Thomas J Parlette
“By Your Endurance”
Luke 21: 5-19
11/13/22
When was the last time you settled into a good disaster movie? I know it sometimes seems like watching cable news is as good as watching a disaster movie – but I mean a more traditional one like Armageddon or The Towering Inferno?
Disaster movies tend to do pretty well at the box office, whether they feature frightened people battling floods, or volcanos, or Godzilla, or even zombies invading major cities.
Speaking of zombies, there is a company in London called Vollebak that manufactures what they call an “Apocalypse Jacket.” The word Apocalypse generally refers to the ultimate disaster drama – the complete final destruction of the world, something like what is described in the Book of Revelation. The Apocalypse Jacket is meant to protect its wearer from such things as extreme heat and chemical attacks. They advertise it with the tagline, “Zombies will hate it” – assuming you run into any Zombies.
The Apocalypse Jacket uses a special fiber created by NASA that is incredibly strong and has no melting point. This fiber is then blended with the cloth fibers used in “ballistic-rated body armor.” It may be the sturdiest piece of clothing on earth, nearly indestructible. It can withstand exposure to black lava from volcanoes and sulfuric acid. These jackets have 23 pockets with hidden zippers all throughout the interior jacket, so you can carry everything needed for escaping a natural disaster or even a zombie apocalypse. (1) A good Apocalypse Jacket might be just what we need after hearing this passage for today with it’s note of impending threats.
There is something thrilling about facing down an impending threat, isn’t there? I think that’s why disaster movies do so well at the box office. We like to sit on the edge of our seat and feel our hearts pound as the hero or heroine overcome nearly impossible odds to save the world.
The highest-grossing disaster movie in the U.S. so far is Independence Day, the movie about a worldwide alien invasion. Roland Emmerich, the director of Independence Day, claims that disaster movies are cathartic. They allow the audience to release tension over their fears of the future. As he says, “You see all this destruction and everything, but at the end, the right people save the day.”
Wheeler Winston Dixon is the chair of the Film Studies Program at the University of Nebraska. In his book Disaster and Memory, he writes, “People go to disaster movies to prove to the themselves that they can go through the worst possible experience, but somehow they’re going to come out the other side.” (2)
That may be the perfect summary for today’s passage from Luke 21 – people go through the worst possible experience, but somehow they’re going to be ok. And if we can really believe that – that should somehow change the way we live in these disturbing times.
Our scripture lesson opens with Jesus and his disciples standing in the Temple in Jerusalem, admiring its strength and beauty. The Temple wasn’t just a building – the Temple courts sat on 36 acres of land. The giant stones that made up the Temple were dazzling, blinding pinkish-white marble, and over some of the stones was gold plating that reflected the sunlight. From a distance, the whole complex looked like a glowing jewel. Up close, it was one of the most impressive buildings in the Roman Empire. (3)
And Jesus had the unenviable task of telling his disciples that one day this beautiful Temple would be destroyed – which it was in 70 AD. To make matters worse, Jesus said, “False prophets will preach in my name and turn people away from the truth. Then there will be wars and famine, earthquakes and pestilence.” And before the worst of this can happen, Jesus’ followers will be arrested, put in prison, betrayed by loved ones, and some will even be put to death. And yet, in the face of all this – all this that sounds disturbingly current in our time – Jesus promises that there is still reason to have hope.
So, the first thing we can say in the light of this passage is that vision without hope is a dangerous thing, but with hope, all things are possible. When we envision a hopeless future, we become fearful, angry, and anxious. And these are just the opposite of the fruits of the Spirit we receive according to Paul in Galatians – the fruits of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
Paul shares a vision of hope in his letter to the church at Ephesus. He writes, God has now revealed to us his mysterious will regarding Christ – which is to fulfill his own good plan. And this is the plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Jesus Christ – everything in heaven and on earth.” In other words, someday everything in creation will be under the authority of Jesus Christ. If we understand and believe that promise – we will view the future with hope.
Jeff Immelt became the CEO of General Electric on September 10th, 2001. The next day, Sept. 11th, terrorists attacked the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, sending our nation reeling and causing a worldwide meltdown of financial markets. To make matters even more challenging, the World Trade Center Towers were insured by one of General Electric’s subsidiaries, GE Capital. The company experienced tremendous financial losses over the next few weeks and months. There could not have been a worse time for a new leader to take the helm of a company.
Looking back on his leadership during this time, Immelt said, “I think what you learn in a crisis is that good leaders absorb fear. They are not accelerators of fear – they know how to manage a sense of calm while still being really clear about the challenges ahead… You learn to hold two truths. You learn to say, “Things can always get worse, but here’s a dream that I have for the future, and I’m not going to give up on that.” (4)
In this passage from Luke, Jesus is teaching his disciples to hold to these same two truths: Things can always get worse, but here’s a dream I have for the future, and I’m not going to give up on that dream. And so, in spite of these fearful events, Jesus can say to us, even in our own time and place – Beware that you are not led astray. Do not go after the false prophets and promises. So make up your minds not to prepare your defense in advance; I will give you words and a wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to withstand or contradict. You will be betrayed by parents and brothers, by relative and friends, and they will put some of you to death. You will be hated by all because of my name. But not a hair of your head will perish. By your endurance – you will gain your souls.”
