Second Presbyterian Church

"Surviving Tumultuous Times
First Sunday in Advent, Year B"
November 27, 2005

Upcoming Events

Worship Schedule

Sermons

About the Church

• Accessibility to the Church

• Directions to the Church

• History of the Church

Church Staff

Groups & Organizations

• Boy Scouts of America - Troop 175

• Choirs

• Presbyterian Women

• SPY (Second Presbyterian Youth)

Committees

• Building & Grounds

• Church Growth

• Congregational Care & Fellowship

• Education & Nurture

• Finance

• Office & Personnel

• Stewardship

• Witness & Service

• Worship & Celebration

Ad Hoc Committees

• Architectural - Engineering

• Building Fund

Presbyterian Internet Sites of Interest

Virginia Links

• Virginia Cities

Web Site Statistics

Site Map

Second Presbyterian Church Homepage

Sermons Homepage » Sermons for 2005 » Sermons for November 2005

• Isaiah 64: 1-9
• Mark 13: 24-37

Christians in America have a fascination about the end-times. When taken together it seems to be a love/hate relationship. On the one hand we have those who are preaching that the End of the Earth is near. The Late, Great Planet Earth and Left Behind novels have been a huge sales success. That alone testifies to the fascination that people have for the Last Days and what they represent. Far too many theologians and ministers have tried too hard to "de-code" the Book of Revelations and other apocalyptic literature. The result has been that they have often been seduced into predicting when Jesus will return, or when the rapture shall take place.

Related to this fascination by some Christians in the last days has been the counter-reaction of others, also many Christians. The tendency is to dismiss the talk of the second coming of Jesus the Messiah as mere foolishness. Admittedly, much of the talk about the second coming of Jesus the Messiah should be dismissed, mainly because it is biblically inaccurate. But this group tends to dismiss the whole idea of Jesus returning. I understand that as a problem, because the scriptures refer to the return of Jesus in several places.

So what are a responsible Christians supposed to do when we have such a difference of opinion between two groups that claim to be Christian? The answer is surprisingly simple; turn to the scriptures and study what they say - without getting caught up on the symbolism of Apocalyptic Literature!

For example, today's gospel lesson is from the 13^th chapter of Mark. Chapter 13 is the apocalyptic chapter in Mark. Each of the synoptic gospels; Matthew, Mark and Luke; has an apocalyptic chapter in which Jesus talks about the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple (which happened in 70 A. D.). Each gospel's apocalyptic chapter includes warnings about false messiahs and the return of Jesus (or the Son of Man) in glory. The book of Revelation goes into further detail about the coming of the new Jerusalem and the fulfillment of the Kingdom of God.;

All apocalyptic literature in the New Testament is written to encourage believers who are experiencing hardship and persecution. During the time of Mark Christians were apt to be persecuted by both Jews and Gentiles. Beginning with Steven, Christians have died for what they believed. Many other believers were considering leaving Christianity so that they could survive. They needed encouragement and apocalyptic literature provided that encouragement. It uses a simple formula: the persecution happens, God is with you in your persecution, and you will be rewarded for keeping your faith.

So, we have as our lesson today, part of the apocalyptic chapter of Mark. It has three sections and each of these sections makes a point that is aimed at strengthening the believer in the face of discouragement.

The three points made by the three sections are:

1. When the Son of Man returns he will return with great power and glory and he will gather the elect from all over.
2. The words of Jesus Christ shall remain true forever; they are more stable than the universe itself (or, Heaven and earth will pass away, but my [Jesus'] words will not pass away.
3. No one knows when - period. Only God the Father knows. Therefore, stay alert; stay awake!

I

How many times have you heard preachers, or others proclaim the end of the world recently? It has been particularly numerous since the transition to the 21^st century. Christianity is now approximately 2,000 years old and for some reason people think that two millennia is the magic number. I don't know. All I know is that the scriptures warn us of all the false messiahs who proclaim some type of redemption for humankind. It could possibly be a new religion: such as Jehovah's Witnesses, or Mormonism. Yet the Bible is clear. Watch out for those proclaiming to be the messiah or proclaim a "new" gospel, for they are false prophets. Mark even notes that some are able to perform signs and miracles designed to lead people astray (13:22). Luke, you may remember noted that anyone who predicts the end IS a false messiah and by making that specific prediction he/she should be ignored.

