This is your daily reminder. God has not run
out of mercy, not for you, not today. Welcome
to the New Mercies Podcast. Welcome back Monday,
March the 9th. And our reading plan today takes
us back once again to Luke 21. I know you think,
I've been in Luke 21 already a couple times.
There's a lot of end time stuff. What's going
on? I want to encourage you today, read it, fresh
eyes, fresh ears. Yesterday, Sunday, I preached
this text. Now here's the funny thing. So I don't
know if you realize what I do whenever I record
these episodes, but I have recorded this days
before I preach that sermon. It's kind of strange,
I know. But I want to share with you something
today that I don't think is going to be in the
sermon, but I don't really know for sure. So
if it was, maybe you need to hear it twice. Here's
what I'll say about our text today. Luke 21,
again, a big chapter, a lot of stuff going on,
some things that would happen pretty close to
when Jesus said it, some things that would take
place many, many, many, many years later in his
prophetic word. And so I want to share something
today that is... Out of Luke 21, found down lower
than we were, a little further down than we were
on Friday. We talked about on Friday the wars,
the persecutions, how he was going to give us
the words to say and when to say it and how we
got to depend on him, right? I want to read to
you just a couple of verses down further than
that. Down in verse number 25 is where I'm going
to start. And as we do that today, I want to
encourage you. Listen, fresh ears, fresh eyes.
I promise you new mercies are available today.
Just because you're reading the same chapter
doesn't mean there's not something new that God
can bring out. It may not be a life -altering
Bible study. It may not be one of those moments
where you say, I just experienced all kinds,
everything makes sense now. I get it all. Maybe
that's not one of those moments today. Maybe
it is. Maybe it is. What a moment, though, when
you get in His Word, you hear from the author.
So let's pray and say, God, I want you to speak
to me today through your Word. Give me fresh
eyes, fresh ears. Let me see and hear from you
today. Here's what the Lord is telling me today
about this text. Luke 21, down in verse number
25. And there will be signs in the sun and moon
and stars and on the earth, distress of nations
and perplexity because of the roaring of the
sea and the waves, people fainting with fear
with foreboding of what is coming on the world.
For the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
And 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, raise your heads, because your redemption
is drawing near. This is one of those moments,
you know, I wish I could hear Jesus' voice as
he's saying it. I hear it, I watch it, I read
it, and I think the heavens are going to show
signs. The sun, the moon, the stars, things are
going to be shaken. He made it all. He can shake
it all, right? He made everything. He can shake
everything. This is going to announce the coming
of the Lord back again. This is a powerful moment.
And here's what I love, how Jesus explains this.
When that happens, you're going to see the Son
of Man coming in the clouds. He's going to show
up in a cloud. When was he in a cloud before?
Let's go back to the Exodus. Let's go back to
leading the whole Israelite people by a cloud
by day. by night and he's protected them from
the Pharaoh and the Egyptian army and he's this
powerful cloud that it's had dropped on Sinai
and had spoken to Moses and had filled the tabernacle
and this is the one who's coming I love the thought
of Jesus coming back and returning and watching
that happen in the sky there's gonna be no doubt
who he is It says the world is even going to
say something's coming, something's happening,
something's different today. And then they're
going to see the Son of Man, a title that is
used to Jesus 80 times in the New Testament,
and again in Revelation even at the end of the
New Testament. Like 80 times this title is used
for Jesus. He's the Son of Man. And when he returns,
we're going to have no doubt who he is. The last
verse in that little section, he says, straighten
up and raise your head. That word raise your
head is in the original language. It's an extension
or a stretching of the neck specifically. And
so what it means is as everybody is hunkering
down. Right? Here it is. Picture this. He says
in there that the people are fainting with fear,
foreboding what's coming on the world. They see
all these things going on. Well, that is a term
of crouching, right? bent down, crouching. They
don't want to know what's coming up. But he says,
for you, straighten up and raise your neck. Raise
your head. You don't cower down. You know that
you're on my side. So I want you to be looking
to the sky. As I said before, one of the greats,
Mr. Vance Havner, once said, I'm no longer looking
at signs. I'm now listening for a trumpet. I'm
now looking up ready for his return. That's what
I'm waiting on now. I think about every moment
that the world doesn't understand. There's more
chaos. more confusion in the world. And I know
that God is not confused at all. He's not falling
off his throne. He's not pacing the floor of
heaven. What am I going to do now that this nation
just rose against this nation? What am I going
to do now that this corruption is going on in
this government and this corruption is going
on in this school system and this corruption
is going on in this family? He's not worried
at all. He says, I am waiting on the moment where
the Son of Man will return on a cloud, and I
want my people to have their necks stretched,
their eyes up, looking for that day. While the
world is confused and afraid, I want my people
to be courageous. That's what I want. He goes
on, and then right after this, he teaches a parable.
How do you teach a parable after that statement?
The Son of Man will return. Me, that's Jesus.
He's saying, me, I'm going to return in the clouds
and it's going to, everybody's going to be afraid
but my people. They're going to be ready. They're
going to be arms lifted. They're going to have
their heads straightened. They're going to look
at me. They're going to look toward me is what's
going to happen. They're going to be ready for
the moment because I'm going to bring it all
back around to where it's supposed to be. And
then he teaches a lesson. He teaches a parable.
He teaches a parable about trees. What in the
world? If you read this just one time, it's like,
but then he starts talking about trees. What's
he talking about? There's some deep theological
truths to the parable, but here's what I want
to share. This is the last line of the parable.
He says in verse number 33, heaven and earth
will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
Jesus's word lasts. It will, it will. The whole
span of time, there's one thing that will remain
and it's his word. And those of us who have followed
and obeyed and put our faith and trust in his
word. Who's his word? His word as the person
is Jesus. He's the word. He was with God. He
was with God in the beginning. He is the word.
He is God. That's who this is. Jesus's word will
not pass away. That means every single note that
he spoke will come to pass. Things are going
to pass away. But his word is not going to lose.
It's going to win every time. Today, here's my
encouragement to you. Look up. Just look up.
Maybe take a moment. Go outside. Raise your head.
Look up into the sky. There's a moment where
that sky is going to look very different. I don't
know when that moment is. Maybe it happened before
this podcast episode even went live. I don't
know. What I do know is this. The moment the
sky rips open, I want to be ready and prepared.
I want to be prayed up. I want to be active in
my faith. That's what I want in my life. Prophecy
should never scare us. It should purify us. Jesus,
talking about the coming of the Son of Man, should
not scare us. It should purify us to be ready
and waiting on His return.