The Coming Storm

In fact, we know from history that early on the Roman Empire despised Christianity for a lot of reasons. One of them is because, and we often overlook this, is because it divided families. It created turmoil in the Empire. It's one thing to choose your God and Goddess and they had hundreds to choose from. It's another to choose Jesus and say all those others are fake, false.

Families offended. You mean to tell us that your God is costing us status? Is costing us career?

Are you out of your mind? Every day of your life, you make lists of priorities. Now, you may be a person who writes them on paper or maybe you keep your priorities in your head, but you're constantly evaluating the tasks and actions you might take and sorting them by priority.

Some are urgent and must be dealt with immediately. Others get put off till later. When it comes to eternal salvation, we can be tempted to put it off. After all, the decision doesn't have to be made until just before you die.

But there's an obvious problem with that. You don't know when that'll be. Here's Stephen Davey with more. As the Lord Jesus has been ministering to the multitudes, as people by the thousands as we've learned have been packing around him, swarming to him, he periodically stops and warns them of the coming judgment of God. And he urgently warns them as well that this coming storm of wrath will occur and he invites them to settle without delay. Now, we're in the gospel by Luke at chapter 12. As chapter 12 now comes to a close, the Lord stops and delivers that message. And it's frankly rather shocking to his audience. For his message to be delivered in such a manner is startling.

For our study today, I want to categorize his closing statements under four thoughts. First, Jesus is going to remind them of something that has been promised. He says to them here in verse 49, just the first phrase, notice this, I came to cast fire on the earth and would that it were already kindled.

Wait, what? I came to cast fire on the earth and would that it were already kindled. That doesn't sound like the golden rule to me. That doesn't sound like the average person on the streets view that Jesus only talked about love. So those of you, by the way, who follow Jesus, you know, it better not judge anybody for how they're living or what they're doing because Jesus only talked about love.

The truth is they've never read what Jesus said. He's speaking here. He's warning this massive audience of a coming firestorm of judgment and he's even saying he's behind it all.

He's the one throwing it down. I have come to cast fire on the earth. Wow.

Imagine being in that audience. Now there are some who take this to be a reference to the coming of the Holy Spirit who will with tongues like fire descend on the apostolic community and empower them to speak in languages they never studied before. I would love to have experienced that miracle before my Spanish exam. It never quite came my way, but that is an interesting interpretation. It's not heresy.

It's just a turning of the dial a little differently. But fire in the Gospel of Luke is a negative image. And the immediate context here is not the creation of the church. It is the judgment of God.

And the opening phrase here is somewhat telling. I came or I have come is a technical phrase used by Jesus to describe the entirety of his mission. For instance, Jesus said over in Matthew 9, for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save the lost. Jesus will tell Pilate a little later on, I have come to bear witness to the truth. Now Jesus says here in Luke 12, I have come, this is part of my mission.

It is all encompassing from beginning even out into the future. I have come to cast fire on the earth. See, this is the other side of Jesus.

The world out there doesn't want to know anything about. They don't want to hear about the coming storm of judgment. In fact, that Jesus is actually directly involved. We're told over in John chapter 5 that Jesus says the Father has given to me the authority to judge, to execute judgment. He says later on in verse 29 that that judgment includes eternal damnation, which means the judge sitting on the bench in that final day is none other than God the Son.

He's the judge. Peter goes on to write, for they, that is the unbelieving world, deliberately overlooked this fact that the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water through water by the word of God. And the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished. This is a reference to the universal flood in the days of Noah.

Noah warned his world for 120 years as he hammered away, and nobody believed him either. Now, Peter says in verse 5, but by the same word that is the word of God, the heavens and earth that now exist, that is after the flood, post-flood, are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly. And Jesus says in Luke's Gospel chapter 12, and I would that it were already kindled.

That fire of judgment hasn't been kindled yet, but Jesus promises it will arrive. So the Lord begins here by reminding them of something that's been promised. Now secondly, the Lord informs them of something he wants to get past. Back in Luke chapter 12, the Lord says in verse 50, I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how great is my distress until it is accomplished.

Let me tell you, this is an unusually transparent revelation of how the Lord is feeling. He's telling us how he's feeling as he draws closer to his resurrection. He's referring to the baptism of his coming crucifixion where he'll be baptized, that is he'll be immersed in our sin, bearing in his body our sin, 1 Peter 2.24, having all of our iniquity placed upon him, Isaiah 53.6, being saturated by the sins of the whole world, 1 John 2.2. For the first time since eternity past, he will be separated from fellowship with God the Father, Matthew 27.46.

And Jesus is saying, I can't wait to get past all of that. One author writes, this word for distressed carries the idea of impatient misery that drenches his soul. The apostle Paul will use the same word when he tells the believers in the church in Philippi that he is pressed, he is hard pressed, he's torn between staying with them, which is better for them, or going to heaven to be with the Lord, Philippians 1.23. It carries the idea of being pressured, being mentally torn over what's taking place.

