INTRODUCTION - FUTILITY AND THE LOSS OF VISION
John Greenleaf Whittier wrote these words:
         “Of all sad words of tongue or pen, the saddest are these:
                           ‘It might have been.’”

When asked to rewrite Whittier’s poem to reflect the mood of this generation, one theologian wrote:
         “Of all sad words that are on the loose, the saddest of these are:
                           ‘What’s the use?’”

“What’s the use?” The question of a generation tired of the struggle; un-enamored with life. Deep inside they ask themselves “Is it worth it?” Does life really have meaning or is it all just an exercise in futility? And they resonate with the words written by the prophet Isaiah, when he said “I thought I had been laboring in vain, spending my strength for nothing.” We have everything we could ever want. Yet so many of us just go through the motions of living. For what?

If we could just catch of glimpse of some purpose for our lives. If there was just something that could wake us up from this deep slumber of life.

AWAKENED
Sometimes people come along and really shake up your world and help you see the world in a whole new way.

Writing an essay for one of his freshman classes, one college student began writing “Last year, I awoke from a coma that had lasted for 18 years. The coma was called ‘my life’.”

It was an autobiographical essay. He went on to say how he had fallen into the hands of a peculiarly gifted teacher who got in his face, grabbed him by the neck, shook him up and down, and made him take, for the first time in his life, an honest look at himself… at his life. The encounter with that teacher was for him an awakening.

Perhaps today, at the beginning of Advent, this gospel text is an opportunity for us to do the same - to wake up to what life is really about. To take an honest look at ourselves. To take an honest look at how we’re living and how we’re fulfilling the mission for which Jesus has called us. To do this, we need to take an honest look at this difficult passage.

MISINTERPRETED - THE END OF THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT
For years this passage has been misinterpreted by the church. Good scholars… great scholars have gotten it wrong.

Open up your pew bibles to page 50 in the New Testament. It is tempting to read this passage as if it’s talking about the second coming of Christ. Take a look beginning at verse 24: After that suffering, the sun will be darkened. The moon will not give its light. The stars will be falling. The powers in the heavens will be shaken. They will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. He will send out the angels and gather his elect. And at first glance, this looks like Jesus is predicting “the end of the world as we know it.”

But when you look at it more closely and especially in its context, you begin to see that it’s not about that at all. We have to remember that this is the tail end of a conversation that begins with a statement by Jesus followed by a question from some concerned disciples. If you want to know what the end of the conversation is about, you have to know how it starts.

CONTEXT, CONTEXT, CONTEXT - THE TEMPLE BEING REPLACED
In chapter 11, when Jesus enters Jerusalem, he immediately goes into the temple. Apparently he doesn’t like what he sees, because the next day when he enters the temple again, he forces out the money changers, overturns tables, and proclaims to its leadership, “You have made this house of prayer a den of robbers!”

When Jesus goes back to the temple again, he is challenged by all the religious leaders.

In defiance, Jesus is shown passing judgment on the temple and its leaders throughout chapter 12. Then at the beginning of chapter 13, Jesus finally leaves the temple for the last time; it’s as if God’s presence is finally departing the temple.

And it’s interesting what Jesus says when leaving. An anonymous disciple remarks at how impressive the buildings are. In verse 2, Jesus, “Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.”

The disciples don’t quite understand. “Impossible. The Temple destroyed? How? When?” And so as they sit on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, four of them, Peter, James, Andrew and John, go to Jesus privately and say, “Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?” They’re asking “When is the temple going to be destroyed?”

And Jesus tells them. The passage that we read this morning is like listening in on the tail end of that conversation. It’s very easy to jump to the wrong conclusions without having heard the whole conversation. So Jesus says, here are the signs… here’s how you will know that these things are about to take place. There will be false prophets. People will come in my name claiming to be the Messiah. Don’t let them fool you.

When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, don’t panic. And don’t panic when you hear about earthquakes and famines. It’s just the beginning. You’re going to be persecuted, beaten, and brought to trial on account of me. You will be hated. People will betray one another and kill one another. Families will turn against one another. But you can endure all that.

But let me tell you, here is the real sign… head for the hills when you see desolating sacrilege… when you see the temple defiled by a foreign army. Don’t stick around. It’s going to be worse than you’ve ever imagined. Get out of town when you see that. Thankfully God is going to cut short those days. Be alert!

OUR PASSAGE - THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD
And this is where we were let into the conversation. “In those days…”  What days is Jesus talking about? The days when the temple will be destroyed. He has already said that those will be horrific, horrible days. And so Jesus uses prophetic language to talk about them. He uses the same language Isaiah used about the fall of Babylon and Edom to describe what will take place in Jerusalem. The sun and moon darkened, stars falling, the powers in the heavens shaken.

