Like it Was in Noah’s Day: When will the Kingdom of God Be Here?

Bible prophecy is God’s warning to mankind to repent — get right with God — or face the consequences. The sad thing is that people in Jesus’ day didn’t get it and people today still don’t get it. Are you right with God? Here in Luke chapter 17, Jesus talks about forgiveness, faith and the future. And the Pharisees still didn’t understand. Let’s dig in….

Luke 17

One day Jesus said to his disciples, “There will always be temptations to sin, but what sorrow awaits the person who does the tempting! ² It would be better to be thrown into the sea with a millstone hung around your neck than to cause one of these little ones to fall into sin. ³ So watch yourselves!

“If another believer sins, rebuke that person; then if there is repentance, forgive. ⁴ Even if that person wrongs you seven times a day and each time turns again and asks forgiveness, you must forgive.”

⁵ The apostles said to the Lord, “Show us how to increase our faith.”

⁶ The Lord answered, “If you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘May you be uprooted and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you!

Jesus here is saying that it takes a little faith in God to forgive a friend who sins against you. You can’t depend on yourself by yourself, you need God’s help. It’s not easy, I know. I had to forgive a lot of people this past year — most who didn’t know they did anything wrong. I had to forgive them in my heart. Otherwise, I’d be carrying deep anger — that’s what Jesus is talking about with the mulberry tree analogy. Anger can dig some deep roots in your soul and make you miserable. But, just a little faith in God can help you dig out that anger and find rest and peace.

Servants of God

⁷ “When a servant comes in from plowing or taking care of sheep, does his master say, ‘Come in and eat with me’? ⁸ No, he says, ‘Prepare my meal, put on your apron, and serve me while I eat. Then you can eat later.’ ⁹ And does the master thank the servant for doing what he was told to do? Of course not. ¹⁰ In the same way, when you obey me you should say, ‘We are unworthy servants who have simply done our duty.’”

We, as believers, become servants of God in His Kingdom. If you haven’t grasped that yet, then you need to read (or listen to) the past 16 posts on the Gospel of Luke. Pay attention to all the parts where Jesus talks about humility.

Continuing…

Ten Healed of Leprosy

¹¹ As Jesus continued on toward Jerusalem, he reached the border between Galilee and Samaria. ¹² As he entered a village there, ten men with leprosy stood at a distance, ¹³ crying out, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”

¹⁴ He looked at them and said, “Go show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed of their leprosy.

¹⁵ One of them, when he saw that he was healed, came back to Jesus, shouting, “Praise God!” ¹⁶ He fell to the ground at Jesus’ feet, thanking him for what he had done. This man was a Samaritan.

¹⁷ Jesus asked, “Didn’t I heal ten men? Where are the other nine? ¹⁸ Has no one returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?” ¹⁹ And Jesus said to the man, “Stand up and go. Your faith has healed you.”

Have you thanked God for healings, blessings, and provisions every day? And, not just on Thanksgiving!

Now comes the good part… pay attention!

The Coming of the Kingdom

²⁰ One day the Pharisees asked Jesus, “When will the Kingdom of God come?”

Jesus replied, “The Kingdom of God can’t be detected by visible signs. ²¹ You won’t be able to say, ‘Here it is!’ or ‘It’s over there!’ For the Kingdom of God is already among you.”

²² Then he said to his disciples, “The time is coming when you will long to see the day when the Son of Man returns, but you won’t see it. ²³ People will tell you, ‘Look, there is the Son of Man,’ or ‘Here he is,’ but don’t go out and follow them. ²⁴ For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other, so it will be on the day when the Son of Man comes. ²⁵ But first the Son of Man must suffer terribly and be rejected by this generation.

²⁶ “When the Son of Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah’s day. ²⁷ In those days, the people enjoyed banquets and parties and weddings right up to the time Noah entered his boat and the flood came and destroyed them all.

²⁸ “And the world will be as it was in the days of Lot. People went about their daily business—eating and drinking, buying and selling, farming and building— ²⁹ until the morning Lot left Sodom. Then fire and burning sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all. ³⁰ Yes, it will be ‘business as usual’ right up to the day when the Son of Man is revealed. ³¹ On that day a person out on the deck of a roof must not go down into the house to pack. A person out in the field must not return home. ³² Remember what happened to Lot’s wife! ³³ If you cling to your life, you will lose it, and if you let your life go, you will save it. ³⁴ That night two people will be asleep in one bed; one will be taken, the other left. ³⁵ Two women will be grinding flour together at the mill; one will be taken, the other left.” (That’s the Rapture!)

³⁷ “Where will this happen, Lord?” the disciples asked.

Jesus replied, “Just as the gathering of vultures shows there is a carcass nearby, so these signs indicate that the end is near.”

Luke 17 NLT

Like it was in Noah’s Day

The people Jesus was talking to back then were Jews. They all knew the story of Noah, the flood and the ark. Here’s a bit of why God brought on the flood…

⁵ The Lord observed the extent of human wickedness on the earth, and he saw that everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil. ⁶ So the Lord was sorry he had ever made them and put them on the earth. It broke his heart. ⁷ And the Lord said, “I will wipe this human race I have created from the face of the earth. Yes, and I will destroy every living thing—all the people, the large animals, the small animals that scurry along the ground, and even the birds of the sky. I am sorry I ever made them.” ⁸ But Noah found favor with the Lord.

Genesis 6:5-8 NLT

You can read the whole story of the flood here…

Then, Jesus mentions Sodom and Gomorrah, that’s in Genesis 19 and I’ll let you read it for yourself since it’s for mature audiences. The angels God sent specifically told Lot, his wife and daughters to leave Sodom and don’t look back. Unfortunately, Lot’s wife, didn’t listen, looked back and she turned into a pillar of salt.

Repenting of your sins is like that. You stop sinning. You leave your old life behind and don’t look back. Look to Jesus. Surrender your life to Jesus. Make Jesus your future and start a new life with Him in the Kingdom of God.

The End is Near!

If you’re not yet convinced that we’re living in the last days, I suggest you check out some of the YouTube channels of some modern biblical prophets.

There’s also these related posts:

• Right Now! God is Revealing The Signs of the Times
• Top 10 Bible Prophecies that are Coming True Right Now!

Where are you?

Where are you in this lesson? Are you like Noah and Lot, whose faith was solid and rooted in God’s truth? Or are you like the folks who are partying, having a great time and don’t care? Or are you like Lot’s wife — you know you need to leave that life behind, but you want to look back and see what you may be missing?

If you’re not sure if you’re saved or not, if you truly want to be born again and have the assurance of salvation, receive the Holy Spirit, feel His Shalom — a peace that surpasses all understanding, and get a 1-way, non-stop ticket to Heaven after you die, or that you won’t be left behind at the Rapture, which can happen at any moment, this is what you have to do…

Invite Jesus into Your Heart and Receive the Gift of Grace, Joy, Peace, and the Confident Hope of Eternal Life…

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Soli Deo Gloria! To God Alone Be the Glory!