You Too, Be Ready
Luke 12:41-48
September 22, 2019
As you know, we are currently in the middle of a sermon our Lord preached and one that we called at the beginning,
“The Sermon on the Crowd”
It was a sermon preached by Jesus on an occasion when such a large crowd approached that they were literally stepping on one another.
We also said that it is a sermon that has a bit of a random feel
Because Jesus is sort of addressing what is going on around Him.
We’ve seen two of those issues.
1) INSPIRED BY A GROWING CROWD
This is where Jesus saw the crowd and then began to address His disciples about the realities of ministry.
He gave 3 truths before He was interrupted
And then last week we listened as He gave a 4th.
• Don’t Fake Piety
• Don’t Fear Persecution
• Don’t Fret Rejection
• Don’t Fall Asleep
It was all good advice to the disciples about ministering in this world.
Of course, as we noted, in the middle of that sermon He was interrupted by a man who wanted Jesus to serve as a sort of civil judge on his behalf.
2) INSPIRED BY A GREEDY REQUEST
And in response to that man’s request the Lord taught us
All about greed and worry and the dangers associated with it.
But as we said, after addressing that issue
He returned to remind His disciples to do all that they do
With a view to the second coming and the impending judgment.
And that is where we left off last week.
Jesus told us to BE READY.
It is foolish to live like there will be no judgment at the end of this life.
And yet so many are so eager to do just that.
Perhaps you are aware of various views of eschatology
And of how people choose to interpret prophetic promises by the Lord.
In recent years there has been a dramatic rise
In what is known as the PRETERIST VIEW.
Preterism comes from a Latin word that means “PAST” in regard to time.
And basically believes all the promises have already been fulfilled in the past.
The preterist view was formed because of
An inability to rationalize a few basic texts of Scripture.
Texts like:
Matthew 10:23 “But whenever they persecute you in one city, flee to the next; for truly I say to you, you will not finish going through the cities of Israel until the Son of Man comes.”
Matthew 16:28 “Truly I say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.”
Matthew 24:34 “Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.”
Or even
Revelation 1:3 “Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near.”
Preterists basically listened to the voice of scoffers who read those verses and then said, “Ha! Jesus must have been wrong because He did not return “soon” or in the lifetime of the disciples.”
And in an attempt to gain understanding to those promises
The preterist view concluded that all of those promises
Must have already been fulfilled.
Now I must point out to you that Peter answered those scoffers for us. We don’t have to get into some verbal wrangling with them.
2 Peter 3:3-10 “Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own lusts, and saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation.” For when they maintain this, it escapes their notice that by the word of God the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and by water, through which the world at that time was destroyed, being flooded with water. But by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day. The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.”
Peter told us NOT TO get discouraged or frustrated
By scoffers who question the return of the Lord.
But those who fell into the Preterist camp did just that.
Basically the Preterist view says this:
That all the prophetic promises of the Bible, including those of our Lord, and those of the book of the Revelation have already been fulfilled. They were fulfilled in the past.
The date chosen by Preterists is A.D. 70 when Jerusalem was destroyed.
And just to be clear, here is what they believe:
• The tribulation
• The Second Coming
• The Millennial Reign
• IT HAS ALL ALREADY HAPPENED.
According to their view,
• When Jesus talked about hell, He was talking about the events around A.D. 70 and the destruction of the temple.
• When Jesus talked about returning, it was a spiritual or symbolic return fulfilled in the church, which now represents His kingdom.
According to this view,
• There is no more view to a second coming (it already happened),
• There is no coming judgment of the world.
• This world will last as long as we take care of it.
• Satan, sin and death are as defeated as they’re ever going to be,
• And when you die you just go to heaven.
In our day perhaps you can see how this view conveniently fits a worldview that:
• Hates the notion of Lordship and Jesus physically reigning
• Caters to the whims of society
• Finds a way to make environmentalism a mission from God
• Eliminates the fear of a coming judgment
• And kills all Christian incentive for holy living
• And encourages people simply to make their best life now
(And, incidentally, it would shock you if I read a list of people to you who have at least in part bought into that view.)
But I promise you this view is on the rise.
It seems to blatantly overlook the heresies of Hymenaeus and Philetus:
2 Timothy 2:16-18 “But avoid worldly and empty chatter, for it will lead to further ungodliness, and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, men who have gone astray from the truth saying that the resurrection has already taken place, and they upset the faith of some.”
It seems to blatantly overlook Paul’s 2nd letter to the Thessalonians:
2 Thessalonians 2:1-4 “Now we request you, brethren, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, that you not be quickly shaken from your composure or be disturbed either by a spirit or a message or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God.”
