When Will the Kingdom Come?

Intro

Expecting something to happen a certain way, but when it happens, it’s not at all what you expected.

This morning, we’ll look at a question about something everyone wanted to know more about in Jesus’ day. We’ll find that the Kingdom of God is coming, but not necessarily like we expect. Stand with me, as we read from Luke 17:20-37.

Luke 17:20–37 ESV

20 Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, “The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, 21 nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.” 22 And he said to the disciples, “The days are coming when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. 23 And they will say to you, ‘Look, there!’ or ‘Look, here!’ Do not go out or follow them. 24 For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day. 25 But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. 26 Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man. 27 They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. 28 Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot—they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, 29 but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all— 30 so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed. 31 On that day, let the one who is on the housetop, with his goods in the house, not come down to take them away, and likewise let the one who is in the field not turn back. 32 Remember Lot’s wife. 33 Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it. 34 I tell you, in that night there will be two in one bed. One will be taken and the other left. 35 There will be two women grinding together. One will be taken and the other left.” 37 And they said to him, “Where, Lord?” He said to them, “Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.”

Pray

We as people have some expectations about the Kingdom of God. That was certainly true in Jesus’ day. People have long been fascinated by questions about the end of the world, life after death, and other questions. The “Day of the Lord” and the Kingdom of God were major themes throughout the prophetic books and in popular discourse.

So the Pharisees posed the question to Jesus: when will the Kingdom of God come? Talk about opening a can of worms! Jesus’ answer shows us something of the nature of God’s Kingdom:

God’s Kingdom Is Coming, But Not Like You Expect

One of the hallmarks of the Pharisees was their meticulous attention to detail. They knew every point of every letter of the Law and prophets. I once spoke to a Muslim, and he told me that devout Muslims memorized the Quran by age 8. They knew it so well, he said, that if a cleric mis-spoke a verse, an 8 year old could correct him.

Pharisees had that kind of knowledge of the Tanak - what we call the Old Testament. They knew it backwards and forwards, and could spell out the most obscure details of the text. And they spent large amounts of time debating the meaning of the text and looking for details to illuminate more intellectual queries. If you’ve ever heard of the question, “how many angels can fit on the point of a pin?” you can imagine the kinds of things these Pharisees would be interested in.

So when they ask Jesus about the coming of the Kingdom of God, they likely have numerous other questions ready to pose based on his answers. I can’t say they are trying to trap him here - Luke gives us no indication that is what’s happening. But they are almost certainly wanting a vigorous discussion to ensue!

So the question is posed, “When will God’s Kingdom come?” Instead of answering the question of when, Jesus addresses another question: How? How will the Kingdom come? His answer: not like you expect it to. In fact, there are several ways God’s Kingdom is not what you expect. First,

God’s Kingdom Is Not Coming Visibly

Luke 17:20–21 ESV

20 Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, “The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, 21 nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.”

Jesus is dispelling a tempting notion: God’s Kingdom is not coming with a ticker-tape parade or with ample warning. There is no grand entry planned for God’s Kingdom. I know you are scratching your head on this one because you’re thinking of the second coming of Jesus, right? You’re thinking that the last trumpet sounding and the dead in Christ rising, and us meeting him in the air is pretty visible, and you’re right. The scene described in 1 Thessalonians 4-5 is quite the show.

But that’s not what Jesus is talking about. We have a mistaken notion that Jesus’ second coming IS the coming of the Kingdom of God. That’s not quite right. Look at the end of verse 21:

Luke 17:21 ESV

21 nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.”

Do you see it? “The kingdom of God,” says Jesus, “is in the midst of you.” Not “will be,” but “is.” Present tense. While the Pharisees were looking for tiny details, they missed the giant elephant in the room: God’s kingdom has already come!

Don’t mis-understand me here. Jesus IS coming back, and it will be spectacular. But don’t go looking for the kingdom of God in obscure scrolls or hidden messages in the Bible. Searching for clues like a sleuth will get you no closer to seeing and understanding God’s will. No, instead just open your eyes. God’s Kingdom is a present reality in the lives of his children.

