WEBVTT 00:00:00.860 --> 00:00:05.520 All right, would you turn with me to the Gospel of Luke, chapter 17. 00:00:05.980 --> 00:00:12.679 We are going to look at the last half of Luke 17 tonight, verses 20 through 37. 00:00:13.220 --> 00:00:16.559 That's page 876 in the Pew Bible, if you want to follow along there. 00:00:18.160 --> 00:00:23.879 Luke 17, 20 through 37, page 876. 00:00:27.320 --> 00:00:29.580 All right, let me read this for us. 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:37.000 Verse 18, being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus answered 00:00:37.000 --> 00:00:44.780 them, the kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, look, 00:00:44.859 --> 00:00:50.039 here it is, or there, for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you. 00:00:52.480 --> 00:00:58.439 And he said to his disciples, the days are coming when you will desire to see one of the 00:00:58.439 --> 00:01:01.320 days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. 00:01:02.320 --> 00:01:06.120 And they will say to you, look there, or look here. 00:01:07.120 --> 00:01:08.980 Do not go out or follow them. 00:01:09.980 --> 00:01:15.159 For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will 00:01:15.159 --> 00:01:17.000 the Son of Man be in his day. 00:01:17.000 --> 00:01:22.900 But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. 00:01:25.099 --> 00:01:28.980 Just as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be in the days of the Son of Man. 00:01:29.780 --> 00:01:35.620 They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage until the day when 00:01:35.620 --> 00:01:39.960 Noah entered the ark and the flood came and destroyed them all. 00:01:39.959 --> 00:01:46.079 Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot, they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, 00:01:46.299 --> 00:01:47.139 planting and building. 00:01:47.239 --> 00:01:51.539 But on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven and 00:01:51.539 --> 00:01:52.359 destroyed them all. 00:01:53.519 --> 00:01:55.839 So it will be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed. 00:01:56.959 --> 00:02:01.979 On that day, let the one who is on the housetop with his goods in his house not come down to 00:02:01.979 --> 00:02:02.719 take them away. 00:02:03.139 --> 00:02:06.579 And likewise, let the one who is in the field not turn back. 00:02:06.579 --> 00:02:09.099 Remember Lot's wife. 00:02:10.599 --> 00:02:12.759 Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it. 00:02:13.740 --> 00:02:15.659 But whoever loses his life will keep it. 00:02:17.000 --> 00:02:19.379 I tell you, in that night there will be two in one bed. 00:02:19.719 --> 00:02:21.319 One will be taken and the other left. 00:02:21.860 --> 00:02:23.539 There will be two women grinding together. 00:02:23.639 --> 00:02:25.099 One will be taken and the other left. 00:02:26.159 --> 00:02:27.539 And they said to him, where, Lord? 00:02:28.979 --> 00:02:33.039 And he said to them, where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather. 00:02:35.300 --> 00:02:36.180 Let's pray together. 00:02:36.580 --> 00:02:37.580 Let's pray together. 00:02:40.200 --> 00:02:42.860 God, we are grateful that you are speaking, God. 00:02:44.480 --> 00:02:48.420 Lord, you spoke our very universe into existence. 00:02:49.820 --> 00:02:54.640 God, you continue day after day, night after night to pour forth speech from the things that 00:02:54.640 --> 00:02:55.240 you have made. 00:02:57.300 --> 00:03:00.920 You spoke to the people long ago through your prophets. 00:03:02.439 --> 00:03:06.260 Lord, most of all, you have spoken to us through your Son, Jesus Christ. 00:03:07.400 --> 00:03:08.560 And through his apostles. 00:03:09.200 --> 00:03:12.820 And Lord, we thank you that you continue to speak to us through your written word. 00:03:13.640 --> 00:03:19.040 And by your spirit, you take these words and impress upon us what you want us to hear. 00:03:19.039 --> 00:03:20.819 For our life. 00:03:20.819 --> 00:03:22.979 For our spiritual good. 00:03:24.519 --> 00:03:30.459 So, God, we pray that you would give us ears to hear what your word says and what your spirit is saying to us tonight. 00:03:30.719 --> 00:03:31.620 For Jesus' sake. 00:03:31.620 --> 00:03:32.460 Amen. 00:03:32.460 --> 00:03:32.560 Amen. 00:03:36.439 --> 00:03:43.280 Well, friends, I think it's as easy as reading a newspaper or taking a walk around your neighborhood or maybe even just looking into your own heart. 00:03:43.280 --> 00:03:48.979 It's about as easy as those things to realize that the world is not the way it's supposed to be. 00:03:49.819 --> 00:03:50.520 Don't you agree? 00:03:50.780 --> 00:03:52.180 There's suffering and injustice. 00:03:52.699 --> 00:03:54.039 There's crime and hatred. 00:03:54.219 --> 00:03:55.379 There's bitterness and grief. 00:03:55.740 --> 00:04:00.420 And none of this, we know, biblically speaking, is how the world was meant to be. 00:04:00.419 --> 00:04:04.939 God created this world good in the beginning. 00:04:06.019 --> 00:04:10.199 And he created us, humans, to live under his good authority as our king. 00:04:10.379 --> 00:04:11.560 He made us in his image even. 00:04:12.179 --> 00:04:22.079 To be stewards of creation and to cultivate the joy and the energy of creation and to redirect it back to the praise of God, its creator. 00:04:22.079 --> 00:04:27.120 But that's not what we really see in the world right now, is it? 00:04:28.259 --> 00:04:33.379 Instead, we humans have gone our own way and rejected God's kingship over us. 00:04:34.000 --> 00:04:36.279 Tried to become our own kings and our own rulers. 