Reflective Bible Study

While teaching the disciples about what the signs of the end of the world would be, Jesus inserts a short parable illustration to emphasize that we should be prepared and not surprised when the end of the world happens. While this parable is not the most profound illustration Jesus uses, it does serve a purpose that prompts us to remember God.

Let’s read this parable, with some verses before and after it to give a little bit of context. Our parable and passage are found in Luke’s gospel, chapter 21, and we will read from the New International Version of the Bible. Starting in verse 25, as Jesus is speaking to His followers, He tells them:

²⁵ “There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea. ²⁶ People will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken. ²⁷ At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. ²⁸ When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”

²⁹ He told them this parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees. ³⁰ When they sprout leaves, you can see for yourselves and know that summer is near. ³¹ Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that the kingdom of God is near.

³² “Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. ³³ Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

When reading this short passage, we jumped in during Jesus sharing with the disciples what it will be like when Jesus returns, and this sets up Jesus sharing this short parable about a fig tree sprouting leaves.

In many ways, this parable is not like most of Jesus’ other parables, because this short illustration simply has the disciples watching for the seasons and how the trees react to the weather changing. However, just because this isn’t a long or drawn out parable with a storyline does not make this parable any less significant.

Instead of being less significant, this parable actually may be more significant. When compared with the broad collection of Jesus’ parables, this short parable of the fig tree sprouting leaves is probably the clearest parable with the least likely chance of being misunderstood. In this parable, just like we can see that the fig tree changes and gets ready for summer by sprouting leaves, when we see the things that Jesus described in the earlier verses, we can be assured that the date of Jesus’ return is coming closer.

Jesus never gave us the date of His return, but He did give us what may be the biggest reminder of His promise to return in the simple act of the changing of the seasons.

Every change of seasons is a subtle reminder of Jesus’ parable here. Since Jesus shared this message during the week leading up to the cross, we know that this message was shared in the spring. This makes sense that Jesus would point forward to the next season, which was the summer. But the focus of Jesus’ words isn’t on a specific season as much as it draws our attention onto the seasons changing.

Each time the seasons change, we can see God’s creation preparing for and responding to the change. Nature is like a clock we can use when determining what season we are in and what season is right around the corner. This means too that every time a season changes, and every time nature prepares for this change, we are reminded to pay attention to the events of this world, because we are moving closer and closer to the time of Jesus’ return.

In the few minutes we have left, I want to draw attention to the last two verses of what we read, because in these verses we see a challenge to the detail that Jesus has not returned yet. Verses 32 and 33 record Jesus saying: “Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.”

When we read these two verses, we are challenged by the idea that 2,000 years later, Jesus still has not returned. When Jesus talks about that generation not passing away until everything He described as happened, which includes His returning in the clouds, I can understand why this prompts some people to believe that Jesus did return secretly for a brief period of time but at that time, He didn’t end history.

However, while I can understand why some people might think this, I don’t believe this is what actually happened, because Jesus makes it very clear that His return will disrupt both heaven and earth, causing people to faint from terror. There is nothing secret about Jesus’ return. Jesus’ return will be the most public, visible event this world has ever seen.

Instead, I see Jesus’ closing remarks linking the passing away of this generation with the passing away of heaven and earth, and contrasting that with the eternal nature of His words. In another part of Luke’s gospel, Jesus tells those present that God is the God of the living, and God sees people as alive. This means that until the point that this world’s history is wrapped up, the generation of Jesus’ disciples will not pass away because God sees and knows everything about that generation, including all the good and the bad that generation has to offer.

From God’s perspective, Jesus’ words make complete sense. Only when we try to make this promise fit our perspective do we run into trouble. This is because we only have a tiny sliver of a perspective when compared to what God is capable of seeing. When we talk about the kingdom of God, we are talking about God’s perspective of time and of history, and we would be better served by letting God’s perspective help us reconcile challenging passages.

The two biggest truths in this passage are that Jesus will return in a very public way, and that Jesus’ words will last forever, which is longer than this sin-filled heaven and earth will last. God has promised that His people will be welcomed into eternity and we will avoid passing away with this sin-stained heaven and earth. Let’s keep our focus on Jesus, on accepting what He accomplished for us, and our eyes focused on eternity. With eternity as our perspective, our present circumstances don’t seem all that significant.

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As always, continue seeking God first in your life and ask Him give you His perspective. When seasons change, remember that every season that changes is one season closer to Jesus’ return and the end of history.

