WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.000 Okay, please turn back to Mark chapter 13. 00:00:03.000 --> 00:00:04.480 My apologies. 00:00:04.480 --> 00:00:07.080 I was planning to preach on Sam 16, 00:00:07.080 --> 00:00:08.400 but for different reasons, 00:00:08.400 --> 00:00:10.599 I'm going to be in Mark 13, 00:00:10.599 --> 00:00:13.679 which is, we're doing a series in East Valley and Mark. 00:00:13.679 --> 00:00:16.120 So this is where we were this morning. 00:00:16.120 --> 00:00:17.359 And I was trying to calculate, 00:00:17.359 --> 00:00:19.480 would anybody from East Valley be here tonight? 00:00:19.480 --> 00:00:21.800 And I thought all the people who were on kids search 00:00:21.800 --> 00:00:23.519 would be here, but I think there's at least one person 00:00:23.519 --> 00:00:25.839 who wasn't, so I do apologize to the person 00:00:25.839 --> 00:00:27.640 who will hear me twice on the same subject. 00:00:27.640 --> 00:00:30.560 However, I want us to start by thinking about this. 00:00:30.560 --> 00:00:32.000 I think this is a really, really helpful 00:00:32.000 --> 00:00:33.359 and a really relevant passage, 00:00:33.359 --> 00:00:36.240 though a rather huge one. 00:00:36.240 --> 00:00:39.799 And you read this kind of chapter 00:00:39.799 --> 00:00:43.079 and it blows your mind a little bit with the complexity 00:00:43.079 --> 00:00:46.159 and the language, the kind of themes that it takes off with. 00:00:47.280 --> 00:00:49.120 But I want to begin by thinking about something 00:00:49.120 --> 00:00:52.859 I find really fascinating and that is future proofing. 00:00:52.859 --> 00:00:57.859 And I think we all do this in different ways. 00:00:57.859 --> 00:01:00.859 I think you do, you may not know what I'm talking about, 00:01:00.859 --> 00:01:02.259 but I think we do. 00:01:02.259 --> 00:01:03.460 Here's a definition. 00:01:03.460 --> 00:01:06.459 Future proofing is the process of anticipating the future 00:01:06.459 --> 00:01:10.060 and developing methods of minimizing the effects 00:01:10.060 --> 00:01:13.739 of shocks and stresses of future events. 00:01:13.739 --> 00:01:16.739 Rather a mouthful, but basically to say, 00:01:16.739 --> 00:01:18.299 though we do this all the time in different ways, 00:01:18.299 --> 00:01:21.500 we try and look at what may happen in the future, 00:01:21.500 --> 00:01:25.540 so we anticipate stresses, traumas, problems, 00:01:25.540 --> 00:01:28.780 and we try and find a way to protect against them. 00:01:29.739 --> 00:01:31.659 Now, you may do that with technology, 00:01:31.659 --> 00:01:33.140 you can do that in business, 00:01:33.140 --> 00:01:34.460 you can do that in medical industry, 00:01:34.460 --> 00:01:38.219 we can do that personally with our own lives 00:01:38.219 --> 00:01:40.980 because the thought of something going wrong isn't good. 00:01:42.260 --> 00:01:44.780 So I wonder if you're conscious of doing this, 00:01:44.780 --> 00:01:47.939 future proofing, anticipating what may happen in your life 00:01:47.939 --> 00:01:50.299 and trying to protect against it. 00:01:50.299 --> 00:01:51.819 And I think this is significant 00:01:51.819 --> 00:01:55.060 because I think I'm pretty convinced 00:01:55.060 --> 00:01:56.859 at the moment that our society is going through, 00:01:56.859 --> 00:01:57.700 maybe it always is, 00:01:57.700 --> 00:02:00.060 but we're going through a pretty huge upheaval 00:02:00.060 --> 00:02:01.620 and at a societal level, 00:02:01.620 --> 00:02:04.579 we're trying to work out how we can future proof 00:02:04.579 --> 00:02:07.859 against the mega disasters that are coming our way. 00:02:07.859 --> 00:02:09.819 Whichever government you fear the most, 00:02:09.819 --> 00:02:13.099 how can we future proof against this bunch of rogues 00:02:13.099 --> 00:02:14.219 who are gonna come and take us over, 00:02:14.219 --> 00:02:16.419 whichever side they may be for you? 00:02:16.419 --> 00:02:19.379 How can we future proof against the obvious climate issues 00:02:19.379 --> 00:02:21.419 that people are talking about all the time? 00:02:22.419 --> 00:02:27.419 Economic meltdown, relational meltdown at a personal level. 00:02:27.419 --> 00:02:28.740 So whatever it is for you, 00:02:28.740 --> 00:02:33.740 you will look at news anywhere in the world 00:02:34.740 --> 00:02:38.579 and see many problems and many proposed solutions 00:02:38.579 --> 00:02:40.060 to deal with the problems. 00:02:41.419 --> 00:02:42.900 Here's the thing though, 00:02:42.900 --> 00:02:45.859 I think for many people this is such a big issue 00:02:45.860 --> 00:02:49.500 because we don't know where history is going. 00:02:50.380 --> 00:02:52.060 How can we know? 00:02:52.060 --> 00:02:54.820 We don't have an encyclopedic knowledge of history, 00:02:54.820 --> 00:02:57.180 we don't have the ability to grasp, 00:02:57.180 --> 00:03:00.380 take hold of and manipulate the future. 00:03:00.380 --> 00:03:01.780 It's just not within our power, 00:03:01.780 --> 00:03:02.740 it's not within my power, 00:03:02.740 --> 00:03:04.740 I don't think it's within your power either. 00:03:06.740 --> 00:03:09.060 So often, and another side of this 00:03:09.060 --> 00:03:12.260 is that people want to insulate themselves against trouble, 00:03:12.260 --> 00:03:15.820 but they also want to become something on their own terms 00:03:15.819 --> 00:03:17.859 I don't know how I can take hold of the future 00:03:17.859 --> 00:03:19.979 and make it what I want it to be, 00:03:19.979 --> 00:03:22.739 but what I will do is each day I get up, 00:03:22.739 --> 00:03:26.299 be the best human being I can be, great. 00:03:26.299 --> 00:03:27.739 But we just can't protect ourselves 00:03:27.739 --> 00:03:30.859 against all the ways in which we're thwarted 00:03:30.859 --> 00:03:33.699 becoming who we want to be. 00:03:33.699 --> 00:03:36.620 So that's a whole other issue really. 00:03:36.620 --> 00:03:41.180 But with all that is just the issue of where is history going 00:03:41.180 --> 00:03:44.299 and isn't it frightening not knowing? 