He, who is, and who was, and who is to come
Mari Ikeda
A. He, who is, and who was, and who is to come
1) He, who is (20-21)
20 Once, on being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed, 21 nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is in your midst.”
2) He, who is to come (22-24)
22 Then he said to his disciples, “The time is coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it. 23 People will tell you, ‘There he is!’ or ‘Here he is!’ Do not go running off after them. 24 For the Son of Man in his day will be like the lightning, which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other.
3) He, who was (25)
25 But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.
B. We are waiting for Him
1) Waiting for God’s judgment (26-35/36)
26 “Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man. 27 People were eating, drinking, marrying and being given in marriage up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and destroyed them all. 28 “It was the same in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. 29 But the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all. 30 “It will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed. 31 On that day no one who is on the housetop, with possessions inside, should go down to get them. Likewise, no one in the field should go back for anything. 32 Remember Lot’s wife! 33 Whoever tries to keep their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life will preserve it. 34 I tell you, on that night two people will be in one bed; one will be taken and the other left. 35 Two women will be grinding grain together; one will be taken and the other left.”
2) With our trust in Him (37)
37 “Where, Lord?” they asked. He replied, “Where there is a dead body, there the vultures will gather.”
Revelation 1:8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”
Summary
Jesus promised that He would come again to this world. When He comes, this world will come to an end, and will be under God’s direct reign. Even if the reality of this world hardly gets better in our eyes, God did come to this world as Jesus and is with those who seek Him. We are living here and now to seek His kingdom that is already coming, with placing our trust in love of Jesus, who died on the Cross for us.
For Discussion
1) What does it mean to wait for God’s judgment?
2) What does it mean to seek God’s kingdom among us?