Introduction: Grace be to you and peace, from God our Father, and from our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ. Our text for this evening is the Gospel Lesson just read, from Matt. 24. We begin with prayer.
Dear fellow disciples of our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ:
- People have often noted that “timing is everything.” This is certainly the case in team sports, and teams spend hours practicing together so that their timing is in sync. This is also the case in relationships – to say the right thing at the right time, to do the right thing at the right time. A good many people – especially in business – study the past and scrutinize current circumstances, hoping to optimize profit and benefit by great timing.
- We all have some interest in timing. And we all have times when we wonder about the timing of God, the timing of things that are beyond our control but that have great impact on us – some for our great good and benefit, and some that are discomforting and annoying. And at times, when we’re fed up with the irritations, sorrows, and tragedies of life in this fallen and dying world of sin, we wonder how long God will let it go on. We wonder when Jesus will appear again as He promised.
- We have comfort in the assurance of God’s love even now – we know that Christ came some 2,000 years ago to be our Savior, and that He has already suffered and died under the penalty of our sins, bringing us forgiveness, new life, eternal life and salvation. We know that He is with us always, even to the end of this age. We also know that He is coming again – and we’d like to know more about His timing in all of this!
- Well, there is good news and bad news in regard to what we can know about the Lord’s timing of the return of Jesus in glory, according to the Words of Jesus in our text. And we do well to hear Him and heed Him. First, the bad news, at least as far as our inquisitiveness and desire to know the precise timing is concerned:
I. No One Is Going To Know The Exact Day Or Hour When Jesus Will Come Again
Text: “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.”
Text: “Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.”
Statement: So we may as well adjust our thinking to this reality. No one is going to be able to “optimize” their choices and advantages over and against the day of Christ’s return. No one knows when it will be, so for Christians, believers in Christ, our lives in this world must continue to be lived by faith and trust in Christ’s Word – focusing on what we should be doing rather than on God’s management of the Last Days.
Application: So, while we may wonder when He is coming, and we might like to know the specifics, it is more important – if we truly are Jesus’ disciples – to be hearing and following His will for our lives. This means continuing repentance, fullness of joy in His forgiveness, joy and strength in His promises to be with us and bless us, and growth in our love, care, and service to those around us. He wants us to focus on these things and not worry about the rest.
Transition: However, there are some things that we can know about the day of His return, specifically that:
II. Things Will Seemingly Be Quite Normal On The Day That He Comes Again
Text: “For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.”
Statement: Often when cataclysmic events occur people think that Jesus will be coming soon. Actually, His return will be at a time when most people are focused on the things we take for granted and rely upon. So there is no way for us to anticipate – we must “stay awake” at all times, for His coming will be like a “thief in the night.”
Application: This being the case, that we will not be able to “anticipate” His arrival, it is all the more important that we be about the things that He has instructed us. In fact, this is being ready, awake, and alert – continuing in His Word, caring for and loving one another, serving others as He has served us, and living in repentance and faith in His forgiveness. If we are doing this, we are being ready for His coming.
Transition: And there is no need for concern that somehow we will miss His second coming – like some people have created with false teachings, and this whole “left behind” nonsense, for according to Jesus:
III. The Real Rapture Of Believers Occurs On The Last Day, The Day Of His Glorious Appearance – And Just As No One Missed The Flood, So No One Will Miss His Coming
Text: “Then [at His second coming] two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one left.”
1 Thess. 4:15-17 “For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.”
Statement: What a remarkable experience this is going to be – whether we have already died and then we are resurrected and head up to be with Christ in the clouds, or whether we are working away at some chore or duty on this earth and suddenly we see Christ in His glory – and are taken up, caught up together with our brothers and sisters in Christ to “meet the Lord in the air.” Wow! Amazing! And none of us are going to somehow be “left behind” and miss this! Not a chance!!!
Application: So there is nothing for us to worry about, or to try to maximize so as to not get left out or miss something! No, as we are prepared and ready, doing the Lord’s bidding – and this includes our vocation, our duties in life, like working in the field or grinding at the mill – we will be so blessed at the glorious return of Jesus, when “CHRIST COMES AGAIN”
Conclusion: So let us be ready for the coming of the Son of Man, the glorious return of Jesus. We can be ready, not by “reading” the signs and trying to guess when He will come, but by continuing in His Word – living in repentance and faith, and fulfilling His bidding by loving and serving one another!
No one will be able to “optimize” their blessings by having the right “timing.” Those whose experience on the Last Day is optimized are those who are ready for Jesus, those living quiet and simple lives of discipleship to Jesus. He is the One Who will have perfect timing, and Who will optimize that day for His dear children! Thanks and praise be to Him! Amen, come Lord Jesus!
Votum: And the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds in the true faith, which is in Christ Jesus, even unto life everlasting, Amen.