“Then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in clouds’ with great power and glory.” It is tempting to think this verse refers to Jesus returning to earth, descending on the clouds of heaven - that part of the Apostles’ Creed which says, “From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.” But really it’s about the part of the Apostles’ Creed that says, “He ascended into heaven and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty.” If you look carefully at this verse in your Bible, you’ll notice that a portion of it is in quotes. Jesus is quoting a passage from the Old Testament, from Daniel chapter seven.

In this chapter, the prophet Daniel is having a vision - a vision where “one like the Son of Man” is coming “with the clouds of heaven” before the throne of God to be given universal and everlasting power and authority. It is the enthronement of a new king who comes to replace those who used to be in control.

Think about it. Connect this to the destruction of the temple and what is this verse telling us? It’s about the power struggle between Jesus and the religious leaders. It’s a story about the corruption of the temple and how it needs to be replaced. Who is going to be the focus of the Israeli people - the temple and its leaders? Or Jesus and his message about the good news of the Kingdom of God?

Mark is saying that the temple and its leaders are being replaced. Jesus will receive all power and authority and will sit at the right hand of God. Jerusalem and the temple will no longer be the center and heart of Jewish religious life. The old authorities are being replaced by a new authority. Their power and authority are being given to the Son of Man.

PROBLEMS ERASED
Now if this passage is about the destruction of the temple and Jesus receiving all power and authority, then a couple of problems in this text are cleared up.

Take a look at verse 29. “So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very gates.”

First of all, when Jesus says, “when you see these things taking place”, he is not referring to what we should look for at the end of the world. He’s talking about those things that he mentioned would happen just prior to the sign that the temple will be destroyed. That’s important.

Also, notice the footnote after the word “he”. At the bottom of the page the footnote talks about a choice you can make. It can be translated either “he” or “it”. What you choose makes a big difference in the meaning of the passage. The only way to know what is correct is by the context.

If you read it as “So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very gates” you think immediately about Jesus coming again at the end of time. But, when you read it in the context of the destruction of the temple, it reads “So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that it is near, at the very gates” “It” referring to the temple being destroyed. Makes sense doesn’t it?

THE HOMEOWNER LEAVES
So where does this leave us? It leaves us with the final analogy in verses 32-37, a story about a homeowner going on a journey. And what does the homeowner do? He places his servants in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to keep watch. Therefore, “Keep awake”. No one knows when the master will return. Don’t let him find you asleep. What I say to the four of you I say to all: keep awake!

Jesus is warning the disciples of what lies ahead. Jesus will be leaving. He will be ascending into heaven to sit on the right hand of the father in glory. No one knows when he’ll return. But you, my disciples, will be in charge. Each of you has a job to do. You have work to do. Keep watch! Keep awake!

KEEP AWAKE
So what is this passage about? The transfer of power. It’s about who is in charge of the kingdom. Jesus and his ways are now our focus and the way... not the temple. Jesus is now sitting at the right hand of God from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. Jesus will come again. But in the meantime stay awake! Stay alert! Don’t get caught napping!

Life is not meaningless! You matter to God. The number one priority of Jesus, his mission in the world, the thing he was most adamant about, was ushering in the Kingdom of God and calling together a small group of followers to help him do the same. He’s asking you to change the world. And so he’s asking you to make a difference. He’s asking you to carry out his mission - to show people what life in the Kingdom of God is about. To show people what being truly human, created in the image of God is like. To serve people the way he served them. To care for people the way He cared for them. To love people the way He loved them; a life of love that is contagious. We are to be “bringers of the Kingdom”.

He has a new vision for life: a life worth living. And now He is calling us to live that vision out… to bring that vision about. The religious leaders were supposed to be sharing in this task. But they didn’t get it. They fell asleep at the wheel. So they’ve been replaced. Wait. Watch! Keep awake!

A RE-AWAKENED LIFE
“Last year, I awoke from a coma that had lasted for 18 years. The coma was called ‘my life’.” Now everyday is a new day… a new opportunity to seek to bring the kingdom of God into our world. Everyday, we have the opportunity to see how God can use us to make a difference. Through people like us, through people like you and me, God just might be creating a new heaven and a new earth.

Have we been lulled to sleep by a church of complacency? Have we been cemented into social conformity? Who will wake us from our slumber?

May God splash cold water on us this Advent season. May God enter our lives and wake us up so that we can be about the business of making God’s Kingdom come and God’s will be done on earth as it is in heaven. May we model for the rest of the world this radically alternative way of life: a life of love and forgiveness, hospitality and care, humility and service. May Christ come to us this Advent season. Stay awake and watch!  Amen.