Luke 21:25-33

And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of Heaven shall be shaken. And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draws near. And he spoke to them a parable; Behold the fig tree, and all the trees; When they now shoot forth, you see and know of your own selves that summer is now near at hand. So likewise you, when you see these things come to pass, know you that the kingdom of God is near at hand. Truly I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away, until all be fulfilled. Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.

— Luke 21:25-33

The subject of this portion of our Lord's great prophecy, is His own second coming to judge the world. The strong expressions of the passage appear inapplicable to any event less important than this. To confine the words before us, to the taking of Jerusalem by the Romans, in an unnatural straining of Scripture language.

We see, firstly, in this passage — how terrible will be the circumstances accompanying the second coming of Christ. Our Lord tells us that "there will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea. Men will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken. At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory."

This is a singularly solemn picture. It may not be easy perhaps to attach a precise meaning to every part of it. One thing however, is abundantly plain. The second coming of Christ will be attended by everything which can make it alarming to the senses and heart of man.

If the giving of the law at Sinai was so terrible that even Moses said, "I exceedingly fear and tremble" — then the return of Christ when He comes to earth in power and great glory, shall be much more terrible.

If the hardy Roman soldiers "became as dead men," when an angel rolled the stone away and Christ rose again — then how much greater will the terror be when Christ shall return to judge the world. No wonder that Paul said, "Knowing the terrors of the Lord, we persuade men." (Hebrews 12:21; Matthew 28:4; 2 Corinthians 5:11.)

The thoughtless and impenitent man may well tremble, when he hears of this second coming of Christ. What will he do when worldly business is suddenly stopped, and the precious things of the world are made worthless? What will he do when the graves on every side are opening, and the trumpet is summoning men to judgment? What will he do when that same Jesus whose Gospel he has so shamefully neglected — shall appear in the clouds of Heaven, and put down every enemy under His feet? Surely he will call on the rocks to fall on him, and on the hills to cover him. (Hosea 10:8.) But he will call in vain for help, if he has never called on Christ before.

Happy will they be in that day — who have fled beforehand from the wrath to come, and been washed in the blood of the Lamb!

We see, secondly, in this passage — how complete will be the security of true Christians at the second coming of Christ. We read that our Lord said to His disciples, "When these things begin to come to pass — then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draws near."

However terrible the signs of Christ's second coming may be to the impenitent — they need not strike terror into the heart of the true believer. They ought rather to fill him with joy. They ought to remind him that his complete deliverance from sin, the world and the devil — is close at hand; and that he shall soon bid an eternal farewell to sickness, sorrow, death and temptation!

The very day when the unconverted man shall lose everything — shall be the day when the believer shall enter on his eternal reward. The very hour when the worldly man's hopes shall perish — shall be the hour when the believer's hope shall be exchanged for joyful certainty and full possession.

The servant of God should often look forward to Christ's second coming. He will find the thought of that day to be a cordial to sustain him under all the trials and persecutions of this present life. "Yet a little while," let him remember, "and he who shall come — will come and will not tarry." The words of Isaiah shall be fulfilled, "He will swallow up death forever. The Sovereign LORD will wipe away the tears from all faces — and will remove the disgrace of His people." One sure method for a patient spirit, is to expect little from this world, and to be ever waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ!

We see, thirdly, in this passage — how needful it is to watch the signs of the times in the prospect of the second coming of Christ. Our Lord teaches this lesson by a parable, "Behold the fig tree and all the trees. When they sprout leaves, you can see for yourselves and know that summer is near. Even so, when you see these things happening — you know that the kingdom of God is near!" The disciples ignorantly supposed that Messiah's kingdom would be ushered in by universal peace. Our Lord, on the contrary, tells them that the signs which shall immediately precede it shall be wars, confusions, perplexity, and distress.

The general duty which these words should teach us, is very plain. We are to observe carefully the public events of the times in which we live. We are not to be absorbed in politics — but we are to mark political events. We are not to become prophets ourselves — but we are to study diligently the signs of our times. So doing, the day of Christ will not come upon us entirely unawares.

Are there any signs in our own day? Are there any circumstances in the world around us which specially demand the believer's attention? Beyond doubt there are very many. The drying up of the Turkish empire — the revival of the Romish church — the awakened desire of the Protestant churches to preach the Gospel to the heathen — the general interest in the state of the Jews — the universal shaking of governments and established institutions — the rise and progress of the subtlest forms of infidelity — all, all are signs peculiar to our day. All should make us remember our Lord's words about the fig-tree. All should make us think of the text, "Behold, I am coming quickly." (Revelation 22:7.)

We see, lastly, in this passage — how certain it is that all our Lord's predictions about the second coming will be fulfilled. Our Lord speaks as if He foresaw the unbelief and incredulity of man on this mighty subject. He knew how ready people would be to say "Improbable! impossible! The world will always go on as it has done." He arms His disciples against the infection of this skeptical spirit by a very solemn saying. "Heaven and earth shall pass away — but my words shall never pass away."

We shall do well to remember this saying, whenever we are thrown into the company of those who sneer at unfulfilled prophecy. The sneers of unbelievers, must not be allowed to shake our faith. If God has said a thing — then He will certainly bring it to pass. The probability or possibility of it, are matters which need not trouble us for a moment. That Christ should come again in power to judge the world and reign — is not half so improbable as it was that Christ would come to suffer and die. If He came the first time — then much more may we expect that He will come the second time. If he came to be nailed to the cross — then much more may we expect that He will come in glory and wear the crown. He has said it, and He will do it. "His words shall never pass away."

Let us turn from the study of these verses with a deep conviction that the second coming of Christ is one of the leading truths of Christianity. Let the Christ in whom we believe be not only the Christ who suffered on Calvary — but the Christ who is coming again in person to judge the earth!