A Study of the Book of Luke
Sermon # 35
“The Signs of the Times”
Luke 12:54-59
These are amazing and exciting times in which to live as a Christian. We have been privileged in our lifetimes to witness things that those who lived before us could not even imagine. The world is changing in extra-ordinary ways; we watched as Communism fell in our lifetimes, we look on as every day our world gets closer to acceptance of a one world currency, and eventually a one world leader. Perhaps as no other time in history, people of faith are called to understand the times in which we live. This requires not only aware-ness of our world situation but of an under-standing of Scripture. How tragic that today men can predict the movement of the stars and even put men on the moon, but they are blind to what God is doing in the world. They know how to get to the stars but so many of them do not know how to get to heaven.
Over the last several weeks we have been looking at a message that Jesus preached in Luke chapter twelve. Last week we examined three distinct characteristics of a “good waiter” in connection with the second coming of Jesus. Jesus now continues his teaching by warning his disciples and anyone else who would listen that there is great wisdom in reading the signs of the times.
Today’s passage on judgment is one of those that we would rather avoid. These words my not tickle your ears, but they just might change your heart.
Two things I want you to see about judgment.
FIRST, YOU NEED TO RECOGNIZE THAT JUDGMENT IS REAL (vv. 54-56)
“Then He also said to the multitudes, ‘Whenever you see a cloud rising out of the west, immediately you say, ‘A shower is coming’; and so it is, (55) And when you see the south wind blow, you say, ‘There will be hot weather’; And there is (56) Hypocrites! You can discern the face of the sky and of the earth, but how is it you do not discern this time?”
The people who lived in Palestine in the days of Jesus’ ministry did not have the modern weather observation equipment of today, but they did have the ability to observe the conditions in the sky.
Jesus asks, Why were they so good at reading the earth’s winds and such failures at reading the spiritual winds? They could read earthly weather, but they neglected the signs of the moral and spiritual climate all around them. Why were they were so shrewd in earthly matters and such dunces in spiritual matters? Jesus calls it hypocrisy, because it was all pretense that they did not know what was happening.
I am amazed at the energy, time and money spent in our modern society to bring us the very latest weather reports from around the globe. Yet the people of today pay far more attention to tomorrow’s weather forecast than they do to their eternal destiny. That is why there is at least a brief weather summary on the front page of the newspaper, but the religion section is buried in an obscure subsection of the paper.
The apostle Peter (2 Peter 3:3-7) spoke of this coming judgment when he said, “knowing this first: that scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts, (4) and saying, ‘Where is the promise of his coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation (5) For this they willfully forget: that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water (7) But the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same word, are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.”
Jesus never called people hypocrites without good reason. When Jesus calls these people hypocrites it not because they were confused about who Christ was, or because they had never heard. His anger is directed against those who were in a position to know the truth and who deliberately rejected that truth.
Paul says in his letter to the Romans (1:16) that the wrath of God will be poured out on those “who suppress (KJV hold down) the truth in unrighteousness.“ It is not that these individuals do not know, it is that they refuse to acknowledge God.
The signs are there for those who are willing to observe them, and they warn of a inferno of judgment against an ungodly world, a fact which most people prefer to ignore or deny. Because of this we have a world culture that in spite of the witness and testimony of the church, continues to reject the good news of Jesus Christ, that calls good evil and evil good, worships money, glorifies sex, makes heroes of villains, kills unwanted babies in the name of convenience, and worships self as the god of all things.
As with storm warnings we do not usually pay attention or prepare until we realize the severity of the storm and accept the reality that it is going to hit were we live. In the same way people often ignore the warnings about God’s judgment until they recognize the reality and the severity of it.
In A. D. 79 the Roman city of Pompeii suffered a swift and complete destruction with the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius. Most of us have seen pictures of the archeological exploration of that city. The explosion of Mt. Vesuvius was so sudden that the residents were killed in the midst of their daily routine. What you may not realize is that the citizens of Pompeii did not have to die. Roman writers of the period recorded that for weeks prior to the eruption, there were sounds of rumbling and shaking of the earth was felt. There was even an ominous plume of smoke clearly visible for days before the eruption. The citizens of Pompeii died because they ignored the warnings. Warnings are only good if they are responded to appropriately, which brings us to the second and final principle.
SECONDLY, Y0U NEED TO PREPARE BECAUSE JUDGMENT IS COMING (vv. 57-59)
Having issued the warning, Jesus next in verses fifty-seven through fifty-nine, gives the crowd (and us) some advice on how to prepare for judgment.
“Yes, and why, even of yourselves, do you not judge what is right? (58) When you go with your adversary to the magistrate, make every effort alone the way to settle with him, lest he drag you to the judge, the judge deliver you to the officer, and the officer throw you into prison. (59) I tell you, you shall not depart from there till you have paid the last mite.”
In this mini-parable a man is on his way to the judge with an adversary and it tells us that commonsense would be to settle with this man before we stand before the judge.
Like this man we are on our way into the presence of a Judge. And since we too are all guilty and heading for judgment the wisest thing to do is to settle out of court before judgment. This is only common sense. Well, the judge of all the earth is coming one day to judge the earth. Because of our guilt, arrival in court means that only a guilty verdict can be expected and then we will have to pay the ultimate price of our guilt. We all have a debt of sin before God that someone must pay (Romans 3:9-31). Either Jesus does it in our stead by his sacrifice on the cross or we will pay every last cent before God. You had better settle with him before it is too late. People will do almost anything to stay out of jail, but how many people will apply the same kind of diligence to stay out of hell?
