Second Last Sunday in church year 11/19/06 Text:Mark 13:24-31 Title: Waiting for the Messiah
Second Last Sunday in church year
11/19/06
Text: Mark 13:24-31
Title: Waiting for the Messiah
I want you to imagine for a moment a young couple sitting together in a candlelit restaurant. Soft music is playing in the background. They are obviously in love with each other. Throughout the meal they lean toward each other, whispering sweet nothings, oblivious to all that is going on around them. Their attention is only on each other.
They are lost in each other, that is until a certain song is played over the restaurant’s speaker system. They suddenly stop what they are doing, to listen, only to exclaim in unison, “It’s our song!”
Some of you might remember times like that, for all of us have experienced the effectiveness of music. Music is powerful, for it brings out our most inner emotions and memories. For some reason music has the ability to tap into the very depths of our souls and transport us back to some previous time in our life.
We are able to experience a past event as the very feelings we felt then wash over us. I know that well, for there is a piece of music that was played at my dad’s committal service, that every time I hear it, I instantly find myself standing at my dad’s grave with my hand resting on his casket, a powerful and moving experience.
The same thing holds true for words, for they too can take us back in time as they create images, deeply moving images, in our minds. Our Gospel reading for today takes us back to a different time and place, while at the same time it takes us forward into the future. And in doing so it makes it possible for us experience fresh and new the feelings of awe and wonder that the first followers of Jesus felt.
This is an important function of the New Testament, but it is particularly important during the approaching season of Advent, for Advent begins the Christian year. We start at the beginning and are able to follow the entire story from start to finish. As with all journeys, the better the start, the better the finish.
The journey we will take through Advent, especially in the Wednesday afternoon and evening services will provide us with, what I hope will be many opportunities to experience the feelings, longings and aspirations that we share with the people of old. But enough of my plug for attending our congregations Advent services. Oh, I almost forgot there will be dessert served after every service.
Biblical scholars refer to Mark 13 as the “Little Apocalypse.” The word “apocalypse” means “unveiling,” or the “uncovering”, of what had been previously hidden. In the New Testament this great “unveiling” is the revealing of Jesus as the Messiah.
Chapter 13 is called the “little apocalypse” because it deals briefly and compactly with Revelation. It is the Readers Digest version of Revelation, probably something that the home Bible study on Revelation would have liked to have known, before they spent a year studying Revelation. One thing is very clear in this chapter Jesus is taking a break, so to speak, on the eve of his death and is offering insights into the near future and the far future.
Mark’s description of the future is vivid, for apocalyptic visions are often characterized by dramatic changes in the heavens. Listen to Jesus’ words as he describes a time in the future when “the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light.” All ending with the return of the Son of Man, that is Jesus Christ, “coming in clouds with great power and glory.”
Now the question everyone wants to know, ever since the fall from God’s grace in the Garden has been, “when will these things take place.” Unfortunately Jesus does not answer this question. The time of the fulfillment of history remains a mystery. “But about that day or hour no one knows.”
We think that it would have been good if Jesus would have told us the date, but Jesus in his wisdom chose not to reveal it, for he knows our little black hearts. He knows how we would behave. And because he knows us, he does not tell us, for our own good. That leaves us with only one option and that is to be constantly on watch.
You say, you really do not think about Jesus ‘return, that it is not that important. Jesus does not agree with that way of thinking, for he tells us to, “Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come.” What he is saying is that it critical for you to watch for his return, to do anything else is to be flirting with eternal death, for when Jesus comes back there is no second chance.
The hope of the Second Coming has been the teaching of the church from the time Jesus spoke these words right down to our present day. We are to be waiting and watching, for we do not know when the end will come.
In times of distress and fear, like the hurricane we all experienced, or the tornado that the folks in the Sumrall area experienced a few days ago, we have from time to time believed the end to be imminent. At other times, when life is good, the Judgment Day seems so far off in the distant that we do not even think about it.
Oh, we believe that it will happen sooner or later, but not in our lifetime, so we go merrily along living our lives as we want to live them, instead of the way God wants us to live them.
The event Mark 13 and the book of Revelation talks about, is generally referred as the second coming of Jesus. Jesus came the first time, what we call the first Advent, as an infant. The next time he comes it will be as a glorious cloud-riding Son of Man, our King.
The New Testament tells us that this second coming is our “the blessed hope.” It is the assurance that what God began to do in creation will ultimately be completed by Jesus at the end of time. It will be the restoration of things back to the way it was in the Garden of Eden, but even better. God’s kingdom will be complete.
As you read through the Old Testament you start to see that the people of Israel waited for centuries for the Messiah to appear; the first Advent. The Psalmists and the prophets painted through their words almost unbelievable visions of hope and longing.
