Luke 21:1–38 | Faithful Living and Waiting for Christ's Return

In this episode of the Jim Cantelon Today Podcast, Jim Cantelon explores Luke 21:1–38, where Jesus commends the widow's sacrificial offering and speaks about the signs of the end times. Discover what it means to live with faithful devotion, spiritual discernment, and steadfast hope as we await Christ's return.

Jim Cantelon Today Podcast brings trusted, verse-by-verse Bible teaching from Jim Cantelon. Each episode explores God's Word with practical insight, historical context, and a focus on applying biblical truth to everyday life.

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Stacey 0:01

You're listening to Jim Cantelon from Jim Cantelon Today. Today's message comes from Luke chapter 21, verses 1 to 38.

Jim Cantelon 0:14

So when you're reading the Gospels, friends, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, I include Acts, by the way, because Acts is volume two of Luke. So I say Matthew, Mark, Luke, Acts, and John. Anyway, you see that most of Jesus' ministry was done in the Galilee area, outside of Jerusalem. But towards the end of his ministry, just previous to his crucifixion, his arrest in his crucifixion, he is focused on Jerusalem. And Luke picks him up in the temple environment in Jerusalem. A lot going on there. He's sleeping overnight on the Mount of Olives in Bethel, in Bethany, I should say, and then he has early morning, you wouldn't call them lectures, teaching sessions, classes, but early, very early morning when people would come to the temple area and he would interact with them and teach them. And I think part of the reason they would do it early in the morning was because it was less compressed, because during Passover, which this was, there were hundreds of thousands of people in the area. So early morning would mean fewer people in the temple, and also the weather, much cooler in the morning than it is in the later morning and then into the afternoon, of course. And, you know, who knows, other reasons, maybe a lot of early rises. Nevertheless, as we saw in the last few programs, he was under the gun in terms of his authority being questioned by the religious authorities. He told some very interesting parables. He did that comment about paying taxes to Caesar, and then he talks about resurrection and marriage. But now, so he's looking at the crowd. And now in 21, verse 1, he looks up. He's looking up above the crowd, or maybe over to his left or to his right, to the women's court in the temple area, where offerings are being gathered. And let's pick it up there in verse 1 of chapter 21. As Jesus looked up, he saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. Truly I tell you, he said, This poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth, but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on. Now, as I say, he looks up from the crowd who've gathered around him and he's teaching them, and he sees some of his Sadduceans, scribal, Pharisaic critics putting their gifts into the temple treasury. Now, the temple tithes and taxes were collected in there was 13 sort of trumpet-shaped collection boxes, if you will. Trumpet-shaped meaning a kind of a big mouth and then coming down into the box. So they could throw the coins in, they'd make a rattling sound and then go down into the box. And this, as I said, was located in the women's court. The giving protocol required that the giver had to verbally announce both the amount and the purpose of the gift. And so you can be sure, Jesus' detractors, the Sadducees, scribes, and Pharisees, who were pompous and wealthy, made loud public declarations of their largesse. One poor widow, however, anonymously, maybe behind one of these rich guys, she slips into the King James Version calls it mites or the NIV copper coins, just worth hardly anything at all. And then she melts, melds humbly back into the the crowd. And Jesus sees this and he makes the point that it's the quality, not the quantity of the gift that stirred him to say, This poor widow has put in more than all of them. These pathetic little mites, these pathetic little copper coins, all she had to live on, all she had to live on, were diamond-like, in Jesus' view. Whereas gifts out of the abundance of the deep-pocketed rich were like chunks of coal. Gifts that cost nothing aren't worth anything. God is no waiter. You give your tips to someone who is a waiter. Very important point here. Because in our culture, we make a lot of people who give large amounts of money to various charities, right? We some are giving millions, hundreds of millions, a few are giving billions to, you know, and and it's always well announced on the internet and on the news shows, and some of them will make a big deal about it on their social media. It may impress us, it doesn't impress the Lord. And Jesus is making that profound point. There has to be an element of sacrifice when we give to the Lord, whether it's money or our time, our talent, whatever it might be, there has to be a cost involved for us, or that gift is basically worth nothing. And you can say, well, how can a billion dollars be worth nothing? Well, you know, when you're talking about the Lord who owns the cattle on a thousand hills, who owns the entire world and all of the universe, I mean, a billion dollars doesn't even measure on the Richter scale. It's just it's nothing, okay? But to us it's a big deal. Well, from the Lord's perspective, what really impresses him is how much it costs us to give what we give. Good point. Okay. Now we're going to get into something here, and it's probably going to take me beyond this teaching session to the next one, so you'll have to just bear with me here. Let's pick it up in verse 5 of Luke 21. Some of his disciples were remarking about how the temple was adorned with beautiful stones and with gifts dedicated to God. But Jesus said, As for what you see here, the time will come when not one stone will be left on another, every one of them will be thrown down. Teacher, they asked, When will all these things happen? And what will be the sign that they're about to take place? He replied, Watch out that you're not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming