Advent is the period in the Church calendar of the four weeks prior to Christmas when we celebrate the birth of Jesus, His first coming to earth. It is a time when we prepare, not only for Christmas celebrations, but also our lives for His Second Coming. Our Gospel reading that closes out our first week of Advent comes from the Gospel of Mark, and speaks of events that occur at the very end of the Tribulation period, right before when Jesus returns at His Second Coming. Let’s look at what this Scripture has to say.
Jesus gave this teaching in the city of Jerusalem, during His final week of life, just a day or two before His crucifixion. Jesus was teaching about the events of the End Times, and what He describes in our verses here will occur right prior to His return at the end of the Tribulation. As one reads through various portions of Scripture that detail the Tribulation period, it is quite evident that this is not a good or happy period. There are wars with huge numbers of death, there are diseases, natural disasters, and terrible persecution by the Antichrist and his supporters. The whole world seems to be out of whack, and not only the world, but the whole universe, as we read (vs. 24-25). There are astonishing and overwhelming cataclysmic events that will happen in the sky and outer space. It is a very chaotic time.
Right when these events occur, Jesus said He will return in the clouds, with power and glory (vs. 26). Jesus left in the clouds, as we read in Acts 1:9-11. The angels told the disciples then that He would return once again in the clouds, and so we see that the Savior says that is how He will return at His Second Coming to earth. The first thing that the Lord Jesus said He would do when He returned would be to send His angels to gather together all the believers (vs. 27). Though right prior to the Tribulation, at the time of the Rapture, the believers on earth at that time are caught up into heaven, many numerous people will come to faith in Christ and be saved during the seven years of Tribulation. Many will be martyred during that terrible time, but there will be those who survive to the end, and Jesus sends His angels to gather them together. Angels are God’s gatherers. They gather believers for glory here, and just a little later in this chapter we read that they gather the unbelievers for judgment (Matthew 13:41, 49-50).
For countless years, Christians have wondered when the return of Jesus will occur, and many false teachers have tried to set dates. However, as He tells us in this passage, no one knows the date. But, Jesus does say that we can know when the time is approaching. We are entering wintertime here where I live in Chicago, and I really dislike winter a lot! I eagerly look forward to spring’s arrival, and look for the signs of its approach, such as the first robin, signs of some spring flowers, and the buds appearing on the trees. Jesus told His followers that just as we see signs of coming spring, and then the full leaves on the trees when summer approaches, when we see the events He described in chapter 13, we know that His coming is near (vs. 28-29).
No one, not even the angels know the exact day and time of His return, so certainly none of the false preachers do, who run around setting dates (vs. 32). Jesus said that at the time of His speaking then, that He didn’t even know the date. Jesus was, and is, fully God. When He became a man, He voluntarily restricted the use of certain divine attributes (Philippians 2:6-8), one of them being foreknowledge of things like this while He was here on earth.
We can trust that the words Jesus spoke here are true and will one day happen. Many people scoff at these prophecies, especially as 2,000 years have passed already since Jesus spoke them, and they still haven’t happened. However God’s Word is true and reliable, and will never pass (vs. 31). Heaven and earth will one day both pass away, but not the Bible. It is impossible for God’s Word to be negated, destroyed, or altered in any way. Even when the earth passes away, the truth of God’s Word will never be changed or abolished. God and the Bible provide the only stability in our unstable world.
Jesus closed this Scripture by warning all of us to be watchful and alert for His return (vs. 33-37). Are we prepared for the return of the Lord Jesus? Do we place the same importance on preparing for His return as we do on other events in our life? We prepare for graduations, weddings, birthdays, and other holidays, and that is all fine. But how about something that is far more important than those, like the return of Jesus? We should not postpone getting prepared for that, as we do not know when He will return. Be on guard, watch, stay alert. Look for the signs of His approach. Pray. We have a constant need for God's assistance as the day draws closer. Will He catch you spiritually ready or asleep? What would you want the Lord Jesus to catch you doing when He comes?
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