Day 181: Luke 21:5–28

When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is near! (v. 28).

I love eschatology—a fancy word for end-time events. Few subjects are more exciting to study than the glorious future awaiting us. Just don’t lose your head over it! Bible topics are not meant to become our focus—not even critical themes like holiness and service. Jesus is our focus. Remember, the enemy’s primary goal is to disconnect us from the Head. Colossians 2:19 describes the kind of person who becomes more interested in spiritual things than the Spirit of Christ: “He has lost connection with the Head.” That’s why we must be very careful when dealing with exciting subjects like eschatology.

Among the many facts we know about Christ’s return, the one that is most clear is this one: it will be unmistakable. Luke 21:27 tells us that people “will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.”

Revelation 1:7 also makes it clear that Christ’s return to this earth will be impossible to miss: “Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen.”

If you carefully compare Luke 21:7 with Matthew 24:3, you will see that the disciples asked Jesus about two events. I believe the disciples thought they were asking only one question. In reality they asked about two events separated by millennia—the destruction of the temple and the return of Christ. The temple was destroyed in ad 70. We await Jesus’ return today.

I confess that I would like to shake those disciples and tell them to ask better questions. Parts of Jesus’ discourse fit the events surrounding the destruction of the temple. Some of His words can apply only to the Second Coming. Some leave us wondering. Why do you suppose Jesus didn’t choose to be more clear about these events? Wouldn’t you like to have a clearer road map or timetable?

But whether or not we can answer all the questions that come to our mind, you and I can be sure we are living in an era on the kingdom calendar that will climax with the visible return of Jesus Christ. It’s unmistakable.