More Lessons for Disciples

We have been for some time now actually doing what we just sang about. We've been telling the story of Jesus looking at the gospel accounts of the life of Christ. And we have made our way through his life up to the point where we are within weeks actually literally within days of his arrival in the city of Jerusalem and the last week of his life. We find ourselves in Luke chapter 17 tonight. By the time we get to chapter 19 he will be in Jerusalem. He will have written triumphantly into the city. So we're very close to that final week of our Lord's life. But there is a lot of material in the gospels about the last week of our Lord's life as well. So we'll spend a little bit of time on that. What we are seeing now however is that Jesus is alternating between instruction to his disciples and rebukes and challenges to the Pharisees and the religious leaders of Israel. And I was looking again today at just the kind of the going back and forth of those two things. In Luke 17 for instance in verse 1 Jesus said to his disciples and so he's instructing his disciples then you get done in verse 20 where we were last time and says once on being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come Jesus replied so he speaks to the Pharisees and then verse 22 then he said to his disciples chapter 18 verse 1 he speaks again to his disciples chapter 18 verse 9 he's speaking more to those who are Pharisees those who think they're righteous and look done on everyone else. So there's this kind of going back and forth. Jesus is speaking to two audiences and at times his comments are more directed toward the Pharisees and religious leaders at other times his comments are more directed to his disciples. And so you have to keep that in mind as you go through this part of the gospel record. Last time we were talking about some lessons that Jesus gave to his disciples about the kingdom and actually it begins with speaking to the Pharisees but then he moves quickly into speaking to the disciples from that and we saw that the first lesson about the kingdom was to be submissive. That's where we left off last time. Let me just remind you a little bit of what Jesus is talking about. Verse 20 of Luke 17 the Pharisees are asking when the kingdom of God will come. And remember again they're saying basically we've heard you talk about a kingdom we haven't seen any fruit of that yet we haven't seen anything that looks like a kingdom at least what we think of as a kingdom. So when's it coming? And don't hold us in suspense any longer. And Jesus basically says to them the kingdom of God is not something you're supposed to be spying out snooping around for looking around this corner in that corner saying here it is we think we see clues and evidences of it. This is not a spy game the kingdom of God is in your midst Jesus says. And the kingdom of God is in their midst because the king is in their midst. He is present with them. And so again Jesus basically is pointing to the fact that if they had received the king they would have gotten the kingdom too. Don't look for the kingdom without accepting the king. And so that's the point that Jesus is is making in verses 20 and 21. Then he turns to his disciples in verse 22 and begins to make some very pointed comments and instructions about the kingdom. The lessons about the kingdom now turn more toward the disciples. And Jesus basically is instructing his disciples about how to approach this whole idea and concept of the kingdom. In verses 22 through 25 Jesus says in regard to the kingdom be discerning. Be discerning. Notice what he says in verse 22. Then he said to his disciples the time is coming when you will long to see one of the days of the son of man but you will not see it. What do you think Jesus is referring to there? What time is he talking about? After he's gone. Yeah. He basically is just said to the Pharisees the kingdom of God is in your midst. The king is present. Then he turns to his disciples and say there's going to come a time when you will long to see the king. One of the days of the son of man but you will not see it. And obviously he's talking about when Jesus is gone from them. So once again he's preparing them for his departure. The fact that he's leaving them. So he says there will come days when you will long to see me but I won't be there. Now notice what he says next in verse 23. People will tell you there he is or here he is do not go running off after them. Now again remember the context here is he's talking about the kingdom. He's just told the Pharisees the kingdom of God is not something you snoop around looking for. It's already here and you didn't recognize it. Now he's telling his disciples basically the same thing. When I'm gone you will long to see me but I won't be here. Don't give in to people who say well I think this is the Messiah or that's the Messiah. He's over here he's coming again speaking of the kingdom. I think he's coming back. Here's a clue. Here's a sign. Don't give into that. Be discerning about that. Be understanding of what's going on. Don't try to figure out all the clues and all the little prophetic things that may be taking place and be susceptible to