Come, Lord Jesus: Mark 13

This morning's sermon comes from Mark chapter 13.

Mark 13 · chapter mention

As we near the end of this sermon series through this gospel, this morning I'm going to ask you to do something maybe a little bit different.

I'm going to ask you to either open your Bible or if you don't have a Bible to take a pew Bible and please turn to page 798 in your pew Bible.

The reason because we did not have enough space to print all of the text.

We have a lot of ground we're going to cover, and it might be helpful to you to be able to look at your Bible.

Mark chapter 13.

Mark 13 · chapter mention

This is called the Olivet Discourse.

It's recorded in all the synoptics, Matthew and Luke, as well as Mark.

Jesus is posed a question and he gives an amazing answer, not only for the disciples of his day, but for us in our day.

Hear the reading of God's word.

And as he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, Look, teacher, what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings.

And Jesus said to him, Do you see these great buildings?

There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.

And as he sat on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately, Tell us, when will these things be?

And what will be the sign when all these things are about to be accomplished?

And Jesus began to say to them, See that no one leads you astray.

Many will come in my name, saying, I am He, and they will lead many astray.

And when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed.

This must take place, but the end is not yet.

For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.

There will be earthquakes in various places, there will be famines.

These are but the beginning of the birth pains.

But be on your guard, for they will deliver you over to councils, and you will be beaten in synagogues, and you will stand before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them.

And the gospel must first be proclaimed to all nations.

And when they bring you to trial and deliver you over, do not be anxious beforehand what you are to say, but say whatever is given you in that hour, for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit.

But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken, and then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory.

And then he will send out the angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.

From the fig tree learn its lesson.

As soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near.

So also when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near at the very gates.

Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.

Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.

Be on guard, keep awake, for you do not know when the time will come.

It is like a man going on a journey when he leaves home and puts his servants in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to stay awake.

Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning, lest he come suddenly and find you asleep.

And what I say to you, I say to all, stay awake.

This is the reading of God's holy, infallible, and errant, and precious word.

May we have ears to hear and minds to understand and hearts to believe.

Father, what ominous words you spoke, Lord Jesus, you spoke to your disciples.

Lord, this is the truth that we need to understand this morning, right here.

This is a truth we need to live by today.

Spirit of God, give us the understanding.

Lord, give us the truth.

Give us the grace to live out these truths.

We pray in Jesus' name.

Amen.

As we said last week, these are the last days of Jesus on earth before his death.

This is his last visit to the temple.

We know that Jesus visited the temple as recorded in the Gospels.

We don't know how many trips to the temple he made, but this is his last one.

The temple, Herod's temple, this glorious temple that had been under construction for over 50 years at this point.

This temple area covered 35 acres.

Now, just for comparison, our property, all of our property here is less than two acres.

Twelve football fields.

It was huge.

But it was not only vast in size, it was glorious in splendor.

He who never saw Herod's edifice has never in his life seen such a beautiful building.

There they are, Jesus and his disciples, and Jesus takes this opportunity to teach a great lesson.

He says, Do you see these great buildings?

There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.

You know, it was said of the columns of the temple that it would take three grown men holding their hands together, holding hands, that would wrap.

It would take three men holding their hands to get around one column.

They were that massive.

They were that heavy.

Some of these stone blocks were 60 feet, 80 feet.

Massive.

Just think how this prophecy struck the ears of his disciples.

Are you serious?

How is this going to come down?

And when?

And so the disciples had a question.

Tell us, Lord, when will these things be?

And what will be the sign when all these things are about to be accomplished?

Those are good questions that pique our interest as well.

Jesus gives his longest recorded teaching in the Gospel of Mark right here.

He goes on to teach and predict two great events.

And I let me just pause.

I know this is a dense passage.

There are many things going on.

And it's not easily understood and it's not easily agreed upon by scholars.

There are different opinions about what he's saying and what all this means.

And so as I have uh as I have struggled in preparation, I think it'll be helpful if I can be as helpful in the 30,000-foot view.

