Discerning the Signs of The Times

[Christsfreeservant]

The Pharisees and Sadducees came up, and testing Jesus, they asked Him to show them a sign from heaven. But He replied to them, “When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.’ And in the morning, ‘There will be a storm today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ Do you know how to discern the appearance of the sky, but cannot discern the signs of the times? An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign; and a sign will not be given it, except the sign of Jonah.” And He left them and went away. (Matthew 16:1-4 NASB1995)​

First off I want to mention that there are people who are using this passage of Scripture to teach that we should not want any signs of anything at all, and that it is wrong to ask for any kind of sign, and that there won’t be any signs at all of the events of the last days, so we shouldn’t even be looking for them. But is that true? Not according to the Scriptures. For in Matthew 24 Jesus’ disciples asked Jesus to tell them what would be the sign of his coming, and of the end of the age, and he answered them fully (vv. 4-51).

See also: [Revelation 12:1-3; Revelation 13:13-14; Revelation 15:1; Revelation 16:14; Revelation 19:20; and Matthew 24:4-51]

Okay, so then what is the meaning of Jesus’ words to the Pharisees and Sadducees? What was really happening in this encounter? Were the Pharisees and the Sadducees seekers of Christ, wanting to know him, wanting to put their trust in him? Generally speaking, no. Usually they were among his persecutors who loved trying to put Jesus to the test in an effort to trip him up with his words, hoping to have a cause to accuse him of some wrong. They were those who mocked him, not those who were seeking him.

So their desire for a sign came from a totally different motivation than Jesus’ disciples asking him for a sign. For they were just testing Jesus, and they were probably mocking him, and so they were demanding that he give them a sign to validate his authority, for they did not believe him. Today this would be like if you were sharing the truth of the gospel with some people and a group of mockers approached you and said snidely, “Yeah? Then prove it to me!” They are not looking for truth, which is obvious by their tone.

This might also be like someone today who is loosely professing faith in Jesus Christ, but who is still deliberately and habitually living in sin, making sin their practice, and not obedience to God. As their defense they might claim ignorance, or act as though they did not know when they did know. They aren’t ignorant of the truth. They just don’t want to be responsible to have to obey the truth that they know, and so they look for ways where they can excuse away the way that they are living, by claiming ignorance.

For they are like the man who looked intently in the mirror and who saw his reflection, but then who walked away and deliberately forgot what he looked like, which was about his character, not his outward appearance. It isn’t that he didn’t know, that he had not gotten a good look at what was inside his heart, but that his heart and his character were not in the right place. They were in the place below, and not in the place above. But they cover it up with a web of deceit which they use to try to mask the evil they are doing.

This describes this evil and adulterous generation. So many give the outward appearance that they are seeking after God, to know him, to obey him, but for some of them it is just a façade, and it could be a trap, and they may use faith in Jesus Christ and belief in the Bible to lure others into their webs of deceit. And sometimes they will stir up controversy, not because their hearts are in the right place, and not because they are seekers of righteousness, but because they are setting a trap to see who really believes what.

And so it is in our generation that we have people who give the appearance that they are seeking after the Lord, but they are not sincere. They are faking their faith in Jesus Christ in order to test us, to draw us out, to find out what we are made of and what we believe, in an attempt to catch us in our words or so that they know who is on which side. They will fake taking sides because they know that is a way to get people to admit which side they are on. So we need to be very discerning and pray much for wisdom.

And social media is one of the big places where this trickery is taking place. So many of the questions asked of us on social media do not come from people who have our best interest at heart, or who are just “having fun,” but they are very intentional questions to get as much information out of us as possible so that they know our likes and dislikes, and what interests or does not interest us, and where our weaknesses lie, so they might know what to put on the internet that they think will tempt us in a wrong direction.

So, be careful. Be guarded. Be wise. Don’t be vulnerable. Don’t accept everyone at face value, believing that they are who they say that they are and that their motives are sincere. Test everyone in prayer, seeking God’s wisdom and discernment. And please know that liars and deceivers are everywhere. So be careful that you don’t get caught in their hook. We do live in an evil and adulterous generation where deception and trickery are everywhere, even within the gatherings of what are called “churches.”

Testing the spirits: [Matthew 7:15-23; Matthew 24:11-14; John 10:1-15; Romans 16:17-19; 2 Corinthians 11:3,13-15; Ephesians 4:11-16; Philippians 3:2; 2 Peter 2:1-22; 1 Thessalonians 5:19-22; 1 Timothy 1:3-7; 1 Timothy 6:3-10; 2 Timothy 3:1-9; 1 John 4:1-6; Jude 1:1-25]

As the Deer

By Martin J. Nystrom
Based off Psalm 42:1

As the deer panteth for the water
So my soul longeth after You
You alone are my heart's desire
And I long to worship You

You alone are my strength, my shield
To You alone may my spirit yield
You alone are my heart's desire
And I long to worship You

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Discerning the Signs of The Times
An Original Work / June 27, 2025
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love