Scripture: Mark 13:24-37
Periodically, we hear some self-proclaimed “sage” claim that they have the inside track on when Jesus will be returning. They have received a sign of some kind, or the spirit has revealed the secret to them alone, or they have studied some long forgotten text, and now they know the secret of the Lord’s return and Judgment of the world. And yet, their predictions never seem to come true.
It seems that Jesus was full of “signs
and wonders”, but he doesn’t explain them at all! But even without any guidance, they all seem
pretty dire. A lot of shaking and loss
of much of what God had once created. But
the one clear sign is actually the scene as Jesus reappears, and not so much as
to what will proclaim that the time is near.
His appearance will be cloudy, or rather that it will not be understood
by the world. But the great promise that
this prophecy holds is that every faithful person will be gathered up by the
angels of heaven, regardless of who or where they may be.
The other consequence of the LORD’s return is that creation will
be in jeopardy. The sun will stop
shining, the moon will have nothing to reflect, and all of the stars – every other
light source throughout the universe – will fall from their designated
place. In other words, nothing that
humanity has known throughout the ages will ever be the same again, which basically
means that God’s created order will end.
Now this doesn’t mean that God’s works have failed – it means quite the
opposite. It simply means that this phase
of creation has served its purpose, its time has come to an end, and the new is
about to begin.
Read Mark 13:28-31
Earlier in this book (Mark11:12-14), Jesus told about the fig tree that was bearing no fruit whatsoever,
and he cursed it with he words “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” Sounds like the judgment against those who
never exhibited the “Fruit of the Spirit”! (Galatians 5:19-26) And we remember that those who won’t know the
Spirit are those who never gave their lives to Jesus.
But the fig tree in chapter 13 is a
different tree – it is living, with leaves, and, presumably, fruit. The first fig tree is judgment on those who
never knew Jesus, but this tree is the promise of eternal life for all who love
the LORD. And his prophecy that creation will come to
its end, both the heavens and everything under it, is reiterated, with the
additional truth that this end will apply to everything unless his word has
specified otherwise.
And there’s the rub! Jesus’ word is the benchmark, it’s the
dividing line, it creates the separation between the faithful and the unbelievers. This doesn’t mean that we have to understand
and accept every single thing that the Lord ever taught. But it does mean that we have to believe in
what we have received about Jesus in scripture, and to be open to learning more
of his truth, those ways that come from his word. It means that we are live his truth – his entire
truth – regardless of what the world may tell us, or what we may have believed
before we gave our life to him.
Read Mark 13:32-34
No one knows the time of Messiah’s
return – not even the Son of God! I’ve
always wondered about that. I understand
why it may be held back for humanity – God doesn’t want us trying to play games
with that time, waiting until the last minute to come to God’s way. But why wasn’t Jesus allowed to know that day
and time? It shouldn’t have impacted his
ministry or message; it wasn’t that he would tell others; it wouldn’t have made
any difference in his suffering, death, and resurrection, so why? It seems that this is one of those divine
mysteries that has no easy answer!
But the second part of this passage is a
bit more definitive. Since no one knows
the day or time, we need to be alert to his return. No trying to guess, no developing some algorithm
to figure it out, no waiting for those signs and wonders before we make that final
decision for Christ.
Jesus told several parables about being
prepared, with the point being that first, we need to be active in the ways of
our Savior as we wait for that day, and the second, that we need to have our lives
in Godly order before that time arrives.
What does this entail? Let’s take the second part first – being ready.
(Matthew 25:1-13)
Faith isn’t a head knowledge of Jesus – it involves much more. Just as in any relationship that we cherish,
we can’t just know about another person – we have to understand and value the
life they offer to us. We need to
develop a heart-felt relationship; we have to be prepared to give our all to
them; we have to care enough about them to develop a true, unbreakable bond
between the two of you. It doesn’t mean
that there will never be difficulties, but it does mean that if we are
prepared, the relationship will be strong enough to survive those problems.
The second – being active while we wait
(Matthew 25:14-30, Luke 12:42-48 & Luke19:11-27) – comes after the relationship develops, and helps us to grow in it. In the case of faith, this activity is called
“ministry”. Sometimes, ministry is
pastoral, sometimes it is outreach, sometimes it is service, and sometimes it
is just loving someone because they need it.
It’s about stepping back so others can move forward, and other times it
involves taking the lead so others can learn.
How do we decide what we are to do?
We don’t make that decision on our own, but look to the Holy Spirit to
tell us what, where, when, how and who is to become part of each Christian mission.
A life in Christ during this waiting
period has nothing to do with who we are or who we want to be or what we think
we should be doing – it’s about being productive in the ways of Christ. He gives us an assignment that he has prepared
us for, and then tells us to go and do it in the way that he would. It’s as easy as that.
Read Mark 13:35-37
Remembering that no one knows the time
and place of Jesus’ return – not Jesus, not the Holy Spirit, not the angels or
seraphim or cherubim, and definitely not us; only the Father knows – be prepared
for that day, whenever it may be. “Being
a faithful Christian doesn’t just happen” – it requires preparation, Christian action,
and patience as we anxiously await that glorious day.
Jesus has been very intentional in
letting us know just how important it is to be ready for his Day. Don’t sleep, don’t assume, don’t hesitate, don’t
let anything get in the way of preparing for Christ’s Second appearance here on
earth.
His arrivals will be totally
different: the first was as a helpless
infant who was born of a virgin, while the second will be as the divine and
eternal King and Ruler of all; the first was as a human being who was as vulnerable
and emotional as we are, while the second will be as a Divine, Eternal, and
Godly Being who is, was, and always will be; the first was to teach us about
God and his desires for our lives, while the second will be to judge each and every
person as to how well they have learned and lived those ways; the first was to
submit himself to worldly hatred and contempt, while the second will be to put
an end to those ways of earth, as well as to all who have chosen to live by
worldly precepts; the first was to establish a way for us to attain eternal
life, and the second will be to grant that life to all who believe faithfully
in him.
His words will never pass away. Will you love them as much as the LORD loves you?
