Easter is 10 Sundays from now.
USUALLY, when there isn’t a pandemic going on, we begin preparing in earnest for Easter about 10 weeks prior to the big event.
Of course, long before January we have typically signed the football field rental agreement, and we’ve reserved the staging and chairs that we will need for Gilmer County’s biggest Easter morning event.
But usually, it is about this time when our team leaders start meeting together. We start planning for theme, communication, songs, setup, signage, greeting, coffee, parking, decision follow-up, and lots of other factors. We start early, because Easter is a big event, and there is always much work to be done. We are careful to prepare as thoroughly as we possibly can.
What is something in your life that you have to prepare in advance for?
“Be dressed for service and keep your lamps burning, as though you were waiting for your master to return from the wedding feast. Then you will be ready to open the door and let him in the moment he arrives and knocks. The servants who are ready and waiting for his return will be rewarded. I tell you the truth, he himself will seat them, put on an apron, and serve them as they sit and eat! He may come in the middle of the night or just before dawn. But whenever he comes, he will reward the servants who are ready.
-Jesus, Luke 12:35-40 NLT
“Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when a burglar was coming, he would not permit his house to be broken into. You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.”
Jesus gives us his vision for our future. Do we Christians today live like we have his vision for the future? Why, or why not?
Do you remember the Greek word for “dressed for action?” It is pronounced zone-noo-me. It means to gird yourself… To be ready. The idea is to “roll up your sleeves,” or to have your “ducks in a row.”
In light of this, and of what we talked about on Sunday, what does it mean for me and you to be dressed for action, ready for the return of the hero?
In what ways do we have our house in order? In what ways do we not?
After Peter asks for clarification on this illustration, Jesus fills out his thoughts on this vision for us:
A faithful, sensible servant is one to whom the master can give the responsibility of managing his other household servants and feeding them. If the master returns and finds that the servant has done a good job, there will be a reward. I tell you the truth, the master will put that servant in charge of all he owns. But what if the servant thinks, ‘My master won’t be back for a while,’ and he begins beating the other servants, partying, and getting drunk? The master will return unannounced and unexpected, and he will cut the servant in pieces and banish him with the unfaithful.
Luke 12:42–48 (NLT)
“And a servant who knows what the master wants, but isn’t prepared and doesn’t carry out those instructions, will be severely punished. But someone who does not know, and then does something wrong, will be punished only lightly. When someone has been given much, much will be required in return; and when someone has been entrusted with much, even more will be required.
What should be the attitude and actions of the faithful, sensible servant?
What has God entrusted to you as His manager?
Jesus describes the servant who becomes self-absorbed… taking advantage of being in the wealthy household. How do we do this today?
Jesus says “when someone has been given much, much will be required in return.” What do you think this means for you?
What distracts us from our certain future, and gives us a bad vision… Or, what keeps us from living the better vision that Jesus has for us?
What needs to happen for you to live ready for Jesus’ return this week? What changes need to take place in your family? Your job? Your school? Your neighborhood?
Close in prayer, asking God to help you convey to those who do not know Jesus the urgency of responding to the gospel. Also, confess to God the things that distract you from living in expectation of Him, and ask Him for the strength and conviction to live each day alert to His return.