00:03:44.300 --> 00:03:49.300 If life is just life and if we're here kind of by accident 00:03:49.540 --> 00:03:52.100 and we've got to just make the best of it. 00:03:52.100 --> 00:03:54.939 And I read one guy when I was thinking about this 00:03:54.939 --> 00:03:57.820 and he said this, he said this, 00:03:57.820 --> 00:03:59.340 and I think this applies to you tonight 00:03:59.340 --> 00:04:01.700 if you're a Christian, but also if you're not 00:04:01.700 --> 00:04:03.140 and to your friends who are not, 00:04:03.140 --> 00:04:05.060 I think it applies to people. 00:04:05.060 --> 00:04:08.860 That history is heading somewhere 00:04:08.860 --> 00:04:13.860 and means something does resonate with us deep down. 00:04:13.860 --> 00:04:17.220 In other words, we're just not content saying, 00:04:17.220 --> 00:04:19.020 well, you know, we just kind of evolved 00:04:19.020 --> 00:04:20.939 and history is evolving and that's fine 00:04:20.939 --> 00:04:24.540 and we'll just end up somewhere and then fine. 00:04:24.540 --> 00:04:26.379 It doesn't sit well with us, does it? 00:04:26.379 --> 00:04:28.420 You don't like that at a personal level. 00:04:28.420 --> 00:04:31.740 You feel invested with significance. 00:04:31.740 --> 00:04:34.500 So you take steps to live accordingly. 00:04:34.500 --> 00:04:36.580 And I think as a society we do that also. 00:04:37.460 --> 00:04:42.460 And in the kind of swamp of wondering how to deal with life 00:04:42.459 --> 00:04:45.620 and what's gonna happen and isn't it also terrifying, 00:04:45.620 --> 00:04:48.859 Jesus speaks in a passage like this one 00:04:48.859 --> 00:04:52.060 and it's absolutely devastating. 00:04:52.060 --> 00:04:53.899 It's devastating if you're not a believer 00:04:53.899 --> 00:04:55.459 because he shakes our world. 00:04:55.459 --> 00:04:58.259 He shakes everything about who we think we are 00:04:58.259 --> 00:05:00.099 and what we think is going on. 00:05:00.099 --> 00:05:05.099 And it's comforting as well as incredibly challenging 00:05:07.899 --> 00:05:11.339 if you're a believer because what he wants to say to you is, 00:05:11.339 --> 00:05:14.459 have you forgotten that I am the Lord of history? 00:05:14.459 --> 00:05:17.259 But in amongst everything that's going on, 00:05:17.259 --> 00:05:19.459 nothing surprises me. 00:05:19.459 --> 00:05:24.459 I know about that and this and that and you. 00:05:24.459 --> 00:05:28.059 I know I am working all of these things out. 00:05:29.259 --> 00:05:33.459 So Jesus speaks in this passage about future events, okay? 00:05:33.459 --> 00:05:37.500 And he's speaking to ordinary men, his disciples 00:05:37.500 --> 00:05:41.259 and Jesus is of course by this point in Mark moving forward 00:05:41.259 --> 00:05:43.740 and firmly towards the cross, 00:05:43.740 --> 00:05:45.899 that moment where he will lay down his life 00:05:46.779 --> 00:05:48.699 so that we may trust in him. 00:05:48.699 --> 00:05:51.139 And a lot of Mark's gospel is about identity, 00:05:51.139 --> 00:05:54.339 who is Jesus, this chapter helps us with that. 00:05:54.339 --> 00:05:58.259 But a lot of Mark's gospel is also about discipleship. 00:05:58.259 --> 00:06:01.819 Okay, if you're gonna trust in me, what will that look like? 00:06:01.819 --> 00:06:04.779 And Jesus here blows his disciples' minds 00:06:04.779 --> 00:06:08.980 and starts telling them pretty radical things about future. 00:06:08.980 --> 00:06:11.980 And there are two things going on here I want to suggest. 00:06:11.980 --> 00:06:13.460 Now some people will look at the chapter 00:06:13.460 --> 00:06:17.860 and see it as one big thing, 00:06:17.860 --> 00:06:18.700 but I don't think so, 00:06:18.700 --> 00:06:20.980 I think there are two things that are going on here. 00:06:20.980 --> 00:06:22.740 One in their immediate future, 00:06:22.740 --> 00:06:24.780 which Jesus wants to confront them with, 00:06:24.780 --> 00:06:26.500 which is really, really scary, 00:06:26.500 --> 00:06:28.460 but he wants to confront them with. 00:06:28.460 --> 00:06:31.180 And then the second thing is a future, 00:06:31.180 --> 00:06:34.060 future thing that is coming for them. 00:06:34.060 --> 00:06:35.660 Now I want us just to pick out 00:06:35.660 --> 00:06:38.259 from these two different sections, 00:06:38.259 --> 00:06:40.420 and we're not going to go into mega detail 00:06:40.420 --> 00:06:42.420 about everything that's going on here, 00:06:43.300 --> 00:06:47.019 but I think it's a really, really incredibly helpful chapter 00:06:47.019 --> 00:06:50.180 when you consider the future, 00:06:50.180 --> 00:06:53.099 because, and here's the point, 00:06:53.099 --> 00:06:56.139 it changes the way that you live tonight 00:06:56.139 --> 00:06:59.699 and tomorrow morning and this week and all of your life. 00:06:59.699 --> 00:07:01.980 It changes everything about how you actually go 00:07:01.980 --> 00:07:03.339 about living your life 00:07:03.339 --> 00:07:06.019 when you understand what Jesus is saying here. 00:07:06.019 --> 00:07:07.740 So I said there was two things. 00:07:07.740 --> 00:07:08.980 Here's the first thing, okay? 00:07:08.980 --> 00:07:12.060 Jesus wants to tell them about a cataclysmic event 00:07:12.060 --> 00:07:15.900 that will happen within the kind of immediate future 00:07:15.900 --> 00:07:17.019 of the Jewish people, 00:07:17.019 --> 00:07:19.060 and it is the end of an era. 00:07:19.060 --> 00:07:21.740 And the end of the era that is coming about 00:07:21.740 --> 00:07:24.340 is to do with the destruction of a temple 00:07:24.340 --> 00:07:27.620 and if you like the sacking of Jerusalem. 00:07:29.420 --> 00:07:31.460 Let's pick out a few verses. 00:07:31.460 --> 00:07:34.420 So if you've got a Bible with me, Mark 13, 00:07:34.420 --> 00:07:38.500 verse one and two, they're in the temple. 00:07:38.500 --> 00:07:41.620 So Jesus is with his people in the place 00:07:41.620 --> 00:07:45.300 that is the central event, if you like, 00:07:45.300 --> 00:07:48.180 the place where the action happens and their religion, 00:07:48.180 --> 00:07:50.939 and it's the place where God dwells with his people. 00:07:50.939 --> 00:07:52.060 As he came out of the temple, 00:07:52.060 --> 00:07:52.900 one of his disciples said, 00:07:52.900 --> 00:07:54.620 look, teacher, what wonderful stones 00:07:54.620 --> 00:07:56.100 and what wonderful buildings. 00:07:56.100 --> 00:07:57.220 And Jesus said to him, 00:07:57.220 --> 00:07:59.379 do you see these great buildings? 