimate sacrifice and guarantee you a place in heaven? Sure, that’s true, but if we look at the eternal perspective, dying for the cause, and having your family die for your cause is not Jesus’ way. People are able to accept the gospel when they are free to do so, even if that means it’s not in this life. And it’s not fair for them to be denied the blessings of the gospel through no fault of their own, but the vast majority of people who have lived on the earth have had that same injustice and Jesus has made it possible for all people to be taught and accept on their own terms and with compensation for the inequality. Interestingly, while listening to the most recent general conference I heard Elder Dale G. Renlund quote C.S. Lewis as saying, “(Mortals) say of some temporal suffering, ‘No future bliss can make up for it,’ not knowing that Heaven, once attained, will work backwards and turn even that agony into glory… The Blessed will say, ‘We have never lived anywhere except in Heaven.’”
This reminds me of a devotional given by President Nelson a couple of years ago at BYU Hawaii where he talked about being assigned to open eastern Europe for the preaching of the gospel in 1985. The biggest problem of course was that at the time eastern Europe was communist, atheist, and completely anti-religion, not necessarily the people, but the government for sure, which is who he needed to work with to allow missionaries into their countries. He talked about the difficulties that he encountered and the resistance he faced, but eventually it happened, these countries slowly let us in so that when the USSR fell we were in place to take full advantage. Likewise, thinking about Saudi Arabia as an example, who else is there besides Muslims? Visiting dignitaries, government contractors, humanitarian workers, embassy employees, all of variable backgrounds and a few native Christians. Many times it is through these other people that the gospel is established in these places. In fact, Muslims in Arab countries love Mormons because we are honest, kind, chaste, know persecution, and don’t drink, we are more alike, my friend, then we is unalike.
There was also a time, I think it might have been stake conference of something like that where one of the speakers had just come back from overseeing a church thing in China for several years and he said that on average about 50,000 people join the church in China every year, all without prostelyting missionaries. He said “The Lord can do His own work, and he is.” The IM says, “Numerous latter-day scriptures affirm that in the last days the gospel will go to the four corners of the earth- to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people. Many obstacles must be overcome before this can happen. However, as Elder M. Russell Ballard pointed out, these changes may occur quickly: ‘This work is moving; it is beginning to cover the earth.
While it is true that many of our Heavenly Father’s children have never had the opportunity to hear the message of the restoration, it is also true that the circumstances preventing them from receiving the gospel could quickly change.” Let’s think about President Nelson working to open Eastern Europe in 1985, that was 33 years ago, and within those 33 years we now have missionaries in every country in Eastern Europe and two temples, one operating, and one announced in Russia. I don’t think that Elder Nelson at the time thought that when he became the acting President of the Church that he would be announcing the building of a temple in Russia. When I heard the announcement I thought that it was a tender mercy that he got to announce the temple in a country that he worked tirelessly to open to the gospel. It was kind of a full circle moment, I felt.
Next comes Jesus’ warning about how to be safe during the crazy times preceding the second coming. He says, “And whoso treasureth up my word, shall not be deceived.” The IM says, “From the Savior’s words, it is evident that placing a high priority on the word of God will be critical in overcoming the deceptions of the last days. Commenting on this scripture passage, Elder Bruce R. McConkie discussed what it means to treasure up the Lord’s word: ‘It is not sufficient merely to know what the scripture says. One must reassure it up, meaning take it into his possession so affirmatively that it becomes a part of his very being; as a consequence,… one actually received the companionship of the Spirit.”
I find it interesting that he doesn’t say “treasuring the scriptures will teach you what to do in hard times,” he says, “one actually received the companionship of the Spirit.” The scriptures aren’t just an instruction manual, it’s like an instruction manual that comes with 24/7 continuous tech support, it’s not just the book that will help you and teach you, but the Spirit reminds, assists, and enables you to understand what the book says. That’s a good way to put it, you read the book to show your commitment. Your commitment invites the Spirit, and the Spirit lets you understand the book. I like that. I know that we just talked about this, but I just want to say again how much I’ve grown as a person since I’ve started really being interested in the scriptures. Scripture study has changed my life and I’ve felt strength in my beliefs that I’ve never had before, and I understand doctrine in a way that would never have come to me on my own.
Jesus gives the parable of the fig tree saying basically, you can tell by the leaves and branches about what time of year it is, and definitely when you should be expecting fruit and likens it to when he will come again, telling us that when you see the signs you can know that the time is coming. But then again, it’s difficult because the signs started like 200 years ago, so the question becomes “in my life time or not?” But does it really matter in my life time or not? We will all meet Jesus sooner or later, whether through death or the second coming, the method doesn’t really matter, it’s whether or not we’ll be prepared when the time comes.
The IM quotes Elder Dallin H. Oaks as teaching, “While we are powerless to alter the fact of the Second Coming and unable to know its exact time, we can accelerate our own preparation and try to influence the preparation of those around us… What if the day of His coming were tomorrow? If we knew that we would meet the Lord tomorrow- through our premature death or through His unexpected coming- what would we do today? What confessions would we make? What practices would we discontinue? What accounts would we settle? What forgiveness would we extend? What testimonies would we bear? If we would do those things then, why not now? Why not seek peace while peace can be obtained? If our lamps of preparation are drawn down, let us start immediately to replenish them.” I’m a firm believer in not faking the funk, which means doing the same thing on a regular basis that I would do on a special occasion. I’m not perfect at it, just ask my kids, but if I would radically change something because of who’s around me, I need to make
Jesus also tells the parable of the faithful servant who served his master even though the master wasn’t at the house at the time. The servant didn’t know when the master was going to return so he just kept on doing what he was supposed to be doing while he waited. Jesus says that that’s like us, we don’t know when he’s going to come back, so we should always be ready, instead of saying, “he’s taking too long, I’ll do what I want.” The time of the second coming has always been speculated and I think it’s fascinating that people think they are mathematically reason out a time and all that.
The IM quotes Elder M. Russell Ballard as humorously teaching, “I am called as one of the Apostles to be a special witness of Christ in these exciting, trying times, and I do not know when He is going to come again. As far as I know, none of my brethren in the Quorum of the Twelve or even in the First Presidency knows. And I would humbly suggest that if we do not know, then nobody knows. The Savior said that ‘of that day, and hour, no on knoweth; no, not the angels of God in heaven, but my Father only.’ I believe that when the Lord says ‘no one’ knows, He really means that no one knows.”
But for those who are not prepared, the whole world will change and they will be completely blindsided. Jesus refers to the days of Noah when the people who wouldn’t listen to Noah, which was everyone, were surprised by the rain and their destruction. The IM says, “As in the days of Noah, many people will be living their everyday lives and ignore the warnings of the prophets and the signs leading up to the destruction of the wicked.”
Finally, the last point comes to us from Luke who records Jesus as saying, “And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares.” I wouldn’t have thought twice about this verse, except that the IM gave an interesting interpretation saying, “Only Luke recorded the Savior’s warning that if people were ‘overcharged (weighed down) with surfeiting (overindulgence of appetites), and drunkenness, and cares of this life (anxieties and stresses)’, they would not be prepared for His Second Coming… President Dieter F. Uchtdorf taught how we can avoid being overwhelmed by the anxieties and stresses of life. He said that those who are wise ‘resist the temptation to get caught up in the frantic rush of everyday life. The follow the advice ‘there is more to life than increasing its speed.’ In short, they focus on the things that matter most.”