LUKE 17:20-37

Luke 17:20-37

It was three weeks ago yesterday that we celebrated our country’s 250 anniversary as a nation. It was actually 250 years from our declaration of independence from England and King George III. Now, I’m not going to get into all the reasons for the declaration, but we rebelled against the king, created our own non-king government because, well, we don’t like kings. As I understand it, while there are some monarchies left in the world today, there’s not a king or queen with absolute sovereignty and supremacy. They’re largely just figureheads. Because we don’t like kings. In fact, if you want to malign our current president, head of the executive branch of our republic because you don’t like his personality or policies, you do so by holding “no kings” rallies. We don’t like kings.

It’s interesting to note, besides Great Britain itself, perhaps no country is more infatuated with the British monarchy than the US. Don’t believe me? See how long Prince Harry and Megan Markle avoid national headlines. Well, I guess that could be our infatuation with gossip. Of course, the challenge with true monarchies is their absolute sovereignty – and no one person deserves that much supremacy and power. See the Magna Carta of 1215. After all, as British Lord Acton once said, “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”

Unless, of course, you have a perfect king. If you have a sovereign who is absolutely supreme, infinitely powerful, perfectly righteous, impeccably wise, and fully good. You do understand, as Christians, we have such as a king. Well, the world has such a king – they just neither know it nor acknowledge it, because we don’t like kings. We want to do things our way – good or not.

Now, truth is, our king did something you would never expect. He came to this earth, His realm, incognito if you will. Meaning, He didn’t look much like a king. He was born to a peasant couple in a no-count town, hardly anyone knew about it – seemingly no royal pedigree. He grew up in an obscure village in Galilee of all places, raised as a carpenter, dressed like a peasant. He burst on the scene with other peasants – no crown, no throne, no army.

The fact is, He wasn’t what His people expected. It wasn’t the arrival of the king they wanted. So, they despised Him, rejected Him, and eventually killed Him. And that, as they say, was that. Or was it? You see, He did come to set up His kingdom. He’s in the process of doing that right now. And He will return to claim His kingdom, His crown, and His people. His second coming will be completely different than His first. Then, all will know Him as king. I guess the question is, will you be ready for His spectacular arrival?

Yes, He came the first time to bring the kingdom of God. I guess we should ask, what is the kingdom of God? He didn’t look like a king, and the kingdom He set up didn’t look kingly. Further, in Luke 11 and Matthew 6, this king, Jesus, did teach us to say in the Lord’s Prayer, “Your kingdom come.” We ask God for His kingdom to come – on earth as it is in heaven. So, it seems if we pray for God’s kingdom to come, it’s not here yet, right? Bible scholars have argued this for centuries. The kingdom of God is here, it’s not here. So, it seems we must define the kingdom of God to know whether it’s here or not. After all, the kingdom of God is mentioned some 84 times in the gospels. It’s kind of important – especially if we’re citizens of that kingdom.

Let me just cut to the chase: most agree the kingdom is God’s active and sovereign rule over the entire universe – all that is – His right to rule His creation – to include the hearts of people – all people. Certainly, it includes the church – but the church is not the kingdom of God, it is part of the kingdom of God. Now, it is also clear that humankind rebelled against God’s sovereign rule – they declared their own independence to do things their way.

That doesn’t mean, of course, that God is not our sovereign and rightful ruler – it simply means we have rebelled against Him. That rebellion began as early as the Garden of Eden, plunging humanity and this earth into ruin and destruction. Paul tells us in Romans 8 all creation has been subjected to the curse from the fall, and all creation groans, waiting for the sons and daughters of God, the citizens of the kingdom, to be revealed.

So, right now, humankind is in active rebellion against God – their Creator and sovereign king. But that doesn’t mean He does not rule. It gets a little complicated because we find this rebellion was part of His plan. What do I mean? Well, if He is all powerful, all knowing, all sovereign, and all good, how did the fall, the rebellion happen? It was His plan. You see, Jesus was the Lamb slain from before the foundation of the world. Acts 4 tells us He was crucified according to the predetermined plan of God. Further, we find God knew us, in fact chose us, before the foundation of the world. You see, Revelation 13 and 17 says the Book of Life was composed at the foundation of the world. In other words, God planned in eternity past for humanity’s rebellion and our redemption through the death of His Son, the prince, the peasant king. It’s amazing to ponder.

