The Hope in Christ’s Return
Mark 13:24-37
Intro
In the late 19th Century in America, there was a wave of enthusiasm for prophecies predicting the actual date for Christ’s Second coming.
One such self proclaimed prophet was William Miller. And it is in his movement that both the Jehovah Witnesses and the Seventh Day Adventists find their roots.
Miller first predicted that Christ would return on March 21, 1842, but then revised the date to April 2, 1843. Over 3,500 of his followers jammed the Boston Advent Temple, only to be disappointed.
You might have thought that the movement would have died, after such a let down. But it didn’t. Rather it continued to grow.
Miller decided to recalculate his date for the Second Coming and soon published a new date – April 18, 1844. When the Messiah did not show up on that date, there was again frustration and some followers left the Adventist ranks.
Undeterred by these failures, Miller came up with a third date – October 22, 1844. The date was published as the Millerite publication True Midnight Cry. And, surprisingly, this third date surprisingly rallied his followers.
They began to spread the news of the new date of the second coming with an enthusiasm that had not been seen before. Churches which did not accept this message were denounced as agents of “Babylon” and the devil.
And despite opposition from established, mainline religious groups, thousands of people – including many clergy – began to defect to the Millerite cult. As doomsday approached, the Millerites began to prepare.
One account notes that “Fields were left un-harvested, shops were closed, people quit their jobs, paid their debts, and freely gave away their possessions with no thought of repayment.
Huge press runs of Advent publications like the Midnight Cry warned the public that “the Time is Short.” “Prepare to Meet Thy God!” and “The Lord is Coming!”
William Miller himself began peddling white “ascension robes” to the faithful, many of whom waited for the miraculous event in freshly dug graves.
But as we all know, the Second Coming did not occur on October 22, 1844.
In fact if they had heeded this morning’s text, they would not have been taken in by Miller’s false prophecy.
For Jesus speaking about the Second Coming said: “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Take heed; keep on the alert; for you do not know when the appointed time will come.”
For many of us, Advent is a time when we look back to the Birth of Jesus two thousand years ago in a stable in Bethlehem. However, it is also the time we look forward to the Hope we have in Christ’s Return.
There are three things in this passage this morning that I feel express the meaning of Advent for us.
I. Christ is Coming Again (vv. 24-27)
a. The disciples had been a little confused and thought that the destruction of Jerusalem would b the end of the world.
i. Christ sets them straight and shows that they day of Christ’s coming and day of judgment are after that tribulation.
ii. He give them prophecy here of the dissolution of the very components of the world.
iii. Finally he tells of His appearance in the clouds and the gathering together of His believers.
On November 2, 1992, the “Mission for the Coming Days” church disbanded after a very tough weekend. Lee Jang-Rim, the Korean church’s founder, was in jail and the embarrassed congregation returned to their respective homes and places of employment. The central message of this church has been Christ’s imminent return on October 29, 1992. It was the largest of the South Korean churches that were predicting the impending end of the world. Hundreds, and possibly thousands of these believers sold property, left their families, quit schools and jobs, and deserted military duties. Of course, they should have checked the pastor’s financial portfolio before banking on the October rapture date. Pastor Jang-rim had swindled four million dollars in donations and had $380,000 invested in bonds that would not mature until the following May.
b. This distinguishes prophecy and guesswork.
i. You see Jesus gives us prophecy of hope here.
ii. He tells us of His second coming, and gives us a basic timeline to work with, while NOT giving us a date and time of any clarity.
iii. Why do you think Jesus doesn’t just come out and throw out a date?
iv. His emphasis is clearly that the date and the time are not so important as how we consistently live our lives in the knowledge that it is coming at any time.
v. But Christ is His infinite knowledge doesn’t want anyone to misunderstand, and so he illustrates this with a parable.
II. The Parable of the Fig Tree (vv. 28-29)
a. Just like a tree shows signs in the spring that summer is near, we are to look around and see signs that the end is coming.
i. We don’t know at which exact day or hour, but we can tell when the season is coming.
ii. Our hope is foundational in the belief that Christ’s second coming will not be a mystery but rather we will have been ready for an extended period of time.
John Wesley was working in his garden one day when a neighbor came by to visit. The neighbor attempted to jolt Wesley by asking, “What should you be doing now, John, If you knew for certain Jesus would return today?” Wesley jolted his neighbor instead by replying, “I would go right on doing what I’m doing.” May we live in such a way that Christ could return at any time and we would be comfortable continuing the task at hand.
b. Do you live your life in a state of readiness if at any moment Christ were to return?
i. From the evidence we have around us, just like that of a tree telling of summer, we are living in the last days.
ii. That could mean a few years or hundreds, but in the timeline of humanity, we are nearer to the end than the beginning.
III. The Hope of His Return (vv. 30-37)
a. The end is coming and soon, but we are not to know the day nor the hour.
i. Our job is to WATCH and PRAY.
ii. We do not know the time or place, but after our birth, our bodies begin to die.
iii. As such we are to anticipate Christ’s return to us at our death.
iv. We are to be ready for Him when He returns, that’s why his command is an emphatic: WATCH!
“A time is coming for all men when they will be either born again, or wish they had never been born at all.” Anonymous writer.
b. My prayer is that the end times for you – whether during your life or when you meet Christ in death, that you might be ready.
i. That you have been watching.
ii. That when Christ returns you will know you are born again.
Closing
Do you have the HOPE in Christ that I am preaching today? Are you ready for Christ’s return? Have you given your life to Christ? Sure you can wait until you get ready or until you get your life cleaned up, BUT Christ’s return is not going to hinge on you’re getting ready. So be ready today. If you have been born again; live your days in the fashion that Christ maybe returning today. If you have not given your life to Christ and surrendered your all to Him, there is no time to wait. Why not give yourself to God today and know without a shadow of doubt, when Christ does return that you are ready. Praise God that we can have the HOPE that Christ’s is coming again. LET”S PRAY.
