WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.459 Missing the obvious is a terrible feeling. 00:00:04.219 --> 00:00:06.700 I had a great experience of this this week. 00:00:07.000 --> 00:00:11.140 I got a letter in the post and I thought, oh goody, what could it be? 00:00:12.339 --> 00:00:18.780 Opening it, I found that I had failed to see the signs where I had parked 00:00:18.780 --> 00:00:24.679 and received a lovely notice telling me that I should pay lots and lots of money very quickly 00:00:24.679 --> 00:00:26.940 if I wanted to get away with it. 00:00:27.940 --> 00:00:29.859 And it's just like that. 00:00:30.920 --> 00:00:37.980 So often we seem to bumble our ways, our way through life and we miss the obvious. 00:00:39.799 --> 00:00:44.079 And then you get a letter in the post, then you sit and you're embarrassed 00:00:44.079 --> 00:00:47.760 and you tell everybody that you know that you've got a parking ticket, 00:00:47.859 --> 00:00:49.320 which is a very foolish thing to do. 00:00:50.700 --> 00:00:55.019 And Jesus is going to point out some obvious truths to us this morning. 00:00:55.020 --> 00:01:03.000 For many who should have known better completely miss the clear facts of the situation right 00:01:03.000 --> 00:01:04.040 in front of their faces. 00:01:04.040 --> 00:01:10.000 The nine lepers and the Pharisees in our passage completely miss who Jesus is. 00:01:11.580 --> 00:01:18.520 And so just before we dig in, can we pray together and ask that our God would help us to see 00:01:18.519 --> 00:01:25.319 and to hear and that we would understand what he has to say to us through this passage today. 00:01:25.379 --> 00:01:26.659 Let's pray together. 00:01:26.659 --> 00:01:30.239 Father God, you are so good to us. 00:01:30.579 --> 00:01:37.819 And as we have sang together, as we have heard your word read, as we have prayed together, 00:01:37.819 --> 00:01:43.099 Lord, we ask that these things would not wash over us. 00:01:43.879 --> 00:01:47.659 That as we focus in on this passage for a little while, 00:01:48.739 --> 00:01:55.000 we long that you would come and draw so close to us 00:01:55.000 --> 00:01:59.539 and open our eyes to see exactly who you are. 00:01:59.540 --> 00:02:09.340 Father, that we would lose our blindness and that we would maybe for the first time catch a glimpse of your son 00:02:09.340 --> 00:02:15.900 and that we would turn and worship him truly today. 00:02:16.159 --> 00:02:18.319 Father, help us, we pray. 00:02:18.420 --> 00:02:20.980 Help me as I try to present this well. 00:02:21.400 --> 00:02:23.860 Help each one of us as we try to hear your word. 00:02:24.980 --> 00:02:28.159 Give us ears to hear, we ask in Jesus' name. 00:02:28.159 --> 00:02:29.360 Amen. 00:02:30.539 --> 00:02:32.819 Before we dig into the main meat of our section, 00:02:33.120 --> 00:02:36.180 can I just draw your attention to a detail in verse 11? 00:02:36.599 --> 00:02:41.060 Our eyes naturally skim over this, but it's an important header to notice. 00:02:41.639 --> 00:02:41.959 It says, 00:02:42.199 --> 00:02:47.579 Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Jesus and Samaria. 00:02:48.500 --> 00:02:52.780 The eagle-eyed among you may have noticed that when the author, Luke, 00:02:52.979 --> 00:02:56.199 gives us pointers on where Jesus is and where he's going, 00:02:56.199 --> 00:02:58.560 he's giving us an important structure. 00:02:58.560 --> 00:03:04.580 Since 1321, as we've been journeying with Jesus towards Jerusalem, 00:03:04.580 --> 00:03:09.080 we've seen Jesus dealing with a single kind of main train of idea, 00:03:09.080 --> 00:03:10.640 a main question. 00:03:11.300 --> 00:03:13.680 Who will be kingdom citizens? 00:03:13.680 --> 00:03:20.879 And this new section that starts here in 1711 and runs through for a few chapters, 00:03:20.879 --> 00:03:23.439 then builds on that idea. 00:03:24.099 --> 00:03:25.200 And it asks, 00:03:25.199 --> 00:03:31.579 How then do we live in the present time as those kingdom citizens, 00:03:31.579 --> 00:03:35.159 as those people who are going to follow Jesus, 00:03:35.619 --> 00:03:39.459 while we both live in and wait for the kingdom coming? 00:03:39.460 --> 00:03:44.540 And this is going to be a theme that we'll see over the next coming weeks. 00:03:45.600 --> 00:03:50.240 And our new section opens up with this little group of lepers 00:03:50.240 --> 00:03:54.680 who interrupt Jesus as he's going into a village. 00:03:54.680 --> 00:03:57.740 And they see an obvious miracle. 00:03:58.460 --> 00:04:00.700 These guys, they're outcasts. 