I am He, and the time is near. Don't follow them. When you hear of wars and uprisings, do not be frightened. Things must happen first, but the end will not come right away. Then he said to them, Nation will rise against nation, kingdom against kingdom. There will be great earthquakes, famines, pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven. But before all this, they'll seize you and persecute you. They'll hand you over to the synagogues, put you in prison, you'll be brought before kings and governors, and all account of on account of my name. And so you will bear testimony to me. But make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves. For I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict. You'll be betrayed even by parents, brothers, sisters, relatives, friends. They'll put some of you to death. Everyone will hate you because of me, but not a hair of your head will perish. Stand firm and you will win life. When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you'll know that its desolation is near. Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those in the city get out, let those in the country not enter the city. For this is the time of punishment and fulfillment of all that has been written. How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers. There will be great distress in the land and wrath against his people. They'll fall by the sword, will be taken as prisoners to all the nations, Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars, on the earth, nations will be in anguish, perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea. People will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken. At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads because your redemption is drawing near. He told them this parable look at the fig tree and all the trees. When they sprout leaves, you can see for yourselves and know the summer is near. Even so, when you see these things happening, you know the kingdom of God is near. Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. Heaven and earth will pass away, my words will never pass away. Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you suddenly like a trap, for it will come on all those who live on the face of the whole earth. Be always on watch. Pray that you may be able to escape all that's about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man. Each day, Jesus was teaching at the temple. Each evening he went out to spend the night on the hill called the Mount of Olives, and all the people came early in the morning to hear him at the temple. Now that's a long passage, and there's a lot there. And I will do my best in the next teaching segment to dissect some of it. But suffice it to say that when it comes to any discussion of the end times, there's any number of theories out there, any number of strong dogmatic assertions on the part of various Bible teachers and, you know, spiritual leaders. And it seems that there's as many end time scenarios as there are people prepared to give them. When I was pastoring in Jerusalem back in the 80s, I had the whole Christian world coming through town and wanting to preach in the church we'd planted there. And many of them had these end time scenarios, these very subjective, superficial, almost conspiracy theory type projections on what was happening in the world and how things would unfold in the next few years. And that's why I'm here in Jerusalem, they would tell me. And, of course, they were wanting to get my endorsement because I was pastoring what became the biggest church in the nation. But I was very, very standoffish when it came to these things. The only one who really knows is Jesus. And we will read in another gospel, he says, look, even I don't know the time. And if Jesus doesn't know the time, how can we claim to know the time? But he does give us give us warning signs about the unfolding of the end of time. Let's go at it bit by bit. Now, to appreciate this passage, however, I think it's good to begin the last two verses. Each day, Jesus was teaching at the temple. Each evening he went out to spend the night on the hill called the Mount of Olives, and all the people came early in the morning, early in the morning, to hear him at the temple. Now, these teaching sessions at the temple, and Jesus' nights spent in Bethany on the southwestern slopes of the Mount of Olives, were Passover-related and very short term. Thousands, as I said, hundreds of thousands of pilgrims, perhaps as many as 100 at a time, came up to Jerusalem for the three mandated festivals: Passover, Pentecost, Tabernacles. There was a kind of a carnival atmosphere in the city, and everyone wanted to be there for Passover. It was kind of the Super Bowl of festivities. So everything that Jesus did and taught at this time was in the context of a milling crowd of people. So one morning, some of the crowd who assembled at the temple to hear him preach or speak or teach made the casual remark, like tourists would, of the beautiful stonework. And Jesus interrupts with a kind of a grim word. Quote, the days will come when there'll be not left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down. Really? They thought. I mean, some of those stones were massive. You know, as you know, I my wife and I and our three kids, we lived in Jerusalem for seven years. I got to know the old city really well. And there are stones there that go right back to the time of Solomon, very few of them, but some of them that were underground in Jesus' time, but they were there 30 feet long, four feet deep, three feet, four feet high, weighing tons upon tons upon tons, and put together without mortar. They're so beautifully crafted that they just put them side by side on top of each other, and they've stood for eons, at least those that were a part of the underground structure. But those who are interested in history will be quick to reference Josephus' Wars of the Jews in his chapter, I think it's chapter six of uh Wars of the Jews, sections four and five, where he talks about the total destruction of Jerusalem by Titus in 70 AD. So this was something about 35 years or so after Jesus. In a relatively short period