Forewarned is Forearmed

Jesus said, “Straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.” Luke 21:28

As His time on earth drew to a close, Jesus wanted His followers to be prepared for the difficult days ahead — the destruction of the temple, the fall of Jerusalem, and the troubling times that would follow. But as was so often true of Jesus teaching, the literal and the metaphorical were tightly linked. Destruction was coming, yes — but so was redemption. Jesus delivered both urgency and hope in the same breath.

From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that He is near, at the very gates. Mark 13:28

Jesus had a dual purpose in speaking these words to the disciples. He wanted to prepare them, but He also wanted to encourage them at the same time. He was calling them to preach as though time was running out, while living as children of the eternal kingdom. Forewarned is forearmed — by knowing what lies ahead, they, and we, can be properly equipped for the battle, both spiritually and mentally.

In Luke 21, Jesus describes the distress that will sweep across the world — fear of what is coming, and the very powers of the heavens being shaken. When we watch the news and witness the moral decline of humanity in all its troubling forms, it is not hard to understand why so many ask, “What is the world coming to?” As the Church gets squeezed out, or worse, quietly conforms to the culture around it, the world slowly decays and it can feel as though the enemy has the upper hand.

But against all of that, Jesus speaks clearly:

The Son of Man is coming in a cloud with power and great glory … straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. Luke 21:27-28, 33

God’s word endures. God’s strength endures. What we are going through now – what you, perhaps, are going through now – is very real; pain, sorrow, frustration, uncertainty, is all very real. But, with Jesus, we do not lower our heads in defeat.

We straighten up – for His grace is real. We raise our head – for His strength is real. We praise His name – for our redemption is real.

Picture credit: Photo by Orhan Boran on http://www.pexels.com