A few reflections. A mini devotional. I do NOT possess all the answers!

My son and I were discussing Biblical prophesy. In light of world events many are seeking to figure out what is going on in the world, and what is coming. I don’t claim to know, but I keep going back to the Bible and I ask myself, What is clear?

In Luke 21 Jesus predicts the temple will be destroyed and the disciples ask Him, when?

Does His answer cover only the destruction of the temple, or does it also cover His return, the event we know as the ‘Second Coming’? I don’t know.

Either way, we can take His words to heart, “Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you suddenly like a trap. For it will come on all those who live on the face of the whole earth. Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man.” Luke 21: 34-36

Earlier, in Luke 17, the Pharisees asked Jesus WHEN the kingdom of God would come. Jesus said it’s not something you will see, it is something within you.

Jesus says “It will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed” referring to the days before the flood and the days before Sodom was destroyed. Both acts reveal God’s judgment, but people were just living life and unaware of the big change that the world would experience. 

Jesus is conveying urgency. Don’t go back to your house to get your possessions. Flee from the judgment. Don’t be like Lot’s wife – attached to the material comfort she had gotten used to.

Jesus says clearly, “Whoever tries to keep their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life will preserve it.” Luke 17:33

This is clear. The next verses have been interpreted many ways. What are these words of Jesus supposed to mean? Leaving all my preconceived ideas, or previous teaching, what do they say?

“I tell you, on that night” [which night? His Second coming? The destruction of Jerusalem?]. Bear in mind that the original question was when the kingdom of God would come.

“Two people will be in one bed; one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding corn together; one will be taken and the other left.” Luke 17:34-35

“‘Where, Lord?’” they asked.” Who is the “they”? Disciples or Pharisees? Were they asking where those who are taken would be taken to? Somewhat unclear.

Jesus’ answer is wide open to interpretation. “Where there is a dead body, there the vultures will gather.” Luke 17:37

Wow. What does that mean? One thing is clear to me, Jesus didn’t intend to be clear! If Jesus is not clear, should we seek to force clarity?

What is clear from these words, this teaching of Jesus? The kingdom of God is not what we expect. We need to be ready and watchful. We need to loosen our attachment to the material world. We need to grow our faith and trust in God and His provision. We can pray (from Luke 21:36) that we may be able to escape (with our loved ones) and that we will be able to stand before Jesus. This makes me think of the parable of the talents as related in Matthew 24. We have all been entrusted with life and blessings and one day we will stand before our Creator and give an account of how we used what He gave us.

One thing more, verse 24 says “For the Son of Man in His day will be like lightning, which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other. But first He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.”

It is unclear what “the Son of Man in His day” means. But it will be evident and obvious. Could this be a reference to when the curtain in the temple was torn from top to bottom, unusual darkness had been over the earth, and people came out of their graves at the time of Jesus’ death? This is possibly inferred from the next verse, “But first He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.”

Think about all the people living in the time of Noah and Lot. We are told that wickedness abounded. But there were perhaps many other people who were just tolerating the wicked, and just trying to live their life the best they knew how. They knew the wickedness happening all around them was evil and perhaps some chose not to participate, but they didn’t hate it enough to point it our or separate themselves from it. They tolerated it. The angels visited Lot. People, innocent bystanders, could have joined Lot and his family to flee the corruption. They either didn’t believe judgment was coming, or didn’t believe Lot offered a legitimate safety option. Noah spent 80 years building the huge structure we know as the ark. During that time he preached and warned. There was ample room in the ark for all who could see the coming judgment and would put their trust in God’s provision to escape it. Yet except for Noah, his three sons, and their wives, all stuck steadfastly with the culture. They stayed with the material life that they knew. They may have been victims of evil. They may have been observers. No doubt there was a wide range of response to the evil and wickedness happening at that time. But only those who fully trusted God and demonstrated it by the action of walking into the ark were protected. 

How do I apply Jesus’ teaching on future events from these passages to my life? Should I have absolute confidence that God will rescue me out of judgment and I’ll sail away before it happens? Did Jesus promise that those who follow Him will avoid all suffering? Most of us recognize the proliferation of evil around us. But do we separate ourselves from it? What does that even look like in 2021? 

The people living during the time of Noah and Lot were just doing the best they could under difficult circumstances, but failed to dig into the heart of God, understand the world from a spiritual perspective, believe His word and warnings, and look to Him for deliverance. Jesus’ death and resurrection ushered in the kingdom of God. Everything changed for mankind from that time forward. This is clear from what Jesus said about John the Baptist, “I tell you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John; yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.” Luke 7:28.

I cannot fully fathom God’s mysteries. I don’t understand the many references to future events, but I can respond with gratitude. 

Thank you, Lord Jesus, risen Savior, that I have been washed. I am forgiven. I have been ‘taken’. I have been ‘released’ from the power of the god of this world and You will deliver me through whatever trials may come. Help me to offer light to those still in darkness and to love them enough to warn them of the coming judgement. Help me to rightly discern Your word and world events so that I can walk boldly in the provision and protection of Your Holy Spirit. I do not know the future or understand fully how everything will transpire, but I trust in Your provision and protection. Help me to stand strong before you in the strength You provide.

by Becky Hastings who collects information on health and tries her best to discover and share truth. By God’s grace, through Jesus Christ, I was saved, blessed with a husband of 40 years, and five precious babies all grown up. I now get to delight as nine grandchildren grow! Together we can help each other discover a healthy path in this crazy upside down world.