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The Coming of the Son of Man // Matthew 24:2-42 — Transcript

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0:00Well, good morning.
0:13Uh, speaking speaking of a countdown,
0:15uh, we were in the the middle of the end
0:19of the school year. Uh, students who've
0:21been students this past year, raise your
0:23hands. I'm looking at some uh students.
0:26Yeah. Okay. I see a couple. All right.
0:28So, we've got uh we're in the middle of
0:31uh some uh probably uh already having
0:35finished uh if you're in college or
0:38something of that uh order of education.
0:40Others probably coming close to the end
0:42and finishing finals and things like
0:44that. There's uh two approaches that uh
0:47some of us take in thinking about the
0:50this time in the school year kind of
0:52coming to an end. Uh one is that of a
0:56all of the due dates that come
0:59uh papers to finish, projects to
1:01complete, uh even tests and finals to
1:04take. Uh the pressure of a due date is
1:08uh whether you're ready or not, it's
1:10going to come.
1:12uh whatever state it's in in terms of
1:14what you're working on or you're
1:16studying and and uh time of taking a
1:19test, you just kind of have to deal with
1:22whatever it is. Uh in fact, as that date
1:24comes near, sometimes you even change
1:26the way it is that you're working
1:28because you have to have something to
1:31turn in. Uh so there's a point when
1:34finally you're just trying to tie up the
1:36loose ends uh at least as many as you
1:38can. Um, on the other hand,
1:42uh, instead of viewing it simply as a
1:44due date, uh, for some of us, we see it
1:47as a finish line.
1:50It's like, "Oh, good.
1:52I'm almost there.
1:55I'm this close to making it. If I just
1:58get to that line, if the day finally
2:01comes,
2:02ah, I can rest."
2:05uh two different ways that we can think
2:07about either a countdown or perhaps even
2:10the coming of a date or as we'll
2:12consider today uh two different ways
2:16that we can think about the significance
2:18of the coming of the son of man, the
2:23return of Jesus Christ, especially as it
2:26relates to the mission that we are
2:29engaged in in this world to testify to
2:33the gospel. El of Jesus Christ to every
2:36nation.
2:37On one hand, uh we might be tempted to
2:40think of this almost exclusively
2:44as a due date.
2:47Here we are with a mission that we are
2:50engaged in in this world. We want to see
2:53people come to faith. We're about uh
2:55testifying to the gospel of our Lord.
2:58and we go out into this world, but we
3:00have this sort of sense in the back of
3:03our mind and in our heart that oh my
3:05goodness,
3:07am I going to have enough time to finish
3:11all that I set out to do, all that we
3:14want to do in this world. There's a kind
3:18of burdensome sense knowing that the day
3:21and time is drawing near in some ways.
3:25Uh the disciples perhaps have uh this
3:28sense Jesus is uh sensing this as he has
3:31heard the ways in which they have lumped
3:33together this understanding of the
3:35distress that they might face with the
3:37expectation it must mean that his coming
3:40is near. They probably have this sense
3:42that what it means for us to go out into
3:44this world and to testify to the gospel
3:46of Jesus Christ is to go out into this
3:49world and at sometimes you're going to
3:50meet resistance. you're going to find
3:52distress. And as there's more and more
3:53resistance, you get the sense that maybe
3:55this is becoming less and less fruitful.
3:58Uh I'm I'm uh I'm I'm not necessarily
4:01accomplishing all the things that I
4:02want, we're trailing off in terms of
4:04efficacy. It must be that Jesus is going
4:07to come back soon. It's the end.
4:12uh there's a sense of frustration
4:14perhaps a sense that we need to scramble
4:18to finish before he comes here. Now
4:22there's something of that way of
4:24understanding our mission that is true
4:28uh primarily however
4:31as it relates to what it means for the
4:34unbeliever.
4:37Uh we know um that this is the time to
4:41respond in faith and resp and
4:44repentance, the preaching of the gospel
4:46and to look to Christ Jesus.
4:50But this is not what it means for you
4:54who believe.
4:56And so it's not how it is that we in
5:00faith
5:02understand and approach our mission in
5:06this world.
5:08When we think about the coming of the
5:10son of man
5:12and what this means in terms of our
5:14calling in this world, guys, this is the
5:18finish line.
5:21It's like he's coming.
5:24We're going to make it.
5:27He's going to finish everything that he
5:30set out to do.
5:33We're almost there.
5:36That's the sense that Jesus would want
5:39us to have. And so that as we think
5:41about his coming,
5:44there's not just this sense of anxiety.
5:46Oh no, I don't know if I'm going to have
5:48time.
5:50But it's like coming around a bend.
5:52We've used this imagery already going
5:54through this passage. Coming around the
5:55bend as you're running a race and you
5:58see the finish line. What does it do?
6:01Suddenly, energy you didn't even know
6:03you had kicks in.
6:06The coming of the son of man
6:10is what fuels the mission of the church.
6:16We're going to make it.
