Episode 162: Stay Awake | +Quigg Lawrence

They say this is the season of Advent. But what does that really mean? A calendar with doors, each hiding a piece of candy, wreaths with candles, gifts, candy, trees? What Advent's really about is waiting. Advent is the purposeful season of waiting that prepares us for the coming of Christ. In fact, that's where the word Advent originates, the Latin word for coming. Advent helps us look ahead with hope for His second coming. It also helps us slow down in the materialistic hustle of the holiday season so we can share in the spiritual longing for the coming of the Messiah.

This Advent season, how will you take time out of your busy holiday rush to reflect on what the birth of Jesus means to you? How will his promised return impact the way you live this season? Loving others around you, encouraging those lacking hope, bringing joy to the broken, seeking peace where there is strife. Ultimately, Advent is about embracing the fact that our savior came to earth and is with us every day. So this season, let's prepare our hearts to celebrate him. How will you prepare yours?

I hate waiting. Every time I go to Kroger, I go to the shortest line, and it ends up being the longest line. My buddy Tyler and I have been waiting for a mister Bighorn. He still hasn't come. We've been sitting in the woods—what, Tyler? One hundred hours? Waiting, waiting, waiting. We're waiting for something better than a bighorn deer.

Do you guys see it? I was thinking this week about how beautiful those leaves are, and they were just here. Right? And now look at them, gone. Our world, while there's a lot of beauty in it, we would not disagree with that. But could we also admit that there's a lot of death and brokenness? Some of our very own children we raised to know the Lord are not walking with Jesus and have no desire to. Some of our grandchildren, some of our siblings, some of our parents, our neighbors, they're living lives like walking dead men.

I don't know about you, maybe it's my Myers Briggs. I don't know if I believe in all that stuff, but I kind of do. My Myers Briggs is NF. That means I feel strongly, and I intuit strongly. When I get around and see what's going on in our world, in our community, our city, and our friends and our family, I feel an incredible sadness.

Much like Jesus at the end of Matthew 23 says:

Oh, Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it. How often I've gathered—how often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings? But you were not willing. — Matthew 23

Do you see it? The brokenness? This is not how things should be. And so in this time between now and we either go to be with the Lord or he returns as promised, there is a time of waiting, and it is hard. Because as much Instagram beauty as there is, most of the time it's a veneer, and there's brokenness and there's death, and the evil one is doing his tricks. It's kind of like an invisible saber or like a demonic weed eater that you can't even see, and he's mowing people down. He's destroying lives.

And so in the midst of this time, Jesus, we are waiting. We are waiting. We know that the world was not meant to be this way. Relationships were not meant to be this way.

The Disciples' Question

As we open up Matthew's gospel, he's gathered his followers, his disciples, and it says he's sitting on the Mount of Olives, and the disciples came to Jesus privately. And they asked him a question. They said, "Hey, Jesus, tell us when these things will be, and what will be the sign of your coming at the end of the age?"

So the first question is when? Kids always say, "When? When? When, mommy?" What were they asking about? Well, it says, "Tell us when these things will be." What is it referring back to that we just read?

Jesus in verse one of chapter 24 says:

Jesus left the temple and as he was going away, his disciples came to him to point out to him the buildings of the temple and he, Jesus answered them, "You see all these? Truly I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down." — Matthew 24:1-2

So they want to know, Jesus, when is this going to happen? I mean, the temple was where God's presence is. It's what set Israel apart. They were God's people and they had the Torah, the written words of God, and they had the spirit of God, and they had the place of worship. And yet Jesus says, it's all going to be destroyed. In 30 AD—he says this huge place where we all worship, where the presence of God is, it's going to be destroyed. And sure enough, in 70 AD, Jerusalem was annihilated. They said it didn't even look like a town anymore. It was annihilated.

And so they wanted to say, "Jesus, when are these things going to happen? When is the temple going to be destroyed?"

It says in verse four, Jesus answered them. You know what's funny? He doesn't tell them the answer. He doesn't tell them when.

All they want to know is when. They say, as he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately and said, "Tell us when these things will be and what will be the sign of your coming and the end of the age?"

So what the disciples are doing is actually talking about three things. First thing is: when is Jerusalem and the temple going to be destroyed? Second thing: Jesus, when will you return? We hadn't even left at this point. And then: when's going to be the end of the world, the end of the age? Those three things. The disciples wanted to know when and what will be the sign.

