“Only the Father Knows”

Mark 13:24-37

According to our “Directory for Worship,” “Advent [is] a season to recollect the hope of the coming of Christ, and to look forward to the Lord’s coming again.” We look back to the birth of our Savior while looking forward to his coming again.

The focus of today’s text is on the coming again part of the equation. Dealing with the Second Coming involves dealing with eschatology, which is simply the study of last things. Such study leads us to the topic of apocalyptic literature in the Bible. Today’s text is apocalyptic. Some have even named it the “little apocalypse,” a brief version of the Revelation (or Apocalypse) of John.

Apocalypse literally means the “lifting of the veil.” It is “a disclosure of something hidden from the majority of [humanity] in an era dominated by falsehood and misconception…” The book of Daniel is an Old Testament version of apocalyptic literature. The Revelation of John is the New Testament version. Both deal with times when the will of God has been thwarted, times when God’s people are in dire straits.

More than that, the universe itself will be in an upheaval like that described in verses 24 and 25 of today’s text: “… the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.”

According to Christopher Hutson, “The basic message of apocalyptic visions is this: The rebellion against the reign of God is strong, as the wicked oppress the righteous. Things will get worse before they get better. But hang on just a little while longer, because just when you’re sure you cannot endure, God will intervene to turn the world right side up.” Or as Billy Graham said about the meaning of Revelation: “God wins.”

God wins. That’s a truth we cannot forget. But another truth of today’s text is this: “But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father… Therefore keep awake…” God’s gonna do what God’s gonna do: at a time and in a manner of his own choosing. Making predictions or setting timetables is a fool’s errand. Nobody can outguess God. All we can do is be faithful servants every day because any day can be “the day.”

The original audience for Mark’s Gospel was the Christian community living through a time of severe political and social turmoil. In 70 AD the Jews had rebelled against Rome. The Romans had responded with swift and brutal reprisals. The Romans saw all Jews, even Christian ones, as potential rebels. The Jewish faithful, especially those who were seeking a military solution to Rome’s oppression, saw the Christians as traitors because of their unwillingness to join in the fight. Those early Christians were caught between a rock and a hard place.

That “little apocalypse” that is the 13^th Chapter of Mark was supposed to give those beleaguered Christians a sense of comfort and hope. They needed to know that God was going to win. They needed to know that their faithfulness was not in vain. That is the ultimate lesson of today’s text.

And it’s one that modern Christians need to hear. Quoting again Dr. Hutson: “Apocalyptic visions are always available to be recycled and applied to new situations. The point is not to predict the events of the future. Rather, apocalyptic theologians look to understand God’s mighty acts in the past as a framework for understanding how the people of God should respond to the present. It turns out that the enemy is not any one empire, but all political and economic powers are liable to be co-opted by Satan. They seek their own, worldly agendas, at the expense of ordinary people.”

He writes further: “Amid the smoke of battle, the fog of politics, the confusion of economic distress, the babble of would-be leaders wearing God masks and claiming divine authority, how shall we know which way to turn? God’s people should not be surprised or confused, because Jesus warned us ahead of time that such things would happen.

The powers that be will lull us to sleep by reassuring us that they have our best interests at heart as they pursue their worldly agendas. They play to our fears, our prejudices, our self-interests, so we do not notice their demonic behaviors. Beware. Keep alert. Keep awake. The one who endures to the end will be saved.”

The spirit of antichrist that was so alive in the first century is still alive today. The rebellion against the kingdom of God is just as strong today as it was 2,000 years ago. The wicked still oppress the righteous. The more things change, the more they stay the same. But one reality has never changed and never will: God wins. Period. The end.

This is a Communion Sunday, a time when we look back even as we look forward. We remember our Lord’s sacrifice on the cross. We also remember his resurrection. We remember the baby Jesus, the very Word of God made flesh to dwell with us. We anticipate God’s ultimate victory and the promise that we will share in it. We experience for a moment the reality of heaven. Jesus has come. Jesus will come again. The reign of God is going to prevail: in God’s own time and in God’s own way.

Meanwhile, what do we do? We wait with patience and alertness. And as we wait let us ponder these words by Martin B. Copenhaver: “By keeping alert and awake, by living our lives in accord with the One who has already come, died, and been raised, not only will we be prepared to live in the promised realm of God when it comes, but we may experience even now some of what life in [that] realm will be.” Amen.