Clearly, God is sovereign and active, and all things are unfolding according to plan. None of this has taken God by surprise. I’ve said it this way before – it’s not as if the archangels Michael or Gabriel burst into the throne room and exclaimed, “You’re not going to believe what Adam and Eve just did.” No, He knew – more, He planned for it.

But as we look around, we see rebellion – sin and its ruin and destruction everywhere. So, is this the kingdom of God where He rightly rules, or not? And why do we pray, Your kingdom come – asking for God’s kingdom to come on earth just as it is in heaven? Let me suggest, as most modern evangelical scholars accept, the following:

1. God, our all-good, all-knowing, all-powerful Creator has always been sovereignly in control. There has never been nor ever will be a maverick molecule in the universe. But that does not negate our rebellion against His right to rule. The entire OT is the unfolding of His sovereign plan to redeem us, culminating in the NT brought by the promised New Covenant.

2. Which secondly, brings us to the first advent – the first coming of Jesus. Jesus came to bring the provisions of the New Covenant through His life, death, burial, and resurrection. Don’t miss this – He was and is the King of His kingdom. So in that sense, when Jesus came, by His presence, the King was here, He brought the kingdom to earth. But we understand, it’s not here in its fullness. It is here already, but not-yet all that it will be. We are in the process through the gospel of spreading the knowledge of His sovereign right to rule. When people are saved through the work of the King, they are brought into the church and willful subjects of His kingdom.

3. But again, the kingdom is not yet here in its fullness. We call this understanding the already, not-yet nature of the kingdom of God. Yes, it is here, but it is not yet fully here. When will that fullness come? At the second advent – at the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, when He comes not as a humble peasant, but as King of kings and Lord of lords. He will gloriously come conqueror to rescue His redeemed and as judge to condemn the rest.

The challenge throughout the OT era for the Jews, finding its fullness in the Pharisees, was they did not see the two comings of Christ. They did not see the Messiah coming the first time as Savior to redeem lost humanity. They were simply looking for His Second Coming, with all its attendant signs, to rescue them from oppressive rule – at the time Jesus came – the oppressive rule of the Romans. They expected the Christ to come, throw off Rome, set up His kingdom with them, of course, ruling with Him. They missed altogether that to which all the OT sacrifices pointed, the need for salvation through the death/sacrifice of the Christ for His people.

This understanding is clearly spelled out in our text today in our continuing study of a marvelous Luke chapter 17. Last week, we studied the story only found in Luke of Jesus healing ten leprous men. It was amazing miracle – Jesus sending off ten men to the priest to be declared cleansed while they were still diseased. And on the way, in a moment, they were healed, but only one came back to thank him. Only one who understood the undeserved mercy he had received. But don’t miss it – amazing – healing ten men without even being there. Who could do that? You’re supposed to be impressed – could this man be the Messiah, the King of the kingdom He came to bring?

But they missed it – particularly the Pharisees. Remember, they were expecting cosmic signs, but not the signs Jesus came to bring. Not the teachings, not the amazing healings. In fact, they attributed such healing not to the sovereign goodness and power of God – but to the power of Beelzebub – Satan himself. In their continued rebellion and refusal to see Jesus as the Messiah, they missed it. Look at the text with me – Luke 17:20-37. It’s a long text, but it goes together, and highlights the two comings of Christ, the already kingdom He came to bring, and the not-yet kingdom He will bring when He comes back. Read it with me.

The clear purpose of Jesus’ teaching is to be alert, prepared, ready for His return. The text breaks nicely between His first and second comings; His conversation with the Pharisees and with His disciples; the already nature of His first inconspicuous coming and His auspicious second coming that all will see. Here’s the outline:

I. The First Coming and the “Signs” the Pharisees Missed (20-21)
II. The Second Coming and the “Sign” All will See (22-37)
Eighteen verses, we must get moving. Remember, Jesus has just performed an amazing miracle. Now, whether the conversation happened immediately or at another time, Luke places it here because the Pharisees should have known. They should have seen the King of His Kingdom was in their midst. Look at it.

Verse 20, apparently the Pharisees asked Jesus a question – when is the kingdom of God coming? Now let me tell you, as followers of Jesus, we shouldn’t be asking that question. Oh, maybe we wonder when the fullness of the kingdom will come – when will He come back. But they should not be asking the King – who was standing right before them – who had proven who He was – there could be no doubting it – when is the kingdom of God coming? People do that all the time today – I don’t know about this Jesus. What does He need to do? Where is this coming He promised? You forget.

