This chapter is a bit obscure… It almost seems like Luke is puzzle-piecing several disconnected thoughts together. This chapter opens with almost a continuation of the warning seen in chapter 16. Further verses go into how serious it is for us to be followers of the Lord Jesus Christ and not worshippers of materialism.
While learning these lessons is rather important, I want to spend today focusing in on the latter part of the chapter. That is Luke 17:20-37, where Jesus will detail the new form of the “Kingdom Program.”
What Kingdom is Jesus Talking About?
So, one thing that we didn’t really see in the Gospel of Luke is the rejection of Jesus as the Messiah by the Jews. In which, Jesus replaces his clear teaching (as seen in the Sermon on the Mount) with parabolic teaching. Knowing this really helps to set up the section of Luke we are about to talk about.
Here, Jesus defines the new form of God’s kingdom, that is the “mystery kingdom”. We see this in how Jesus responds to the Pharisees in Luke 17:21. That the kingdom is within or among them. The primary result of the nation of Israel rejecting Jesus as the Messiah was the removal of the Messianic Kingdom. That is, it would not be set up at this time. Instead, there would be a mystery, or spiritual, kingdom that was among them and not visible, like the Messianic Kingdom would have been.
For us, today, there are some who would look to the institutions of this world for evidence of the progress of God’s kingdom. Jesus warns against this in Luke 17:21. There is nothing man can do to expedite the coming of the Messianic Kingdom (Matthew 24:36). Ideas like Kingdom Now or Dominion Theology are dead wrong in thinking they can bring about the messianic kingdom.
Turning to the Disciples…
Jesus then turns to His disciples and gives them instructions regarding the actual second coming. He will go further into details during the Olivet Discourse. But lets take a look at the details presented here.
The Days are Coming (Luke 17:22-24)
Jesus gives some details as to what the world will be like before the second coming. If you look at verse 22, He is stating that there will be a desire to see the Son of man, but he will not be there. He gives warning that false messiah’s will show up, but we are to not follow them.
Jesus also says that the second coming will be for everyone to see. He will be like light flashing across the sky from one end to another. No one will miss this.
Before Jesus can Return (Luke 17:25)
Next, Jesus tells the disciples what must take place first. The Messiah must be rejected and suffer many things before the kingdom can be established. Jesus is speaking of what will happen to Him, soon.
On-going Normal Life (Luke 17:26-30)
Also before the second coming, Jesus describes a period of normal activity on the earth. Luke 17:27 describes this time like this:
“they will be eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage.”
It is while men say there is “peace and safety” that suddenly the day of the Lord, that is the tribulation, will hit. The end will be unexpected, while life is going on as normal.
On that Day (Luke 17:31-33)
“On that day” during the time when people are living life as normal, that is when the Day of the Lord will begin. Once it begins, people will have to choose to believe or not to believe. Once a decision is made, there is no turning back, like Lot’s wife. When she turned back she was longing for her old life in sin. The choice is binary, either you are for the Lord or against Him.
The Sudden Return (Luke 17:34-36)
The sudden return of Jesus Christ will end all chances for anyone to make a decision about whether or not to follow Him. This will result in the sudden separation of his followers from those who would choose not to follow Him. This will occur only after the tribulation period. The one’s that are taken away, are taken to judgement. We need to have a right relationship with the Lord now, so that when this day occurs, we will be on the God’s side, forgiven and secure.
The Remnant (Luke 17:37)
Now, to wrap things up and explain what Jesus meant in verse 37, because the wording is a bit cryptic. The disciples asked Him where this will occur. Where the Lord will be returning to. His response is pictured in a rotting “corpse” that would be ripe for judgment.
The “corpse” he is referring to would be the remnant of the nation of Israel. Those that were left from the tribulational period.
The “vultures” are a picture of the Gentile armies, who would come to destroy the remnant of Israel. References to this picture are seen in: Micah 2:12-13, Jeremiah 49:13-14, Isaiah 34:1-8, Isaiah 63:1-6.
Wrapping it up…
Wow… There’s a lot in these few verses. The big thing to take away is this:
Are we waiting and looking for His return?
If you aren’t or don’t have the right relationship with God, I would encourage you to head over to our About Us page. There we describe how you can have a personal relationship with our amazing God.