6:18He's going to finish all that he has set
6:21out to do. The reality is this. It's
6:23because Jesus is the one who leads in
6:28the mission of the church. He's not just
6:31sent us out to try to do as much as he
6:33can and then eventually we get to the
6:34point where it's not working anymore and
6:36he's going to call us back and he's
6:37like, "All right, I guess I'm done with
6:39that mission and I'm going to come
6:40back." No, he's gone before us.
6:44And so when he comes, what does he come
6:46to do? He comes to bring to completion
6:49all that he has been doing in this world
6:53in you and through you. It's the finish
6:57line, guys.
6:59And that's some of what I want us to see
7:03this morning. It's the sense that when
7:05Jesus comes, it's not that we throw up
7:07our hands and say we admit defeat. I
7:10guess the mission's not working anymore.
7:12Jesus is going to come back.
7:15No, Jesus comes and it is finally the
7:18realization of the goal of all that we
7:22have been seeking and longing for and
7:25working for.
7:29Jesus uh in our passage today is going
7:31to address the question of the timing of
7:35his coming.
7:37It's going to address something of the
7:39disciples uh sense that they are looking
7:41for some kind of an indication
7:44as to when it is that he will come.
7:48And he does so in context
7:51uh to remind us that his coming is to
7:54fuel our mission in this world.
8:00As we know that the son of man comes to
8:02complete all that he has set out to do.
8:06Uh with that in mind, if you're able to
8:08do so, I'll be reading from Matthew 25.
8:10If you're able, please stand for the
8:11reading and hearing of God's holy word.
8:14Be reading Matthew 24
8:17verses 29
8:20through 42.
8:23This is the word of our God.
8:28Immediately after the tribulation of
8:31those days, the sun will be darkened
8:35and the moon will not give its light and
8:38the stars will fall from heaven
8:42and the powers of the heavens will be
8:44shaken.
8:46Then will appear in heaven the sign of
8:51the son of man.
8:53And then all the tribes of the earth
8:55will mourn,
8:57and they will see the Son of Man coming
9:01on the clouds of heaven with power and
9:04great glory.
9:07And he will send out his angels with a
9:10loud trumpet call, and they will gather
9:13his elect from the four winds from one
9:16end of heaven to the other.
9:20From the fig tree, learn its lesson.
9:23As soon as its branch becomes tender and
9:25puts out its leaves, you know that
9:28summer is near. So also when you see all
9:31these things, you know that he is near
9:33at the very gates.
9:36Truly I say to you, this generation will
9:38not pass away until all these things
9:41take place. Heaven and earth will pass
9:43away, but my words will not pass away.
9:47But concerning that day and hour, no one
9:50knows,
9:52not even the angels of heaven, nor the
9:55Son, but the Father only.
9:59For as were the days of Noah, so will be
10:01the coming of the Son of Man.
10:04For as in those days before the flood,
10:06they were eating and drinking, marrying
10:08and giving in marriage, until the day
10:11when Noah entered the ark. and they were
10:14unaware until the flood came and swept
10:16them all away. So will be the coming of
10:20the son of man.
10:22Then two men will be in the field, one
10:25will be taken and one left. Two women
10:28will be grinding at the mill, one will
10:30be taken and one left.
10:34Therefore stay awake for you do not know
10:37at what day your Lord is coming.
10:41May God add his blessing on this the
10:43reading of his holy and inspired word.
10:47Please be seated.
10:53Uh as we see uh a an end drawing near
10:59thinking in terms of a due date, we have
11:01the sense that we want to finish up with
11:03whatever time we have left. And and
11:06there's a concern, something we need to
11:08think about as we consider the coming of
11:10the son of man. Uh when exactly is our
11:13mission to testify to the gospel of
11:17Jesus Christ? When is it and when will
11:21it be over in this world?
11:25And some of what Jesus in context here,
11:27remembering some of what we've looked at
11:29in previous weeks in Matthew chapter 24,
11:32he's concerned about the mission of the
11:34disciples, the mission of the church,
11:36our mission in this world, is that he
11:39wants to remind us that we don't need to
11:41try to anticipate when he is about to
11:44come.
11:46We're just about the mission.
11:49And when he comes, guess what? It will
11:52be obvious.
11:54The coming of the son of man will be
11:59obvious. A few things we find in the
12:00text that point out points out how
12:02obvious this is. Uh first of all, we
12:04have these uh lights in the heavens, the
12:08sun, the moon, and the stars
12:11are darkened.
12:13You can think visually as in terms of
12:15the the language that Jesus is using
12:17here. Suddenly, what we're what what
12:19we're accustomed to catching our eye uh
12:22as we look up to the heavens, all of
12:25these things grow dark. And what's
12:28interesting is that uh the idea doesn't
12:31seem to be so much that they are a sign
12:34of what is about to happen,
12:38but it's almost like they're unsigns.
12:43uh the lights go out
12:47because you're supposed to be looking at
12:49something else.
12:52Uh if you're in a room and let's say uh
12:56there's there's a lot of kind of noise
12:58humming around, maybe similar to what
13:00just happened a few uh minutes ago as
13:03we're all greeting one another. there's
13:04this kind of uh joyful hum of what's
13:07taking place and you can't really
13:08distinguish necessarily too many
13:10conversations except for those that are
13:12right around you. Uh but if someone
13:14would have suddenly screamed out,
13:18I guarantee you that the room probably
13:20would have fallen silent.