00:04:37.319 --> 00:04:40.000 And in the process, we've spoiled the world. 00:04:40.199 --> 00:04:41.879 We've marred our relationships. 00:04:42.180 --> 00:04:45.599 And worst of all, we've fractured our relationship with God. 00:04:45.600 --> 00:05:02.340 So the story of the Bible then, really, is the story of God becoming the one and only king of his creation once again. 00:05:04.320 --> 00:05:11.900 The Bible is the story of how God rescues us and rescues his world from its rebellion. 00:05:11.899 --> 00:05:18.139 The story of the Bible, in other words, is the story of the kingdom of God. 00:05:18.279 --> 00:05:23.899 It's the story of the reign, the rule of God coming to make things right. 00:05:28.319 --> 00:05:36.519 The Bible even teaches us that one day God will come and he will reign and even sin and death will be destroyed. 00:05:36.519 --> 00:05:43.139 Creation, which is so fractured and broken, will actually be healed. 00:05:43.879 --> 00:05:50.479 And God's people will finally be liberated, set free, to serve God wholeheartedly again. 00:05:53.459 --> 00:05:54.719 That's the biblical hope. 00:05:56.759 --> 00:05:59.680 That's what all of our hearts really long for, deep down. 00:06:00.240 --> 00:06:01.379 That's the story of the Bible. 00:06:01.379 --> 00:06:07.519 So when the Pharisees, here in our text in Luke, come to Jesus and say, 00:06:08.019 --> 00:06:10.920 Jesus, when will the kingdom of God come? 00:06:12.420 --> 00:06:13.899 This is what they're asking about. 00:06:14.659 --> 00:06:23.000 They're asking, when is God finally going to break into his broken creation just like the prophets promised? 00:06:23.120 --> 00:06:29.000 When's he going to come and when is he going to deal with our enemies who are oppressing us and trampling on us? 00:06:29.000 --> 00:06:33.180 When is he going to come and when is he going to vindicate us and release us and set us free? 00:06:33.500 --> 00:06:38.920 When is God going to come with his righteous creation restoring reign? 00:06:39.019 --> 00:06:42.180 When is he going to come and make things right again? 00:06:43.439 --> 00:06:45.000 Jesus, when is that going to come? 00:06:47.800 --> 00:06:52.139 And to that question, Jesus gives a two-fold answer. 00:06:52.139 --> 00:06:57.379 First, he answers the Pharisees in verses 20 and 21 of our text. 00:06:57.500 --> 00:07:01.779 And then he answers a little more to his disciples in verses 22 and the rest of the chapter. 00:07:03.419 --> 00:07:10.979 And this two-fold answer that Jesus gives is completely essential for us as we follow Jesus today. 00:07:11.419 --> 00:07:16.479 We've got to keep both of these things in mind as we follow Christ. 00:07:16.560 --> 00:07:20.620 And remember, that's what these middle chapters of Luke are all about, following Jesus. 00:07:20.620 --> 00:07:26.480 How, as followers, as disciples of Jesus, should we understand, in this case, the coming of God's kingdom? 00:07:27.720 --> 00:07:33.959 And how does understanding it rightly, the way Jesus describes, how does that make a difference in our lives and in our life together? 00:07:35.740 --> 00:07:42.540 So let's look at Jesus' two-fold answer and then we'll end talking about some applications, some implications of that. 00:07:43.759 --> 00:07:47.040 And the first point of Jesus' answer is this, in verses 20 and 21. 00:07:47.040 --> 00:07:57.020 Jesus says to the Pharisees, in a nutshell, guys, the kingdom of God has already begun. 00:07:58.580 --> 00:08:02.400 The kingdom of God, Jesus says, is right here in the midst of you. 00:08:02.399 --> 00:08:16.599 Now, apparently, some of Jesus' contemporaries, the Jews of Jesus' day, were expecting this kind of in-breaking reign of God to arrive with cataclysmic signs and just tumultuous world events. 00:08:17.819 --> 00:08:26.239 The word that Jesus uses at the end of verse 20, things that can be observed, signs to be observed, means just that, big, world-shattering events. 00:08:26.240 --> 00:08:30.699 Something that you could point to and say, look, here it is, or look, there it is. 00:08:33.000 --> 00:08:41.840 Now, for some Jews in Jesus' day, no doubt, the great cataclysmic, world-changing sign that they were expecting was the overthrow of their foreign rulers. 00:08:42.480 --> 00:08:47.539 They wanted Rome to be toppled and to be an independent, liberated people. 00:08:47.539 --> 00:08:53.579 Maybe for others, it was a more sort of spiritual thing that they were looking for. 00:08:53.659 --> 00:09:00.379 In the Old Testament, God showed up powerfully in the midst of his people, fire and cloud in the wilderness at the tabernacle. 00:09:00.559 --> 00:09:04.679 When Solomon dedicated the first temple, God's glory came down and no one could stand up. 00:09:04.740 --> 00:09:05.500 It was so palpable. 00:09:05.620 --> 00:09:10.839 Maybe some people were looking for that kind of sign, a visible sign of God's presence in their midst. 00:09:10.840 --> 00:09:22.740 Whatever it was, they thought that the coming of God's kingdom, his world-healing reign was going to be accompanied by these sort of blatant, cosmic signs. 00:09:22.879 --> 00:09:25.720 Something you could see in a just unmistakable way. 00:09:27.980 --> 00:09:31.580 And, you know, there's a way in which we can sort of think similarly today. 00:09:34.280 --> 00:09:39.000 We can look at the world and wonder, what is God up to? 00:09:39.000 --> 00:09:41.240 Where is he? 00:09:42.659 --> 00:09:44.419 We see all the suffering in the world. 