00:07:59.379 --> 00:08:00.980 There will not be one left here, 00:08:00.980 --> 00:08:03.500 there will not be left here one stone upon another 00:08:03.500 --> 00:08:05.100 that will not be thrown down. 00:08:08.220 --> 00:08:10.899 Now, I don't know how bothered you are 00:08:10.899 --> 00:08:12.899 when we renovate old buildings. 00:08:12.899 --> 00:08:14.939 Renovating old buildings can be upsetting 00:08:14.939 --> 00:08:16.620 because we like them. 00:08:16.620 --> 00:08:20.060 Destroying old buildings can be very upsetting. 00:08:20.060 --> 00:08:22.899 But for these people, for Jesus to say, 00:08:22.899 --> 00:08:25.459 yeah, the temple, the temple that we were just in, 00:08:25.459 --> 00:08:27.459 yeah, that's gonna be flattened. 00:08:27.459 --> 00:08:29.620 That's just gonna be gone. 00:08:29.620 --> 00:08:34.620 That's completely devastating for them to hear that. 00:08:35.019 --> 00:08:37.940 Because this is the place that God wanted, 00:08:37.940 --> 00:08:40.060 a place where he could dwell and be with his people, 00:08:40.060 --> 00:08:41.779 where they could gather and come together 00:08:41.779 --> 00:08:43.940 and worship him and lift up his name. 00:08:43.940 --> 00:08:46.259 So for Jesus to start talking about throwing, 00:08:46.259 --> 00:08:48.259 the stones being thrown down, 00:08:48.259 --> 00:08:49.860 really, really, really stresses them out. 00:08:49.860 --> 00:08:51.419 And so, of course, they come to him, 00:08:51.419 --> 00:08:52.620 and this happens often in Mark, 00:08:52.620 --> 00:08:54.620 and they say, Jesus, tell us more. 00:08:54.620 --> 00:08:57.060 So verse three, as he sat on the Mount of Olives, 00:08:57.060 --> 00:08:58.220 opposite the temple, 00:08:58.220 --> 00:09:01.100 Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately, 00:09:01.100 --> 00:09:01.940 when? 00:09:02.820 --> 00:09:04.740 When's it gonna happen? 00:09:04.740 --> 00:09:06.139 So it may well be that they were thinking, 00:09:06.139 --> 00:09:07.379 well, how can we deal with this? 00:09:07.379 --> 00:09:09.019 How can we manage the situation? 00:09:10.740 --> 00:09:13.740 So what Jesus wants to say to them at this point, 00:09:13.740 --> 00:09:15.820 and notice that he doesn't say, 00:09:15.820 --> 00:09:17.420 yeah, there's a bad thing potentially, 00:09:17.420 --> 00:09:18.899 but I'll fix it. 00:09:18.899 --> 00:09:19.860 It's okay. 00:09:19.860 --> 00:09:20.860 Don't you worry too much. 00:09:20.860 --> 00:09:21.700 I'll fix it. 00:09:21.700 --> 00:09:22.540 I'll sort it. 00:09:22.540 --> 00:09:23.620 I'll make the problem go away. 00:09:23.620 --> 00:09:25.660 He's confronting them square between the eyes 00:09:25.659 --> 00:09:30.620 with the reality of the fact that this horrible thing 00:09:30.620 --> 00:09:32.419 is gonna happen, 00:09:32.419 --> 00:09:34.620 and he's not gonna intervene and change it. 00:09:37.419 --> 00:09:41.019 He's relating something in verse, 00:09:41.019 --> 00:09:44.620 if we go down to verse 14, 00:09:45.939 --> 00:09:47.779 he's relating to something that they would have 00:09:47.779 --> 00:09:49.339 have a kind of resonance of 00:09:49.339 --> 00:09:51.139 in their understanding of biblical truth. 00:09:51.139 --> 00:09:54.860 Remember, these are people schooled in the scriptures 00:09:54.860 --> 00:09:57.419 that they would have had up until this point. 00:09:57.419 --> 00:09:59.500 Jesus has been speaking generally, 00:09:59.500 --> 00:10:01.500 I read from verses one through three, 00:10:01.500 --> 00:10:03.980 and then he goes on to speak in general terms 00:10:03.980 --> 00:10:06.500 about this cataclysmic event that's coming. 00:10:06.500 --> 00:10:07.820 So he gives them warnings, 00:10:07.820 --> 00:10:08.940 he gives them encouragements, 00:10:08.940 --> 00:10:10.539 he gives them directions, 00:10:10.539 --> 00:10:12.139 and we get to verse 14, 00:10:12.139 --> 00:10:15.019 and he says something specific, okay? 00:10:15.019 --> 00:10:16.539 And again, for these people, 00:10:16.539 --> 00:10:18.379 hearing this language that he uses, 00:10:18.379 --> 00:10:19.620 it would have resonated with them. 00:10:19.620 --> 00:10:20.899 They would have kind of picked up on this, 00:10:20.899 --> 00:10:23.500 and understood what he was talking about. 00:10:23.500 --> 00:10:24.860 So he says in verse 14, 00:10:24.860 --> 00:10:28.299 but when you see the abomination of desolation, 00:10:28.299 --> 00:10:30.500 standing where he ought not to, 00:10:30.500 --> 00:10:32.340 let the reader understand, 00:10:32.340 --> 00:10:37.340 then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 00:10:38.259 --> 00:10:40.100 Now, as I said, 00:10:40.100 --> 00:10:41.860 we could go into a lot more detail tonight, 00:10:41.860 --> 00:10:44.379 we could, but I won't. 00:10:44.379 --> 00:10:49.220 But this is one of two significant references 00:10:49.220 --> 00:10:51.299 which pick up from the book of Daniel. 00:10:51.299 --> 00:10:52.700 The second half of the book of Daniel 00:10:52.700 --> 00:10:54.420 has a lot of prophecy in it, 00:10:54.420 --> 00:10:56.140 a lot of the same kind of language, 00:10:56.140 --> 00:10:59.100 which is broadly speaking apocalyptic, 00:10:59.100 --> 00:11:04.020 very dramatic, hard to understand in many ways. 00:11:04.020 --> 00:11:05.940 But again, using the kinds of phrases 00:11:05.940 --> 00:11:09.259 that people steeped and schooled in the scriptures 00:11:09.259 --> 00:11:11.620 would have understood. 00:11:11.620 --> 00:11:13.140 And in the book of Daniel, 00:11:13.140 --> 00:11:17.379 it talks also about an abomination that causes desolation. 00:11:19.340 --> 00:11:21.500 And the thing is that in Jewish history, 00:11:21.500 --> 00:11:24.500 after Daniel, so if you think between the book of Daniel 00:11:24.500 --> 00:11:26.899 and this time now when Jesus is speaking, 00:11:26.899 --> 00:11:31.700 something awful did happen at the center of Jewish worship, 00:11:31.700 --> 00:11:34.899 where a man who set himself up as a ruler 00:11:34.899 --> 00:11:39.340 did offer a terribly offensive sacrifice 00:11:39.340 --> 00:11:42.259 and ruled terribly the Jewish people. 