13:23And it's something like that.
13:26There's this sudden hush over all of
13:29creation
13:31because the son of man has come and he
13:36gets center stage.
13:39Um, here's what's happening. It will be
13:41obvious that when he comes, it's as
13:43though the lights go out because all of
13:46the focus is on him.
13:50Second, we can think functionally in
13:51terms of what happens with the sun,
13:53moon, and stars. Genesis 1:14
13:57as it speaks of God's creation of the
14:00sun, moon, and stars. It says this, "And
14:01God said, let there be lights in the
14:03expanse of the heavens to separate the
14:05day from the night, and let them be for
14:07signs and for seasons and for days and
14:11years." Here are things that God has
14:14made that we use to mark time. We're
14:17able to get a sense of how much time has
14:20passed. Our experience of time is a
14:22little bit different depending on what
14:23is going on, what the circumstances are,
14:27but the actual marking of time is
14:29steady. And here are things that are
14:31used throughout the history of God's
14:33people, even in our own day in marking
14:36signs and seasons as it says. But here,
14:42what else are we?
14:45What else is creation waiting for?
14:50so as to mark time in the same way.
14:55Suddenly the sun, moon and stars grow
14:58dark
15:00because this is not the time now to get
15:03ready.
15:05This is the time that we have been
15:07getting ready for.
15:10He's here.
15:13Everything that we have been waiting for
15:15that creation itself is waiting for
15:19here comes in the coming of the son of
15:22man.
15:25Thirdly, we get a sense of what this is,
15:27how obvious this will be even in terms
15:30of what's going on theologically
15:33in the language that is used as he
15:35describes the sun will be darkened, the
15:37moon not give its light, the stars fall,
15:40the powers of heaven will be shaken.
15:42Some of this language appears in the Old
15:44Testament in the context rather
15:47troubling context of judgment. Isaiah 13
15:51verses 9 and 10 is one such example
15:55says behold the day of the Lord comes
15:59cruel with wrath and fierce anger
16:03to make the land a desolation and to
16:05destroy its sinners from it. For the
16:09stars of the heavens and their
16:11constellations will not give their
16:13light. The sun will be dark at its
16:17rising
16:19and the moon will not shed its light.
16:24Uh here is something um that is uh
16:27troubling in what takes place.
16:31clear aspect of what this is in judgment
16:34is inescapable
16:37and even worldwide in a way that Jesus
16:40recognizes with how he speaks where he
16:42says later in our text that all the
16:45tribes of the earth will mourn
16:51uh the purpose of what's going on and
16:53what is taking place
16:56everyone will notice
16:59and in a real sense Everyone will
17:01understand.
17:04All tribes of the earth will mourn. And
17:08all the testimony of the whole of
17:11creation
17:13joins together in drawing attention to
17:16the son of man and what comes with him.
17:21Now, as Jesus uses this language to
17:23describe the coming of the son of man,
17:25the the purpose is not merely
17:29to give you a kind of visual cue as to
17:33what it will look like.
17:35He's preparing us beyond simply that. In
17:38fact, there's other context in the Old
17:40Testament and the scriptures where this
17:42kind of language is used in rather
17:44interesting ways. Psalm 18
17:48verse 7 is one such example. You can
17:50look at the rest of this psalm where
17:51David is speaking of how it is that God
17:54acts, has acted to deliver him from his
17:57enemies, even from the hand of Saul. And
18:00David says this in Psalm 18:7, "Then the
18:03earth reeled and rocked.
18:06The foundations also of the mountains
18:08trembled and quakd because he was
18:11angry." And if you look the rest of the
18:13psalm, David is using the language of
18:16creation and this upheaval of creation
18:20uh to describe theologically and what
18:23otherwise might have been unseen to him
18:26and his companions as to what was going
18:29on, what it is for the God of creation
18:32to act in such a surprising way in
18:36history to save and to redeem. Amen. The
18:40point is this, that what Jesus is doing,
18:42he's not merely giving a visual cue to
18:46prepare our eyes to notice him. You're
18:49going to notice
18:52he's giving us a theological
18:54interpretation to prepare your heart to
18:58worship him. Here is the one who comes
19:04and he comes even as the judge of all
19:09creation.
19:11Creation is not so much or not merely I
19:15should say
19:17descending into judgment day. We have
19:21that impression and certainly it c is a
19:23clear aspect of what comes with the son
19:25of man.
19:27Clear judgment.
19:29There's no refuge outside of Christ
19:31Jesus. There's no place to hide in any
19:34place in any of this cre any part of
19:37this creation when the judge himself
19:40comes.
19:42Uh but as believers we need to be
19:44careful how we think about what the
19:45coming of the son of man is because this
19:48is not simply that creation descends
19:51into judgment day.
19:53But this is the whole of creation is
19:56handed over to the judge
20:02and you know who this judge is.
20:07This is our savior
20:10and every line is pointing to this that
20:13it is handed over to him.
20:17Back to some of how we began what this
20:19means in terms of our mission.
20:22Um this is going to be obvious when the
20:25son of man comes.