Vision without hope is a dangerous thing, but with hope all things are possible. Another thing we can say here is that we can have hope if we make up our minds beforehand to see the future through Jesus’ eyes. Instead of dwelling solely on the problems and challenges before us, keeping our focus on God’s promises and God’s love lets us view the future with hope and courage.
When Gwenyth Todebush’s 5 year old son, Clark, was anxious at starting kindergarten, Gwenyth taught her son to calm his nerves with daily affirmations, encouraging words to prepare him to face the day with positivity and courage. One morning on their drive to school, Gwenyth mentioned to her son that she was nervous about a meeting that day. Clark, all of 5 years old said, Mom, I’m nervous all the time, but I know what to do.”
He said, “You gotta say your affirmations in your mouth and your heart. You say, “I am brave. I am loved and I smell good today! And you can say it three or four times – maybe even ten, until you believe.”
But Clark wasn’t done. Clark was a big fan of Dolly Parton and Dinosaurs, so he said, “Mom, you gotta walk big. You gotta mean it. Like Dolly on a dinosaur, because you got it.” (5)
That’s what it’s like to prepare yourself beforehand to not be afraid. Clark had hope and courage because he viewed his future through his mom’s eyes. You and I can conquer fear if we practice looking at the future through Christ’s eyes.
Adoniram and Anne Judson sailed to Burma in 1812 to serve as missionaries there. Adoniram spent long, tiresome years translating the Bible into the Burmese language. They served in Burma for 6 years before seeing their first convert. In 1824, Adoniram was accused of spying for the British government. He was thrown into prison where he suffered frequent torture for 20 months. Shortly after his release from prison, his beloved wife Anne died. Then he contracted a lung disease that sapped what little energy he had left. He served in Burma for 37 years until his death. His dedication and joy in spite of his suffering inspired many other people to enter the mission field. He was well known for one particular saying. “The future is as bright as the promises of God.” (6)
When we see the future through Jesus’ eyes, we can say with confidence, “The future is as bright as the promises of God.”
Jesus also tells us that we can have hope in difficult times if we make up our minds beforehand to view hardship as an opportunity to tell about the truth of God. A faith that has been tested is a faith that can be trusted. Hard times and challenges to our faith both serve as testing grounds to dig into what we really believe, whether we truly base our hope on the character and promises of God, and whether we put we put our faith into action even when it costs us something. If our faith is not a source of hope, peace and strength in difficult times, then others have good reason to question whether Jesus is real.
In the country of Yemen, it is a crime to convert from Islam to another religion. So when a man named Ibrahim became a follower of Jesus, he studied his Bible in secret and didn’t tell his family about his newfound faith for four years. Then one day during his prayer time, Ibrahim decided that if Jesus really was God in the flesh, then it didn’t make sense to live in fear any longer. He said, “I was tired of fear, and I asked myself a question: If I believe in Jesus and this is true and He grants me eternity – who should I fear? So if they come to kill me, I am ready to say, ‘Welcome.’”
Ibrahim was baptized in 2002 and shared his faith with his wife and extended family. The family disowned him, Ibrahim’s wife demanded a divorce. But when she saw how Ibrahim’ behavior had become much more respectful of her, she retracted her demand.
Ibrahim established a church in Yemen and led many others to become followers of Jesus. But when local authorities made false accusations against him, he and his family fled Yemen and settled in a neighboring country. There they set up an outreach to Yemeni refugees and they continue to share their faith. (7)
Ibrahim is someone who has made up his mind to use his hardships and trials as an opportunity to tell about the truth of God.
There was once a pastor sitting at the bedside of an elderly parishioner who was dying. The man said, For 87 years, I have been feasting on the promises of God, but this morning, I woke up, and I couldn’t remember a single one of them.”
And the Pastor said, “Don’t worry my friend, God has not forgotten.”
In times of fear and hardship, it is easy to forget the promises of God. When our faith is shaken, when we see news reports of impending or ongoing war, or financial collapse or environmental disasters, it is easy to react with fear, anger and anxiety.
But God has not forgotten God’s promises.
God has not abandoned the Divine purposes.
And God will not forsake God’s people.
Don’t wait until difficult times come to figure out what you believe or how to respond.
Make up your mind beforehand to view trials and hardships as an opportunity to tell about the truth of God.
As Jesus said, “By your endurance – you will gain your souls.”
May God be praised. Amen.
1. Dynamic Preaching, Vol. XXXVIII, No. 3, p 47.
2. Ibid… p 47.
3. Ibid… p 47.
4. Ibid… p 48.
5. Ibid… p 48-49.
6. Ibid… p 49.
7. Ibid… p 49.
