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Dec 19, 2021

Awake till the End

Awake till the End

Passage: Mark 13:25-37

Speaker: Andrew Kerhoulas

Series: Follow: Learning from Mark about Jesus’ Most Misunderstood Command

Keywords: stay awake, hour, the return of christ, be on guard, enduring words, faithfulness while we wait

Jesus told his followers what the end of the world will entail. He’s silent on many things but he tells us exactly who we should be for the time being. The question for his followers all these centuries later is will we listen to him?

Readings & Scripture

PREPARATION:

LEADER: ​​In the psalms of David,
in the words of the prophets,
and in the story of Israel,
your promise is spoken, eternal God,
and takes flesh at last in the womb of the virgin.
ALL: May Immanuel find welcome in our hearts, take flesh in our lives,
and be for all peoples the welcome advent of redemption and grace.
Leader: We ask this through him whose coming is certain, whose Day draws near;
your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
ALL: Immanuel, as we worship you, invade our lives as we await your return.

ADVENT READING: Matthew 1:18-25

18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. 19 And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. 20 But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” 22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:

23 “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and they shall call his name Immanuel”

(which means, God with us). 24 When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, 25 but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus.

LEADER: Prepare the way of the Lord.
We light this candle in love,
the love that Jesus, our Savior, has for us.

ALL: Prepare, then, the way of the Lord.

SONG OF ILLUMINATION
Of the Father's love begotten
ere the worlds began to be,
he is Alpha and Omega,
he the source, the ending he,
of the things that are, that have been,
and that future years shall see
evermore and evermore.
Verse 4
Let the heights of heav'n adore him,
angel hosts his praises sing,
pow'rs, dominions bow before him
and extol our God and King.
Let no tongue on earth be silent,
ev'ry voice in concert ring

CENTRAL TEXT: Mark 13:24-37
24 “But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, 25 and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. 26 And then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. 27 And then he will send out the angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven. “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. 29 So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very gates. 30 Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. 31 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. 32 “But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33 Be on guard, keep awake. For you do not know when the time will come. 34 It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his servants in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to stay awake. 35 Therefore stay awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning— 36 lest he come suddenly and find you asleep. 37 And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake.”

CORPORATE CONFESSION OF SINALL: Lord, we have not kept watch for you.
We have occupied ourselves with our own concerns.
We have not waited to find your will for us.
We have not noticed the needs of the people around us.
We have not acknowledged the love that has been shown to us.
Forgive us for our lack of watchfulness.
Help us to wait to know your will.
Help us to look out for the needs of others.
Help us to work and watch for your coming. Amen.

ASSURANCE OF PARDON: John 6:39-40
LEADER: And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.
ALL: Thanks be to God.

BENEDICTION: Jude 24-25
LEADER: Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. 

ALL: Amen.       

RELATED SCRIPTURES:

  • Psalm 84:8-12
  • Isaiah 26:19
  • Ezekiel 37
  • Mark 14:34
  • Luke 12:35-48
  • Romans 13:11-14
  • 1 Corinthians 15
  • Ephesians 5:8-15
  • 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 5:6
  • 2 Peter 3:8-9; 5:8
  • Revelation 3:2; 16:15; 21:1-5; 22:21-22

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

  1. Describe the feelings that surface when you imagine the end of the world as we know it? 
  2. Does Jesus’ teaching disrupt what you have been taught about the end of the world? 
  3. About what things is Jesus silent about when it comes to the End? What are his promises exactly, and why do they matter? 
  4. According to Jesus, what is our calling as Christians for the time being, awaiting the return of the King? 
  5. How might the paradigm of the “already and not yet” help you follow Jesus through difficult circumstances?

QUOTES:

  • The church lives in advent. That is to say we live between the two advents. Jesus Christ has come and will come. If you find this tension unbearable at times, then you understand the Christian life. The advent clock tells the church what time it is. The church that keeps advent is the church most truly herself. The church is not supposed to be comfortable, prosperous and established. It is advent--it is dark and lonely and cold, and the master is away from home. Yet he will come. Keep awake. He came among us once as a stranger, and we put him on a cross. He comes among us now, in the guise of the stranger at the door--perhaps with the face of the wrong color, or manners that are not the best. He will come in the future, not as a stranger, but as the King in all his glory, and at the name of Jesus every knee will bow (Phil 2:10). - Fleming Rutledge
  • The great doctrine of the second advent has in a sense fallen into disrepute because of…this tendency on the part of some to be more interested in the how and the when of the second coming rather than in the fact of the second coming. – Martyn Lloyd-Jones
  • Have we been true to the trust He left us?
    Do we seek to do our best?
    If in our hearts there is naught condemns us,
    We shall have a glorious rest.
    Blessed are those whom the Lord finds watching,
    In His glory they shall share;
    If He shall come at the dawn or midnight,
    Will He find us watching there? –Fanny Crosby
  • “Precisely because we cannot predict the moment, we must be ready at all moments.” – C.S. Lewis
  • “God refuses to be God without us.” - Will Willimon

BOOKS / DOCS