Sermon - Populus Zion 2025 - Romans 15:4-13 & Luke 21:25-36

Last Judgment, Jan Mandyn, 1550

Hope or Foreboding

1. Jesus is going to return with certainty

2. The world faces Jesus’ return with dread

3. The Christian faces it with hope because our redemption is drawing near

4. Therefore, watch yourselves, for that day will suddenly come, and either it will fill you with hope or foreboding.

When most Americans talk about hope, we don’t usually think anything is going to actually happen, and we use the term more along the lines of a wish, a desire for something unlikely to happen. I grew up among Vikings fans, so when we say “I hope the purple people eaters win the superbowl this year,” we don’t actually expect them to win, it’s just wishful thinking. But when the scriptures speak of hope it’s not a matter of wishful thinking, but it’s a certainty, a joyful and certain expectation of what is going to happen.

So when St. Paul writes in Romans: “For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope;” when St. Paul says that we have hope through the scriptures, he doesn’t mean a wish, but he means a joyful and certain expectation. And what is it that Christians have a certain and joyful expectation about? “And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory… your redemption is drawing near.” The Christian is joyfully anticipating the certain coming of Jesus Christ.

Jesus is going to return! The kingdom of God is near! His return is certain. To make it clear how certain His return is going to be, Jesus tells a parable about a fig tree. “Look at the fig tree, and all the trees. As soon as they come out in leaf, you see for yourselves and know that the summer is already near. So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near.” There are signs that Jesus is going to return and that His return is imminent, and those signs are just as certain as the other signs you are so used to watching.

When you look at a picture of a tree budding out you know that it’s a picture of Spring and summer is coming. It’s not just wishful thinking that summer is approaching after Spring, but you are anticipating summer with certain joy, and no one could convince you otherwise, because you know how to read the signs.

Likewise, Jesus is going to return and there are visible signs that Jesus is coming back soon. We should be able to look at the signs and interpret them with certainty that our Lord is coming back soon! The Apostles asked Jesus what are the signs they should be looking for, and He told them. “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and pestilences. And there will be terrors and great signs from heaven… There will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves, people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world. For the powers of the heavens will be shaken.” 

Brothers and sisters, read the signs. Are there any wars going on? Are there natural disasters and sicknesses? Are there eclipses and movements of the heavenly bodies? You know there are, and Jesus told you that these events are all signs that the end of all things is at hand. So how will you respond to these signs?

The world sees these things and despairs and panics. “Distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves, people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world.” You see this dread and distress all around you. The news is filled with outrage and every issue, no matter how little, is treated like it’s a crisis and we must therefore respond with outrage and fear. The level of daily cannabis and hallucinogen use is through the roof in the past five years. Suicide and depression and anxiety are rampant. The world sees all of the signs and responds by panicking just like Jesus said they would.

The world is filled with dread because when they see the signs they don’t know how to read them. Instead of seeing the signs and being filled with hope about Jesus’ imminent return, they only see wars, pestilences, famines, and doom. So in addition to drug addictions, there’s also a rise in new paganism, where instead of trying to escape from the darkness they’re embracing it. Paganism rules by might is right, and therefore that will bring with it more suffering and foreboding for the weak.

But because you Christians know how to read the signs, you ought not respond with fear and foreboding of what is coming on the world, but with hope and joy! “Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.” The day is coming when Jesus will return and you will be bought back from the domain of darkness! He is going to come, and with His blood He is going to redeem you from this world filled with such evil and sorrow, and then bring you into His kingdom!

“For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.” These things are written so that you may learn to see the signs not just as reasons to despair, but that you may read them and know they are pointing you to Jesus who is going to come back soon. Read these signs in light of scripture and be encouraged and filled with hope. When you see war in Ukraine or Palestine, or threats of war in our own nation, read the signs and remember that it means Jesus is returning soon. When you see all of the mess of 2020 and reflect on it, read the signs and lift up your heads because it’s a marker that Jesus is coming. When you see an eclipse in the sky, or shooting stars, or the northern lights, don’t just stand there and gawk, but read the signs and know that Jesus is coming!

The difficult part here is that while the signs are present, and Jesus’ return is going to be soon, the precise moment of His return is unpredictable. We Christians have been waiting and praying “come quickly Lord Jesus” for 2000 years. Since we’re not the most patient lot, we begin to also be influenced by this fainting people and fall into the trap of their distress. “But watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a trap. For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the whole earth. But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.”

Jesus instructs us to watch ourselves, lest we be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life. You understand the don’t get drunk part, but what does His instruction mean more fully? The term for dissipation, κραιπάλη, had a particular usage in 1st century Greco-Roman society. It had become normal for people to have elaborate drinking banquets that would often end in physical sickness and moral laxity. The aftermath of this kind of excess with a headache, nausea, and mental fog was called dissipation. So Jesus uses the word to describe the spiritual condition of a soul that is so dulled by overindulgence that it doesn’t perceive the imminent return of Jesus and the judgment that will be carried out on those who are not ready in faith for Jesus.

The warning here then is to not fall into the same trap that the world has fallen into. The world is in a panic and therefore seeks to dull its senses with whatever it can find, be that drugs, alcohol, screens, or food. These things put the man to sleep so that he cannot wrestle with his own mortality and the coming judgment. His belly is so full and his mind is so preoccupied with fleeting pleasures that he doesn’t have the energy left to care about his own eternal soul. Be on guard against these fleeting pleasures, dear Christian, so that you may “stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.”

The warning from our Lord here is eminently practical. We need to eat less rich food and not stuff ourselves so often. We need to stop getting drunk, and stop after one or two drinks. Drugs that deaden our minds like cannabis shouldn’t be part of our recreational habit. We’ve got to turn off the screens more often and live in reality with human beings. Then with a more alert mind, we need to pray and read what the Holy Spirit wrote for our instruction so that we may endure through this age and be encouraged to live in faith towards God. When you wake up in the morning and when you go to bed at night, instead of doomscrolling or watching Youtube shorts, read the Bible and say your prayers.

Because Christmas is coming, my friends! Not just the celebration on the 25th, but Christ is coming and He is near. This world and all of its dread is going to pass away! Don’t be attached to this world, but belong to Jesus who shall never pass away. Straighten up, lift up your heads, and “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.”