every suggestion of well here he is. No, over there he is. And the way we fall prey to that today a lot of times is well here's a sign. There's a sign that the kingdom is near, that the coming of Christ is near and Jesus is basically saying I'll be discerning about that. Don't listen to all of those kinds of warnings because verse 24 for the Son of Man in his day will be like the lightning which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other. So in other words he's saying you can't miss the second coming. And again he's talking about the second coming when he comes back to set up his kingdom. He says I'm leaving. You're going to be looking for me. I'm not going to be around. I'm leaving but I will come back. I'm going to set up my kingdom. You'll know when that happens. You won't have to listen to anybody saying well I think maybe he's over there or if you go out to the desert we have a special secret meeting tonight. No, he says you're going to know when I come back. The second coming will be very obvious. It will be glorious. In fact the way Jesus describes it like the lightning which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other. So it's going to be like the lightning bolts all across earth at the same time. The whole sky will light up and Jesus will appear shining forth the glory of God in the second coming. You're not going to miss it. You can't miss this. Now that's different from the rapture. If you've been keeping up with the prophecy series we've been doing on Sunday mornings you know that the rapture is more secret. It is quieter. Jesus comes and in a moment those who know him are caught up to meet him in the air and it's over. But the second coming is not like that. The second coming is a gradual descent. Remember what the angels said to the disciples in Acts 1 just as you've seen him go into heaven. He'll come back. So it'll be a gradual descent and it will be glorious and its appearance. Nobody will miss it. Everybody will see it. And that's when he'll come to set up his kingdom. But look at verse 25. But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. So again he's warning his disciples. Be discerning about the plan of God. You will not miss the second coming. But that's not happening right now. I'm going to have to be rejected by this generation. And then I'll be leaving you and you'll be wondering where I am. You won't see me but I will come back. So what he's saying is be discerning about the plan of God and what's going to happen. Understand his plan. And that's what kingdom living is all about by the way. It's being discerning. It's not jumping at every little clue. Here's a sign. There's a sign. He's over here. He's there. I think he's coming back tomorrow. It's going to be next week. It's going to be in 19, whatever or 2013 or you know. Jesus is saying don't go running after all of that. Be discerning about the plan of God. Realize there's a time when I'll be away from you. But I will be coming back and that's all you need to know. Okay. So be discerning about the kingdom. Any question or comment about those verses 22 to 25. Okay. Let's look at verses 26 to 29 where Jesus now says in regard to the kingdom. And this is what it means to be living in light of the kingdom. Be alert. Be alert. Now what Jesus is going to do is he's going to give two examples. Let's read them verses 26 to 29. Just as it was in the days of Noah. So also will it be in the days of the Son of Man. Again, he's talking about the coming of Christ to set up his kingdom. Second coming. Just like it was in the days of Noah. So also will it be in the days of the Son of Man. People were eating, drinking, marrying and being given in marriage up to the day Noah entered the ark. And the flood came and destroyed them all. Okay. That's example one Noah's day. Look at the second example verse 28. It was the same in the days of lot. People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. But the day lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all. Okay. And these two examples. There are there are two things in common with with these examples. What are they? What are the two things that both of these examples have in common? Okay. Eating and drinking, going about their daily lives. Unexpected. Okay. Pardon me? Destruction. Okay. In both cases, Jesus first of all says they were going about life as normal. Just like you indicated, they were eating, drinking, marrying, being given in marriage with lot. He says they were buying, selling, planting, building. Those are the normal activities of life. It's not, Jesus is not indicating anything necessarily sinful about those activities. Obviously there was a lot of sin and violence at both times. And in both cases, the reason why judgment came was because of that. But here he's not describing sinful activity. He's describing normal activity. Life is usual. People buying, selling, doing business, people marrying, being given in marriage. I mean, if there's one thing that indicates you feel like you've got future ahead of you, it's planning for a wedding. You know, nobody wants to think, well, why plan for this wedding? It's not going to happen. Everybody, everybody planning for a wedding counts