All right?

The 20,000, the 10,000.

We're not going to get down into the weeds this morning.

I don't think that would be as helpful.

But it will be helpful and necessary that you understand the big picture of what's going on in this conversation.

Jesus is predicting two things.

First of all, the destruction of the temple itself, the devastation that would overcome the city of Jerusalem in the year 70 A.D., within the lifetime of these people.

Secondly, he's talking about the end of the world, his second coming.

Alright?

Big picture.

These are the two things that he's speaking about.

Theologians call this prophetic foreshortening.

Let me illustrate.

You've been to mountain ranges, beautiful mountain ranges, where the mountaintops seem to blend together from a distance, appearing to be a single range of mountains.

And yet the closer you get to the first peak of the mountain, you realize the distance to the second peak is further than it appeared to be, right?

We've had that experience.

That's what he's doing.

That's what we see Jesus talking about here.

It's prophetic foreshortening.

He's talking about a vast number of years, but from his perspective and from the perspective of God, it looks like the mountains are close together.

What does Peter say with the Lord?

A thousand years are like a day.

A day is like a thousand years.

And so we're going to focus.

Jesus, first of all, the promises that he makes.

All that Jesus says will come true.

There is no passage in the New Testament that is more scrutinized that challenges Jesus' deity and authority as much as this passage.

We're not going to talk about that today.

That's what we talked about for days in seminary.

We're not going to get into that.

But every word is so carefully observed and analyzed and studied.

These two major events, the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem and the Lord's return, which has not yet happened.

And then, secondly, what the Bible calls the tribulation, that great time of tribulation that has not yet occurred, that is going to happen before Jesus returns, I believe.

Many, most of these things did come true within their generation.

The things that you see in your Bible that we've read, many, most of these things did come true before 70 AD.

And yet they continue to repeat in the course of history.

History is cyclical in some of these respects.

Such as wars and rumors of wars.

When the disciples want to know, well, Jesus, when is all this going to happen?

He says, Well, you're going to have to wait.

How long, O Lord?

You're going to have to wait.

But there's going to be lots of wars that take place among the nations.

And there's going to be rumors of wars.

And there's going to be nations fighting against nations.

There are going to be great earthquakes.

We know within their lifetime the great earthquake in Phrygia in A.D.

61.

There are going to be famines.

Josephus tells us about the famines in the area of during the reign of Claudius the Emperor.

There are going to be cosmic signs.

The comet that was recorded by Josephus in the first century.

This amazing, spectacular comet that really spooked a lot of people.

These are the signs that that generation witnessed.

And then we read what was not printed, but let me read it now.

Beginning in verse 12.

And brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and the children will rise against parents and have them put to death.

And you will be hated by all for my name's sake, but the one who endures to the end will be saved.

But when you see the abomination of desolation standing where he ought not to be, let the reader understand, then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.

Let the one who is on the housetop not go down, nor enter his house to take anything out.

And let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak.

And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days, pray that it may not happen in winter.

For in those days there will be such tribulation as has not been from the beginning of creation that God created until now, and never will be.

And if the Lord had not cut short the days, no human being would be saved.

But for the sake of the elect, whom he chose, he shortened the days.

Look, here is the Christ, some are going to say, false Christs and false prophets will arise and perform signs and wonders to lead astray, if possible, the elect.

But be on guard.

I have told all of you think, all these things beforehand.

It's almost hard to take in.

And yet, this is what we know from history.

Brother will betray brother to death in the first century.

Many of us are very familiar with the great testimonies of the faithful saints of God who gave their life for the sake of Christ because Jesus was their Lord and not Caesar.

Because they refused to bow to Caesar.

Many of these Christians in the Roman area lost their lives.

They were martyred.

We know, we hear stories about these people.

Praise God.

But listen to me.

However, not all professing Christians did.

Many did not.

Many recounted their faith to save their own necks.

Many people who said, I am a follower of Jesus of Nazareth.