And it seems to blatantly miss promises in Scripture like those in the book of Acts
Acts 1:10-11 “And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was going, behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them. They also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven.”
Rather what we have here is a view
That has been forged out of intellectual argument
And then adopted by a culture that is quite eager
To remove the threat of a coming King
And Judge who will require all men to give an account.
It is a tragic view that is quickly on the rise today.
And you simply need to know where the battle ground may soon be,
Even in the church.
WE MAY VERY SOON FIND OURSELVES FIGHTING THE BATTLE
FOR THE PROMISE THAT JESUS WILL COME AGAIN.
AND IT IS A STAND WE WILL TAKE.
WE ARE NOT THOSE who are willing to relegate the entire Bible to just some history lesson immediate applicable to only a few who lived 2,000 years ago.
WE ARE THOSE who watch in faith for Jesus to fulfill His promises exactly as He said He would.
We believe that the Son of Man will come in the clouds
And every eye will see Him and the dead in Christ will rise
And Christ will in fact destroy this earth with fire and judgment.
He said He would, and we refuse to spiritualize those promises away.
What is more, passages like Luke 12 have basically no meaning to us
If all Jesus spoke of was being ready for A.D. 70.
No, we believe that His promises and His warnings still hold true
And that just as He told us last week:
Luke 12:40 “You too, be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not expect.”
I bring that up to you this morning for a couple of reasons.
1) The church must be on the alert. We are the pillar and support of the truth and therefore we are mandated to stand against prevailing error.
2) The text we study this morning would fit well in addressing this argument based upon the question that Peter asks.
(41) “Peter said, “Lord, are You addressing this parable to us, or to everyone else as well?”
This interjection by Peter represents the 3rd turn in our sermon.
We saw the first 2.
• Inspired by a Growing Crowd
• Inspired by a Greedy Request
• Now we see: Inspired by a General Concern
Peter wants to know who this message is for.
• Is this just for the disciples or is this warning for the entire crowd?
• Is this just for those alive before A.D. 70 or do people alive today need to hear it?
What we see here is Jesus answering the question of Peter.
In our text this morning Jesus is going to answer Peter’s question
By giving us a reminder about being ready.
And just to go ahead and give you the answer at the outset,
Jesus is going to show Peter that the statements He made about being ready must be applied personally, by every single person.
You cannot just apply these warnings generally,
They must be applied personally.
You must be ready.
I must be ready.
WE ARE REMINDED THAT WHEN OUR LORD TOLD US
WHO SHOULD PAY ATTENTION TO THIS WARNING,
HE DID NOT LIMIT IT EVEN TO THAT GENERATION.
HE LEFT THE WARNING OPEN FOR ALL MEN.
Don’t read the promises of Jesus’ return with a telescope
Where you just want to tell everyone else to be ready.
Read the promises of the return of Jesus with a mirror
Where you ask whether or not you are ready for His return.
That’s the answer.
Now in giving that answer Jesus will introduce us to 4 slaves.
And as we examine them you will undoubtedly be able
To find yourself operating in one of these 4 capacities.
Now, I must be honest at the outset and tell you that
• Only 1 of these 4 slaves is actually saved.
• So if you find yourself living like one of the other 3 then know at the outset that repentance is in order.
But we’re going to look at these 4 slaves and then we must each personally evaluate our own lives.
#1 THE NOBLE SLAVE
Luke 12:42-44
Peter wanted to know, “Lord, are You addressing this parable to us, or to everyone else as well?”
Here is how Jesus answers:
“Who then is the faithful and sensible steward..?”
We see first and foremost from our Lord here
What sort of qualities He is looking for in His slaves or servants.
He is looking for those who are “faithful”
And for those who are “sensible”
“faithful” is the Greek word PISTOS
It means “trustworthy” or “believing”
It is very close akinned to PISTEUO which is our word for “believe”
Jesus is looking then very simply for a slave
Who believes in Him and is faithful to Him.
“Sensible” is the Greek word PHRONIMOS (fron-ee-moss)
It means wise, or intelligent, or prudent.
You’ve seen it before.
Remember Jesus story about the wise and foolish home builders?
Matthew 7:24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock.”
Remember the parable about the virgins?
Matthew 25:1-2 “Then the kingdom of heaven will be comparable to ten virgins, who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. “Five of them were foolish, and five were prudent.”
We are talking then about wisdom.
And as we have said many times before, “Wisdom is not what you know. Wisdom is what you do with what you know.”