00:09:45.500 --> 00:09:51.340 We even see our own personal struggles to be holy, to live a godly life. 00:09:51.759 --> 00:09:55.220 We see our constant failures to follow Jesus the way we should. 00:09:56.759 --> 00:09:59.580 Now we think, maybe God's just not here. 00:10:01.539 --> 00:10:03.799 Maybe his reign must not have come yet. 00:10:03.799 --> 00:10:16.419 But Jesus tells them, and he tells us, that God's kingdom is not going to arrive with fireworks and fanfare and stars falling from the heaven. 00:10:16.919 --> 00:10:19.179 It's not going to come with those kind of signs. 00:10:21.379 --> 00:10:23.939 He says, the kingdom of God is already in the midst of you. 00:10:23.940 --> 00:10:28.200 Right now, it's already begun. 00:10:31.600 --> 00:10:35.300 And, of course, we know what Jesus means by that, don't we? 00:10:35.440 --> 00:10:38.180 There's a little bit of dramatic irony happening in the text here. 00:10:38.660 --> 00:10:43.380 If we've been following Luke's sort of historical account of Jesus' life and his gospel, 00:10:43.379 --> 00:10:51.340 we know that what Jesus means by this is that in his own person, in his own presence, in his own ministry, 00:10:52.139 --> 00:10:55.240 the kingdom of God has come. 00:10:59.059 --> 00:11:04.399 The world-healing reign has started in Jesus. 00:11:04.519 --> 00:11:08.419 The blind are receiving their sight in Jesus' ministry. 00:11:08.500 --> 00:11:09.620 The lepers are cleansed. 00:11:09.700 --> 00:11:10.539 The lame are walking. 00:11:10.539 --> 00:11:12.959 The brokenhearted are receiving comfort and welcome. 00:11:13.099 --> 00:11:17.959 And best of all, sinners are receiving forgiveness. 00:11:22.679 --> 00:11:27.120 There's a way in which each of the mighty works that Jesus has been doing throughout his ministry has been a sign 00:11:27.120 --> 00:11:30.719 that God is putting the world right again. 00:11:33.599 --> 00:11:36.039 The kingdom's already in the midst of you, Jesus says. 00:11:36.039 --> 00:11:43.279 It's like C.S. Lewis's Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, that great children's book. 00:11:44.779 --> 00:11:50.839 Do you remember how under the witch's power, Narnia is always winter and never Christmas? 00:11:54.039 --> 00:11:58.819 But at the start of that story, when the children make their way into this magical land, 00:11:58.820 --> 00:12:03.740 they hear news that Aslan is on the move. 00:12:06.240 --> 00:12:12.080 And as they begin their journey, slowly the winter begins to thaw and the streams start running again 00:12:12.080 --> 00:12:14.700 and the flowers start breaking through the snow. 00:12:14.700 --> 00:12:17.879 It's like that, friends. 00:12:18.259 --> 00:12:20.800 Jesus, the King, has come. 00:12:21.120 --> 00:12:23.120 The kingdom is already underway. 00:12:24.660 --> 00:12:26.780 Hearts are being thawed. 00:12:27.759 --> 00:12:31.840 New creation life is starting to crop up around him. 00:12:31.840 --> 00:12:41.600 And that serves as a challenge to the Pharisees of Jesus' day and, I think, to us. 00:12:43.759 --> 00:12:49.080 Are we willing to see Jesus for who he is? 00:12:49.080 --> 00:12:59.180 We might have our expectations of what God should do and ought to do and when he ought to do it and where he ought to do it, 00:12:59.180 --> 00:13:09.639 but are we willing to see that God's kingdom has, in fact, arrived in Jesus' first coming? 00:13:09.639 --> 00:13:18.259 Will we acknowledge him as king or are we going to continually look for another? 00:13:23.480 --> 00:13:28.840 But after telling the Pharisees that the kingdom of God is already present, already on the move in his own person and ministry 00:13:28.840 --> 00:13:32.179 and in the hearts of those who are believing and following him, 00:13:33.340 --> 00:13:36.279 then Luke's story kind of continues in our passage. 00:13:36.279 --> 00:13:38.299 He's sort of back on the road with his disciples. 00:13:39.639 --> 00:13:43.939 And as he continues on the road with them, he teaches them more of what they need to know about all of this. 00:13:44.539 --> 00:13:50.960 And in verses 22 through 37, Jesus tells us, secondly, not just that the kingdom has already begun in his ministry, 00:13:51.960 --> 00:13:56.259 but that the kingdom of God is not yet complete. 00:13:58.720 --> 00:14:00.799 That there's still more to come. 00:14:00.799 --> 00:14:07.379 There's still a great day, Jesus says, a day when the Son of Man will be revealed, as he puts it in verse 30. 00:14:07.379 --> 00:14:15.139 Now, if you've been reading the Gospels, you'll know that one of the ways that Jesus often refers to himself is, 00:14:15.279 --> 00:14:17.840 through this title, the Son of Man. 00:14:20.679 --> 00:14:21.939 And where do we see that? 00:14:22.059 --> 00:14:24.539 Well, you see it in a couple places in the Old Testament. 00:14:25.299 --> 00:14:25.899 Psalm 8. 00:14:27.000 --> 00:14:30.480 What is man that you are mindful of him or the Son of Man that you care for him? 00:14:30.480 --> 00:14:33.899 But then more importantly in Daniel 7. 00:14:35.200 --> 00:14:42.100 Daniel 7 is an Old Testament prophetic text where Daniel sees all the sort of kingdoms of the world 00:14:42.100 --> 00:14:45.720 represented by these grotesque animals. 00:14:46.440 --> 00:14:49.100 And then he sees one like a Son of Man. 00:14:49.980 --> 00:14:54.060 Someone who's truly human amidst all of these creatures. 