Plan for: Thanksgiving | Advent | Christmas
Plan for: Thanksgiving | Advent | Christmas
Encourages Christians to discern God's signs, commit to discipleship, and patiently await His divine return, while constantly reforming their lives in response to His Word.
Welcome, dear brothers and sisters in Christ. As we gather here today, we are united in spirit and in purpose, bound by the shared desire to understand more deeply the divine mysteries that our Lord has laid out before us in His holy Word. We are here to listen, to learn, and to love - to love the Lord our God with all our hearts, our minds, our souls, and our strength.
As we open the pages of the Bible today, we find ourselves in the book of Mark, chapter 13, verses 24 to 37. Here, Jesus Himself speaks to us. He tells us of signs, of discipleship, and of the divine wait. The words of our Savior are always profound and full of wisdom, but these verses speak to us in a way that is particularly poignant, particularly relevant for the times we find ourselves in.
In the verses we just read, Jesus speaks of signs - signs in the heavens, signs on the earth. He tells us of a time when the sun will be darkened, the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky. These are not ordinary signs. These are divine signs, signs from God Himself. They are signs that point to something much bigger, much grander than anything we can comprehend. They are signs of the coming of the Son of Man, the return of Jesus Christ.
Questions: You might be wondering, how do we discern these divine signs? How do we know what to look for? How do we understand what these signs mean? These are valid questions, questions that deserve thoughtful and thorough answers. And the answers to these questions lie in the Word of God itself.
Firstly: We need to understand that discerning the divine signs is not about predicting the future. It's not about knowing exactly when or how these events will unfold. Jesus Himself tells us that "about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father." So, it's not our job to predict the future. It's not our job to know the exact timing of these events. Our job is to watch, to be alert, to be ready.
Secondly: Discerning the divine signs is about recognizing the work of God in the world around us. It's about seeing the hand of God in the events that unfold, in the changes that take place, in the shifts that occur. It's about understanding that God is at work, that He is in control, that He is guiding history towards His ultimate purpose. It's about seeing the world through the lens of faith, through the perspective of God's Word.
Thirdly: Discerning the divine signs is about living in anticipation of the return of Christ. It's about living with a sense of expectancy, a sense of hope, a sense of longing for the coming of our Lord. It's about living in a way that reflects our belief in the promises of God, our trust in the words of Jesus, our hope in the coming of the Kingdom of God.
Fourthly: Discerning the divine signs is about being prepared. It's about being ready for the return of Christ, ready for the coming of the Kingdom of God. It's about living in a way that shows we are waiting, we are watching, we are longing for the day when Jesus will return. It's about living in a way that shows we are not of this world, but of the Kingdom of God.
As we continue to reflect on the words of Jesus in Mark 13, we find ourselves drawn to the idea of discipleship ... View this full PRO sermon free with PRO
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