20:28Uh there's two different ways that
20:29batteries can function. You've probably
20:31uh some of you have seen this or know
20:33this. Sometimes there can be a kind of
20:35battery that as it as it kind of starts
20:37to wind down and you get to the end of
20:39its life, it becomes less and less
20:41effective as you go on and it just sort
20:43of trails off. The the clock starts to
20:46move slower and slower and slower.
20:50But of course, there's other batteries
20:52that are designed to as much as you can
20:53to maintain what is a stable functioning
20:57and it continues on full throttle until
21:00the end comes and then it just drops
21:02off.
21:04My weed whackers like that. I have a
21:05battery powered weed whacker and I'm
21:07going and it works well enough only as
21:09well as of course the user can use it.
21:11So it's mediocre at best. But using this
21:14and then when the batter is done I don't
21:16have to guess it just shuts off
21:18immediately.
21:20uh as we are about our mission in this
21:23world and testifying to the gospel of
21:26Jesus Christ um we don't need to try to
21:29figure out when is he going to come so
21:31we can tie up all the loose ends.
21:34We go full boore until he comes and when
21:39our mission is over it will be obvious
21:42because the son of man full of glory is
21:45here. That brings us to the second uh
21:48main thing I want us to see that not
21:50only will the coming of the son of man
21:52be obvious
21:54uh but the coming of the son of man
21:57will be glorious.
22:01It will be glorious. Again thinking in
22:03terms of the mission of the church
22:08uh I want to take this seriously.
22:10There's there's parts to our mission
22:13especially when we think about
22:14particular people whom we love.
22:18that there's a kind of dread that we
22:20have in our heart anticipating what the
22:23coming of the son of man might mean.
22:27Uh because there's not only salvation
22:28that he brings but real judgment.
22:32And there can be a sense of dread as to
22:35what will happen when he comes.
22:39But part of what Jesus wants to make
22:41sure is front and center in the heart of
22:43believers as we think about what the
22:45coming of the son of man means in terms
22:48of our mission is that this is not
22:50something for us to dread.
22:54But this is something to anticipate
22:57as to expect as the full glory of the
23:01son of man, the beautiful and majestic
23:04glory of the son of man is put on
23:07display.
23:10What we find here is that the son of man
23:12comes
23:14and he comes in such a way that he
23:17finishes his mission.
23:22Look again at your text. Verse 30. Then
23:26will appear in heaven the sign of the
23:29son of man.
23:31Verse 30. Then all the tribes of the
23:33earth will mourn and they will see the
23:35son of man coming on the clouds of
23:39heaven
23:41with power and great glory. Coming on
23:45the clouds of heaven. You may recognize
23:47this language
23:49as a reference to what was read earlier
23:51in the service. Uh Daniel chapter 7. We
23:54look at those verses briefly if I may.
23:57Daniel chapter 7 13- 14. And I saw in
24:00the night visions and behold with the
24:02clouds of heaven there there came one
24:06like the son of man. Notice with the
24:09clouds of heaven there came one like a
24:11son of man. He came to the ancient of
24:13days and was presented before him. Some
24:17commentators I think very helpfully
24:19notice here that think about what this
24:22is in terms of the language that's
24:23described. We often think of the coming
24:25of the son of man as simply him coming
24:28to the earth and into his creation. And
24:30that is clearly the case here. We'll
24:33continue to see that as we go through
24:35Matthew 24. But there's an insight as to
24:38what this is for him to come that I
24:41don't want you to miss. That there's a
24:44reference here as to what it is in
24:46Daniel 7 as it's pictured the son of man
24:49actually coming before the ancient of
24:53days.
24:55So part of what's happening is that what
24:57something is being put on display and
25:00something is being openly exposed and
25:02shown in this creation.
25:05What is the right of the son of man?
25:08What is the right of Jesus Christ before
25:11his heavenly father
25:14so that what is his before the ancient
25:17of days that is what is shown forth in
25:21this creation.
25:24the right and the power and the glory as
25:28Jesus says. This is what will be on full
25:32display at the coming of the son of man.
25:35The coming of the son of man will be
25:38glorious. And notice how he makes use of
25:41this right and authority, this
25:44prerogative over all of creation. Notice
25:47what he does. Verse 31. and he will send
25:51out his angels
25:53with a loud trumpet call.
25:58He's able to command
26:00the powers of heaven
26:03and he uses that his power and his
26:08authority. He sends out his angels and
26:11then with a loud trumpet call again
26:14making use of some Old Testament imagery
26:17and understanding here things that we're
26:18to recall and to remember. Numbers 10:es
26:229 and 10 speaks of trumpets that the old
26:25that Old Testament Israel was to make.
26:27It says this
26:29of them. When you go to war in your land
26:32against the adversary who oppresses you,
26:34then you shall sound an alarm with the
26:36trumpets.
26:39Notice how they function. That you may
26:41be remembered before the Lord your God.
26:45Who's this a trumpet for?
26:48And you shall be saved from your
26:50enemies. On the day of your gladness,
26:51also at your appointed feasts, at the
26:54beginnings of your months, you shall
26:55blow the trumpets over your burnt
26:57offerings and over the sacrifices of
27:00your peace offerings. They shall be a
27:02reminder of you before your God.