00:04:00.700 --> 00:04:02.640 They're potentially infectious. 00:04:02.819 --> 00:04:06.099 They're not allowed to come into society as a whole. 00:04:06.360 --> 00:04:10.640 And from a distance, they call out to Jesus for help. 00:04:11.740 --> 00:04:13.500 I'm sure they'd heard stories. 00:04:13.500 --> 00:04:15.819 I'm sure that news had gotten to them. 00:04:17.680 --> 00:04:21.839 And do you notice the help that Jesus gives to them? 00:04:22.160 --> 00:04:28.300 Unlike so many other miracles where Jesus goes near or touches them, 00:04:28.860 --> 00:04:29.579 he doesn't. 00:04:30.639 --> 00:04:32.699 From the distance, he just calls. 00:04:32.800 --> 00:04:34.139 He just speaks the words. 00:04:35.519 --> 00:04:37.639 And he just gives them a simple command, 00:04:38.680 --> 00:04:42.660 exactly the same command as what the Old Testament said to do 00:04:42.660 --> 00:04:46.220 if you had already recovered from such a disease. 00:04:46.620 --> 00:04:48.720 Go and show yourselves to the priests. 00:04:51.400 --> 00:04:57.180 It could be said that they are to act as if the miracle has already happened. 00:04:57.940 --> 00:05:01.820 And so this little band of ten folk, they go. 00:05:03.400 --> 00:05:08.620 I dare say some of them were dubious at whether this would work or not. 00:05:08.620 --> 00:05:12.699 If I had been among them, I'm sure in the back of my mind, 00:05:12.759 --> 00:05:14.399 there would have been a niggling doubt. 00:05:15.980 --> 00:05:21.240 But as they travel, the miracle that they had all hoped for occurs. 00:05:21.560 --> 00:05:24.100 Whether suddenly or slowly, we just don't know. 00:05:25.620 --> 00:05:30.120 But can you imagine the sheer elation of this group? 00:05:30.120 --> 00:05:35.680 As they see, as they look, and their skin is made clean. 00:05:37.879 --> 00:05:39.500 But one of them stops. 00:05:41.519 --> 00:05:43.740 And he does the most startling of things. 00:05:43.959 --> 00:05:45.240 He turns back. 00:05:46.000 --> 00:05:48.879 Turns back seemingly from what Jesus had told him to do. 00:05:50.019 --> 00:05:53.480 He turns back and leaves the other nine and goes. 00:05:53.480 --> 00:05:54.319 Why? 00:05:55.700 --> 00:06:01.560 In order to go and to worship God properly and to thank Jesus for what he's done. 00:06:02.939 --> 00:06:08.520 Isn't that a hallmark of someone who's just realized who Jesus is and what he has done? 00:06:09.680 --> 00:06:16.120 Isn't that such a lovely veneer of what a Christian should be in terms of thankfulness and gratitude? 00:06:16.120 --> 00:06:23.620 These are fundamental aspects, elements of worship, as we see what God has done for us in our lives. 00:06:24.420 --> 00:06:27.980 But don't miss the scandal in the middle of this little story. 00:06:28.639 --> 00:06:35.199 The group of lepers, they're in border country, and so there seems to be both Jews and Samaritans among them. 00:06:36.019 --> 00:06:42.439 And yet only this Samaritan has done the right thing in turning around and glorifying God. 00:06:42.439 --> 00:06:53.819 Surely, if you had lived at the time, surely, if anyone would have, it would have been the Jews who would have worshipped God correctly. 00:06:55.079 --> 00:06:56.899 But no, it was this Samaritan. 00:06:57.600 --> 00:06:58.839 This outsider. 00:06:59.379 --> 00:07:02.500 This outsider within the group of outsiders. 00:07:03.379 --> 00:07:07.199 The one with the crazy ideas about God. 00:07:07.199 --> 00:07:14.839 He was the one who recognized that this power that had healed him was the very power of God. 00:07:15.680 --> 00:07:18.939 Where the other nine seemed somehow to have missed it. 00:07:20.779 --> 00:07:29.620 And I think this gives us great confidence as we reach out to our friends and to our families with the good news of Jesus Christ. 00:07:30.500 --> 00:07:35.039 We don't need to be concerned that they don't have a good background. 00:07:35.040 --> 00:07:46.620 As we bump into maybe Mormon and as JWs knock on our doors, we don't need to worry that they've got their theology all wrong. 00:07:47.660 --> 00:07:51.980 What we need is to present Jesus to them all. 00:07:52.660 --> 00:07:55.820 Whether people of other religions or people of none. 00:07:55.819 --> 00:08:05.219 And as we do that, as we present Jesus in his power, we can trust that as they see him, 00:08:07.219 --> 00:08:14.860 that God could work the same miracle in them in opening their eyes as he did for the Samaritan. 00:08:16.240 --> 00:08:19.800 As he did for you and me at some point in our past. 00:08:19.800 --> 00:08:24.340 There was an obvious miracle happening here. 00:08:25.759 --> 00:08:31.699 And as we come to verse 20, we find what seems to be a quite different section. 