00:14:54.059 --> 00:15:03.639 One like a Son of Man who comes and to whom God gives a reign of righteousness and goodness and peace that will never end. 00:15:06.139 --> 00:15:10.479 So you see, when Jesus is taking this title and applying it to himself, he's making a very stark claim. 00:15:11.399 --> 00:15:15.479 That he is the one who's coming to begin God's kingdom. 00:15:16.219 --> 00:15:18.199 To finally put things right. 00:15:18.200 --> 00:15:24.379 And Jesus says here in our text that there's coming a day when the Son of Man will be revealed. 00:15:26.720 --> 00:15:28.720 Don't you see, it would have been easy for the disciples. 00:15:28.840 --> 00:15:31.840 And again, I think it's always a danger for us already today too. 00:15:32.520 --> 00:15:34.940 We hear that the kingdom of God's already come in Jesus. 00:15:35.120 --> 00:15:36.680 That God's on the move already. 00:15:36.940 --> 00:15:42.680 And then we can start to think, well, does that mean that this is all there is? 00:15:42.679 --> 00:15:49.159 Is what we're experiencing now in the here and now, is that all we should expect? 00:15:51.359 --> 00:15:54.139 And Jesus says, no, there's more to come. 00:15:55.919 --> 00:15:59.819 You see, friends, Jesus came the first time in his first coming. 00:15:59.919 --> 00:16:03.399 He came in humility as a servant. 00:16:04.439 --> 00:16:06.239 Ultimately to suffer for our sins. 00:16:06.240 --> 00:16:12.919 But again and again and again in the gospels, Jesus teaches that he's going to come a second time. 00:16:13.500 --> 00:16:17.779 In glory to reign and to judge. 00:16:20.840 --> 00:16:24.560 Look at some of the things that Jesus tells us here about his coming again. 00:16:25.440 --> 00:16:28.039 First, it's going to be unmistakable. 00:16:28.600 --> 00:16:32.940 Verse 24, like lightning flashing from one end of the sky to the other. 00:16:33.320 --> 00:16:35.320 You're not going to miss it. 00:16:36.240 --> 00:16:39.860 No one's going to wake up one day and think, oh, Jesus came back? 00:16:40.120 --> 00:16:40.840 I didn't hear that. 00:16:41.039 --> 00:16:43.320 I didn't check my news app on my phone. 00:16:45.100 --> 00:16:50.060 Now, friends, like lightning ripping across the sky, you're not going to miss it. 00:16:51.360 --> 00:16:57.200 So don't be led astray then, he says, by anyone claiming to have some secret insight into Jesus' return. 00:16:57.659 --> 00:16:59.580 This isn't something that you can calculate. 00:17:00.519 --> 00:17:06.019 And certainly don't be led astray by false prophets or false Christs even saying, look, here I am. 00:17:06.019 --> 00:17:07.220 Or look, there he is. 00:17:07.579 --> 00:17:09.160 Don't follow them, Jesus says. 00:17:09.200 --> 00:17:12.160 When I come, it's going to be unmistakable. 00:17:12.259 --> 00:17:13.379 You're not going to doubt it. 00:17:14.599 --> 00:17:16.019 But then he says, it's not just going to be unmistakable. 00:17:16.799 --> 00:17:20.019 It's also going to be unpredictably sudden. 00:17:20.019 --> 00:17:20.639 It's just sudden. 00:17:23.940 --> 00:17:27.039 Jesus says it will be like the days of Noah and the days of Lot. 00:17:28.220 --> 00:17:32.740 And in the days of Noah and the days of Lot, which are Old Testament characters in the book of Genesis, 00:17:33.579 --> 00:17:35.579 people were doing what people do. 00:17:36.039 --> 00:17:37.759 They were going about their everyday lives. 00:17:38.059 --> 00:17:39.139 They were eating and drinking. 00:17:39.639 --> 00:17:41.500 They were marrying and being given in marriage. 00:17:41.619 --> 00:17:43.039 They were buying and selling. 00:17:43.039 --> 00:17:44.259 They were planting and building. 00:17:44.420 --> 00:17:48.379 And then suddenly, without notice, the end comes. 00:17:49.859 --> 00:17:50.980 The king arrives. 00:17:55.019 --> 00:17:56.680 Life is going on as normal. 00:17:57.559 --> 00:17:58.940 And then all is different. 00:18:00.700 --> 00:18:02.079 So it's unmistakable. 00:18:02.680 --> 00:18:04.200 It's unpredictably sudden. 00:18:04.740 --> 00:18:06.539 But it's also going to be total. 00:18:06.539 --> 00:18:13.700 When Noah entered the ark, the floods fell on everyone, Jesus says. 00:18:14.859 --> 00:18:19.319 When Lot left the city, the fire fell on them all, we read. 00:18:21.159 --> 00:18:25.720 No one will be excluded on that great day when Jesus returns. 00:18:27.799 --> 00:18:33.460 Every human being, friends, will stand before the world's rightful king and give an account. 00:18:36.539 --> 00:18:39.359 Which, of course, makes sense, doesn't it? 00:18:39.399 --> 00:18:44.960 If God has created each and every one of us in his own providential sovereign plan, 00:18:46.420 --> 00:18:50.619 then doesn't it make sense that he would also call each one of us to account 00:18:50.619 --> 00:18:53.799 before him, the very giver of our life? 00:18:57.339 --> 00:19:01.500 And this unmistakable, sudden, total inbreaking of God's righteous rule 00:19:01.500 --> 00:19:03.859 will also be individual. 00:19:03.859 --> 00:19:07.579 Look again at verses 34 and 35. 00:19:08.579 --> 00:19:16.259 From the same bed, from the same workplace, one taken, one left. 00:19:19.539 --> 00:19:25.959 You see, friends, it won't matter on that day how close you are to the church, 00:19:26.599 --> 00:19:28.659 how close you are to godly friends. 00:19:28.660 --> 00:19:33.920 It won't matter if your parents are believers or if your spouse is a believer 00:19:33.920 --> 00:19:35.560 or if your best friend is a believer. 00:19:36.080 --> 00:19:38.200 It won't matter if you work for a Christian organization. 