Meditationen am Gnadenstuhl - Thursday of Laetare (Lent IV)
Thursday of Laetare (Lent IV)
Daily Lectionary Readings: Genesis 45:1-20, 24-28; Mark 13:1-23; (Sirach 24)
Mark 13:5-8 “And as he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, ‘Look, Teacher, what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Do you see these great buildings? There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.’ And as he sat on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately, ‘Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign when all these things are about to be accomplished?’ And Jesus began to say to them, ‘See that no one leads you astray. Many will come in my name, saying, ‘I AM.'1 and they will lead many astray.’”2
Full disclosure: This post is mostly the manuscript of a sermon I preached at the end of the last church year. With everything going on today and the increasing din of white noise crowding out the words of Christ for the comfort of convicted consciences, I think these words are worth repeating as many people have asked me and each other, "Is this the end? Is it now?" In short: No. No, it is not. But fear not – Jesus has us.
"Jesus is through with the Temple; he never again entered it. While he was in the act of leaving, Mark specifies, one of his disciples spoke to him about the glorious temple structure."3 Was it really possible that all this glory would be reduced to rubble, not one stone remaining on another? (The wailing wall doesn't count - it wasn’t part of the temple).
Jesus speaks to us about the signs to watch out for. This morning's meditation text is not about the end of days but the destruction of the temple and the sacking of Jerusalem in AD70. But it does speak to the end times – the great tribulation of Revelation, which began at Jesus' Ascension into heaven and will not end until He returns in glory. And time is growing short. Come, Lord Jesus! So let us hear what Jesus has to teach us so that we are not caught unprepared.
“And Jesus began to say to them, ‘See that no one leads you astray. Many will come in my name, saying, ‘I AM!’ and they will lead many astray.’”4 Jesus' accusation toward the false messiahs is extreme here, saying they will claim to be God incarnate! The phrase "I AM" is also the name that God identified Himself with when He spoke to Moses in the burning bush. Jesus has previously and boldly declared that He is the "I AM."5 In the Greek language, that is ἐγώ εἰμι (ego eimi). This is the exact Greek phrase that Jesus uses to introduce all seven of His "I AM" sayings. With each statement, Jesus is making clear that He is God, "I AM," and as a result, He is also the "bread of life, light of the world, etc." There can be no doubt that false messiahs have come and gone and that still others are among us today. There will not be few but many. Jesus says they will call themselves “I AM.” maybe not those exact words, but they will think themselves God or at the very least believe they are God’s gift to mankind. We can all probably name a few of them right now. They will claim that they can solve man's problems and see that man has plenty of everything. Many will follow them.
St. Origen of Alexandria said, "Christ is truth. Antichrist falsifies truth. Christ is wisdom. Antichrist deftly simulates wisdom. All genuine excellences have a correspondence with Christ. All pretend virtues correspond with Antichrist. For each variety of good which Christ embodies in Himself to build up the faithful, the demonic will find a way of mimicking in appearance to deceive the faithful.”6 Many will come claiming their evil intent is really humanitarian and sow the seeds of society's breakdown. The signs are false hopes, wars, tyranny, inflation, persecution, famine, ecological disasters, both natural and man-made.
“And when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. This must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.”7 Believers will hear of upheavals both within their own countries and internationally. Citizens of the warring nations will even be caught up in the conflict. The news will always be bleak and terrible, full of wars, rumors of wars, continuously plural and plentiful.
Believers are not to be terrified by this. Jesus uses the word θροέω (throeó, thro-eh'-o) here, meaning terrified, frightened, disturbed, to cry out loud from the depths of one’s inner being. We can easily be overly affected by current world affairs. In this golden age of instant information, all our senses are easily overwhelmed. On top of that, the ubiquitous AI algorithms feed us mostly what we already believe, fueling our anger and our anfechtungen. We can fear for our personal safety and for that of our families. We can become so paralyzed by this induced angst that we neglect our spiritual health.
