“Your redemption is near”
Daily Scripture
Luke 21:25-28
25 “There will be signs in the sun, moon, and stars. On the earth, there will be dismay among nations in their confusion over the roaring of the sea and surging waves. 26 The planets and other heavenly bodies will be shaken, causing people to faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world. 27 Then they will see the Human One [or Son of Man] coming on a cloud with power and great splendor. 28 Now when these things begin to happen, stand up straight and raise your heads, because your redemption is near.”
Daily Reflection & Prayer
We wish you a happy, safe July 4 holiday. And for those of us who claim Jesus as Lord, today’s reading tells us we look forward to an even greater “independence day,” when God fully establishes heaven’s rule on earth and our redemption is completed!
Luke also recorded what Jesus told the disciples about the fall of Jerusalem and the end of the world. The eyewitnesses Luke talked to (see Luke 1:1-4) recalled a phrase Matthew didn’t include. Jesus used images from the Old Testament prophets to describe the end. When everything seemed to be falling apart, he said, people would faint from fear, dismay, confusion, and foreboding. But not his followers! For them—for you, if you choose to follow him—the world’s end is not cause for fear but a time of hope and triumph: “Stand up straight and raise your heads, because your redemption is near.”
- In Luke 21:27, Jesus pointed his hearers to Daniel 7:13-14. The world, he said, will not end through human malice or the inevitable working of some ancient calendar. This world will end by God’s deliberate act to end evil and pain, and fully bring in God’s righteous reign. We spend our lives seeking the freedom God offers. In the end, if we’ve chosen God, we will be “free indeed”! When you think of the end, can you “raise your head” and celebrate God’s coming redemption?
- “Jesus discourages a ‘countdown’ interpretation of prophecy, by which current events can be plotted in sequence to show how far we have yet to go to judgment day…. The disciples are told ‘to reject the usual apocalyptic interpretation of political distress…. The call of Jesus’s closing words, therefore, is to be watchful and prayerful, ready at any time for his return to his temple.” * How did Jesus encourage daily readiness to meet him, not frantic “getting ready” for his return?
Prayer
Lord Jesus, help me to live every day with you, so that your return is not in any way fearful or unexpected, but simply the full realization of a friendship we have cultivated daily. Amen.
GPS Insights
Joe Walker
Joe Walker is interning this summer at Church of the Resurrection for Creative Central. He has a passion for camera work, so he gets to help out with recording, editing, and producing with the church. He graduated from Lee’s Summit North High school in 2023 and has since graduated from the MCC Blue River Fire Academy in December 2023. He has a wonderful Mom and Dad, as well as two younger siblings. When he has free time, he loves doing things like camping, backpacking, rock climbing, playing drum set or piano, making cool videos, going to the gym, and spending time with his close friends.
After reading through Jesus’s words on the end of the world and how we should handle that knowledge, my mind instantly went to the impact of social media. More specifically, the solar eclipse earlier this year. A couple of days prior to the eclipse, I noticed all these religious videos popping up on my social media. I kept seeing videos that all had the same things in common–everyone was trying to predict the coming of Jesus.
I know, it sounds silly, but the means people were going to justify their theories and ideas were ridiculous. Content creators were relating the path of the sun and moon to Roman numerals, to books, to unrelated Bible verses and on and on and on. Throughout all the hysteria, I took it upon myself to read what Jesus had to say on the end of the world, and one thing stood out to me. When the disciples asked when he would return, Jesus made it clear that predicting his second coming was the least of their worries. Jesus wanted his disciples to focus on spreading his word, and being the hands and feet of God, not to obsess and worry over something that is not in our control.
In all honesty, I’ve found myself to be a lot happier and at ease by following Jesus’ instructions and implementing them into my own life. On Tuesday, I was driving home from a hiking trip to Colorado, and my car broke down 6 hours from KC. I was freaking out; I had never dealt with anything like this before and had no idea what to do. Long story short, my friends and I made it back with some miracles and teamwork. My car breaking down was completely out of my control, and for a short while I was letting it ruin the wonderful trip I had just gone on with my friends.
I think that by choosing to not worry about the things I can’t control, I was able to put all my focus into the things I can, and that brings me a lot of Joy. I can only imagine that Jesus knew exactly what he was talking about when he told his disciples to not obsess over his return, but to instead to focus on his work and spread his word.
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Scripture quotations are taken from The Common English Bible ©2011. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
References
* Michael Wilcock, The Message of Luke. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1979, pp. 187-188.
