THIS IS WHAT YOU KNOW
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Opening Prayer
Father, I ask that your Spirit make clear to me the message you have for me in your Word today.
Read MARK 13:14–31
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
14 “When you see ‘the abomination that causes desolation’[a] standing where it[b] does not belong—let the reader understand—then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 15 Let no one on the housetop go down or enter the house to take anything out. 16 Let no one in the field go back to get their cloak. 17 How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! 18 Pray that this will not take place in winter, 19 because those will be days of distress unequaled from the beginning, when God created the world, until now—and never to be equaled again.
20 “If the Lord had not cut short those days, no one would survive. But for the sake of the elect, whom he has chosen, he has shortened them. 21 At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘Look, there he is!’ do not believe it. 22 For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 23 So be on your guard; I have told you everything ahead of time.
24 “But in those days, following that distress,
“‘the sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not give its light;
25 the stars will fall from the sky,
and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’[c]
26 “At that time people will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. 27 And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens.
28 “Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. 29 Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that it[d] is near, right at the door. 30 Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. 31 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
Footnotes
- Mark 13:14 Daniel 9:27; 11:31; 12:11
- Mark 13:14 Or he
- Mark 13:25 Isaiah 13:10; 34:4
- Mark 13:29 Or he
New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
What is it in nature that first tells you the season you most enjoy is coming?
I admit there is much I don’t understand about this passage. What is historical prophecy about specific events and what is more general symbolic prophecy about the second coming of Jesus? Who are ‘the elect, whom he has chosen’ (v. 20)? Which generation ‘will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened’ (v. 30)? Clearly, Jesus is warning his followers about events to come within their lifetime (with a nod from the writer to the early audience who remembered these taking place (v. 14). But what is here for me, today?
First, there is the sense that God works beyond our limited concept of chronological time. Jesus initially foretells events that have yet to happen, out of concern for his followers (v. 23b). Cut to the end days when the Son of Man returns ‘with great power and glory’ (v. 26). There is a huge gap. Second, the overriding message is of reassurance. However bad life might seem, God is ultimately in control. Over the centuries of a world seemingly out of control, this is God’s promise. He will not desert his beloved people. For me, that is a great relief!
So how, in the twenty-first century, do we live? Jesus relates a simple country parable about a fig tree. It’s about reading the signs of the times. New buds, even in the middle of a snowstorm, mean that summer isn’t far away. Summer always arrives. Even the bad times are good if they’re a sign that we’re a stage nearer to the return of Jesus.
Apply
Buds signify the end of winter and the coming of spring: light after darkness, new life after apparent death. The coming of Jesus brings light, healing, and new life.
Closing prayer
Lord Jesus, when I face hardship, help me to focus, not on my circumstances, but on your proven faithfulness. Help me to look with anticipation to what you surely will do to help me.
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