00:19:39.200 --> 00:19:40.840 None of that will do you any good 00:19:40.840 --> 00:19:47.040 if you yourself are not in a saving relationship with the king. 00:19:47.039 --> 00:19:54.119 The God who created you and the God who sustains your every breath 00:19:54.119 --> 00:19:57.319 will one day bring history to its completion 00:19:57.319 --> 00:20:00.920 and you yourself will stand before God and you will give an account. 00:20:03.559 --> 00:20:06.539 God will dignify you in that way. 00:20:06.539 --> 00:20:10.139 But God will also hold you accountable in that way. 00:20:14.259 --> 00:20:19.039 And then when hearing about this great total judgment, 00:20:19.200 --> 00:20:20.099 the disciples ask, 00:20:20.539 --> 00:20:21.579 Where, Lord? 00:20:22.420 --> 00:20:25.779 Which I feel like is one of those sort of disciple-esque kind of questions. 00:20:26.059 --> 00:20:29.200 They seem to always be asking the wrong questions at the wrong time. 00:20:29.200 --> 00:20:36.120 Here Jesus is talking about a worldwide history-consummating act 00:20:36.120 --> 00:20:37.819 of redemption and judgment. 00:20:37.980 --> 00:20:38.600 And the disciples say, 00:20:38.700 --> 00:20:39.620 Where is that going to happen? 00:20:43.259 --> 00:20:46.000 And Jesus answers with a common expression of the day, 00:20:46.340 --> 00:20:47.580 sort of a common saying. 00:20:48.080 --> 00:20:48.480 He says, 00:20:48.600 --> 00:20:50.880 Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather. 00:20:50.880 --> 00:20:55.920 Which is a sort of sober way of saying, 00:20:56.320 --> 00:20:57.960 You won't miss it. 00:20:59.980 --> 00:21:01.460 It's going to be unmistakable. 00:21:02.300 --> 00:21:03.280 Impossible to miss. 00:21:04.080 --> 00:21:04.920 It's going to be total. 00:21:10.160 --> 00:21:11.800 So taking a step back then, 00:21:12.560 --> 00:21:14.900 what do we see here about God's kingdom? 00:21:15.880 --> 00:21:17.080 What is Jesus teaching us? 00:21:17.120 --> 00:21:19.720 He's teaching us that it's already present in his own ministry, 00:21:19.720 --> 00:21:23.160 that Jesus' first coming has launched God's kingdom into the world, 00:21:23.319 --> 00:21:25.700 and yet one day Jesus says he'll return, 00:21:26.440 --> 00:21:29.700 and he will return as the just judge of everyone, 00:21:29.860 --> 00:21:31.779 and God's kingdom then will be fulfilled. 00:21:34.460 --> 00:21:38.400 And of course, the second half of that picture is a very sober one, isn't it? 00:21:41.360 --> 00:21:42.559 When the king comes, 00:21:42.640 --> 00:21:44.500 when God's kingdom is completed, 00:21:44.940 --> 00:21:48.740 when evil and suffering and injustice and sin and death and decay 00:21:48.740 --> 00:21:50.120 and all the things that stand against us, 00:21:50.259 --> 00:21:52.599 when all of that is put to an end once and for all, 00:21:52.660 --> 00:21:58.900 it's going to be a result of Jesus' coming in glory to judge. 00:22:03.240 --> 00:22:04.339 Now on the one hand, 00:22:04.400 --> 00:22:05.359 as we think about that, 00:22:06.059 --> 00:22:09.160 we have to admit that that is good news, isn't it, 00:22:09.160 --> 00:22:09.759 for the world. 00:22:09.759 --> 00:22:15.339 Don't we want God to say no to evil and oppression, 00:22:15.519 --> 00:22:17.779 say no to suffering and death? 00:22:18.640 --> 00:22:20.879 Jesus is coming as judge as good news for the world 00:22:20.879 --> 00:22:23.480 because all that is wrong and all that is broken 00:22:23.480 --> 00:22:27.539 is going to be stopped and condemned in a final way. 00:22:33.039 --> 00:22:34.980 But friends, if it's good news for the world, 00:22:34.980 --> 00:22:38.660 it also pushes a deeper question, doesn't it? 00:22:40.220 --> 00:22:44.140 Is Jesus' return going to be good news for me? 00:22:48.900 --> 00:22:51.079 If the Lord Jesus Christ will come to judge, 00:22:51.180 --> 00:22:53.079 where will I stand before him? 00:22:55.400 --> 00:22:58.299 Will I have spent my whole life 00:22:58.299 --> 00:23:03.519 just pursuing creature comforts, 00:23:03.519 --> 00:23:06.899 eating and drinking and buying and selling 00:23:06.899 --> 00:23:08.519 and building and planting, 00:23:09.180 --> 00:23:11.519 which are not bad things in themselves. 00:23:12.279 --> 00:23:14.980 These are things that can be done to God's glory. 00:23:17.639 --> 00:23:21.119 But will I have merely distracted myself with them 00:23:21.119 --> 00:23:23.960 day after day and engrossed myself in them 00:23:23.960 --> 00:23:28.039 and given no thought and no meaningful response 00:23:28.039 --> 00:23:30.319 to the God who made them 00:23:30.319 --> 00:23:34.420 and to the God who is coming 00:23:34.420 --> 00:23:36.579 to judge what we've done with them? 00:23:42.039 --> 00:23:43.359 Of course, it's easy as Christians 00:23:43.359 --> 00:23:45.039 to think about people out there, right? 00:23:45.119 --> 00:23:46.220 People out there are the ones 00:23:46.220 --> 00:23:48.539 who are getting engrossed with all that stuff. 00:23:50.319 --> 00:23:51.420 But what about those of us 00:23:51.420 --> 00:23:52.659 who profess to be Christians? 00:23:52.660 --> 00:23:59.040 Are we like Lot's wife? 00:24:02.279 --> 00:24:04.040 Lot's wife outwardly identified 00:24:04.040 --> 00:24:06.040 with God's people at the time. 00:24:06.620 --> 00:24:08.759 She was a part of the people of God. 00:24:10.500 --> 00:24:13.440 And yet inwardly, her heart was wrapped up 00:24:13.440 --> 00:24:15.940 in loving the things of this world 00:24:15.940 --> 00:24:17.560 more than she loved God. 00:24:17.559 --> 00:24:24.480 Friends, will you and I on that great day to come 00:24:24.480 --> 00:24:27.099 look back longingly in our hearts 00:24:27.099 --> 00:24:29.659 to the goods in our house, 00:24:30.019 --> 00:24:32.099 to the produce in our fields? 