Word@Work 162 - Mark 13:35-37
Published: Wed, 07/09/08
Word@Work from BeaconLight
Read Mark 13:35-37 "Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back - whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the cock crows, or at dawn. If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. What I say to you, I say to everyone: 'Watch!' " (NIV)
Calculating the date of the return of Christ may be theologically intriguing, but it is practically irrelevant. If nobody was to be told and Jesus Himself did not know, why has there been a succession of 'end of the world' frenzies? The greatest religious delusion (apart from assuming to be God) is the desire to be in control of the future. It is not only occultists who specialise in prediction; religionists of all flavours do this as well.
Against this background, the words of Jesus remain relevant. Watching for His return is not intended to be a predictive exercise, or even an intensive comparison of Bible verses to arrive at a date. It is simple - it is a confident expectation that He will return and that the event could happen today! The 'watching' is therefore to be accompanied by getting on with the daily business of serving the interests of the Master's business (cf. Luke 19:13). A good test of our state of readiness is to ask, "If I knew that Jesus will come back tomorrow, what will I do today?" If the answer is anything different than you have already decided to do, you are neither ready nor watching!
The times when we are least awake, are the times of greatest vulnerability. Sleeping on the job is not good business practice. Yet many believers go for weeks or even months without any thought that Christ may come today - and live as though He will not! So, Jesus' words to everyone, "Watch!" applies to us as well.
Prayer: Dear Lord. Help me to live today (and every day) as though it may be my last before Jesus returns. May Your Kingdom set my agenda and Your Word guide my behaviour - so that You are glorified in my life and leave me without shame when you come for me. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
You can read more of this Bible passage online - in English and other languages - share the Bible with your friends!
Calculating the date of the return of Christ may be theologically intriguing, but it is practically irrelevant. If nobody was to be told and Jesus Himself did not know, why has there been a succession of 'end of the world' frenzies? The greatest religious delusion (apart from assuming to be God) is the desire to be in control of the future. It is not only occultists who specialise in prediction; religionists of all flavours do this as well.
Against this background, the words of Jesus remain relevant. Watching for His return is not intended to be a predictive exercise, or even an intensive comparison of Bible verses to arrive at a date. It is simple - it is a confident expectation that He will return and that the event could happen today! The 'watching' is therefore to be accompanied by getting on with the daily business of serving the interests of the Master's business (cf. Luke 19:13). A good test of our state of readiness is to ask, "If I knew that Jesus will come back tomorrow, what will I do today?" If the answer is anything different than you have already decided to do, you are neither ready nor watching!
The times when we are least awake, are the times of greatest vulnerability. Sleeping on the job is not good business practice. Yet many believers go for weeks or even months without any thought that Christ may come today - and live as though He will not! So, Jesus' words to everyone, "Watch!" applies to us as well.
Prayer: Dear Lord. Help me to live today (and every day) as though it may be my last before Jesus returns. May Your Kingdom set my agenda and Your Word guide my behaviour - so that You are glorified in my life and leave me without shame when you come for me. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
You can read more of this Bible passage online - in English and other languages - share the Bible with your friends!
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