[0:00] Good morning and a warm welcome to the service this morning. It's good to see everyone out. I don't know if there's any visitors with us. I don't think there are, but it's good to see a few more than we have done the last few weeks.
[0:13] Some who are coming back and so those who are in the building and also those who are online. A warm welcome as we come together to to worship God.
[0:23] The intimations have been on the screen, the notices, and just to just to go through a few of them briefly. Evening service at six, God willing. So a special welcome to that as we come towards the end.
[0:39] I think we'll probably finish the study in the Book of Malachi tonight. Ladies fellowship meets on Monday at eight. I think that's in the church, is it? In the church itself?
[0:50] Pardon? There's two groups. So one's in the church and one I think is still on Zoom. And a warm welcome to those who are visiting with us as well this morning.
[1:02] Little Fishes on Tuesday, as usual. Road to Recovery on Tuesday also. And an encouragement for any who are struggling with any addiction issues to come along for encouragement at that meeting.
[1:15] The prayer meeting. We'll keep the prayer meeting on Zoom this week. We are coming out a bit more just now, but there's still quite a lot of folks who would be nervous about coming out.
[1:28] So we'll keep it on Zoom this Wednesday and we'll see about next week. The clubs for the young folks, Jam Connect and Rooted, are all back in full force this coming Friday.
[1:39] So please note that. And the services next Sunday, God willing, will be taken by myself. There's a reading group, the Way Forward reading group. There's details on there and you can, you've seen them in advance of the service.
[1:54] If you're looking for any more, come and speak to me at the end of the service. So I think these are all the intimations. And we'll begin this time of worship and we'll sing a hymn which is fairly new to us, but we've sung it a few times.
[2:09] And so we're getting to know it. And it's a hymn called The Ancient of Days. Though the nations rage, kingdoms rise and fall. There is still one king reigning over all. So I will not fear, for this truth remains, that my God is the Ancient of Days.
[2:24] So we'll stand to sing in just a moment and we sing to God's praise. And above Him, down before Him, all time in His hands.
[3:21] All His glory shall remain, I'll never shine. All the power, all the glory, I will trust in His name.
[3:35] For my God is the Ancient of Days. Though the dread of night overwhelms my soul, He is here with me, I am not alone.
[3:57] For His love is sure, and He knows my name. For my God is the Ancient of Days.
[4:11] And above Him, and above Him, all of time in His hands. All the glory shall remain, I'll never stand.
[4:25] All the power, all the glory, I will trust in His name. For my God is the Ancient of Days.
[4:40] For I may not see what the future brings. I will watch and wait for the Savior King.
[4:55] I will watch and wait for the Lord, I will see what the Lord is the Ancient of Days.
[5:10] For my God is the Ancient of Days.
[5:47] Let's bow and unite our hearts in prayer. Let's pray.
[5:58] Let's pray. Let's pray. Our Heavenly Father, we thank you.
[6:11] We thank you for this day and for the fact that we are able to gather in this place, and we are able to gather, waiting in expectation to meet with the Lord God, the Sovereign, the Almighty God, the Ancient of Days.
[6:31] We thank you for all the comfort and the assurance and the joy that we receive as we meditate upon who you are in your being, and what you have done and are doing in this world and in our lives.
[6:48] Lord, we thank you for all the things that we are in our lives. We thank you for all the things that we are in our lives. We thank you that although you are the God who is eternal, we see in Christ, God the Son, breaking from eternity into time to make it possible for us when you call us to step from time into eternity, and to do so safely, knowing that we are secure eternally.
[7:17] We thank you that although the nations do rage, and although we see so much turmoil and so much that troubles us in this world, and even in our own hearts, we thank you that you are the God who does not change, and we thank you that you are the God who is in control, who is reigning over all that we see and all that we are.
[7:48] And so we bow in your presence this morning, thankful that you are our God and that you are the King. And we thank you, Lord, that we can come to you as we are taught to by Jesus, your Son, our Saviour.
[8:05] We thank you that we can call you our Father. We thank you that even in these moments as we come together in this place, we can know intimacy with the God who made all things and who holds all things together.
[8:20] We thank you that we can rest in your presence, we can find joy in your presence. We thank you that as we come confessing our sin, we can find that promise of forgiveness, of heart cleansing.
[8:37] And we thank you that as we come aware of our own weakness and our own mortality, that we come to the one who has the words of eternal life.
[8:53] To help us, we pray on this, the Lord's day, to be in the Spirit, and to be worshipping you in spirit and in truth. We do pray that you would cleanse us from our sin.
[9:07] We know that we fall short of our own standards. And much more so we fall short of your standard. But we thank you that Jesus came to seek and to save sinners.
[9:19] He didn't come for those who think that they are righteous and healthy at heart. But Jesus came for those who know that we are unrighteous and that we are heart sick and need your help.
[9:33] So cleanse us, Lord, we pray, in the blood that was shed on Calvary. And fill us with the Holy Spirit, we pray. Empty us of all that would be self-centred.
[9:47] Fill us with the Holy Spirit that we may see you more clearly and that we may see the people around us and the needs that are around us. And we pray for those who are in need this morning, especially.
[10:00] We pray for those who are grieving. Those who feel that sense of loss and sadness. We pray for the Gunn family especially. And we think of Kenny, who we see so often here.