Then suddenly God arrived as the God-man Jesus. He was born as a helpless baby, completely dependent on his mother. He had to learn how to talk, crawl and then walk. He played, he cried, he suffered, and during the time he walked the earth, he spoke incredible words, and performed amazing deeds. Then, just as suddenly as he arrived, he was gone. At least that is what the world thought.
Jesus’ entire ministry only lasted about three years. In the end he was betrayed, arrested, crucified and buried. But, the story did not end there, for he did not stay in the grave. Witnesses reported seeing him alive. The gospel record tells us that he ascended into heaven with a promise that one day he would return in same matter.
Now it was not some spiritual Jesus, as some like to think, that arose from the grave and then ascended into heaven. It was the glorified human Jesus, the restorer of our souls and bodies.
Now we are back to waiting. We are in the same place the people of Israel were for all those long centuries. We are waiting for our Messiah to come. We are waiting for promises to be kept. We are waiting for a resolution to life’s many dilemmas. We are waiting for the fulfillment of history.
Fortunately, we have some excellent instruction on what form our waiting should take. We have access to the waiting and the longings expressed in the Old Testament. We also have the New Testament witness to the expected coming of the Messiah. We are now like people of old. We are waiting for the promised fulfillment of history.
That’s why, as we close out the church year and then start our journey through Advent, we will be studying passages that create images of the second coming. It is my prayer that what we are doing today and through Advent, is going to create in each one of you the same kind of anticipation that the people of Israel likely felt as they waited for the Messiah the first time.
Put away the distractions of the commercial celebration of Christmas and let the Holy Spirit lead you in the coming weeks, so that you will feel those same longings and anticipation that they did, for it is only then that you will truly know what it feels like to hopefully waiting for the Messiah to come.
This coming season of Advent is to be for us like the couple in the restaurant that I mentioned earlier. We are just going along, doing our thing, enjoying life, when all of a sudden we hear the words of Mark and they are our song. In its melody and the lyrics we hear and see not only the past, but the promise of the blessed hope of the return of the Messiah. And in doing so we feel our own hope kindled.
Just like our brothers and sisters of faith throughout history, we are waiting for Jesus’ return, his physical return when he will raise up all those who have died in the faith to be with him in the new heaven and earth.
Dig deep into those longings. Let those feelings of anticipation and hope build up in you as you pause, ponder and then prepare for the Lord’s coming. If you can let that happen between now and Christmas Eve you will be ready to sing, “Joy to the world, the Lord has come!” Amen
11/19/06
Text: Mark 13:24-31
Title: Waiting for the Messiah
I want you to imagine for a moment a young couple sitting together in a candlelit restaurant. Soft music is playing in the background. They are obviously in love with each other. Throughout the meal they lean toward each other, whispering sweet nothings, oblivious to all that is going on around them. Their attention is only on each other.
They are lost in each other, that is until a certain song is played over the restaurant’s speaker system. They suddenly stop what they are doing, to listen, only to exclaim in unison, “It’s our song!”
Some of you might remember times like that, for all of us have experienced the effectiveness of music. Music is powerful, for it brings out our most inner emotions and memories. For some reason music has the ability to tap into the very depths of our souls and transport us back to some previous time in our life.
We are able to experience a past event as the very feelings we felt then wash over us. I know that well, for there is a piece of music that was played at my dad’s committal service, that every time I hear it, I instantly find myself standing at my dad’s grave with my hand resting on his casket, a powerful and moving experience.
The same thing holds true for words, for they too can take us back in time as they create images, deeply moving images, in our minds. Our Gospel reading for today takes us back to a different time and place, while at the same time it takes us forward into the future. And in doing so it makes it possible for us experience fresh and new the feelings of awe and wonder that the first followers of Jesus felt.
This is an important function of the New Testament, but it is particularly important during the approaching season of Advent, for Advent begins the Christian year. We start at the beginning and are able to follow the entire story from start to finish. As with all journeys, the better the start, the better the finish.
The journey we will take through Advent, especially in the Wednesday afternoon and evening services will provide us with, what I hope will be many opportunities to experience the feelings, longings and aspirations that we share with the people of old. But enough of my plug for attending our congregations Advent services. Oh, I almost forgot there will be dessert served after every service.
Biblical scholars refer to Mark 13 as the “Little Apocalypse.” The word “apocalypse” means “unveiling,” or the “uncovering”, of what had been previously hidden. In the New Testament this great “unveiling” is the revealing of Jesus as the Messiah.
Chapter 13 is called the “little apocalypse” because it deals briefly and compactly with Revelation. It is the Readers Digest version of Revelation, probably something that the home Bible study on Revelation would have liked to have known, before they spent a year studying Revelation. One thing is very clear in this chapter Jesus is taking a break, so to speak, on the eve of his death and is offering insights into the near future and the far future.