You could translate the word to mean rather woodenly holding it together. Ken Hughes writes here, Jesus wants to get it over with but he's holding it together, pressed, knowing this crushing weight of sin is coming. By the way, this transparent statement of our Lord should destroy false spirituality of Christians who think it's a sin to admit discouragement or distress or impatience or pressure with any ordeal they're facing. If Jesus can, I think we can. If you ask the average Christian how they're doing, if they're spiritually minded, you know, they would say, well let me tell you, you know, everything's great.

If they're not so spiritual, they'll say, you know, I'm really distressed by something and it's tearing me up. I can't wait to get over it. Oh, we're going to put you on the prayer chain. I'm right in the middle of God's will but I'm holding it together.

I can't wait to get past it. He needs a little more faith. Frankly, none of us can imagine what Jesus is aware he will be going through on our behalf and why he wants so badly to get past it. Because he's fully God, he knows what's ahead. Because he's fully man, the thought of it is tearing at him and he will eventually will see struggle in the Garden of Gethsemane over it to the point where the capillaries under his skin burst and his sweat will be mixed with blood.

We can't imagine the pressure. He's looking forward to getting past this. Now with that, thirdly, the Lord warns them of something that will soon take place. The believer, in fact, is about to feel some pressure. Verse 51, he says, do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.

Now wait a second, this is a depressing message. Aren't you glad you came today? I thought the angel sang to the shepherds. You know, glory to God in the highest and peace on earth. Luke told us that in chapter 2 and verse 14. I thought the Messiah was going to guide our feet on the path of peace.

That's promised. Luke chapter 1 verse 78. Luke told us that Jesus sent out his disciples and he said, whatever home receives you, tell them peace be to this house. Luke 10 five. But now Jesus is saying, yes, we have the message of peace with God and you need to expound on that message.

But you need to understand what you expound is going to be different than what you experience. Are you ready for that? Verse 52, from now on in one house, there will be five divided. Three against two and two against three. They will be divided father against son and son against father, mother against daughter, daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her, daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law. Now this isn't a game of charades at Thanksgiving, you know, where the family divides up and it's pretty severe competition. Isn't like the upcoming Super Bowl where half of your family is cheering for the Kansas City Chiefs and the other half is cheering for the losing team. This isn't a game.

He's talking about life. In fact, we know from history that early on the Roman Empire despised Christianity for a lot of reasons. One of them is because, and we often overlook this, is because it divided families. It created turmoil in the empire. I mean, it's one thing to choose your God and goddess and they had hundreds to choose from.

It's another to choose Jesus and say all those others are fake, false. Families offended, embarrassed, infuriated. You mean to tell us that your God is costing us money, is costing us status, is costing us career.

Are you out of your mind? You ready for that storm? Our brothers and sisters around the world are already experiencing that.

We're not. Where Christianity is illegal to become a Christian is illegal. In some countries, family members conspire with the government to expose their family member who came to faith in Christ and that becomes for them a death sentence. You might not experience a death sentence, but perhaps even today you're experiencing disapproval, marginalization.

People avoid you. Your family has strife because of your faith. We've got to stop selling Christianity with come to Jesus and everything will work out. Jesus is saying to them, you come to me and you can expect everything to come apart.

Are you ready for that? Finally, the Lord not only reminds them of something that's been promised, informs him of something he wants to get past. He warns them of something that will soon take place. Now, fourthly, he rebukes them for their failure with something in the present. Notice verse 54. And he said also to the crowds, when you see a cloud rising in the west, you say it once a shower is coming.

And so it happens. And when you see the south wind blowing, you say there will be a scorching heat and it happens. You hypocrites, you know how to interpret the appearance of earth and sky.

But why do you not know how to interpret the present time? Those clouds coming in from the west, from the Mediterranean Sea are going to bring rain. A rain storm is coming. That south wind is going to bring up the hot air from the Arabian desert. It's going to be a scorcher. Everybody wants to get ready for it.

We're no different. Today, we all watch the weather. I certainly watch the weather, especially on the weekend. It seems to me that we always have trouble on the weekends. Why not on Monday? Just the thought, just the mention of freezing rain, just the mention of snow. It always is on Saturday at 2 a.m. or Sunday at 2 a.m. I'm wondering, should I finish my sermon or just relax?

And then they give that threat. Or like here, it's going to be a scorcher. It's going to be rain for us. In the south, it's going to freeze. Not a gallon of milk anywhere.

Not a loaf of bread in Wake County. And what really frustrates me is that all those people got there before I did. It's not just right. People have always wanted to predict the weather and then prepare. Jesus is not rebuking them for that. He's rebuking them for being more interested in the weather than they are their soul. You check your weather two, three times a day.

