Mark 13:24-37.                  Watch – Christ is coming!!                                            3/12/17

²⁴ “But in those days, following that distress,

“‘the sun will be darkened,
    and the moon will not give its light;
²⁵ the stars will fall from the sky,
    and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’

²⁶ “At that time people will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. ²⁷ And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens.

²⁸ “Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. ²⁹ Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that it is near, right at the door. ³⁰ Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. ³¹ Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

³² “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. ³³ Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come. ³⁴ It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with their assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch.

³⁵ “Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back—whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. ³⁶ If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. ³⁷ What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’”

Here this morning in this reading God is reaching right into this world of ours today. Here he is seeking to both challenge us and encourage us in the midst of a life that is full of uncertainty and troubles; doubts and complacency.

There is so much going on in life that it is hard to keep up with it all. So much information: so much spin; so much bull-dust. Then there is the constant push to overturn all our old ways of thinking acting and doing things. Things that have been wrong throughout history are now promoted as good and right. Even the very concept of God and his reality is being ridiculed and openly denounced in our society.

Whichever way we turn we are being hemmed in and seemingly crushed. Certainly, the future seems more and more uncertain and dark. Nothing is stable any more. Many are giving up and just living for the moment.

Now many would say that I am being negative and cynical. We need to ‘go with the flow’ and embrace the future. It is all in our hands. And more.

However, when we are prepared to open our eyes and watch carefully we can see that things are far from being as rosy as many would like to think. Also, when we look to God and his Word then we are left in no doubt as to the perilous future that is before us.

God is very clear about the fact that he is coming back to judge the world and then take those who are faithful to join him in his eternal paradise. All who look to him and the help and hope that he extends to us through Jesus Christ will have a sure and certain future in front of them, irrespective.

The point is made here that God and his Word here can be relied on. It will not pass away. When everything else is gone there is only going to be one thing left that can be trusted. We need to hear this point loud and clear, at this time when God’s Word is ridiculed, changed and ignored. The Bible in its entirety is God’s divinely inspired, written and inerrant Word.

No matter what we think, this Word alone stands secure and immovable. Even when churches, and even notable theologians and pastors, change, and wilfully misinterpret it, it does not change. When we think that we can take seriously and believe only that which suits our own way of thinking, this Word in its entirety is still the only truth.

So, no matter what we might think, what God tells is what is right and true; whether it suits our thinking or not. When God say the end will come; the end will come. What he says with regard to whether we get to go to heaven or not it is what he says in his Word that will be the criteria that is used, no matter what we might like to think. He has a lot to say in this regard, that is very clear. So, Be on guard! Be alert!

Here remember that this world is coming to an end sooner or later. Jesus makes it quite clear here that we don’t and won’t know when that will take place, but it will happen. He also tells us here, that the lead up to it will not be very nice. There will be traumatic events take place.

Elsewhere he tells us there will be a great falling away from the Church in the lead up to these things. People will disregard his Word and seek instead what their itching ears want here. There will be many who will get so caught up in the things of this world, that they will take there focus and reliance away from Jesus Christ and the importance of his death on the cross for the forgiveness of sins. In so doing they may very well lose out on that which is most important of all.

Then on that last Day He tells us, he will come in all his glory and he will judge the living and the dead; and he will use his Word, what we have in the Bible, as his criteria in making his judgements. There will be no escaping. Without trust in Jesus Christ and the forgiveness that he has made possible we will be in trouble.

Now, the temptation for us all is to think that we still have time. These major catastrophes are not here yet. The end could be years away. But here we are reminded that we do not know the day or the hour. That also applies to our own personal lives. None of us know how much longer we have here on this earth. We may be dead before this day is out, through an accident or whatever.

So, this then would be our last day; our last change to be ready and certain of our eternal future. We need to Be on guard! Be alert! We do not know when it will be. So, every day; every moment, we must live as if it is our last.

“Therefore, keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back—whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn.  If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping.  What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’”

With all of this in mind then, let us begin this new church year with this sobering reminder. Let each of us continually watch and pray. Let each of us seek God’s help to ever stay close to him; looking to and trusting in him alone. Let us encourage one another to be regular in our worship so that we do not lose sight of the wonders of God in Christ Jesus.

More than anything else we need to be ever surrounded by our Lord Jesus. Yes, remember that we of ourselves are deeply sinful and self-centred, and so cannot make it through life on our own strength and effort. In recognising the absolute unworthiness that we are will ever keep us looking to Jesus and his death on the cross for our hope and our life each and every day. It will stop us from being complacent in our attitude toward our Lord and in our regular gathering in his presence.

Then as we gather week by week here in his presence he will constantly reassure us of the forgiveness of sins that he has won for us so that we can be sure that heaven awaits us. In fact, as we gather at the altar rail he already is joining us to his heavenly banquet and all the host of heaven. In this way we are ever kept mindful of and close to Jesus Christ and the sure hope that he has for us. In this way we are kept ever watchful.

Also, as we gather with him around his Word, we are encouraged to heed all that it says, so that we are kept on our guard and ever alert. In this way he keeps us from getting caught up in complacency and the dangers of being led astray, that are ever before us and around us. It is so easy today to think, just giving a little here and a little there is not going to hurt us. Yet God’s Word clearly tells us that is not the case.

As we are constantly bombarded by so much that seek to take our focus away from the centrality of Jesus, we need to be ever alert. The devil is working hard at the moment turning our focus away from this central message. Even in the churches he is turning our focus to ourselves and what we think and do. Thereby we need to be ever watchful and on our guard.

The end is nigh. We know not when. But we know the dangers of it coming sooner than we might long to think. The signs all around us in our society are not good. And God’s tells us that many will be caught out sleeping, and will lose out altogether. So, watch!

So. listen again to what our Lord tells us here.

Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

 “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come. It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with their assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch.

 “Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back—whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’”

To him be all glory and honour, now and always. AMEN

Pastor Roger Atze

Glandore Underdale Lutheran Parish