00:11:42.259 --> 00:11:45.220 And there was a great offense, 00:11:45.220 --> 00:11:47.259 there was a great offense to those people, 00:11:47.259 --> 00:11:49.700 again, without going into all the details. 00:11:49.700 --> 00:11:52.860 But Jesus is here speaking, using the same language, 00:11:52.860 --> 00:11:54.540 the abomination of desolation, 00:11:54.540 --> 00:11:56.020 about something that's still to happen. 00:11:56.020 --> 00:11:58.420 So he's speaking about another thing, 00:11:58.420 --> 00:12:00.100 something else that's gonna happen, 00:12:00.100 --> 00:12:02.820 that's gonna be a devastatingly offensive thing 00:12:02.820 --> 00:12:07.220 for the people and in their religious life. 00:12:08.820 --> 00:12:13.820 And not long, I think after the writing of Mark, 00:12:13.820 --> 00:12:18.820 the Jewish people were crushed by the Romans 00:12:19.980 --> 00:12:24.980 and the temple was desecrated and if you like, 00:12:25.900 --> 00:12:29.140 the second offense, this abomination 00:12:29.140 --> 00:12:31.820 that causes desolation happens again. 00:12:32.740 --> 00:12:34.900 Religious life as they knew it, 00:12:34.900 --> 00:12:36.740 the temple is the center of worship, 00:12:36.740 --> 00:12:40.620 as they knew it, again, was broken to pieces. 00:12:40.620 --> 00:12:44.740 And Jesus' prophecy here comes true. 00:12:44.740 --> 00:12:47.460 So, I said, in all of the language, 00:12:47.460 --> 00:12:52.019 in all of the slightly dramatic and confusing language 00:12:52.019 --> 00:12:54.460 that's used here, Jesus is speaking to his people 00:12:54.460 --> 00:12:55.620 about an immediate thing. 00:12:55.620 --> 00:12:59.100 He wants them to set up and take notice 00:12:59.100 --> 00:13:01.340 because something very dramatic is gonna happen. 00:13:01.340 --> 00:13:03.580 So here's just a few things to notice about this. 00:13:03.580 --> 00:13:07.259 One, it's incredibly traumatic, 00:13:07.259 --> 00:13:10.019 but he wants them to have realistic expectations. 00:13:10.019 --> 00:13:15.019 So, the Bible never speaks to you 00:13:15.860 --> 00:13:19.220 just to kind of soothe you, lull you, 00:13:19.220 --> 00:13:22.139 make you feel like things are just fine. 00:13:22.139 --> 00:13:25.740 No worries, everything's gonna be all right. 00:13:25.740 --> 00:13:28.620 Just not like that because that's not honest. 00:13:30.139 --> 00:13:32.419 Jesus is speaking here about the reality 00:13:32.419 --> 00:13:37.299 of what was gonna happen within the providential work of God, 00:13:37.299 --> 00:13:39.419 within his purposes. 00:13:39.419 --> 00:13:42.819 Very traumatic, very realistic. 00:13:42.819 --> 00:13:45.779 If you look at verse 15, 00:13:45.779 --> 00:13:48.740 let the one who's on the housetop not go down 00:13:48.740 --> 00:13:51.339 and enter his house to take anything out. 00:13:51.339 --> 00:13:52.899 I was using the example this morning, 00:13:52.899 --> 00:13:54.379 if you're in a public place 00:13:54.379 --> 00:13:56.339 and they welcome you to that public place 00:13:56.339 --> 00:13:57.579 if you're visiting somewhere 00:13:57.579 --> 00:13:59.339 and they give you the fire rags, don't they? 00:13:59.339 --> 00:14:00.939 You know, if you hear the fire alarm, 00:14:00.939 --> 00:14:02.860 don't go back for your stuff. 00:14:02.860 --> 00:14:04.059 Don't go back and pick up your bag 00:14:04.059 --> 00:14:06.860 or your favorite jacket, get out, because it's dangerous. 00:14:07.860 --> 00:14:09.099 And Jesus is kind of saying here, 00:14:09.100 --> 00:14:11.019 you know when this happens? 00:14:11.019 --> 00:14:13.420 Don't stop, don't get out. 00:14:13.420 --> 00:14:14.460 You're gonna want to get out. 00:14:14.460 --> 00:14:15.820 It's gonna be awful. 00:14:17.139 --> 00:14:19.060 And he uses other language, 00:14:19.060 --> 00:14:21.659 very poignant language about nursing mothers. 00:14:23.340 --> 00:14:28.340 So Jesus knows about devastating events 00:14:28.700 --> 00:14:31.620 that are devastating for human beings. 00:14:31.620 --> 00:14:33.180 He knows about them all. 00:14:33.179 --> 00:14:38.179 And they are within the providential purposes of God. 00:14:40.019 --> 00:14:43.339 God is working through these things 00:14:43.339 --> 00:14:46.139 and he knows and he has compassion. 00:14:46.139 --> 00:14:51.139 But he says to them, don't be swerved, don't give up. 00:14:51.299 --> 00:14:55.659 Because he says if you take verse 11, verse 11, for example, 00:14:55.659 --> 00:14:58.379 he's speaking again in this more general first section 00:14:58.379 --> 00:15:01.979 about when people try and throw them off the path, 00:15:01.980 --> 00:15:04.580 confuse them, get them to follow somebody else 00:15:04.580 --> 00:15:06.259 rather than him, he says, 00:15:06.259 --> 00:15:08.300 when they bring you to trial and deliver you over, 00:15:08.300 --> 00:15:10.379 don't be anxious beforehand what you're gonna say, 00:15:10.379 --> 00:15:12.659 but say whatever is given you in that hour, 00:15:12.659 --> 00:15:14.980 for it's not you who speak but the Holy Spirit. 00:15:14.980 --> 00:15:18.500 In other words, he's reassuring them with the fact 00:15:18.500 --> 00:15:21.940 that when they face trial and opposition, 00:15:21.940 --> 00:15:24.300 the Holy Spirit is with them. 00:15:24.300 --> 00:15:26.980 They're not left, they're not abandoned. 00:15:26.980 --> 00:15:29.700 He's with them through this. 00:15:29.700 --> 00:15:32.060 So this is gonna be traumatic and violent, 00:15:32.060 --> 00:15:34.140 have realistic expectations. 00:15:34.140 --> 00:15:38.860 They must have faithfulness under stress and violence. 00:15:38.860 --> 00:15:43.180 And thirdly, hope because there will come 00:15:43.180 --> 00:15:45.860 a new era of gospel proclamation. 00:15:45.860 --> 00:15:48.900 Now remember how upsetting this is for his disciples, 00:15:48.900 --> 00:15:51.220 the temple, they're gonna break the temple. 00:15:52.460 --> 00:15:53.900 We can't believe it. 00:15:53.900 --> 00:15:55.100 This must be the end, 00:15:55.100 --> 00:15:56.220 because this is what they knew. 00:15:56.220 --> 00:15:57.460 This was the way, 00:15:57.460 --> 00:16:00.340 this was the way they were to live their lives in worship. 00:16:00.340 --> 00:16:03.580 And yet Jesus isn't saying this is gonna be 00:16:03.580 --> 00:16:07.540 the end of all things because he talks in verse 10 00:16:07.540 --> 00:16:09.420 about gospel proclamation. 