As I said earlier, they were looking for all kinds of celestial signs. There is some evidence in the OT the coming of the Messiah would be accompanied by undeniable cosmic signs. But they missed it – that will be His second coming. Don’t you miss it. Jesus came, the King came, to bring the kingdom to those who would believe. They would become citizens of His kingdom. Oh sure, the kingdom is not here in its fullness – but it is here and available to all who believe.

So, for believers here today – read the gospel narratives – Matthew, Mark, Luke and John – and be amazed by the teaching and miracles of our Lord. There could be, there can be no denying the Christ came. The King came. He proved it by His perfect life, miraculous deeds, and amazing teaching. Don’t question that – you have believed, now rest in that rock solid proof. I know, you look around and wonder – where is He? Where is this coming He promised? When will He return and make all things right; when will He come and make right the mess of this world we have created? Hear me – He will come when it is time – not a moment before, not a moment too late. Rest in who He is and His finished first-coming work – rest as citizens of the kingdom, having been reconciled to God through Christ.

But for unbelievers here today – maybe you’re curious, maybe you’re wondering if there is any truth to this Christian faith – I want to say to you two things. First, read the gospel narratives and be impressed with Jesus and His undeniable deity. Be amazed at what He taught and what He did. Understand He came the first time to redeem you – to rescue you from your rebellion and to bring you into the kingdom. You have declared your independence, and He came to win you back. Investigate all you want – I believe you’ll be amazed. Join us in this part of the kingdom called church. But the second thing I’ll say is this – He’s given you all you’re going to get. Don’t hold out for more – some miraculous, celestial sign. He proved it the first time – consider and believe. Because the next sign you see, it will be too late.

Consider Jesus answer to the Pharisees – and it’s important to remember it’s to them and to us. The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed – that is, the celestial ones you want. Nor is He coming with the judgment you expect on your enemies. He’s not coming to judge the world – this time. He has come with signs – you just missed them. Nor will people be convinced, always looking for and being deceived by more proofs, saying, here it is or there it is. No, the kingdom is here the way God determined it would come. He’s in control of the events – you’re not. In fact, Jesus makes this statement – for the kingdom of God is already here and it is in your midst. Some translations have it – the kingdom of God is within you – which has caused some to suggest that the kingdom within a person. That’s never the case – the kingdom doesn’t come into a person, the person comes into the kingdom. Further, Jesus wouldn’t say to unbelieving Pharisees, the kingdom of God is within you. It wasn’t. A better translation is, the kingdom of God is in your midst – it’s available – it’s here. All you have to do to enter the kingdom is to repent of your sin, your rebellion, believe in Jesus as the Lord, the King of His kingdom, and you will be saved. You will become a kingdom dweller, right here, right now. Again, not in its fullness – but hold on, it’s coming.

When? That brings us to our second point and lots of verses to cover. The Second Coming and the Sign All will See. Notice, Jesus is now addressing His disciples. That’s important – the Pharisees may still be listening, but He’s talking to His followers – He’s talking to us.

And He said to His disciples, “The days will come when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it.” Most agree one of the days of the Son of Man refers to the Day of the Lord, the day of His return. Now notice, He’s speaking to His disciples then. They would long to see His return, but they will not see it. We might, might not. There is a long time between His ascension and His return – but He’s active – He’s building the church.

You’re not going to see it – there is a period of time between His first and second coming. Many will begin to scoff, saying, where is this coming He promised? All things continue as they have since the beginning of time. Don’t be discouraged, don’t be deceived. He’s coming – when it is time. So when false Christs come, when they say, look there or look here, don’t do it. Because verse 24, when He comes, it will be seen by all, and there will be no doubt about what is happening. You won’t have to wonder, you won’t have to guess. You’ll know, everyone will know.

For just like the lightening, when it flashes out of one part of the sky, shines to the other part of the sky, so will the Son of Man be in His day – the day of His coming. It will be obvious to all, and all will see it. This is the sign to be looking for. Not all the prognostications false teachers have made in ages past to the present day. Nope – keep your eyes fixed on the sky – because that will be the next thing to see. His coming will be broadcast – it will be bright and glorious. Keep your eyes fixed on the eastern sky and say, come Lord Jesus, come.

But, verse 25, it’s not going to happen right away. In fact, the Son of Man must first suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. This is the fifth of several passion descriptions Jesus gives in the gospel of Luke. It was the reason He had come the first time. Don’t look for this before My passion – the death, burial and resurrection. That must happen first. And thank God He came the way He came the first time, or we would be without hope if He skipped the first coming and went right to the second.