How often do you think about your soul? They're more alert to weather than they are to any thought of this coming storm of judgment. It's true, mankind has learned so much.

Now in our day, they can predict the movements of planets, split atoms, circle the globe with satellites, put men on the moon, track a hurricane, send a telescope millions of miles into space, take pictures of the stars. But they do not recognize the Savior. Jesus continues rebuking them here in verse 57. And why do you not judge for yourselves what is right as you go with your accuser before the magistrate? Make an effort to settle with him on the way, lest he drag you to the judge. And the judge hand you over to the bailiff, the officer, and the officer put you in prison. I tell you, you will never get out until you've paid the very last penny. In other words, you got a bad case. You're heading toward debtor's prison.

Wake up to that. You don't want to end up in court. You don't want to stand before that judge. You're not going to win. So settle out of court on the way there so you don't end up there. Jesus is telling them, wake up. You don't want to appear before the judge, the magistrate.

I believe he's thinking of down the road that great white throne, that final judgment of all of unbelieving humanity. None of them will have a good case. It's all a bad case that that judge is simply going to deliver the verdict. Your only hope is to prevent your case from going forward. Settle out of court. Settle the debt you owe. You settle that debt, by the way, with God through Christ so that you never have to stand at that great white throne. You're safe. Now the demons, your unbelieving culture, your own deceived heart will whisper. Your court date is years ahead of you.

Your death, that appointment with God. Don't worry about that. Don't panic. Take your time.

No need to rush. Jesus says, now wake up. That west wind is going to bring rain.

That south wind is going to bring a scorcher. Wake up. There's a greater storm coming and there's a debt you owe and you need to settle. In fact, the word for settle, which Luke uses here, can be translated to be set free. You need to be set free and you have to be set free while you're alive.

How do you settle that debt? How can you be set free of sin's debt you could never pay back? The answer is provided through the New Testament. Faith in the cross of Christ. The work Christ accomplished for us when he became immersed, saturated with our sin. The Lord actually hinted of that here in the conversation when Jesus hung on the cross before he died. He said, it is what? Finished.

John 1930. That word finished means paid in full. It was a word used in the court system for a criminal who paid their penalty for their crimes in full. Jesus effectively says on the cross, I have paid through my sacrifice and death all the crimes of humanity in full.

I paid for it all. Then with that, Jesus died. Jesus uses that same word in verb form here in verse 50.

Go back. You might want to circle it. I have a baptism to be baptized with and how great is my distress until it is. Here's the word. Until it is accomplished. Until it is finished. Until that sin debt is paid in full. Down to the last penny.

So how do you settle your debt out of court? Well, the punishment for your crimes has been paid for by Jesus Christ. So you will never stand before him at that great white throne if you have come to him on that old rugged cross. There's a storm coming. It's a storm of judgment against all who refuse him.

And again the strategy of hell. And our world would say, that's true. It's true.

He's telling you the truth this morning. But why hurry? There's no rush. There's plenty of time.

Beloved, there's plenty of time until that one moment of time when it becomes too late. I read recently about the crash of the Concord. Some of you may remember that if you were alive at the time.

July 25th, 2000. It was taking off in Paris and crashed just after take off. 100 passengers and all the crew and even some people on the ground were killed. The Concord had an engine burst into flame. And then the plane went into a stall and the pilot banked and attempted to make it into a crash landing of some sort.

Wasn't able to make the turn. And it exploded on impact. I have watched the video of that. I've wondered about the people on board.

They were able to put the pieces together literally and also in their investigation, figuratively. The cause of the crash was a small strip of metal that had been on the runway the size of a yardstick. It had flattened one of the tires of the aircraft as it raced down the runway and the debris from that tire punctured one of the fuel tanks in the aircraft's wing and it caught on fire. The pilot couldn't stop the takeoff, so he tried to keep it in the air long enough to make an emergency landing at an airport that was just about 60 seconds away, one minute away.

As investigators listened to the tape of the pilot's conversation with the control tower, his last words as he fought to save his craft and everyone on it, his last words were, quote, too late. If you had two lives, you could afford to risk one of them. You only have one and there's a storm coming.

Settle with God before it's too late. That was Stephen Davey and he called this message The Coming Storm. Stephen is the president of Wisdom International. This daily Bible teaching program is called Wisdom for the Heart. If you'd like a resource to help you talk about the gospel with others, we can help you. I encourage you to visit wisdomonline.org forward slash gospel. You'll find a resource called God's Wisdom for Your Heart that'll explain the gift of eternal life that God offers you. Here's that address again. Visit wisdomonline.org forward slash gospel. Join us again next time to hear more Wisdom for the Heart.