[10:13] We pray that you would strengthen them all, that you would give them your comfort. And as the wider family disperse back to their homes, we pray that when that sense of loss is felt, as we mourn for both one that we saw so often and one that we had such fondness for, we pray, Lord, that you would give comfort and that you would give strength.
[10:45] And to that, to those who feel it the most especially, we pray that they may know the assurance that you are with them. We pray for those who struggle with addictions.
[10:57] We are always conscious of that struggle. And many of us, Lord, all of us struggle with sin inwardly. And it's seen only by you.
[11:10] But we know that there are some addictions that spill out into life. Addictions to alcohol and drugs. And for those who have that particular affliction, we bring them to you in prayer.
[11:22] And we ask that you would help them. And that they would cry out to you for help because we know that you hear the prayers of all who call upon your name. So hear our prayers for those who struggle with these addictions.
[11:37] Hear our prayers for those who are mourning. And hear our prayers for those who are sick at this time. And especially we think of those in hospital. And we think particularly of Ina.
[11:50] Who we have seen so faithfully over the years with us. Who is such a bright light in the Christian community here. We ask, Lord, that as she is in hospital and as she is clearly weak, that she may know the strength of God.
[12:13] And the joy of the Lord. As we have seen that in her. We pray that she would continue to know the joy of the Lord. That is so compelling and so noticeable to the nurses who attend to her.
[12:26] We ask, Lord, that you would be with her. That she would know your grace that's sufficient for each hour. Lord, that she would know the care of the ancient of days.
[12:38] And we pray that those who attend to her. That you would be with them also. We thank you for all who care. Doctors and nurses and carers in the hospital and in the community.
[12:52] We bring them to you, Lord. And we thank you for them. We ask that you would continue to equip them for the work that you have brought them into. So hear our prayers. We're conscious that week by week we come with the same prayers.
[13:06] But week by week we see the same need. And we ask, Lord, that you would continue to help and uphold all those that we feel for as we mix with them in the community.
[13:19] So hear our prayers and go before us in the rest of this service. And we ask this in Jesus' name. Amen. Amen. Boys and girls, would you like to come down to the front, please?
[13:48] How are you all today? All good, yes? Now, I never got a chance to properly speak. Because some of you have all been kind of hiding in our houses a lot the last wee while.
[14:01] And Christmas, I was looking forward to seeing you all on Christmas Eve and then on Boxing Day. And then the doors all got closed. And so you had to look at me on a screen. And even worse than that, I had to look at myself on a screen, which was horrible.
[14:15] But anyway, I haven't had a chance to speak to you properly since Christmas. So tell me, did you get any presents? What kind of presents did you get? Tell me what presents you got. Razor? Razor? I've got an aircraft carrier.
[14:29] You've got a what, sorry? An aircraft carrier. An aircraft carrier? Wow. A real one out on the sea? No. Oh, right.
[14:41] No, it's a toy one. A toy one. Jets. It's got jets and everything on it. And army men. Army men, brilliant. Have you been playing with it? Yeah, I have.
[14:51] I bet you have. Yeah. And they got a big remote to control for doors after. A really big one. Wow. It was not much of a dinosaur.
[15:02] It was actually in the car. Right. Wow. It's just like that. Good stuff. I don't even know what that is, but it sounds great. Shawnee, what did you get? A PS4.
[15:12] Pardon? A PS4. A PS4. Good stuff. Enjoying playing that? What about anyone else? Emily's got her finger up. A Nintendo.
[15:25] Are you getting to play with it or is your dad stealing it all the time? No comment, she said. No comment from the front row there either. What other presents did you get?
[15:38] Anything else? Ailee? A guitar. Did you? Are you learning to play it? No. How many chords can you do now? No. Don't. No.
[15:49] A few. Good stuff. Katie? An Alexa. An Alexa. She speaks back to you all the time, doesn't she? Yes. And Lily? A Polaroid.
[16:00] A Polaroid. What is that? A type of camera. A type of camera. I remember. We all remember Polaroids, don't we? We thought we'd moved on from them. So you can take a picture and you can see it right away.
[16:15] You got interesting ones? I bet you do. And did you get sweets? Yes? Oranges maybe in your stockings and Christmas morning.
[16:28] Yeah. And did you get any toys that broke yet? Yes. Yes. What toys broke? Well, I got a dinosaur and the leg broke off.
[16:40] You got a dinosaur and the leg broke off. Dear, oh dear. None of my toys broke. None of your toys broke so far. That's good. Did you get sweets?
[16:51] Yeah, I did. And are they all still in your drawer? I bet a few. I bet a few. I bet you have. See, the thing about Christmas, we get nice presents.
[17:02] I got nice presents as well. And some presents, they last for a while. And some presents, they're gone very quickly. So I got chocolate orange.
[17:18] It's just about done now, though, isn't it? That's also what I got. I got a chocolate orange. And is it still in the cupboard? It was at my Granny Tarbert's house.
[17:31] It's probably long gone, Granny Tarbert. This chocolate orange is just about finished. I got some of this stuff. There's only about a day or two's left.
[17:43] Then there was a... I got this as well. A bar of chocolate. A winter orange edition. That's not going to last much. I'll probably have that finished before I get back up the call.
[17:56] I got some books. And I was thankful for books. But the thing with books is you read them. And then once you read them, you don't really use them. Other than the Bible, which we keep coming to all the time.
[18:08] Normal books. You read them. And once you've read them, you kind of put them away for a while. And so there's some things you get and you have them for just a short time.