But, verses 26 all the way to the end of the chapter – be prepared. Be ready. Don’t be distracted. Don’t be sidetracked. He’s coming. Be ready. And He gives two familiar OT examples of coming judgment when the people were not ready. The first example is the people of Noah’s day in verses 26-27. That story is found in Genesis 6-9. You know it – you’ve learned it since you were a kid in Sunday School. You maybe even have your nursery decorated with Noah in the ark – all the happy animals with Noah’s family. Alone. Your child wakes up screaming in the middle of the night and you can’t figure out why. It’s because you have images of the worldwide wrath of God hanging above their heads.

God told Noah to build an ark to carry his family and the animals to safety from the coming flood. The people mocked, for a while – but it took decades to build the ark. And so, after a while, I’m sure the people grew tired of mocking – besides the butt of a joke at the local bar. They had their lives to live. That’s the part Luke highlights. Not that the entire generation of Noah’s day was wicked and it grieved God that He had made them, and decided to start all over with Noah and His family.

That’s not the point Luke emphasizes. No – he hits a little closer to home. He says, as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be in the days of the Son of Man. That’s pointing to the future when Jesus will return. And what was it like in Noah’s day? Well of course, you can read Genesis 6 and find out how wicked the people were. But all Luke says is they were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage. That’s all the normal stuff of life. Most of you have done the eating and drinking part every day. Most of you have done the getting married or being given in marriage – or at least looking forward to it. Anything wrong with any of that? No.

Except, that’s all they focused on. Yes, there was their wickedness – not Luke’s point. They focused on all the everyday things of life without God. No place for God in their lives. I’m sure you know lots of people like that. Maybe most of the people you know. Oh sure, they have their sin – everybody does. But they’re mostly good people. They eat, they drink, not to excess, they get married – stay married, had kids, gave them away in marriage – they were beautiful weddings – they had kids, so now your friends have grandkids. Life is grand. Except, there is no God.

And in Noah’s day, wickedness aside, the day finally came when Noah entered the ark, God closed the door, locked them on the inside, the flood came and destroyed all the people. You see, life without God – without reference to God our Sovereign and Creator – is wicked enough – no matter how good you think you are. When Jesus comes back, it will be the same – the flood of judgment will come and destroy them all.

The second OT example – still in the book of Genesis, chapters 18 and 19 – the story of Lot and his family. Same challenge – he’s living in the wicked city of Sodom. Sodom and Gomorrah of sexual wickedness fame. But that’s not what Luke emphasizes. Look at verse 28. “It was the same as happened in the days of Lot: eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, building.” Now the focus is not on marriage and family – by the way, it was part creation mandate. To get married, be fruitful, and multiply. That means, have children.

Oh, but this time, the emphasis is on vocation. They were buying stuff, selling stuff – everybody has to make a living, right? They were planting and building. Work was assigned to Adam and Eve before the Fall – work is not evil – Ecclesiastes says God gave it to us for our enjoyment. All is good, right? Wickedness aside. But it was life without God.

Until the day Lot went out from Sodom and God rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all. Think Mt. Vesuvius and Pompeii. Destroyed them all. For their wickedness? Yes, of course. But again, the emphasis here seems to be doing life – even the good things of life – without God. No time for their sovereign King and Creator of the universe. We all know people like that. They’re not wicked – not by our standards. They’re good people. But they have no time for God – which in itself, makes them wicked and deserving of the Creator’s wrath. Verse 20, it will be the same on the day that the Son of Man is revealed – that is, when Jesus comes back the second time as judge.

Jesus then goes on to describe what that second coming will look like – not in detail like we get in 1 Thessalonians 4 or Revelation 19 – more with a glimpse of what it will be like – how His coming will actually divide people – the closest of people you would never expect.

In verses 31-33, Jesus starts with, rather stunningly, the suddenness of His return and the necessity of being prepared – to not have divided loyalty or allegiance. When the Son of Man appears, like lightening in the sky, don’t turn back to your physical possessions – you’re not going to need them, and they pale in importance to the return of Christ. So, if you’re on the housetop or in the field, don’t go to the house to gather your belongings. Why would you do that? Such action demonstrates a divided allegiance – even a love for the stuff of this world more than a love for Christ.

