Be Ready
Luke 12:40 “You too, be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not expect.”
This parable is found in both the Gospel according to Luke and Matthew. In Matthew, Jesus is preparing His disciples for what’s next. But here’s my honest take: I don’t think the disciples are ready for what’s next.
What’s next, you ask? His eventual death. And then…the waiting. Yet Jesus still says to them, and even to us, “be ready.”
Do me a favor, read Luke 12:35–48. It’s the telling of the parable of the faithful and unfaithful servant. Jesus, in this story, makes clear the difference between a faithful servant who prepares the home and one who tries to see what he can get away with.
To be ready is not to sit around waiting for the Lord. Waiting is active. It’s an active approach to the Lord’s return. It’s like preparing for a vacation to your favorite destination. It won’t just happen. It takes planning, saving, and preparation. But you don’t when it’s going to happen.
Here’s the thing: when we make Jesus our treasure, the waiting isn’t this agony that we sometimes see portrayed. Yes, following Jesus will involve suffering. But there’s also the greatest joy your heart could ever experience. Life becomes like a child discovering ice cream for the first time. It’s pure joy in the heat of summer.
And yet, Jesus is worth every bit of effort we make to prepare for His eventual return.
There was a video interview with Bono (yes, from U2) and the late Eugene Peterson. In this conversation, Peterson commented on how often leaders treat God’s people as a means to accomplish a mission. He said this: the people of God aren’t part of a mission, they are the mission (paraphrased).
I think we need to be reminded of this. You are not simply on mission with Jesus. YOU ARE the mission. Yes, the waiting will take work, but God is also longing to form you in that waiting. Your time here on earth is for the formation of your heart to become more like Jesus each day.
G. Campbell Morgan, a British evangelist, preacher, and leading Bible teacher who died in 1945, explains that the parable of the faithful and unfaithful servant reveals our heart toward the church community.
He comments on how brothers and sisters do not treat each other as they ought to, sometimes even profiting off one another. That is what the unfaithful servant is like.
But the faithful servant? No, he does something else.
[He or she is] “caring for all the other members of the household during the Lord’s absence, for the sake of the absent Lord.” — G. Campbell Morgan
The faithful servant cares for those in the household of the Lord. Men and women caring for one another. The greatest investments we can make are the ones that will be eternal. And there is nothing more eternal than investing in people. Part of our responsibility is to care for one another. Yes, we are given responsibility for our fellow brothers and sisters in the faith.
Can I leave you with a challenge?
Invest in what’s eternal, Invest in God’s people. In our gatherings, encourage one another. In your private times in prayer with God, pray for one another. And even in your generosity, share your resources with one another.
That is what the Kingdom of God looks like: God’s people caring for one another.
Go “get ready” for our Master is on His way!