[18:19] Chocolates, gone. Some toys, dinosaurs, play with it, bang, legs gone. And then it's away into the whatever toys go. And there's one of the toys that I think might break and very cool.
[18:35] Okay. What toy is that? My buildable big Benji song. I know that will break really quickly. Well, you have to be very careful with that one.
[18:47] It's like a bottle. It's not actually like a black one. Well, I'm going to show you, in fact. Some presents don't last long. Some presents last for a long, long time.
[19:01] And I'm going to show you two presents on the screen that will probably last for quite a long time.
[19:12] You looking? Have a wee look just now. What are these? What are these? Turtles. Turtles or toy tortoises, I think.
[19:25] So, there's two of them there. They look quite big there. But if you see them in full scale. Next picture. Look at the size of them. Would you have one of these crawl on your neck?
[19:35] I'm not sure I would. But John Roddy, is there one for each of you? John Roddy and Bella. Or are they both belonging to one of you? One for each of you.
[19:46] Where is Bella? Somewhere around. Oh, she's over at the back row there. Mortified. So, there's tortoises.
[19:58] Did you get them at Christmas or birthday or? Christmas time. Do they have names? Not really. One's called not and one's called really.
[20:10] And tell me this. How long do you think tortoises live for? It's a nice present to get. How long do they live for, do you think?
[20:22] I'm not going to ask you, John Roddy, because you've probably researched this. Katie. 20 years. Ailey. Over 100 years.
[20:36] I'm not exactly sure. I'm not. This is not my area of expertise. But I did a little bit of searching up. I think the person that maybe got the tortoises might have thought they would last for five years maybe.
[20:48] Nice pet for a wee bit. But when I searched up, they can last for up to 80, 90, even 100 years. I have an auntie in Helensborough.
[20:59] And I can remember these tortoises wandering around the garden. I think they were about 100 years old. I think they're still living. So John, Roddy, and Bella. You know, when you leave home, you'll have a tortoise going with you.
[21:16] And if you get married, walking down the aisle, there'll be a tortoise. And if they have families of their own, in the family pictures, in the middle there's going to be the tortoise.
[21:30] And if you ever come to the stage where you want to go to Harris House, the tortoise will be there with you. See, tortoises are presents that last for a very, very, very, I think, long time.
[21:48] But tell me this. Who is the best present that we can ever get? Ailey. God. God the Father, he sent who into the world to be the best present for us?
[22:04] Emily? He sent his son, Jesus. He came into this world. That's what Christmas is all about, isn't it? It's about Jesus, the best present ever.
[22:15] And he came into this world to show us how much he loved us. And he lived for us perfect life. And he died for us on the cross.
[22:26] And he rose from the grave so that we can have everlasting life. Now tell me this, just before we finish.
[22:37] How long, how long will Jesus be with us? The tortoises might be with you for a very long time. How long will Jesus be with us? Shawnee? Forever.
[22:48] Forever. Forever. And ever. And ever. He'll be with us all through life. He'll even be with us and take us, when we're trusting him, through death.
[23:03] Into life that's everlasting. He'll take us to be with him forever. Listen to these two texts. Jesus, well, Hebrews 13, 5, first of all.
[23:15] God has said, never will I leave you. Never will I forsake you. And Jesus said in Matthew 28 and verse 20, Surely I am with you always.
[23:29] To the very end of the age. So make sure you're trusting in Jesus. Make sure you've received Jesus into your heart. And he will be with you forever.
[23:42] He'll keep you safe with him forever. And we'll pray. Lord God, we thank you for the most amazing gift that we have ever been given.
[23:54] We thank you, Father, for sending your son, Jesus, into this world. We thank you that Jesus loves us. And Jesus loved us so much that he went to the cross to die for us.
[24:08] To take our sin away so that we can be your friends forever. And we pray for each of the boys and girls that they would be trusting in Jesus.
[24:18] And for all of the older ones as well. We pray that we would be trusting in Jesus. And that we would know the safety and the security that only Jesus can give.
[24:30] That lasts forever. And we pray this in Jesus' name. Amen. We're going to sing now. And we're going to sing Mission Praise 1008.
[24:42] And it's a hymn. It's a hymn which is a paraphrase of Psalm 23. And it is a hymn where we're encouraged to trust in Jesus alone.
[24:52] So, the Lord's my shepherd, I'll not want. He makes me lie in pastures green.
[25:22] He leads me by the still, still waters. His goodness resorts my soul.
[25:36] And I will trust in you alone. And I will trust in you alone.
[25:46] For your endless mercy follows me. Your goodness will lead me home.
[25:59] He guides my ways in righteousness. And he annoys my head with oil.
[26:11] And my cup is over, close with joy. And he's gone with good delight.
[26:23] And I will trust in you alone. And I will trust in you alone.
[26:33] For your endless mercy follows me. Your goodness will lead me home.
[26:45] And though I walk the darkest path, I will not fear the evil one.
[26:58] For you are with me. For your grace will lead me home. For your grace will lead me home. For your comfort I need to know.
[27:09] And I will trust in you alone. And I will trust in you alone.
[27:20] For your endless mercy follows me. Your goodness will lead me home.
[27:39] Okay, boys and girls, if you head to Sunday school, and as they go, let's remember to be praying for them. And if we could turn in our Bibles to Luke chapter 17, please.
[28:15] Luke chapter 17, and we're reading from verse 20.