of time, Jesus' words came true. But there is more in Jesus' words that applies above and beyond 70 AD. That's why it's important to read this passage as a kind of a broad, broad brush word from the Lord. Yeah, it's like big picture strokes of color, some strokes short term, some long term. But Jesus was not writing some kind of a systematic treatise about the end of days. You must not do that with Jesus' words. Rather, he's painting, if you will, an impressionist work that could only be appreciated by stepping back a bit and viewing it with the eyes of the soul. What I'm doing here right now is not a treatise either. I am not going to comment on it as a treatise, but I will look at the painting, if you will, from a few steps back and comment on what I see Jesus saying. So let's let's go back. Verses 8 and 9. Watch out that you're not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming I am he. The time is near. Do not follow them. When you hear of wars and uprisings, do not be frightened. In other words, keep your head clear. Don't kiss your brains goodbye. All right. And then in verse 10, he says, look, there will be geopolitical, you know, upheavals. There's gonna be nation against nation, kingdom against kingdom. And of course, that was very much the case in Jesus' day. Interestingly, it's very much the case in our day, too, isn't it? In verse 11, he says there's gonna be natural disasters, great earthquakes, famines, pestilence, various places. Well, once again, earthquakes, my goodness. Famines, yes. Pestilence, have you heard of Ebola lately? I mean, it's amazing how we can look at what Jesus is saying over 2,000 years ago and apply it to our current situation. Moving on, 12 to 17, he says there's gonna be persecution, there's gonna be family fracture, there's gonna be martyrdom, social rejection. And then in verses 20 to 24, he he says, Look, Jerusalem itself is gonna be destroyed by the Gentile forces. Oh, the Gentiles. Who were the Gentiles that were predominant in Jesus' time? Well, of course the Romans. And then verses 25 to 28, there's going to be universal traumas of some form. You know, he signs in the sun, moon, and stars, who knows what that means? Nations will be in anguish, perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea. These are natural disasters. Then he says, the generation that sees these things, the time that is when the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled, which is a future event, in concert with the shaking of heavenly bodies, will see the coming of the Lord. That's a very quick analysis of what he's talking about here. And and there's a mix of elements in this dissertation, some short-term local, some long-term universal. In fact, some of them reaching right through our day. But the overall message is lift up your heads because your redemption is drawing near, verse 28. The faithful are to live their lives in a spirit of expectation. The heavenlies are sprouting leaves. He uses that remarkable analogy. Jesus is coming soon. And this is what is referred to by theologians as the parocia, the historic hope of the church, the return of Christ. Now, I think a very important point has to be made here. When he talks about in verse 24, they will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. Now you can compare this with what Mark records of Jesus' words when he says, quoting Jesus, the gospel must first be preached to all the nations. The times of the Gentiles will be fulfilled once the gospel has been preached to all the nations. And that's the only sort of hint that Jesus gives us, it's more direct than the others, as to timing. All the others are kind of generic, all the others are kind of universal, timeless. They can apply in Jesus' time, even as recently coming up, you know, in the history of Israel at 70 AD, with the total destruction of Jerusalem and the temple by Titus and his Roman forces, but it can stretch right to our time, too. So there's a certain general application to this, but this thing, the times of the Gentiles, or as it's recorded in Mark, the gospel must first be preached to all the nations. This gives us a very solid indicator of, if you will, God's timetable. Now, we know that there are still a number of unreached people groups in our world. A lot of them are still in deep forested areas, a lot of them in Congo, apparently, other parts of the world in forests and jungles out beyond the reach of modern man. But increasingly they are being reached with not only 21st century people like you and me, but also by missionaries, by politicians, by developers, by companies trying to exploit mineral resources, whatever. And then more and more people, and I know this from my experience in Africa, have access to the internet. And by way of the internet, of course, the gospel's going out. This show is going out by way of the internet, along with every other kind of medium. We're not far from the times of the Gentiles being fulfilled. Not far from the gospel being preached to all the nations. And this is why we used to sing when I was a kid in our church, he's coming soon, he's coming soon, you know, talking about the return of Christ. A lot of preachers coming through my dad's churches talking about the return of Christ. At that time, you know, it seemed a little bit hollow. I mean, come on, when's he coming? Tomorrow, next month, next year. But the point is this there is to be a spirit of expectation. And in terms of the times of the Gentiles being fulfilled, in terms of the gospel being preached to all the nations, we are closer than ever in the history of the world since Jesus to that culminating moment. And so get ready. He's coming soon. With joy, we welcome his appearing.

Stacey 19:18

Amen. You've been listening to Jim Cantelon from Jim Cantelon Today. This episode first aired on August 2nd, 2026 on Jim Cantelon Today.

Jim Cantelon 19:30

Hi, Jim Cantelon here from Jim Cantelon Today. I'm the founder of Working for Orphans and Widows. I'm committed to being the hands and feet of Jesus, the dying and at risk orphans and widows in Africa and India.

Stacey 19:42

To learn more about Jim Cantelon and WOW- Working for Orphans and Widows, visit WOWMission.com.