00:08:32.899 --> 00:08:36.240 But here as Jesus is being questioned by the Pharisees, 00:08:36.360 --> 00:08:40.000 we find that they are also failing to see the obvious. 00:08:40.620 --> 00:08:42.320 Just like those nine lepers. 00:08:42.320 --> 00:08:48.320 They were waiting expectantly for the kingdom of God to come. 00:08:48.840 --> 00:08:51.140 They were looking for a political leader. 00:08:51.660 --> 00:08:57.080 They were looking for someone to give the Jewish nation freedom. 00:08:58.000 --> 00:09:00.780 And as they read the Torah, the Old Testament, 00:09:01.160 --> 00:09:04.900 they searched it for clues about their coming king. 00:09:04.899 --> 00:09:12.980 And so they ask this preacher, Jesus, when he thinks the kingdom will come. 00:09:13.500 --> 00:09:15.959 And the irony of this question is staggering. 00:09:16.819 --> 00:09:24.220 Here they are, the experts, standing in front of the very person that they've been looking forward to. 00:09:25.019 --> 00:09:25.779 The king. 00:09:27.139 --> 00:09:30.600 And they're asking him for the directions to somewhere else. 00:09:30.600 --> 00:09:38.620 And Jesus tells them that the kingdom isn't coming as something that can be observed. 00:09:39.560 --> 00:09:46.720 There's delicious irony in this as we read a clear example of Jesus coming with an observable miracle. 00:09:47.220 --> 00:09:49.960 We've just seen ten lepers cleansed, haven't we? 00:09:52.639 --> 00:09:57.000 But isn't it purely ironic that these Pharisees, 00:09:57.500 --> 00:09:59.360 who were the best of the best, 00:09:59.360 --> 00:10:01.399 they were the pious ones, 00:10:02.060 --> 00:10:03.039 they were the religious, 00:10:03.200 --> 00:10:04.340 they were the zealous. 00:10:06.200 --> 00:10:10.039 They have searched diligently to know about the coming kingdom, 00:10:10.539 --> 00:10:13.919 but in it all they miss the clear and the obvious. 00:10:14.519 --> 00:10:18.480 Flesh and blood Jesus standing in the middle of them. 00:10:19.759 --> 00:10:25.460 It's a classic example of not seeing the wood because of the trees. 00:10:25.460 --> 00:10:30.780 We have an obvious king and they're asking about the kingdom. 00:10:32.300 --> 00:10:35.440 And perhaps we could bring this up to date with ourselves. 00:10:36.840 --> 00:10:40.700 Perhaps some of us have been looking for something spiritual. 00:10:41.700 --> 00:10:44.040 Some meaning in our lives. 00:10:44.620 --> 00:10:45.420 Something more. 00:10:45.580 --> 00:10:49.700 Something that would make sense of this world that we live in. 00:10:49.700 --> 00:10:58.360 And perhaps we've looked past Jesus and not recognized him for who he is. 00:10:59.780 --> 00:11:02.400 I don't know whether you've heard all this before. 00:11:03.400 --> 00:11:07.320 Or whether this is the first time you've heard anything about this man Jesus. 00:11:07.320 --> 00:11:10.480 But if you aren't trusting him, 00:11:10.540 --> 00:11:14.200 if he isn't the king of your life today, 00:11:14.920 --> 00:11:16.840 would you consider him afresh? 00:11:18.280 --> 00:11:24.900 Consider his claims and what he has done and what he has said and who he is. 00:11:24.899 --> 00:11:29.059 Would you consider him seriously? 00:11:30.419 --> 00:11:33.600 Because we can laugh at these Pharisees all that we want. 00:11:34.079 --> 00:11:37.480 And as I read this passage, I chortle. 00:11:38.139 --> 00:11:41.500 Because these Pharisees are ludicrous. 00:11:44.179 --> 00:11:47.919 And yet the worrying possibility is that we could be like them. 00:11:47.919 --> 00:11:53.000 We could be like them. 00:11:53.879 --> 00:11:56.259 Missing the obvious signs. 00:11:57.319 --> 00:11:59.360 And abandoning our cars. 00:11:59.639 --> 00:12:01.259 And coming back to find tickets. 00:12:06.259 --> 00:12:08.099 There is a clear king here. 00:12:09.059 --> 00:12:11.339 And the kingdom has already come. 00:12:12.299 --> 00:12:14.120 And these guys completely miss it. 00:12:14.120 --> 00:12:20.019 And perhaps as we realize that we have a problem seeing Jesus clearly, 00:12:20.539 --> 00:12:23.179 our instinct could be to turn away. 00:12:23.980 --> 00:12:27.440 To conclude that this whole Christianity thing isn't working. 00:12:27.940 --> 00:12:29.440 And to try and look somewhere else. 00:12:30.560 --> 00:12:34.340 But Luke here isn't teaching us this so that we will turn away. 00:12:34.879 --> 00:12:37.460 But he's showing us our natural blindness 00:12:37.460 --> 00:12:40.399 so that we have an opportunity to think afresh. 