King Jesus gave His disciples everything they needed to know to live with the end in mind. What He didn’t give them was a date and time. Rather, he exhorts them, and believers of all ages, to live with the characteristics of watchfulness built into their hearts and minds. Sleep can come upon us all, but life as a servant-disciple is a life of readiness.

In this, the longest discourse of Jesus in the Gospel of Mark, He unpacks the events that are yet to come for the King and His Kingdom. The disciples had questions, and we have questions too. Though not every detail may be answered to their, or our, satisfaction, Jesus does clearly give us what we need to know. The King with return! But what will happen, and when will it happen? This week and next week our exposition answers those questions.

The Olivet Discourse (chapter 13 of Mark’s gospel) is sandwiched between Jesus’ controversies with the religious authorities in chapters 11-12 and the events surrounding his trial, crucifixion, death and resurrection in chapters 14-16. Chapter 13 focuses us on the end of redemptive history—it is all eschatological.
In fact, Jesus, tells us about a future time that he says is the worst time the world will ever know. It’s a time that will involve horrible evil, suffering, persecution, death, and judgement.