When push came to shove and they were being threatened with persecution, they said, Oh, I don't know who he is.

No, I'm not one of his followers.

And then when they would put the screws on him and say, Well, tell us what you do know.

Tell us what you know about this newfound faith of Jesus of Nazarene.

Tell us more about him.

What do you know?

Well, I know my I know my parents are followers.

Really?

Yeah.

I know my kids are followers of Christ.

You might want to go talk to them.

Did you know this happened?

By the thousands, by the thousands, everything that Jesus said came about.

Yes, thank God for the many faithful martyrs in the first century.

But there were many others who buckled.

Kind of raises the question, doesn't it?

What do you think you would do?

Is your faith so precious to you?

Is my faith so precious to me that I would not deny my Lord?

And say, if suffering comes with this, so be it.

I will die for Christ, the one who died for me.

This all happened.

And then in 66 AD, many Jewish zealots revolted against the Roman rule and declared war on Rome.

Can you believe that?

The mighty Roman Empire, they said, we are not going to stand anymore under the rule of Rome.

And they rebelled.

And what ensued in the next three to four years was horrific.

Again, Josephus tells us Josephus at one time was a soldier himself, a Jewish soldier.

He was spared.

He escaped.

Many, most of the people, soldiers he fought with didn't.

Which led to a horrific siege in the Jewish nation.

Many of the Jews, over one million, fled within the walls of Jerusalem and the surrounding area for safety, where eventually they perished.

That's why, to make sense of the language, where Jesus says, when that day comes, flee to the mountains.

What Jesus was saying, don't go into the city.

Don't go within the walls.

There will be no safety within those walls because the Roman government is going to siege this city.

It's going to bring down these walls.

Going to bring down those massive, beautiful stones of the temple.

No, go.

Go out to the country.

Go up to the mountains.

Flee for your life.

And that's what happened.

The temple came down stone by stone.

And the Roman army devastated and desecrated and destroyed not only the buildings but the people.

And yet, that's not the end of this kind of devastation that this world has known.

There is more to come.

The Bible calls it the great tribulation before the return of Christ.

We read about that.

Verse 24.

But in those days after that tribulation, he's talking about this, the great tribulation at the end at this point.

Okay?

He's going back and forth.

Do you understand?

He's giving us the wide angle lens.

He's showing what's going to happen from that time until the end of this world.

We see the macro picture, but then at times he's he's going to the micro.

A close-up.

The close-up of what is what's going to happen between the day he spoke and 70 AD.

The wide angle is still going on today.

Wars and rumors of wars.

Kingdom fighting against kingdom, nation against nation.

People betraying loved ones for fear of punishment.

It still happens.

I'm on a uh page on my uh my phone.

The voice of the martyrs, I get an update every day.

It's just, boy, I read about stories of martyrs today, people who are suffering for Christ around the world.

It's good for my soul to read that people who claim to be followers of Jesus still suffer today in their loyalty to Christ.

So we have these two things, verses, and again, we're not going to get in all the nuances of this, but scholars even disagree.

The period of the great tribulation that Jesus is talking about.

Is it verses 14 to 23?

Some believe that is.

Others believe it's verses 19 to 23.

We're not going to try to settle that debate here.

But I want you to understand the big picture.

Chapter 13, verse 24.

But in those days, after that tribulation.

Oh, do you see what he says?

Look at that.

Look at that.

Verse 24.

The sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.

And then they will.

What's the next word?

See with their own eyes.

The Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory.

And then he will send out the angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.

Spielberg couldn't even dream of something like this.

But it's gonna happen.

Because Jesus makes promises.

And Jesus keeps all of his promises.

It's gonna happen.

You can count on it.

He says in verse 30, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.

Not today.

And we most often do think in terms of that.

And so when Jesus says this generation will not pass away until these things happen, uh some scholars believe that what he's saying is everything in this chapter happens by 70 AD.

I don't personally believe that's what he's saying.

I believe that there is this twofold uh view that Jesus gives.

But some believe that.