Also, keep praying and studying the Bible for yourself to intentionally grow your personal relationship with God. Don’t drift through life leaning on others for your spiritual growth. Choose to prioritize your own growth by praying and studying the Bible for yourself and let other people help you on your journey. When we depend on others for our spiritual growth, we can only grow as far as they have grown, and we only are able to learn what they have learned. God wants to teach you so much more, and when we focus on personally growing closer to Him, He is able to teach us exactly what He wants us to know.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or drift away from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

As John describes the time Jesus spent on the cross, he includes a unique detail that draws our attention onto a situation that none of us would want to face. While Jesus is hanging on the cross, John draws our attention onto some women standing near the cross who were close to Jesus, including Jesus’ own mother.

While I believe other gospel writers might include this detail in passing, John draws attention onto it in his gospel because he focuses on a message Jesus shares with His mother, and a disciple who was standing there as well. While the gospel does not name this disciple as John, there is plenty of evidence to suggest that this disciple was John, James’ brother, and one of Jesus’ inner circle of three disciples.

Let’s read these few verses and draw out some things we can learn from what happened. Our passage is found in John’s gospel, chapter 19, and we will read it using the New International Version of the Bible. Starting in verse 25, John tells us that:

²⁵ Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. ²⁶ When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to her, “Woman, here is your son,” ²⁷ and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time on, this disciple took her into his home.

In these few verses, we discover an amazing picture of Jesus. In these verses, we discover that while Jesus is in unimaginable pain, the focus He has is not on Himself, but on those who are around Him.

In this particular case, Jesus looks down from the cross and He sees His mother, and a disciple that Jesus knows will live longer than Mary. I suspect that Mary would have been at least 25 years older than John, and with life expectancies in that era being shorter than they are today, I suspect that Mary may have passed away within a decade or two following Jesus’ return to heaven.

While we don’t know the details surrounding how long John cared for Mary in his home, I don’t have any reason to doubt that John protected Mary after Jesus was gone.

Reading this event prompts me to ask the question about why Mary wouldn’t have been cared for by Jesus’ brothers or sisters. Earlier in John’s gospel, we see Jesus spending time with His brothers before they leave for a festival without Jesus, and other gospels have Jesus’ mother, brothers, and sisters arriving one day with a message for Jesus while He is preaching.

There is no doubt that Jesus had siblings, but this detail in John’s gospel makes me wonder why John would need to adopt Mary. We might not ever have answers for this question on this side of heaven, but I suspect that Jesus knew what He was asking, and John accepted Jesus’ request to care for Mary.

I wonder too if this request was for Mary as well. I cannot begin to imagine what it would be like to lose one of my children, or to watch them die while I cannot stop it. I also do not want to ever experience this or anything even remotely like this. In Jesus’ death, Mary experiences more pain than most people ever would, and I wonder if Jesus connecting Mary with John was a way Mary could continue forward in life with someone who was close to Jesus and who may have been able to remind her of Him.

In Jesus’ death, the prophecy that Simeon shared with Mary came to pass as well. In Luke’s gospel, chapter 2, verses 34 and 35, Simeon tells Mary, “This child [referring to Jesus] is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel. And to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.”

That last phrase in Simeon’s prophecy came true when Jesus hung on the cross. I wouldn’t doubt that Mary felt like a sword had pierced her soul as she looked up at the face of her Son dying on the cross. I wonder if Jesus’ gift of John was able to help her move forward following this event.

While Jesus would be raised to life the following Sunday, Jesus’ resurrection didn’t really return Jesus to Mary. Instead, Jesus’ resurrection simply was a precursor to Jesus ascending to heaven and not being seen any more. Jesus connecting Mary and John while hanging on the cross was significant because Jesus would no longer be around even if He wasn’t to remain dead.

Regardless of how John and Mary moved forward after Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension, I am amazed at the darkest part of history, while Jesus was hanging on the cross, He focused on others. While both criminals hanging on crosses with Jesus focused on themselves, and while the soldiers focused on what they could get or win from the death of these three men, Jesus cleanly focused on others till His last breath. Jesus offered forgiveness, and Jesus kept His mind focused on accomplishing the mission that was set before Him.

The cross demonstrates God’s love for us, and everything Jesus does while on the cross helps show this love. Jesus faced the cross for you and for me, and because Jesus faced the cross, paying a debt He did not owe, we can experience a life we don’t deserve when we accept His gift of His perfect life in exchange for ours. When we accept Jesus’ life, we must give up our sinful, sin-stained lives, and step forward with the new life that God gives us. Accepting Jesus’ gift can be done in an instant, but the effects of this decision are seen for the rest of our lives on this earth, and for the rest of eternity with God!

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally seek God first in your life and choose to place your faith, hope, trust, and belief in Jesus. Accept the gift of Jesus’ life in exchange for yours and live each day with Jesus’ life shining through the experiences you face as we move together towards eternity.

Also, always pray and study the Bible for yourself to learn and grow closer to God each and every day. Through prayer and Bible study, discover just how much God loves you and what He was willing to go through to make a way available for you to be saved!

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or abandon where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!