9.00am and 10.30am Sunday 14 September 2003
Rev Des Botting
Readings: Luke 17:20-37
Those of you who were at the concert the church put on a couple of months ago will remember Jean Nolands item about church bulletin bloopers. Most of these were statements which the authors hadnt realised could be taken two ways, the first quite serious and factual, but the second hilariously funny. I began to wonder if I had committed a blooper after the comments of one person about what was on the blackboard advertising the services this week When will Gods kingdom come? 9.00am and 10.30am this Sunday. I wonder how many of the thousands of people who read it as they drove past, took it to mean that Gods kingdom is coming at 9.00am and 10.30am this morning?
All joking aside, its an important question that these Pharisees asked Jesus. When will Gods kingdom come? Jesus had spoken a great deal about it. The good news of the kingdom was the over-arching theme of all his preaching and teaching. He spoke about the kingdom of God thirty times in Lukes Gospel alone. Many of the stories he told were shared to help people understand something of its value and nature. He included it in the prayer he taught his disciples Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as in heaven.
Its a very relevant question when we look at the world around us today. If Gods kingdom is one where righteousness, peace and joy will abound, we need it right now. Theres so much injustice and violence, sorrow and suffering at every level of human life, what a difference it would make if Gods reign and rule were present now. This world would be a safe place in which to live, for young and old alike. Thats why Jesus wants us to pray for its coming.
The Nature of Gods kingdom. Jesus, in his reply to these Pharisees, discloses something of the nature of Gods kingdom. Many people in Jesus day believed that when the Messiah came, he would restore Israel to its former political glory, just as it was when King David reigned. They were thinking of an earthly kingdom. When James and Johns mother asked for her sons to be seated either side of Jesus when he came into his kingdom[1] makes it very clear that this was how the disciples understood it. It was the same when just before he returned to heaven the disciples asked, Lord, are you now going to give Israel its own king again?[2]. They still needed to learn, as Jesus said to Pilate, that his kingdom doesnt belong to this world.[3]
Jesus said Gods kingdom is quite different. He said, Gods kingdom isnt something you can seeGods kingdom is here with you.[4] The Greek word translated you can see, is a word that implies intense watching, and is found only here in the New Testament. What it means is that the progress of Gods kingdom cannot be defined by visible marks like that of an earthly kingdom. Its growth in the world is a process of pervasion, like the working of the leaven through a lump of dough.[5] His kingdom isnt physical and external, but spiritual and internal. It is seen by the soul, not the senses. It is present in those who acknowledge Gods reign and rule in their lives through believing and following Jesus Christ, His Son.
The words translated in the CEV is here with you, literally means within you or among you. The kingdom of God was present in the person and ministry of Jesus while he was here on earth. Gods kingdom is present today in every life and family and community that acknowledges Jesus as Lord. Its the Spirit of God that makes this a reality. As the prophet Ezekiel said, I will put my Spirit in you and make you eager to obey my laws and teachings.[6] Gods Spirit makes us want to come under Gods rulership. Its no longer a duty but a delight to do what he requires.
However, its very clear that everyone does not acknowledge Gods reign. Gods will is not done on earth as it is in heaven. But we do know that one day this will be so, and it may be not as far away as we think. And so we need to see the rule of God as both a present reality and a future hope. There is both a now and not yet dimension to Gods kingdom, and it is this latter aspect, the coming of Gods kingdom in all its fullness, that Jesus now speaks. He tells us several things about this truth.
1. The Coming of Gods Kingdom will be SOUGHT FOR. Jesus said, The time will come when you will long to see the days of the Son of Man, but you wont. This expresses something of the tension between the now and not yet. The Bible has some wonderful pictures of what it will be like when Gods reign is supreme upon the earth. Listen to how Isaiah describes it:
Like a branch that sprouts from a stump, someone from Davids family will some day be kingThis king wont judge by appearances or listen to rumours. The poor and the needy will be treated with fairness and with justice Calves and lions will eat together and be cared for by little childrenLittle children will play near snake holes. They will stick their hands into dens of poisonous snakes and never be hurt. Nothing harmful will take place on the LORDS holy mountain. Just as the waters cover the sea, the land will be filled with people who know and honour the Lord.[7]
When we hear of the killing of innocent victims, millions who are starving, the death of innocent babies, and of the crime and corruption that is rife around the world, one longs for the day when the land will be filled with people who know and honour the LORD. This isnt to mean that we do nothing now. We must do all within our power and resources to alleviate the pain and suffering in this world. Wherever that is done, Gods kingdom is present. Its just a small foretaste of the universal peace and well-being that will come when Jesus returns.
2. The Coming of Gods Kingdom will be CERTAIN. There is no ifs and buts in what Jesus says here. He says, The day of the Son of Man will be like lightningWhen the Son of Man comes Then he speaks about what it was like in the days of Noah and Lot and says, The same will happen on the day when the Son of Man appears. [8] Many of the stories Jesus told, tell of the events that will take place when he returns. When Jesus taught about the troubles ahead for the nation of Israel, and the events that will precede his return he said, Then the Son of Man will be seen, coming in a cloud with great power and glory. When all of this starts happening, stand up straight and be brave. You will soon be set free.[9] And the words the angels spoke to the apostles as they were looking up into the sky following Jesus ascension, Jesus has been taken up into heaven. But he will come back in the same way as you have seen him go.[10] There is no reason to question the truth of these statements. Jesus said numerous times, I will come again. The coming of Gods kingdom is certain. We dont know exactly when it will take place. There will be false alarms, but we know that it will happen, and it will be when Jesus returns.