Mark’s description of the future is vivid, for apocalyptic visions are often characterized by dramatic changes in the heavens. Listen to Jesus’ words as he describes a time in the future when “the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light.” All ending with the return of the Son of Man, that is Jesus Christ, “coming in clouds with great power and glory.”
Now the question everyone wants to know, ever since the fall from God’s grace in the Garden has been, “when will these things take place.” Unfortunately Jesus does not answer this question. The time of the fulfillment of history remains a mystery. “But about that day or hour no one knows.”
We think that it would have been good if Jesus would have told us the date, but Jesus in his wisdom chose not to reveal it, for he knows our little black hearts. He knows how we would behave. And because he knows us, he does not tell us, for our own good. That leaves us with only one option and that is to be constantly on watch.
You say, you really do not think about Jesus ‘return, that it is not that important. Jesus does not agree with that way of thinking, for he tells us to, “Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come.” What he is saying is that it critical for you to watch for his return, to do anything else is to be flirting with eternal death, for when Jesus comes back there is no second chance.
The hope of the Second Coming has been the teaching of the church from the time Jesus spoke these words right down to our present day. We are to be waiting and watching, for we do not know when the end will come.
In times of distress and fear, like the hurricane we all experienced, or the tornado that the folks in the Sumrall area experienced a few days ago, we have from time to time believed the end to be imminent. At other times, when life is good, the Judgment Day seems so far off in the distant that we do not even think about it.
Oh, we believe that it will happen sooner or later, but not in our lifetime, so we go merrily along living our lives as we want to live them, instead of the way God wants us to live them.
The event Mark 13 and the book of Revelation talks about, is generally referred as the second coming of Jesus. Jesus came the first time, what we call the first Advent, as an infant. The next time he comes it will be as a glorious cloud-riding Son of Man, our King.
The New Testament tells us that this second coming is our “the blessed hope.” It is the assurance that what God began to do in creation will ultimately be completed by Jesus at the end of time. It will be the restoration of things back to the way it was in the Garden of Eden, but even better. God’s kingdom will be complete.
As you read through the Old Testament you start to see that the people of Israel waited for centuries for the Messiah to appear; the first Advent. The Psalmists and the prophets painted through their words almost unbelievable visions of hope and longing.
Then suddenly God arrived as the God-man Jesus. He was born as a helpless baby, completely dependent on his mother. He had to learn how to talk, crawl and then walk. He played, he cried, he suffered, and during the time he walked the earth, he spoke incredible words, and performed amazing deeds. Then, just as suddenly as he arrived, he was gone. At least that is what the world thought.
Jesus’ entire ministry only lasted about three years. In the end he was betrayed, arrested, crucified and buried. But, the story did not end there, for he did not stay in the grave. Witnesses reported seeing him alive. The gospel record tells us that he ascended into heaven with a promise that one day he would return in same matter.
Now it was not some spiritual Jesus, as some like to think, that arose from the grave and then ascended into heaven. It was the glorified human Jesus, the restorer of our souls and bodies.
Now we are back to waiting. We are in the same place the people of Israel were for all those long centuries. We are waiting for our Messiah to come. We are waiting for promises to be kept. We are waiting for a resolution to life’s many dilemmas. We are waiting for the fulfillment of history.
Fortunately, we have some excellent instruction on what form our waiting should take. We have access to the waiting and the longings expressed in the Old Testament. We also have the New Testament witness to the expected coming of the Messiah. We are now like people of old. We are waiting for the promised fulfillment of history.
That’s why, as we close out the church year and then start our journey through Advent, we will be studying passages that create images of the second coming. It is my prayer that what we are doing today and through Advent, is going to create in each one of you the same kind of anticipation that the people of Israel likely felt as they waited for the Messiah the first time.
Put away the distractions of the commercial celebration of Christmas and let the Holy Spirit lead you in the coming weeks, so that you will feel those same longings and anticipation that they did, for it is only then that you will truly know what it feels like to hopefully waiting for the Messiah to come.
This coming season of Advent is to be for us like the couple in the restaurant that I mentioned earlier. We are just going along, doing our thing, enjoying life, when all of a sudden we hear the words of Mark and they are our song. In its melody and the lyrics we hear and see not only the past, but the promise of the blessed hope of the return of the Messiah. And in doing so we feel our own hope kindled.
Just like our brothers and sisters of faith throughout history, we are waiting for Jesus’ return, his physical return when he will raise up all those who have died in the faith to be with him in the new heaven and earth.
Dig deep into those longings. Let those feelings of anticipation and hope build up in you as you pause, ponder and then prepare for the Lord’s coming. If you can let that happen between now and Christmas Eve you will be ready to sing, “Joy to the world, the Lord has come!” Amen
posted by Pastor Rhoads | 1:06 PM
|
0 comments