00:24:35.099 --> 00:24:37.399 We might profess, we might claim 00:24:37.399 --> 00:24:38.500 to be followers of Jesus, 00:24:38.619 --> 00:24:40.899 but really, what are our hearts 00:24:40.899 --> 00:24:42.379 actually wrapped around? 00:24:42.500 --> 00:24:44.879 What thing have we taken our calendar 00:24:44.880 --> 00:24:46.460 and just wrapped it around 00:24:46.460 --> 00:24:47.720 and spent all of our time doing? 00:24:48.600 --> 00:24:50.140 What thing have we taken our money 00:24:50.140 --> 00:24:52.280 and invested it in and wrapped it into? 00:24:52.400 --> 00:24:54.060 What have we taken our energies 00:24:54.060 --> 00:24:54.820 and our passions 00:24:54.820 --> 00:24:56.200 and have we poured it into? 00:24:56.300 --> 00:24:57.100 What's that thing? 00:25:01.980 --> 00:25:03.560 And of course, our jobs, 00:25:03.660 --> 00:25:06.000 our families, our pursuits, 00:25:06.120 --> 00:25:07.860 all of these can be done to God's glory, 00:25:07.940 --> 00:25:09.600 but have we simply done them 00:25:09.600 --> 00:25:12.580 for our own glory 00:25:12.580 --> 00:25:13.620 and our own comfort 00:25:13.620 --> 00:25:14.620 and our own pleasure? 00:25:14.880 --> 00:25:20.840 Remember Lot's wife, Jesus says. 00:25:24.260 --> 00:25:26.940 This obscure Old Testament character 00:25:26.940 --> 00:25:29.840 teaching us an incredibly important 00:25:29.840 --> 00:25:30.840 spiritual lesson. 00:25:32.580 --> 00:25:35.280 She looked back longingly at the city 00:25:35.280 --> 00:25:36.580 God told them to leave 00:25:36.580 --> 00:25:38.120 and the moment she did, 00:25:38.440 --> 00:25:40.160 she turned into a pillar of salt, 00:25:40.940 --> 00:25:44.860 becoming externally what spiritually she was. 00:25:44.859 --> 00:25:45.379 She turned into a prayer of the Christian. 00:25:54.179 --> 00:25:55.399 Friends, I think if we're honest 00:25:55.399 --> 00:25:56.139 and we look in our hearts, 00:25:56.240 --> 00:25:57.179 we see that 00:25:57.179 --> 00:26:01.099 if we aren't exactly like Lot's wife, 00:26:01.819 --> 00:26:04.479 we're at least Lot's wife-ish, 00:26:04.899 --> 00:26:05.599 aren't we? 00:26:05.599 --> 00:26:09.599 what's our hope then 00:26:09.599 --> 00:26:14.559 how can we stand before Jesus on the great day 00:26:14.559 --> 00:26:19.679 when we know that our hearts are prone to wander 00:26:19.679 --> 00:26:21.139 Lord I feel it as we sing 00:26:21.139 --> 00:26:25.980 look again at verse 25 00:26:25.980 --> 00:26:30.859 in the context Jesus is saying he will return as judge 00:26:30.859 --> 00:26:32.599 he will return and make everything right 00:26:32.599 --> 00:26:35.419 but first verse 25 00:26:35.420 --> 00:26:37.800 he must suffer many things 00:26:37.800 --> 00:26:40.680 and be rejected by this generation 00:26:40.680 --> 00:26:45.980 Christ the coming judge 00:26:45.980 --> 00:26:49.900 friends was himself judged 00:26:49.900 --> 00:26:55.060 in his first coming Jesus the Lord of all 00:26:55.060 --> 00:26:57.740 came and took the place of the guilty 00:26:57.740 --> 00:27:03.620 and he let the sentence that we deserved on that last day 00:27:03.619 --> 00:27:08.039 he let that sentence of condemnation come forward into history 00:27:08.039 --> 00:27:10.879 and fall on himself on the cross for us 00:27:10.879 --> 00:27:16.839 though he was innocent he himself was taken away for judgment 00:27:16.839 --> 00:27:22.839 so that we could be left in God's favor and in God's righteousness 00:27:22.839 --> 00:27:32.059 so you see in order to stand before the risen Lord Jesus when he returns 00:27:32.059 --> 00:27:35.539 friends in order to stand before him then 00:27:35.539 --> 00:27:38.399 we need to embrace what he's done for us now 00:27:38.399 --> 00:27:41.699 we need to take him as our king 00:27:41.700 --> 00:27:46.960 and confess that the death that he died was the death that we deserve to die 00:27:46.960 --> 00:27:55.380 and what the Lord tells us that when we put our trust in him alone for salvation 00:27:55.380 --> 00:27:59.680 that he will never turn us away 00:27:59.680 --> 00:28:02.819 no matter how wayward your heart has been 00:28:02.819 --> 00:28:11.140 no matter how many years you've squandered simply on everyday pursuits chasing self chasing money 00:28:11.140 --> 00:28:14.680 Jesus says if you come to me I will not cast you out 00:28:14.680 --> 00:28:17.980 you can come right now 00:28:17.980 --> 00:28:20.340 you can come to me 00:28:20.340 --> 00:28:26.700 and you can know that I've taken your sentence of condemnation and borne it away 00:28:26.700 --> 00:28:33.540 that I've been carried away for you so that you can remain with me forever 00:28:33.540 --> 00:28:35.640 friends is that true of you tonight 00:28:35.640 --> 00:28:39.940 have you taken hold of the king 00:28:39.940 --> 00:28:44.120 have you taken hold of the judge who was judged for you 00:28:44.120 --> 00:28:53.940 well friends so here in Luke 17 00:28:53.940 --> 00:28:57.880 we have Jesus teaching us two great truths 00:28:57.880 --> 00:28:59.520 about God's kingdom 00:28:59.520 --> 00:29:03.140 on the one hand God's kingdom has already come 00:29:03.140 --> 00:29:06.480 and on the other hand God's kingdom is not yet complete 00:29:06.480 --> 00:29:10.800 you see we live in between Christ's first coming and his second coming 