00:12:40.399 --> 00:12:41.740 To look again. 00:12:41.740 --> 00:12:46.820 And ask that as we earnestly seek answers, 00:12:47.060 --> 00:12:50.159 that God would reveal Jesus to us. 00:12:51.539 --> 00:12:55.500 Because that's the whole ballgame here. 00:12:58.720 --> 00:13:01.000 There was an obvious miracle. 00:13:01.200 --> 00:13:02.519 There's an obvious king. 00:13:03.620 --> 00:13:05.159 And as we followed the story, 00:13:05.159 --> 00:13:06.759 the Samaritans seeing Jesus, 00:13:06.759 --> 00:13:11.799 with the Samaritans seeing Jesus as the one who is worthy of worship. 00:13:12.580 --> 00:13:15.299 And yet the Pharisees missing Jesus as the king. 00:13:15.600 --> 00:13:17.220 Now Jesus turns to his disciples. 00:13:17.679 --> 00:13:20.379 There's a clear pattern going on here. 00:13:21.179 --> 00:13:24.039 And with all of these ideas of spiritual blindness 00:13:24.039 --> 00:13:26.679 and of missing the obvious, 00:13:27.460 --> 00:13:30.500 Jesus knows that his disciples are needing to be taught 00:13:30.500 --> 00:13:31.759 about something. 00:13:31.759 --> 00:13:35.600 About the realities of what this kingdom is going to look like 00:13:35.600 --> 00:13:38.740 after he has left this earth again. 00:13:40.200 --> 00:13:45.860 And Luke, by showing us that we're onto the last leg of Jesus' journey towards Jerusalem, 00:13:46.120 --> 00:13:49.539 he's alerted us how close the cross is coming. 00:13:49.539 --> 00:13:55.500 And Jesus is forewarning us and he's forearming his followers 00:13:55.500 --> 00:13:59.459 for after that cataclysmic event. 00:14:00.139 --> 00:14:06.019 It's framed here in language that we will perhaps struggle a little with understanding. 00:14:06.959 --> 00:14:09.539 But I think he gives just a few big ideas 00:14:10.079 --> 00:14:12.659 of what his return will be like 00:14:12.659 --> 00:14:15.980 and tells them when it will be. 00:14:15.980 --> 00:14:20.680 So he gives a few ideas about what his return will be like 00:14:20.680 --> 00:14:23.399 and then tells them when it will be. 00:14:24.580 --> 00:14:28.340 I occasionally get a bus to Bigger from Edinburgh here. 00:14:28.620 --> 00:14:29.539 It's the number 101. 00:14:30.100 --> 00:14:31.019 Maybe you see it. 00:14:31.340 --> 00:14:33.740 And it doesn't appear in the bus tracker system. 00:14:34.980 --> 00:14:36.960 And I love the bus tracker system 00:14:36.960 --> 00:14:39.960 because it lets me know it forewarns me 00:14:39.960 --> 00:14:42.120 and forearms me for the coming of the bus. 00:14:42.600 --> 00:14:44.039 But I'm going for this one. 00:14:44.039 --> 00:14:46.360 And perhaps you're a little like me. 00:14:47.219 --> 00:14:48.419 You know the timetable. 00:14:49.480 --> 00:14:51.179 You've read it on the internet. 00:14:52.299 --> 00:14:56.000 You see that the bus is to come at 1605. 00:14:56.559 --> 00:14:58.519 Sure not to come before then. 00:14:59.579 --> 00:15:03.299 But quite often I'm at the tail end of my time. 00:15:03.439 --> 00:15:05.299 I'm rushing to meet it at stop. 00:15:05.819 --> 00:15:07.120 And I begin to panic. 00:15:07.120 --> 00:15:10.299 Maybe it came early this time. 00:15:10.639 --> 00:15:11.480 Just this once. 00:15:12.580 --> 00:15:13.740 Unlikely as that may be. 00:15:13.740 --> 00:15:14.919 Like that train in Japan. 00:15:16.080 --> 00:15:17.620 Maybe it drove past 00:15:17.620 --> 00:15:19.240 and somehow I didn't see it. 00:15:19.279 --> 00:15:21.100 I was staring at my phones 00:15:21.100 --> 00:15:22.799 and I just didn't notice. 00:15:24.179 --> 00:15:26.560 And these doubts and these worries 00:15:26.560 --> 00:15:28.560 kind of bubble in my head. 00:15:28.720 --> 00:15:29.779 And it's all nonsense. 00:15:29.779 --> 00:15:34.120 And yet when we're waiting for something 00:15:34.120 --> 00:15:36.799 that we aren't entirely sure of 00:15:36.799 --> 00:15:40.279 we can be easily troubled. 00:15:41.459 --> 00:15:44.959 And Jesus, he's dealing with that here. 00:15:45.740 --> 00:15:48.720 He's allaying his disciples' fears 00:15:48.720 --> 00:15:52.539 as to when he will return to the earth. 00:15:53.039 --> 00:15:55.819 He's giving them a timetable for the second coming. 00:15:55.820 --> 00:16:00.160 In verse 22 he speaks of them longing to see Jesus. 00:16:01.320 --> 00:16:02.820 It's clear that a time is coming 00:16:02.820 --> 00:16:05.120 when Jesus won't be standing in front of them. 00:16:06.800 --> 00:16:09.640 And he won't be performing obvious miracles 00:16:09.640 --> 00:16:11.340 as the obvious king. 00:16:12.260 --> 00:16:14.680 And down in verse 25 he explicitly tells them 00:16:14.680 --> 00:16:18.000 that it won't happen until this generation, 00:16:18.660 --> 00:16:20.920 these first century Jews, 00:16:21.720 --> 00:16:23.980 reject Jesus and he suffers. 