Advent One 2016

Matthew 24:36–44

As In The Days of Noah:

36 “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 37 As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; 39 and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 40 Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.
42 “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. 43 But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.

     As I write today I am amazed how lackadaisical even people claiming to follow Christ are about the teachings of Jesus, especially when He makes it clear that His return is going to surprise a lot of people.  Though He has told us about the signs of our time, many continue, as our passage says, to behave in ways much like people did in the days of Noah.  You remember Noah don't you?  He was trying to convince people a huge flood was coming, and he was trying to get people ready for the coming of the flood.  He wanted people to survive this.

     To be sure, no one does know the exact day Jesus will return.  Neither do we know what hour Jesus coming will take place as it escorts some of God's judgment in.  As a matter of fact, if you read today's passage about the Advent of the Lord, you will see that the Angels didn't know about it.  Even Jesus, when He was on this earth, had no idea when He would return to the earth.  But in Matthew 24, Jesus is explaining the signs to us to prepare us.  Again, one of those signs of His coming would be that people would be acting like they did in Noah's day.

    In other words,  people carried on their daily activities of eating and drinking, living out life ignoring that a flood was coming,  and they  really did not  revere God enough to care about what God said was true and important, especially in the area of values. One real  Noah like symptom of the last days that Jesus highlights relates to marriage: People in Noah's time took marriage vows for granted.  So, in Noah's day, people would repeatedly marry, end a marriage and marry again. It was as if vows made to God did not matter. Today divorce, like in Noah's day is epidemic, as it wreaks havoc on the lives of children and grandchildren.

Please let me be clear.  I am not talking about people who are victims of others bad behavior here, such as a spouse who cheats on them.  I am talking about there being an epidemic of people living life without even considering God. I am talking about people habitually being compelled to divorce and remarry or simply ignore God's laws. I am talking about people disregarding God as if God doesn't care about what happens on planet earth.  The philosophy is "eat, drink and be merry. For tomorrow you may die." It's the "you only go around once in life way of thinking."  It is a mindset that holds to a belief we will NOT give an account of our lives.

    Jesus says to His disciples, that when He comes back, people like you and me will be acting just like those folks back then who lived in Noah's time. And then something terrific or terrifying will happen: A bolt from the blue will occur.  A sudden bombshell like event will occur. To some it will be a heavenly blessing.  To others it will be a horrific curse like experience. Some will delight in a resurrection experience; however, for some it will be a belated wake up call.

A Pleasant Surprise - An Astonishing Wake Up Call!

40 Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.

     When Jesus comes,  two men might be working on a farm in the field.  When Jesus calls us to heaven, one will go to be with Him, and one will be left behind. This principle could apply elsewhere; two could be in a factory, one would be taken the other left.  Two could be working I-T. One will be taken out of the computer lab to be with Jesus, and the other would be left.  Two mechanics, carpenters, welders, college professors, sales people and even politicians --even Pastors -- could be together somewhere, someplace sometime, and one will go to be with Jesus.  The other would be left behind.

     This is NOT gender specific.  Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken the other left.  The same principle I described regarding the men applies to women.  The women could also be in anyone of the settings I mentioned in the last paragraph, and in each case, the one waiting for Jesus would be taken.  The other would be left behind. What would make this terrific is that we who are watching and waiting for Jesus return, will go to the greatest family gathering of eternity; however, those left behind will have the terrifying  consequences of living independently from God.

Keep Monitoring The Signs: Keep Waiting

42 “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. 43 But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.

     Jesus makes it clear that, since we do not know the day or the hour, we need to make it a point to watch for Him to return.  He wants us to live in a state of anticipation that He will be back when we are least likely to think He will be back. He wants us to be longing for the return of the lover of our souls who has been gone for a long time.  As stewards of all that God has given us, He makes it very clear, we are to be preparing all things for the true owner of the things we possess.

     Are you watching for Jesus to come back? Or is God not that important to you? Will you be taken up to be with the Lord, when He comes back? Or do you think I am writing about weird things? Mark my words.  Jesus is coming! He came, and He is indeed coming.  He want's to come into your life. God wants you to be "in that number when the saints go marching in."  Jesus has done all that can be done to have you ready.  You and I have to decide to continue in the faith not moved from the hope held out in the gospel. We have to be waiting and watching for Jesus return.  Colossians 1:23b

SoJourner