Wednesday 31 Oct 2018

October 31: Matthew 24:42-51

Key Verse: Matthew 24:44
So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.

Devotion:
Have you ever thought about what it is that we should be watching for? Should we be watching for something to happen or should we be watching for signs or what? Well, the answer is that if we sit and watch for the signs, it will be too late. Just as if we were sitting at home watching for signs of a burglar; when we see any signs, we know that the burglar is already there... a bit too late!

We know the average lifespan of humans and we know we are human, ergo we roughly know our own lifespan. When we look at our lifespan in comparison to the age of the earth we know we are but a bump in the night of the life of the earth. Yet God wants each one of us to be vigilant and watch. There is no way we can watch for signs because His return may be tomorrow, or it may be many generations away. What we can watch, though, is ourselves. At last, a perfect fit. I live this long, and I have to watch that same number of years! We need to watch ourselves and make sure we are the ones who are ready!

To watch for Christ’s coming is to maintain a state of mind wherein we are willing to have Him find us in the state that we are in! If you know a friend is coming round, you will normally make an effort to get ready so you are presentable for their arrival. We should not be treating our life with any difference to that type of situation. We know Christ is coming. We know we should be ready for His arrival. We know our lives should be at a stage where we would be proud to have Him arrive and see us in... We just need to do it now!

What would you do if someone were to arrive on your doorstep unannounced? Well, that would depend on what state you are in at the time. If it were someone important and you were still in your pyjamas, then you may well be embarrassed... We need to be ready... So watch what you yourself are doing in your life right now...

Points to Ponder:
Are you normally well prepared?

Are you ready for God or for the world?