00:16:23.980 --> 00:16:26.620 Clearly these days of the Son of Man, 00:16:27.019 --> 00:16:28.980 this time when Jesus will be revealed, 00:16:29.200 --> 00:16:32.220 will happen after Jesus is crucified. 00:16:33.399 --> 00:16:36.379 But beyond that there's no clear time given. 00:16:37.080 --> 00:16:38.639 I think we need to be very careful 00:16:38.639 --> 00:16:40.300 about saying anything more specific. 00:16:41.580 --> 00:16:43.100 It is still to come. 00:16:44.039 --> 00:16:45.019 That's all we know. 00:16:46.480 --> 00:16:48.820 But going back to me at the bus stop, 00:16:49.460 --> 00:16:50.980 can you imagine what would happen 00:16:50.980 --> 00:16:53.960 if some random stranger came up to me 00:16:53.960 --> 00:16:56.800 and told me that there was a diversion on the route? 00:16:57.840 --> 00:17:01.740 That I should go to a parallel street perhaps 00:17:01.740 --> 00:17:03.639 and wait at a bus stop there? 00:17:05.279 --> 00:17:07.980 Perhaps someone who's just been misinformed themselves? 00:17:08.240 --> 00:17:11.120 Or maybe someone who wants to somehow profit 00:17:11.120 --> 00:17:12.220 from my desperation? 00:17:12.920 --> 00:17:14.299 Maybe just to get a laugh. 00:17:14.299 --> 00:17:18.339 That seems to be why Jesus talks about 00:17:18.339 --> 00:17:21.599 his return being like lightning here. 00:17:22.460 --> 00:17:24.799 Did you notice that phrase? 00:17:25.279 --> 00:17:28.440 Like lightning comes and flashes on one side of the sky 00:17:28.440 --> 00:17:30.200 and flashes to the other. 00:17:31.159 --> 00:17:33.559 It's going to be obvious to everyone. 00:17:34.220 --> 00:17:35.919 You're not going to miss it. 00:17:36.639 --> 00:17:40.359 Don't worry about missing Jesus coming back. 00:17:40.359 --> 00:17:43.579 And we certainly shouldn't believe anyone 00:17:43.579 --> 00:17:44.919 who tells us otherwise. 00:17:45.719 --> 00:17:48.719 Don't follow people or listen to people who say, 00:17:49.079 --> 00:17:50.779 oh, the kingdom's coming over there. 00:17:51.139 --> 00:17:53.740 Or Jesus is coming back over here. 00:17:55.399 --> 00:17:58.179 It will be absolutely obvious, 00:17:58.179 --> 00:18:00.079 like lightning in the sky. 00:18:01.159 --> 00:18:03.179 But it will also be sudden. 00:18:03.939 --> 00:18:06.779 Just as that bus appears around the corner 00:18:06.779 --> 00:18:08.279 without forewarning, 00:18:08.980 --> 00:18:11.779 without fanfare or ice cream van music 00:18:11.779 --> 00:18:12.879 or anything else. 00:18:14.139 --> 00:18:15.759 And the Old Testament illustrations 00:18:15.759 --> 00:18:18.220 that Jesus uses here to show us this 00:18:18.220 --> 00:18:19.139 are striking, 00:18:19.579 --> 00:18:21.460 and they're very deliberately chosen, aren't they? 00:18:22.139 --> 00:18:24.579 These stories of Lot and of Noah, 00:18:25.220 --> 00:18:27.819 they speak to the suddenness 00:18:27.819 --> 00:18:31.139 and the unexpectedness of the return 00:18:31.139 --> 00:18:34.299 while everyone else is just getting on with life. 00:18:34.299 --> 00:18:40.299 And this is why seeing Jesus is an urgent need. 00:18:41.379 --> 00:18:44.500 This is why we need to spend the time now 00:18:44.500 --> 00:18:47.079 and think seriously of this. 00:18:47.740 --> 00:18:50.099 Because he's coming back to deal 00:18:50.099 --> 00:18:52.579 with this sin-sick world. 00:18:53.299 --> 00:18:55.480 He's coming back to wash away 00:18:55.480 --> 00:18:58.159 all of the evil and all of the pain. 00:18:59.259 --> 00:19:01.079 And he will come suddenly, 00:19:01.139 --> 00:19:02.259 and we must be ready. 00:19:02.259 --> 00:19:06.379 There will be no time for us then 00:19:06.379 --> 00:19:07.920 to see him as king 00:19:07.920 --> 00:19:10.140 and to become part of his kingdom. 00:19:11.039 --> 00:19:13.900 Jesus is to come back, 00:19:14.779 --> 00:19:16.879 and we find that it's going to be 00:19:16.879 --> 00:19:18.420 both obvious and sudden. 00:19:18.519 --> 00:19:20.819 And the natural response to hearing these truths 00:19:20.819 --> 00:19:21.579 is twofold. 00:19:22.039 --> 00:19:23.900 Firstly, it takes away our worry 00:19:23.900 --> 00:19:25.920 and our anxiety 00:19:25.920 --> 00:19:28.720 that many have about these things. 00:19:28.720 --> 00:19:32.200 we need not panic. 00:19:33.140 --> 00:19:35.019 Jesus' coming is sure to be clear. 