Signs of These Times

In October of 1995, Tim LaHaye, a minister, and Jerry Jenkins, a writer, published the book Left Behind. The subtitle reads, A Novel of the Earth’s Last Days. Millions of that first book were sold. Twelve additional books were added to this series about the supposed end of the world, an event called the Rapture, and the return of Jesus to earth. Four of these books were made into movies. A children’s version of the series was written and published. Others tried their hand at end-of-the-world novels. It was a cultural phenomenon. These books rival the lasting influence of that forerunner of the English novel, Pilgrim’s Progress. That was written in 1678.  They overshadow the impact of that newspaper series of the late 19th century, now known as In His Steps. It popularized the phrase “What Would Jesus Do?” But neither of these has had the impact on current American culture as this series of 13 Left Behind books. Many people, including some of you, open Mark chapter 13 and read it with the eyes of Left Behind. Left Behind refers to the Rapture, a proposed event in the near future when all the “true Christians” will be snatched out of this world and taken to the next world. All those left behind are doomed to violence, judgment, and travail. Some find references to Left Behind in these chapters we are reading. I will deal with these as we read together and think together about the words of Jesus spoken to his disciples while sitting on the Mount of Olives overlooking the city of Jerusalem. The purpose of Jesus was to prepare his disciples for hard times. “Those who endure to the end will be saved,” he said. I spoke last week about the hard times coming. Today, I want to expand my warning, but I want to do so by presenting what Jesus said about These Times, Those Times, and That Time. Today my theme is: the challenge of living in These Times. I Jesus divided the future into three periods, three stages, three times. The first is These Days; the second is Those Day; and the third is The Day. Let me start with the last. The Day is short form for the Day of the Lord. This is a tradition in the Hebrew prophets that looked forward to the Day when the Lord will intervene in human affairs in a dramatic and conclusive way. It is often described with cosmic and dramatic language. Jesus himself, in this chapter, quotes a poem, “The Sun will be darkened, the moon will not give its light, the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.” I have incorporated this language into the hymn I am writing. We will sing it shortly. This language describes The Day. The Christian writers use the phrase The Day of His Appearing or The Day of the Lord Jesus Christ. That is the last phase of the future that Jesus speaks of in his prophetic sermon recorded in Mark 13, Matthew 24, and Luke 21.  He says, verse 26, “At that time people will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory.”  The Day is the Day of Jesus Christ. Jesus also speaks of another time period, the second, which I have called Those Days. Jesus sees the judgment of God coming upon Jerusalem and all Judea. Jesus, like Jeremiah of old and others, understood that the future was ominous, dangerous, and full of judgment. God will judge the household of Israel. God will judge Jerusalem. “How dreadful it will be in those days …” Jesus said, in verse 17. This prediction about Those Days begins in verse 14 and runs through verse 23. “When you see the abomination that causes desolation …  flee to the mountains.”  That is, get out of town.  Flee. Take your family and run for safety. Jesus was predicting the destruction of Jerusalem. It happened during the Jewish wars of 66-70 AD.  That is, about 30 years after the death and resurrection of Jesus, the Jews rebelled against Rome, and Rome sent their legions of soldiers to put it down; which they did, with a vengeance. That Day is what Jesus predicted. But prior to Those Days, Jesus described These Days. He spoke about the trials and tribulations of These Days, the days in which we all live, the days of life on earth, all the time, everywhere. “Nation will rise against nation” is something that happens all the time. “There will be earthquakes in various places and famines.” Doesn’t this sound familiar? Jesus says, verse 8, “These are the beginning ….” He does not say, “These are signs of the end,” but “These are the signs of the beginning.” These Days are the days in which we live: ordinary days, everywhere day, our days: full of trouble, testing, and tribulation. And it is this state of history—These Days—Our Days—that I want to speak about because Jesus spoke about them first. II. Let’s hear again Jesus’ words, this time from Matthew’s gospel. Yes, and I want you to receive them, not as predictions about the end of the world, but as descriptions of what life is like in this world. Jesus warns us here about being deceived, and throughout the history of the Christian movement, many well-meaning teachers and preachers have arisen to announce the end of the world. More than once believers have been convinced to sell their possessions and change their routines and prepare for the end of the world. They have written and sung songs that warned people about the impending end of the world. Entire denominations have been formed based on this conviction. “We are living in the last days,” they say to one another. Not only can this drive music and worship, it can shape politics and business. Instead of seeking holiness or helping others find something to eat, end-of-the-world-Christians are absorbed in this fantasy. Jesus warned us of such people. Listen: Jesus told them, “Don’t let anyone mislead you, for many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah.’ They will deceive many. You will hear of wars and threats of wars, but don’t panic. Yes, these things must take place, but the end is not yet. Nation will go to war against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in many parts of the world. But all this is only the first of the birth pains, with more to come.  “Then you will be arrested, persecuted, and killed. You will be hated all over the world because you are my followers. And many will turn away from me and betray and hate each other. And many false prophets will appear and will deceive many people. Sin will be rampant everywhere, and the love of many will grow cold.  But the one who endures to the end will be saved. And the Good News about the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, so that all nations will hear it; and then the end will come. The best way to understand this text is to receive it as a description of the world in which he lived and the world in which we live. Life is hard, here and around the world. Nature is unpredictable and dangerous. International relations are dangerous and unpredictable. Life itself is unpredictable and dangerous. Furthermore, people use religion as an avenue to hate and kill people. Too often one group of people will despise another group and use their religion to justify it. When the 9-11 terrorist did their horrible deed, they recited a religious creed—God is Great—as they flew their planes into buildings.  Just this week, these terrorists reached a legal settlement with the authorities. But I cite this to illustrate how people use religion—our religion—to condemn others and justify evil things. Here is another example. The modern world has been shaped by the Doctrine of Discovery. This idea was expressed in a series of decrees by the Pope. It says that European explorers could claim and control any land they “discovered” even if there were people already living there. Thus, Portugal could claim South America, Spain could claim Central America, and England could claim North America. This gave them license to mistreat and displace native inhabitants. This is the background of much wickedness in our own national history: using religion to mistreat people. But these are not signs of the end, but merely signs of our times. These are ways that people mistreat others, all the time, everywhere, on every continent, in every culture. In light of these universal facts and conditions, Jesus summed up his own philosophy of life: can you endure and survive these things and do so with dignity and righteousness and kindness?  Can you endure these ungodly times living as my disciple? Can you navigate the ugliness of life, the meanness, the violence, and the danger while loving God, caring for your neighbor, and praying as Jesus taught us to pray? Can you, Jesus warned, take the worse that life offers and give the best that God offers? If so, you will live as a saved person, a righteous person, a Jesus person. Because that is the way he lived and died.   III. Let me conclude this message by tying it to our own situation. Last week, I began this series preaching on the theme, “Trouble Coming.” Jesus warned his people to expect trouble, and we are to hear that warning ourselves: not trouble as in the end of the world, but trouble as in hard times in life. “Your enemy the devil,” Scripture said in another place, “prowls around seeking whom he may devour.” This is a graphic way to describe it. The devouring animals are drug cartels that work to keep people addicted, corporations that ignore environmental damage while pursuing profits, and religions that suppress the rights and opportunities of women. In my mind’s eye right now are the women of Afghanistan, prevented from learning and forced to cover themselves in black from head to toe. This is wickedness. In the United States now, we are watching the wave of right-wing ideology sweep across our country. It is a movement launched in the aftermath of the Civil Rights Movement. It was launched to prevent equality and opportunity for minority status people. It carried high sounding names like Moral Majority and Christian Coalition. These organizations used religion to push against the new freedoms and opportunities emerging in the United States. They are the roots of the MAGA movement today, the movement that is banning books, shutting down diversity, restricting what history is taught, rolling back civil rights, and outlawing contraception. All religions have these fundamentalist versions. Israel today has been taken over by right wing Orthodox Jews; several Middle Eastern countries today are run by right wing Muslims; and right wing Christians are moving powerfully to control denominations, political parties, and government offices here in the United States. We are in a great struggle to be free, to be equal, to think, believe, behave, and shape our own future. It is not easy. There are powerful forces at work to deny your rights, limit your freedom, push you down, and force you to conform. These forces use religion and Jesus and Christianity to justify their demands. They are false messiahs and false teachers. Jesus warned us about them. “Many will come in my name and lead you astray.” Be strong. Be firm. Be steady. Be warned. They cancelled Jesus. They criticized Jesus. They condemned Jesus. They crucified Jesus. Jesus declined the sword and lived in the Spirit. Jesus rejected violence and forgave his enemies. Jesus stayed faithful to his life of freedom and community. Jesus set the banquet table for everyone. Jesus invites you to the banquet hall, to the Lord’s Table, to the human community where all are welcome, where the weak are made strong and the broken are healed and the stranger received with joy. This is the kind of church we want to be. But it will not be easy. God bless us all.