Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place (whoever reads, let him understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house. And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes. Matthew 24:15-18
The warning the angels gave to Lot and his family, to leave the city, was the same the Lord gave to his disciples. These verses have a dual application because the Lord was answering two questions. In the next series we will see how these verses apply to our days.
God had determined that there was no alternative for Sodom and Gomorrah other than its destruction. Its sins had reached heaven. The mercy of God for a long time it had manifested and He was even willing to forgive these cities for the sake of 10 righteous individuals. Similarly, Jerusalem was judged but there was no alternative other than its destruction.
Remember what the Lord's servant wrote regarding the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah.
The Redeemer of the world declares that there are greater sins than that for which Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed. Those who hear the gospel invitation calling sinners to repentance, and heed it not, are more guilty before God than were the dwellers in the vale of Siddim. And still greater sin is theirs who profess to know God and to keep His commandments, yet who deny Christ in their character and their daily life. In the light of the Saviour's warning, the fate of Sodom is a solemn admonition, not merely to those who are guilty of outbreaking sin, but to all who are trifling with Heaven-sent light and privileges. *1
This was precisely the sin Jerusalem had committed. The beloved disciple states,
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. John 1:1-4, 10, 11
Jesus is God! Our salvation depends on our knowledge of Jesus. "The Word was with God, and the Word was God!" He created all things and through Him they subsist. He is eternal life. But how heartbreaking, Jesus came to his own and His own did not receive Him, nor even know Him. No sin is greater than that of rejecting Jesus. How is it possible that the world rejects the only means of salvation? The sin against the Holy Spirit is this, when the heart is hardened to such an extent that the individual does not allow God to work in him. There is no forgiveness because there is nothing more the Lord can do for this person. Worst of all, the person will not even realize their condition until it’s too late.
Jerusalem was a magnificent city. In the following study we will see the special favor the Lord had for this city and how great His mercy was towards her.
From the crest of Olivet, Jesus looked upon Jerusalem. Fair and peaceful was the scene spread out before Him. It was the season of the Passover, and from all lands the children of Jacob had gathered there to celebrate the great national festival. In the midst of gardens and vineyards, and green slopes studded with pilgrims' tents, rose the terraced hills, the stately palaces, and massive bulwarks of Israel's capital. The daughter of Zion seemed in her pride to say, I sit a queen and shall see no sorrow; as lovely then, and deeming herself as secure in Heaven's favor, as when, ages before, the royal minstrel sang: "Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is Mount Zion, . . . the city of the great King." Psalm 48:2. In full view were the magnificent buildings of the temple. The rays of the setting sun lighted up the snowy whiteness of its marble walls and gleamed from golden gate and tower and pinnacle. "The perfection of beauty" it stood, the pride of the Jewish nation. What child of Israel could gaze upon the scene without a thrill of joy and admiration! *2
The Scriptures are very clear in describing what Jesus felt for the inhabitants of this city.
Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it, Luke 19:41
What a powerful image! Jesus wept over it. Can you picture the Prince of this universe with tears in his eyes? And why did He weep?
But far other thoughts occupied the mind of Jesus. "When He was come near, He beheld the city, and wept over it." Luke 19:41. Amid the universal rejoicing of the triumphal entry, while palm branches waved, while glad hosannas awoke the echoes of the hills, and thousands of voices declared Him king, the world's Redeemer was overwhelmed with a sudden and mysterious sorrow. He, the Son of God, the Promised One of Israel, whose power had conquered death and called its captives from the grave, was in tears, not of ordinary grief, but of intense, irrepressible agony. *2
God’s chosen had rejected the Savior of the world. Therefore, the Lord saw images of what was soon come to this city.
Saying, “If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation.” Luke 19:42-44
Just before Jesus was given the triumphal entry, he wept. Everyone, including his disciples thought Jesus had come to establish his kingdom. They did not understand what His mission was. Remember that only a couple days after the triumphal entry, the Savior of the world would die on the cross of Calvary.
His tears were not for Himself, though He well knew whither His feet were tending. Before Him lay Gethsemane, the scene of His approaching agony. The sheepgate also was in sight, through which for centuries the victims for sacrifice had been led, and which was to open for Him when He should be "brought as a lamb to the slaughter." Isaiah 53:7. Not far distant was Calvary, the place of crucifixion. Upon the path which Christ was soon to tread must fall the horror of great darkness as He should make His soul an offering for sin. Yet it was not the contemplation of these scenes that cast the shadow upon Him in this hour of gladness. No foreboding of His own superhuman anguish clouded that unselfish spirit. He wept for the doomed thousands of Jerusalem--because of the blindness and impenitence of those whom He came to bless and to save. *2
This is what the Lord feels for His children today. Sadly, He looks at the inhabitants of this world that reject Him. How can the inhabitants of this world ignore the love and the sacrifice Jesus made for us? The Prince of this universe gave His life so that we could have eternal life. But with tears in his eyes He looks at the souls that will be lost.
The last night of this world is coming. Will you allow the Lord into your life? Will you be willing to give what little you have for the enormity of what He offers?
1 * Patriarchs and Prophets, "14. The Destruction of Sodom ", Ellen g. White
2 * The Great Controversy, "1. The Destruction of Jerusalem", Ellen g. White
* Image: "Destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem", Francesco Hayez
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