• A foolish man may be very smart, and may know a lot of facts, but if he does not apply those facts to his own life, he is a fool.
• A wise man takes what he knows to be true and acts on it.
That is what Jesus is looking for here in a servant.
He wants one that believes Him, is faithful to Him,
And who does what He is told.
And the reason He wants an obedient slave is because he has a job:
“his master will put him in charge of his servants to give them their rations at the proper time”
So the master had entrusted this slave to faithfully feed the other slaves.
There was a job entrusted to him.
The master wanted the slave to faithfully care for the other slaves.
And the master wants a slave who is faithful and sensible to do that job.
And to that Jesus says:
(43-44) “Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes. “Truly I say to you that he will put him in charge of all his possessions.”
The key point to be made here is that when the master comes back,
If that slave was found to have been faithful to his job
Then Jesus says that slave is “Blessed”
And to that end there will be a reward.
“Truly I say to you that he will put him in charge of all his possessions.”
And this promise isn’t just given here.
We see this type of promise from Jesus all over His preaching ministry.
• In Matthew 25 the slave who was faithful with 5 talents received 5 more;
the slave who was faithful with 2 talents received 2 more.
• Also in Matthew 25, the people who were faithful to care for the least of
these. Jesus will say, (34) “Come, you who are blessed of My Father,
inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.”
• In Luke 19 the slaves who were faithful with their “mina” (100 days wages)
each received cities corresponding to their level of faithfulness.
It is the common referred to promise by the Lord
That when He returns He will reward those slaves
Who believed He would come and who, because of that belief,
Lived in a faithful manner wisely doing what He told them to do.
THAT IS THE NOBLE SLAVE.
When the Lord told them what to do and how to live they do it.
And when the Lord returns He will reward them.
All we have to do is reminisce in our minds to the commands of Jesus.
• Commands regarding benevolence…
• Commands regarding evangelism and preaching…
• Commands regarding His church…
• Commands regarding the governing authorities…
• Commands regarding our enemies or our persecutors…
• Commands regarding our families…
Those who truly believe Christ will return
• And who believe that they will give an account
• And who are wise enough to obey those commands
• And who strive to be found faithful to His commands when He comes.
That is a saved slave. That is a noble slave.
And that slave gets rewarded by the master.
But unfortunately not all slaves are noble.
#2 THE NASTY SLAVE
Luke 12:45-46
And here we talk of a nasty slave, not so much in reference to a dirty body, but in reference to a wicked, brutal, defiant spirit.
Look at this slave.
(45) “But if that slave says in his heart, ‘My master will be a long time in coming,’ and begins to beat the slaves, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk;”
Obviously this slave is not a good man.
Forget his lack of faithfulness,
He is flat out defiant of the things of the master.
He is described as one who “begins to beat the slaves, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk;”
• That is not a nice man or a good man.
• That is not a man who shows any affinity for Christ’s church at all.
• He doesn’t love the church
• He doesn’t serve the church
• He brutally attacks the church.
He isn’t concerned about holiness or faithfulness,
He is concerned only for the flesh.
Eating and drinking and drunkenness or his desire.
He is anything but faithful,
He is actually better spotted as an enemy of the church.
And certainly we see people like that in our world today.
• They aren’t just negligent of the church, they are militant against her.
• They hate the church.
• They persecute the church.
• They want the flesh and they hate the church for standing against them.
That is a wicked and vile slave.
They are the type of slave that would go around chanting “Not my master”
They would be like those Jesus spoke of in John 3
John 3:19-20 “This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. “For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.”
• They hate Christ.
• They hate the thought of His rule.
• They hate the thought of His return.
• They hate the slaves that follow Him.
• They want nothing to do with Christ at all.
But listen, just because they don’t submit to Christ
DOES NOT MEAN He is not their Lord and Master.
He is in fact Lord of all.
All men were created by Him and for Him.
And when He returns they will give an account for their nasty behavior.
(46) “the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know, and will cut him in pieces, and assign him a place with the unbelievers.”
First let me remind you of
The REPEATED PRINCIPLES which we learned last week.
The master is coming, but again you notice how.
“on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know”
We saw that last week didn’t we?
• Remember, His coming will be like a thief, and the whole point is that you don’t know when a thief is coming.
In the Olivet Discourse Jesus said:
Matthew 24:36-44 “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. “For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah. “For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the coming of the Son of Man be. “Then there will be two men in the field; one will be taken and one will be left. “Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one will be left. “Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming. “But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into. “For this reason you also must be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will.”
