"So always be ready. You don't know the day your Lord will come. Remember this: If the owner of the house knew what time the thief was coming, then the owner would be ready for him. The owner would watch and not let the thief enter his house. So you also must be ready. The Son of Man will come at a time when you don't expect him."
—Matthew 24:42-44
Key Thought
It is so easy for us to get caught up in all the things that slow us down in life. There are always bills to pay, schedules to keep, struggles to overcome, difficulties to navigate, families to feed, and jobs to do. We can so easily get caught up in the mundane mess of these things that we lose sight of our glorious hope on the horizon. Since it seems so long ago to us that Jesus lived and died, we can easily lull ourselves into thinking that he won't return in our lifetime, much less at any moment. We lose our sense of urgency, passion and expectation. Jesus wants us to always be ready — to live with expectation. He is forever at the door just beyond our boundaries of space and time waiting to usher in his fulfilled Kingdom in power and glory. Our job is not to know the day this will happen, but to be ready any day it may occur and to live our lives full of good deeds and holy anticipation of its certain coming!
Today's Prayer
O Lord and Master, I want to be prepared and waiting when you come. Please quicken my heart with your Spirit so that I can be alert and ready, anticipating your great victory and longing for your great triumph when you come. Father, please also use me to help prepare others with an eagerness and excitement about your Son's return in glory with the mighty angels. May we, the Church of this generation, be ready when the day of victory, rejoicing, and triumph occurs. In Jesus' name. Amen.
Today's Verses in Context
"No person knows when that day or time will be. The Son and the angels in heaven don't know when that day or time will be. Only the Father knows. When the Son of Man comes, it will be the same as the thing that happened during Noah's time. In those days before the flood, people were eating and drinking. People were marrying and giving their children to be married. The people were still doing those things until the day Noah entered the boat. Those people knew nothing about what was happening. But then the flood came and all those people were destroyed. It will be the same when the Son of Man comes. Two men will be working together in the field. One man will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding grain with a mill. One woman will be taken and the other woman will be left. "So always be ready. You don't know the day your Lord will come. Remember this: If the owner of the house knew what time the thief was coming, then the owner would be ready for him. The owner would watch and not let the thief enter his house. So you also must be ready. The Son of Man will come at a time when you don't expect him. "Who is the wise and trusted servant? The master trusts one servant to give the other servants their food at the right time. Who is the servant that the master trusts to do that work? When the master comes and finds that servant doing the work he gave him, the servant will be very happy. I tell you the truth. The master will choose that servant to take care of everything the master owns. But what will happen if the servant is evil and thinks his master will not come back soon? Then that servant will begin to beat the other servants. That servant will eat the food and get drunk with other people like him. Then the master of that servant will come when the servant is not ready. It will be a time when the servant is not expecting the master. Then the master will punish that servant. The master will send him away to be with the hypocrites. And in that placepeople will cry and grind their teeth {with pain}.Matthew 24:36-51
Related Scripture Readings
— 1 Thess. 5:1-9
"Be ready! Be fully dressed and have your lights shining. Be like servants that are waiting for their master to come home from a wedding party. The master comes and knocks. The servants open the door for the master. Those servants will be blessed when their master comes home, because he sees that his servants are ready and waiting for him. I tell you the truth. The master will dress himself for work and tell the servants to sit at the table. Then the master will serve them. — Luke 12:35-37
— Matt. 25:13
Ⓒ 1996-2017 Heartlight, Inc. This material may not be reproduced in part or whole for commercial use without written consent. What Jesus Did! is written by Phil Ware. Easy-to-Read Version copyright © 2001 by World Bible Translation Center. All rights reserved.
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—Matthew 24:42-44
Key Thought
It is so easy for us to get caught up in all the things that slow us down in life. There are always bills to pay, schedules to keep, struggles to overcome, difficulties to navigate, families to feed, and jobs to do. We can so easily get caught up in the mundane mess of these things that we lose sight of our glorious hope on the horizon. Since it seems so long ago to us that Jesus lived and died, we can easily lull ourselves into thinking that he won't return in our lifetime, much less at any moment. We lose our sense of urgency, passion and expectation. Jesus wants us to always be ready — to live with expectation. He is forever at the door just beyond our boundaries of space and time waiting to usher in his fulfilled Kingdom in power and glory. Our job is not to know the day this will happen, but to be ready any day it may occur and to live our lives full of good deeds and holy anticipation of its certain coming!
Today's Prayer
O Lord and Master, I want to be prepared and waiting when you come. Please quicken my heart with your Spirit so that I can be alert and ready, anticipating your great victory and longing for your great triumph when you come. Father, please also use me to help prepare others with an eagerness and excitement about your Son's return in glory with the mighty angels. May we, the Church of this generation, be ready when the day of victory, rejoicing, and triumph occurs. In Jesus' name. Amen.
Today's Verses in Context
"No person knows when that day or time will be. The Son and the angels in heaven don't know when that day or time will be. Only the Father knows. When the Son of Man comes, it will be the same as the thing that happened during Noah's time. In those days before the flood, people were eating and drinking. People were marrying and giving their children to be married. The people were still doing those things until the day Noah entered the boat. Those people knew nothing about what was happening. But then the flood came and all those people were destroyed. It will be the same when the Son of Man comes. Two men will be working together in the field. One man will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding grain with a mill. One woman will be taken and the other woman will be left. "So always be ready. You don't know the day your Lord will come. Remember this: If the owner of the house knew what time the thief was coming, then the owner would be ready for him. The owner would watch and not let the thief enter his house. So you also must be ready. The Son of Man will come at a time when you don't expect him. "Who is the wise and trusted servant? The master trusts one servant to give the other servants their food at the right time. Who is the servant that the master trusts to do that work? When the master comes and finds that servant doing the work he gave him, the servant will be very happy. I tell you the truth. The master will choose that servant to take care of everything the master owns. But what will happen if the servant is evil and thinks his master will not come back soon? Then that servant will begin to beat the other servants. That servant will eat the food and get drunk with other people like him. Then the master of that servant will come when the servant is not ready. It will be a time when the servant is not expecting the master. Then the master will punish that servant. The master will send him away to be with the hypocrites. And in that placepeople will cry and grind their teeth {with pain}.Matthew 24:36-51
Related Scripture Readings
— 1 Thess. 5:1-9
"Be ready! Be fully dressed and have your lights shining. Be like servants that are waiting for their master to come home from a wedding party. The master comes and knocks. The servants open the door for the master. Those servants will be blessed when their master comes home, because he sees that his servants are ready and waiting for him. I tell you the truth. The master will dress himself for work and tell the servants to sit at the table. Then the master will serve them. — Luke 12:35-37
— Matt. 25:13
Ⓒ 1996-2017 Heartlight, Inc. This material may not be reproduced in part or whole for commercial use without written consent. What Jesus Did! is written by Phil Ware. Easy-to-Read Version copyright © 2001 by World Bible Translation Center. All rights reserved.