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Luke 17:30: Difference between revisions
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:''I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. '''I do not ask that you take them out of the world''', but that you keep them from the evil one.<ref>The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001), Jn 17:14–15.</ref> | :''I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. '''I do not ask that you take them out of the world''', but that you keep them from the evil one.<ref>The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001), Jn 17:14–15.</ref> | ||
No area of theology breeds more speculative attention than the end times. Reactions to this issue span the spectrum. Some give their lives trying to figure out the “signs of the times” and just how close we may be to the end. Elaborate theories about how it will all unwind bring together huge sections of the Scripture into a unified scenario. | |||
William Branham even set the date for Christ’s return (see [[1977]]), a commitment Scripture does not make (Mark 13:32; Acts 1:6–8). | |||
On the other end are those who view such speculation as a waste of time and energy. God knows how it will turn out, so we just should do what we are called to do in the meantime. | |||
Both approaches are overreactions. It is hard to take the Bible seriously if one ignores its discussion about the end, since a significant portion of the Bible touches on eschatological themes about the promises of God. The only way for us to make sense of life today is to appreciate where the future is going. Scripture outlines that future, not with detailed dates, but with a general outline of what is to come. That outline is designed not to have us prepare charts, but to prepare our hearts. The return of Jesus is serious business, a time when God will be engaged in definitive judgment. | |||
Jesus talks about the end in grim terms and gruesome detail to make clear how serious an issue judgment is for God. Judgment means accountability. In a society that tends to view adults as accountable only to themselves and their own consciences, it is a critical reminder that God does hold us responsible for our actions. That is why Jesus in the parable of Luke 18:1–8 asks if he will find faith on the earth when he returns. Those who recognize their accountability to God will go through life with circumspection. To ignore the end is to risk forgetting accountability. | |||
The world is headed towards an end when many will simply engage in life without concern for God. It will be like the days of Noah and Lot. That many end up spiritually disengaged from God should not surprise us. That does not mean that we should give up in trying to share the gospel with those who are simply traveling through life. Too much is at stake to simply ignore our neighbors. When the Lord returns to exercise judgment, there will be no second chance. For those who are his, the blessed rule of his kingdom will last forever; but for those who miss out, it is an opportunity missed forever. The passage closes with the bleak image of the vultures gathered, not because there is joy in the judgment to come, but because the tragedy is all too real. This text screams to every person to choose wisely when it comes to the things of God. There is too much at stake to make an erroneous choice. | |||
Furthermore, every moment until the Lord returns is an opportunity to be God’s instrument in changing the destiny of someone who does not yet know him. God is delaying the day of judgment, being patient and allowing time for others to come to him (2 Peter 3:9). Thus the moments that remain should motivate the church to be the vessel through which others come to see and enjoy the grace of God.<ref>Darrell L. Bock, Luke, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996), 458–459.</ref> | |||
=Quotes of William Branham= | =Quotes of William Branham= | ||