But Jesus says do not be alarmed. He said that these things "must be." They exist because of selfishness and greed. We all contribute to it because of our natural sinful and depraved nature, our concupiscence, which means our inborn, natural tendency to do what is evil in God's sight. The dark side of man is always revealed thus. But this does not mean the end is at hand. Not yet.
“For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. These are but the beginning of the birth pains.”8
The Bible states in many places that earthquakes will occur during the last days of the earth.9 We know how earthquakes cause unbelievable destruction and death. There will also be famine. Acts records a worldwide famine.10 The four horsemen of Revelation chapter six tell us of the pain and evil of famine, the subsequent runaway inflation, price-fixing, and the general depravity of men in the face of such suffering. On top of natural disasters and not enough food for everyone, we will have pestilences. Just look at history, the plague, the flu epidemic of the early twentieth century, HIV-AIDS, SARS, COVID. The list goes on. And still, Jesus tells us to not be afraid. These things must be. It is not the end. Not yet. And He has overcome the world for us. He bids us be at peace. Even in the face of the woes still to come.
“But be on your guard. For they will deliver you over to councils, and you will be beaten in synagogues, and you will stand before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them.”11 Despite all of these alarming signs, there are still more trials and tribulations to face. Persecution comes next, Jesus says. It will happen, he continues to say, so that we will have the challenge to stand up to oppression and make our confession of faith clear despite the world's hatred. He even says that our families will become divided over matters of faith! “And brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death.”12 And do we ever understand that and the difficulty of witnessing even to the closest of our relatives who do not seem interested in receiving the Gospel. So, how exactly are to bear up under that weight piled atop all of these other foul things?
Jesus reminds us that the Holy Spirit has your back! “And when they bring you to trial and deliver you over, do not be anxious beforehand what you are to say, but say whatever is given you in that hour, for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit… And you will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved."13 Jesus tells us that He, the great I AM, made flesh is the living temple of Almighty God. Not only that, but because of the gift of the Holy Spirit in your baptism sustained by the other Means of Grace, you are also a temple – a temple that cannot be torn down by hand, human nor demonic. Christ dwells in you; therefore, you will become like He is when He comes again in glory. We remain sinners daily, confessing our sins and drowning the old Adam in the forgiveness Christ grants us only to begin the cycle again each day. But do not be alarmed. These things must happen until He returns. But the end is not yet.
Jesus went out of the temple because He had finished with it. He predicted its destruction, and it came to pass just as He said, including all the warning signs He described to allay the disciples' fears. And all of those cautions still apply to our situation today. And it still does not matter that that old temple was torn down. For, as we know, Jesus is our only temple – God enshrined in human flesh. Our hope is in Him, therefore, no matter what happens to this world, despite the signs we see and the fears we harbor, our eternal safety is secure. No wars or rumors of wars need to overly concern us because the battle against sin, death, and the devil's power is already won. So we fear not the foe, little flock, in the Name of Jesus. Amen.
1The correct and literal translation of ἐγώ εἰμι (ego eimi) in this instance, and many others where Jesus speaks these words, is “I AM.” not “I am he.” This is important because "I AM" is God's name.
2Mark 13:1-6 (ESV).
3Lenski, Richard C. Commentary on the New Testament. Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson Publishers, 19. Mark. p.560.
4Mark 13:5b-6 (ESV).
5John 8:50.
6Oden, Thomas C., and Christopher A. Hall, eds. Mark. Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture 2. Downers Grove, Ill: InterVarsity Press, 1998. p.172. (quoting Origen, Commentary on Matthew, 32).
7Mark 13:7-8 (ESV).
8Mark 13:8 (ESV).
9Revelation 6:12; 11:12-13, 19; 16:17-19.
10Acts 11:28-30.
11Mark 13:9 (ESV).
12Mark 13:12 (ESV).
13Mark 13:11, 13 (ESV).