Tawa Baptist

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Scripture: Mark 13:28-37

Video Link: https://youtu.be/UTzUTNOVvT4

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • These things (vv. 28-31)
  • That day (vv. 32-37)
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

When working with anything electrical it’s important not to get your wires crossed. If your car battery runs flat and you need jumper leads to get it started, always remember positive to positive, negative to negative. If you cross your wires, sparks will fly and you might get a nasty shock.  

To make it easier for you, the jumper leads are colour coded. The red lead attaches to the positive terminal on each battery and the black lead attaches to the negative terminal. Just don’t let the wires touch each other.

Today we conclude our series in the gospel of Mark by looking at the closing verses of chapter 13. Mark 13 is complicated. For most of the chapter Jesus is talking about the destruction of the Jerusalem temple, which happened in AD70. But right at the end of Mark 13, Jesus switches to talking about his second coming and the end of the age, which is yet to happen.

From this distance in history (2000 years after Mark wrote his gospel) it’s easy to get our wires crossed. To make it clearer for you, verses 28-31 relate to the destruction of Jerusalem and the verses 32-37 relate to Jesus’ second coming and the end of the age. From Mark 13, verse 28 we read… 

28 “Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. 29 Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that it is near, right at the door. 30 Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. 31 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

32 “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33 Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come. 34 It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with their assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch. 35 “Therefore, keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back—whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. 36 If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. 37 What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’”

May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate God’s word for us.

Today’s sermon is a message of two halves. The first half focuses on verses 28-31, where Jesus talks about ‘these things’. These things being the destruction of the Jerusalem temple, which happened in the first Century, and has been the subject of most of the preceding 27 verses. 

The second half of the message focuses on verses 32-37, where Jesus talks about ‘that day’. That day being the day of the Lord; aka: Jesus’ second coming, which is yet to happen. Let’s start with these things.

These things (vv. 28-31)

The seasons of the year, spring, summer, autumn and winter, are normally heralded by certain signs. We know spring is starting when daffodils and cherry blossoms come out. We know summer is almost here when the lawns need mowing more frequently. And we know autumn has arrived by the changing colour of the leaves on trees.

These signs of the seasons don’t lie. People may lie and deceive but the leaves on the trees reveal the truth of the season.  

In Mark 13, Jesus is sitting on the Mount of Olives, looking across the valley to Jerusalem. It’s springtime and the Mount of Olives is covered in fig trees.

Fig trees grow a lot of foliage during spring and so Jesus uses this as a parable for what he has just been talking about.

In verse 2 of Mark 13, Jesus had predicted the destruction of the Jerusalem temple. Then in verse 4, the disciples asked, ‘when will these things happen and what will be the sign?’ Jesus goes on to talk about what to look out for and what to avoid. We covered these things over the past two Sundays.

The signs Jesus mentions are like fig trees growing an abundance of leaves in spring. They indicate the destruction of the Jerusalem temple is close at hand.

In the same way the leaves of a tree don’t lie, so too Jesus doesn’t lie.

False prophets will deceive many, saying God will save Jerusalem. But Jesus’ words reveal the truth of the season.     

Jesus says as much, in verses 30-31, which read…

30 Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. 31 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

We know these things refers to the destruction of Jerusalem because Jesus says it will happen within this generation, that is, within the lifetime of the disciples. And, as we have heard, the destruction of Jerusalem did actually happen within 40 years of Jesus predicting it. 

The cogent point here is that Jesus’ words are trustworthy and reliable, far more trustworthy and reliable than the temple building. The phrase heaven and earth, in verse 31, is probably a metaphor for the temple. (The temple being a symbol of heaven and earth in miniature.)

Jesus is saying his words will outlive the Jerusalem temple. Indeed, Jesus’ words are eternal. Therefore, Jesus’ teaching is worthy of our obedience.

When we obey Jesus’ words in faith, we offer worship of eternal significance; something that gives our lives lasting meaning.

That day (vv. 32-37)

Okay, having spoken at length (for 31 verses) about these things (aka: the destruction of Jerusalem), Jesus then looks further ahead to that day, at the end of the age when he will return in glory.

