THE RETURN OF THE KING
Luke 19:12-15,27
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR: UNLOADING THE WORD
1. Pastor Ken Sumrall tells a story from his days of pasturing in Mississippi years ago. He was out visiting a farmer who was an ex-member of his church.
2. As they looked out over the farmer’s acres and acres of white cotton, the farmer said, "Pastor, you’ve got it made. The way I figure it, you get your salary for only working 2 hours a week on Sunday!"
3. Ken thought a moment and said: "That’s pretty high pay all right, but you make more than I do." "Come on now, pastor. I’m just a cotton farmer. How can you say that?" the farmer asked.
4. The preacher responded, "I saw you down at the cotton gin last week, and you must have made $50,000 in 15 minutes unloading your bales of cotton."
5. "Yeah, but look what went into that bale of cotton, the time it took to grow it! I was just unloading it."
6. "That’s what I mean; it’s the same with me. I study and pray all week. On Sundays I’m just unloading!”
B. TEXT
12 He said: “A man of noble birth went to a distant country to have himself appointed king and then to return. 13 So he called ten of his servants and gave them ten minas. ‘Put this money to work,’ he said, ‘until I come back.’ 14 “But his subjects hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, ‘We don’t want this man to be our king.’ 15 “He was made king, however, and returned home. Then he sent for the servants to whom he had given the money, in order to find out what they had gained with it.” Luke 19:12-15.
24 “Then he said to those standing by…. ‘27 But those enemies of mine who did not want me to be king over them—bring them here and kill them in front of me.’”
C. THESIS
1. As a child I was introduced to J.R.R. Tolkien’s book, The Hobbit. Later I read his trilogy, Lord of the Rings which continues the story. This series was eventually made into 3 blockbuster movies, the last of which is called, “The Return of the King.”
2. Tolkien was a born-again Christian, and weaved into his narrative a Christ-like parallel. This character, named Aragorn, is the heir to the throne of the kingdom of Gondor. However, he was rejected by his own subjects.
3. The kingdom of Gondor is about to be defeated by the great power of evil – Sauron. The only hope for Gondor is that their long hoped-for King appear and lead the fight.
4. Aragorn has to travel ‘the Paths of the Dead’ and then fight a massive spiritual battle, in which the main strength of Sauron is defeated. Coming from the Land of the Dead, Aragorn helps finish off the armies of Sauron and then is crowned King!
5. This is a parallel of the true story, The Return of the King told in the Bible. We’re going to look at how Jesus is the True King, how He’s coming back, and how a lot of people act as if they don’t want Him to be King.
6. The title is, “The Return of the King.”
I.JESUS: THE KING WHO LEFT & WILL RETURN
A. JESUS: FROM A LINE OF KINGS
1. Jesus was the descendant and heir of King David.
2. When the Wise Men asked, “Where is He that is born King of the Jews?” Herod sent them to Bethlehem, the city of David. There they found Jesus.
B. CALLED “KING” BY HIS CONTEMPORARIES
1. Jesus was frequently called “King” and accepted the title. Nathanael called Him “the King of Israel!” Jn. 1:49.
2. After Jesus fed 5,000 men, they tried to “make Him King by force” John 6:15.
3. Jesus came riding into Jerusalem in the traditional manner of a King coming to be coronated – riding on a donkey’s colt, as prophesied in Zech. 9:9, “Do not be afraid, O Daughter of Zion; see, your King is coming,
seated on a donkey’s colt.” John 12:15. Vast multitudes came out to meet Him and shouted, “Blessed is the King of Israel!” John 12:13.
4. When the Roman Gov. Pontius Pilate asked Jesus, “Are you the king of the Jews?”, Jesus answered, “You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world.” John 18:33,37. See Mt. 27:11; Mk. 15:2.
5. At His crucifixion, the Governor Pilate placed over his head; “This is Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.”
C. TURNED THE KGDM OVER TO HIS SERVANTS
1. Just like the King in Luke 19, Jesus turned his kingdom over to His servants, the Apostles, and then to us, the Church. Jesus went away to be crowned and He was made King of Kings by God the Father!”