00:19:35.960 --> 00:19:37.480 But it also shows us 00:19:37.480 --> 00:19:38.960 that we ought to be ready. 00:19:39.779 --> 00:19:42.079 We ought to have our lives ordered 00:19:42.079 --> 00:19:45.759 in light of these eternal truths. 00:19:45.759 --> 00:19:50.119 This little section then, 00:19:50.220 --> 00:19:52.940 in verses 31 to 33, 00:19:53.140 --> 00:19:55.660 open up these ideas further. 00:19:56.940 --> 00:19:58.440 And the point here 00:19:58.440 --> 00:20:00.940 is that we must see 00:20:00.940 --> 00:20:02.980 where our lives are centered. 00:20:02.980 --> 00:20:06.360 when Jesus returns, 00:20:06.860 --> 00:20:08.059 our hearts' response 00:20:08.059 --> 00:20:09.240 will be one of two. 00:20:10.500 --> 00:20:11.599 Either it will be 00:20:11.599 --> 00:20:12.940 a wholehearted 00:20:12.940 --> 00:20:14.980 looking to him 00:20:14.980 --> 00:20:17.620 in whom we have placed our trust, 00:20:18.039 --> 00:20:19.980 or we will look around 00:20:19.980 --> 00:20:21.319 at the lives 00:20:21.319 --> 00:20:22.539 that we have built here, 00:20:23.019 --> 00:20:24.200 and we will choose them. 00:20:24.200 --> 00:20:27.700 I'm not saying 00:20:27.700 --> 00:20:28.559 that in that moment 00:20:28.559 --> 00:20:29.420 we are going to make 00:20:29.420 --> 00:20:30.420 a different choice 00:20:30.420 --> 00:20:31.860 than what we've already made, 00:20:32.220 --> 00:20:33.440 but in that moment 00:20:33.440 --> 00:20:34.799 it will become clear 00:20:34.799 --> 00:20:36.220 where our lives 00:20:36.220 --> 00:20:37.180 are to be found. 00:20:38.920 --> 00:20:40.400 Just like Lot's wife. 00:20:41.840 --> 00:20:43.000 She was told 00:20:43.000 --> 00:20:43.920 about the destruction 00:20:43.920 --> 00:20:44.660 that was coming. 00:20:46.120 --> 00:20:47.799 That the evil of Sodom 00:20:47.799 --> 00:20:48.759 was about to be punished. 00:20:49.080 --> 00:20:50.400 She was even taken 00:20:50.400 --> 00:20:51.799 and rescued 00:20:51.799 --> 00:20:52.819 from the city 00:20:52.819 --> 00:20:54.859 and placed outside. 00:20:58.720 --> 00:20:59.659 And yet, 00:20:59.819 --> 00:21:01.419 even as she was 00:21:01.419 --> 00:21:03.079 given the promise 00:21:03.079 --> 00:21:04.000 of safety, 00:21:04.980 --> 00:21:06.559 yet she still 00:21:06.559 --> 00:21:07.899 looked back 00:21:07.899 --> 00:21:09.379 to the life 00:21:09.379 --> 00:21:10.200 that she had built 00:21:10.200 --> 00:21:10.919 in Sodom 00:21:10.919 --> 00:21:12.720 and was lost. 00:21:15.379 --> 00:21:16.679 And if we're not 00:21:16.679 --> 00:21:17.539 seeing Christ 00:21:17.539 --> 00:21:18.899 as King now 00:21:18.899 --> 00:21:21.059 and finding our life 00:21:21.059 --> 00:21:21.659 in Him 00:21:21.660 --> 00:21:22.880 presently, 00:21:22.980 --> 00:21:24.259 we will not change 00:21:24.259 --> 00:21:24.900 our tune 00:21:24.900 --> 00:21:26.060 on that day. 00:21:28.560 --> 00:21:29.860 We will look around 00:21:29.860 --> 00:21:30.779 and we will not 00:21:30.779 --> 00:21:32.140 leave our lives here. 00:21:33.720 --> 00:21:35.220 And in that, 00:21:35.900 --> 00:21:37.080 we will be seeking 00:21:37.080 --> 00:21:38.340 to preserve our lives 00:21:38.340 --> 00:21:39.480 and yet lose them. 00:21:40.940 --> 00:21:41.440 Rather, 00:21:41.560 --> 00:21:42.340 we need to be those 00:21:42.340 --> 00:21:43.400 who daily, 00:21:44.680 --> 00:21:45.640 who hourly, 00:21:46.140 --> 00:21:47.480 lose our lives 00:21:47.480 --> 00:21:48.540 in the here and now. 00:21:48.539 --> 00:21:51.519 as we live 00:21:51.519 --> 00:21:52.799 as kingdom citizens 00:21:52.799 --> 00:21:55.519 and keep looking 00:21:55.519 --> 00:21:56.359 for the coming 00:21:56.359 --> 00:21:56.960 King. 00:22:00.039 --> 00:22:01.000 Analogies never 00:22:01.000 --> 00:22:02.519 stretch terribly far 00:22:02.519 --> 00:22:03.440 and I think 00:22:03.440 --> 00:22:04.500 my bus analogy 00:22:04.500 --> 00:22:05.460 is quickly 00:22:05.460 --> 00:22:06.279 finding itself 00:22:06.279 --> 00:22:07.159 out of its depths. 00:22:07.700 --> 00:22:08.279 But perhaps 00:22:08.279 --> 00:22:09.139 we can get one more 00:22:09.139 --> 00:22:10.079 detail through it 00:22:10.079 --> 00:22:10.879 and you'll forgive me 00:22:10.879 --> 00:22:12.480 for stretching it far. 00:22:13.059 --> 00:22:13.859 When the bus 00:22:13.859 --> 00:22:14.500 comes 00:22:14.500 --> 00:22:15.980 and the doors 00:22:15.980 --> 00:22:16.440 open, 00:22:16.440 --> 00:22:18.480 not everyone 00:22:18.480 --> 00:22:19.340 who is standing 00:22:19.340 --> 00:22:20.340 at the bus stop 00:22:20.340 --> 00:22:21.400 will get on board. 