00:16:10.379 --> 00:16:12.740 Gospel proclamation, good news. 00:16:12.740 --> 00:16:14.500 In amongst all this trauma, 00:16:14.500 --> 00:16:16.340 and the gospel must be preached. 00:16:17.780 --> 00:16:19.820 And then it's the following verse 11 00:16:19.820 --> 00:16:20.660 that he says to them, 00:16:20.660 --> 00:16:22.379 and you be my witnesses. 00:16:22.379 --> 00:16:25.019 You say whatever is given to you by the Holy Spirit. 00:16:25.019 --> 00:16:30.019 So it's a really distinct dramatic, remarkable encapsulation 00:16:31.539 --> 00:16:34.019 of a moment in time that Jesus wants to hold out 00:16:34.019 --> 00:16:37.100 to the people that are listening to him, to his friends. 00:16:38.899 --> 00:16:42.579 How can we take a hold of this? 00:16:42.579 --> 00:16:44.939 Well, remember that it happened. 00:16:44.939 --> 00:16:48.699 But through this, and in the days that followed it, 00:16:48.699 --> 00:16:50.980 God birthed his church. 00:16:50.980 --> 00:16:54.139 God brought many people to faith. 00:16:55.460 --> 00:16:58.500 He spread his people even through persecution 00:16:58.500 --> 00:17:00.420 into different lands, 00:17:00.420 --> 00:17:04.819 where the message of Jesus Christ took on like a fire 00:17:04.819 --> 00:17:08.740 and burned in people's hearts and spread rapidly. 00:17:08.740 --> 00:17:10.500 And people couldn't stop it. 00:17:10.500 --> 00:17:12.220 And people have never been able to stop it. 00:17:12.220 --> 00:17:17.140 Governments, all kinds of people that I talked about here. 00:17:17.140 --> 00:17:20.940 And Jesus knew what would happen to all of these people 00:17:20.940 --> 00:17:23.220 who experienced this. 00:17:23.220 --> 00:17:25.140 And they're all his people. 00:17:26.140 --> 00:17:28.860 And even in the trauma, he was holding them. 00:17:30.059 --> 00:17:32.259 And he cares for them and he knows them. 00:17:32.259 --> 00:17:36.220 And there are people now who experience as blunt a trauma 00:17:36.220 --> 00:17:38.059 as this for believing. 00:17:38.059 --> 00:17:40.420 So you and I must never forget them. 00:17:40.420 --> 00:17:42.460 The fact that there are people throughout the world 00:17:42.460 --> 00:17:44.220 who experienced this, 00:17:44.220 --> 00:17:45.860 who are separated from their loved ones, 00:17:45.860 --> 00:17:49.100 who are betrayed, talks about betrayal, family betrayal, 00:17:49.100 --> 00:17:50.140 doesn't it? 00:17:50.140 --> 00:17:51.980 People are scared of the authorities, 00:17:51.980 --> 00:17:53.740 so they betray family members. 00:17:53.740 --> 00:17:55.740 Yeah, my answer, Christian. 00:17:58.140 --> 00:18:01.540 Utterly traumatic and yet known to Jesus. 00:18:01.540 --> 00:18:05.700 And you, even the pressure that you feel 00:18:05.700 --> 00:18:09.340 at odds with society, which is against Jesus. 00:18:09.340 --> 00:18:11.340 It's not without Jesus' knowledge. 00:18:12.420 --> 00:18:16.420 When you are to speak in the court of public opinion, 00:18:16.420 --> 00:18:19.540 not in the actual court, he is with you. 00:18:19.539 --> 00:18:22.180 Say the words that he gives you to speak, be faithful. 00:18:22.180 --> 00:18:23.460 So the same things apply, 00:18:23.460 --> 00:18:26.180 be realistic about the path that is ahead of you. 00:18:26.180 --> 00:18:31.460 Understand that opposition is prophesied by Jesus himself. 00:18:31.460 --> 00:18:35.059 And remember as well, remember that if you know anything 00:18:35.059 --> 00:18:37.460 about John's gospel, if you don't read it, 00:18:37.460 --> 00:18:41.059 it's wonderful to read in John chapter 17, 00:18:41.059 --> 00:18:43.539 Jesus' praise for his disciples 00:18:43.539 --> 00:18:45.059 because he knows what's coming. 00:18:46.059 --> 00:18:48.700 He has deep love for his people. 00:18:48.700 --> 00:18:50.340 He's not throwing you off the deep end 00:18:50.340 --> 00:18:53.220 when he sends you out into life, owning his name. 00:18:53.220 --> 00:18:54.059 He's with you. 00:18:55.180 --> 00:18:56.980 And he knows history. 00:18:56.980 --> 00:18:58.500 It's his. 00:18:58.500 --> 00:19:00.380 It's not outside of his control. 00:19:01.900 --> 00:19:04.779 So there's a slightly longer, 00:19:04.779 --> 00:19:06.180 we'll be short with the second half. 00:19:06.180 --> 00:19:08.620 There is end of an era, okay? 00:19:08.620 --> 00:19:10.980 The trauma that's gonna face the Jewish people, 00:19:10.980 --> 00:19:14.140 what seems like just devastating end of time. 00:19:14.140 --> 00:19:16.019 How can things possibly carry on? 00:19:16.019 --> 00:19:20.059 But then the second half of the chapter, 00:19:20.059 --> 00:19:23.180 Jesus goes on and he doesn't leave it there. 00:19:23.180 --> 00:19:28.180 And he speaks, so I think is about a future future time. 00:19:28.539 --> 00:19:31.379 Another event, which is in many ways, 00:19:31.379 --> 00:19:33.099 not as horribly traumatic for the people, 00:19:33.099 --> 00:19:35.779 but which is more mega, if you like, 00:19:35.779 --> 00:19:39.180 because he speaks about the time when he will return. 00:19:39.180 --> 00:19:41.019 So if the first was about the end of an era, 00:19:41.019 --> 00:19:44.579 the second, we're gonna think about the return of the king 00:19:44.579 --> 00:19:46.799 to borrow a phrase. 00:19:46.799 --> 00:19:49.819 Jesus describes from the second half onwards, 00:19:49.819 --> 00:19:53.019 from verse 24 onwards, another thing. 00:19:53.019 --> 00:19:57.139 But in those days, after that tribulation, 00:19:57.139 --> 00:19:58.819 the sun will be darkened 00:19:58.819 --> 00:20:00.740 and the moon will not give its light. 00:20:00.740 --> 00:20:02.819 And the stars will be falling from heaven 00:20:02.819 --> 00:20:05.099 and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. 00:20:05.099 --> 00:20:08.059 And then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds 00:20:08.059 --> 00:20:09.980 with great power and glory. 00:20:09.980 --> 00:20:12.099 And then he will send out the angels 00:20:12.099 --> 00:20:14.460 and gather his elect from the four winds 00:20:14.460 --> 00:20:17.460 from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven. 00:20:19.420 --> 00:20:21.819 Now, there's a big picture, if ever you saw one. 00:20:22.940 --> 00:20:24.460 Jesus is speaking here about an event 00:20:24.460 --> 00:20:26.420 of cosmic significance. 