Day 31 - Be Ready!

Written by: Nathan Boyd 

SCRIPTURE FOCUS
Matthew 24:42-50
42 “So you, too, must keep watch! For you don’t know what day your Lord is coming. 43 Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when a burglar was coming, he would keep watch and not permit his house to be broken into. 44 You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected. 45 “A faithful, sensible servant is one to whom the master can give the responsibility of managing his other household servants and feeding them. 46 If the master returns and finds that the servant has done a good job, there will be a reward. 47 I tell you the truth, the master will put that servant in charge of all he owns. 48 But what if the servant is evil and thinks, ‘My master won’t be back for a while,’ 49 and he begins beating the other servants, partying, and getting drunk? 50 The master will return unannounced and unexpected, 51 and he will cut the servant to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

DEVOTION
I can remember as an older high school student there were a few occasions where my parents would leave me at home by myself while they would go away for the weekend. Typically, they would leave me some money for food and a simple list of chores that they would expect to be done before they returned. Like a stereotypical teenager, I would wait until the absolute last minute to get all the house cleaned, the yard mowed and the list of chores completed. Sometimes I would beat my deadline and other times I would get in trouble for failing to be responsible with the responsibilities I was given. 

In the same way, Jesus is alluding to the responsibility that the disciples will be tasked with upon his departure. Christ lets his disciples know that he will one day return, which we looked at yesterday, but no one knows the day or hour that this will take place. So the message Jesus has for his disciples is “You must be ready, all the time because the Son of Man will come when you least expect it.” Jesus didn’t want his followers to be caught flat-footed, and unprepared for his return. 

Have you ever considered that as a follower of Jesus you have been given responsibilities from your Heavenly Father that you will be held accountable for? As a disciple of Jesus we are not just given the gift of salvation and the inheritance of a heavenly destination, but we have also been called to a higher standard where we live on mission, sharing and living out the good news of Jesus. However, It is easy to get wrapped up in the day-to-day activities that we forget about our responsibilities and fail to be faithful in carrying out the mission. 

No one knows when Jesus will return, but when he does we must be found faithful. To the one that is found faithful there will be a great reward, however, to the one that squanders his responsibilities will be treated as a hypocrite and thrown into a place where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.  

ACTION STEP
As Easter approaches let us be faithful to the relationship that the Lord has placed around us by inviting people to join you at one of our Easter services. If Jesus were to return this year, who in your life would still be lost and in need of salvation, invite them to join you at church on Easter Sunday.

PRAYER TIME
Lord Jesus, thank you for coming the first time to earth and providing the salvation that we needed. Thank you for your death, burial, resurrection, and ascension; but thank you also for your impending return. Lord let me be found faithful upon your return, sharing and living out the gospel.