• Jesus said His coming would be SUDDEN like the days of Noah.
• And He said His coming would be SUPRISING like a thief.
Well clearly that is how Jesus returns to this nasty, wicked slave.
But perhaps the MORE SHOCKING reality in this verse
Is what Jesus says that He will do to that evil, defiant slave.
He “will cut him in pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers.”
That verse should be added to the book entitled
“Things people can’t believe Jesus actually said”
He said that when He returns
He will take that wicked slave and “cut him in pieces”
That isn’t just death; that is mutilation.
It reminds us of the story in the book of Judges (19)
• About the man whose concubine was raped and killed in the city of Gibeah
• And so he cut her up into 12 pieces and sent her body to the 12 tribes of Israel
• And they were so appalled that they nearly completely destroyed the tribe of
Benjamin for what they did.
What Jesus says here is drastic and severe and appalling.
It speaks volumes to His views on rebellion and defiance.
Those men who refuse to bow to Christ or to serve Him,
But who instead attack His bride
Will be slaughtered by the Lord when He comes.
And then…he will “assign them a place with unbelievers”
That is, after they are cut in pieces
He will then send them to hell for all eternity
Where the worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.
And again, this isn’t the only place Jesus references this slave.
Remember those who were not faithful to care for the least of these?
Matthew 25:41 “Then He will also say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels;”
Remember the slave who was unfaithful with the talents the master had given him?
Matthew 25:30 “Throw out the worthless slave into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
Remember the parable of the wedding feast how the king invited all the men of the city, but they didn’t want to come?
Matthew 22:5-7 “But they paid no attention and went their way, one to his own farm, another to his business, and the rest seized his slaves and mistreated them and killed them. “But the king was enraged, and he sent his armies and destroyed those murderers and set their city on fire.”
Remember the vineyard renters who killed the vineyard owners son in Jesus parable? Jesus asked what will the vineyard owner do when He returns?
Matthew 21:41 “They said to Him, “He will bring those wretches to a wretched end, and will rent out the vineyard to other vine-growers who will pay him the proceeds at the proper seasons.”
The point?
• You don’t want to be a defiant slave.
• Do not be one who attacks the servants of this master.
The Noble Slave, The Nasty Slave
#3 THE NEGLIGENT SLAVE
Luke 12:47
Now there are also some things you need to know about this slave.
First of all, like the first 2, he was also obligated to serve the master.
Every man has that obligation and this one was no different.
Secondly, you should see that he knew that.
“And that slave who knew his master’s will”
He knew who his master was, and he knew what His master wanted.
He was not ignorant.
What was his problem? HE WAS NEGLIGENT.
“and did not get ready or act in accord with his will”
He knew who the master was and he knew what the master wanted,
He just didn’t do it.
Now, it doesn’t say anything about him being a brutally cruel man.
• It doesn’t say anything about him beating slaves.
• It doesn’t say anything about him getting drunk.
• It doesn’t say anything about him being vile in his behavior.
He just didn’t do what the master told him to do.
He wasn’t mean-spirited, he was negligent; he was lazy.
And as a result of knowing what to do and not doing it,
Jesus said he “will receive many lashes”
The master DOESN’T cut him in pieces,
But the master DOES severely discipline him.
It is the picture of the slave being tied to a post and whipped repeatedly for his failure to do what he was commanded.
We see them in Scripture too:
Luke 14:15-20 “When one of those who were reclining at the table with Him heard this, he said to Him, “Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!” But He said to him, ” A man was giving a big dinner, and he invited many; and at the dinner hour he sent his slave to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come; for everything is ready now.’ “But they all alike began to make excuses. The first one said to him, ‘I have bought a piece of land and I need to go out and look at it; please consider me excused.’ “Another one said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to try them out; please consider me excused.’ “Another one said, ‘I have married a wife, and for that reason I cannot come.’”
Do you see that they were just distracted?
• They had other things that were of priority.
• They had other things that mattered more.
Sure the master gave a list of things they were to do,
It’s just that their own agenda was more important than the masters.
They had not learned the realities of submission to their Lord.
They did their own thing.
Many in our world fall into this category.
Matthew 24:37-39 “For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah. “For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the coming of the Son of Man be.”
They are people who just are busy carrying on with the things of life.
• They are not concerned about the will of the master.
• They are not concerned about His glory or His kingdom.
• They are concerned about their own comforts and glory and kingdom.
As I have said before, I say again,
And I continue to beat this drum perhaps for the rest of my life.