00:20:26.420 --> 00:20:28.299 Let me just pick out a few things about this. 00:20:28.299 --> 00:20:29.500 And the first is language. 00:20:29.500 --> 00:20:31.539 Again, I want to go back to this. 00:20:31.539 --> 00:20:34.279 The kind of language that Jesus is using here 00:20:34.279 --> 00:20:38.180 seems pretty grand to us, a little bit impenetrable. 00:20:38.180 --> 00:20:39.559 I don't even make sense of it. 00:20:39.559 --> 00:20:42.620 But again, for the people that he's speaking to, 00:20:42.620 --> 00:20:44.059 this would have resonated with them. 00:20:44.059 --> 00:20:47.099 They would have heard the kind of language 00:20:47.099 --> 00:20:49.419 that in their understanding of the Scriptures 00:20:49.419 --> 00:20:53.619 would have described the actions of God. 00:20:53.619 --> 00:20:57.379 What happens when God acts in a big way? 00:20:57.379 --> 00:21:00.899 Because they understood that God was the Lord of the world, 00:21:00.899 --> 00:21:02.299 the Creator of the universe. 00:21:02.299 --> 00:21:05.259 He was the one who moved the starry heavens, 00:21:05.259 --> 00:21:07.579 who held the universe in the palm of his hands. 00:21:07.579 --> 00:21:09.779 They had a very clear understanding of that. 00:21:09.779 --> 00:21:14.139 To hear somebody speak about in that day 00:21:14.139 --> 00:21:15.660 would also have resonated with them. 00:21:15.660 --> 00:21:17.859 The Old Testament, if you look through the Old Testament, 00:21:17.859 --> 00:21:19.539 you hear mentioned in the prophets of, 00:21:19.539 --> 00:21:22.500 in that day I will, says the Lord. 00:21:23.500 --> 00:21:25.940 An understanding they would have of a future time 00:21:25.940 --> 00:21:29.259 when the Lord would act decisively in human history. 00:21:29.259 --> 00:21:33.119 And so here we get, again, this kind of resonance 00:21:33.119 --> 00:21:35.460 in those days after that tribulation, 00:21:35.460 --> 00:21:40.220 and then this kind of dramatic language about cosmic events. 00:21:40.220 --> 00:21:42.420 And here Jesus is speaking about a time 00:21:43.420 --> 00:21:45.819 as he then goes on to draw attention to himself 00:21:45.819 --> 00:21:47.220 as the Son of Man, 00:21:48.940 --> 00:21:52.220 where it will be evident to everybody. 00:21:52.220 --> 00:21:53.940 Nobody will be able to look the other way. 00:21:53.940 --> 00:21:55.740 Nobody will be able to deny. 00:21:55.740 --> 00:22:00.299 Nobody will be able to thwart the coming again of the Son, 00:22:00.299 --> 00:22:05.299 Jesus Christ revealed as King and as Lord of all. 00:22:05.899 --> 00:22:10.059 And so this dramatic language that we get here 00:22:10.059 --> 00:22:15.059 speaks about something that should mean a lot to you. 00:22:16.899 --> 00:22:20.539 Don't, again, don't live your daily life 00:22:21.539 --> 00:22:24.419 as if we don't know where we're going 00:22:24.419 --> 00:22:26.779 and we just hope it'll be all right in the end. 00:22:26.779 --> 00:22:28.500 Even as Christians sometimes, 00:22:28.500 --> 00:22:30.339 believing in Jesus Christ, 00:22:30.339 --> 00:22:33.779 we can live as if it's either all up to us to work out 00:22:33.779 --> 00:22:36.779 and maybe hopefully God will kind of fix things a little bit. 00:22:37.799 --> 00:22:41.079 But here we read about a day when Jesus Christ will return. 00:22:41.079 --> 00:22:45.740 So the language here points to this for our encouragement. 00:22:45.740 --> 00:22:47.619 And it's for the encouragement of the people 00:22:47.619 --> 00:22:50.059 who are hearing this, think about this. 00:22:50.059 --> 00:22:52.519 Jesus has been speaking to his disciples. 00:22:52.519 --> 00:22:54.519 What's he been telling them? 00:22:54.519 --> 00:22:56.500 Huge trauma is coming your way. 00:22:56.500 --> 00:23:00.980 And then he speaks about this future event 00:23:00.980 --> 00:23:04.380 where this mass revelation of this glorious figure 00:23:04.380 --> 00:23:06.779 who will come and what will he do? 00:23:06.779 --> 00:23:09.740 It speaks about how his angels, verse 27, 00:23:09.740 --> 00:23:12.779 he will send out the angels and gather his elect 00:23:12.779 --> 00:23:15.299 from the four winds from the ends of the earth 00:23:15.299 --> 00:23:16.500 to the ends of heaven. 00:23:16.500 --> 00:23:17.339 Wow. 00:23:18.220 --> 00:23:20.900 So we're frightened because Jesus has just told us 00:23:20.900 --> 00:23:22.500 that the temple's gonna be knocked down 00:23:22.500 --> 00:23:25.180 and we're gonna be betrayed and there's gonna be violence 00:23:25.180 --> 00:23:27.019 and there's gonna be earthquakes. 00:23:27.019 --> 00:23:29.700 And then he says, but there's gonna be a time 00:23:29.700 --> 00:23:32.779 when I'm gonna send my angels to come get you, 00:23:32.779 --> 00:23:34.500 them, the future people. 00:23:34.500 --> 00:23:36.140 And from all over the ends of the earth, 00:23:36.140 --> 00:23:37.160 because remember that the gospel 00:23:37.160 --> 00:23:39.240 has to be preached far and wide. 00:23:41.340 --> 00:23:44.160 So this is for you as well. 00:23:44.160 --> 00:23:45.660 This is for you to understand as well 00:23:45.660 --> 00:23:49.120 because you and I now live in this age, 00:23:49.120 --> 00:23:51.140 the in-between time, the time when the gospel 00:23:51.140 --> 00:23:53.940 is to be preached before the time 00:23:53.940 --> 00:23:55.860 when the Son of Man will be revealed. 00:23:57.380 --> 00:23:59.860 So this dramatic language, 00:23:59.860 --> 00:24:02.340 which leads us to think about this figure, the Son of Man. 00:24:02.340 --> 00:24:04.019 Now this again, again, I'm not gonna go into it, 00:24:04.019 --> 00:24:05.700 but this is also a reference to Daniel 00:24:05.700 --> 00:24:08.420 and Daniel, we get this phrase, the Son of Man. 00:24:08.420 --> 00:24:10.580 And it speaks about him coming on the clouds 00:24:10.580 --> 00:24:13.180 and great reverence and all being given to him, 00:24:13.180 --> 00:24:15.340 power and authority. 00:24:16.580 --> 00:24:21.580 And Jesus, Jesus is very, very self-aware. 