February 16, 2020 | Pastor John Bayles | The Coming of the End | Mark 9:1

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February 16, 2020 | Pastor John Bayles | The Coming of the End | Mark 9:1

The Coming of the End
Mark 9:1

Eschatology is the study of the end. Today it is largely viewed as the end of our current world. In recent years past, especially since WW2, it was pictured for us in terms of total nuclear annihilation – the end of our world and that of all mankind by global nuclear war. This view lasted about fifty years and in some places continues to be the view of the end of the world. More recently, in the last twenty year a new trend has risen – global warming in being presented as the terminal enemy of all mankind. For twenty years, we have been told daily that “in the next ten to twelve years, the earth will cease to exist” – because of global warming. Global warming in the the focus of our lesson today.

Since time began, people of all ages have held strong views of the end of the world. In Jesus’ day the Jewish people had a very simple view of the end of the world. It was a powerful and universally held view by the Jewish people. It was believed consistently for over a thousand years. And, it was simple. From creation and the fall Satan had ruled the earth. One day, God would send His Messiah, destroy Satan's rule, and the Kingdom of God would begin. The Messiah would rule the entire world through the Messiah and every enemy of God would yield to His power forever. In this text today, Jesus introduces this subject to His small band of disciples and states to them in no uncertain terms that this rule would begin “immediately, “during their lifetimes” “and as visible as a flash of lightning from one end of the sky to the other.”