There are three aspects of how we should prepare for the future judgment that we can see in this passage.
1. This Preparation Begins With A Sense of Our Sin
Charles Colson illustrates this principle at work in his life, when he tells the story of the night that he came to understand that he was a sinner on his way to judgment. “That night when I … sat alone in my car, my own sin – not just dirty politics, but the hatred and evil so deep within me – was thrust before my eyes, forcefully and painfully. For the first time in my life, I felt unclean, and worst of all, I could not escape. In those moments of clarity, I found myself driven irresistibly into the arms of the living God.” [Charles Colson. Who Speaks for God. (Wheaton, Crossway Books, 1985) pp. 136-147] People who have allowed God’s grace to work in their lives mourn their sin, the lost do not acknowledge their guilt.
This Preparation Begins With A Sense of Our Sin And . . .
2. This Preparation Involves Real Change
“Several years ago the Peanuts comic strip had Lucy and Charlie Brown practicing football. Lucy would hold the ball for Charlie, he would approach the ball and kick with all his might. At the precise moment of the point of no return, Lucy would pick up the ball and Charlie would kick and his momentum unchecked by the ball, which was not there to kick, would cause him to fall flat of his back. The strip opened with Lucy Brown holding the ball, but Charlie would not kick the ball. Lucy begged him to kick the ball. But Charlie Brown said, ‘Every time I try to kick the ball you remove it and I fall on my back.’ They went back and forth for the longest time and finally Lucy broke down in tears and admitted, ‘Charlie Brown I have been so terrible to you over the years, picking up the football like I have. I have played so many cruel tricks on you, but I’ve seen the error of my ways! I’ve seen the hurt look in your eyes when I’ve deceived you. I’ve been wrong. Won’t you give a poor penitent girl another chance.’ Charlie Brown was moved by her display of grief and responded to her, ‘Of course, I’ll give you another chance.’ He stepped back as she held the ball, and he ran. At the last moment, Lucy picked up the ball and Charlie Brown fell flat on his back. Lucy’s last words were, ‘Recognizing your faults and actually changing your ways are two different things, Charlie Brown.’ " [Jeeva Sam. “Second Chances.” SermonCentral.com]
This Preparation Involves Real Change And. . .
3. This Preparation Involves Accepting Christ As Your Personal Savior.
The New Testament repeatedly emphasizes the importance of individual acceptance of Christ and the judgment that awaits those who reject Him. The writer of Hebrews says, “it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes the judgment” (Hebrews 9:27). Jesus calls to all of us to settle things in this life so that our lives will not come to the court of final judgment, where it will be too late to find salvation.
Now is the time to choose! The author of Proverbs warns, "He, that being often reproved hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy" (Prov. 29:1).
A story is told of “a young woman, who had been brought up in a Christian home and who had often had very serious convictions in regard to the importance of coming to Christ, chose instead to take the way of the world. Much against the wishes of her godly mother, she insisted on keeping company with a wild, . . . crowd, who lived only for the passing moment and tried to forget the things of eternity. Again and again she was pleaded with to turn to Christ, but she persistently refused to heed the admonitions addressed to her.
Finally, she was taken with a very serious illness. All that medical science could do for her was done in order to bring about her recovery, but it soon became evident that the case was hopeless and death was staring her in the face. Still she was hard and (stubborn) obdurate when urged to turn to God in repentance and take the lost sinner’s place and trust the lost sinner’s Savior.
One night she awoke suddenly out of a sound sleep, a frightened look in her eyes, and asked excitedly, "Mother, what is Ezekiel 7:8 and 9?" Her mother said, "What do you mean, my dear?" She replied that she had had a most vivid dream. She thought there was a Presence in the room, who very solemnly said to her, "Read Ezekiel 7:8-9."
Not recalling the verses in question, the mother reached for a Bible. As she opened it, her heart sank as she saw the words, but she read them aloud to the dying girl:"Now I will shortly pour out my fury upon thee, and accomplish mine anger upon thee: and I will judge thee according to thy ways, and will recompense thee for all thine abominations. And mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity: I will recompense thee according to thy ways and thine abominations that are in the midst of thee; and ye shall know that I am the Lord that smiteth."
The poor sufferer, with a look of horror on her face, sank back on the pillow, utterly exhausted, and in a few moments she was in eternity. Once more it had been demonstrated that grace rejected brings judgment at last.”
[Illustrations of Bible Truth by H. A. Ironside, Moody Press, 1945, pp. 31-32, www.bible.org/illus/j/j-14.htm]
In closing I want to direct your attention back to verse fifty-six where Jesus had asked “How is it you do not know how to interpret this critical hour?” Time is reflected in the Greek language in two different words: chronos and kairos. Some see time only as chronos, a stream of moments flying by at incredible speed. Other have a view of kairos, the critical and often favorable moment to do something for God and his kingdom. [William Hendriksen. The Gospel of Luke. (Grand Rapids: Baker,1978) p. 688]
Now is such a time!