00:24:21.579 --> 00:24:26.579 I think, again, thinking about our society, 00:24:26.699 --> 00:24:28.339 people will sometimes try to say to you 00:24:28.339 --> 00:24:30.259 that what happened with Jesus was, 00:24:30.259 --> 00:24:33.919 well, you had this guy who was a good guy, 00:24:33.919 --> 00:24:35.819 and events kind of overtook him a little bit 00:24:35.819 --> 00:24:37.259 and there was a bit, everybody got a bit 00:24:37.259 --> 00:24:39.000 of a collective rush of blood to the head, 00:24:39.000 --> 00:24:40.539 and they ended up thinking he was something 00:24:40.539 --> 00:24:42.019 more than he really was. 00:24:43.220 --> 00:24:45.699 And hey, Presto, we've got this kind of accumulated, 00:24:45.699 --> 00:24:47.339 developed history of somebody 00:24:47.339 --> 00:24:49.220 who people think is divine somehow. 00:24:49.220 --> 00:24:52.500 But actually, Jesus is very self-aware 00:24:52.500 --> 00:24:55.860 and very deliberate in what he says. 00:24:55.860 --> 00:24:57.500 And all through Mark's Gospel, 00:24:57.500 --> 00:24:59.579 he consistently confronts people 00:24:59.579 --> 00:25:01.259 with the reality of who he is. 00:25:02.180 --> 00:25:05.500 The one who can do things that nobody else can do. 00:25:05.500 --> 00:25:09.620 The authoritative teacher, the one who is divine, 00:25:09.620 --> 00:25:10.980 the one who is authoritative, 00:25:10.980 --> 00:25:15.980 and the one who holds history in the palm of his hand. 00:25:15.980 --> 00:25:20.980 And know again that that is Jesus your Lord 00:25:21.980 --> 00:25:23.059 if you believe in him. 00:25:23.940 --> 00:25:24.980 He is awesome. 00:25:26.019 --> 00:25:27.099 He is awesome. 00:25:28.019 --> 00:25:29.180 Nobody can stop him. 00:25:32.579 --> 00:25:34.700 Okay, but when? 00:25:34.700 --> 00:25:35.539 When? 00:25:35.539 --> 00:25:37.220 We all want to know when. 00:25:37.220 --> 00:25:38.220 The disciples wanted to know 00:25:38.220 --> 00:25:40.819 when the temple was gonna get broken. 00:25:40.819 --> 00:25:42.019 When, Jesus? 00:25:42.019 --> 00:25:43.420 Jesus says, no, not when. 00:25:43.420 --> 00:25:44.380 Don't ask me that. 00:25:44.380 --> 00:25:46.420 Ask me how you should live in the light of the fact 00:25:46.420 --> 00:25:47.900 that this is gonna happen. 00:25:47.900 --> 00:25:50.820 And that's what we really need to kind of end on 00:25:50.820 --> 00:25:54.820 and push home just as we come to the conclusion 00:25:54.820 --> 00:25:55.660 of this chapter. 00:25:57.180 --> 00:25:58.660 When's it gonna happen? 00:25:58.660 --> 00:26:00.900 Well, Jesus says, no, don't think about when. 00:26:00.900 --> 00:26:05.900 Think about how you're gonna live with this reality. 00:26:06.380 --> 00:26:09.700 If this is true, like I said earlier, 00:26:09.700 --> 00:26:12.660 this changes everything about the way you live tonight 00:26:12.660 --> 00:26:14.500 tomorrow morning. 00:26:14.500 --> 00:26:16.180 So we get to the end of the passage 00:26:16.180 --> 00:26:18.500 and I'm just gonna move on a little bit. 00:26:18.500 --> 00:26:19.900 We get to verse 32. 00:26:21.220 --> 00:26:23.700 And Jesus says, but concerning that day or that hour, 00:26:23.700 --> 00:26:28.380 no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, 00:26:29.380 --> 00:26:33.420 nor the Son, but only the Father. 00:26:33.420 --> 00:26:35.460 Okay, well, you may say, well, that's not very helpful, 00:26:35.460 --> 00:26:37.019 Jesus. 00:26:37.019 --> 00:26:39.140 People want to know when. 00:26:39.140 --> 00:26:41.420 And Jesus says, you should ask yourself, 00:26:41.420 --> 00:26:43.940 how you are to live? 00:26:43.940 --> 00:26:45.860 And that's what he goes on to describe. 00:26:45.860 --> 00:26:47.060 And it's actually what he's been saying 00:26:47.060 --> 00:26:48.620 through the whole chapter, 00:26:48.620 --> 00:26:49.700 all the way through the chapter, 00:26:49.700 --> 00:26:51.700 he's been confronting the disciples 00:26:51.700 --> 00:26:53.660 with hard truths that they don't wanna hear, 00:26:53.660 --> 00:26:57.140 but he's been saying to them, be faithful, be realistic. 00:26:59.380 --> 00:27:01.340 Hold fast to my name. 00:27:01.340 --> 00:27:04.460 Don't be afraid, don't be swerved off the path, 00:27:04.460 --> 00:27:05.980 all the way through the chapter. 00:27:05.980 --> 00:27:09.980 And so when we get to this point, be on guard, keep awake. 00:27:09.980 --> 00:27:13.220 For you don't know when the time will come. 00:27:14.940 --> 00:27:17.660 A couple of people I read on this, one man says, 00:27:17.660 --> 00:27:20.779 the doctrine of the second coming has a moral goal. 00:27:20.779 --> 00:27:23.900 It's designed to provoke action more than contemplation. 00:27:23.900 --> 00:27:26.819 So it's okay to think about this and to wonder about it 00:27:26.819 --> 00:27:28.140 and to be amazed by it, 00:27:28.140 --> 00:27:30.539 but it should change the way you live. 00:27:30.539 --> 00:27:32.140 It should change the way you live. 00:27:34.220 --> 00:27:37.019 Another person says, follower, Jesus's followers 00:27:37.019 --> 00:27:39.500 are to go on with their mission. 00:27:39.500 --> 00:27:40.740 That's really what this is about. 00:27:40.740 --> 00:27:42.900 This is what Jesus is trying to stimulate 00:27:42.900 --> 00:27:45.099 in the people who hear him. 00:27:45.099 --> 00:27:46.299 They should go on with their mission, 00:27:46.299 --> 00:27:48.220 preaching, living for the gospel, 00:27:48.220 --> 00:27:50.140 ready for their master at any time, 00:27:50.140 --> 00:27:52.740 so that he will find them on the job. 00:27:52.740 --> 00:27:54.660 So that's the other thing about this. 00:27:54.660 --> 00:27:56.140 Just to bring this full circle, 00:27:56.140 --> 00:27:58.259 we started off by thinking about the future 00:27:58.259 --> 00:28:00.539 and about the tyranny of worry. 00:28:00.539 --> 00:28:02.500 You know, how is it gonna work out? 00:28:02.500 --> 00:28:04.299 We don't know. 00:28:04.299 --> 00:28:06.859 You can manage some things in your life, but not everything, 00:28:06.859 --> 00:28:09.019 and you certainly can't manage world history. 