00:22:23.080 --> 00:22:23.820 There will be 00:22:23.820 --> 00:22:24.460 a distinction 00:22:24.460 --> 00:22:25.259 made 00:22:25.259 --> 00:22:26.640 between all of us 00:22:26.640 --> 00:22:27.240 who have stood 00:22:27.240 --> 00:22:28.140 at that stop, 00:22:28.779 --> 00:22:29.500 between those 00:22:29.500 --> 00:22:30.140 who have waited 00:22:30.140 --> 00:22:31.420 for that bus 00:22:31.420 --> 00:22:32.480 and those 00:22:32.480 --> 00:22:33.320 who don't. 00:22:36.140 --> 00:22:37.000 And that is 00:22:37.000 --> 00:22:37.620 what we see, 00:22:37.700 --> 00:22:38.039 I think, 00:22:38.100 --> 00:22:39.220 in verses 34 00:22:39.220 --> 00:22:40.059 and 35 00:22:40.059 --> 00:22:41.860 to underline 00:22:41.860 --> 00:22:43.380 that 00:22:43.380 --> 00:22:45.340 Jesus coming 00:22:45.340 --> 00:22:45.820 will be 00:22:45.820 --> 00:22:46.680 discriminatory. 00:22:47.460 --> 00:22:48.040 I don't mean 00:22:48.040 --> 00:22:48.840 that in the 00:22:48.840 --> 00:22:49.660 bad sense 00:22:49.660 --> 00:22:50.000 that we hear 00:22:50.000 --> 00:22:50.820 that word used. 00:22:51.620 --> 00:22:52.540 I'm using that 00:22:52.540 --> 00:22:53.040 in the dictionary 00:22:53.040 --> 00:22:53.400 sense. 00:22:53.480 --> 00:22:53.800 There's going 00:22:53.800 --> 00:22:54.120 to be a 00:22:54.120 --> 00:22:54.660 distinction 00:22:54.660 --> 00:22:55.500 made between 00:22:55.500 --> 00:22:55.940 people. 00:22:57.440 --> 00:22:58.260 Even those, 00:22:58.420 --> 00:22:59.240 Jesus is 00:22:59.240 --> 00:22:59.860 illustrating, 00:23:00.240 --> 00:23:00.760 even those 00:23:00.760 --> 00:23:01.780 who share a bed, 00:23:02.840 --> 00:23:03.720 even friends 00:23:03.720 --> 00:23:04.360 who work 00:23:04.360 --> 00:23:04.920 together 00:23:04.920 --> 00:23:05.740 in the very 00:23:05.740 --> 00:23:06.760 same place, 00:23:07.420 --> 00:23:08.500 that distinction, 00:23:08.760 --> 00:23:09.400 although it isn't 00:23:09.400 --> 00:23:11.100 elaborated here, 00:23:11.099 --> 00:23:12.639 is not to do 00:23:12.639 --> 00:23:13.359 with intellect. 00:23:14.480 --> 00:23:15.500 It's not to do 00:23:15.500 --> 00:23:16.119 with looks 00:23:16.119 --> 00:23:16.959 or family 00:23:16.959 --> 00:23:18.659 or social class. 00:23:18.919 --> 00:23:19.879 It isn't based 00:23:19.879 --> 00:23:20.740 on the membership 00:23:20.740 --> 00:23:22.059 of a club 00:23:22.059 --> 00:23:23.099 or money in the 00:23:23.099 --> 00:23:23.859 bank account. 00:23:24.699 --> 00:23:25.639 But it comes 00:23:25.639 --> 00:23:26.379 down to whether 00:23:26.379 --> 00:23:27.039 or not we have 00:23:27.039 --> 00:23:27.799 truly seen 00:23:27.799 --> 00:23:28.799 who Jesus is 00:23:28.799 --> 00:23:30.119 and what he has 00:23:30.119 --> 00:23:31.079 done for us 00:23:31.079 --> 00:23:33.139 and responded 00:23:33.139 --> 00:23:34.519 correctly in 00:23:34.519 --> 00:23:34.939 worship. 00:23:35.959 --> 00:23:36.740 Or on the 00:23:36.740 --> 00:23:37.399 other hand, 00:23:37.959 --> 00:23:38.919 if we've missed 00:23:38.919 --> 00:23:39.119 him, 00:23:39.659 --> 00:23:40.419 even with all 00:23:40.420 --> 00:23:40.640 of our 00:23:40.640 --> 00:23:41.200 information 00:23:41.200 --> 00:23:42.460 about him. 00:23:46.140 --> 00:23:46.900 There's an 00:23:46.900 --> 00:23:47.800 obvious miracle, 00:23:48.820 --> 00:23:49.340 there's an 00:23:49.340 --> 00:23:50.220 obvious king, 00:23:50.440 --> 00:23:50.920 and there's 00:23:50.920 --> 00:23:51.480 going to be 00:23:51.480 --> 00:23:51.920 an obvious 00:23:51.920 --> 00:23:52.460 return. 00:23:54.500 --> 00:23:55.480 And as we 00:23:55.480 --> 00:23:56.480 come to the 00:23:56.480 --> 00:23:57.519 conclusion of 00:23:57.519 --> 00:23:58.300 our passage, 00:23:58.880 --> 00:24:00.140 the final verse 00:24:00.140 --> 00:24:01.800 wraps up the 00:24:01.800 --> 00:24:02.500 whole train of 00:24:02.500 --> 00:24:03.360 thought perfectly, 00:24:04.100 --> 00:24:05.220 almost as if 00:24:05.220 --> 00:24:06.200 the author had 00:24:06.200 --> 00:24:07.620 some idea in 00:24:07.620 --> 00:24:08.220 his mind that 00:24:08.220 --> 00:24:08.740 he wanted to 00:24:08.740 --> 00:24:09.080 convey. 00:24:09.079 --> 00:24:11.079 the disciples 00:24:11.079 --> 00:24:12.500 wonder when 00:24:12.500 --> 00:24:13.279 all this and 00:24:13.279 --> 00:24:14.039 where all this 00:24:14.039 --> 00:24:14.939 will transpire. 00:24:15.439 --> 00:24:16.460 They're interested 00:24:16.460 --> 00:24:17.519 in learning more 00:24:17.519 --> 00:24:18.220 detail. 00:24:19.460 --> 00:24:21.039 But Jesus has 00:24:21.039 --> 00:24:22.019 given them all 00:24:22.019 --> 00:24:22.740 that they need 00:24:22.740 --> 00:24:23.359 already. 