But if we don't believe that everything was fulfilled by 70 AD, then how do we explain this generation will not pass away?

Okay, I'm glad you asked.

That little Greek word Ginea, Ginea, oftentimes does refer to a passage of time, 30, 40 years, generation, but it doesn't always.

Sometimes in the scriptures it means a quality or kind of people.

A certain race, a certain group of people will not perish.

And I think it's plausible that what Jesus is saying is he's referring to the Jewish nation itself.

They will not be destroyed, they will not be eliminated from the face of the earth until these things happen.

Now, can we see the plausibility of that?

What nation on the face of the earth has been hunted and dogged and persecuted like the Jewish people?

I don't know.

Historically, right?

Historically.

Nation after nation has tried to destroy the Jewish people.

We're very familiar with World War II, the six million Jews that were destroyed.

We know.

I think he may well have been referring to that.

Verses 20 to 27, many argue is more than a description of the fall of Jerusalem in 70 A.D.

Some one scholar called this what happens at the end when Jesus, before Jesus returns, is a meta-historical event.

That's a good word.

Meta-historical.

Before Jesus returns, this world is going to see events it has never witnessed before.

The scope, the width, the depth.

Like this world is not seen before.

But right on that cusp of that, as those days end, and God's people are protected, and God's people survive, so that the days are short, so that the elect will not be taken.

We read the verse.

And the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.

And then they will see, who's the they?

Well, certainly the people on earth, then.

Will it include us?

They'll leave that in the hands of an all-wise God.

Will we see the Son of Man returning?

And how differently from when he first came.

When he first came in his incarnation, there was one star.

And it wasn't being darkened, it was bright.

One star that guided the magi.

And it was very, it was very subdued, wasn't it?

He wasn't born in a palace.

He was born in a manger.

He had a few shepherds visit him.

There weren't many eyes on him the first time he came.

He came humbly, didn't he?

He came with such humility.

He wasn't making a big deal about it.

But when he comes back, oh, that's going to be different.

He's going to come back in his power.

Everybody's going to know.

The apostle Paul says in Philippians chapter 2, every knee will bow.

Philippians 2 · chapter mention

Every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord.

The people who did not confess before he came with their tongue will by force be compelled to testify.

But it'll be too late.

It'll be too late.

They will be compelled to testify that this is the king.

But for them it'll be too late.

Because now is the day of salvation.

The Bible says.

Now is the time to devote your mind and your heart and your life to following the Lord Jesus Christ.

Not then.

Today.

When Christ returns, men will see, women will see Jesus in all of his glory.

And yet, as Jesus predicted, what do many people do?

Scoff.

You know that was true in his day, and it's still true today.

That's why Peter talks about it in his last epistle, 2 Peter chapter 3.

2 Peter 3 · chapter mention

Listen to these words.

Knowing this, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing.

Are we in the period of the last days?

Yes.

But the scriptures never try to pin that down to a decade, much less a century.

But we are in the last days, meaning that when all is fulfilled for Christ's return, it'll come suddenly.

There will be no more time to prepare.

You're either ready or you're not.

But many are going to scoff.

Following their own sinful desires, they will say, Where is the promise of his coming?

For ever since our fathers fell asleep, all things seem to continue as they were from the beginning of creation.

For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water, and through water by the word of God, and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished.

He's talking about the flood.

But the same, by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and the destruction of the ungodly.

But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years is one day.

The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.

Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, listen to the question.

This is the question.

What sort of people ought you to be?

You feel the force of that?

What kind of people ought you to be in light of these promises that Jesus makes that this day is coming?

He says we should live lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God.

He's right.

He's right.

May the Lord Jesus Christ give you the desire to serve Him.

May the Lord Jesus Christ give you the faith to believe in Him by His Holy Spirit.

Wake up out of your slumber, he says to the church today.

This is real.

This is gonna happen.

Don't live your life otherwise.

Don't live your life like this is just fantasy, that this is just Spielberg, this is just special.

No.

No.

