Final Confrontation (38 page)

“Master,” said James. “Will you tell us what we might expect at the end of the age? What will be the sign of Your return?”

“First of all, be watchful that nobody fools you. There will be many claiming to be Me, who will come in My name. And many will be deceived! Many things must happen before the end comes. But be watchful! There will be talk of wars and much violence throughout the world. People will rise against other people, countries shall go to war against other countries. Not only that—the earth itself shall suffer violence with earthquakes and famines occurring all over. But these are like birth pains and not yet the end.”

“But what about us?’ asked Thomas. “Here and now?”

Peter turned and glared at Thomas. But Jesus waved Peter aside.

“A fair question, Thomas,” He said. “And here is the answer. You and others in the future who come after you, will suffer persecution and death and all manner of hatred because of your love for Me. In fact, the intense persecution will cause many to falter in their faith. Some will betray the truth, testifying against their brothers and turning them in to the authorities for fear of them. False prophets will emerge and lead many people astray. And love in those days shall grow cold as wickedness increases.”

“Is there any hope then?” asked Andrew.

“Yes, Andrew,” said Jesus, encouragingly. “For he who stands firm to the end will be saved. What’s more, this good news of the Kingdom you now preach shall be preached to all the nations of the world—only then will the end come.”

“But when shall this be?” asked James. “How shall we know?”

“I’ll tell you,” said Jesus. “Though it is a mystery. When you see standing in the Holy Place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’—you know, the one spoken of by the prophet Daniel—then you should be prepared for the end. Those who are in Judea should flee to the mountains. Don’t worry about going back for things. I pity the women who are pregnant in those troubling times.

“I tell you that there is coming a time of great travail that has never been witnessed before in this world—nor shall it ever be witnessed again. But because of you who know the Father, those awful days will be cut short—or else no one would survive them. And so you see I am telling you all these things ahead of time.”

“So we may look for Your coming?” asked Bartholomew.

“Yes!” said Jesus. “But beware. There will be many people claiming to be the Christ. Some will say, ‘He’s out there in the desert’. Others will say, ‘no, He’s over here’.”

“But do not believe it. Let Me describe how the coming of the Son of Man shall be. It is as I described before: just as lightning that comes from the east is visible also in the west—that is how My return shall be.”

Jesus stood, looking into the sky as He continued speaking.

“The sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give off its light; the very stars will fall from the sky, and the great heavenly bodies will be shaken. The nations will mourn because they will know the time of the Son of Man is at hand. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory. And a loud trumpet will signal the holy angels, and they will gather those who love His coming from one end of Heaven to the other!”

“But when, Master?” pleaded Andrew. “When shall these things happen?”

Jesus smiled at Andrew.

“I don’t know, Andrew. No man knows—nor angel. Only the Father in Heaven knows the hour of the Son’s return. But this much I can tell you: No one knows about that day or hour. Remember how it was in Noah’s days? That’s how it shall be. Nobody expected the Flood to come crashing down on them, and so they continued their normal lives—eating, drinking, raising their families—until that day when the ark was shut and the Flood came. That is how the return of the Son of Man shall be.”

“So what are we to do?” asked Thomas.

“As I said you must keep watch. You don’t know when the Lord might return—so you must be ready at all times. Think of it this way: If the owner of the house had known what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. You see? You must also be ready for the return of the Son of Man—just like that thief coming at some unknown hour.

“I tell you though, the Lord shall be returning for the servant who is looking for His return. You know, a faithful servant takes care of his master’s place when the master has gone away on a long trip. He keeps things in order so that when his master returns all will be in place. But a foolish servant thinks while the master is away he can do as he pleases. The master will return unexpectedly and condemn him.”

Jesus looked at the men with deeply concerned eyes, as if seeing all that He was describing in his mind’s eye. “And he will cut the foolish servant to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

Crispin was silent for a while after Jesus finished speaking. He was grasping the enormity of these things. He realized Jesus’ ministry on earth was only the beginning of something far greater, something far more glorifying and terrible that must happen in the future. It would be a difficult and dangerous but rewarding destiny for the humans who knew the Lord!

The light in the room was dim, just enough to make out the faces of the several men around a large table. They had gathered in the house of Caiaphas, to discuss the final disposition of Jesus. Kara and Berenius were in the room as well, silent, dark shadows unseen by the men and enjoying the final fruits of their labor.

“You know why we are meeting,” Caiaphas said. “I had hoped it would not come to this. But this Jesus is causing the people to lose confidence in us. Therefore, the good of the nation must supercede the life of this Man.”