Then in verse four, it says:

"Jesus answered them, 'See that no one leads you astray. For many will come in my name saying, I'm the Christ, and they will lead many astray. And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you're not alarmed for this must take place for the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places, and all these things are but the beginning of the birth pains.'" — Matthew 24:4-8

Jesus says, be careful. Someone would lead you astray. You know what breaks a pastor's heart? To see somebody that was worshiping the Lord, opening their Bible, loving Jesus, loving the kingdom, actively engaged in ministry. And then we learn these things a lot often through Instagram and Facebook. We find out they're deconstructing because they don't like a teaching of Jesus. They just reject the whole thing. They throw it all away.

I always ask them, you don't like this thing Jesus said, you're just going to throw it on the back 40? They called it deconstructing. How it must break the Lord's heart. It breaks my heart. How much more the Lord's heart?

Be careful, no one leads you astray. What fountains are you drinking from? I was amazed at people going into bookstores—remember when we used to have bookstores? Seriously, do we even have those anymore? People would go in and most of the books in there are devilish books. They have fools talking, and Christians run in there and just suck it all up. We need somebody to tell us truths. We got all the truth we need right here in '66.

When are you going to come? What's going to be the sign of your coming? Be careful, Jesus said. He didn't tell him, but he says, "Be careful. No one leads you astray." Who are you following? What fountains are you drinking from? Do you think somehow you're clever enough to follow someone else or drink from a dirty fountain and it not affect your life? Be careful. No one leads you astray. The Lord loves you.

Says, many will come in my name and say, "I'm the Christ," and they'll lead many astray. Now, this is pointing at a couple things. Again, we talked about the end of the temple in Jerusalem. We talked about the Lord's return and the end of the age. Jesus says all these things are going to happen—wars and rumors of wars. Well, there have always been wars. There have always been wars. But he said, at the end, there's going to be more than you could even ask or imagine.

And what we know from the historian Josephus, who was Jewish, by the way, he said before—from the time Jesus said this until the temple was destroyed in 70 AD—all these things happened. And they were on a smaller scale of what will happen at the end of the world. Nation against nation, kingdom against kingdom, famines, earthquakes. He says, "But these are the beginning of the birth pains."

Verse nine, he says:

"They're going to deliver you, my followers, up to tribulation and put you to death. You'll be hated by all nations for my name's sake." — Matthew 24:9

Almost every one of the apostles were killed. Almost every one of them were killed for their faith. So we know Jesus was telling the truth. There was going to be trials. There was going to be tribulations. They're going to be hated. He talks about false prophets and lawlessness.

Do you guys see it? Do you see it in our day? I mean, I know every generation thinks, "Oh, the world's going to hell in a handbasket." My granddad used to say that back in 1960-something. I'm like, holy cow, granddad and grandmom. If you came back now, you'd faint. You'd faint, first of all, because water costs $2 a bottle. But the things they see on TV and the way they see Satan just destroying, annihilating people and families and churches—churches teaching other gospels. The Lord said these things would happen.

He says, "The love of many will grow cold." Has your love for Christ grown cold? Don't answer too fast. I know sometimes I feel like my love for Christ is growing cold. If that can happen to a pastor, what about you?

Because Jesus says he's our vine, and we only have life in him. But then we sever ourselves. We try to sever ourselves from the vine and think we're going to have this incredible, wonderful life. Then the misery and the destruction begins.

The love of many will grow cold, but the one who endures to the end will be saved. We know that all these things happen on a small scale before 70 AD when the temple was destroyed. But Jesus is talking about that, and he's also talking about what is to come.

He says all these things will happen, but the number one sign—because nobody has a chart. Well, actually, lots of people have charts, they're just not accurate. Remember those freaky old guys you see like, "Well, the world's going to end on November 16"? Have you had a couple of those in your life? They all were wrong, every one of them. Jesus says, "No one knows the day or the hour, not even the son. It's like the father's just keeping it to himself."

What will happen before Jesus returns? It is the sign. Look at verse 14, Chapter 24, verse 14.

And the gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. — Matthew 24:14

The problem is nobody seems to care about those people over there. Do you know how much money the average church gives to spreading the gospel? It's shocking, actually. Personally, if I were God, I'd fire all of them. How much money from churches in the US go to the spread of the gospel? What did they tell us last week, Timmy? 2%. Two percent. I think God's getting ripped off.

2% and of that measly 2%, how much of that 2% actually goes to countries and people that don't have Bibles, never heard the name of Jesus, don't have churches, lost as lost can be? How much of the missions money actually goes to people who have never heard the name of Jesus? 4% of the 2%. Isn't it crazy? The ones that must hear before Jesus returns—we're not investing in them at all. We're just investing in our shrines and entertaining people.

Jesus promised: the gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, every tongue, tribe, and nation. And then the end will come.

Now, let's skip down to verse 36 because we're running out of time. Everybody wants to know: when, when, when? And Jesus says in verse 36:

Concerning the day and the hour, no one knows. No one. Not even the angels of heaven nor the son, but the father only. — Matthew 24:36

And then he strikes a sobering image. He recalls what happened in the days of Noah. Look at verse 37.

