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This week we conclude our study of Luke chapter 17. Please read verses 20-25 every day this week and, if possible, use a different translation each day, asking God to open your eyes to fresh revelation from His Word.
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Luke 17:22-25 (NLT)
‘Then he said to his disciples, “The time is coming when you will long to see the day when the Son of Man returns, but you won’t see it. People will tell you, ‘Look, there is the Son of Man,’ or ‘Here he is,’ but don’t go out and follow them. For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other, so it will be on the day when the Son of Man comes. But first the Son of Man must suffer terribly and be rejected by this generation.’
Today is my daughter’s wedding service at Oasis Community Centre. She’s marrying a wonderful young man and I will be very proud of her as I walk her down the aisle later today.
Life was so very different before she was born and I remember vividly what life was like when Cath was pregnant. We’d only been married a little over a year and we were filled with joy and expectancy, looking forward to a future as the parents of a new born baby. We were busy preparing rooms and contemplating names etc and we were entirely focused on the bright future that was ahead of us.
Then the labour pains started and immediately we began to think of the pain that was about to be endured. I say ‘we’ but I’m sure you know that as a man, the worst pain I was going to go through would be a sore hand where Cath would be crushing it during labour! I can’t really imagine what it is like to know that you’re going to be suffering that kind of pain and know that there’s nothing you can do about it. It really is something when you’re looking forward to any kind of pain and still willingly go through it.
We are continuing to look at the same verses today and as you’ve read earlier, Jesus is focusing His disciple’s attention to the future. In particular, He is talking about the time when He will return again to earth. He issues some warnings and asks His followers not to be deceived by anyone claiming to be Him. The description of His return is painted in graphical detail with the words ‘As the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other, so will it be on the day when the Son of Man comes’. His return won’t be a minor event taking place in some far flung corner of the world, I believe that when Jesus comes back, it will be an amazing sight and the entire world will see it! It will be a sudden and literally brilliant event. He will return in resplendent glory and majesty. The King of kings and Lord of lords will return as the Magnificent Warrior arrayed for battle. He is the Lion of the tribe of Judah. He is the Lord of Hosts. What a sight that’s going to be!
However, in a much, much more dreadful way, but similar to the concept of pregnancy, the future will only be realised after experiencing great pain. Jesus adds a simple line to the end of these verses but is it full of awful, dreadful horror: “But first, the Son of Man must suffer terribly”. Jesus is fully aware of the detail of His glorious return but He is equally aware of the reality of the cross awaiting Him. He speaks of the suffering and rejection and knows without a shadow of a doubt that He has to endure it. There is a song we sing that begins with ‘You chose the cross with every breath’. Today, my prayer is that we, once again, focus our minds on the amazing sacrifice that Jesus is and made for us. He willingly died in order to reconcile us with the Father. “Who, for the joy that was set before Him, endured the cross”. He saw a wonderful future for us and in order to provide it, He had to suffer in our place. May our lives be filled with gratitude for so great a salvation.
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