WE HAVE SO MANY EVEN IN THE CHURCH
WHO GIVE PRIORITY TO EVERYTHING BUT CHRIST.
What do you suppose you will tell Him when He returns?
• When He asks you why you did not gather with the saints in worship…
• When He asks you why you did not evangelize the lost…
• When He asks you why you did not care for the poor…
• When He asks you why you did not spend time in prayer…
What will you tell Him?
• I had to work.
• I had football practice.
• I had a basketball game.
• I bought a field and had to look at it
• I bought some oxen and had to work them out
• I married a wife and had to spend time with her
Do any of those things make you a bad person? No, not necessarily.
But none of them are your primary calling.
“And that slave who knew his master’s will and did not get ready or act in accord with his will, will receive many lashes”
Negligence is not what the Lord looks for in a slave.
He is looking for faithfulness and sensibility. This slave had neither.
And by the way, this slave is a lost slave.
Any service they gave to the master was merely lip service and for show.
They are NOT reckoned here with the noble slaves who receive reward.
The Noble Slave, The Nasty Slave, The Negligent Slave
#4 THE NAÏVE SLAVE
Luke 12:48a
“but the one who did not know it, and committed deeds worthy of a flogging, will receive but a few.”
So this is yet another slave.
This one didn’t serve the master either, but HE HAS A REASON.
He didn’t know the master and he didn’t know what he wanted.
Please note that ignorance of God’s requirements
Does not nullify those requirements.
This slave is still lost and this slave is still flogged,
Just not as severely as the slave who knew better
Or as the slave who attacked the church.
This slave will still spend eternity in hell,
But here we also learn the important truth that
THERE WILL BE DEGREES OF TORMENT IN HELL.
And the level of torment is determined by one’s level of knowledge.
The more you know, the more severe the punishment.
Now some would say, “Well it’s not fair that he gets flogged at all. He didn’t know what to do so how can Christ flog him for it?”
That answer is given in Romans 1
Romans 1:18-20 “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.”
The fact is that this slave did not know the requirements
But the reason is because he did not want to know.
It is NOT as though the master kept himself secret.
The master painted evidence of Himself all over creation.
• It should have been obvious to this slave that this world didn’t create itself.
• It should have been obvious to this slave that there was something bigger going on here than just his own ambitions.
The problem is that this slave suppressed that truth and never took it upon himself to ask who the Master was, or what He might want.
He was naïve to think that no one was watching
Or that no one cared how he lived.
You could even look to Romans 2 and see that this master had given him a conscience.
Romans 2:14-16 “For when Gentiles who do not have the Law do instinctively the things of the Law, these, not having the Law, are a law to themselves, in that they show the work of the Law written in their hearts, their conscience bearing witness and their thoughts alternately accusing or else defending them, on the day when, according to my gospel, God will judge the secrets of men through Christ Jesus.”
• Where did they get this conscience?
• Where did they get this inner sense of right and wrong?
• Surely they should have realized that someone greater than them was at work.
They didn’t know because they didn’t want to know
And thus they deserve judgment.
They are without excuse.
And he will be flogged for their failure to serve the master.
And that is the first point that must be recognized.
• Those who serve the master faithfully get rewarded.
• Those who do not serve the master get punished.
But also we learn that the level of recompense
Is determined by level of exposure to the truth.
(48b) “From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.”
Now do you see how the Lord answered Peter’s question?
“Lord, are You addressing this parable to us, or to everyone else as well?”
Jesus’ answer is that this truth is universal and personal.
Don’t worry about who else is hearing this message,
You worry about how you are hearing it.
Don’t let the truths of our Lord’s return and the subsequent judgment
Be something you apply to someone else.
These truths are for you. They are for me.
Quit looking around and trying to figure out
If your neighbor has been a faithful slave.
You need to look in the mirror and see if you have.
Because when He returns
You will give an account for how you served.
And you should know that your level of exposure and knowledge will work against you on that day.
We know of the unreached people groups who have never heard the name of Jesus.
• If God will flog them and send them to hell for their failure to submit to Christ, how much more severely will He punish those who sat in church pews week after week hearing the truths of His word?
Hebrews 10:26-31 “For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a terrifying expectation of judgment and THE FURY OF A FIRE WHICH WILL CONSUME THE ADVERSARIES. Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know Him who said, “VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY.” And again, “THE LORD WILL JUDGE HIS PEOPLE.” It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”
SO THE POINT?
YOU TOO BE READY
It foolish notion to treat the Second Coming of our Lord
As some event with no relevance in your life.
Luke 12:40 “You too, be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not expect.”
