Slide 2:
24 “But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light,
25 and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.
26 And then they will see the Son of man coming in clouds with great power and glory.
27 And then he will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.
Slide 3:
Jesus now makes a shift from telling about sacrilege, persecutions and tribulations to a message of hope.
He then describes his return as the conquering king of the universe.
“But in those days,” is an Old Testament phrase associated with the end times (cf. Jer. 3:16, 18; 31:29; 33:15–16; Joel 3:1) .
The sun and moon darkening, not giving off light is another Old Testament image of the end times (Isa. 13:9–10; 24:23; 34:4; Ezek. 32:7–8; Joel 2:10;30–31).
The return of Jesus will not be seen by a few people, it will not be the lead story in the news broadcast, everyone will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds (Dan. 7:13; Mk. 14:62).
Verse 27 “And then he will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.
Slide 4:
The coming of the Son of Man will be cause for great celebration.
When we celebrate don’t we call all our friends together?
The Son of Man will do the same because he wants all of his friends, those on earth and those in heaven to rejoice in his triumph over evil.