27:07I am the Lord your God.
27:11See, it's interesting. There's passages
27:131 Corinthians 15, 1 Thessalonians 4
27:15where it speaks of this last trumpet
27:18that is heard, a trumpet that
27:21accompanies what is the raising of the
27:23people of God from the dead or the
27:26transforming of those who are still
27:28waiting and have not yet died, but this
27:31great trumpet that is heard. But here's
27:33what's interesting. If we remember where
27:35these trumpets came from and what this
27:37is, it's not just a trumpet so that you
27:40hear what's going on.
27:43This is a trumpet that is a trumpet, a
27:47crying forth of the son of man, Jesus
27:50Christ, appealing to his father,
27:53remember all of your promises.
27:58Remember your people.
28:01This is how it functions.
28:04This is what the coming of the son of
28:05man is.
28:08When he comes, it's like he cries forth
28:11unto his father.
28:14Don't forget any of your promises.
28:18Do not forget any of your people. Listen
28:22to what it says next. Matthew 24. He
28:25will send out his angels with a loud
28:27trumpet call and they will gather his
28:32elect
28:34from the four winds from one end of
28:37heaven to the other. You getting this
28:40sense here that what is this? When he
28:42comes he is fulfilling all of his
28:46promises for his people. Deuteronomy
28:5030:4.
28:52Again, this is language that we see
28:54beforehand in the Old Testament.
28:55Deuteronomy 30:4 as as Moses is speaking
28:58to the people before he dies, before
29:01they go into the land.
29:05He's reminding them of what will come to
29:07pass. Not simply warning them, make sure
29:09you stay on the right track so things
29:11don't go bad for you. But he actually
29:12says, "Look, when the blessings and the
29:15curses fall upon you," he knows they're
29:16going to go into exile at this point
29:18already.
29:19Then he says, Deuteronomy 30:4, "If your
29:22outcasts are in the uttermost parts of
29:24heaven, from there the Lord will gather,
29:27the Lord your God will gather you, and
29:30from there he will take you."
29:34prefiguring beforehand what is this
29:36great gathering in of the whole of the
29:39people of God from every corner under
29:43heaven.
29:45This is the sense as to what we are
29:50to remember the coming of the son of man
29:54is. This is not a dreaded time
29:59in which he simply stops what we're
30:03doing.
30:05This is the time in which we have the
30:08full realization
30:10of all that we have been seeking.
30:15When the son of man comes, he comes to
30:17finish what he started
30:21and he brings the fullness of the
30:23promises of God to the fullness of the
30:27people of God.
30:30What does it mean in terms of our
30:31mission? We don't simply stop, though it
30:35does come to an end.
30:38But Jesus Christ finishes.
30:41That's what this is.
30:43And so we labor and we wait and we long
30:48because we want the finish line, don't
30:50we?
30:51Number three, the coming of the son of
30:54man will be unexpected.
30:58Coming of the son of man will be
31:00unexpected. again, uh, due dates.
31:02There's nothing worse than finding out
31:05that something was due sooner than you
31:06thought.
31:08It's like, oh no, now what do I do? With
31:12all of these plans and ideas of things
31:14that I wanted to do, suddenly you got to
31:16start picking and choosing. I can't do
31:18all of that. I got to just do what I got
31:20here.
31:22We have this sense sometimes of what's
31:24going to happen with the coming of the
31:25son of man. It will be unexpected.
31:28You cannot anticipate the day or the
31:31hour. We have that in our text. We'll
31:32get to this soon. You can't anticipate
31:35quite when it is going to be. But we
31:38have this sense of, "Oh no, what about
31:40all of these things that I haven't quite
31:43finished?" Well, we'll get to that. But
31:45I want you to notice now it's going to
31:46interrupt something.
31:50Uh, as we get into the timing of the Son
31:52of Man. Um this this brings us to
31:55probably the the biggest challenge in
31:58this chapter.
32:00Uh the biggest interpretive challenge to
32:03some of the perspective that I have been
32:05giving you in Matthew 24.
32:09A real brief summary and and you'll have
32:11to maybe look at the text or perhaps
32:13listen to previous sermons if you
32:14weren't with us in previous weeks. Uh
32:17but I've been giving the sense that part
32:19of what Jesus is doing is that he's
32:20giving the disciples an understanding of
32:22of what this period of time in the
32:25church as what we do in in engaging in
32:27this mission bringing the gospel to
32:29every nation in the midst of distress in
32:31this world even distress within the
32:34church. We saw that in the first uh
32:35sermon.
32:38Um and that there's something that's
32:39going to happen uh even soon within that
32:42generation as they're going to come
32:43they're going to experience much
32:44distress that surrounds the eventual
32:46destruction of the temple and much
32:49coming against the city Jerusalem.
32:52And that's not to be an indication of
32:54the fact that he's coming that you can
32:57count down the days until he comes but
32:59it's it's in some ways that which God
33:01uses to launch his people out into this
33:04world in this gospel mission.
33:08But we come uh to our passage that we've
33:11read in verse 29 and it says this.
