Mark 12:32-37

Mark 12:32-37  “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.  Be on guard!  Be alert! You do not know when that time will come.  It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with his assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch.  “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 rooster 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!’” 

Be on guard!  Be alert!  Watch!  Jesus is warning his followers always to be ready, always to have their lamps lit, never to be in the dark about Jesus Christ's soon return.  Why is He so emphatic about the need to be prepared, to know the day, the hour?  Jesus knows that everyone who is not prepared to meet God will face horrific judgment, of which no man can conceive.  He understands God's wrath on sin.  He knows that his second coming will usher in that final time of judgment, so He is telling his followers always to be prepared for the Judgment Day.  How can we be prepared for his second coming?  Are we always to be looking in the sky for his soon arrival?  Two thousands years have passed since He gave these admonitions.  What must our preparation be?  

Yes, we should always be prepared.  Not only should our lives be ready for his second coming, our lives should be lived as if He is in the room right now.  We should always live our lives as if Christ is in the room, for He surely is here in the form of the Holy Spirit.  When we put our trust in Jesus Christ, we have his presence in the likeness of the Holy Spirit who dwells within every Christian.  Because of our faith in Jesus Christ, we have eternal life resident within us.  And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.  He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.  (1 John 5:11-12)  Eternal life with God means you are right with God, and to be right with God means you are righteous, and we know only one person completely pleased God and that was Jesus Christ.  So, when you place your faith in Jesus, and when you claim his sacrifice as yours, you become righteous in the sight of God, for you are washed by the blood of the Lamb.  However, our lives must be lived as a sacrifice to God.  We no longer claim our will, to live our lives as we want in the flesh; we  claim God's will, his life.  We seek his will.  We don't go to sleep and go on autopilot, doing the will of the flesh.  No, we stay alert: praying, meditating, praising God, seeking his face, doing good, sacrificing our will, forgiving our enemies, walking the second mile, looking in every way to emulate God.  Do not let him find you sleeping.   

The Bible says the unredeemed are dead in trespasses and sins. They are worse off than just sleeping.  For them it is not a matter of knowing the day or the hour of Jesus' returning.  It will not matter whether they scurry around the house to make it look better, for the Master will come for those He knows, his own.  He will come for those who were looking for him earlier in their lives, who invited him into their hearts as their Lord and Master.  He will be coming for those who experienced his death vicariously, for those who gave up their lives for his life when they had the opportunity.  We always should be looking for his second coming, but most of all we should accept his first coming into our hearts.  Jesus came to Earth so that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life with him.  When we accept his first coming, we will be ready.  Then our judgment will go before us in the form of Jesus Christ's death on the cross, so Jesus' coming will be a homecoming not a judgment day.  What a glorious day that will be!