Luke 17:22-25

Luke 17:22-25 Then he said to his disciples, “The time is coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it. Men will tell you, ‘There he is!’ or ‘Here he is!’ Do not go running off after them. For the Son of Man in his day will be like the lightning, which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other. But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation."

Has the Son of Man, Messiah, come? Has the light of the world come? These are important questions for Christians. Many religious people still seek the days of the Son of Man. They still follow other people and their revelations, believing a new divine message has come through these individuals. Almost every cult began with a man or woman who supposedly received a special revelation or insight from God. These cults hinge on a supposedly heavenly communication from God, even a new work, that sets them apart from all other faiths. They do not fully accept that as the fulness of the Godhead, Jesus has completed the work and is God's message of love and grace to all people. Instead, they propagate that God's fulness, his complete revelation, is yet to be revealed through their specific insight. Sadly, many follow these cults, and their deception is great.

Jesus says, don't follow these false messengers. Do not go running off after them because his day will be like lightening, flashing and lighting up the whole sky. In other words, his day will permeate the whole earth. However, He said first, He must be rejected by this generation. He was rejected by that generation. He was crucified by that generation, and He suffered much at their hands. But his victory over death and the grave broke the yoke of sin and darkness. The sky was illuminated by his resurrection. His victory permeated the entire world, for humankind was no longer lost in sin and subject to eternal damnation. For sure, his work at the cross and in the grave did light up all of the sky because death no longer reigned. Light did break through the darkness, revealing God's plan for deliverance and salvation for all. Now, we who are alive in him have the light of God in our souls and peace with God. Since we have been saved from the sting of death, we no longer face the consequences of sin. Praise God!

Yet many reject God's best and still look for a second work, a new revelation. They do not believe the lightning has flashed, revealing God's offering for sin. They don't believe the kingdom of God is within us. They are still looking elsewhere, rather than believing in what we have. They seek other revelations or they run to the mountains to hear a prophet predict Jesus Christ's second coming or to exhort them with secret knowledge withheld from the rest of the church. But Jesus has already come, and after his resurrection, He did not leave us comfortless. He brought continued light to the world through the indwelling Holy Spirit, our counselor and guide. Where must we to go to find Christ? Should we go to the mountains or seek some great teacher to reveal a new way? No, Christ is in us, our hope of glory; the light has come, the Morning Star. We sing joy to the world, for God has come to man in the form of the man child, Jesus Christ. Jesus alone paid the price for a new dawn. Because He has paid the penalty for sin and its consequences, we are alive forevermore.

Do not seek another revelation, a new person with special knowledge. Don't run to the mountains to wait for Christ's return. Settle down in Christ; listen to the Holy Spirit within; follow hard after God's will for your life. Later in this chapter, Jesus says that he who tries to save his life will lose it. Well, my friend, if you are in Christ, you have lost your life already. You are crucified with Christ and have been bought with a great price. Therefore, live your life for him right where you are. Let the light that flashed across the universe shine in your life. Be what He has asked you to be: his servant to the world. For years people have used this verse to wait upon a mountain or in the hinterlands for Christ's return. They have waited and they have died. But Jesus asks all of us to live out his life where we are, to be his disciples, not loving this world or holding onto our lives. He did not ask us to run off somewhere, either for our own safety or to follow someone else. He calls us to walk an exciting pathway, expecting someday to see him face-to-face.