3. The Coming of Gods Kingdom will be SUDDEN. Jesus said, The day of the Son of Man will be like lightning flashing across the sky.[11] The New International Version expresses more clearly what the original Greek says, For the Son of Man in his day will be like lightning, which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other. This tells us not only that his coming will be sudden and unexpected, but that it will also be public. The Bible says, Look! He is coming with the clouds. Everyone will see him[12] It will be unmistakably clear. Then we, who have put our trust in him, will rejoice and welcome our king.
We usually have no warning when lightning is going to strike. The colour of the sky tells us when lightning is likely, but we cannot know exactly when it will strike. In an instant its there. Jesus coming will be like that. There are signs to look for, and Jesus speaks of these later in his Gospel. But the actual time we cannot know. When the apostles pressed him to tell them when this would happen, he said, You dont need to know the time of those events that only the Father controls. Your task is to tell everyone about me everywhere in the world.[13] We are to be alert for the signs of his coming, but we are not to do as some of the early Christians did, sit around and wait for it to happen. We are to be faithfully, humbly and watchfully doing his kingdoms work of showing his love and telling people about him.
4. The Coming of Gods Kingdom will bring SEPARATION. Jesus tells us that when he returns, it will be just like it was when Noah and Lot were alive. People will be going about their business as usual, ignorant of the fact that his return is immanent. People will be eating and drinking and getting married. They will be buying and selling, planting and building. But when the flood came, and the fiery flames poured down from the sky, Gods judgment took effect and there was a separation of the good from the evil, the righteous from the wicked. The coming of Gods kingdom will bring separation. Jesus said, Not everyone who calls me their Lord will get into the kingdom of heaven. Only the ones who obey my Father in heaven will get in.[14]
Jesus then says, dont go down from the rooftop, or come in from the field to get anything. Remember what happened to Lots wife. Possessions will be of no value whatsoever at that time. We are to lift up our eyes to our coming King! Then he says how two people will be sleeping in the same bed, or two women will be grinding wheat together, and how one will be taken and other left. Theres a word of warning here. The coming of God kingdom will bring separation. Intimacy with a good person doesnt necessarily guarantee our being saved. We cannot come into Gods kingdom on someone elses faith. Faith must be personal, just as Gods judgment is individual. Many families leave it up to just the husband or wife, the mother or father or even one of the children, to take on the church involvement for the family. We cannot discharge our duty to God by proxy or association. And no matter how close two people may be in life, they have no guarantee of the same eternal destiny. One may go to judgment and condemnation, and the other to salvation, reward and blessing. It all depends on who is our king. Whether we find it palatable or not, this is the clear meaning of what Jesus is teaching here.
We must willing to lose our lives for the sake of Gods kingdom.
Jesus closes with the words, Where theres a corpse, therell always be vultures.[15] This means that when the necessary conditions are fulfilled, Gods kingdom will come. We cannot know the time. Its useless to speculate. What we must do is live in a continual state of readiness, for the coming of Gods kingdom is certain, it will be sudden and will bring separation.
As we close, is there a longing in your heart to see Gods kingdom come? Is there a desire to see justice and truth prevail? One day it will happen. Nothing is more certain. The important thing is to be ready. If you have never acknowledged Jesus as your king, why not do so today?
First, you need to ADMIT that you have sinned and fallen short of all God would want you to be, and make a definite decision to turn from all that is evil.
Secondly, you need to BELIEVE that when Jesus died on the cross, he died to pay the penalty for your sins, and to purchase a place in heaven for you which he offers as a free gift.
Thirdly, you must CONFESS him as your Lord, acknowledge him as your King, and tell others so.
If you want to do this, pray this prayer:
Lord Jesus Christ, I know that I am a sinner and do not deserve eternal life. But I believe that you died and gave your life for me and purchased a place in heaven for me. Lord Jesus, come into my life; take control of my life; forgive my sins and save me. I repent of my sins and now place my trust in you for my salvation, and I accept the free gift of eternal life. Amen.
[1] Matthew 20:20ff
[2] Acts 1:6 (All Bible references are from the Contemporary English Version unless otherwise stated.)
[3] John 18:36
[4] Luke 17:20-21
[5] M R Vincent, Word Studies in the New Testament, (Wilmington, DEL; Associated Publishers and Authors, 1972), p. 203.
[6] Ezekiel 36:27
[7] Isaiah 11:1-9
[8] Luke 17:24, 26, 30
[9] Luke 21:27-28
[10] Acts 1:11
[11] Luke 17:24
[12] Revelation 1:7a
[13] Acts 1:6-8
[14] Matthew 7:21
[15] Luke 17:37