00:29:10.800 --> 00:29:14.960 between God's kingdom already at work and God's kingdom not yet finished 00:29:14.960 --> 00:29:19.360 and real briefly as we wrap up 00:29:19.360 --> 00:29:21.300 how do we live what does it mean 00:29:21.300 --> 00:29:23.320 if we if we hold these two things to be true 00:29:23.320 --> 00:29:26.480 how does it change how we live now as his followers 00:29:26.480 --> 00:29:30.380 if we hold on to the already and not yet 00:29:30.380 --> 00:29:31.700 how does it change how we live now 00:29:31.700 --> 00:29:33.480 real quickly just a few things 00:29:33.480 --> 00:29:33.900 first 00:29:33.900 --> 00:29:39.180 it means that we will expect God to be at work 00:29:39.180 --> 00:29:43.259 it means that we are a radically hopeful and expectant people 00:29:43.259 --> 00:29:46.080 because already God's kingdom has come 00:29:46.080 --> 00:29:50.140 you see friends when you step into a relationship with Jesus Christ 00:29:50.140 --> 00:29:52.960 already you're united to the king of the world 00:29:52.960 --> 00:29:54.980 already you're given new spiritual life 00:29:54.980 --> 00:29:58.460 already God pours the spirit into you and dwells within you 00:29:58.460 --> 00:30:02.740 already all of your sins are forgiven and you're completely reconciled to God 00:30:02.740 --> 00:30:05.660 already we're being reconciled to one another 00:30:05.660 --> 00:30:06.620 and the family of the church 00:30:06.620 --> 00:30:07.940 already all this stuff is at work 00:30:07.940 --> 00:30:10.680 God's kingdom his new creation is a foot in the world 00:30:10.680 --> 00:30:15.220 we're radically hopeful and expectant people to see God at work 00:30:15.220 --> 00:30:18.900 but if we hold these two things in tension 00:30:18.900 --> 00:30:22.360 it also means that we're not going to grow triumphalistic 00:30:22.359 --> 00:30:24.579 and what I mean by that is we're not going to get cocky 00:30:24.579 --> 00:30:27.019 and pretend that the battle isn't over 00:30:27.019 --> 00:30:32.339 because we know that not yet has Christ returned 00:30:32.339 --> 00:30:36.899 and not yet has our old sinful nature been removed once and for all 00:30:36.899 --> 00:30:41.139 and not yet has Christ put an end to death and injustice 00:30:41.139 --> 00:30:45.000 not yet has God's kingdom been completed 00:30:45.000 --> 00:30:48.119 so we don't act like it has 00:30:48.119 --> 00:30:52.000 and that means third 00:30:52.000 --> 00:30:54.899 that we're not going to grow cynical 00:30:54.899 --> 00:30:58.719 as we do life together on the way of Jesus 00:30:58.719 --> 00:31:02.319 you know the cynic is someone 00:31:02.319 --> 00:31:05.699 who at one point had high and lofty ideals 00:31:05.699 --> 00:31:08.539 and then they all came crashing to the ground 00:31:08.539 --> 00:31:11.500 when they realized that there's a real world out there 00:31:11.500 --> 00:31:16.159 the cynic is someone whose lofty dreams 00:31:16.160 --> 00:31:18.560 just sort of crashed on the rocks of reality 00:31:18.560 --> 00:31:20.640 and now they're just cynical about everything 00:31:20.640 --> 00:31:22.640 and the reality is is that 00:31:22.640 --> 00:31:24.820 if we as Christians don't hold together 00:31:24.820 --> 00:31:27.120 the already and the not yet of God's kingdom 00:31:27.120 --> 00:31:29.300 we are going to grow cynical too 00:31:29.300 --> 00:31:34.320 because we'll forget that God's kingdom 00:31:34.320 --> 00:31:35.580 is still yet to be completed 00:31:35.580 --> 00:31:38.580 our ideals and our expectations 00:31:38.580 --> 00:31:41.140 won't be tempered by a fact that there's more to come 00:31:41.140 --> 00:31:44.820 we'll forget that there's still going to be hardship 00:31:44.819 --> 00:31:47.200 and suffering and oppression and pain 00:31:47.200 --> 00:31:49.379 along the road of Jesus 00:31:49.379 --> 00:31:51.819 which after all wouldn't you think that be the case 00:31:51.819 --> 00:31:52.919 with the one who said 00:31:52.919 --> 00:31:54.960 first I must suffer many things 00:31:54.960 --> 00:31:56.379 and be rejected by this generation 00:31:56.379 --> 00:31:58.200 aren't we too called to take up our cross 00:31:58.200 --> 00:31:58.939 and follow him 00:31:58.939 --> 00:32:03.379 Jesus even points to this in verse 22 00:32:03.379 --> 00:32:04.819 and he says look there are going to be days 00:32:04.819 --> 00:32:07.480 when we long when we desire for his return 00:32:07.480 --> 00:32:09.319 there are going to be days in this life 00:32:09.319 --> 00:32:11.679 when we just want more than anything 00:32:11.680 --> 00:32:13.299 for Christ to come 00:32:13.299 --> 00:32:15.220 why is that? 00:32:16.380 --> 00:32:18.400 well friends because the Christian life is going to be hard 00:32:18.400 --> 00:32:20.340 we're going to ache for his coming 00:32:20.340 --> 00:32:22.620 because 00:32:22.620 --> 00:32:27.380 because life is going to be difficult 00:32:27.380 --> 00:32:32.960 but the reality is is that longing 00:32:32.960 --> 00:32:34.900 and that hardship 00:32:34.900 --> 00:32:38.120 isn't going to make us cynical 00:32:38.119 --> 00:32:43.259 because we know that God's kingdom is not yet complete 00:32:43.259 --> 00:32:44.959 and there's more in store 00:32:44.959 --> 00:32:46.699 and Christ is going to return 00:32:46.699 --> 00:32:47.739 and make things right 00:32:47.739 --> 00:32:50.959 so we can stay hopeful 00:32:50.959 --> 00:32:52.439 and expectant 00:32:52.439 --> 00:32:53.559 and joyful 00:32:53.559 --> 00:32:55.679 even in the midst of these things 00:32:55.679 --> 00:32:58.719 last thing 00:32:58.719 --> 00:33:02.239 holding together these two realities 00:33:02.239 --> 00:33:03.539 of the kingdom already come 00:33:03.539 --> 00:33:05.059 and the kingdom not yet completed 00:33:05.059 --> 00:33:07.500 friends it's going to empower our mission 00:33:07.500 --> 00:33:11.579 if you jump ahead to Luke's second volume 00:33:11.579 --> 00:33:12.440 the book of Acts 00:33:12.440 --> 00:33:14.480 what do we see there? 