Which brings me to the last point.

Jesus gives us a power by which to live.

He not only makes promises, but he gives us a power by which to live.

Power to suffer well, to endure to the end.

Josephus, again, the Jewish historian, talked about the time in the Roman occupation in 66 to 70 AD.

So many Jews were crucified for their faith that the hills didn't have enough trees for crosses.

Wow.

There were not enough trees in the land to put these Christians on their cross.

Tertullian said in the third century, go on, rack, torture, or ground to powder your people, he's saying to the enemies, to the Christians.

Our members increase in proportion as you mow us down.

The blood of Christians is the harvest seed.

The blood of Christians is the harvest seed.

God's people, many of them, did remain faithful and true.

They didn't fall asleep.

They didn't flake out.

They gave their bodies, they gave their blood because they believed in the promises of Jesus.

This is the history.

Power by which to live.

What are you facing?

What are you facing today in your life that makes you wonder whether you're going to continue to follow Jesus?

That's a fair question.

There's something going on in your life.

Or you're thinking, you know, I'm not sure this is worth it.

Wake up.

Wake up.

The power to wait, to live with hope, which is why Jesus says in verse 23, so be on your guard.

Pay attention.

Verse 33, be on your guard.

Be alert.

Verse 9, be on your guard.

Verse 34, therefore stay awake.

Verse 37, I say to all of you, stay awake.

Are you awake?

Am I awake?

Or are we snoozing?

Just like, you know, I'm not sure this is going to happen.

I'll take my chances.

Really?

You're going to take your chances.

You're going to rely on your authority?

You're going to bank, you're going to bet on yourself.

Or Jesus.

I know, I know me.

I know where my bed is.

You know there's over 300 references to the Lord's return in the New Testament.

Do you catch that?

Three, over 300 references.

It seems as Jesus was always talking about it.

The epistles were always talking about it.

Why?

Because they know how easy it is to fall asleep.

They know how easy it is to say, well, I'm not sure he's coming back, so I'm going to live my life the way I want to live my life.

Really?

Stay awake.

Stay awake.

Stay awake.

Stay alert.

How often do you think about the Lord's return?

How often do I think about the Lord's return?

Once a year?

Once every six months?

Every once in a while I'll think about it?

No! The scriptures are saying think about it every day.

Even so, Lord Jesus, come quickly.

Put an end to this suffering.

Put an end to the evil in this world.

Make all things right.

Make all things new.

Jesus, I can't wait to see what your kingdom is going to look like in its full glory and splendor and power.

Can you taste it?

Can you wait for it?

It's going to be good.

Nobody here who's in Christ is going to regret.

Well, I wish I had a few more years on earth.

Nobody's going to say that.

Nobody's going to say, well, you know, I didn't get to do this.

I didn't get to do that.

Nobody's going to say that.

You're going to say, Lord Jesus, you are more beautiful than I knew.

Your kingdom is more gracious and beautiful than I could possibly understand.

Thank you for keeping your promise.

Now help me to live by the power of your word.

Help me to live by the power of your gospel all the days of my life until you return.

Jesus is the true temple.

That's why that temple could come down.

That wasn't the real temple.

Jesus says, I'm the temple.

Come and to worship me.

Here we are this morning.

We're at the temple because we're with Jesus.

And Jesus is here where two or three are gathered in his name.

We are in the temple.

Jesus is our temple.

He's all we need.

Frankly, he's all we have.

Father, would you please help us believe?

Would you help us believe?

If there's anyone here asleep, wake them up.

If there's anyone here who doesn't believe, give them faith to believe.

Help us all to be on our guard.

Help us all to live every day as though Christ could come back.

And we would be ready.

And we wouldn't apologize for being half-hearted Christians.

And we wouldn't be wasting our life away.

Lord Jesus, show us the beauty.

Show us your beauty.

Show us, give us eyes to see the coming of your kingdom.

Where we will reign with you forever and ever and ever.

Thank you for what you've done.

Thank you for what you're going to do.

Amen.