Unlike the destruction of Jerusalem, which Jesus knew would happen within a generation, that day of his second coming is known only to God the Father.

Not even the angels in heaven nor Jesus himself know the timing of that day.

And because no one knows the timing of Christ’s return, we must keep watch.

What does it mean to keep watch? Here’s an acronym for you. W.A.T.C.H. stands for Work, Abide, Trust, Commit and Hope. Watching begins with working.

In verse 34, Jesus gives another parable. The second coming of the Lord is like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with their assigned task…

Jesus is the owner of the house who goes away and Jesus’ followers are the servants who are left in charge. The servants don’t sit around idly doing nothing in their master’s absence. No. The servants keep working. They get on with the tasks assigned to them.

Perhaps one servant is in charge of the grounds. If she doesn’t mow the lawns and keep the weeds under control, and the master comes back to an overgrown garden, it will be obvious she wasn’t keeping watch.

Or another servant may be in charge of the kitchen. If he doesn’t feed the household, and the master comes back to a sickly, malnourished staff, it will be obvious he wasn’t keeping watch.

Watching begins with working, doing the mahi. Work provides a positive use for our time, so we are less likely to get into trouble. It also gives us purpose and enables us to contribute to God’s household in meaningful ways. 

The question is: what is our assigned task? What good work does Jesus want us to do? How does the master want you to contribute to his household?

We are talking about what it means to watch for Jesus’ return. As well as doing the work assigned to us, we must also abide in Christ. ‘Abide’ is one of those words which has more than one meaning.

Abide can mean hanging out with someone, spending time with them or living with them. Jesus’ parable in verse 34 imagines a situation where the servants abide in their master’s household, sort of like Downton Abbey.

Abiding, then, is about being together and taking care of our relationships.

We don’t want to become so task-focused that we neglect our relationships with each other.

When we started training for ministry, our New Testament lecturer (George) talked to us about SAS training. The SAS are elite commandos in the British army. We were not elite Christians. We were pretty ordinary really. But we were preparing to enter a spiritual war zone. 

George told us, the final test for getting into the SAS is a survival exercise.

A small squad of men are dropped in the wilderness and have to get back to base without being captured. To pass the test though, every member of the squad needs to make it home. No one left behind.

George’s point was that we needed to look out for each other and not become so focused on the task that we neglected our mates. Our own individual achievement should not become more important than the wellbeing of our fellow believers.

Abiding doesn’t mean we need to live together all the time, commune style. But we do need to fellowship together on a regular basis. We do need to take care of our relationships. One of the reasons we gather for worship on a Sunday and hold shared lunches and run small groups is to abide with each other. When believers abide with each other, they are abiding in Christ.      

Abide also has another meaning though. To abide means to obey or adhere to, as in ‘abide by the law’. To abide in Christ, therefore, is to continue obeying Jesus’ teaching, following in his footsteps. And what did Jesus command us to do? Love one another. By this all people will know you are my disciples.

Abiding in Christ is what makes our work fruitful for God’s glory. As Jesus says in John 15, 5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you abide in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”

Abiding in Christ could be summed up as obeying Jesus in fellowship with other believers. To what extent are we abiding in Christ? Do we have the balance right between working and abiding?

Life is busy, especially at this time of year. I know, I get it. I don’t want to add yet another thing to your ‘to do list’. Nor do I want to send you on a guilt trip. But the spiritual reality is, we cannot keep watch on our own. We need to help each other if we are going to make it.    

To watch for Jesus’ return means to work at the task the Lord assigns to us, as we abide in Christ, that is, as we support one another. Keeping watch also involves trust. This trust works both ways. Jesus trusts us and we trust him. 

In verse 34, Jesus says the owner of the house puts the servants in charge. Putting the servants in charge shows that the owner trusts his servants to take care of business when he is gone.

By the same token, the servants need to trust the master, even though they cannot see him and don’t know when he will return. There are times in this life when we feel overwhelmed, when the darkness closes in, and we can’t see a way forward. In those times we need to trust that God will find a way, that he will lead us to the light of a new day.

Humanity has been waiting 2000 years for Jesus to return. That’s a long time from our perspective. We know we can trust Jesus’ words though, because his prediction about the destruction of Jerusalem came true, as did many other things he said. Jesus’ return is as sure as the sunrise, it just takes longer.