What does Mark say? He stated that the Son of Man shall return with great power and glory. He will send out angels to gather those who have been saved, both the living and the dead. This is very similar to what Paul states in 1 Thessalonians 4: 13-18. The Christ shall return in the air. Now what does this mean, specifically? The details we may not understand, such as what kind of vehicle will he be aboard, etc. That is not the issue. The issue is this: when Jesus returns THERE SHALL BE NO QUESTION IN ANYbody'S MIND THAT JESUS HAS RETURNED, PERIOD. It's as clear as this; if you have any doubt whether so and so, or such and such is the messiah, then chances are very good that he is NOT. When Jesus returns, THERE WILL BE NO QUESTION, period.

II

The second point made in our scripture lesson reinforces the first. Jesus spoke by saying that heaven and earth shall pass away, but not his words. To the reader of Jesus' time, that would mean Jesus was saying: what I say to you is as true as the scriptures. That is, the Law of Moses, the Prophets. Jesus is saying, "My word is as good as God's Word." This is just another way that the gospel writer is noting that Jesus is the Son of God, the Messiah, the Redeemer.

The importance of this point comes when we tend to get too caught up in the anxieties and the hustle-bustle of our world. We become too busy. We worry about our future. We worry about illness. We worry about just about everything. We tend to worry about all the things that God deals with that are out of our control and we tend to give too little attention to our relationship with Jesus Christ and to each other as Christians.

Heaven and earth will pass away sometime. It can happen in the next moment. It could happen in 15 billion years. Only the Father knows.

III

This brings us to the third point in this passage. Since we do not know when it will happen, the return of Jesus. But when He does return, there will be no doubt. What are we supposed to do in the meantime?

Mark was very, very clear about this. We are to stay alert; we are to stay awake; we are to be on guard. Okay, now what exactly does that mean? First of all it means that since we do not know when Jesus Christ is returning, then we need to be ready for His return at all times. The clearest way to state this is that we are to be at our stations, as good servants are of the master's household while he is away, for he may return when you least expect it.

It does not mean that you cannot receive physical rest and sleep. (It might mean that you cannot sleep during the sermon!) It definitely means that you and I must be on guard and to be attentive to our callings and our spiritual health. It does meant that we are to go about our lives living as grateful, saved sinners who want to be found obeying the command of our Lord, even if He returns before I finish this sermon. Jesus was warning us to always be on spiritual guard. We are to pray regularly and study the scriptures regularly. We are supposed to gather for regular worship. And we are to practice the commandment to love God and to love our neighbors.

It is really simple; we stay focused upon the mission of Jesus Christ and the Gospel. As a congregation we are to stay focused upon our mission to reach out into the world with the Good News of Jesus Christ and to love our neighbor as ourselves. We are to stay focused upon what has Christ called us to do and not just our self-preservation. Self-preservation is, for any congregation, spiritual formaldehyde. It kills the ministry of a congregation. Our focus is to be in the great commission: to reach out in the name of Jesus Christ to those who need his love and care, to those who need to become part of the church.

Worrying about the End-time, or the end of the world is a spiritually futile exercise. We have a Savior who has redeemed us and called us to be his own through his life, death, and resurrection. We don't really need anything else, period, except Jesus' Holy Spirit to inspire us and to make us alive in our obedience to Christ.

Today is the first Sunday in Advent. Jesus shall return. It is promised in Scripture. It is as sure as the fact that he came to earth as a little baby, the shoot of Jesse. Jesus is our hope. It is a hope that exceeds all other hopes.

Today is also pledge Sunday, what we pledge in money, time and works, expresses our faith and gratitude in the love that God showed us in Jesus Christ. As Christians, we no longer belong to ourselves. As Christians we now belong to Jesus Christ, body, mind, spirit, and material wealth. We are called to demonstrate in a provisional manner, the reality of the coming of the Kingdom of God. With our many hands and God's help we can. Amen.

The Rev. Daniel E. Hale, D. Min.