33:13Immediately after the tribulation of
33:16those days,
33:18tribulation that surrounds the
33:20destruction of the temple. Immediately
33:22after the tribulation of those days,
33:25the sun will be darkened. The moon will
33:27not give its light, etc.
33:30So, what's Jesus describing here? Well,
33:32I'll defend it in a moment, but I'll
33:34just tell you now
33:36my sense of what Jesus is getting at and
33:38what this means. When he says
33:39immediately after, he's describing not
33:42not just the immediacy that you might
33:45mark on your watch.
33:48This is what we might call a covenant
33:53immediacy.
33:56If you were to take, sometimes some of
33:57us have this or or have made these or
34:00seen these. If you take a sort of
34:01timeline of all the significant events
34:03that take place in the history that we
34:06learn of in the scriptures,
34:09you mark out creation. You see the
34:12generations that lead to the flood. You
34:14see uh even the generations that
34:16eventually get to Abraham and going
34:18forth and and Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
34:21and continuing on through the history of
34:23God's people. And there are times when
34:25you have long stretches of years between
34:28one significant event and another. But
34:31you might show on the timeline these
34:34peaks that are very close to each other
34:36in terms of what are the high points,
34:38what are the key things that we're
34:39waiting for and what follows next.
34:44When Jesus says immediately after, what
34:46he's getting at is this, that the next
34:50major covenant world event that is going
34:54to take place that you are on the edge
34:56of your seat waiting for and
34:59anticipating
35:01is the coming of the son of man.
35:04You're not waiting for something else to
35:07happen. What's the next thing? There's
35:10nothing else that's going to factor in
35:12on this covenant timeline. The very next
35:14thing is this. The son of man comes in
35:18his glory.
35:20He comes in his glory to finish and to
35:24fulfill all that God has promised. Let
35:26me show you some of where I'm getting
35:28this.
35:30Verse 32 to35 describes Jesus gives this
35:34uh this quick lesson, these kind of
35:35metaphors considering the fig tree. a
35:38fig tree when it's in bloom, you know
35:39something of what is happening in terms
35:41of the seasons.
35:44So also verse 33, when you see all these
35:47things, you know that he's near at these
35:49ve at the very gates. Truly, I say to
35:51you, this generation will not pass away
35:54until all these things take place. Jesus
35:56is very clearly, it seems, referring to
36:00events that are going to take place in
36:02the living generation in which he is
36:05present and speaking to these people.
36:08But I want you to notice what happens as
36:10this continues. Uh the this generation
36:12will not pass away until all these
36:14things take place. Notice verse 36. But
36:18concerning that day
36:21and hour, no one knows.
36:25not even the angels of heaven nor the
36:27son but the father only. Uh Jesus is
36:31presenting a contrast between on one
36:33hand things that will take place in the
36:37lifetime of his living generation
36:41over and against something else that
36:44will happen that you cannot know. Not
36:47even Jesus knows. By the way, if there's
36:50some things about esquetology that
36:51you're not sure of, you're in good
36:54company. Apparently, not even the son of
36:55man knows the day or the hour of his
36:57coming. We could talk about that perhaps
36:59in another context.
37:02But contrasting those things that will
37:04take place within this period of time,
37:06this generation, of course, this is
37:08about 30 AD or so. The destruction of
37:11the temple is in 70 AD. The period of
37:14time in which those present in Jesus
37:16day, some continued to live even to that
37:18point.
37:20compared to another event that is the
37:22coming of the son of man that is not
37:26able to be marked on a calendar is not
37:30able to be framed in terms of after this
37:33day before that day. No one knows
37:38the day or the hour.
37:42Again, just to be clear, Jesus speaks of
37:44these things.
37:46Verse 33. When you see all these things,
37:50what's he referring to? Well, back in
37:52verse three,
37:55as the disciples had asked, tell us when
37:57will these things be? These things
38:00referring to his prediction of the
38:02destruction of the temple in verse two.
38:07So also verse 33 and 34 repeating, when
38:10you see all these things, you know that
38:13he's near. This generation will not pass
38:16away until all these things take place.
38:18Referring back to his original
38:22prediction and description of the coming
38:25of the temple. However, this will take
38:27place now.
38:29The coming of the son of man. You don't
38:32know when.
38:34It will be unexpected.
38:37Now why
38:39why is it that he calls his disciples
38:42then to live with this sense of covenant
38:46immediacy?
38:48Uh that we are anticipating and looking
38:51and longing for what may happen at any
38:55moment. We know not when and the church
38:58has been waiting in that way for a long
39:02time.
39:05Well, just a couple thoughts for you.
39:07First of all, this
39:10when the Son of Man comes,
39:13his coming will be just as relevant to
39:16this generation
39:19as it will be to every previous
39:22generation
39:24as it will be to that last generation
39:27alive at his coming.
39:30And we're to live with that sense
39:34of what it is finally
39:37as it relates to the life that we are
39:39living living for the son of man to
39:42come.
39:44Here is a present relevance in all that
39:48we do. But there's also this sense as to
39:50what has to take place between now and
39:54the actual day of his coming. Do you
39:56know all the things that have to take
39:57place? I'll tell you what has to take
40:00place. He simply has to appear.