So, child of God, do others see Jesus in you? Are you living in light of the Kingdom of God today, here and now? Do your actions reflect God’s love for others? Do you live out the kingdom ethics of loving God and neighbor? Are you forgiving others 70 times 7 when they wrong you? Are you going the second mile? Are you loving your enemies and turning the other cheek? Are you speaking words full of grace and truth? Do you worship in spirit and truth?

The kingdom of God is a present reality; it is already in the midst of the Pharisees in the person of Jesus, and will be much more apparent with his disciples after the coming of God’s Holy Spirit at Pentecost. We don’t need a sign from heaven to show us the coming of the Kingdom. Jesus is the Kingdom, and by abiding in him as a branch abides in the vine, we will bear the fruit of the kingdom. We will show the world that God’s kingdom has come. Not what they expected, but God’s kingdom isn’t what we’d expect. Second,

God’s Kingdom Is Not Coming Quietly

By this, I don’t mean that God is going to make a lot of noise. I mean that the Kingdom of God will have noticeable impacts. Jesus makes this point by looking forward to the consummation of the kingdom - his second coming.

Luke 17:22–24 ESV

22 And he said to the disciples, “The days are coming when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. 23 And they will say to you, ‘Look, there!’ or ‘Look, here!’ Do not go out or follow them. 24 For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day.

Lightning isn’t exactly a covert phenomenon. It is quite noticeable, isn’t it? That’s what Jesus compares his second coming to: just as lightning illuminates the sky from end-to-end, so Jesus’ return will illuminate the entirety of creation. Not only is his appearance quite the spectacle, but the events of that day will also cause lasting results.

He compares his return to the days of Noah:

Luke 17:26–27 ESV

26 Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man. 27 They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all.

The people did not expect judgment to come, even though they were warned. By the way, it took Noah 120 years to build the ark: it wasn’t exactly a “last-minute operation!” He also compared the days of Lot:

Luke 17:28–30 ESV

28 Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot—they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, 29 but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all— 30 so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed.

The coming judgment was sudden and severe. Those not saved by God were destroyed in the judgment. Whether by flood or by fire, God’s judgment was decisive and complete. So Jesus warns the disciples:

Luke 17:31–35 ESV

31 On that day, let the one who is on the housetop, with his goods in the house, not come down to take them away, and likewise let the one who is in the field not turn back. 32 Remember Lot’s wife. 33 Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it. 34 I tell you, in that night there will be two in one bed. One will be taken and the other left. 35 There will be two women grinding together. One will be taken and the other left.”

This is not a “peaceful transfer of power.” This is God bursting on the scene and taking charge. He’s not pulling any punches, not holding back any wrath, not taking it easy. God is exercising his divine right to absolute reign over his creation. We might expect God to “convert” the world by “winning them over.” But once again, God’s Kingdom is not like we expect it. God’s kingdom is not coming visibly, and it is not coming quietly. Third,

God’s Kingdom Is Not Coming Cheaply

God is expending vast treasure to bring his kingdom to earth. He’s paying a steep price to secure his kingdom. Verse 25 says:

Luke 17:25 ESV

25 But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.

We have this doctrine of God’s kingdom thoroughly confused. We mistakenly believe that our salvation - our entrance into the kingdom - is cheap. After all, we might say, it is freely given, right? God offers us salvation from sins out of the riches of his grace, and we pay nothing of the sin debt, for "Jesus paid it all!”

Dietrich Bonhoeffer talks about this “cheap grace:”

Grace is represented as the Church's inexhaustible treasury, from which she showers blessings with generous hands, without asking questions or fixing limits. Grace without price; grace without cost! The essence of grace, we suppose, is that the account has been paid in advance; and, because it has been paid, everything can be had for nothing. Since the cost was infinite, the possibilities of using and spending it are infinite. What would grace be if it were not cheap?... Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, Communion without confession, absolution without personal confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.

Cheap grace is a disgrace to Christ - it ignores the immense cost God incurs to secure grace for us. As Bonhoeffer put it:

What has cost God much cannot be cheap for us.

Before Christ is to enact his eternal rule on earth, he has a date with destiny (so to speak). He must first suffer. The debt Christ paid on the cross for our sins has the power to clear your ledger with God. Trust in Christ as your savior; rely solely on him to save you from your sins and make you right with God.