Sermon Tone Analysis

Text: Luke 21:28 “28 Now when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”

Do You See Them?

His disciples saw the signs that led up to the destruction of Jerusalem in the year 70 A.D.

They saw nation rise against nation; they saw kingdom rise against kingdom; there were earthquakes, famines, pestilences.

They were persecuted; they were delivered up to the synagogues and prisons; they were brought before governors and kings for the sake of Christ’s name.

They bore witness before the nations.

They bore witness with their words; with the very wisdom of God; with their lives.

They were delivered up even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends and many were put to death.

And they were delivered.

Even though they were hated by all for His name’s sake, not a hair of their heads perished.

Because they recognized the signs, church history records that all of the believers had left Jerusalem.

When they saw Jerusalem surrounded by Roman legions, they understood that its desolation had come near.

Those in Judea fled to the mountains, those in the city departed as Jerusalem was trampled underfoot by the Gentiles.

They saw the signs.

They understood what they meant.

Do you?

Some of those same signs carry through to also signify Christ’s return— wars and rumors of wars; earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes; famines, plagues, and pandemics.

In addition, there will be signs in the sun and moon and stars.

In addition to those, Jesus says there will be “distress of nations in perplexity..., 26 people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world” (Lk 21:25).

That one is a little harder to see at the moment, but it’s there.

It’s there, although it’s in its early stages.

For now, we see it in things like the celebrations surrounding the passage of Michigan Proposal 3 (2022) this past week, adding a right to abortion to the state constitution.

That’s only a small piece of it, of course.

One political commentator has written about the rise of a new political group: the “transgressives.”

There are conservatives and there are progressives.

You’re familiar with who they are and what they support.

But now there are also the ‘transgressives.’

Their goal isn’t to pass legislation, per se.

Their goal is more fundamental.

Their goal is to “normalize transgressive ideas that break down traditional values and seduce confused or impressionable people, especially children” (Pearce, Tim.

“Shapiro At Texas A&M: Transgressives Are Tearing Down Society, Starting With Your Kids.”

www.dailywire.com,

Nov. 1, 2022).

If it shocks, if it rejects any standard of ‘normal’, and especially if it brashly declares that good is evil and evil is good, then that’s what they’re in favor of.

So they dress men up in depraved costumes and put them in front of children for story time.

And anyone who questions whether or not that’s appropriate is evil.

This is an expression of the fear that they will not be able to escape on Judgment Day.

They know that God’s Word condemns their evil deeds and desires, so they write them into earthly constitutions in a futile effort to try to convince themselves that evil is good.

But the legality of abortion will not change their guilt on the last day.

Dressing up in depraved costumes will not shield them when they see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.

None of it can truly lessen their distress, their fear, their foreboding of the judgment that is coming on the world.

They see the signs.

Do you?

The signs are all around you.

And those signs will only increase as time goes by because it’s not a political battle.

It’s a spiritual battle.

The evil one sees the signs, as well.

Knowing that his time is short, he goes to and fro to make war on God’s people (Rev.

12:17; 13:7).

He delights in uttering haughty and blasphemous words against God and against His Church (Rev.

13:6).

He makes the earth and its inhabitants worship him; he deceives those who dwell on the earth; he persecutes those who will not worship him (Rev.

13:13-17)

They see the signs.

He sees the signs.

Do you?

What we see far too often is God’s people being busybodies rather than busy at work.

As the poet William Butler Yeats put it: “The best lack all conviction while the worst are full of passionate intensity.”

While their fear, distress, and foreboding are already playing out before our eyes, while they are busy at their evil work, we, by contrast, are busybodies (2 Thess.

3:11).

The list of things that we find to fight over in the church is really amazing.

The evil one is hard at work.

Meanwhile, you and I are fighting over what time our services should start.

Christ and His Church are intrusions into your life.

You have the opportunity to support the preaching of the gospel that delivers people from the fear, distress, and foreboding of the coming judgment.

But you’re too busy with other things to give of your time to serve in the church.

Let’s leave serving aside for a moment.

You have the opportunity to receive His grace that prepares you from the coming judgment, delivering you from any fear, distress, or foreboding.

It is a free gift, offered here each week and, through His Word, any time you need it.

It’s here for you to receive— to hear, to taste.

But not during the summers, because you’ll be camping; or not during the summers because you have softball tournaments; and not next week because it’s deer season.

The signs are swirling around you every single day, but the Good News of Jesus Christ is still not important enough to talk about at home.

You have more important things to do— you have more important things like politics and elections to talk about; you have more important things to do like binge-watching the latest popular TV series; and, of course, you have your pet sins that you give your time to first.

Stand Up.

It’s time.

The Son of Man is coming.

It’s time to get your heads out of your Netflix queue and stand up.

Stand up, open your eyes, and recognize what is going on all around you.

You can’t play around any longer.

We can’t pretend that half of the things that we spend our time fighting over are important.

They’re not.

The time has come.

Stand up and lift up your heads.

Recognize the signs that an even greater judgment is coming than what the disciples witnessed coming upon Jerusalem.

How can you be any less anxious for that day than the world around us is?

What they look forward to with fear and foreboding, you can look forward to with expectation.

You know the One who is coming.

By His death you have been delivered from this world of darkness— of fear, distress, and foreboding— and transferred to the kingdom of the beloved son, in whom you have redemption(Col.

1:13, Eph.

1:7)

The Son of Man is coming in a cloud with power and great glory but, the first time He came, it was in humility and weakness.

It was to suffer and die to redeem you from your sins.

(Hebrews 9:15) His sacrificial death is the propitiation that redeems you.

(Rom.

3:22-25) By taking upon Himself all of your sins— every reason you had for fear, distress, and foreboding— Christ Jesus became… [your] redemption… (1 Cor.

1:30)

Stand up and see the signs, and know that your redemption is drawing near.

Your Redemption Is Drawing Near

That day of judgment is now, for you, the day of redemption.

You have been sealed with/by the Holy Spirit for that day (Eph.

4:30).

He is the guarantee of your inheritance until you {redeem} possession of it on that day to the praise of His glory (Eph.

1:14)

The nations are terrified and perplexed at the signs but, while they are fainting with fear and foreboding at what is coming on the world you are waiting eagerly for your redemption.

While they’re fainting with fear at the roaring of the sea and the waves (Luke 21:25), you cry out with the psalmist: “Psalm 98:8-9 “8 Let the rivers clap their hands; let the hills sing for joy together 9 before the Lord, for he comes to judge the earth.

He will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with equity.”

I assure you, the sea, the waves, the rivers, the hills, they’re all groaning for that day.

All of creation is groaning— groaning with you— waiting eagerly for your adoption as sons, the redemption of your bodies (Rom.