the days down. We've got so many days till the wedding. And so you always think in terms of we've got plenty of time and you're just planning and getting things together, not thinking about what might happen. This is just life is normal. Eating, drinking, doing business, planning for the future, planning for weddings, those kinds of things. So in both cases, both in Noah's day and in a lot's day, people were just going about business as usual. Life as normal. So that's one thing that those two examples have in common. And somebody mentioned the other thing too. What's the second thing that these two have in common? Destruction? Okay, go a little further with that. What kind of destruction? Sudden. Sudden, unexpected, cataclysmic destruction. People going about life is normal, not suspecting anything. And then all of a sudden, boom. Destruction comes quickly, suddenly. They had no clue. I mean, if they'd been alert, they would have had clues, right? In Noah's day, what could have been their clue? The ark. I mean, a pretty good visual symbol there. What was going to happen? And Noah's preaching, right? Noah preached for 120 years, the Bible says. So they could, if they'd been alert, they could have known, but because life as normal kept them preoccupied, they were not ready. Same thing with a lot. How could people have known in lots of day in the city of Sodom that something wasn't right? If they'd been alert. All the sin. Angels came, visited there. Yeah. We don't know all that happened with that except that's when things kind of came to a head with the sin problem there. Who was living among them? Lot. Okay. Now, most of the time we think of in terms of lot, compromising his testimony. And there's plenty of indication that he did, at least his family ended up being corrupted. But Peter has something to say about lot. He says his righteous soul was vexed daily with what he saw around him. I think there may have been some, at least initially, some protests on the part of a lot, maybe some warnings, maybe some, you know, there was something he knew it wasn't right. And there was a righteous person living in their midst. And so they could have had, although it's a little more sketchy than obviously with Noah, they could have had some warning. So the problem is living life as normal, just business as usual. And then all of a sudden, sudden, cataclysmic judgment that you could have anticipated if you had been alert. But because they were not alert, they were not ready. And what Jesus is saying, it's going to be the same way at the second coming, same way at the second coming. The church will be gone at the second coming. They will have already gone at the rapture. But that leads right to where I wanted to go next. So thanks. It's a great segue into where I want to go. What will be the opportunities for people during the tribulation to know that judgment is coming or that they need to be ready? What will be the warnings they could have? Preaching? Who's going to be preaching? Messages from heaven, okay? 144,000 will be preaching. Those sealed servants of God, Jewish evangelists that the Antichrist can't touch. According to Revelation 7, he can't harm them. And so no matter what he does, they will continue to spread their message across the world. And Revelation 7 says it because of their witness people from every tribe and language and people group, every nationality on earth will be saved. So there's plenty of warning. Do you remember a couple of other people who give warnings? To the two men, the two witnesses? Yeah. Two witnesses in Revelation 11 that are preaching daily at the temple wall, the wall of temple in Jerusalem. And so there are plenty of warnings. And even the record of Scripture, if people are alert, they would know what's coming. But Jesus says it will be the same way at the second. And so there's a lot of things that are amazing enough in spite of the rapture and all the preaching that will be going on. The majority of people will still just go about businesses usual. There's a lot of cataclysmic judgment in the tribulation. Businesses usual, planning weddings, doing commerce, going to work every day. And suddenly Christ will come back. That's his point here. So kingdom living, Jesus says, is being alert. Being alert to what God is saying. And of course today through his word, that's living in his kingdom. Being alert to what God is saying. Okay. That's a great point, Gene. Why is he talking to the disciples when they're not going to be here for these things? You find a lot of times in the gospels that Jesus speaks to the disciples as though they are representatives of the nation of Israel. Even the future nation of Israel. And so he's speaking to them, but obviously knowing that it will be recorded for the future generations, they are the representatives of those future Jews. And so he's speaking in a sense almost through them to the future. But the fact that he's speaking to the disciples this way indicates that he's talking about Israel. He's talking to Jews. Exactly. Yeah. Heaven and Earth have passed away, but my word will not pass away, he said. It is recorded. Okay. Any other comments or questions about this concept of being alert? All