40:09Think about that for a moment.
40:13How near he is
40:19to simply showing forth his glory.
40:24What are we waiting for?
40:26that he would simply appear.
40:34Now, let me show you this just in a
40:36couple places. I don't have these verses
40:37behind me. I'm just going to reference
40:39them.
40:41But we've seen something of this
40:43language of what it is for him to come
40:44in the glory of Daniel 7, one who has
40:47come before the ancient of days, coming
40:50into that which is his by right.
40:53There's other places where that same
40:55kind of glory of Jesus Christ is
40:57displayed. Matthew 28, we're going to
40:59get there eventually,
41:01where Jesus after he's crucified
41:03eventually. Yes, we will eventually get
41:04there.
41:07After Jesus is crucified and raised from
41:09the dead, before he ascends, he says,
41:12"All authority in heaven and on earth
41:15has been given to me."
41:18Remember Daniel 7, all authority given
41:21to him. Guess what? The glory is his.
41:25What are we waiting for?
41:28We're waiting for it simply to be shown
41:31and seen in this world.
41:35So also even more precisely in Acts
41:37chapter 1, I think it's verse 8 or so or
41:39after, you can look it up right around
41:41there.
41:43Whereas Jesus it ascends,
41:46it says that a cloud came
41:49and took him away, removing him from
41:52their sight.
41:54And then as the disciples are like, "Ah,
41:57what was that?" We got to look it up in
41:58heaven.
42:00The angels say, "Uh, I'm gonna look it
42:03up. I'm gonna mess up the quoting here."
42:05So,
42:08Matthew uh Acts 1:8 or
42:129, when he said these things, they were
42:14looking on, he was lifted up, and a
42:16cloud took him out of their sight.
42:18Daniel 7, they're seeing it before their
42:20eyes. And while they were gazing into
42:23heaven as he went, behold, two men stood
42:25by them in white robes and said, "Men of
42:27Galilee, why do you stand looking into
42:30heaven?
42:31This Jesus who was taken up from you
42:34into heaven will come in the same way
42:38as you saw him go into heaven.
42:46In other words, for our purposes today,
42:48the glory in which he will appear
42:52is the present glory that he already
42:54has.
42:57What is needed?
42:59That he would simply appear.
43:05What does this mean for what we do in
43:07the world? Well, things are going to be
43:09interrupted. No doubt.
43:13Verse 38 and following we uh Jesus
43:17compares the coming of the son of man
43:18and the way in which it interrupts the
43:20ordinary operations of life in a way
43:23that is similar to the flood. You
43:25remember that the flood came uh Noah and
43:28his family were hidden in the ark before
43:30the judgment floods and waters came. And
43:32those who were left outside did not
43:34necessarily anticipate what was going to
43:37happen before the flood came
43:41and many were swept away by it.
43:45So also the coming of the son of man,
43:47what's going to happen? Verse 40, two
43:48men will be in a field, one will be
43:50taken, one left. You're going to go out
43:52as though it's an ordinary workday.
43:5741. Two women will be grinding at the
43:59mill. One will be taken and one left.
44:02The ordinary things that you do in your
44:05home,
44:07you're going to do them as though it's
44:09any other day.
44:12The language is interesting here and I
44:14can't spend too much time on it, but
44:15where it says that one will be taken. We
44:17sometimes have this kind of sense that
44:19here is a taken in the sense of taken up
44:21in sort of a resurrection or taken up
44:23into glory based on the context with
44:25what just happened in terms of being
44:26swept away with the flood. It's probably
44:28more judgment imagery that's described
44:31here.
44:33Some being swept away in what is this
44:36judgment that takes place.
44:40And the point is this, that we who are
44:42waiting, anticipating, and looking to
44:45Jesus Christ, guess what? We're just
44:47going to be about very ordinary
44:49dayto-day kinds of things.
44:52And what you set out to do is going to
44:56be interrupted.
45:00You're going to have a to-do list that
45:02you never finish.
45:08uh you're going to have plans and dreams
45:12that never come to fruition, at least in
45:15the way that you might be envisioning.
45:20We're going to have plans and strategies
45:24as a church
45:28work that we're engaged in
45:33evangelizing
45:35that we have scheduled
45:38that we never get to finish.
45:46Does it make those things useless? Well,
45:49I wish I knew. So then maybe I wouldn't
45:52have spent so much time planning and
45:55using resources that way.
46:01But here's part of the point of what
46:03this is. If you understand what it is
46:05for Christ to come and for him to come
46:07as the finish line that we're seeking,
46:10what are we aiming at in all that we do?
46:17We're aiming to please him.
46:23Use the imagery of a race crossing a
46:26finish line as opposed to a due date.
46:28With a due date, we have in mind all
46:30these things that we're trying to do and
46:31suddenly we run out of time and we got
46:33to pick and choose what we're going to
46:35try to finish and move on to some other
46:37things. We got to change what we're
46:39doing. A finish line is this. Every
46:42single step
46:44is taking you to the end.
46:48Every plan that we are making, every
46:50every new beginning that we are taking
46:52both in the lives that we are living in
46:54our plans to reach the lost, all things,
46:58WHAT ARE WE DOING? WE'RE not just
46:59seeking our plans.