[28:33] Just picking up from where we left off before Christmas. Once having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation.
[28:55] Nor will people say, here it is or there it is, because the kingdom of God is within you. 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.
[29:10] Men will tell you, there he is, or here he is. Do not go running after them, 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.
[29:24] But first he must suffer many things, and be rejected by this generation. Just as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be in the days of the Son of Man.
[29:37] 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. It was the same in the days of Lot.
[29:49] People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. But the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven, and destroyed them all.
[30:02] It will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed. On that day no one who is on the roof of his house with his goods inside should go down to get them.
[30:13] Likewise no one in the field should go back for anything. Remember Lot's wife. Whoever tries to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it.
[30:25] I tell you on that night two people will be in one bed, one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding grain together, one will be taken and the other left.
[30:38] Where Lord, they asked. He replied, Where there is a dead body, there the vultures will gather. Amen. And may God bless that word to us and give us understanding.
[30:52] As we come to it shortly, we're going to sing again now to God's praise. We sing from Psalm 25, Psalm 25, verses 4 and 5 in Gaelic.
[31:07] A prayer as we come back to God's word. Show me thy ways, O Lord. Thy path so teach thou me, and do thou lead me in, thy truth therein my teacher be. For thou art God that dost to me salvation send, and I upon thee all the day expecting to attend.
[31:24] These two verses in Gaelic, and we'll remain seated to sing in Gaelic. encouraging him.
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[35:01] As we turn back to the passage, let's pray for a moment. Our Heavenly Father, we thank you for this passage that we've read Thank you that in the Bible you show us your ways.
[35:19] You show us who you are. You show us the things that you would have us see. So that we are ready in our hearts to meet you. And as we look at this passage this morning.
[35:33] That speaks of a day that's coming. We pray that you would make us ready today for that day. When we will meet Jesus.
[35:45] And we pray this in Jesus name. Amen. We're still kind of early on in the year. Where are we? The 16th of January.
[35:57] And at the beginning of a new year. We tend to sit down with our calendars or our diaries. More often with our screens these days.
[36:09] And we mark dates in that we need to remember. Dates when we have birthdays to be mindful of or anniversaries.
[36:22] Dates where we have to be somewhere. Weddings and hospital appointments. Dates of meetings that we've committed to attend. Dates of exams.
[36:33] Dates when we hope to be on holiday. We sit down at the beginning of a year often. And we mark these dates on our calendars. This quote that I've given you before.
[36:49] And it's a quote that I often think of. It's a quote by Martin Luther. Luther who was probably the most influential theologian in the Reformed tradition.
[37:01] And he said he didn't have many dates on his calendar. He said this. There are only two days on my calendar. Today and that day.
[37:12] And Luther when he said that. He was emphasizing the importance of today. The day the Lord has given us.
[37:24] And the need to seize today. And use it for God's glory. And at the same time Luther in that quote. He's not losing sight of that day.
[37:35] The day of the Lord as it's called in the Bible. The day when this world as we know it will be brought to an end. And the kingdom of God will come.
[37:49] In full force. And as we turn back to Luke 17. We come in midway to a conversation between Jesus and the Pharisees.
[38:01] And the Pharisees. They have questions. They forever have questions for Jesus. And they come with their questions on this occasion.
[38:13] About the kingdom of God. They want to know when the kingdom of God will come. They want timings. They want details. They want dates.
[38:25] But Jesus makes clear. In his response to their question. That the date on which the kingdom of God will come. In full power.
[38:37] Is a date that we can't calculate. That's the first point. The first of hopefully four points. The first thing we can say about the kingdom of God.
[38:48] And the coming of that day. Is it's a date we can't calculate. And if you look at verse 20. Down to verse 23. We get the gist of that.
[38:59] Once having been asked by the Pharisees. When the kingdom of God would come. Jesus replied. The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation. With your looking.
[39:10] With your calculations. Nor will people say here it is. Or there it is. Because the kingdom of God is within you. Then he said to his disciples.
[39:20] 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. Men will tell you. There he is.
[39:32] Or here he is. Do not go running after them. And so the Pharisees question. Which might have been a genuine question. Or it might have been a trick question.
[39:44] To try and catch Jesus out. Was a question of verse 20. When the kingdom of God would come. But what they had in their minds.
[39:57] When they talked about the kingdom of God. Was very muddled. Many of the Pharisees. They had this idea. That the kingdom of God.
[40:07] Was the geographical place. That they lived in. And they had this idea. That when the Roman authorities. Who were in control at that time. When they were pushed out of control.
[40:19] And pushed out of this area. That's when the kingdom of God would come. And they thought they would have the top seats. In the kingdom. Because they were the most religious people.
[40:33] And some of them even. Hoped. That Jesus might be used. To push the Romans out. So they asked Jesus. The kingdom of God.
[40:45] And it's coming. When is this going to happen? And Jesus in his reply. He corrects the misunderstanding. And he says in verse 21. The kingdom of God is not here.
[40:57] And it's not there in a map. You can't get a chart out. And say the kingdom of God is there. And there. But not here. He says in verse 21. The kingdom of God is within you.
[41:10] If you believe in me. And have me as your Lord and King. Some of you might be using the ESV.
[41:22] The translation of the Bible. And it says in verse 21. Not the kingdom of God is within you. But the kingdom of God is among you. And that shouldn't bother you.