00:24:24.119 --> 00:24:25.019 Rather than 00:24:25.019 --> 00:24:25.859 giving them more 00:24:25.859 --> 00:24:26.679 information, 00:24:27.579 --> 00:24:28.619 Jesus uses this 00:24:28.619 --> 00:24:30.119 little proverbial 00:24:30.119 --> 00:24:31.220 saying at the end 00:24:31.220 --> 00:24:32.759 to underline what 00:24:32.759 --> 00:24:33.720 our focus has been 00:24:33.720 --> 00:24:34.319 all along. 00:24:34.960 --> 00:24:36.379 It's going to be 00:24:36.380 --> 00:24:37.080 obvious. 00:24:38.220 --> 00:24:40.000 Just like in 00:24:40.000 --> 00:24:41.760 desert countries 00:24:41.760 --> 00:24:42.400 when there's a 00:24:42.400 --> 00:24:43.120 dead body in 00:24:43.120 --> 00:24:43.580 the ground, 00:24:43.940 --> 00:24:44.420 there's an 00:24:44.420 --> 00:24:45.140 obvious sign 00:24:45.140 --> 00:24:45.680 because the 00:24:45.680 --> 00:24:46.340 vultures will 00:24:46.340 --> 00:24:47.500 gather to pick 00:24:47.500 --> 00:24:48.440 off the corpse. 00:24:49.340 --> 00:24:50.080 It's going to 00:24:50.080 --> 00:24:51.000 be obvious. 00:24:52.880 --> 00:24:54.020 Although as 00:24:54.020 --> 00:24:54.820 Jesus followers 00:24:54.820 --> 00:24:55.760 we may not 00:24:55.760 --> 00:24:56.720 physically see 00:24:56.720 --> 00:24:57.360 him now, 00:24:58.200 --> 00:24:58.900 although his 00:24:58.900 --> 00:24:59.820 work in this 00:24:59.820 --> 00:25:00.900 world is 00:25:00.900 --> 00:25:02.000 concealed from 00:25:02.000 --> 00:25:02.800 clear vision 00:25:02.800 --> 00:25:03.920 at the moment, 00:25:03.920 --> 00:25:05.759 yet it will 00:25:05.759 --> 00:25:06.860 become clear 00:25:06.860 --> 00:25:08.400 when he comes 00:25:08.400 --> 00:25:09.259 back in his 00:25:09.259 --> 00:25:10.420 glory and we 00:25:10.420 --> 00:25:11.200 see him. 00:25:12.680 --> 00:25:13.759 And so we 00:25:13.759 --> 00:25:14.320 must ask 00:25:14.320 --> 00:25:15.019 ourselves, we 00:25:15.019 --> 00:25:16.019 must seriously 00:25:16.019 --> 00:25:17.700 consider, are 00:25:17.700 --> 00:25:18.700 we seeing Jesus 00:25:18.700 --> 00:25:20.140 clearly in his 00:25:20.140 --> 00:25:20.500 word? 00:25:21.640 --> 00:25:22.360 And are we 00:25:22.360 --> 00:25:23.400 living our lives 00:25:23.400 --> 00:25:24.500 based on that 00:25:24.500 --> 00:25:25.100 reality? 00:25:26.860 --> 00:25:28.120 Or have we 00:25:28.120 --> 00:25:29.140 overlooked Jesus? 00:25:30.580 --> 00:25:31.120 Are we 00:25:31.120 --> 00:25:32.580 distracted by our 00:25:32.579 --> 00:25:33.960 lives here? 00:25:37.519 --> 00:25:38.319 And are we 00:25:38.319 --> 00:25:39.099 not thinking 00:25:39.099 --> 00:25:39.859 about the fact 00:25:39.859 --> 00:25:40.319 that Jesus 00:25:40.319 --> 00:25:40.839 will come 00:25:40.839 --> 00:25:41.179 back? 00:25:42.799 --> 00:25:43.439 I've been 00:25:43.439 --> 00:25:44.199 struck recently 00:25:44.199 --> 00:25:45.019 that this has 00:25:45.019 --> 00:25:46.960 been something 00:25:46.960 --> 00:25:47.679 that has faded 00:25:47.679 --> 00:25:48.579 in my mind 00:25:48.579 --> 00:25:50.240 over years. 00:25:53.399 --> 00:25:54.099 We can 00:25:54.099 --> 00:25:55.079 respond like 00:25:55.079 --> 00:25:55.480 the nine 00:25:55.480 --> 00:25:57.139 lepers and 00:25:57.139 --> 00:25:58.079 overlook Jesus 00:25:58.079 --> 00:25:58.779 despite the 00:25:58.779 --> 00:25:59.639 obvious miracle. 00:26:00.519 --> 00:26:01.099 We can 00:26:01.099 --> 00:26:01.759 respond like 00:26:01.759 --> 00:26:02.619 the Pharisees 00:26:02.619 --> 00:26:03.420 and overlook 00:26:03.420 --> 00:26:04.019 Jesus as 00:26:04.019 --> 00:26:04.519 the obvious 00:26:04.519 --> 00:26:04.960 king. 00:26:06.180 --> 00:26:06.900 But there 00:26:06.900 --> 00:26:07.599 will come a 00:26:07.599 --> 00:26:08.420 day when we 00:26:08.420 --> 00:26:09.920 cannot overlook 00:26:09.920 --> 00:26:12.200 Jesus and 00:26:12.200 --> 00:26:13.240 he appears to 00:26:13.240 --> 00:26:15.240 judge sin and 00:26:15.240 --> 00:26:15.960 to set up his 00:26:15.960 --> 00:26:17.039 everlasting kingdom. 00:26:18.359 --> 00:26:19.119 And so just 00:26:19.119 --> 00:26:19.960 as we close, 00:26:21.000 --> 00:26:21.619 take a moment 00:26:21.619 --> 00:26:22.579 to think to 00:26:22.579 --> 00:26:24.299 yourself, how 00:26:24.299 --> 00:26:25.000 will you respond 00:26:25.000 --> 00:26:25.480 to Jesus 00:26:25.480 --> 00:26:26.500 today? 00:26:26.500 --> 00:26:26.599 Amen. 00:26:26.599 --> 00:26:26.619 Amen. 00:26:26.619 --> 00:26:26.640 Amen. 00:26:26.640 --> 00:26:26.660 Amen.