Faithful In The Waiting
April 26 | Rick Thiemke
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Luke 21:1-38
The Widow's Offering
1 Jesus looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the offering box, 2 and he saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins. 3 And he said, “Truly, I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them. 4 For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.”
Jesus Foretells Destruction of the Temple
5 And while some were speaking of the temple, how it was adorned with noble stones and offerings, he said, 6 “As for these things that you see, the days will come when there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.” 7 And they asked him, “Teacher, when will these things be, and what will be the sign when these things are about to take place?” 8 And he said, “See that you are not led astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he!’ and, ‘The time is at hand!’ Do not go after them. 9 And when you hear of wars and tumults, do not be terrified, for these things must first take place, but the end will not be at once.”
Jesus Foretells Wars and Persecution
10 Then he said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 11 There will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and pestilences. And there will be terrors and great signs from heaven. 12 But before all this they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors for my name's sake. 13 This will be your opportunity to bear witness. 14 Settle it therefore in your minds not to meditate beforehand how to answer, 15 for I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which none of your adversaries will be able to withstand or contradict. 16 You will be delivered up even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends, and some of you they will put to death. 17 You will be hated by all for my name's sake. 18 But not a hair of your head will perish. 19 By your endurance you will gain your lives.
Jesus Foretells Destruction of Jerusalem
20 “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has come near. 21 Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, and let those who are inside the city depart, and let not those who are out in the country enter it, 22 for these are days of vengeance, to fulfill all that is written. 23 Alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! For there will be great distress upon the earth and wrath against this people. 24 They will fall by the edge of the sword and be led captive among all nations, and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
The Coming of the Son of Man
25 “And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves, 26 people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world. For the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27 And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 28 Now when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”
The Lesson of the Fig Tree
29 And he told them a parable: “Look at the fig tree, and all the trees. 30 As soon as they come out in leaf, you see for yourselves and know that the summer is already near. 31 So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near. 32 Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all has taken place. 33 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
Watch Yourselves
34 “But watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a trap. 35 For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the whole earth. 36 But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.”
37 And every day he was teaching in the temple, but at night he went out and lodged on the mount called Olivet. 38 And early in the morning all the people came to him in the temple to hear him.
Jesus is only days away from His arrest and crucifixion. He is standing near the Temple, the center of Israel’s life, a place filled with beauty, history and meaning. His disciples are looking at it with awe. And Jesus says something that would have been almost unthinkable. The days are coming when not one stone will be left on another (verse 6).
They ask the natural question. When will this happen? What will be the sign (verse 7)?
And this is where we need to listen carefully. Jesus does not give them a timeline to decode. He gives them a way to live. The main thing Jesus wants them to learn is that there will be a period of waiting, when they will have to be patient through dangerous and testing times.
In AD 70, what Jesus said would happen did happen within that generation (verse 32). But Jesus is doing more than predicting an event. He is forming a people who know how to live in the in between. Just as Jerusalem refused the way of peace, we live and preach the gospel in a world that often refuses that same call to peace.
So Jesus prepares His disciples then, and He prepares His disciples now.
Watchful and Undeceived
Jesus begins with a warning. See that you are not led astray (verse 8).
There will be voices that make claims and predictions, offering fear-filled interpretations of events. Jesus says do not follow them. Do not be terrified (verse 9). These things will happen, but they are not the end.
Jesus does not form anxious interpreters of events. He forms steady disciples. He tells us to watch. To stay awake. To pay attention to our hearts (verse 34). Because the greater danger is not just deception out there. It is distraction within hearts weighed down by the cares of life, preoccupied with lesser things, slowly drifting from a life centered on Him.
Walking with Jesus now means learning to live with clarity. You do not need to decode the future to be faithful in the present. You stay rooted in His voice. You resist fear-driven narratives. You give your attention to what actually forms your life.
This is what it looks like to know Him. He is calm in a world of noise. He is steady in a world of urgency. And He invites us into that same kind of life.
Patient and Faithful
Then Jesus turns to what life will feel like for His followers. You will be handed over. You will be opposed. You will be misunderstood (verse 12). This will be your opportunity to bear witness (verse 13). What feels like interruption becomes mission. What feels like loss becomes a place where Jesus is made known.
He tells them not to prepare their defense ahead of time, for I will give you a mouth and wisdom (verse 14-15). Jesus does not remove them from the moment. He meets them in it. He gives what is needed when it is needed.
And then the promise that holds everything together. Some of you will be put to death (verse 16). But not a hair of your head will perish. By your endurance you will gain your lives (verse 18-19). This is the paradox of life with Jesus. You may suffer. You may lose. And yet your life is completely secure in Him.
Walking with the risen Jesus now means your future is already held. That begins to reshape your present. You become less reactive. You are less driven by fear. You are more grounded, more present and able to endure. This is the steady rhythm of prayer and hope and Scripture and witness, day by day and week by week. We are called to faithfulness in the waiting.
So Jesus ends with an invitation. Stay awake. Pray for strength. Keep your eyes open (verse 36). Because in the waiting, He is forming you. In the uncertainty, He is with you. And in every moment, He is inviting you to live as His witness in a world that is still learning how to respond to Him.
Discussion Questions
Where do you feel the tension of “waiting” most right now, and how is Jesus inviting you to live faithfully in that space?
What voices, distractions or fears most easily pull your attention away from Jesus, and what would it look like to stay rooted in His voice instead?
How have you experienced Jesus meeting you in moments of difficulty or uncertainty, and how might He be inviting you to bear witness to Him in those situations now?