00:33:14.559 --> 00:33:16.200 we see the disciples going out 00:33:16.200 --> 00:33:17.619 in the power of the spirit 00:33:17.619 --> 00:33:20.079 with the message of Jesus' death and resurrection 00:33:20.079 --> 00:33:22.519 with the good news that Jesus is king 00:33:22.519 --> 00:33:26.419 they just fan out throughout 00:33:26.419 --> 00:33:28.059 pretty much the whole known world 00:33:28.059 --> 00:33:30.399 because they know 00:33:30.399 --> 00:33:33.099 that his rule and his reign has begun 00:33:33.099 --> 00:33:34.779 that the ascended Lord Jesus 00:33:34.779 --> 00:33:36.000 sits at the Father's right hand 00:33:36.000 --> 00:33:37.319 and he reigns 00:33:37.319 --> 00:33:40.579 but they also know 00:33:40.579 --> 00:33:43.359 that Jesus will return in glory 00:33:43.359 --> 00:33:45.980 that there's an appointed day 00:33:45.980 --> 00:33:47.319 when God will judge the world 00:33:47.319 --> 00:33:48.279 through the risen Jesus 00:33:48.279 --> 00:33:49.199 as Paul says 00:33:49.199 --> 00:33:50.599 in the city of Athens 00:33:50.599 --> 00:33:51.839 in Acts 17 00:33:51.839 --> 00:33:53.859 and so everyone 00:33:53.859 --> 00:33:54.980 everywhere 00:33:54.980 --> 00:33:57.000 must be called 00:33:57.000 --> 00:33:58.839 to repent and believe 00:33:58.839 --> 00:33:59.779 in Jesus as their king 00:33:59.779 --> 00:34:01.079 to believe in him now 00:34:01.079 --> 00:34:02.959 so that they can stand before him then 00:34:02.960 --> 00:34:06.700 so you see 00:34:06.700 --> 00:34:07.200 as we wait 00:34:07.200 --> 00:34:08.000 and as we long 00:34:08.000 --> 00:34:08.760 for Christ's coming 00:34:08.760 --> 00:34:09.599 we're not meant 00:34:09.599 --> 00:34:10.920 to just stand still 00:34:10.920 --> 00:34:12.639 it's meant to empower us 00:34:12.639 --> 00:34:13.440 for mission 00:34:13.440 --> 00:34:14.139 to go 00:34:14.139 --> 00:34:15.380 and to make disciples 00:34:15.380 --> 00:34:16.119 of all nations 00:34:16.119 --> 00:34:17.320 because we know 00:34:17.320 --> 00:34:18.039 that all authority 00:34:18.039 --> 00:34:19.059 in heaven and on earth 00:34:19.059 --> 00:34:19.679 has been given 00:34:19.679 --> 00:34:20.420 to Jesus 00:34:20.420 --> 00:34:20.920 the king 00:34:20.920 --> 00:34:21.900 who has inaugurated 00:34:21.900 --> 00:34:22.559 God's reign 00:34:22.559 --> 00:34:24.519 and who's going to be with us 00:34:24.519 --> 00:34:25.119 always 00:34:25.119 --> 00:34:26.699 even to the end of the age 00:34:26.699 --> 00:34:27.159 he says 00:34:27.159 --> 00:34:28.440 until he returns 00:34:28.440 --> 00:34:30.380 and makes all things new 00:34:30.380 --> 00:34:33.579 so friends 00:34:33.579 --> 00:34:34.400 let us be empowered 00:34:34.400 --> 00:34:35.740 in our mission 00:34:35.740 --> 00:34:37.220 knowing that the kingdom 00:34:37.220 --> 00:34:37.800 has come 00:34:37.800 --> 00:34:39.099 and the kingdom 00:34:39.099 --> 00:34:39.860 is yet to come 00:34:39.860 --> 00:34:41.559 let's pray 00:34:41.559 --> 00:34:43.860 Lord Jesus 00:34:43.860 --> 00:34:44.960 we ask that you would take 00:34:44.960 --> 00:34:46.440 these twin realities 00:34:46.440 --> 00:34:46.960 that you taught 00:34:46.960 --> 00:34:47.500 your disciples 00:34:47.500 --> 00:34:48.320 so long ago 00:34:48.320 --> 00:34:50.640 and you would embolden us 00:34:50.640 --> 00:34:52.400 Lord help us 00:34:52.400 --> 00:34:53.140 to remain soft 00:34:53.140 --> 00:34:53.800 before you 00:34:53.800 --> 00:34:55.640 and God 00:34:55.640 --> 00:34:56.160 most of all 00:34:56.160 --> 00:34:57.240 help us to be ready 00:34:57.239 --> 00:34:58.719 for that great 00:34:58.719 --> 00:34:59.439 and last day 00:34:59.439 --> 00:35:01.799 Lord help 00:35:01.799 --> 00:35:03.079 those who are doubting 00:35:03.079 --> 00:35:04.399 the reality 00:35:04.399 --> 00:35:05.119 of your coming 00:35:05.119 --> 00:35:06.059 righteous judgment 00:35:06.059 --> 00:35:07.039 to see 00:35:07.039 --> 00:35:08.679 the clarity of it 00:35:08.679 --> 00:35:11.119 and the necessity 00:35:11.119 --> 00:35:11.859 of it 00:35:11.859 --> 00:35:13.719 Lord help those 00:35:13.719 --> 00:35:14.359 who are fearful 00:35:14.359 --> 00:35:15.879 who are doubting 00:35:15.879 --> 00:35:16.859 about where they'll stand 00:35:16.859 --> 00:35:17.319 before you 00:35:17.319 --> 00:35:18.099 on the last day 00:35:18.099 --> 00:35:19.579 to know the assurance 00:35:19.579 --> 00:35:20.419 and the confidence 00:35:20.419 --> 00:35:20.899 that comes 00:35:20.899 --> 00:35:22.099 through resting in Christ 00:35:22.099 --> 00:35:23.859 as their crucified 00:35:23.859 --> 00:35:24.659 and risen king 00:35:24.659 --> 00:35:27.799 and Lord help 00:35:27.799 --> 00:35:28.500 all of us 00:35:28.500 --> 00:35:30.299 to live with 00:35:30.299 --> 00:35:31.179 great expectation 00:35:31.179 --> 00:35:31.639 and hope 00:35:31.639 --> 00:35:32.500 that you will work 00:35:32.500 --> 00:35:34.099 now in our midst 00:35:34.099 --> 00:35:36.000 and bring all things 00:35:36.000 --> 00:35:37.119 to their good conclusion 00:35:37.119 --> 00:35:39.899 in Jesus name we pray 00:35:39.899 --> 00:35:40.500 Amen