Luke 12:35-40, “Be dressed in readiness, and keep your lamps lit. Be like men who are waiting for their master when he returns from the wedding feast, so that they may immediately open the door to him when he comes and knocks. Blessed are those slaves whom the master will find on the alert when he comes; truly I say to you, that he will gird himself to serve, and have them recline at the table, and will come up and wait on them. Whether he comes in the second watch, or even in the third, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves. But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have allowed his house to be broken into. You too, be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not expect.”
In Luke 12, Jesus told some parables intended to warn His followers to be ready for His return. The point of each was to address the possibility of a loss of watchfulness and that we needed to be busy about the Master’s work. Christ expects His people to ready, working, and waiting for His return. We may be involved in many things in life, but be sure that we are supposed to be watchers and workers. Whether you are a post-millenialist, amillenialist, dispensationalist, or are now looking in a dictionary to figure out those terms, Jesus is coming back.
For some reason God allows us to play the amateur soothsayer. Given the current circumstances of this world, one might take the liberty of assuming to predict the end times. Incidentally, that has already been done, unsuccessfully, many times. Man will never know the day or hour of Jesus’ return. (Matthew 24:35-37) That fact doesn’t prohibit me from wishing, and even praying, His return would be today. We are simply told to keep our lights burning. Be ready.
For us, leaving a light on is what we do when someone is coming home late at night. A shock of having the last child leave home is that there usually isn’t anyone to wait up for, or to leave a light on for. Anyone who has tried to wait up has experienced the breakdown of falling asleep in those early morning hours while waiting. We usually don’t completely fall asleep; we can’t truly rest until they make it home. Waiting up is exhausting, nerve-racking, and causes issues when trying to function the next day. We still do it. This dynamic exists because we love the one for whom we wait. We are so tightly bound to them that our lives would be changed if they didn’t make it home for some eternal reason. Regardless of where you are on life’s spectrum, we all have someone to wait up for – Jesus.
We live in a world that has lost its objectivity about right and wrong and as a result, what is righteous is defined more by popular opinion than by the wisdom of God. “As long as I have a righteousness of my own, then my actions are excusable to everyone else.” Sadly, man has forsaken love for revenge, and popular opinion for holy judgment. My question for us is very simple, “If Jesus were to return today, what would He find us doing?” I pray it is something productive for His cause, and not the shallow convoluted actions of sinful children.
I have recently asked myself, “Where are the real leaders? Have they left the planet?” I’ve heard many politicians and celebrities talk about famous forefathers like, George Washington, Dr. Martin Luther King, or even the greatest leader of all – Jesus. Their names have been commercialized, misused, and devalued for so long that even the people who claim to be their fellows or followers, have lost the meaning of much of what they have said and lived and died for.
Truth never actually dies. It may be forgotten, or ignored, but that never changes the truth. It remains because it is substantive and absolute. Sometimes it takes the worst circumstances to bring us back to the truth. The cyclic relationship of God and His people in the Old Testament are good examples of the recurring human condition. For some reason we forget what we should already know. It is possible we never knew the truth and that is another discussion for another article. But for the majority of people who are dismayed with the current conditions of society, for those who can’t see why men treat men the way they do, ask yourself very simply “what are we doing?” My simple cure to our problem is given to us all by no less than God Himself:
1 Chronicles 7:13-14, If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people, and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
There was a prayer delivered to the Kansas State Legislature some years ago, but that truth is accurate today. Truth never dies.
“Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask Your forgiveness and to seek Your direction and guidance. “We know Your word says, ‘Woe to those who call evil good,’ but that is exactly what we have done. We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and inverted our values. “We confess that we have ridiculed the absolute truth of Your word in the name of moral pluralism. “We have worshiped other gods and called it ‘multiculturalism.’ “We have endorsed perversion and called it ‘an alternative lifestyle.’ “We have exploited the poor and called it ‘a lottery.’ “We have neglected the needy and called it ‘self-preservation.’ “We have rewarded laziness and called it ‘welfare.’ “In the name of ‘choice,’ we have killed our unborn. “In the name of ‘right to life,’ we have killed abortionists. “We have neglected to discipline our children and called it ‘building esteem.’ “We have abused power and called it ‘political savvy.’ “We’ve coveted our neighbors’ possessions and called it ‘taxes’ “We’ve polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it ‘freedom of expression.’
“We’ve ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called it ‘enlightenment.’ “Search us, oh God, and know our hearts today. Try us, and show us any wicked in us. Cleanse us from every sin, and set us free. “Guide and bless these men and women who have been sent here by the people of Kansas and who have been ordained by You to govern this great state. “Grant them Your wisdom to rule, and may their decisions direct us to the center of Your will. “I ask it in the name of your son, the living savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.”
If you really want to see change in our fellow man, our nation, and in ourselves, we need to stop relying on the infantile promises of people, and politicians, which are almost never kept. We won’t be saved by the power of a legislature, though the eternal wisdom of God would be of infinite value to those who might be trying to do what is right. I can fully understand the guttural reaction to the events we have witnessed on our computers and TVs. It is heartbreaking to realize that one human being can be so cruel to another. This is a graphic of humanity that is unfortunately common to every culture on this planet. To some it is reduced to violent frustration, which doesn’t yield what we really want – CHANGE. The answer won’t be found in the peaceful-protests, looting or rioting some have elected to engage in. It is not found in apathy or hatred or selfishness. Peace is found in the peaceful surrender found in letting God be the author of revenge. (Romans 12:19) The beginning of wisdom and ultimately change is found at the foot of a cross borne for the broken and contrite heart of a people calling out to God. (Palms 51:17)
The only salve for heart of man is found in the soul saving Gospel of Jesus the Christ! Man will always let us down. That is just a fact, not a cynical conclusion. Instead of only standing up for our rights, maybe we should kneel, and pray, and shed tears for the sin that has so profoundly wounded ourselves and our society. We need to practice love and forgiveness, and stop the never-ending cycle of delivering “this” for “that.” I believe in laws and those who break them paying the price. What value or change is achieved when innocent people suffer loss because someone else feels they are right because of a third-party frustration? These are values we should be taught as children, but apparently often are not.
The good news is very simple. As hard as it is to believe in this politically charged world, man can change. The two questions that immediately come to mind are simply, “Will he change?” and “Are we willing to let him?”
If man refuses to change (repent) then our future problems are already here and worsening. If man will change there is hope. I know we can change, but will we.
When Jesus returns, we will all be engaged in something, what will it be? Maybe we will have lived our lives and be summoned from our graves. Our lives will be what we have lived up to our death. For some, life will have been productive and glorious for the honor of God. For others, it will have been a wasted effort chasing the desires and goals of man. (1 Corinthians 1:18-31) What will God find in you on His return? Will the Savior welcome us home, or will He send us away? (Matthew 7:21-23) May all of us be found in His service – loving and glorifying the Son of God. Pray for our country. Pray for ourselves. When he returns, will we be found ready? Godspeed!