[41:33] If you're reading that slightly differently. The Greek can be translated either way. It can be. It can be taken with both meanings. But that's not an issue. Because both meanings are true.
[41:46] The kingdom of God. At that time as Jesus spoke. Was among them. Because the king was among them. And all these miracles. Bore testimony to the fact that Jesus. Was the king.
[41:57] And he was among them. But for those who are disciples. And remember. Jesus at that point. Is speaking to his disciples. He says. To them.
[42:09] The kingdom of God. Is within you. Because you have the king within you. You're trusting me. Says Jesus.
[42:19] To be your savior. To be your lord. To be your king. And then Jesus says to his disciples. When people.
[42:30] Come to you. And they have all these kind of. Far out claims. That the kingdom of God is coming. The end is nigh. And it's all going to happen. In this place.
[42:41] On that date. Jesus says. Don't listen to these people. It's nonsense. Don't go running after. These people.
[42:52] Says Jesus. The date when Jesus. Returns. As king. And every eye will see him. The date when.
[43:04] The kingdom of God. Comes. In full force. And everyone recognizes. That Jesus. Is king. It's not a day.
[43:16] We can calculate. We can't put it in our. Our next decade. Year planner. We're not told.
[43:27] This date. And you can google. This question of. The end of the world. I googled it just.
[43:37] Out of interest. And there are. Millions. Literally of hits. About those who have calculated. The date. And got it wrong.
[43:47] There are still those. Who are calculating. This date. It's wrong. Because. Jesus says.
[43:57] We can't calculate. This date. Matthew 24. Is even clearer. Matthew 24. At verse 36.
[44:09] Jesus says. But about that day. Or hour. No one knows. Not even. The angels in heaven. Nor the son.
[44:20] But only the father. Therefore. Keep watch. Because you do not know. On what day. Your lord. Will come. And this is one of the things.
[44:34] In the bible. That's taught very clearly. Jesus. God's son. He came into this world. We. We remember that. At Christmas time. It's the incarnation.
[44:45] The first advent. Of Jesus. He came into this world. And he came in. To be our savior. But the bible. Makes crystal clear. That there is coming a day. A date. When Jesus.
[44:58] Will come back. Into this world. And he will come back. Not to be. To be the savior. But to be the king. And to be the.
[45:08] The judge. But he makes clear. Consistently. Through the bible. That. The date. The time. The hour. We can't calculate it.
[45:21] So we're not to try. We're not to listen. To those. Who would. Who would push it on us. Should this.
[45:31] Should this worry us. That this date is coming. You know. There are dates. In our diaries. And there are dates. That we. Perhaps know are coming.
[45:41] That aren't. Fixed in our diaries yet. And they cause us concern. We have a sense of foreboding. Should this date worry us.
[45:55] Well let me say to. To those who have not yet. Trusted Jesus. To anybody. Here. Or online. Who has not yet.
[46:06] Asked Jesus. To take their sin away. And to be their saviour. And their lord. Yes. This date should worry us. Because if that's our heart state.
[46:22] We're not yet ready. For the day. When the kingdom of God. Will come. And it could come any day. But for those who have.
[46:35] Trusted Jesus. For those who have. Asked Jesus. To be saviour. For those who have. Jesus. As lord. And as king of our lives. For those.
[46:46] Of us who have. Christ within us. We have nothing to fear. When we think about this date. That the day.
[46:59] When the kingdom of God. Will come. For the Christian. Will be a day. Of great joy. It will be the day.
[47:10] Verse 22. That we've longed for. It will be the day. Where. As Tolkien puts it.
[47:21] Everything sad. Will come untrue. You know. Week by week. We're praying. We're praying. We're praying for those. Who are sick.
[47:33] We're praying for those. Who are grieving. We're praying for. For those who are battling. With addictions. We open our newspapers.
[47:45] We. We see. Chaos. Chaos. A global scale. So much. Violence. So much. Division. So much.
[47:56] Turmoil. And. And it grieves us. But when the kingdom of God comes. This world.
[48:08] As we know it. Sinful and broken. We'll be kind of wrapped back up. And there'll be a new heavens.
[48:19] And there'll be a new heavens. And a new earth. Where sin is gone. And Satan is gone. And sickness is gone.
[48:32] And death is gone. And war is gone. And peace worry. Because Jesus.
[48:42] Because Jesus. Is king. And that's something for the Christian. To look forward to. But it's something.
[48:53] That only. Those who are in Christ. Will enjoy. So let me say to anyone. Who's outside of Christ. Today. This morning. Come in.
[49:06] Trust him. It's a day. That we can't calculate. The second thing. We learn. From this conversation.
[49:17] That Jesus has. With the Pharisees. Is that this is a day. That we can't miss. I was reading. A short news article. Just the other day.
[49:28] And it was about a man. In Australia. And he claims. That he's Jesus. He claims. That he came to this world. Two thousand years ago. And now he's come back.
[49:40] And. He was being interviewed. By this Australian. News team. And they were kind of. Following him around. For a day or two. And he was doing these. These kind of. Self-help seminars.
[49:51] Taking a fee. Of course. So organizing these. Retreat weekends. You know. Which were. Again. Coming at great cost. And he was saying. That he was Jesus. They were asking him.
[50:02] Are you Jesus? Yes he says. I can assure you. I am Jesus. I can remember everything. I did two thousand years ago. And I've come back. I'm Jesus. He says. And it was sad.