00:28:09.019 --> 00:28:10.379 So we should do our bit. 00:28:10.379 --> 00:28:11.859 We should look after the world 00:28:11.859 --> 00:28:16.859 and we should try to be wise in the way that we live. 00:28:17.740 --> 00:28:18.660 But we don't know everything, 00:28:18.660 --> 00:28:21.460 but we do know that the Lord is holding history 00:28:21.460 --> 00:28:22.500 in the palm of His hand 00:28:22.500 --> 00:28:24.980 and that He knows exactly what is going on. 00:28:24.980 --> 00:28:28.259 And we know that if we believe that, 00:28:28.259 --> 00:28:30.539 then He wants your life to be invested 00:28:30.539 --> 00:28:33.500 with the significance of being a disciple. 00:28:33.500 --> 00:28:36.099 That means He's given to you the calling 00:28:36.099 --> 00:28:39.659 of being somebody who becomes like Jesus, 00:28:39.659 --> 00:28:43.059 who lives as a testimony to the fact that Jesus is Lord, 00:28:43.059 --> 00:28:45.500 who's able to warn people 00:28:45.500 --> 00:28:49.339 that if they don't hear something of Him, 00:28:49.339 --> 00:28:51.500 that they don't hear of His Word, 00:28:51.500 --> 00:28:54.939 if they don't come to see Him for who He really is, 00:28:54.939 --> 00:28:57.579 then they face the prospect of an eternity 00:28:57.579 --> 00:28:59.699 cast away from His presence. 00:29:01.219 --> 00:29:03.419 And so Jesus goes on to tell this story. 00:29:03.420 --> 00:29:05.820 It's like a man going on a journey 00:29:05.820 --> 00:29:08.740 when he leaves home and puts his servants in charge, 00:29:08.740 --> 00:29:13.220 each with his work and commands the doorkeeper to stay awake. 00:29:13.220 --> 00:29:16.460 The thing is, if you have a job and you have a boss, 00:29:16.460 --> 00:29:17.300 and the boss says, 00:29:17.300 --> 00:29:19.420 hey, I've got to go on a business trip for three days, 00:29:19.420 --> 00:29:21.860 but we've got a really, really significant deadline. 00:29:21.860 --> 00:29:23.180 Could you be in charge of it? 00:29:23.180 --> 00:29:25.060 You say, sure, no problem. 00:29:25.060 --> 00:29:27.340 And then you spend two and three quarter days 00:29:27.340 --> 00:29:28.420 looking at Facebook. 00:29:30.220 --> 00:29:31.980 That's not a good way to live. 00:29:31.980 --> 00:29:35.099 It's not sensible, and it's not fulfilling. 00:29:35.099 --> 00:29:36.500 It's a complete waste of time, 00:29:36.500 --> 00:29:39.500 and it makes a mockery of the task that you've been given. 00:29:39.500 --> 00:29:43.500 Now, we should see the time that we've been given now 00:29:45.819 --> 00:29:50.299 as the greatest privilege, the greatest privilege. 00:29:50.299 --> 00:29:51.900 And I want to say to you tonight as well 00:29:51.900 --> 00:29:54.299 that if you don't know Jesus as Lord, 00:29:54.299 --> 00:29:55.980 if you're not trusting Him, 00:29:55.980 --> 00:29:59.339 then you need to know Him as the one 00:29:59.339 --> 00:30:02.059 who holds history in the palm of His hand 00:30:02.059 --> 00:30:04.299 and who is the way of the truth in the life, 00:30:04.299 --> 00:30:06.539 that's the way He describes Himself. 00:30:06.539 --> 00:30:09.980 But also to know Him is to have your life invested. 00:30:09.980 --> 00:30:13.819 Every moment of your life invested with significance 00:30:13.819 --> 00:30:16.459 because your life becomes about living 00:30:16.459 --> 00:30:18.819 in the knowledge of Him as King, 00:30:18.819 --> 00:30:20.539 which is how He should be known. 00:30:21.659 --> 00:30:24.139 It means also that your anxiety about life 00:30:24.140 --> 00:30:29.460 and future events is put in its right place. 00:30:29.460 --> 00:30:32.300 And it means that your daily contribution to society, 00:30:32.300 --> 00:30:35.259 to Christian living, to the Christian family, 00:30:35.259 --> 00:30:39.460 to witnessing and telling people about the light of the world 00:30:39.460 --> 00:30:41.140 is something which you've been given, 00:30:41.140 --> 00:30:44.780 which is full of significance and a great blessing. 00:30:45.980 --> 00:30:48.860 And so just to kind of bring it to a close, 00:30:48.860 --> 00:30:51.500 I think a chapter like this, a huge chapter like this, 00:30:51.500 --> 00:30:54.180 with all of the language which can be confusing, 00:30:54.180 --> 00:30:58.779 nevertheless, speaks to us about a wonderful, 00:30:58.779 --> 00:31:04.420 wonderful Savior who wants to counsel you and comfort you, 00:31:04.420 --> 00:31:07.339 who wants to encourage you to be realistic, 00:31:07.339 --> 00:31:10.980 but who wants to say to you that in His absence, 00:31:10.980 --> 00:31:14.779 before He comes again, He will be with you 00:31:14.779 --> 00:31:17.500 and He has sent the Holy Spirit to be with you 00:31:17.500 --> 00:31:19.859 in all of the moments of your life, 00:31:19.859 --> 00:31:24.859 where you have opportunity to live as His disciples. 00:31:26.819 --> 00:31:30.659 All the moments of your life where you live as His disciples. 00:31:31.619 --> 00:31:33.219 And that is no small thing. 00:31:35.419 --> 00:31:37.059 That is no small thing. 00:31:37.059 --> 00:31:39.979 I'm gonna pray now and just bring that to a close 00:31:40.899 --> 00:31:44.819 and ask that the Lord will help us to face up to that. 00:31:44.819 --> 00:31:47.899 Sometimes we don't want to see the cost of following Him, 00:31:47.900 --> 00:31:49.900 but let me pray just now. 00:31:54.620 --> 00:31:55.860 Father, we want to pray tonight 00:31:55.860 --> 00:31:58.620 that you would reveal yourself to us, 00:31:59.660 --> 00:32:01.300 help us to see you for who you really are, 00:32:01.300 --> 00:32:04.340 and we pray that we would see your Son, Lord Jesus, 00:32:04.340 --> 00:32:09.340 as the great, compassionate, humble, servant-hearted King 00:32:10.700 --> 00:32:12.660 who came and gave Himself 00:32:12.660 --> 00:32:15.300 and who will one day be revealed 00:32:15.299 --> 00:32:17.980 in all His glory and splendour. 00:32:18.819 --> 00:32:21.619 We look forward to that, Lord Jesus, we pray, come again. 00:32:22.740 --> 00:32:26.779 And in the meantime, please help us not to hide ourselves 00:32:26.779 --> 00:32:30.460 under a rock, to hide away the light that we have. 00:32:30.460 --> 00:32:34.259 If we don't know you as Lord, then please break through 00:32:34.259 --> 00:32:37.539 into our hearts and reveal yourself to us tonight. 00:32:37.539 --> 00:32:43.539 And may we live for you, we pray, in Jesus' name, amen.