Matthew 24:36-44

"Keep watch" our Savior says.  Jesus wants our complete attention to an important matter.  The reason for this alertness is that we don't know when he will be returning.  The time is unknown.  Only God knows when this event will take place.  Since God has not revealed the time of the Last Day and Jesus' return, it cannot be predicted.  Jesus says, "You do not know on what day your Lord will come."  To insist that we do or can find out is sinful.  However, the uncertainty connected with this lack of knowledge about the Last Day is no reason for carelessness or indifference.  The very opposite is true.  Uncertainty calls for increased watchfulness.  

Jesus says, “The Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.” Human nature likes to postpone things; we procrastinate, putting off things as long as we can.  The dangerous thing is to postpone and procrastinate over things which are important for our souls.  We think, "Perhaps next year or when I get older, I'll be able to devote more time to spiritual matters." or "Maybe tomorrow I'll have more time for my Christian duties and responsibilities."  Jesus says, "Not tomorrow, but today!  Tomorrow or next year may be too late!"

Keeping watch means focusing on Jesus and what he accomplished for our salvation.   It means recognizing that our sins separated us from God, but comforted with the truth that Jesus reconciled us to God by his death for us.  Keeping watch for Jesus’ return means that we confidently anticipate that he is coming to take his believers to be with him in heaven.  Thus we watch and wait for the appearance of our Savior, for then the goal of God's gracious purpose for us will be accomplished.  We will live and reign with the Lord eternally.

1 Corinthians 10:12

In the book, The 19th Hole, author Carol Mann recounts how golf legend Arnold Palmer will never forget the day he lost his footing.

It was the final hole of the 1961 Masters tournament. Palmer had a one-stroke lead and had just hit a satisfying tee shot. As he approached the ball, he saw an old friend standing at the edge of the gallery. He motioned Palmer over, stuck out his hand and congratulated him for the win he was about to secure.

Palmer later said that as soon as he shook his friend’s hand, he knew he was in trouble. After that congratulatory handshake, he lost his mental footing. He hit his ball into a sand trap. Then he put it over the edge of the green. Then he missed a putt. He lost the Masters.

For us as Christians, the temptation can be strong for us to assume that we can coast through our Christianity: We know the Bible stories. We attend church more often than not. We’re on friendly terms with the pastor. After awhile our idea of Christianity can begin to resemble our life insurance policy. It’s nice to know it’s in our filing cabinet if we need it; otherwise we don’t give it much thought.

And that’s when we can lose our footing.

Christianity is not some cultural formality through which we coast. Nor is it some life insurance document we store away for emergencies. Christianity is about our relationship with the One who has rescued us from the guilt of our sin.

Lost your footing? Come to Jesus. Repent. Be renewed in his forgiveness. And remember that your intense need for him never ends. Never!

Matthew 24:26-35

Toward the end of World War II, the people of Warsaw, Poland were picking through the rubble of their city. Bombs and shells had leveled virtually every building, until only a few chimneys remained standing; grotesque and useless obelisks against the iron gray sky. But the Poles looked up in wonder at one wall of a building that was still standing. It was the only remaining wall of the British and Foreign Bible Society. The wall bore a sign with letters that were still clearly legible even after the many bombardments: "Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away."

There will come a day when there will be even greater destruction than any war has inflicted.  On the last day, God will dismantle his created universe: he will extinguish the light of the sun as easily as blowing out a candle; the universe will be taken apart as easily as pulling apart the pieces of jigsaw puzzle.  The Bible says, "The heavens will disappear with a roar" (2 Peter 3:10), "and the sky [will be] rolled up like a scroll." (Isaiah 34:4)  

But Jesus’ Word will not pass away, even when all of creation disintegrates at the command of God.  Just as he said, Jesus will appear, and his coming will not be hidden or secret, but visible to all. It will be as obvious as a lightning flash in the dark of night.  Everyone will see him, even those who pierced him (Revelation 1:7).  Those who rejected him in unbelief will cringe in terror at the sight of him who will appear in the fullness of his divine glory.  But when believers see him on that day, all their hopes will be fulfilled.  The Son of God who had humbled himself for their salvation, shall return in glory and fulfill his promise to take them to be with him in heaven.   Troubles and trials of earthly existence will be left behind and forgotten.  All the time spent worrying about what tomorrow might bring will be over.  Every believer from every corner of the earth, from every age gone by, will be gathered by God’s angels to be with the Lord forever.