[50:14] Because there were hundreds of people. Who were paying to attend the seminars. And paying to stay at his weekend. He'd drawn some woman in. As well. To be his companion.
[50:25] Because. She was his soul mate. And so he's trying to get publicity. Because it seems that the. The majority of the world.
[50:36] Had missed. The return. Of this self-proclaimed. Jesus. But. You know. Anyone who reads the Bible. This is why we need to be in the Bible. Anyone who reads the Bible.
[50:48] Knows. This man is not Jesus. Jesus. Yes. He's got the flowing locks. This is not Jesus. This is a caricature.
[50:59] Of what people paint over the years. But. He's not Jesus. And this new story. On Australian TV. Is not the. The second coming of Christ.
[51:11] Because on the day. That Jesus returns. As king. On the day. When the kingdom of God. Comes. In the fullest. Ultimate sense. There will be no need. For news reports.
[51:22] Anywhere. Because. Everyone. Everywhere. In that instant. Will know. Verse 24.
[51:36] Says. For the son of man. That's the title that Jesus used. To speak of himself. For the son of man. In his day. Will be like. The lightning. Which flashes.
[51:47] And lights up the sky. From one end. To the other. And if you've been out for a walk. On a dark night. And it's a bit clammy.
[52:00] And all of a sudden. There's a rumble. And then there's a flash. You know. Shakes you. The light is blinding. And that's the picture.
[52:13] That Jesus uses. No one will miss the day. When the son of man returns. We won't be scrolling through. Facebook and YouTube.
[52:24] At clips that have happened. Far away. Of a report. Of the second coming of Christ. Because everyone. Everywhere. In that instant. Will know. Nothing else will matter.
[52:37] When Jesus comes back. From the east. To the west. From one end of the world. To the other. People will see Jesus.
[52:50] And there will be no doubt. Whatsoever. That the king. Of kings. Has come.
[53:04] And for. For those who are Christians. Let's just take the encouragement. Of that. Let's take the encouragement. Of this date. That is coming.
[53:15] I mean. We live in a day. And in a place. Where the name. Of Jesus. Is used as a curse. We hear the name.
[53:26] Christ. Repeatedly. Being used. As a curse. Some people. Say it with malice. They look us in the eye. They're looking for a. A bit of a reaction. Most people. Just thoughtlessly. Will use the name.
[53:38] Of Jesus. Or the name. Of Christ. It just trips off the tongue. No respect. No awe. It's just a curse. And we live in a day.
[53:51] When. The good news. About Jesus. Is considered. Neither to be. To be good. Nor to be newsworthy. Jesus. For most.
[54:02] Is an irrelevance. Jesus. The name. Is an offense. You know. Hardly anyone. Today. As we.
[54:13] Scan through. Social media. Or. Watch. News reports. Or listen to. Newspaper stories. Hardly anyone. Sees Jesus. For who he really is. And that grieves us.
[54:26] For Christians. But there is a day. Coming. And it's a date. That no one. Will miss. When every eye.
[54:38] Will see. Jesus. In all his beauty. And all his glory. And all his majesty. And every single tongue. Think about that.
[54:53] Every tongue. Will confess. That Jesus. Is Lord. And King. We can think of some of the most.
[55:07] Antagonistic people. On that day. We will hear. From their lips. Jesus. Is Lord. Jesus.
[55:19] Is King. That day is coming. So when we feel low. When as Christians.
[55:30] We feel down. When we. Feel like. Nobody. Wants to hear. Anything. About Jesus. Think about this date. That is coming.
[55:44] When the whole world. Will recognize. That Jesus. Is King. And that shouldn't fill us.
[55:54] With some sense of. Kind of. One upmanship. That should fill us. With a. A compassionate drive. To tell people. Before that day comes. So that they'll be ready for it.
[56:09] Because for some. It'll be the most. Desperately. Sad. Alarming day. Because the Christ. That they trampled.
[56:21] All of a sudden. They see. He is King. It's a date. It's a date. We can't miss. No one can miss it. It's a date. We can't calculate.
[56:31] The third thing is. It's a date. We can't ignore. And we have. We have. And we have. Illustrations. Of that. In. Verses. 26.
[56:43] Down. To. Verse. 29. 29. I think. You know. In. In our own. Context. When we think about.
[56:53] The things of. Of God. When we speak about Jesus. Some people are antagonistic. You know. There are some people. Who do want to have a. Have a fight. About the.
[57:04] The things of God. They. They. They are. Decided. They are against. Jesus. And they'll take every chance. To. To go online. Usually. And. And spill out. All this stuff. About how much.
[57:14] They're against. Jesus. And against. The church. Of Jesus. But most people. Aren't antagonistic. They're just. Agnostic. You know. They're. They're not. Decidedly. Against.
[57:24] Jesus. They're just. Not very. Interested. In Jesus. That's the position. Of most. They're too busy. They're too.
[57:35] Distracted. Whether this. This world. And the things of this world. To really. Think about Jesus. And if we speak. About Jesus. To them. And if we speak. About. This day. That's coming. When Jesus.
[57:46] Returns. As king. They won't. Pay too much. Attention. They're too. Preoccupied. With. The urgent. Matters.
[57:56] Of. Of this day. To think. About. That day. But as. Rico. Tice. Says. In the. Christianity. Explored. Course. The urgent.
