Matthew 24:36-25:46
Notes
Transcript
I don’t know if you have had the privilege of coloring with a small kid. Coloring with a 5-10 year old is one thing. Coloring with a 1-3 year old is something different. They grab a color and they color the entire page with that color. Yes, it was supposed to be a multi-colored dinosaur. But now it is a green page. With maybe some orange and some yellow and some red smears. But it is mostly just green. Can’t even see the dinosaur. Just green.
That used to frustrate me. Now, it’s just cute.
And it’s a great illustration for how we are to live our lives. We are to color everything by this one fact: Jesus is coming again. That is our blessed hope, as Paul mentions in Titus 2:13. That is the impetus for sharing the Gospel. That puts everything in perspective as we live this chaotic life. Jesus is coming again.
Last week, Gabe led us through the signs of the times, the steps to his coming.
Jesus continues his discourse with the focus on how the his return should color everything in our lives.
We will see that Jesus is coming quickly, he is coming with discrimination, and he is coming with judgment. Because the king will come again, the world should be prepared.
Will you pray with me?
It’s a long passage today, so hang on for the ride!
1. Jesus Is Coming Quickly
1. Jesus Is Coming Quickly
Jesus is coming quickly. We don’t know when it will be. Fascinatingly, so many conservatives are caught up in the charts and timelines of Jesus’ return. They look around and say, “it must be soon!” However, if we put a date or a timeline, we can pretty much guarantee that it won’t be then.
Jesus says about his coming:
“But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.
and again:
“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.
At one moment, everything is peaceful, and then, at the next, the skies will be split open and Christ will appear.
I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and wages war.
I look forward to preaching on this next year, as we dive into Daniel and Revelation.
There will be no time at that moment to turn to Jesus in faith. He is not coming as a suffering servant, but as the conquering judge. There won’t be a warning like on a subway: Doors closing! Ding, Ding, Ding. So that people will get out of the way of the doors.
No, the trumpets will sound and Christ will be there. And then it will be too late. Like the jewel thieves who stole the Napolianic jewels.
He is coming quickly.
2. Jesus Is Coming with Discrimination
2. Jesus Is Coming with Discrimination
He is coming with discrimination.
He tells the crowds:
As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.
So many people think about the rapture with these verses, triggered by the words of “taken.” However, that’s not the picture. Those taken are being taken to judgment.
Think about the ark. Noah and his family were placed in the ark, and everyone else was taken away to judgement.
The same will happen when Christ comes again as judge at the end of time. People will be going about their normal business. And then, he will quickly appear and people will be taken away to judgment and others will be left for the millennial kingdom.
No one on that day will be able to stand up and say: I get it now. I will follow you now.
That doesn’t work. By the time the shock wears off, if it every does, that person will already be taken to judgment.
That’s why we plead with people to make a decision for Christ now before it is too late. Turn to him in faith, because no one knows the day or the hour of his return. He will take some away and he will leave others.
3. Jesus is Coming with Judgment
3. Jesus is Coming with Judgment
Jesus is coming with judgment. As Zechariah prophesied:
Then the Lord will appear over them;
his arrow will flash like lightning.
The Sovereign Lord will sound the trumpet;
he will march in the storms of the south,
and the Lord Almighty will shield them.
Since this is the case, what should we do about it?
A. Remember the Creator
A. Remember the Creator
Since Jesus is coming with judgment, we should remember the creator.
Jesus tells a parable to illustrate this point:
“Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, ‘My master is staying away a long time,’ and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards. The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Jesus declares that everyone on earth is under the jurisdiction of the creator. He is not lying. He has proven himself to be truth.
Being under the jurisdiction of the creator, we are held responsible for our actions, what we do or do not do.
When Jesus comes again, he will bring judgment on those who he does not find doing what the creator wants and blessing on those who finds doing those things.
Jesus isn’t interested in a list of rules right here. I’ve watched the tv show Downton Abbey. A British drama about an English estate at the beginning of the 20th century. The servants have their list of things that they are supposed to do. and if they don’t do it, woe to them.
Jesus is concerned about one thing right now. Have we entered in the narrow gate and are we walking on that path? That is the thing that matters.
