Luke 21

What does it mean to really give yourself to God and to His kingdom? There has never been a better display of that kind of life than Jesus Christ, and especially His love for us displayed on the cross. This is the vision for living that we must always return to. But even in the days of the Old Covenant, there were those who truly loved God and His kingdom, and they wanted to give their all to Him. Since the days of Christ, there have also been many inspiring examples of cross love throughout the centuries of the church, where the Lord has supplied extraordinary resources of grace to certain followers to meet the need of the moment in their day of trial or testing.

Some of these may be entirely unknown to us, since we tend to focus on those who give much according to our way of measuring devotion. Jesus called upon His disciples to measure kingdom dedication according to kingdom wisdom. By that standard, a poor woman humbly placing two small copper coins into the temple treasure was a star of devotion, while many rich people who gave very substantial gifts were nothing of the kind. All of us need to gaze at the truth of the cross, and surrender our all for the glory of the coming kingdom. In the day of that woman, the temple in Jerusalem was the very picture of heaven displayed among men. Now Christ has died and risen, and the preaching of these truths in the hope of the gospel is the center of our sacrificial prayers, efforts, and contributions, together with the care of the poor, especially in the church.

In the day of Jesus a very significant kingdom transition was taking place. In just a few decades there would be no box for temple offerings on the top of Mount Zion, because there would be no temple on the highest point of the earthly Jerusalem. In this way our attention would be drawn to a higher place with greater clarity than ever. Even here on earth, a new kingdom expression would be seen in the gathered church with Christ as the Head. Wherever His name would be proclaimed in Word and sacrament, wherever the faithful would gather to sing and to pray together, wherever the teaching of the apostles would be received with joyful hearts, the kingdom of God would be visible among men.

Until the time when that kingdom would come in fullness, there would continue to be many trials of various kinds, trials that would only signal that something more glorious than the temple in Jerusalem would one day be born in resurrection splendor. The life of the kingdom after the pouring out of the Spirit at Pentecost would be a wonderful step forward beyond the old life of preparatory ceremonies, yet it would still be a life in a world of mortality. Here the church would face not only the common afflictions of natural disasters and societal upheaval, but also persecution for the truth from adversaries who would stand against the Lord’s people. These kinds of troubles are not unexpected, and in the midst of them, our Lord will supply us with grace and with words appropriate to the opportunity before us. At such a time it should not surprise us that people would hate us. The pathway that God has for us is one of patient endurance leading to the fulfillment of the kingdom in resurrection glory.

The time of Old Testament Israel was coming to a decided conclusion in that generation. This would be an event of much suffering and upheaval, but it would also be a necessary thing, since the people of God would no longer be restricted to one nation. Beyond this judgment, there would eventually come a much more cosmic destruction and renewal at the coming of the Son of Man in glory. It is important for us to see that this Son of Man is the same Son of Man who came first to suffer and die. As He was so near to the cross, He spoke here of the assurance of His coming again in a different way, a way that no one could miss. In Him, the kingdom of God was so near, but the timing of the fulfillment of that kingdom might be centuries away. The time of Israel, God’s fig tree, was now coming to a close, but the time of Christ and the resurrection was just beginning.

Jesus has inaugurated a new generation, a new age, in His coming to save. The old age of the temple in Jerusalem was coming to a speedy close. The new age of Christ and the resurrection and the preaching of His good news had just begun. This new age that started in Jerusalem with the last Passover and the last Pentecost would not end until the Lord came again on the clouds of glory. This is the generation that Christ spoke of, the entire age that stretched from his death and resurrection until His coming with the angels of heaven.

Until that day, we are told to give ourselves over to Christ and His Kingdom, just as that humble poor widow gave herself to the work of God and the Old Covenant temple in Jerusalem. She did what was right in her day. We do what is right in ours. What would not be right would be to consider the kingdom of God on earth to be a place of earthly gain and lazy riches. We follow the One who gave Himself to us on the cross. We need to stay awake to the facts of the Lord and His kingdom, turning away from all drunkenness and dissipation, being careful not to be overwhelmed unnecessarily by the cares of this world, and staying awake to the teaching of Christ and the kingdom. This is the pathway of escaping the tribulations of the world all around us in our day, so that we may stand at last before the Son of Man.