Remember, there won’t be any doubt about what’s happening. Jesus is coming back, and everyone will know it. Don’t turn away – look for, long for the return of Christ – not the wealth of this world. Will there be those stuffing suitcases full of worldly goods, hoping to take their stuff with them? Apparently. The point is, their divided loyalty will result in them being left.

How do we know? That famous verse 32 – one of the shortest verses in the Bible, only found here in Luke, and one of the most shocking. Remember Lot’s wife. Remember? The judgment of God was coming. Fire and brimstone. Angels had been sent to deliver Lot and his family from Sodom and the coming destruction. Lot went to his two future sons-in-law and said, “Up, get out of this place, for the LORD will destroy the city.” But they thought he was joking.

When morning came, the angels urged Lot, “Up, take your wife and daughters, or you will be swept away in the punishment of the city.” You remember, Lot hesitated. Why? Why would you do that? Unbelief? Reluctance to leave all you had gained? Who knows. So the angels, out of the LORD’s compassion, seized the family of four and dragged them out of the city.

I suppose Lot, his wife, and his two daughters gathered what they needed and headed out the door – leaving lots of their acquired material possessions behind. Outside the city, the angels warned, “Escape for your life! Don’t look back, don’t stay in the valley, escape to the mountains.” As they fled for their lives, we find in Genesis 19 that the LORD rained down fire and brimstone on Sodom and Gomorrah – it was the judgment of God. Vers 26 says, “But his wife, from behind him, looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.” What’s that about? Was she looking back at the destruction? Sure – but the implication in Luke is she looked back longingly for all she left behind. It wasn’t where she looked, it was what she loved. And the judgment of God fell upon her.

Remember Lot’s wife. Jesus goes on to say in Luke, “whoever seeks to keep his life [and all that he has amassed] will lose it, and whoever loses his life [and all that he has amassed – that’s the context] will preserve it.” He will gain life that is truly life.

In the closing verses, Jesus warns them further. His coming will bring separation – separation between believers and unbelievers – possessors and possessors. Separation between the closest relationships. Look at verses 34-35, on that night, there will be two in bed – one taken, the other left. Two women grinding at the same place, implying friendship or relationship – one taken, the other left. I’m reminded of that song from the 70s, “man and wife asleep in bed, she hears a noise and turns her head, he’s gone. I wish we’d all been ready. There’s no time to change your mind, the Son has come and you’ve been left behind.” Kind of cheezy, but based on this text.

There is some question as to whether the one taken is the redeemed one – taken away before impending judgment – or the one taken to judgment. In the end, it doesn’t matter – those who believe will be saved from destruction; those in unbelief, even our closest friends and family members, will be delivered to judgment. Sobering, yes, but true, nonetheless. No one will be saved by proxy – they must believe the gospel for themselves. By the way, verse 35 is not in the earliest and best manuscripts – most believe it was copied from Matthew’s parallel account. But the point is the same.

The disciples listening to all this are taken aback – as we should be. This is indeed sobering. They answered Jesus in verse 37 and said, “Where, Lord?” Where will this happen? Where will the one be taken? It’s not entirely clear what they were asking – they were just taken aback by the teaching. Where, Lord? How, Lord? When, Lord?

Jesus answered, “Wherever the body is, there also the vultures will be gathered.” That’s where. There’s really no way to lighten what Jesus said here, although attempts have been made. Most agree He is saying this, “Where? Wherever they are taken in judgment, or left in judgment, you’ll know, because vultures will be gathered.” You know when you’re driving down the road and you see a bunch of vultures circling in a field, there’s something dead below. That’s the point. Judgment is coming, and you’ll know it when you see it.

Jesus said to the Pharisees – the kingdom is in your midst – I’m the king, and I came to bring it. And you’ve missed it. He says to His disciples, when I come back the second time, you’ll know it. Everyone will know it. Don’t miss it. Be ready. Don’t be distracted. Be prepared.

Remember Lot’s wife. As Spurgeon said of her, “She was almost saved, but not quite.” Where is your heart? The King is coming. He came the first time to suffer for your sin. You can be prepared for His second coming if you believe what He came to do the first time. If you believe the gospel. Most will be unprepared. They’ll be doing all the things normal people do. They’ll be driving to work, doing the day’s labor, collecting their paychecks, shopping, going to the movies, eating dinner, walking the dog, working out, watching TV, putting the kids to bed, scrolling social media, reviewing their financial reports. And they will be overtaken, swept away by the wrath of God. Don’ be unprepared.