So many people either ignore the fact that Jesus is coming again or they think that his coming is a long way off, and so they are the servant who is doing whatever he wants to do, thinking that they can turn to Jesus later. They’ve got time. They can fill their life with other things.
Well, Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived, tried filling his life with all those other things, and at the end of his life, he felt empty. He urged those who listened to him:
Remember your Creator
in the days of your youth,
And again:
Now all has been heard;
here is the conclusion of the matter:
Fear God and keep his commandments,
for this is the duty of all mankind.
For God will bring every deed into judgment,
including every hidden thing,
whether it is good or evil.
All these other things that we pursue do not matter. The only thing that does is going through that narrow gate, turning to Jesus in faith now. Remember your creator.
B. Follow the Bridegroom
B. Follow the Bridegroom
Follow the bridegroom.
Jesus tells another parable about 10 virgins going to meet the bridegroom.
“At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.
“At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’
“Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’
“ ‘No,’ they replied, ‘there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’
“But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.
“Later the others also came. ‘Lord, Lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us!’
“But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.’
“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.
In the previous parable, the problem was the servant didn’t think that master would come so soon. Here we have these greeters who think that the bridegroom won’t take so long. And so they have enough oil in their lamps for an hour or more, but not half the night. They run out of oil because the bridegroom doesn’t come in their schedule.
There are many people who do the church thing. They put in their time, thinking that God will look well on them.
But, life doesn’t happen as they want it to. Hardship comes up. Pain. Or maybe good things, flashy things, whatever it is, their interest in the church thing lags, because it just hasn’t brought the result they wanted it to bring.
Whatever the case, they stop coming every week, then every month, then a couple times a year.
Why? Because they weren’t following the bridegroom in the first place. Which is why he will open the door and say: Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.
There is a difference for those who give their lives to Jesus and are following him, instead of some fad.
Remember the creator
Follow the bridegroom
C. Invest in Eternity
C. Invest in Eternity
The next parable urges Jesus’ followers to invest in eternity.
“Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his wealth to them. To one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags, and to another one bag, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. The man who had received five bags of gold went at once and put his money to work and gained five bags more. So also, the one with two bags of gold gained two more. But the man who had received one bag went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.
“After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. The man who had received five bags of gold brought the other five. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with five bags of gold. See, I have gained five more.’
“His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’
“The man with two bags of gold also came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with two bags of gold; see, I have gained two more.’
“His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’
“Then the man who had received one bag of gold came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. So I was afraid and went out and hid your gold in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’
“His master replied, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest.
“ ‘So take the bag of gold from him and give it to the one who has ten bags. For whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
The important message is not about the amount of money given to each servant. The importance is that the master gave as much as each one could handle and expected that servant to use it for him.
One day, Jesus is coming again to see how we have used his resources, his finances, his time, his gifts, his talents, for him. Have we used them to increase the kingdom, or have we not?
The first step is entering the kingdom ourselves. If we don’t, we are like that servant who hides his bag of gold, and says I don’t want to have anything to do with you. And the master will come and bring judgment on that servant.
If we are in the kingdom, we are called to bring others, to have a return on the investment.
Remember the creator
Follow the bridegroom
Invest in Eternity.
D. Focus on the King
D. Focus on the King
Finally, we are to focus on the king.
The last parable Jesus told in Matthew:
For whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’
“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’
“He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’
“Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”
We could spend time talking about when this judgment is happening and who is being judged. We don’t have time for that. And truthfully, if we did, that would be a distraction from the actual point of the passage. If we are focused on the king, we will live for the king. One group used their time to serve fellow followers of Christ with compassion, and the other group willfully neglected followers of Christ.
Their faith was shown by their fruit, just as James talks about and they are judged. Neither group are judged or blessed by their works, but by the faith which their works showed.
Those who are followers of the king will focus on the king and will live a certain way, naturally. So that when the king comes, they are not surprised and they are blessed.
Jesus speaks of future events in this passage, not to give us a timeline, but so that through our alertness, faithfulness, and compassion, we can show our obedience to God’s will. So that our lives are colored by the fact that Jesus is returning again.
Think about the page of your life. Is it completely colored by this fact? Or are there spots with other colors, or maybe the whole page is blank. What needs to be changed?
Today, as we take communion, may we turn to Christ and ask him to color our lives by his return.