2. Daniel saw the crowning in vision; 13 “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. 14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.” Dan. 7:13-14.
3. In Lk. 19:13 Jesus commanded us to “Occupy till I Come” (KJV). The Greek word is pragmateu-omai, from which we get the word, “pragmatic.” It means to “Be Busy!” “Be trading.” NIV – “put this money to work.”
4. We’re supposed to be obeying His orders and building the kingdom and keeping Him first in our lives. But Jesus warned that many would be derelict of their duties and be unprepared at His Coming.
5. “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?” Lk. 6:46. Jesus is called “Lord” 740 times in the N.T.! That’s His main title. Talk is cheap.
6. Jesus WILL be Lord! Every knee shall bow, every tongue confess! Presidents, wealthy, immoral, atheists, dictators, etc., will all bow!
7. Jesus must sit on the throne of our hearts and govern our lives, words, decisions, actions, entertainments, etc.
II. HOW THE KING IS COMING BACK
A. PRECEDED BY SIGNS
1. Jesus said in Mt. 24 that False prophets and false Christs shall appear (Mt. 24:4-6); wars, famines, earthquakes(7); persecution(9); apostasy (10-12); preaching throughout the world(14).
2. Disturbances in the Sun, moon ,and stars: 29 “Immediately after the distress of those days ‘the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’” Mt. 24:29.
B. AT THE CLIMAX OF EVIL
1. Paul said, “3 Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day [Coming of Christ] will not come until the rebellion [Gr. ‘apostasy’]occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. 4 He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God” 2 Thess. 2:3-4.
2. The Antichrist will rise to worldwide power and initiate the Mark of the Beast (Rev. 13:16-17) and try to annihilate the Jewish people(Mt. 24:15-22).
C. ACCOMPANIED BY THE ARMIES OF HEAVEN
30 “At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory. 31 And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.” Mt. 24:30-31.
D. COMING TO RULE & JUDGE
III. SOME WON’T WANT HIM TO COME BACK
ILLUSTRATION "I Don't Want Christ To Come."
1. H.A Ironside said, “I remember one night in Stockton, California... I was preaching about the coming of Jesus.
2. Near the conclusion I led the congregation in prayer, and was conscious of a woman getting up and going out. It seemed to me that she left in a hurry.
3. When I finished my prayer and went to greet the people at the door, I found a woman pacing back and forth in the lobby.
4. The moment I came, she said to me, "How would you dare to pray like that – ‘Come, Lord Jesus?’I don't want Him to come. It would ruin all my plans. How dare you!"
5. I said, "My dear young woman, Jesus is coming whether you want it or not!"
6. What about you? Can you sincerely pray "Come, Lord Jesus!"? There are some who don’t want Him to come. Who?
A. THE COMFORTABLE
1. Amos 6:1 “Woe to you who are at ease in Zion…”
2. We Americans have such incredible luxuries and wealth that we’ve become too comfortable in our materialism. All of our toys make us happy.
3. We’re not excited about heaven because too many of us are so at ease in this life that heaven sounds like a boring place. Too comfortable.
4. Peter said, “Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul” 1 Pet. 2:11.
5. Paul could say, “I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far” Phip. 1:23. Can we say that? Are you longing for Jesus to return? If not, might it be that you’ve become too comfortable in this world?
6. Lot and his family were in Sodom. Though the angels warned them of its imminent destruction, they still hesitated to leave – they were too comfortable in Sodom!
7. Many are Spiritually Unconscious -- forgetting who they are! Living only to satisfy your fleshly desires. "We are in this world, but not of it." We're just passing through.
B. THE UNPREPARED
1. Jesus told many stories/parables about people not being ready to stand before God at death or the rapture: a. the five foolish virgins who ran out of oil (Mt. 15:1)
b. the rich man and Lazarus (rich man was completely selfish, Lk. 16:19-31).
c. the disobedient steward who forgot his orders (Mt. 24:45, 48-51),
d. the branch that didn’t abide in the Vine, Jn. 15:6.
e. those who said ‘Lord, Lord,’ but had deceived themselves into thinking they were doing their Master’s will, but weren’t (Mt. 7:21).
