Sermon Recap — October 18, 2020

Get Ready Because Jesus Is Coming

Chris Patton
Luke 17:20-37
October 18, 2020
Sermon Video/Audio

Luke 17:20–37

[20] Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, “The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, [21] nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.” [22] And he said to the disciples, “The days are coming when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. [23] And they will say to you, ‘Look, there!’ or ‘Look, here!’ Do not go out or follow them. [24] For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day. [25] But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. [26] Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man. [27] They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. [28] Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot—they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, [29] but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all—[30] so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed. [31] On that day, let the one who is on the housetop, with his goods in the house, not come down to take them away, and likewise let the one who is in the field not turn back. [32] Remember Lot’s wife. [33] Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it. [34] I tell you, in that night there will be two in one bed. One will be taken and the other left. [35] There will be two women grinding together. One will be taken and the other left.” [37] And they said to him, “Where, Lord?” He said to them, “Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.” (ESV)

Main Theme: You, I, we all had better get ready, because Jesus, the King, is coming again.

I. Who is coming (verses 20-21)

• In verses 20-21, Luke makes it clear –The returning one of verses 22 to the end of the chapter is none other than the returning King who at His first coming began to usher in the kingdom of God.
• When God’s kingdom comes, Jesus says…. 
  • It’s not going to come in a way that’s it’s immediately apparent anything extraordinary is happening 
    • no pomp
    • No ceremony
    • No fireworks and fanfare.
• Jesus says vs 21 “behold the kingdom of God is in the midst of you” meaning essentially — ‘don’t you realize you are looking at the kingdom of God right now in ME because I am the King who ushers in God’s kingdom?’
• Jesus is the promised Messiah King of the Old Testament.
• He is the One who ushers in God’s kingdom, bringing great blessing to God’s people. 
• He is the king of Kings and the Lord of Lords!
• Yet when He came, most didn’t recognize him as such.
• Jesus’ kingdom was inaugurated at his first coming through His life, death and resurrection–yet the people of Israel missed it. 
• Jesus’ kingdom will be consummated at His second coming.

Reminder: 

• King Jesus is right now on His throne.
• He is reigning supreme.
• And his kingdom is advancing and growing and expanding throughout the world through the preaching and proclamation of the gospel. And it will continue to advance and grow and expand until the day of His return!

II. How Jesus is coming

• Having addressed the Pharisees, Jesus then turned to address his disciples regarding the second coming of the King.
• There is a time coming Jesus says vs.22 when some of you are going to want to see the days of the Son of Man and you are not going to see them.. 

Daniel 7:13–14

[13] “I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. [14] And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed. (ESV)

• Here in vs.22 of our text, Jesus says essentially ‘There is a time coming when you are going to want to see the Son of Man return, you will want to see me return…. and here will be the difficulty… you won’t see me.’
• Knowing that his disciples and we as well so desire to see him Jesus  counsels us in v.23 against following anyone who says ‘I have special, secret,  inside information regarding Jesus’ return…. He is here. Or He is there.’ 
• Verse 24 – Jesus says just as the lightning flashes and it lights up the sky and you can see that lightning all across the sky that is going to be the way it is when Jesus returns. 
• Jesus uses this illustration of lightning to point out that when Jesus returns, His appearing is going to be immediate, instantaneous and sudden.
• It will also be obvious to all, unmistakable to all and observable by all. That is how our King is going to return.
• Yet Jesus also doesn’t fail to point out inverse 25 the before that happens….Before he returns again he’s still going to have to go to the cross. 
• There is a sober tone that pervades this entire narrative.
• Even as Jesus prophesied the future regarding his second coming, He was on his way to Jerusalem. The cross was ever before him. His mission to seek and to save the Lost was ever before him. What A Savior he is. What a King He is that He lay His life down for us so that we could enter into His eternal kingdom.

III. Why We Need To Be Ready

• In verse 26 to the end of our text, Jesus explains why we need to be ready for the Lords return. In short here’s why: when he comes again He is bringing with Him God’s judgment on all who do not believe in Him.
• To make this point, in verses 27-30, Jesus gives two OT illustrations where God’s  judgment fell but the people were unprepared.
  • Illustration #1 – the days of Noah 
  • Illustration #2 – the days of Lot.
• When the Son of Man who is Jesus is revealed, when He returns, when he comes back… -Just as in the days of Noah just as in the days of Lot, at the second coming of Christ many will be living life — business as usual….doing all the things they typically do…going to work, watching the game, drinking their coffee, totally unprepared for the coming judgment of the Lord.
• In verses 32-33, Jesus goes on to underscore for his disciples the importance of individuals considering these things now before it’s too late. He says — “Remember Lot’s wife. Whoever seeks to preserve his life, will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it.”
• In verse 34 — speaking of the day of His return Jesus goes on to say, 

[34] I tell you, in that night there will be two in one bed. One will be taken and the other left. [35] There will be two women grinding together. One will be taken and the other left.” 

Possibly Jesus meant that one person would be taken to glory–the “rapture,” as some Christians call it–while the other is left behind. What seems more likely is that one person will be taken away into judgment, while the other is spared.” — Richard Phillips

• What it seems Jesus is saying — is in the words of Matthew 25 – on the day of His return, he will separate the sheep from the goats….
• He will separate 
  • those who are His from those who are not His..
  • Those who are saved and those who are not saved….
  • Those who are prepared for His coming and those who are not.
• And when Jesus comes…that separation will happen in the blink of an eye…instantaneously. That separation will be final and it will be complete.

Application:

• Application 1: Thank God you are saved
• Application 2: Pray for God to renew your zeal to reach out.

Questions For Discussion/Application:

• Re-read the text, Luke 17:20-37. What initial observations and insights do you have from reading this text?
• Jesus is our King. What kind of king is He? What are His qualities, His characteristics?
• What does it to for you personally and specifically to know that Jesus is on His throne, reigning supreme right now?
• How should we relate to predictions people sometimes make regarding when Christ will return?
• What do the illustrations of the days of Noah and the days of Lot teach us about the coming of Christ?
• How often do you think of the return of Christ?  In what ways can we grow in living in light of Christ’s return?
• Who are some of the people you know who don’t know Christ, that you are praying will come into God’s kingdom?
• Consider taking time to pray, thanking God for the salvation He’s given us. Also take time to pray for the lost.