Luke 17:20-37

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TALKS FOR GROWING CHRISTIANS

Questions about The Kingdom of God

BACKGROUND NOTES



DOCTRINAL POINT(S)

  1. At the First Coming of Christ, the kingdom of God came without signs.

  2. At the Second Coming of Christ, the kingdom of God will come with signs.

PRACTICAL APPLICATION

  1. Remember Lot’s wife!

QUESTIONS

  1. Who does the Lord turn His attention to in this passage and why?

  2. What is the apparent contradiction in this passage, and how can it be resolved?

  3. What dramatic signs did the Pharisees expect to see with the coming of the kingdom?

  4. In what way was the kingdom of God in the midst of the Pharisees?

  5. How is the Second Coming of Christ like the flood in the days of Noah or like the coming of fire and brimstone on Sodom?

ANSWERS

  1. The Lord turns His attention to the Pharisees again because they asked Him about the kingdom of God.

  2. In the Lord’s initial answer to the Pharisees, He said that the kingdom of God was not coming with signs. But in His further teaching to the disciples, the Lord said that the kingdom of God was coming with signs. We must realize that at this point the kingdom of God had been announced and offered and already refused by Israel, because they had rejected the King (see Luke 13:34-35). The kingdom that the Lord was speaking of now was His Second Coming. Until that time, the kingdom of God on earth would be postponed.

  3. Primarily they expected freedom from the yoke and oppression of Rome.

  4. “In your midst” is a better translation than “within you” – since the Pharisees were unbelievers! Jesus Christ, the Person of the King Himself was in their midst, thus the kingdom of God was within their reach.

  5. It will be sudden, unexpected, and catastrophic. People will be carrying on their normal affairs of life, and will not heed the preaching about the coming Kingdom of God.

DISCUSS/CONSIDER

  1. Discuss the important distinction between the Second Coming of Christ and the Rapture of the Church.

  2. At first glance, verses 34-36 seem to be speaking clearly of the Rapture. But when we look closer and seek to be consistent in our interpretation, we see it actually refers to God’s judgment at the Second Coming. Sometimes people can get so hasty in their interpretation that that they will use a passage to prove a point without really checking the context. Discuss the danger in this.

CHALLENGE

  1. Lot’s wife looked back because her heart was in the things of Sodom. In the same way, if we set our hearts on the things of this life, we will lose our life’s purpose, fulfillment, and reward. Remember Lot’s wife!

KEY VERSES

  • “For as the lightning that flashes out of one part under heaven shines to the other part under heaven, so also the Son of Man will be in His day. But first He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.” Luke 17:24-25



Luke, Talks, New TestamentDeb HarmsLuke 17:20-37