Our scripture this morning is Luke 17:20-25.
One day the Pharisees asked Jesus, “When will the Kingdom of God come?” Jesus replied, “The Kingdom of God can’t be detected by visible signs. You won’t be able to say, ‘Here it is!’ or ‘It’s over there!’ For the Kingdom of God is already among you.” 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.
Jesus answered the Pharisees honestly when they asked honest questions. In this passage they seek knowledge about the coming of the Kingdom of God, and Jesus tells them that “the Kingdom of God is already among you” (v. 21). This was His purpose, to show us God has come to be one of us and to call us all to follow in faith.
People always want signs from Jesus to be able to get their lives in order at the last minute. He teaches that it doesn’t work that way, there will be no “two minute warning” to prepare for His return. We must make the choice to repent and return to a relationship with God now.
Jesus also speaks about how He will be rejected, and the fact no one but the Father knows when He will return (Acts 1:7). This means we must always be ready, that the Day of the Lord may come at any time. We are called to wait for Him, sharing the Good News with everyone until He comes to take us home.
Loving Lord, we are grateful for Your mercy and the blessing of our Messiah to show us the way. May we be the bearers of the Gospel, telling the world of Your gift to us. Amen.