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"But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near. Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those who are in the midst of her depart, and let not those who are in the country enter her. For these are the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled. But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! For there will be great distress in the land and wrath upon this people. And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
"And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; men's hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near."
- Luke 21:20-28
Yesterday we read that, as some spoke of the temple, how it was adorned with beautiful stones and donations, Jesus said, "These things which you see -- the days will come in which not one stone shall be left upon another that shall not be thrown down." So they asked Him, saying, "Teacher, but when will these things be? And what sign will there be when these things are about to take place?" And He said: "Take heed that you not be deceived. For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am He,' and 'The time has drawn near.' Therefore do not go after them. But when you hear of wars and commotions, do not be terrified; for these things must come to pass first, but the end will not come immediately." Then He said to them, "Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be great earthquakes in various places, and famines and pestilences; and there will be fearful sights and great signs from heaven. But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons. You will be brought before kings and rulers for My name's sake. But it will turn out for you as an occasion for testimony. Therefore settle it in your hearts not to meditate beforehand on what you will answer; for I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or resist. You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, relatives and friends; and they will put some of you to death. And you will be hated by all for My name's sake. But not a hair of your head shall be lost. By your patience possess your souls."
"But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near. Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those who are in the midst of her depart, and let not those who are in the country enter her. For these are the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled. But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! For there will be great distress in the land and wrath upon this people. And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled." Here Jesus' description is vivid indeed, and focusing on what is going to happen in Jerusalem within a generation (70 AD, the Siege of Jerusalem). My study bible says that Jesus' phrase when you see indicates that many of the disciples would still be alive at that time. Vengeance and fulfillment indicates a kind of outcome of the forces of history and of choice; we are reminded of Christ weeping over Jerusalem, "If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace!" In another vision of the military destruction to come, He said that the "days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation."
"And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; men's hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near." And here, the dialogue switches to the time of the end of the age, and Christ's return. My study bible focuses on the manner in which Christ will return, noting that in His words, the event will be unmistakable to the whole world. If there is any question or doubt, then that is evidence enough that He has not returned. There will be nothing hidden about it, no elite or elect who see while others do not. We note the cosmic nature of the signs of that time, that the powers of the heavens will be shaken. When Christ does appear, it will be in a cloud with power and great glory. We don't know what that means or what the experience will be like, but we can infer that it will be apparent to all.
What is the cosmic nature of Christ's return, and moreover, how is it tied up with the earthly events of the Siege of Jerusalem and its destruction in the first century after Christ's birth? Even in the telling of the times of the end in the Gospels (and indeed, in the words of Jesus Christ Himself) we see the intertwining of both worldly and heavenly events, just as Christ's birth also involves signs from the heavens and an intervention of the divine into the affairs of the world. The eternal and the temporal mix, as one inserts itself into the other. Heaven is not far from our experience, even if we are unaware of its workings. Of this we can be certain. It is even in the words given to the apostles as they were sent out on their first mission, going out to all the towns and cities and places to which they were directed. Jesus told them that they were to tell all those to whom they were sent, "The kingdom of God has come near to you." And this is the true reality, the real essence, of the Gospel message. It is in the stories of Christ's birth, it is in all the preaching and teaching and mission of His ministry, it is in the events to come of Holy Week, it is in the prophecy of the destruction of Jerusalem, of the initiation of this age, even as Jesus called it "the times of the Gentiles," and it is in the prophecy of His return and our expectations that He has given us for those things that are to come. This is the reality of our story, His story -- that the kingdom of God has come near to us. The intermingling of the vivid historical stories of the destruction of Jerusalem, His prophecies fulfilled within the lifetimes of those who listened to Him during Holy Week, and the prophecies of the times of the end before His second coming, all suggest to us this very fact of heaven and earth intersecting. That is, God's kingdom manifest here, intervening in our time, intersecting our lives and our world. It is even expressed in the prayer He has given us to pray to Our Father: "Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." And He has told us, in His words (also notably couched in a prophecy of the time of the end of the age and His return), "The kingdom of God is within you" (Luke 17:21). These words in the Greek give both meanings that this kingdom is within us and among us. It is a paradoxical picture we're given in the Gospels, because this intertwining of heaven and earth doesn't happen in a purely seamless way. This great "event" (if we can call it one event) brings not sort of pure experience of the sort of things we associate with heaven: joy, peace, confidence, mercy. But rather instead we are given conflict and division, the fits and starts of faith and every confidence in Christ, and the reality of the world that also holds spiritual struggle, rebellion and rejection of this Kingdom, persecutions, betrayals, violence, tribulation. The story of the Gospel isn't couched in a promise of unending "happiness" without travail of any kind. On the contrary, we experience the full reality of a world in which sin plays a part, and separation from God, and all that comes it -- but in the midst, the promise of joy and peace and the total and full assurance that "I have overcome the world" (John 16:33). This is why the time of the end has not come, because in this age we are included in the spiritual struggle for the kingdom of heaven in the world. As His followers, we are to experience also His struggle in the world. We are to take up His Cross and follow, and have faith and be His good servants, waiting and watching and knowing what it is we are to be about, with every confidence in Him, even as we struggle with our own fears in tribulation. That's what He has invited us into, an experience of both, with Him as His friends -- and not only servants. Rather, we are invited to be servants as He also has been a servant to all, in the struggle for the Kingdom in the world. There is no reality we shrink from, but we are simply invited in to His mission until the time He returns. These are our expectations and mission He has given us. Let us savor the fullness of all that He gives and brings and the life He gives us.
