Mark 13:24-27

Mark 13:24-27  “But in those days, following that distress, “‘the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’  “ At that time men will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory.  And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens.

Who knows what will cause the sun to be darkened?  Will it be the natural evolution of the sun?  Will the sun's fusion slow up or even stop all together?  Will it be the simultaneous eruptions of many volcanoes and the subsequent ash that causes the sun to darken?  If the sun goes out, the moon will cease to shine.  But why stars falling?  Who knows.  Are they a product of our sun burning out, causing meteorites?  Who understands all these physical happenings?  But what we do know and rely upon is that the Son of Man will be coming in the clouds with great power and glory, with greater power than all the physical dysfunctions that are occurring at that time.  He will come in physical form, so we can see him.  He will come this time with his angels, the host of heaven.  And they will gather HIS ELECT from the four winds, FROM THE ENDS OF THE EARTH TO ENDS OF THE HEAVENS.  This is the end of an age, the age of creating mankind in his image.  At that time, the elect will know him for we will be LIKE HIM.  

This is not only a time of great rejoicing, but it is also a time of judgment.  This will be a time when God will consider all things that were done in the flesh.  And because God is a just God, He will repay with judgment all misdeeds, every errant word, every selfish act, every action unlike God.  No murder, no lie, no envy, no lust, no foolishness, no act of self-aggrandizement, no boasting, no fleshly act will escape his justness.  Our lives will be completely exposed to the all-consuming light.  Even our supposedly harmless mistreatment of our wives, husbands, or children will not go by without judgment.  All words and actions will come under his scrutiny in that final day.  The Bible says godless men, sinful men will come under God's judgment of fire and eternal damnation.   Well, who are we if not sinful?  The Bible says all men have gone their own way.  All have lined up against God sometime in their lives in words and deeds.  No one is righteous; therefore, we are all without hope when it comes to the day of judgment.  

However, rejoice, God's elect, for angels will gather God's precious ones from the far corners of heaven and Earth.  Why?  Because we have been redeemed by putting our trust and hope in Jesus Christ and his work on the cross.  By faith we have been washed by the blood of the sinless one, even Jesus Christ our Lord.  Our judgment has been satisfied by his shed blood at the cross.  We are now known as the sons and daughters of the Most High.  We, too, will come before the throne of God?  Paul says we will all stand before God’s judgment seat.  It is written: “‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will confess to God.’”  So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God.  (Romans 14:10-12)  But praise God, Jesus will also be in the throne room and He will be our defense.  We will hide in him.  Therefore, we will not be judged as ungodly, unholy, unrighteous, unable to abide in the household of God, for we have been cleansed by our DEFENSE LAWYER'S BLOOD.  Today Jesus stands before the Father making intercession for us.  Consequently, we should be the best we can be.  We should be living examples of Jesus' mercy and love, his servanthood.  If not, we will face discipline, for we are not bastard children.  Judgment should ALWAYS first begin in ourselves.  For sure, we should not be quick to judge others, quick to anger, quick to hold our opinion above everyone else's.  We should be merciful, tenderhearted, and obedient to HIS WILL.  In James 2 it says, MERCY TRIUMPHS OVER JUDGMENT.  Our lives should ALWAYS be an example of mercy and love.  Yes, in the last days before Jesus returns, the heavens will be shaken.  But in our everyday lives, we should live as if the heavens are being shaken, as if He is returning this day, this hour, this very minute.