[58:08] The pressing. Routine. Of each day. Can be. The enemy. Of the important. The ultimate. Sense. Of that day. And that's.
[58:20] Always. Been. The way. So. Jesus. He. He. He. Illustrates. That. By giving. These two. Examples. First of all. Verses. 26. And 27. The days. Of Noah. Just as it was.
[58:30] In the days. Of Noah. Says Jesus. So it will be. In the days. Of the son of man. People were eating. Drinking. Marrying. And being given. In marriage. Up to the day. Noah. Entered the ark. Then the flood.
[58:41] Came. And destroyed. Them all. You can read. The full version. Of that. In Genesis. Chapter 6. And Genesis. Chapter 7. For a hundred. Plus years. Noah. Saying.
[58:51] There's a flood. Coming. There's danger. Coming. And building an ark. Come inside it. And be safe. And people. Are out. Having dinner dates.
[59:02] They're out on nights. Out drinking. They're getting married. And preparing. And to be married. None of these things. Are necessarily. Bad things. But because they are so.
[59:16] Preoccupied. With these things. They have. No time. For this message. From Noah. And no belief. That this date. Would ever. Come. And yet. It comes. They can't.
[59:27] Ignore it. And so many. Are destroyed. On that day. And Jesus. Gives the second. Illustration. In verse. 28 and 29.
[59:39] He says. It was the same. In the days of Lot. People were eating. And drinking. Buying. And selling. Planting. And building. But the day. Lot left. Sodom.
[59:49] Fire and sulfur. Rain down. From heaven. And destroyed them all. You can read about that. In Genesis 19. Lot was God's man.
[60:01] Although he became. Compromised. Lot's job was to. To warn people. To get out of this. This city. And avoid judgment. But. But they didn't listen. Not even Lot's wife listened.
[60:15] And when the day of judgment came. They couldn't ignore it. And they couldn't escape it. Because it was too late. And Jesus says.
[60:27] That's how it will be. When. He returns. As king. It will be just like this. Verse 30. Says Jesus. On the day.
[60:37] The son of man is revealed. On that day. No one who is on the roof of his house. With his goods inside. Should go. Back down to get them. Likewise. No one. In the field. Should go back for anything.
[60:50] Remember Lot's wife. Whoever tried. Tries to keep his life. Will lose it. And whoever loses. His life. Will preserve it. And I think.
[61:03] I'm right in saying that. Verse 32. In this chapter. Is the second. Shortest verse. In the Bible. But it has huge impact. Just three words.
[61:15] Remember Lot's wife. And that's a story. That you can read of. In Genesis 19. It's a story.
[61:25] About a woman. Who. Who came. So close. To being saved. But instead of looking. To the Lord. And being saved.
[61:38] She looked back. To the world. And she's lost. The date comes. For judgment. She doesn't look to the Lord.
[61:50] And. And she's lost. You know. It's a sad story. But it's a story.
[62:00] That we should. We should. We should pay attention. To today. You know. There are some. Here. There are some.
[62:11] Watching. Online. I expect. Also. And you have wives. Or you have husbands. You have friends. Or you have parents. Who have trusted Christ.
[62:25] And are saved. But Lot's wife. Teaches us. That's not enough. Our spouses. Can't save us.
[62:37] Godly parents. Can't save us. Godly grandparents. Can't save us. Every single one of us. As individuals. Has to look.
[62:47] To Jesus. Ourself. And ask him. To be our saviour. And our lord. And our king. And he will save us. But if we won't do that.
[63:01] The sad truth is. That there will be some. Couples. There will be some. Families. There will be some. People who shared. Their lives together. In time. Who will be apart.
[63:12] And separated. For eternity. And that picture. Of separation. Is very clearly.
[63:23] Given to us. In the next verses. Verses 34. And 35. And verse. 37. This date.
[63:36] Is a date. That we can't ignore. I tell you. Says Jesus. On that night. Two people will be in one bed.
[63:48] One will be taken. And the other left. Two women. Will be grinded. And grained together. One will be taken. The other left.
[64:01] Where Lord. Verse 37. They asked. He replied. Where. There is a dead body. There. The vultures will gather. And. And. It's a kind of. A gruesome picture. Just as.
[64:12] As vultures. Hover over death. Jesus. I think. In this verse. Is saying. Judgment. Hovers over those. Who are spiritually dead. And who are determined.
[64:24] To reject Jesus. And to remain unconverted. So the call. Is to be converted. J.C. Ryle. Underlines that. And. And he says this.
[64:35] Converted. Or unconverted. Will be the only subject. Of inquiry. On that day. It will. Matter nothing. That people have worked together.
[64:46] And slept together. And lived together. For many years. They will be dealt with. At last. According to their religion. Those members. Of the family. Who have loved Christ.
[64:56] Will be taken up to heaven. Those who have loved the world. Will be cast down to hell. Converted. And unconverted. Shall be separated. Forevermore.
[65:08] When Jesus. Comes. Again. And this is an unsettling section. And I can sense.
[65:19] You know. Even in the room. The atmosphere. The atmosphere changes. Because this is hard to hear. This is unsettling.
[65:31] But it needs to be. For us to listen. I was speaking to someone. This week past. And they'd been to the consultant. And you know.
[65:41] Years gone by. And they were. Remembering this encounter. With a consultant. And the consultant. Spoke to them. Very sternly. And gave a very direct warning.