For as in the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the son of man. — Matthew 24:37

It's a foreshadowing. The flood was a foreshadowing of the judgment, the holy and righteous judgment that's to come. For as in the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the son of man, Jesus.

For as in those days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, they were marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark. And they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away. And so will be the coming of the son of man. — Matthew 24:37-39

Friends, I think often we're like people in the days of Noah. We believe in God, we believe in the gospel, but we're so busy doing our happy little things. The same things—eating and drinking. I think about food all day long; I love food. It captivates me. They're giving in marriage. They're doing good things. It's not sinful things. They're eating and drinking. They're marrying and giving in marriage. But it's like we're busying ourselves with things other than the kingdom. It's kind of like the kingdom is all of a sudden parsley on a plate that we're like, "Ah."

Jesus says, as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be when Jesus returns. People are just going to be doing their thing, and all of a sudden, bam. Just like that big buck, Tyler. Just like him. He comes when you least expect it—when you're reaching into your backpack, brother. Jesus says it's just going to be just like that, just like the days of Noah.

Can you imagine the scene? Imagine Noah. "Noah, you old fool. What are you building?" He's building an ark. "What's an ark?" "I don't know what an ark is. God told me to build it." "What's a flood?" "I don't know. I've never seen one."

I'm sure at some point Noah is going to sit telling people, "Repent. Turn to God." But it says, as God looked out on everyone, he says he was grieved that he had made man. And the only one that found favor in his eyes was Noah. They thought he was a fool. They didn't believe. They weren't willing to repent. They weren't willing to hear.

Are you? Are you? Are you?

The thing that kills a pastor is knowing that people that sit in the house of God, that have access to amazing singing, the scriptures, prayer, the holy communion, all these things—it's kind of like you taste, and you spit it out of your mouth. You taste, and it's like it's somehow irrelevant.

Jesus says, therefore:

Stay awake. Stay awake. Be ready because I am going to come back. — Matthew 24:42

And you know what?

Honestly, a lot of us say, "Jesus, you said this two thousand years ago." The Bible actually tells us why he's delayed his coming. Do you know why? He's not slack in keeping his promise. It's actually his mercy and his love that have delayed his coming. That's what the scripture says. He wishes that none would perish. He knows many will, but he wishes that none would perish. So he's delayed his return. Nobody knows the day or the hour.

So in the middle of that, Jesus says, stay awake. Be alert.

Therefore stay awake for you do not know on what day the Lord is coming. — Matthew 24:42

Therefore you also must be ready for the son of man is coming at an hour you don't expect. — Matthew 24:44

So then the question we end with is, how do we stay ready? What are we supposed to do? Like put toothpicks in our eyes and drink Red Bull and just be alert? Of course not. Don't take it hyper literally. What he's saying is, my kingdom is coming. As sure as the flood came in the days of Noah, so I will return. There will be a time where every man, woman, and child will stand before a holy, loving, and righteous God. You don't know when that is, but be ready.

How can we stay ready? Well, it doesn't actually tell us. That's the amazing thing here. But when he says, be ready, I think it means we invest our lives in serving the king. We invest your life and my life in the kingdom of God. Be awake. Be ready.

A Story from Thirty Years Ago

Can I tell you a quick story before we end? Thirty years ago today, we had a bunch of Young Life kids—about 40 of them—and we were at North Cross School. We were preaching this text. Every year we preach this text. I think of my red-haired friend, Jason Peoples. He was one of those kids at high school that you really liked. Sure you'd want your daughter to go out with him, but you liked him. That kind of kid? He's fun. Jason was asleep in his chair at North Cross Auditorium. I knew him and I loved him, so I could mess with him. In the middle of the sermon, it says, "Stay awake." I noticed he was asleep. So in a real loud Pentecostal type voice, I went, "Hey, Jason, wake up!" Out of a cold sleep, he bolts up and goes, "You're the one who put me this way." Clever, Jason. Very clever. So I'm never going to do that again.

But friends, what I want to tell you is Jesus doesn't tell us the date, but what I want to encourage you is, in some sense, it doesn't matter. He's already made you. If you're a child of God, he's made you his own. Nothing will separate you from him. He actually lives inside of you. So yes, there is a time of waiting while we're in the midst of this broken, hard world, but what I want to tell you is if you have Christ, you have everything you need for life and for godliness.

So how we stay awake, how we stay alert, is to give our focus, our love, and our attention to his kingdom, and believe his words. The people in Noah's day didn't, and they regretted it. Stay awake. Stay alert. Apply your life, yourself to the kingdom of God.

In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.