Where Are We Going?

Mark 13:1-8

Where Are We Going?

Where are we going?

When will we get there?

How far do we have yet to go?

Are we almost there?

Do we have far to go yet?

This series of questions might sound all too familiar to you.

It’s what I sounded like when I was a little girl in my parent’s car on the way to the shore.

I was filled with wonder, awe, and excitement.

I couldn’t wait to get there.

It seemed like it took forever.

Then when I became a Youth Director, and took my youth group to the shore, I heard it again!….

A car full of kids in between the laughter and the loud music…

Are we almost there?

How far do we have to go yet?

Will we be there in the next 10 minutes?

What are we going to do when we get there?

Let’s face it…

If we’re honest, most of us want to know where we’re going.

My Grandmother used to go on mystery trips with the Salvation Army in Reading.

She would trustfully get on the bus with her overnight bag, having no idea where she was going.

There’s no way I could do that.

I want to know if I need a bathing suit or a three piece suit.

I want to know if I need to pack flip flops or pumps.

Are we going camping or to a dinner theatre?

I want to know, so I can be properly prepared.

For many of us, the picture is even bigger.

Just recently, the questions being asked were, who is going to run the city of Philadelphia over the next term.

Will it be John Street or Sam Katz?

There are other questions like who will run the country in the years ahead?

Will it be our current President George W. Bush, or another leader?

As we listen to the news, questions are raised in our minds…will we as a country fall prey to more terrorist attacks in the future?

Israel falls prey almost continuously.

Will the fighting ever cease?

It sounds like from our scripture, like this is just the beginning.

It’s a sure way to get depressed if you stay in the gloom and doom long enough.

But the real question is….Where are we going?

Where are we going as a church?

Where are we going as a city?

Where are we going as a nation?

Where are we going as a people?

And when we die, where are we going?

When we’re on the road to glory, we know where we’re headed.

When we’re on the road to victory, we have a blessed assurance of our future.

When we’re on the road to the Heavenly Kingdom of God, we realize that we are experiencing the birth pangs of something big.

I’ve never experienced birthing a baby, so I don’t have first hand experience at the pain involved…

But I have heard my mom tell me over and over and over again.

But in spite of the pain I caused her coming in to this world…her love for me is beyond measure.

All I can do is equate that love to this scripture….

There will be wars and earthquakes and famines.

This is but the beginning of the birth pangs.

God is about to birth something glorious.

We don’t know when.

We don’t know how soon.

We don’t know how far we have to go yet.

But as Christians, we do know where we’re going…

And if you are within the sound of my voice and you don’t know, please let me know….

That is my job, to help you find the road you are supposed to be on as a Christian.

To help you along on this journey called life.

My job does not stop at the end of this message, or the end of the prayer of the day, or the end of the offering, or after the benediction.

My job begins here, Sunday morning, when we have the opportunity to explore the scriptures together…

Question the scriptures together….

See how the scriptures speak to our lives….

It’s all about the journey.

My husband John makes me suffer through listening to Hank Hannagraph, the Bible Answer Man, whenever we’re in his car.

Sometimes I just want to listen to some music so my brain can have a rest!

Just recently, Hank had a caller on his radio talk show who was an atheist.

Now for an atheist, this guy really knew the scriptures, exegesis, the early church fathers, church doctrine, and had obviously engaged himself in many scholarly theological discussions.

He raised some very interesting questions.

If God is Sovereign, and doesn’t need anything, why did God create people?

Hank’s guest responded as I would have responded, that God created for several reasons, the most important reason being that we were created in God’s image out of love.