For those in Jesus, the end of the world is a door that opens into the infinity of the joy and blessings that he has prepared for them in heaven.  So declares the Word of God that will never pass away.

Luke 13:1-5

Should God see things the same way I do?  I might be tempted to think he should.  Really bad people should be punished more severely.  Really good people should be awarded more generously.  There is only one problem.  When I try to make God into something that makes sense to me, I make God out to be someone that he is not.

The Lord needs to see things from his perspective, and then, act accordingly.  This was Jesus’ point when he addressed those who had questions about the people who experienced tragedies.  The obvious conclusion was that they must have done something really bad to suffer in this way.  Jesus corrects this faulty observation by returning to God’s perspective.

Jesus used words that were simple and direct.  Don’t worry about those who died, rather worry about yourself.  His concluding words were emphatic:  “Repent or perish.”  Jesus offered God’s perspective in a “nutshell.”  He doesn’t fret about who is better or worse.  He doesn’t agonize over which sin is greater or lesser.  His perspective is to the point:  “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 6:23).

God’s perspective is what I need to take to heart.  Instead of worrying if others are really bad, or if they are worse than I am, I need to recognize my personal accountability.  I need to be in a right relationship with God.  I also need to understand its God’s perspective that I be perfect (Matthew 5:48).  God accepts nothing less.

The only way I can be declared perfect is through Jesus.  As I repent of my sin, I need to draw on the holiness he secured for me through his perfect life, his innocent death, and his victorious resurrection.  Then, and only then, can I stand before God as he desires.

Repent or perish.  Looking at my life from God’s perspective is terrifying.  It leaves no room for alternatives or arguments.  This is exactly the way God intended it, and it makes me recognize the undeniable truth:  I am powerless to change my sinful situation;  I am incapable of attaining the perfection God demands; I am in desperate need of a Savior.  Mercifully, God provided that Savior by sending his Son, Jesus Christ.  As I repent of my sin and look to him for forgiveness, I will not perish, but I will have eternal life.

Jeremiah 26:12,13

What do you do when your child runs out into a busy street?  Do you ignore it?  Of course not.  When you see your child run into that busy street, you call her back.  You call her back because you love her.

Our heavenly Father loves us perfectly.  When we sin against him, he calls us back because he knows that sin is always harmful to us.  At first, sin may seem fun, just like playing in a busy street might seem fun at first.  But as long as we play in the street of sin, we are in danger of losing our life – our eternal life.  So, loving Father that he is, God calls us to repentance. 

God has always done this for his people.  In Old Testament times he sent prophets like Jeremiah to call his people to repentance.  Jeremiah told the people of his day, “Now reform your ways and your actions and obey the LORD your God.  Then the LORD will relent and not bring the disaster he has pronounced against you.”  However, instead of heeding God’s warning, the people wanted to put Jeremiah to death.

What will you do when God sends his messenger to warn you about your sin?  He may use a friend, a family member, or a pastor.  Will you attack the messenger rather than listening to the message?  Will you say something like, “Who are you to tell me what to do?  You’re not so perfect yourself!” 

We pray that God forgive us for the times we have not listened to his messengers when they have warned us about our sin.  We pray for God to help us turn from our sin when he calls us to repentance.  And we pray that God grant us the confidence to know that when we turn back to him, he is waiting with open arms and a forgiving heart..

Matthew 24:15-25

In the verses we have for our devotion today, first Jesus is speaking about terrible times that will overcome people living in Jerusalem and the surrounding region.  His reference is probably to the destruction of Jerusalem by Roman legions that took place about 40 years after Jesus ascended into heaven.

His advice for people living in Jerusalem when that horrific event comes was to flee for their lives.  They shouldn’t even take the time to retrieve personal possessions from their homes.  They should just run as fast and as far as they can.  For that reason it would be especially difficult for pregnant women and nursing mothers. 

But Jesus’ warning about the destruction of Jerusalem also points to the end of the world which will be ushered in by times of great distress, too.  In fact, Jesus says that the stress of those final days will be so great that no one would survive.  But in mercy God will cut that time short so that his faithful people are not overcome by the evil times. 
 
Through it all, we must remember that there is no human power that can rescue us from the destruction at the end of the world.  We can’t run fast enough or get away far enough to escape it.  Our only hope is Jesus. He suffered and died to free us from the fear of facing the final day of God’s judgment.   He rescued us from the eternal destruction that we were headed for because of our sin.  He is our Savior through whom we have peace and joy with God – even in these last days..