right. Look at verses 30 to 33 in regard to the kingdom. Jesus also is teaching his disciples. Be prepared. Be prepared. Look at verse 30. It will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed. Okay. So there's the point that we've been talking about just like this second coming. Verse 31. On that day, no one who is on the house top with possessions inside should go down to get them. Likewise, no one in the field should go back for anything. Remember lots wife. Okay. What Jesus is doing is giving some illustrations here of unpreparedness of people who are not prepared. Jesus comes back and someone says, Oh, I wouldn't ready for this. I got to go get a few things at the house first. Could you wait a few minutes? I'm going to go take care of some unfinished business. It's almost as though the mindset is why would you come today when I've got stuff to do? Don't interrupt my life with the second coming. Now that seems very bold, but that's really the attitude. God don't interrupt my life with your plan and program. That's stuff to do here. Okay. That's the attitude really. Jesus says on that day, don't even think about going back to the house to get stuff that you weren't prepared for. Don't even think about unfinished business in the field going back for anything that you didn't get done. Don't even think about that. And then he gives this vivid example from the Old Testament. Remember lots wife. Tell me a little bit about lots wife. What happened to her? She looked back. Okay. What was happening when she looked back? What was going on? Destruction. Sodom was being destroyed. God was sending raining down fire out of heaven to destroy that city. And what did she do? She looked back then. And obviously longing to be back there. I don't know if she had a dress on a layaway at Belks that she hadn't picked up yet. Maybe that was it. And you know, I'm going to miss that dress. You know, I wish I could get that out before. I mean, isn't that what Jesus is talking about here when Jesus comes back? Don't think about going back to get anything in the house or leaving the field to go back and get. Well, evidently she had some unfinished business that she wanted to take care of and couldn't do it. And so she's prime example of not being prepared. Not being prepared. Now, those are examples of unpreparedness. Here's the principle of preparedness of being prepared in verse 33. Look at what Jesus says. Whoever tries to keep their life will lose it. And whoever loses their life will preserve it. The attitudes we've just talked about. Lord, don't this is not a good time for the second coming. I've got things to do. I've got business to finish. I've got things I want to do in my life that I haven't gotten to do yet. What does that attitude show about someone's spiritual condition? I heard heard something's worldly, okay? Worldly. Yeah. Focus upon stuff here, this world. Attaching no importance to salvation. Yeah. The kind of attitudes that lots, wife demonstrates and that Jesus gives these examples of. No, not now for the second coming. I got stuff left to do at home or I got to go take care of this first. That shows that the stuff of this world has got its grip on you. And what Jesus is saying in verse 33 is this is the way a true disciple should live. If you try to keep your life, you'll lose it. In other words, if you try to build hedges around your life to protect yourself and in the context you're talking about with the stuff of this world. If you think that you can keep your life, guard your life, fulfill your life, find real meaning and purpose in life by getting all the stuff of this world and surrounding yourself with it. If you think that's what life is really all about, then you're going to lose that kind of life because the second coming, none of that's going to matter. It's all going to vanish. Whoever loses their life will preserve it. It's hard to know about lots of wife. Whether or not she was just following her husband, you know, just she didn't want to go. Obviously her heart was back inside of her. Why she left. I don't know whether she really believed that that judgment was coming, but her heart was still back there. It's hard to know. You know, it may be a lot just. Yeah, maybe a lot was very persuasive and said, I'm out of here and you're coming with me. Yeah. Yeah. The angels were very clear with lot about what was happening. A lot new. And he was to gather his family. Remember, he sought to get his whole family together to go and was successful with some and unsuccessful with others. And evidently his wife did not fully buy into what and I think you're right. Had a lack of faith in the message it got had had sent to her husband lot. But I think this is the point with Jesus saying saving your life and losing it. If you lose your life, you save it. It's something we're familiar with in the gospels. It doesn't necessarily mean you have to abandon everything in your life. Jesus is not saying that what he is saying is that when you when you feel that guarding your life or building your life or finding meaning fulfillment in life is really built around the stuff of this world. And you're trying to hang on to your life. And when you try to hang