“The Sadducees have assured us of their cooperation,” said Achish. “And we already know Herod will not stand in our way.”

“It’s a dirty business having to consort with such men,” said Caiaphas. “But we have to act.”

“When shall we strike?” asked a priest.

“We
never
strike,” said Caiaphas. “It is the Law that shall strike. We will only fulfill the requirements of the Law that a blasphemer be put to death.”

“The Romans shall never agree to that,” said Achish. “Pilate thinks little enough of our religious controversies.”

“Perhaps,” said Caiaphas. “But he thinks a great deal of his position. You leave Pilate to me. If he sees Jesus as a potential threat to the peace of this region which he governs, then he will take an enormous interest in our ‘religious controversies’.”

“Greetings all,” came Zichri’s voice, as he entered the room.

Achish watched as his master walked over to the table. Zichri glanced at Achish with a look that told him he had been successful.

“I have met with the man,” Zichri said, whispering. “He is willing to give Jesus up. But he insists on meeting with you.”

“What?” cried Caiaphas. “That is out of the question. Make the deal and be done with it!”

“I beg your pardon, my priest. But he will not deal with us unless he can first speak with you.” Zichri smirked. “I think the man wants to clear his conscience before he violates it!”

“Very well,” Caiaphas said. “Tomorrow night. But tell him to be discreet about it. We need to settle this before the Passover.”

“It shall be done,” said Zichri.

“Did he name a price?” demanded Caiaphas.

“He did,” said Zichri.

“I suppose we can draw it from the treasury,” said Caiaphas, looking at his aide to make the arrangements.

“Oh, no bother with that,” Zichri said. “It’s a small sum.”

“Indeed?” asked Caiaphas. “How much does he want?”

“Only thirty pieces of silver,” said Zichri, laughing.

The men snickered at the thought of such a paltry amount.

“I had no idea betrayal came so cheaply,” said Caiaphas. “Otherwise I would have bought him a long time ago!”

The men left the room.

“Well done, Berenius,” said Kara. “But I don’t think Caiaphas will find the betrayal so cheap in the end.”

Philip watched as a group of men, Greek according to their dress, approached him. He looked about to see if there were any of the other disciples nearby, but they had gone into Bethany. He nodded to them. It was not unusual to see people from all over the empire around Jerusalem during the Passover. Many made pilgrimages here at least once in their lives. Perhaps these were Greek Jews, or maybe Gentile seekers.

“You are one of the men of Jesus?” they asked.

Their accent was definitely Greek.

“Yes,” said Philip. “But He is not here right now.”

“We have come to worship at the feast,” said one of them. “My name is Aristobulus. My father owns property on the coast. He is a merchant.”

He was speaking in a halting manner as if he were unsure of how to approach Philip and assure him that he was genuinely seeking the Lord. He looked back at his fellow Greeks who urged him on.

“But my father has not forgotten the Lord who has blessed him. And so we have come to honor the Lord in Jerusalem. We are staying nearby.”

“What can I do for you, my friend?” asked Philip, relieving the discomfort of the man with his reassuring manner.

“We came to see Jesus,” he said. “We have heard of Him, how He works miracles. And that He is perhaps the hope of Israel.”

Philip sized the men up. Normally he was careful to protect Jesus. But he felt a sincerity in the man and excused himself.

“Wait here,” he said. “I will look into it for you.”

Philip raced into town and found Andrew. He explained the matter to him and the two of them went to the house where Jesus was staying, telling Him there were some Greek Jews who wanted to see Him. Jesus’ face was intent—His eyes looking forward as if in deep thought. He listened to the explanation and then, gathering His disciples around Him, began speaking to them.

“I cannot go to all men,” he said. “But take Me to those who seek Me. The hour has come that I should be glorified.”

The disciples looked at one another with puzzled expressions. Andrew and Philip led Jesus and the other disciples to the spot where the Greeks waited. Several others had joined them now. Peter began to speak but was silenced by Jesus’ hand. Jesus looked at Peter with great compassion.

“Yes, it is time. But I have to tell you My soul is troubled by it all.”

He looked at the men whose faces He knew so well after three years of living, working, playing and serving together. He then looked at the men who sought Him out. “But this is what I came for. Shall I now say, ‘Father, I don’t want to do this?’ No. I say rather, ‘Father, glorify Your Name!’”

Suddenly a burst of thunder echoed through the Mount of Olives and down the Kidron Valley into Bethany. A Voice spoke from the thunder, shattering the air:

“I have both glorified Your Name, and shall glorify it again.”

“Was that an angel?’ asked someone.

“It was just thunder,” said another, noting that the sky was clear.