47:02We're seeking the son.
47:05We're seeking his glory.
47:10And we'll find that if our if our aim is
47:13in all things simply to please him
47:19when he comes. We're not going to be
47:20disappointed that we didn't get to
47:22finish what we set out to do.
47:24We're going to be thrilled because
47:25that's the only thing we were seeking
47:27the whole time. Anyways,
47:32uh a few thoughts uh for us. I'll be
47:34brief here.
47:36how Jesus characterizes the coming of
47:38the son of man, especially in context as
47:40to what Jesus is addressing for the
47:42calling and even the heart of his
47:44disciples in Matthew 24.
47:47Uh what does this mean in terms of the
47:50coming of the son of man? What it means
47:51in terms of our life and ministry and
47:54testimony in this world?
47:58Uh number one,
48:01because of the goodness of what it is
48:02that we're seeking, the coming of the
48:03son of man in all things, uh we're able
48:06to engage in our mission
48:10by faith rather than motivated by fear.
48:18Sometimes we engage in certain things in
48:20this world because we have this fearful
48:22expectation, oh no, I'm going to run out
48:24of time. It's crippling. It really is.
48:29Unbelievers will run out of time.
48:32Believer, that's not what the son of
48:34coming of the son of man is for you.
48:38We engage in our mission and in our
48:40calling,
48:42not with this frantic, fearful sense
48:45that we might not finish our work,
48:48but with a confident faith that we know
48:50that Jesus Christ is going to finish his
48:52work. That's what this is
48:56and that's how we engage everything in
48:58terms of our calling.
49:01Live by faith rather than fear.
49:02Secondly,
49:05we engage in our mission
49:08with hope
49:10rather than a sense of futility.
49:15Hope rather than a sense of futility.
49:18There's all sorts of things that we try,
49:20conversations we have, places we go,
49:22resources we put towards certain
49:24ministry ends,
49:26things we want to do in our family, and
49:28sometime sometimes things work,
49:30sometimes things don't work.
49:32We're not always really sure what's
49:34what's going to pan out, right?
49:37I'm trying to go down this way, and it's
49:39almost like this random sampling of
49:40like, I try this path and this trail,
49:43dead end. Let me try another path, dead
49:45end. Try another one, dead end. and
49:47we're trying to figure out what's what's
49:48the way that we're supposed to go. But
49:50but here's that sense of futility where
49:54it feels like much of what we're doing
49:56is going to end up being to no benefit.
50:02But we're to live rather in hope,
50:07knowing that as our aim is to please the
50:09Lord and to seek him,
50:13every single step
50:16is one in which we're seeking that
50:18finish line.
50:21All of it. Jesus is going to show his
50:25glory as the one who is the end that we
50:28have been seeking.
50:31We have the privilege of living, of
50:34serving
50:36and making known the gospel and hope
50:39rather than a sense of futility. Third,
50:43we engage with people in our lives.
50:47bring the gospel to those who need it.
50:49Even encourage one another with the same
50:51gospel that we need in our lives.
50:56Our heart and our conduct and our life
51:00is able to be characterized by love
51:04rather than bitterness.
51:08Love rather than bitterness.
51:13I can't promise you
51:17that all the people that you're praying
51:19for,
51:21that you're witnessing to will come to
51:23faith. I can't do that.
51:29But if we're not careful,
51:32we can start to be engaged in gospel
51:34ministry
51:35in a way that comes from a heart of
51:37bitterness.
51:40But we're not sure that we like the plan
51:42of the son of man.
51:46But when our aim is to please him.
51:52And if we remember that what we are
51:53doing is not just trying to finish our
51:56work, but the son of man comes to finish
51:58his.
52:02We're motivated and driven by love for
52:05him.
52:07And not only that, but real love rather
52:09than bitterness for those around us.
52:13How often do we, you know, want to
52:15encourage each other to go out and do
52:17something with the gospel and live
52:19consistent with our with our uh with our
52:22profession of faith and our trust in
52:24Christ because we're sick and tired of
52:25the world that we're living in.
52:28That's gospel mission motivated by
52:29bitterness
52:32rather than real love.
52:34I want you to know Jesus
52:38as he's made himself known to me.
52:42motivated by love
52:46rather than bitterness.
52:50This is what the goodness and the glory
52:52of the coming of the son of man is.
52:56We might live. We might engage in
52:59ministry in faith, in hope, and in love,
53:03knowing that he is our finish line,
53:06and he will come with glory.
53:09Pray with me if you would. Our heavenly
53:11father, we do thank you for the goodness
53:13of the work of Jesus Christ.
53:17Uh we thank you for the glory that will
53:19be made known at his coming.
53:23And we do pray that by your spirit you
53:25would strengthen and enable us to fix
53:28our eyes upon Christ
53:32and with every aspect of the fruit of
53:34the spirit in our lives joyfully and
53:37freely and hope in hope and in
53:40expectation.
53:42Live our lives for your glory.
53:45bring the gospel to those who need it,
53:48knowing that you will finish and fulfill
53:51all of your holy work in this world. We
53:56pray this in Christ's name. Amen.

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