on to your life, actually the stuff you build around yourself to do that ends up clutching you and putting you in bondage. And Jesus is saying it's really a heart attitude. He's not saying give it all away, get rid of it all. What he's saying basically is whatever I give you, that's not your life. Whatever I allow you to enjoy, that's not your life. Hold it loosely. Don't try to save your life. In other words, the idea behind save is to build a head around. Don't try to build a head around to protect your life with all the stuff of this world. Whatever God gives you, there's nothing wrong with that. That's fine. But hold it lightly if he sees fit to take it away. That's not what your life's about anyway. If God gives you enjoyment, that's wonderful. No problem with that. Don't make that your life. If that's what your life is all about, then it's got its clutches in you. That's what you live for. Whatever God gives us, hold loosely. It's his if he wants to bless us with more of it, that's fine. If he wants to take it all away, that's fine because that's not what life is about anyway. So I think that's what Jesus is getting at here. Be prepared. Be prepared. And the attitude of preparedness, you are prepared for the Lord's coming. If when he comes, you're ready to leave all this behind anyway, because it doesn't have its clutches in you. See, that's not what your life is all about. Oh, you may enjoy whatever is given you, but it's not what your life is about. You're not saving your life. You're not protecting and putting your head around your life with all that stuff. If he takes it all away, so what? So what? And if he comes back, so what? I'm ready to leave all this behind because life is really where he is. And that's what he's saying. And then one other thing he will talk about in regard to kingdom living, a kingdom mindset. And that is, if you're going to be ready for my kingdom, you've got to be zealous. Got to be zealous. Now, let me kind of build up to this from what he says here in verses 34 through 37. He says, I tell you on that night, two people will be in one bed. One will be taken the other left. Two women will be grinding grain together. One will be taken the other left. And then you may have a textual note here verse 36 basically says two men will be in the field, one will be taken one left. No, not the rapture. Sounds like it, but it's not. This is talking about the second coming. Let's remind ourselves of the difference between the rapture and second coming at the rapture. Who's going to be taken and who's going to be left at the rapture now? Who's going to be taken? The saved are taken, right? We are caught up. We're taking who's left? Unbelievers. At the second coming. It flip flops. Because the example in the second coming, whenever Jesus talks about this, the example is what happened in Noah's day. The people who are taken are taken away in judgment. The people who are left, like Noah, left to populate the earth. The people who are left are the people who are left to go into the kingdom. At the second coming, it's the unbelievers that are taken and the believers that are left. Right, people that will become believers after the rapture. Like Revelation 7 says, as a result of the testimony of 144,000, and the people who are left to populate the earth, go into the kingdom. The ones who are taken are snatched away in judgment. That's what Jesus is talking about here. This is the second coming because he's talking about when he comes back in glory, lightning bolts, the whole deal that we've seen here in the context. Nobody misses it. This is the second coming. The people who are taken are taken away in judgment, just like in Noah's day. Just like what happened with Noah. Now, there are three groups of people mentioned here. First is family, two people in one bed that would indicate family, two women grinding grain together, that probably is friends, and then two men working in the field, co-workers. What Jesus is doing is touching on different kinds of relationships. Let's apply it to us again. I don't want to confuse you here, but this is second coming. In a sense, the same thing happens with the rapture. It's just reversed. We're going to be the ones that are taken in the rapture, but it will be the same kind of situation. Will there be family members that will be left behind when you're taken? Will there be friends? Will there be co-workers? That will be left behind when you're taken? That's something to think about. What Jesus is saying is disciples asked the question. First, let's finish this thought in verse 37. Where, Lord, they asked, he replied, where there is a dead body, there the vultures will gather. Now, that's a kind of a cryptic statement, but it would have been obvious to them in their culture. When you see vultures, you know there's a dead body. Death brings the vultures. What is it that brings the judgment at the second coming? It is people who are spiritually dead. Where is it that one will be taken away in judgment, wherever there is death, wherever there is spiritually dead people, those are the people that are taken away. That's where people are taken away. So, the point is this, those who are taken away in judgment