2. These are people who had dropped out of fellowship with Christ; they no longer walked with Him, so that when He came to get His adopted brothers, they bore no resemblance to Him.
3. Jesus said, ‘One will be taken and the other left.’ The ones left weren't ready. Jesus said, “Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” Mt. 24:44.
C. THOSE IN SIN
1. George Gallup is a pollster who has studied people who claim to be Christians(he’s a Christian). He said, “We find there is very little difference in ethical behavior between churchgoers and those who are not active religiously...The levels of lying, cheating, and stealing are remarkably similar in both groups. Only two in ten said they would be willing to suffer for their faith. [Erwin Lutzer, Pastor to Pastor, p. 76.]
2. Like Samson, many Christians think they can dabble in sin. "After all, we’re adults; we can make up our own minds and run our own lives.”
3. Scripture says, "The cords of his sin will hold him fast." Sin is a weight (Heb. 12:1). When the rapture takes place, people in sin will be weighed down and not be able to rise with the rest of believers!
4. WHAT WOULD IT BE LIKE TO WAKE UP IN HELL?
a. Carl Knighton, who grew up in a Christian home, knows what hell is like because he went there after he overdosed on drugs. He appeared on CBN, The 700 Club.
b. “It was pitch dark. I began going down, down, down [into] a deep pit and I start smelling the stench of hell….you can’t even imagine it.
c. “I began to feel a tugging and pulling of demons. They were calling my name. ‘We got you; You belong to us now.’ I saw souls that were in torment in the lake of fire. They were crying; They were hopeless.
d. I began to call on the Lord, ‘Jesus; Help me Jesus.’ And soon as I called on his name, God snatched me out of hell and my spirit went back into my body.”
e. Carl says that he was in hell for more than half an hour. Carl…immediately asked the Lord to forgive him and he repented.“God loved me so much that he gave me a second chance. Don’t throw your life away. Accept Jesus as your savior.” [“A Wake-up Call From Hell,” By Michelle Wilson, The 700 Club, CBN.com.]
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION: Hogs and Hypocrites
1. A lot of people justify themselves in their sins because they’re ‘just as good’ as many Christians.
2. A Christian once visited a farmer to talk to him about Christ. "I wouldn't come to church up there." the farmer said. "I know old ‘so and so’ who claims to be a Christian and also ‘So and So,’ and they don't live any differently from me. I'm as good as they are."
3. Everywhere the farmer went he would comment about the hypocrites in that church. Months passed and the Christian went to see the farmer again.
4. "I want to buy a hog", said the Christian. The farmer showed all his best hogs to him. Then they came to the runt. "I believe I’ll take that one," the Christian said. "But you don't want that one. He's the worst runt to the litter," the farmer replied.
5. "I sure do" said the Christian. So they loaded the runt in the truck. "Now," said the Christian, "what if I take this pig here from your farm and ride all over this area telling folks that this is the kind of hogs you raise?"
6. "That's not fair!" the farmer exclaimed. "I have some fine hogs and you want to show people that runt?!" To which the Christian replied, "If it's fair for you to point out the ‘runts’ in the church, it's fair for the hogs too!"
B. THE CALL
1. Folks, Jesus is coming back soon!
2. WARNING SIGNS
a. At an intersection, the green light changes to yellow;
b. At the theater the house lights flash;
c. In the Battalion Tactical Operations Center a Warning Order comes down from Brigade;
d. At the airport terminal the boarding call comes over the intercom;
e. At a railroad crossing the lights begin to flash;
f. In a small Midwestern town the tornado siren screams;
g. On the football field the two minute warning sounds;
h. In the cargo bay of a C-140 a red-light comes on;
3. What do each of these have in common? They are signs or warnings that we need to prepare ourselves for what is about to happen.
4. A Man on a train asked, “Do you think Christ might come today?” 3 Passengers answered, “I think not.” The man quoted a scripture; “The Son of Man will come at a time you think not.”
5. Are you ready to meet the King should He decide to come back today? PRAYER
