S. Last Sunday.09 “Signs for You” Mark 13:24-37

The disciples had lots of questions for Jesus, about the end of the world, the destruction of their prized temple in Jerusalem. On this, the Last Sunday of the church year, we have the same questions: what will the signs of the end be, how can we recognize them, how far off is it, and what do the signs mean for us?

Best probably just to work through them. Jesus has already given many signs to us: rise and fall of kingdoms, natural disasters, persecution of the church, universal proclamation of the gospel, false prophets deceiving many, etc. He says these things will all happen, but the End is not yet. But, He says: “in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars of heaven will fall, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds with great power and glory. And then He will send His angels, and gather together His elect from the four winds, from the farthest part of earth to the farthest part of heaven.” And what does that mean, exactly?

Well, I think you have to keep reading a few more verses and see what He says about these signs. He says it’s like the fig tree: when its branch is ripe, and puts forth leaves, you know summer is near. So you also when you see all these things happening, know that it is near—at the doors! And He says “Truly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place…”

So all of this, the sun darkened, and the moon, the stars of heaven falling, the powers of heaven shaken, and the sight of the Son of Man coming on the clouds with great power and glory and His elect being gathered from the ends of heaven and earth by His angels, all will happen before the generation hearing Jesus, that is the apostles’ generation has passed away.

And most people go, “Huh? How can that be? The apostles and their generation were gone by 100 A.D. And Jesus hasn’t come in this way, or sent angels to gather the elect—that’s end of the world stuff and the world is still going on just as always!” And I say “Are you so sure Jesus hasn’t been seen coming this way, and that the angels haven’t been gathering all the elect and maybe we just didn’t notice?”

Jesus means what He says. The generation of people then living did not pass away before all these things happened. If you read the Scripture closely, you will see that all these things in fact happened already and keep happening today. The End is indeed quite near.

Let’s start with the great tribulation. In the verses of this discourse which we skipped, Jesus says when we see the abomination of desolation we know the tribulation is happening, fearsome days, indeed, that were cut short so we could survive them. The abomination of desolation is simply God’s Son crucified on a cross for the world’s sin, the guiltless for all the guilty, the Holy and Eternal One dying for the lost and straying sheep. That’s the great tribulation. That’s the end of the world, when God dies for our sin.

And what do the Gospels say happened on that day? Well, they say the sun did not give its light, but there was darkness on all the earth from noon till three that Friday afternoon. And there were earthquakes and the powers of heaven were shaken as the temple veil was torn in two from top to bottom, the rocks were split, the graves opened and the saints raised to life. Peter reminded the crowd at Pentecost that all the signs Joel mentioned in the sun, moon, and stars happened in their days! Sun darkened, moon turned to blood, stars falling, powers of heaven shaken? Check. Done on Good Friday and the 49 days that followed.

Oh, and was Jesus seen coming with glory from heaven as He said? Again, yes indeed! Ever read the story of Stephen the martyr? As he was being tried, he gazed into heaven, saw the glory of God and said: “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” Now, he was killed for mentioning it. But what faithful Stephen saw was there for all to see: Jesus revealed in power, just as He said, in the clouds, gloriously. Another sign checked off within a few months of Jesus speaking these words, well within the lifespan of “that generation”.

But what about the angels gathering the elect from the corners of heaven and earth? Has that happened? Well, if you knew a little Greek you would know the Greek word here translated as “angels” is aggelouV which actually means “messengers” and you would notice that the pastors of the New Testament are sometimes called aggelouV  or messengers. The messengers of heaven have, in fact, been gathering the elect through the preaching of the Gospel, and one of them, St. Paul reports around 60 A.D. that the Gospel which gathers the elect was preached to every creature under heaven (Col. 1:23). So yes, the elect have been gathered by the divinely sent messengers from all corners of the earth and heaven. Check.

And these things still happen. Our world is still in deep darkness and the natural light of the sun doesn’t give the light by which we truly see. The powers and principalities of heaven, the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places St. Paul spoke of in Ephesians are still being rattled and shaken by the Gospel of Christ and they are falling down. And the faithful martyrs, those who lose life for Christ’s sake still see heaven opened and Jesus coming for them, like He did for Stephen, with great power and glory, and they are still forgiving their persecutors like Stephen.

In short, the world is still a mess, and Christ is still gathering His elect by His Gospel messengers, as in the first century, so still in the twenty-first, and when you see this happening, as it is happening right here, right now, you know that it is near—the Summer of Christ right here at our door! And no generation passes away till all these things take place. Heaven and earth are passing away, but these words of Christ endure forever.

These are signs for you, not to help you predict the End, because no one knows the day or hour of the End! The signs are to show you first that Christ is always near, and second, to show you what is the real treasure in your life.

Our hearts are always where our treasure is. When Christ Jesus is our one true treasure, we are watching for Him always, knowing that when we see Him, we will be like Him. Now, the signs of trouble and end times will frighten those whose treasure is ultimately in stocks, bonds, savings accounts, promotions, and all the games (video and otherwise) that people play—the signs are scary for them. But those who have Christ as their true treasure see the signs with joy, because they mean our Redeemer is near.

Jesus is the Master gone to a far country, who left His house and gave authority to His servants and commanded us to watch for Him. By Gospel Word and Sacrament, as the Spirit’s gift, we watch for Him always, waking or sleeping, by faith alone. And this vision of Christ, given to the eyes of all the faithful, like Stephen, is a clear vision of how all the trials and turmoil of this life only bring us closer to Jesus the Christ.

So I see, in the midst of winter that summer is near, and watch with a Peace that surpasses understanding, guarding heart and mind in Christ Jesus, the Beginning and End. Amen.

 

 

Pastor Kevin Martin