are spiritually dead, unprepared for the coming of Christ. Now, I think what Jesus is saying is if you really want to live in my kingdom, if you really want to know my kingdom is about, get busy with your family, your friends and your co-workers to share with them the gospel so that when Jesus comes, they're ready. They're ready. Be zealous for the lost. That's what he's saying. Be zealous for the lost. Where is this going to happen, wherever dead people are, spiritually dead people, that's where the snatching away is going to happen. That's where the judgment happens. Pardon me? Where are they going to be? They will be gathered for judgments, for instance Matthew 25 talks about the judgment of Israel. Christ will gather at his second coming, he'll gather the nation of Israel from all over the world, and Ezekiel 20 talks about he will purge out the rebels. They will actually go through a judgment in the land of Israel. And then all the Gentile nations will be gathered. That's the sheep and goat judgment in Matthew 25, and he'll say to the sheep on his right, enter into the kingdom, prepared for you by my father. To the goats depart you into everlasting fire. They will be sent to hell. Those who are judged who are not saved at the end of the tribulation will be sent to hell, there to await the great white throne judgment. So the believers will be ushered into the kingdom, unbelievers will be sent to hell at this judgment, at the second coming. Okay. Jesus is talking about being prepared for the kingdom. I'm sorry I'm having a little trouble with my hearing. I didn't catch all of that, Jim. I'm sorry. Yes. Yes. Yes. Different from the second coming. Yeah. Yeah. A good point. That's exactly right. At the rapture believers will be gone. So there's no immediate contact with the people that are left behind. Second coming. It's different. People are gathered for judgment. Yeah. You're talking about the rapture now. Okay. It's difficult to know some may. Some some will not obviously. You think they would and maybe many will. Maybe that's one of the reasons why many will believe or at least be ready for the message or look out. Look to the scriptures and be saved because of reading scriptures. There are a couple things going on here that I'm not sure I want to get into. Yeah. That's one of the things I didn't want to get into. That's fine. That's fine. Well, the battle of Armageddon is at the end of the tribulation at the second coming. When Jesus comes at the second coming, that's when the battle of Armageddon takes place. Now the rapture at the rapture. There will be. Well, we don't know exactly how the Antichrist will spin the rapture. If you if you've read the left behind books, there's a lot of conjecture in that, although they're based on biblical prophecy, Tim Lehigh, prophetic scholar, basically laid out the prophecy stuff. Jerry Jenkins then wrote the novel. And Lehigh is a reputable, reputable prophetic scholar. And so there's a lot of a lot of truth to what those books are built on. But we don't know how the Antichrist will spin the rapture. In those books, there is there is a good explanation offered by the Antichrist. It's been as long as I read them. I can't remember what it is now, but it was a good one. But he will spin it somehow to make it look like some kind of disappearance of some kind, you know, ecological or military or something. And a lot of people will believe the lie of the Antichrist. The other thing that's going on here, we got to go. It's after eight o'clock. We got to go. But the other thing that's going on is determined by how you interpret second Thessalonians, too. Will people who've had a chance to hear the gospel before the rapture have a chance after the rapture to be saved. I used to teach and preach they would not. And then I studied that passage a little more carefully. And that's not really what it says. It basically says that those who believe the lie of the Antichrist will be condemned and their hearts will be hardened by the Lord. And so it could be there will be people who've heard the gospel before the rapture who will be saved afterwards. The difficulty in saying that is that people think, oh, okay, I'll have a chance. I'll have a second chance. No one knows what all is going to happen in the rapture. Maybe you'll be on one of those airplanes and not have a chance. And nobody knows whether when the rapture is going to take place. And if you'll live that long. So it's obviously very foolish to bank on that. And then you're right. Pardon me? Through the tribulation anyway. Yeah. Yeah. Well, if we don't close up, we're going to have another tribulation of little hoot them running through the church. So we better close. Let's close in prayer. Thank you, Father, for your word. Thank you for the instruction and warnings of our Lord in regard to his kingdom and his coming and being prepared, being alert to what's happening around us. Pray that you would help us not to jump at every indication or suggestion of a sign. But Lord, help us to be alert prepared to be ready spiritually to be zealous and trying to reach other people with the gospel and help us to be ready for whenever you do come back. We pray in Jesus name. Amen.