[65:51] About their lifestyle. And the changes that needed to be made. If they were to survive. And thrive physically. And the patient. Because of the. The straight talking. Of the consultant.
[66:02] Became quite upset. The consultant said to him. Well. You know. I'm sorry you're upset. I'm not trying to upset you. But my job is to warn you.
[66:17] I'm trying to help you. And that's what Jesus does here. He's speaking in love.
[66:28] But with great urgency. And force. To those who will not have him. As saviour and king. And he's warning them. He's warning us.
[66:40] Of the consequences. Of persevering in that way. This is a date. That we cannot ignore.
[66:51] It's a date that we cannot miss. It's a date that we cannot calculate. But finally. It's a date that we can be ready for. So the question is how. How can we.
[67:03] Be ready. For the day. When the kingdom of God comes. How can we. Be ready for the. The day when Jesus returns. As king. We don't know the date.
[67:15] Could be today. Could be tomorrow. Could be many years. Down the line. We don't know. But how can we be ready.
[67:28] And the answer. Is found in the verse. That I skipped. For those who are. Who are. Sharp eyed. The verse. That's in the center. Of this.
[67:38] Short passage. Is the key. To us being ready. And it says. In verse 25. Jesus says. In verse 25. First. He.
[67:49] Must. Suffer. Many. Things. And be rejected. By this generation. Jesus. Jesus. Jesus. Jesus. For.
[68:00] Jesus. Knows. For. Us. To be made ready. To meet him. He would have to suffer. For our sin.
[68:13] He would. Need to be rejected. For us to be accepted. Milne. The commentator says. Before the kingdom of God.
[68:24] Comes. The king must die. Without his sufferings. And death. There can be no kingdom of grace. And glory.
[68:34] For his disciples. And so this is our key. To being ready. The cross. And at this point. Jesus can see. The cross approaching.
[68:46] At this point. Jesus knows. That he will very soon. Suffer. And die the most. Excruciating death. At this point. Jesus knows. He would very soon.
[68:56] Be rejected. As king. And that's what happened. So let me give you. The account of that.
[69:07] Just as we finish. To Mark 15. We have the testimony. Of how the king. Is rejected. And suffers.
[69:20] For us. Pilate. Is the one who is speaking. In Mark 15. Verse 12. And he says. To the crowds who are gathered. What shall I do then.
[69:32] With the one. You call the king. Of the Jews. Pilate asked him. And you can imagine. The crowds gathered. Crucify him. They shouted.
[69:44] Why? What crime has he committed? Asked Pilate. But they shouted all the louder. Crucify him. Wanting to satisfy the crowd.
[69:58] Pilate. Released Barabbas to them. He was a terrorist. He had Jesus. He was a terrorist. He was a terrorist. He was a terrorist. He was a terrorist. He was a terrorist. And handed him over. To be crucified. The soldiers led Jesus away.
[70:10] Into the palace. That's the praetorium. And called together. The whole company of soldiers. They put a purple robe on him. To mock him. Purple being the. The colour of the king. And they twisted together.
[70:24] A crown of thorns. And set it on him. And they began to call out to him. Mocking him. Hail. King of the Jews. Again and again.
[70:37] They struck him on the head. With a staff. And spit on him. Falling on their knees. Again mocking him. They paid homage to him.
[70:50] And when they had mocked him. They took off the purple robe. And put his own clothes on him. Then they led him out. To crucify him.
[71:05] That's the account. Of how Jesus. Did suffer many things. And was rejected.
[71:20] But that rejection. And that suffering. Was not in vain. It was to make it possible. For us. To be saved.
[71:33] And if we believe in Jesus. If we ask him to be our saviour. If we bow before him. As.
[71:44] Lord and king. Then we will be ready for. This date. When he returns. Or calls us home.
[71:58] As the hymn. Goes that we'll finish with. In Christ alone. Our hope. Is found. So let's. Sing. This hymn.
[72:08] To. To finish. The words on the screen. Mission praise. 107. To. In Christ. Alone. Our hope. Is found. Is found. Ooh.
[72:20] Ooh. Inhale. So. So. elect. The Lord, my glory is done, He is my God, my strength, my soul.
[72:39] His core and strong, his solid ground, God, the gracious strength and storm. What drives the love, what depths of me, When he is still and stride his feet.
[72:59] I come for a time, my only hope, He is the love of Christ. In Christ alone, you took on flesh, Foul is the Lord in heaven and faith.
[73:26] His gift of love and righteousness, His glory once he came to sing. On the cross of Jesus' light, the wrath of God was satisfied.
[73:44] For every sin, a way was paid, He is the death of Christ I am. There in the ground, His body lay, Light of the world, my darkness slain.
[74:11] Then bursting forth in glorious day, Up from the great he goes again. God seems out in victory, Since God has lost his grip on me.
[74:28] For I am His, and He is mine, All the precious blood of Christ. God is the death of Christ. For I am His, and He is the death of Christ.
[74:39] For I am His, and He is the death of Christ. God is the death of Christ. God is the death of Christ. No guilt in life, No fear in death, This is the blood of Christ in me.
[74:54] For I strive to fight, O breath, Jesus, the world's my destiny. For I will help, O sea, O land, And ever pluck me from His hand.
[75:12] For He returns, O cause me whole, Here in the power of Christ I stand.
[75:24] And now may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, And the love of God the Father, And the fellowship, The comfort of God the Holy Spirit, Be with us all. Now and forevermore. Amen.