Work, abide, trust. These are essential to keeping watch for Jesus’ second coming, as is commitment. Keeping watch for Christ requires us to commit.

To commit means to stick with something (or someone) for as long as it takes. Commitment requires grit. Like the grit on sandpaper, we stick no matter what.

In verse 35 Jesus says: keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back—whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn.    

Following this metaphor, it could be a long night without Jesus in the world. And so, the followers of Jesus need to be prepared to commit for the long haul.

The kind of commitment required is the commitment of a marathon runner who does the training and prepares well in advance. Come race day, he is ready and goes the distance. Or it’s the commitment of a woman in labour, who breaths through the contractions and endures the pain till her baby is born.

What I’m saying here is, we need to find our rhythm because a healthy rhythm supports commitment. Just like a marathon runner needs to find their rhythm to make it through the race. And, just like a woman in labour needs to find her rhythm with delivering her baby. Commitment requires a certain rhythm and balance, so we don’t burn ourselves out. 

Verse 36 reads: If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping.

It’s best not to interpret this verse literally. Sleeping here is a metaphor for failing to do one’s duty and not taking seriously the warning of the master’s return.

Getting a good night’s sleep and taking holidays when we need to, is part and parcel of finding our rhythm and maintaining our commitment so we can go the distance in God’s will for us.

What rhythms support your commitment to Christ? Do you observe a sabbath? Do you maintain a regular routine of Bible reading and prayer? Do you take care of your body with healthy eating, exercise and rest? Do you make time for friends and family and church?  

To watch for Christ is to do the work Jesus assigns us, to abide in him, to recognize the trust he shows in us and return that trust to him, to commit for the long haul and to maintain our hope.    

Hope is like a kite; it rises against the wind. Just as you can’t fly a kite without wind, so too you can’t raise hope without facing opposition.

When life is easy and we don’t face any opposition we have little need for hope, because we are happy enough in the present. But when life is difficult and the present is not a comfortable place to be, we long for a better future. That is hope.

As we have noted already, Jesus uses the expression ‘that day’ in relation to his second coming. In the Old Testament, that day, (aka: the day of the Lord), was a day of judgement.

In Isaiah chapter 2 we read, ‘The eyes of the arrogant will be humbled and the pride of men brought low; the Lord alone will be exalted in that day’.

For Jesus’ disciples, ‘that day’ was a day of judgement, when God would come to sweep away evil and all that is false. But that day was also a day of hope, because if you are oppressed by injustice, then the removal of those who are oppressing you is good news, something to look forward to.

Judgement and hope go together in the Bible. They are two sides of the same coin.

In Matthew 24, the parallel passage to Mark 13, Jesus says…

37 As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38 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; 39 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. 

Jesus’ second coming will be a surprise. It will mean the terror of judgement for some and the hope of salvation realised for others. This is why Jesus stresses the importance of keeping watch. So his second advent is a source of hope and not despair.

How does the day of Christ’s return make you feel? How strong is your hope?

Is Jesus’ second coming something you look forward to, or is it something you don’t think about all that much?

Conclusion:

Hope feeds joy and joy gives us the strength we need to watch. To do the work assigned to us, to abide in Christ, to trust Jesus, and to commit for the long haul.

Let us pray…   

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of Man, give us strength, wisdom and fellowship as we wait and watch for your advent. Amen.

Questions for discussion or reflection:

  1. What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon? Why do you think this stood out to you?
  2. How do we know we can trust Jesus’ words? Why should we take Jesus at his word?
  3. What does it mean to keep watch for Jesus’ return? How do we do this?
  4. What is your assigned task? What good work does Jesus want you to do? How does the master want you to contribute to his household?
  5. What does it mean to abide in (or with) Christ? To what extent are you abiding in Christ? Do you have the balance right between working and abiding?
  6. What rhythms do you have in your life that support your commitment to Jesus? What could you do differently to better sustain your commitment to Christ?
  7. How does the day of Christ’s return make you feel? Is Jesus’ second coming something you look forward to in hope? Why or why not?