I have a question about Matthew 24. I know that in verse 14, it says that the Gospel of the Kingdom will be preached in all the world, and then the end shall come. I have heard that this chapter was written to Israel, as at that time there was no Church; indeed, the Church was a mystery hidden from the ages. (Rom 16:25, Col 1:26 -27.)
So, even though we want to reach as many as possible for Christ, so they can avoid the tribulation, it appears that the Church does not have to reach all the nations for the rapture to happen, but rather to get a certain number saved (when the full number of Gentiles come in. Therefore, isn’t the burden upon tribulation saints to start at square one in evangelizing the world, which WILL be completed in 7 years ? Not that the Church should curtail her efforts.
Remember that one of the disciples’ questions was about the End of the Age. To them that meant the 7 remaining years of the 490 year prophecy from Daniel 9:24-27. The other two questions were also notably Jewish in their perspective. When will the Temple be destroyed and when will the Messiah come back? So you heard correctly. The Church is not in focus in Matt 24-25.
The Gospel does not have to be preached in all the Kingdoms of the World before the Rapture, but our effort to bring the Good News into every corner of the world shouldn’t be diminished for that reason.
The Gospel will be preached in every nation before the 2nd Coming, just as Jesus said. God Himself will see to it by sending an angel to proclaim the eternal Gospel to every nation, tribe language and people (Rev. 14:6). This will happen just after the beginning of the Great Tribulation.